As fall sets in, you notice that your skin and hair have gone from sun-kissed to sun-stressed. “When a patient comes to me in September, the most common complaints are brown spots, broken capillaries and fine lines,” says Rebecca Fitzgerald, M.D., a Los Angeles dermatologist. And while a season of sun, sea and chlorine has left your skin dehydrated and blotchy, your hair is likely to look fried and lifeless. “Hair needs extra TLC at the end of summer,” says Los Angeles hairstylist Rebecca DuMoulin, “especially if it’s color treated.”

Here are the top fixes for summer’s beauty blunders; some you can do on your own and others with a little help from the pros.

How to Get Your Glow Back
Your dermatologist can help erase sun damage by literally shining a light on the problem. Intense pulsed light treatments (also known as IPL, Fotofacial or Photofacial) deliver high-intensity bursts of light to areas of pigment that don’t match your regular skin tone, such as red, tan and brown spots as well as tiny broken capillaries. The melanin in those areas absorbs the light, and over the next few days, the spots darken and then flake off, replaced by new even-toned skin tissue. (IPL, however, may be less effective on skin that already contains a lot of pigment, so women with darker skin tones should discuss with their dermatologist whether the treatment is right for them.)

Another option your doctor may suggest is a light chemical peel that uses salicylic or glycolic acid to exfoliate the top layers of skin, helping to slough away discoloration, fine wrinkles and coarse texture. Your doctor may also write a prescription for a topical retinoid -- a vitamin A derivative -- that smoothes the skin and evens out discoloration by speeding cell turnover. “The only caveat with retinoids is that the gain is long haul and not overnight. Give them a few months,” advises Fitzgerald.

Skin Fixes From the Drugstore
Over-the-counter retinoids are lower in strength than their prescription sisters, but still highly effective. Look for the word “retinol” on the product’s label. And while nonprescription retinoids are less likely than prescription formulas to irritate your skin, they can still cause dryness, so start by using your new cream every other night.

Other great drugstore ingredients to look for are AHA’s (alpha hydroxy acids, commonly listed as glycolic or salicylic on the ingredients list). Like the chemical peels you’d receive in a doctor’s office, these products work to exfoliate the top damaged layers of skin.

Moisture and Shine Repair for Hair
“End-of-summer hair looks dry because the cuticle on the hair shaft isn’t lying flat, causing strands to lose moisture and gloss,” says DuMoulin. A trim at a salon is the only way to get rid of split or ragged ends, but there are also deep-conditioning treatments available that help the scalp and flood your hair with moisturizers. These deep-conditioning treatments smooth the scale-like cells of the cuticle, instantly boosting shine. At home, switch to moisturizing conditioners and fake shine with a silicone spray. Silicone gives hair an instant gloss and tames flyaways while you are babying your hair back from summer damage.

Reversing Hair’s Brassiness and Blahs
After months of sun exposure, hair that has been colored often looks brassy and dull. “Women who color their hair dark brown or red suffer the most because these colors really fade in the sun,” says DuMoulin. A toner can help add some extra depth to your hue. While blondes don’t suffer from fading in the summer, too much sun “and their hair looks one-dimensional,” says DuMoulin. One solution is to add some lowlights to give your light tresses more depth.

You’re itching to get out of your hair rut -- same color, same cut for years -- and into a dramatic new do. Before committing to an extreme hair makeover, most experts agree you should start with small, well-considered steps rather than all at once, and leave yourself open to some unexpected discoveries.

“I love when women are open to experimenting,” says Jon Patrick, a Beverly Hills colorist and stylist, “but I want the risks to be well-calculated.”

Here’s advice from the pros on how to achieve a hair makeover that will turn heads without leaving your own head spinning.

Growing out Hair
If you’ve decided to go from chin length to shoulder grazing, don’t kiss your stylist goodbye for the next year. Remember, hair grows from the scalp -- not the ends -- says Michael Shaun Corby, a hair guru who primps runway models for New York’s Fashion Week. “Left on its own, short hair will grow into something resembling a mullet in the back and unwieldy feathers in the front,” he says. 

The most graceful way to grow your hair out is to establish what Corby calls “a clean perimeter,” with a one-length bob that falls somewhere between the jawline and the middle of the neck. See your stylist every six weeks to trim and maintain that line while the underneath layers catch up. If you’re growing out bangs, keep one quarter as fringe, while your stylist begins incorporating the remaining bangs into the bob.

Cutting Hair
Ask yourself what look you’re really going for. “Sometimes women don’t really want short hair,” says Patrick. “What they want is the appearance, at least now and then, of short hair. If you think that may be the case, have your stylist show you how to put your hair up in a chignon or into a looped bun.” If you’re going short for the sake of convenience, keep in mind that a short do might actually require more upkeep since you won’t have the option of pulling your hair back into a ponytail or bun. You’ll also need trims every four to six weeks to maintain the shape. 

Bring photos to show your stylist what you mean by “short-ish” or “a few inches.” And before you commit to a new style, “ask your hairdresser what it’s going to take for you to duplicate the salon results on your own,” say Damien Miano of the Miano Viel Salon in New York City. If you have thick, wavy hair, for example, you’ll need to log a long session with your hair dryer and flatiron to get it to bend into a Victoria Beckham bob.

Transform Your Color With No Regrets
Remember when Cameron Diaz, Reese Witherspoon and Gwyneth Paltrow all became brunettes a few years ago? “Suddenly I had all these blondes who said they wanted to go dark,” says colorist Andrea Sher of Anagen Salon in New York City. “I’d say, ‘No, what you really want is a change.’”

An all-at-once change doesn’t allow for incremental and dazzling shifts. A blonde who thought she wanted to go mink brown may feel reinvented with a few caramel streaks, while a brunette dreaming of Gwen Stefani platinum may discover she looks fabulous in Debra Messing auburn. “When women say they want a dramatic color change, it’s usually because they want to brighten their look,” explains Viel. “Sometimes the solution can be as simple as adding lowlights to hair that has been over-highlighted.”

Schedule a consultation with your colorist to discuss flattering shades for your skin tone. If you want to go lighter, ask how many shades your hair can be lifted or bleached without causing damage and how many visits it will take. Finally, be sure to talk about upkeep. “Any change that takes you more than two or three shades lighter or darker is going to require a lot of maintenance,” warns Viel. “And straight hair will need more frequent touchups than curly hair because when roots grow in, the line of demarcation is much more obvious.”

One of the best ways to stretch your getting-gorgeous dollars is by coloring your hair at home. If that sounds scary, relax: Today’s drugstore hair coloring products are gentler than ever and loaded with botanicals and conditioners. Following a few easy steps, you can use them to get natural-looking color as well as body and shine. 

Here are five secrets to foolproof at-home color.

At-home Coloring Secret No. 1: Stay within your color range.
Go only one or two shades lighter or darker than your starting hair color (the color your hair is at the moment). You don’t want to make extreme color changes on your own, because hidden beneath the shade that’s apparent to the naked eye are underlying pigments -- from pale yellow to dark red-brown. When hair is dyed, those pigments take center stage. “I can put the exact same color on seven medium brunettes, and they’ll each end up with different results because every woman's hair takes the color in its own way” says Philip Pelusi, who owns salons in Pittsburgh and Manhattan. That's called individuality, and it's something we all want to celebrate.

However, when you’re going from brunette to Lady Gaga platinum or vice versa, you first need to prep the hair by filling in the pigments that are being removed, or by removing pigments before depositing a darker color. This is what’s known as a “double process,” and it’s something you want to leave to the pros to avoid ending up with an orange or green hue.

At-home Coloring Secret No. 2: Choose the right formula.
Start out with a clear understanding of what you want to achieve, and that will lead you to the appropriate type of product.

• Glosses and glazes work in just three to five minutes to boost color by adding tone, shine and vibrancy. They last up to six shampoos. If your hair is highlighted, opt for a clear gloss that will add shine without depositing a hint of color that can affect the tone of those finely calibrated streaks.
• Semipermanent color contains pigments that coat the outside of the hair fiber and fade after six to 12 shampoos. Semipermanent color will only darken the tone of your hair and cover a sprinkling of gray.
• Permanent color contains ingredients that open the hair’s cuticle, allowing the color to penetrate the shaft. It can lighten or darken hair and will provide full gray coverage. After four to six weeks, you’ll need a touch-up to cover showing roots.

At-home Coloring Secret No. 3: Select the right shade.
Josh Wood, a celebrated London hair colorist who looks after some of the most pampered locks in the world, has done many corrections on at-home dye jobs gone wrong. “Typically, women have simply chosen the wrong color because they haven’t identified their skin tone, and skin tone and hair color go hand in hand,” he says. “The right hair color will bring your skin to life, lending it that beautiful luminescent glow.”

You want to balance warm skin tones with cool hair color (look for champagne, ash and beige shades) and cool skin tones with warm hair color (look for cocoa, pecan, caramel, bronze, honey and chestnut shades). “The foundation you wear will give you a good indication of whether you’re cool or warm skin tone,” says Wood. “If you’re still not sure, ask for a color consultation at a cosmetics counter.”

At-home Coloring Secret No. 4: Read the hair color box.
The product box is crammed with information to help you make the right buying decision. Pay attention to the language: Words such as “bold” and “brilliant” indicate you’ll get more dramatic results than a natural “true-to-you” color. Study the color chart on the back of the box as a guide to the results you can expect, and read the ingredients list for things such as botanicals to nourish the hair.

At-home Coloring Secret No. 5: Don’t skip the strand test
Snipping and dyeing a few strands will give you a precise preview of how the color will look on your locks and how long you need to keep the product in your hair if you’re covering resistant grays. Remember, don’t start the timer until you’ve finished applying the color to your hair, and keep the product on for the entire suggested time.

Unlike the boyish hairdos worn by professional golfers, their counterparts on the tennis court are known for their long, beautiful, healthy hair. They are the Rapunzels of sport, with swishing blond braids and ponytails that add a feminine touch to their athletic bodies. Some players even incorporate primping into their service motions: Witness the way Maria Sharapova tucks imaginary wisps behind each ear, despite the barrettes already pinning things down.

Healthy Hair Tips From Center Court
It’s no surprise that the best tennis players in the world prefer their hair long: They’re still girls at heart, in their late teens and 20s. (Thirty is retirement age in this sport.) Since the pros spend most of the day in workout clothes, they love fashion, dressing up at night and letting their hair down -- literally, by unwinding and releasing the braids into sheets of shiny waves.

We saw a lot of gorgeous hair at this year’s BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., but one player in the top 10 stood out: 29-year-old Elena Dementieva, the Moscow-born, Olympic gold medalist. Her dark-blond, sun-streaked hair was striking because of its healthy shine and chic styling -- pulled back in a sleek braid tucked into the strap of her visor. Except for the visor part, it was a look straight from the Paris runways this spring.

We asked Dementieva how her hair stays in such good condition despite the rigors of sun, sweat and scrunchies. Since she spends 11 months of the year on the road with the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, she should know.

Dementieva's top tip? She doesn’t settle for ordinary cleansers on the road. “I never use what’s in the hotel bathroom,” she says. “I carry my own shampoo, cream rinse and conditioner, and if I run out, I’ll buy more in that city. I wish I could do at-home deep-conditioning treatments, but when we’re flying from country to country, with practice followed by matches followed by more practice, there is no rest.”

As for Dementieva’s stylish updos on the court, it turns out that necessity is the mother of invention. “If the weather is temperate, I prefer to wear a ponytail,” she says. “But if it’s very hot, I do the braid, which keeps me cooler, and I tuck it up. But the reason for either style is the same: to keep my hair out of my face.”

How to Join the Braid Parade

• After shampooing, apply a serum and a mousse from roots to end. The serum delivers smooth, sleek shine while the mousse supplies hold. Blow-dry.
• Sweep hair up into a high ponytail, secured on the crown of the head with a snag-free elastic band.
• Braid the ponytail tightly and neatly, securing with a second elastic band an inch from the end.
• Loop the braid up and under, and pin it into place, leaving the tail of the braid free.
• For extra drama on a special occasion, snip a tiny amount of hair at the ends to give a blunted appearance.

As a judge on “Dancing with the Stars,” Carrie Ann Inaba shrewdly assesses spins and steps. As host of TV Guide network’s red carpet coverage for Hollywood’s award shows, she chats up celebs about coiffures and couture. And on Sunday, March 7, she’ll be reporting from the most glamorous walkway of them all: the Academy Awards pre-show. Between fittings and hair appointments, Inaba shares the ticktock of how she’s getting gorgeous for the big event.

Diet

Back when I was a dancer and had to fit into tiny costumes, I’d go on really strict diets -- including fasts and liquid diets -- before a performance. Now, at 42 years old, I don’t feel the need to have a bathing suit-ready body under my dress. Still, I totally cut out chips, because the salt makes me puffy and zaps my energy, and I added more fruit and vegetables to my diet.

Workout
I always amp up my fitness regimen for the Oscars by doing double workouts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. One workout is always a cardio dance class called Drenched. If I’m really going for it, I’ll do back-to-back classes, which I love, but that means I’ll be toast be midafternoon. Or I’ll follow Drenched with some Pilates at home or a Wii Fit session.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I’ll do just one of these workouts, and on weekends I always go for a long bike ride along the beach. I’m not working out to shed pounds -- though losing an inch or two is always nice -- but for muscle tone and energy. My favorite part to work on is my back, because so many of today’s dresses are backless. I think it’s sexy and feminine if you can see the outlines of a woman’s muscles when she moves.

Skin
I think if your skin is touchable, soft and moist, that really reflects an inner beauty and health. To get ready for the Oscars, I start on that final Friday, my big grooming day. I’ll also get a spray-on tan from the pro who tans everyone for “Dancing with the Stars” and knows how to make it look natural. Up next? A relaxing pedicure for open-toed shoes. One thing I can skip is getting my brows waxed. When I was on tour with Madonna in ’93, the makeup artist pretty much plucked all of my eyebrows out for the skinny-brow look of the time, and they’ve never really grown back.

Hair
I color my hair a week before the Oscars to give the color enough time to settle in. I do a root touch-up and both highlights and lowlights: The darker tones of the lowlights balance out the highlights and give my hair weight and depth. After all, I’m Asian, so there should be dark hair in there somewhere! I’ll likely also have a trim too -- something I do every other month -- and keep it well-conditioned to add shine. I cut bangs last year, and now I’m trying to grow them out because I’m doing a lot of updos on both “Dancing with the Stars” and on the red carpet. As flattering as they may look, you’re very limited in what you can do when you have bangs.

The Day of
My team and I gather at a Hollywood hotel in the late morning. It takes me two hours to get into hair and makeup and get dressed, and we go live from the red carpet at 3 p.m.

I start my preparation with a full breakfast at about 10 a.m., which includes two scrambled eggs, turkey bacon, some hash browns, grapefruit juice and coffee. You can’t be in a hunger cloud on the red carpet; my brain needs to be working at full capacity. I’ll also work out for 30 minutes, doing some jumping jacks to get my energy going and a little Pilates and stretching. I have an inversion board, so I’ll hang upside down for a few minutes to get the blood circulating to my head. 

Then I’m ready to hit the red carpet and start my celebrity interviews.