Let these skincare brands handle your tropical climate woes. No heatwave, tropical showers, or sweaty days are going to stop you from taking care of your skin. (Left: Image by @mylumibeauty. Right: Image by @ultravioletteau.)
Sipping piña coladas and getting caught in the rain all sound well and good until you’re hit with the reality of a tropical paradise. The blazing sun, sweating in odd places, and a shiny forehead—all before you’ve even walked out the door.
There aren’t many skincare products made for the distinct challenges of tropical weather, but by understanding your skin’s needs, you can create a routine suitable for your environment.
When it comes to the wet and dry months of the tropics, lightweight cleansers and moisturisers, sun protection, gentle exfoliants, and cooling ingredients are your best bet. Here are some of our favourite skincare brands to shop from.
1. Joi
Starting off with a homegrown brand, Joi specialises in formulating face and body care products made with 100% natural ingredients. They are best known for their deodorant roll-ons and have recently introduced a selection of deodorant creams which are better suited for humid days.
When your skin is exposed to constant heat and rain, the best thing you can do is retain moisture through gentle cleansing while managing excess oils. Joi’s skincare line of toners, jelly cleansers, and lightweight serums are the best additions to your tropical-friendly skincare routine.
2. Ultra Violette
Here in Malaysia, we’re blessed with sunshine all year round, but over exposure can lead to sunburns, premature ageing of the skin, skin cancer, and damage to the skin’s barrier. Sunscreen should be a staple in your skincare regimen, and no one makes it quite like Ultra Violette.
Helping you fight off the sun’s harsh UV rays with their broad spectrum “Skinscreen”, a sunscreen that incorporates skincare ingredients, they’ve designed a wide range of products for your lips, body, and face. The facial sunscreen looks great on its own or over makeup and suits various skin tones.
Shop at Sephora
3. Chuck’s
Forget diamonds—face masks and cooling toner pads are a girl’s best friend when it comes to heat and humidity. Pamper your skin with Chuck’s Self Love Moisturising Honey Face Mask and the All Good Soothing Toner Pads. Made in Korea for the Malaysian market, their products are inventive while tackling the everyday needs of your skin.
For a travel-friendly moisturiser, try the Better Body Butter Stick. Made with olive oil, sunflower oil, lavender oil, and nine different peptides, it is the perfect nourishing skin product to have on the go.
4. Pixi Beauty
The key to looking fresh all day in high humidity is to have less product on your skin. Thick layers of cream and makeup are likely to melt off your skin by midday, clog your pores, and cause breakouts. Pixi Beauty is the perfect fit when looking for skin products suitable for the tropical climate.
Although their products are not specifically formulated to combat humidity, their Rose Tonic, Glow Mud Mask, and hydrating eye patches are excellent for soothing, nourishing, exfoliating, and calming the skin all year.
Shop at Sephora
5. Handmade Heroes
For lovers of all-natural skincare products, Handmade Heroes is here to save the day. Made in Malaysia using plant-based ingredients, their products are made in small batches ensuring the freshness and effectiveness of each product.
Swap out your old skin-stripping makeup removers for their Oat Mighty Cleansing Balm, a gentle alternative your skin will thank you for. If the heatwave is leaving your skin bone dry, The Ultimate Snow Shroom Hyaluronic Acid Serum may be the hydration boost your skin needs.
6. Sand & Sky
When a skincare brand says they are not one for the 10-step skincare routine, we trust them! Sand & Sky is an Australian skincare brand using Aussie botanicals that have been used for many years in treating and healing the skin.
They are best known for their Australian Pink Clay Mask. You’d also want to try their Tasmanian Spring Water Intense Hydrating Mask which boosts and maintains moisture in the skin to strengthen your skin barrier, decrease redness, and improve skin texture.
Their products are made simple yet effective because they believe Aussie girls would much rather be at the beach than in the bathroom powering through a hefty skincare regimen. Now that’s an ethos the Malaysian girlies can get with!
7. Lumi Beauty
If beauty is skin deep, it makes sense to eat our skincare just as much as we apply them. Lumi Beauty’s range of topical skincare and beauty supplements is the perfect combo for glowing from within. They currently have two types of supplements, one for the morning and one for the night.
The NMN Rise & Shine is a tropical fruit-flavoured powder sachet that can be consumed directly to prevent hyperpigmentation, boost energy, and combat free radicals. The nighttime supplement, NMN Rest & Glow is blueberry juice-flavoured and recharges your body overnight by improving your sleep quality and reducing daytime fatigue. It also contains tomato extract which has anti-ageing properties.
*Consult your doctor before taking additional supplements, especially if you have underlying health conditions, are taking medications, or are pregnant.
Shop at Zalora
