Summer Beauty Essentials

I feel like every time I have one of these warm weather posts planned, the weather seems to do the opposite of what I want it to. So I am currently writing this summer makeup essentials post from the safety of my bedroom with a warm blanket draped around my shoulders, much like a cape. My desk chair is my throne and while I don't have a crown, I'd like to think that there's always an invisible tiara perched delicately on my head.

My makeup routine changes with the seasons. Certain things remain the same and it always depends on what I'm doing at the time, but my summer beauty routine has to adjust to the warm weather. It's hotter (usually) and more humid (always) and tailoring the products I use to cater to the seasons is a necessary step in my seasonal routines.

Skincare routines are essential for me, a human with skin who has had a personal vendetta against her since age thirteen. Four score and seven years ago, my skin was cursed with acne, oil and the occasional dry patches. There are ten different terrains on my face. A desert around my mouth and nostrils, a rainforest on my cheeks and forehead. It's like my face is split up into permanent hemispheres with their own seasons. Are you picking up what I'm putting down?

The most important (seriously the more important) part of my summer makeup routine that I don't worry about all year is the usage of SPF in all of my makeup. My moisturizer has SPF, my foundation has SPF. I keep my face covered as much as I can. The last thing I need in my life is burnt skin on my face that will just lead to stinging and more painful skin peeling. I don't care if my face ends up being shades upon shades lighter than the rest of my body. I don't want sunburn anywhere on me, but I really don't want it on my face. However, sunscreen in general is one product that I cannot go without in the summer. That, and aloe vera.

I use practically the same products all year round, but I tend to switch up how I apply them. I'll wear less foundation and I typically won't get it unless I really need to. Setting it tends to make my makeup  look cake-y and gross and it just transforms into a sloppy mess. I switch to cream products: cream eyeshadow, cream blush, the occasional cream highlighter if it's not particularly humid and sticky that day. Cream products settle much better into my skin when the weather starts to heat up and my skin has some life left in it. My favorite cream eyeshadows are MAC Paint Pots and the Maybelline Color Tattoos. And my all time favorite cream blush is NARS Cactus Flower, but I also love the NYX Rouge Cream Blushes (I have Orange and Glow). Looking for a cream highlighter? Benefit High Beam, Girl Meets Pearl and Watts Up! are three that I la-la-loved using them.

But above all, my #NumberOne during the summer is bronzer. Bronzer, bronzer, bronzer. As I mentioned, my face tends to be a shade or two lighter than the rest of my body. To even out the color, bronzer becomes my best friend. I apply more than my usual sculpting contour, using it to warm up my features without turning me into a muddy, orange mess. I really love the Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow, NARS Laguna Bronzer, Benefit Hoola Bronzer and the NYC Sunny Bronzer!

Another key characteristic of my makeup other than cream is waterproof. I tend to wear waterproof products all year round because my eyes get a bit wet. I use my waterproof eyeliner on my bottom lashes as well as a final coat to hold the curl. I like the Tarte Lights, Camera, Splashes waterproof mascara and used a waterproof version of Maybelline Rocket mascara, but I'm really loving MAC False Lashes. It says it's smudge-proof and doesn't flake, which is true. It's so, so true. I used to get darker circles under my eyes, not from a lack of sleep, but from my mascara flaking off of my lashes and pooling underneath my eyes.

Last but not least, my hair needs some love too. My hair holds a curl just find, but the second that there's even a trace of humidity in the air? Pin straight with gross frizzy textures that can't even be combed out with my fingers. The only product that I've ever been able to use to keep my hair from flattening during the humid periods of the summer is my texturizing spray from Living Proof. Either I'll spritz it directly on my hair if I want to retain the curl I have or I'll spray it into the palm of my hands and scrunch it in if I want a more deconstructed look. As long as I don't over do it with my hairspray/texturizing spray combination, my hair doesn't get heavy, crunchy or knotted. It's great!

And that's how my beauty routine survives over the summer!