Surviving 35°C+ Summers Like a Pro

Natasha’s sun-safe fashion, smart SPF strategy, and why heat is the true enemy of great skin.

Going on a summer holiday? Let Natasha be your guide. After spending multiple high-humidity, 35°C+ summers in Taipei, the ultimate stress test for both SPF and sanity, she’s perfected the art of looking fresh, composed, and (somewhat) unbothered by the heat. From UPF fashion to sunscreen layering, here’s everything she’s learned (and lived) to help you protect your skin on your summer getaway.

Natasha doing the most to protect her skin in the aggressive Taipei heat

The Real Villain of Summer Skin: Heat

When your upper lip starts sweating, that means things are getting real

We talk a lot about UV, but heat is the silent saboteur.

In high temperatures, your body produces more melanin-stimulating signals, like VEGF and inflammatory cytokines. If you're prone to melasma, PIH (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation), or even just dullness after a breakout, this can fast-track your skin into long-term discolouration.

Heat also activates MMPs, enzymes that break down your collagen and elastin matrix. In other words: fine lines, loss of firmness, and that “tired skin” look.

For East Asian skin, where melanocytes are more reactive and pigment sits deeper in the dermis, this matters even more. Once a spot appears, it takes months to fade.

SPF Strategy

SPF 50 is the bare minimum. A triple-layered system is best:

1. Sunscreen base: Lightweight, breathable, with PA++++ protection (Natasha swears by this SPF)

2. Tinted Mineral SPF: Reapplied throughout the day, especially in high-sweat zones like the upper lip and forehead, using clean fingers. Critical for those that have hyperpigmentation

3. SPF mist: For touch-ups every 2 hours, when your fingers aren’t clean

UPF: The Other Half of the Equation

UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) clothing blocks UV in a way that SPF can’t, without sweating off or needing to be reapplied. In Natasha's travel wardrobe:

• A high-collar, long-sleeved UPF 50 shirt

• A UV umbrella (small, chic, and folds into a shoulder bag)

• A wide-brim hat with built-in UPF lining

• Lightweight linen trousers in deeper shades (yes, the colour does matter)

Seeking Shade

UPF 50 wide brimmed hat and ice matcha lattes

From 11AM to 3PM, UV rays are at their peak. Most sunscreen formulas, even the best ones, begin to degrade after 2–3 hours, and that’s if you’re not sweating, touching your face, or wearing makeup.

Take the shaded route. Walk on the sun-protected side of the street. Wait indoors with an iced matcha latte if the sun is too aggressive. 

Summer Treatments

You don't have to stop treatments in the summer, you have to be intentional about how to plan them around your trips away.

These are our summer-safe favourites, especially for melanin-rich, pigment-prone skin:

• Polynucleotides: Incredible for reducing inflammation and evening out tone, no downtime, no heat reactivity

• Profhilo & Seventy Hyal: Deep hydration that supports collagen without triggering sensitivity

• Medical Microneedling + Korean skin boosters: Effective with post-care that prioritises cooling and pigmentation control

The Takeaway

That photo of Natasha in Taipei, dressed like a walking sunblock ad, isn’t about perfectionism. It’s about skin longevity.

You can wear the skincare. You can book the treatments. But if you’re not protecting your skin in summer, you’re working against yourself.

So here’s Natasha's summer mantra:

SPF, UPF, shade, repeat.