Published: August 15, 2025
Do you often find yourself dealing with redness and breakouts during the summer months? You’re not alone. Not only do those intense UV rays trigger inflammation, but your skin also produces more sweat and sebum in warmer weather. The increased humidity traps this in the skin and pushes it into the pores, meaning that breakouts quickly occur once bacteria enters into the mix as well.
The good news is that you’re not fighting a lost battle. Keep reading as CBGärdN explains what you need to do to eliminate the appearance of redness and breakouts in the summer months.
Keep Things Gentle When Cleansing
If the irritation and breakouts you’re facing are caused by excess sebum and sweat mingling with bacteria, then does this mean that you should be going in harder with your cleanser to get rid of all of those impurities?
While this may make sense in theory, it’s definitely not advice that you should be following. Doing so will only have the opposite effect. Sure, aggressively cleansing will remove sweat, sebum, and bacteria for a while, but it will also cause long-term damage to your skin’s natural protective barrier. Over time, this will only make your redness and breakouts worse, while also giving you several more skin concerns to deal with.
Instead, while it may seem counterintuitive, keep things gentle when cleansing. Yes, you’ll need a powerful cleanser, but don’t go for a formula that’s filled with sulfates and other skin-stripping ingredients. A gentle foaming cleanser, like the CB Silk Facial Foaming Purifier, will do a great job without causing any damage to your complexion.
If, after a very hot and sweaty day, your skin doesn’t feel quite clean enough after cleansing, consider double cleansing. It’s a technique that lends itself particularly well to the summer months as it provides a more thorough cleanse than cleansing just once, but so long as you stick to gentle formulas, it won’t harm your skin barrier.
Find a Sunscreen That Doesn’t Aggravate Your Skin
UV rays are one of the biggest contributing factors to summertime skin redness. As soon as they hit your skin, they damage certain skin cells and trigger an inflammatory response. This often manifests as redness. It’s a sign of sun damage, which will only worsen with more UV exposure.
If you suffer from rosacea, then the redness that comes from this skin condition will also worsen when your skin is exposed to the sun.
This is why one of the most important steps that you can take to restore normality to your complexion is to be diligent about sun protection. However, in order for this to happen, you’ll need to find a sunscreen that doesn’t aggravate your skin, which is often easier said than done!
The key is to look for a product that has been formulated with a few complexion-soothing ingredients. Take the CB Multi-Active Moisturizer With SPF 30, for example. Aloe vera leaf extract, green tea leaf extract, nettle leaf extract, and vitamin E are all known for calming the feeling of inflammation in the skin and balancing out the look of redness. Being an SPF moisturizer, it feels silkier and lighter than a traditional sunscreen. This usually means that the skin is much happier to accept it.
Cool Your Skin Down
When soaring temperatures are taking a toll on your skin, one way to counter the subsequent appearance of redness and breakouts is to cool your skin down. How? The simplest way is with a cold compress. Lay one over any irritated areas of skin for a while, and your skin should start to feel calmer and look more balanced.
There are also certain skincare products out there that are designed to have a cooling effect on the skin. Four of them can be found in the innovative Collagen Cooling Set – a skincare collection designed to leave the skin feeling relaxed and chilled out.
The first product in this set is the HydroCollagen Lift Mask. With peptides, sodium hyaluronate, niacinamide, and collagen, it leaves the skin feeling replenished and strengthened. The Collagen Plumping Mist, which, again, combines niacinamide, collagen, and sodium hyaluronate with a few other hydrating ingredients, can be used alongside the mask as well as a standalone face mist/essence.
The final topical product in this set is the Advanced Soothing Cool Cream. It contains a few gentle cooling ingredients, like Menthyl Lactate. They don’t irritate the skin in the way that menthol does, which is what’s usually used in products designed to cool down a heated complexion.
This set is completed with a cooling globe. If you’ve never used one before, you’ll love how quickly it soothes your complexion. Store it in the fridge for a couple of hours before rolling it over your skin and indulging in the utter bliss it imparts!
Add Salicylic Acid to Your Skincare Routine
Heat-triggered breakouts can be difficult to contend with, which is why prevention should always be your focus. In this case, prevention means ensuring that your pores don’t end up clogged – this then means that pimples won’t develop.
How can you do this? While there are several skincare ingredients out there that can help with this, salicylic acid has proven, time and time again, to be one of the most effective. Numerous studies confirm that it helps to unclog pores, which is why it has long since been a go-to ingredient for those who suffer from seasonal breakouts.
How should you add salicylic acid to your skincare routine? Many opt for exfoliators that contain the ingredient. However, if your skin is feeling sensitive, exfoliating with salicylic acid may aggravate the redness. Instead, you might fare better by sticking to a gentle exfoliator, like the CB Microexfoliant Peel, and using another salicylic acid product, such as the CB Rehydration Cream. In addition to preventing the appearance of clogged pores, this cream also leaves the skin feeling deeply hydrated. It has also been formulated with several antioxidants, enabling it to combat the visibility of sun damage.
Seek Out Skincare That Soothes Your Complexion
Redness is a sign that your skin is feeling irritated and inflamed. Fortunately, there are plenty of skincare ingredients that are known for countering this, meaning that these are the ingredients you should be adding to your skincare routine.
Aloe vera is one. Suitable for all skin types, this botanical has been used for centuries to calm the complexion and soothe the look of redness. Thanks to its hydrating capabilities, it also works to counter the moisture loss that tends to occur when the skin is feeling aggravated. You’ll find aloe vera in several CBGärdN skincare products, including the Pure Soothing Eye Jelly Masks Limited Edition.
Niacinamide is another ingredient worth using if redness is a regular problem for you. Also known as vitamin B3, it’s a superstar at leaving the skin feeling balanced, as well as so much stronger. We’ve already featured a couple of products that contain the ingredient, but the CB Facial Toner is another one. This formula enables you to apply niacinamide directly to freshly cleansed skin, ensuring that your skin is able to reap full benefits from the ingredient.
Keep Your Skin Hydrated
It’s so easy for the skin to become dehydrated in the summer months. While many associate dehydration with dryness and flakiness, it can manifest in other ways too, such as in the form of redness and breakouts. The more hydrated your skin is, the less you’ll have to deal with these issues.
So, how can you keep your skin hydrated when the summer weather is constantly trying to dehydrate it?
The most effective way is to layer hydration onto your skin. Apply just one hydrating product, and it will quickly evaporate away. However, sandwich those hydrating products onto your skin and you’ll be able to provide long-lasting hydration.
Start by using a hydrating toner after cleansing, like the CBGärdN toner we featured above. Then, apply a hydrating serum to your skin. Of course, you’ll need to make sure that you pick a lightweight formula so as not to clog your pores. A serum like the CB Replenishing Serum would be perfect. Then, finish off with a hydrating but, again, lightweight moisturizer.
Use Clay to Absorb Excess Oil
Another great way to tackle the appearance of summer breakouts is with a clay mask. Clay is loved worldwide for how it absorbs excess oil from the skin. This then means that your pores are less likely to end up blocked, which prevents breakouts from forming.
The tricky aspect of using clay is if your skin is also sensitive. Some clay masks can have an overly drying effect on the skin, which you definitely don’t want!
The solution is to pick a clay mask that also hydrates your skin, just like the CB Göld Imperial Transforming Masque from the CBGärdN CB Göld Collection. This formula contains two types of clay, but they’re balanced out with hydrating and complexion-soothing ingredients. Seaweed extract, for instance, is incredibly hydrating, while honey and hemp seed oil have intense moisturizing properties. Panthenol, a vitamin that’s known for healing the look of redness, can be found in this mask too, alongside a long list of antioxidant-rich plant extracts. Use this mask once a week and you’ll be able to prevent the appearance of breakouts while also leaving irritated skin feeling calmer and happier.
Summary
Redness and breakouts can be frustrating to deal with, especially at the height of the summer season. With the heat making everything so much worse, skincare can feel like a never-ending battle.
Follow the tips that we’ve shared above, however, and things will quickly change…for the better! You’ll be able to keep your skin looking calm and clear, no matter how unbearably hot the weather gets.
Click here to boost your summer skincare routine with more bestselling products from CBGärdN.