I'm Obsessed With Healthy, Radiant Skin—This Will Be My Summer Beauty Capsule
Summer looks a little bit murky right now. Given the current circumstances of the world, it's hard to say if we'll be allowed to romp around the beach or even throw a Fourth of July barbecue for a crowd larger than our roommates or pets. That said, not everything associated with summer has been turned upside down. Temperatures will rise, sweat will drip, and the sun will shine. Personally, I'm excited to embrace all of the aforementioned symptoms of summer, and I plan to squeeze every good vibe I possibly can from the season. So I'm readying my beauty arsenal and creating the ultimate health- and radiance-inducing summer beauty capsule. I'm also capitalizing on the savings still to be had thanks to Sephora's twice-yearly Savings Event.
If you're a Sephora Beauty Insider, you have until April 27 to stock your carts and receive 10% off your order. If you're a VIB Insider, you have until April 29 to receive 15% off, and if you're Rouge (lucky you!), you have until May 1 to get 20% off. (Use the code SPRINGSAVE at checkout!) We've already given you some great ideas on where to put your hard-earned money during the epic event, but if you're looking for the best skin and makeup formulas to load up on all the glow, brightening, and health perks this summer, look no further. Keep scrolling to shop Sephora's 2020 Spring Savings Event—and my ultimate summer beauty capsule—until your click-happy fingers drop.
The Skincare:
I know not everyone is a wipe person, but these cleansing cloths from Koh Gen Do are infused with the most luxurious soothing botanicals. They're great for a quick refresh post-workout, to remove stubborn makeup, or just to make your at-home skin routine feel more spa-like. I buy them in bulk.
Whenever I talk to dermatologists or facialists, they say the more basic your cleanser is, the better. (Think gentle, hydrating formulas that would nurture even the most sensitive of skin.) This is a lightweight gel that targets dryness, minimizes pore size, and soothes irritation or summer weather-induced redness.
To keep buildup and congestions at bay, experts typically say to incorporate some kind of exfoliating treatment into your routine two or three times a week—be it a tonic, peel pads, mask, or an acid-infused cleanser. Right now, I'm loving Goop's dual-action exfoliator that mimics an in-office microdermabrasion treatment. It's an investment, yes, but it will last you all through the summer and beyond. (A little goes a long way!)
Every summer, I feel like my pores are front and center (not what I'm going for). This new toner from the radiance masters at Glow Recipe is right up my alley. It boasts the brand's signature hero ingredient, watermelon, along with other key players like cactus water and PHA to keep everything bright, tight, and right.
I believe every summer beauty routine needs at least two different kinds of masks—one face and one sheet. For face, I swear by the mega-brightening powers of this cult-loved vitamin C pick from Tatcha. (The gorgeous packaging and stunning violet hue can't be beaten, either.)
For a sheet mask, I'm all about this stealthy brightening formula from Farmacy. Each application brims with nutritious addictions like purple broccoli, coconut water, and plant-based collagen. Basically, it's your favorite detoxifying juice on steroids.
I'm one of those people who really only feels like you need one serum in your life (especially come summer when I want my daily routine to feel completely uncomplicated). Laneige has this new glowy makeup serum, and I'm completely obsessed with getting my hands on it. It's chock-full dreamy ingredients like diamond mineral powder to strengthen summer makeup stamina and ceramide-rich hydration gel.
Sunscreen—don't leave home without it! I know SPF is probably the least exciting skincare staple to shop for, but if you're in need of a new holy-grail find that will keep your skin healthy and the finish of your complexion bright and radiant, look no further than Supergoop!'s fan favorite. This new iteration has the prettiest pearlescent finish—like the blur tool, bottled.
My skin can't handle anything too oil-laden or heavy once my apartment enters the hot-and-stuffy season. This featherlight gel-cream hybrid is formulated with all skin types in mind, drenches your skin hydration (sans grease), and even has a nice cooling effect to complement its glow effect. Oh, and if you DO opt for summer makeup, this moisturizer offers the ultimate glass-like base.
Blotting papers—a summer beauty capsule nonnegotiable. Shiseido is one of my favorite brands, and I'm already ordering a season's worth supply of its special, powder-coated blotting papers to nip (and nix!) that inevitable summer slick in the bud.
The Makeup:
Since my favorite glowy sunscreen from Supergoop! (see above) basically acts as a primer, I don't need anything else before starting on coverage. I've been obsessed with this new tinted SPF serum (you can never have enough protection!) since Ilia first launched it a few months back. I know it's cliché, but this really gives you that "your skin, but better" vibe most of us crave during the warm summer months, and it's also steeped with lovely skin-enhancing ingredients to boot, such as skin-drenching hyaluronic acid and tone-correcting niacinamide.
I'm always so surprised by how happy I am with the coverage I get from the Ilia serum, despite how lightweight it is. If I do need a little more aid in disguising some spots or shadows, though, I just touch up any areas in question with this handy, holy-grail pen from YSL. It also works as a no-fuss highlighter in a pinch.
Most people are anti-powder once the sun and heat hit yearlong highs, but I, for one, prefer not to melt into a Wicked Witch of the West puddle. Dusting a tiny bit of Charlotte Tilbury's pressed powder over my chin, T-zone, and under-eyes ensures my makeup stays on its best behavior. I choose this powder because it features a micro-fine powder that really helps blur and brighten for a filter-like finish.
Tower 28 just launched its most enchanting product yet—a skin-illuminating bronzer-balm situation that magically stays on your skin forever and blends superbly with anything and else you're wearing on your face—even if it's just sunscreen. Minimalists and maximalists alike will flip over this one, and it even boasts calming green tea extract and nourishing mango butter for an additional health boost.
People always seem to recommend creamy blush formulas for summer, but I've found too many liquid and creams on my face never bode well for longevity. I like to offset the dewiness of my concealer, bronzer, and foundation with a pretty powder blush and/or highlighter—the effect is so much more flattering IMHO. (I also find I break out less.) This season, I have this six-pan palette from Nars on deck. I swirl my brush through all the shades to get the perfect ration of pigment and luminosity.
For summer, I love a little soft and subtle gleam on my eyes. It doesn't get faster, prettier, clean, or lower-maintenance than Kosas's best-selling liquid shadow. Everyone I know owns at least one tube of the stuff. Supreme and Copper Halo are my faves.
This new, extremely buildable mascara from Gucci will last you a full 12 hours of wear with zero smudging or flakes. I'm obsessed, and that's all I have to say about it.
If you can't live without eyeliner's eye-changing, defining magic come summer, I recommend opting for a softer color than black, whether that's charcoal, brown, maroon, blue—the world is your oyster! Bring this handy liner along for the ride. It's waterproof, you can choose from pretty much every color under the sun, and it's also available in matte or shimmery finishes. All you have to do is pick your poison!
Most people are very particular about the vehicle of their preferred brow products. I've always been and always will be a pencil girl. I've tried them all, and this top-rated option from Benefit Cosmetics is one of the most precise pencils on the market. No matter the natural shape or texture of your brows, this brow product has true transformation powers.
I love full, juicy, slightly stained-with-color lips for my healthy summer beauty MO. But I also look for formulas touting skincare-grade ingredients to keep my chap-prone lips from looking malnourished. To round out my capsule, I have my eye on Clinique's new lip pops, which are bursting with pretty color and all the moisturizing and plumping additions my lips crave once summer rolls in. In fact, the strategic blend of vitamin E, shea butter, and other humectants lock in hydration for a whopping 72 hours.
Up next, I'm a Selective Beauty Shopper—Here's What I'd Buy from Sephora's Savings Event
Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over four years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor. She considers her day-to-day beauty aesthetic very low-maintenance and relies on staples like clear brow serum (from Kimiko!), Lawless's Lip Plumping Mask in Cherry Vanilla, and an eyelash curler. For special occasions or days when she's taking more meetings or has an event, she'll wear anything and everything from Charlotte Tilbury (the foundations are game-changing), some shimmer on her lids (Stila and Róen do it best), and a few coats of the best mascara-type product on earth, Surratt's Noir Lash Tint.
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