Summer Do's and Don'ts

This one is for my friend Steph...albeit a little late for summer do's and don'ts but better late than never!

Photo: Koh Tao, Thailand

Do's

Skincare  |  Protect & Prep to Bare
*Wear sunscreen (hope this is obvious by now)
*Try St. Tropez self tanner (how gorgeous are the news ads with Kate Moss?)
*Exfoliate those dead skin cells for smooth legs and arms
*Use Neutrogena's Clean and Clear Body Scrub for clear skin (no bacne!)
*Switch to a lighter moisturizer and cream foundation to stave off the hottest, muggiest days (I usually drop the additional layer of moisturizer under my BB cream as well as the foundation I mix in with my BB cream)
*For God's Sake, PLEASE get your self a pedicure.  Stat.  I've had a polish on my toes since 5th grade - year round - it's all in the details!  Go bright or go home.  It's not the time for dark colors.

Makeup  |  Keep it Simple & Experiment With Color
*Use a waterproof mascara.  Love any mascara by Lancome (#1 for 15 yrs in luxury beauty!), especially their new Hypnose Star 24H Waterproof
*Highly recommend Stila's Waterproof Eyeliner, which will stay on after hours in the water.
*Experiment with blue, teal, and purple eye shadow hues.  Lancome makes great palettes in lots of fun colors.  I have several because it's all you need to make a smoky night eye or subtle day eye.  Caveat: too much color on people with brown eyes can look a little clownish (recommend sticking with dark purples, browns and bronzes).
*Experiment with bright pink or coral lips.  Pick to match your skin tone.  MAC always has tons of fun colors.
*Bronzer!  Make sure not to pick a shade that looks too "muddy" with your skin tone.  I like one with a little shimmer.

Stila's Great Baked Cheek Duo:

Don'ts

Skincare:
*It's not the season to repair your skin with serums and other treatments because you will undoubtably get some sun exposure which will counteract your products.
*Pancake face!  Many people wear the same foundation year-round without realizing that their skin color may become a shade darker.  Check in natural light to see if you need a new shade.
*Don't pick your face or bug bites, etc!
*Don't forget to cover any recent scars with sunscreen.  To fade scars, use Mederma.

Makeup:
*Don't overload.  If you have a bright lip or eyes, make the other one neutral.
*Don't wear body sparkles.  It's too 90's.
*Don't end up with orangey streaks from self-tanner (follow my other post on how to best use a self-tanner).
*Don't wear too much makeup - summer is all about showing off your natural beauty!