5 easy ways to hang onto your gorgeous summer glow (all year long)

Ah, summer.

The season where everything looks better – including ourselves. Thanks to weekends on the beach or at the park, loads of relaxation and lots of fun in the sun, skin always looks its best by the end of summer. Luckily, that sun-kissed glow doesn’t have to go away, despite the change in season. Keen to keep your gorgeous summer glow going? Here are five easy ways to do just that: 1. Add some glow-boosting foods to your diet You know what they say – you are what you eat. And when it comes to having radiant skin, well, then what you put into your body every day matters a lot. For autumn, opt for foods packed with skin-nourishing nutrients like beta-carotene, found in carrots, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes, that can all help your complexion out. Beta.carotene is a strong red-orange pigment that can provide your skin with a radiant glow, and is also an antioxidant that can help your body fight UV damage. 2. Dry brush every morning Dry brushing your skin is said to break down fat in toxin-laden tissue (basically cellulite) and improve the body’s lymphatic draining system and blood flow. What it also does, is help get rid of dead skin. Get yourself a natural bristle brush (some use a hemp mitt), and, using long and upward movements, start at your feet and work your way up, spending extra time around your thighs and bottom. Brush your abdomen (great for digestion) and arms, back, and (gently) chest and breasts. Finish with a shower – and if you really want to tighten your skin, blast your whole body with first cold then hot water. 3. DIY a salt-scrub To boost circulation further (great circulation equals more glowing skin and a more even tan, ya'll) and prep your skin for some glow-enhancing fake tan, give your arms and legs a salt scrub – it could not be easier to make. Just moisten a cup of sea salt with water (or olive oil) until it forms a sticky paste, then massage into the skin, up and down the arm and legs in circular movements. Now, just rinse, pat dry with a soft towel and apply body lotion generously. 4. Fake it, baby There is no denying that bronzed skin just look better, healthier, and even gives the illusion of being slimmer. So this autumn, extend that summer glow with a little bit of store-bought help. Once a week (Tanning Thursday, anyone?), make it your business to get your tan on – you will feel a million times for glowy, trust us. But for that natural summer look, make sure you do it right. First, shower and shave in the morning, to give your skin a chance to calm down and your pores time to close before you apply tan. Come evening, strip down to your underpants (or skip them altogether) and first of all, apply a little bit of body lotion to your elbows, ankles, knees and hands – which will ensure that the tan doesn't get too dark and streaky here where your skin tends to be drier. Second, put on a tanning mitt and get to work, starting from your feet and work your way upwards, doing your arms and hands last. Then, make sure you stay in your bathroom (or walk around naked) until your skin is completely dry before putting on your jim-jams. In the morning, shower off any excess tan and voila; you are bronzed and gorgeous for the week ahead. 5. Keep up Your Daily SPF habits We are all getting pretty good at protecting our skin in the summertime, but what do you do once summer has come and gone? Stash your SPF away until next year? Not so fast, my friend. Certainly not if you want your complexion to look your best, and avoid premature ageing.