Memorial Day Weekend means one thing—no, not barbeques—summer! The days of shorts, tank tops and flip flops are finally here. And while we’re busy planning our weekend getaways and days at the beach, the last thing on our mind is makeup—sunblock sure—but isn’t the point of summer beauty to have that fresh, bare-faced look? Well, yes and no—we all want that gorgeous, sun-kissed skin, but personally we need a little help getting there. (If we actually went outside makeup free—yikes.) So to help you grab a youthful, dewy glow that will make anyone think you just spent the weekend in Tahiti, we found a few things that you’re sure to fall in love with.
The youthful flush that we get around our sweetheart is the same glow you’ll get in this Too Faced heart-shaped blush (and that’s likely how it got its name!). Perfect for nearly every skin tone, it comes in three colors—Candy Glow, Peach Beach and Something About Berry—a gorgeous assortment of pink, peach and fuchsia-hued trios. And as one of our favorite items for summer, we would gladly give up everything else to make sure this little gem was in our makeup bag. Plus if you’re feeling really adventurous, the bright colors make for some bold eye shadows.Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush is available at Sephora and priced at $30.
We’ll be the first to admit that to get naturally flawless summer skin, you have to already have flawless skin—or a really great foundation. To get a full coverage (without actually looking like it) we love Becca’s Ultimate Coverage Complexion Crème which contains a balance of 21 percent pigment and 22 percent water. It’s moisturizing, conceals and leaves your skin feeling light and dewy instead of thick and heavy, which is the last thing you want in the dead of summer. And that extra moisture will go a long way in making sure your skin stays hydrated in the heat. Becca’s Ultimate Coverage Complexion Crème is available at Becca Cosmetics and priced at $44.
In the warmer season most of our usual mascaras don’t stand a chance. Add some humidity, a little sweat, a dash of pool water and suddenly your makeup is a Clockwork Orange-esqe mess. Not pretty. Some of the best waterproof mascaras have the downside of being extraordinarily brittle or are so hard to take off not even an entire bottle of Lancome’s Bi-Facil will budge it. For perfect curl, definition and a formula that will actually move (only when you want it to!) we love Diorshow’s Iconic Waterproof Mascara. But take note: it is extremely black so it might be a little lash overkill for lazy beach days. Diorshow’s Iconic Waterproof Mascara is available at Dior and priced at $28.50.
Ahh, the sun-kissed glow—that ever-elusive tone that we can’t seem to get even after spending a weekend lounging on the beaches in nothing but our sunglasses. Not only that, but with all the warnings about the sun causing premature aging, tan skin suddenly sounds like a terrible idea. But to fake the look without the risk of early wrinkles, try Lancôme’s Star Bronzer Palette with bronzer, blush and highlighter. The bronzer and highlighter work together to give you soft, natural summer contouring and give your skin the perfect glow. Lancôme’s Star Bronzer Palette is available at Nordstrom and priced at $42.
In the summer it’s all about soft, plushy, kissable lips—mattes are too harsh for the season and some glosses can grab onto any loose strands of hair and turning your perfect pout into a sticky, globby mess. To get the right amount of golden gleam we love Tom Ford’s Lip Shimmer, a shiny balm that can be worn alone or over your favorite lipsticks. It’s infused with vitamin E and shea butter to moisturize your pucker, and comes in two limited edition colors: solar gold and moonlight. Released for Summer 2014 this is a new product we may need to stock up on for next year. Tom Ford Lip Shimmer is available at Neiman Marcus and priced at $49.
