Credits: photography Justin Brimacombe makeup Karin Shoji model Sari Mercer at Liz Bell Agency hair Chris Deagle Moods salon
I know, despite the sunscreen, reapplying and trying to keep cool, you still got burnt. No worries though, here at Musk Magazine, we got the solution for you. Here are some handy tips on how to treat a sunburn.
1)Recognize it!!!!! Before the peeling and blisters comes that deep brown, hot pink or worse yet, lobster red that just isn't natural. Do you smell chicken? Not a good sign. A sunburn doesn't reach it's maximum intensity until 12-24 hours after exposure, so after you've been in the sun a bit, go check yourself out in a mirror, if these colors are staring back at you-get inside. There are several degrees of sunburn:
first-you've just burnt the top layer of the skin, characteristically you have red and painful skin, with peeling
second-you've penetrated a little furthur into the second layer of the skin, so you generally have red painful skin with blisters
third-deep penetration of the tissue into the underlying skin, so you get all the symptoms of the second degree burn, with white patches. Hmmm, maybe you should see a doctor.
2)Cool off. After getting out of the sun, you can do several things to help cool off the area and minimize inflammation:
-apply a cold compress or take a cool bath, hold for at least a few minutes
-apply a soothing creme, preferably something with aloe vera or (0.5-1.0 %) hydrocortizone. Aloe has a cooling affect on the skin, hydrocortizone will help minimize swelling and pain, as well as speed up healing
-take an anti inflammatory, like ibuprofen or aspirin for a few days as instructed on the label, until pain, redness and soreness subside
Some other helpful hints:
-avoid after sun products that contain the ingredients that end with caine (like benzocaine) they can actually irritate your skin more and even cause an allergic reaction
-don't pop your blisters, they act as a protective layer, by popping them you can slow down your healing
-when you start to peel, your new skin may be irregular in color or pattern for a period, be expecting this
