If there is one thing I have learned in my time as a beauty editor, it is this: A great formula does not a successful beauty product make. It’s painful to admit, but believe me when I say that the secret to a successful beauty launch is rarely down to whether or not the product actually works. Once upon a time, the success of a beauty launch was dependent on huge advertising budgets and maybe just a little bit on how good the formula was. Now, however, things are even shallower. In a world where social media runs the game, aesthetics come first, and it is with that shift that my job as a beauty editor has also changed.
Whereas it was once the role of a beauty editor to spread the news and wax lyrical about new launches, now with the power of social media, the job of providing the beauty news bulletins has become defunct. Instead, now I like to think that much of my job is to break through the social media hype blanket and lay it down straight because sometimes people just don’t want to pay £50 for a pretty face cream that doesn’t do the job. So while I must apologise for what was an incredibly long introduction, I beg that you keep all of this in mind as you read what I want to say next: Summer Fridays is without a doubt one of my most-loved skincare brands.
Yes, you read that right. Summer Fridays, the brand behind that powder-blue tube of face mask, is what I believe to be one of the very best skincare brands out there right now. Sure, there’s no denying that the pretty pastel packaging is an absolute wonder to behold, but I promise you there is so much more to this beloved Instagram brand.
When Kim Kardashian first shared the news that she had been using Summer Fridays Jet Lag Face Mask back in 2018, waiting lists around the world filled up with names of beauty buffs itching to get their hands on a tube. After selling out multiple times, the joy that was the Jet Lag Mask was then thrust upon every Instagram user out there, whether they asked for it or not, in the form of pretty flat lays and well-composed product shots. And just like that, a social media star was born.
Back in 2018 when I was first introduced to bought every single product the brand had to offer at that time, which at the time was just three glow-inducing face masks.
Upon trying the masks for the first time, I was absolutely sure that these products were not just some sort of celebrity-propelled fad. My skin slurped up the super-hydrating Jet Lag Mask (£49) like it hadn’t had a drink in a year, while the plumping abilities of the R+R Mask (£49) rained on just about every other mask in my collection.
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley counts Summer Fridays Super Amino Gel Cleanser as one of her shower favourites and is "obsessed" with Lip Butter Balm.
Stamping all over every preconception that I had about a natural, vegan beauty line (founded by a pair of California-based influencers, no less), Summer Fridays gave me everything I never knew I needed from a face mask. The brand is also loved by the likes of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley , Jessica Alba and pretty much all my beauty editor peers.
Jessica Alba has previously taken to Instagram to declare that Jet Lag mask "feels great on the skin."
Now, whenever my skin is having a down day, the very first thing I reach for is one of my Summer Fridays masks. After just 10 minutes, I can guarantee that my skin will look 100 times better, 100% of the time, no exceptions. And the good news is that recently, the brand has branched out beyond masks. While Rosie Huntington-Whiteley swears by the Super Amino Gel Cleanser (£38), I can’t get enough of the brand-new nourishing Lip Butter Balm (£23). So with all of that said, I’d like to say thank you to Summer Fridays for proving that although pretty packaging and celebrity endorsements help, when push comes to shove, it’s results that matter most.
Shop the Best Summer Fridays Products:
1. The Travel Essential: Summer Fridays Jet Lag Mask
Jam-packed with a bunch of vitamins, ceramides and antioxidants (including vitamin C to brighten and niacinamide to help diminish the appearance of pores), this multitasking mask is the ultimate stressed-out-skin saviour. Used as an overnight mask, a primer for makeup or as a wipe-off pick-me-up, it's probably one of my most-loved beauty products ever.
2. The Brightening Booster: Summer Fridays CC Me Serum
"I keep my Vitamin C rotation fairly small" says Who What Wear Contributing Beauty Editor Ata-Owaji Victor. "Purely because although the ingredient is often touted as a undisputed hero in tug of war that is hyperpigmentation on darker skin, I've quickly learnt that not all Vitamin C's are made equal." Formulated with two powerful forms of vitamin C, "I love using this skin - boosting serum for alleviating pigmentation and a lit from within glow."
3.The 365 Buy: Summer Fridays Overtime Mask
If, like me, your skin is prone to congestion, this deeply exfoliating mask is one of the best that money can buy. While pumpkin and apricot seed powder work against pore-clogging dead skin cells, oat kernel protein and vitamin E deliver soothing hydration.
4. The Protector: Summer Fridays Shadedrops Broad Spectrum SPF 30
Who What Wear's Junior Beauty Editor Grace Lindsay is a huge fan of Summer Fridays Broad Spectrum SPF. " If there's one product from the brand that I can't live without, it's this sunscreen." Lindsay says she loves it for it lightweight formula sinks into the skin in seconds and leaves me with the most beautiful, radiant finish. It features lots of skin-loving ingredients such as squalane and antioxidant-rich vitamin E and sits perfectly under makeup. My skincare routine isn't complete without it.
5. The Everyday Staple: Summer Fridays Lip Butter
“Please believe me when I say that this product is one of the best, if not the best lip moisturising product on the market at the moment." raves Award winning Beauty Journalist Twiggy Jalloh "Everything about it makes sense: from the silicone applicator, the scent, the formula, as well as it’s lasting power. The applicator makes it so easy to glide, is soft and bouncy and contours perfectly on lips." It truly is a lip product that does what it says on the tin: a buttery balm that makes your lips look and feel sensational. "It remains one of my top a recommendations and I've nothing but good things from everyone post - purchase. In this cost of living crisis I think it’s important to only invest in beauty products that are expertly created and actually work well." says Jalloh.
6. The Skin Balancer: Summer Fridays Super Amino Gel Cleanser
Free from potentially drying artificial surfactants (the stuff that makes things foam), this hydrating cleanser relies on plant-based ingredients for its rich lather. With amino acids to hydrate and strengthen, vitamin E to nourish and coconut oil to help remove makeup, this cleanser does it all.
7: The Hero Eye Product: Summer Fridays Jet Lag Overnight Eye Serum
The overnight mask is no doubt a bestseller for a reason. It's compact eye-friendly cousin is just as effective and packed filled with a bumper list of vitamins, ceramides and antioxidants. If your looking for an entry point to the Summer Fridays fun this is the product to buy.
8. The Lip Product: Summer Fridays Dream Lip Oil
"Having tried a lot of lip oils, I can safely say that Summer Friday's has a permanent spot in my handbag." says Who What Wear's Beauty Editor, Eleanor Vousden. From the chic packaging and the extra large doe foot that cushions the lips to the silky hydrating formula, every application feels luxurious." Shade wise, Vousden recommends "Rosewood Nights, a plummy hue that imparts a sheer veil of colour to the lips on its own, but looks great worn with a lip liner or lipstick more more impact." For all the lip oil lovers out there - myself included - Vousden assures us that "the texture has a certain slip to it that is neither sticky or gloopy like some others, so no hair getting stuck from the wind here!"
