Summer Hero Products

The impulse to ditch moisturizer the moment it gets humid is understandable and completely wrong. You don’t need less skincare in summer. You need lighter skincare. That distinction matters.

Gel textures are where to start. Tatcha Water Cream and Dieux Air Angel Peptide Gel Cream are the two I recommend most often to clients. Both absorb without the film that makes summer skincare feel suffocating. The Tatcha is the more indulgent of the two — plumping, almost cooling. The Dieux is the one you reach for when you want it to sink into your skin, feeling like nothing is on it at all.

For glow without effort, Beauty of Joseon Glow Serum is the kind of product that makes you wonder why you were ever doing more. Lightweight, brightening, easy. The Clarins Double Serum Light Texture is its more serious counterpart — the version you use when you want actual results, not just a good morning.

SPF, always, and on your lips specifically: Prequel Lip Visor SPF 30 is a lip balm that actually does what it promises. It even comes in a variety of colors. Summer Fridays Shade Drops goes over your moisturizer, under your makeup, and adds enough glow that it functions as a step rather than a precaution.

On the makeup side, summer is the season to simplify. Saie Glowy Super Gel belongs on your cheekbones, your temples, wherever the sun would naturally catch you. Westman Atelier Lit Up Highlight Stick in Nectar is the more refined version of the same idea — dewy, plump, juicy skin for hours.

For color, Victoria Beckham Colour Wash Water Tints and Chantecaille Cheek Gelee are both doing the same thing: watercolor transparency for those moments where you want to look like you just stepped out of the sun. The Chanel N°1 Lip and Cheek Balm earns its price point here — one product, face and lips, ten seconds, done. This is the hero product for my minimal girls.

Eyes: Victoria Beckham Satin Kajal Liner smudged into the lower lashline. Summer is the time to play with color and an eyeliner is a low barrier to entry.

And because summer is begging for a hat: Lack of Color Inca Bucket Wide is the investment piece. The J.Crew Raffia Cowboy Hat is the more casual counterpart. Both provide the sun protection your face requires.

The routine gets lighter. The standard doesn’t.

Let me know if you have any questions about products recommended. I’m an open book and always here to help!