What's your go-to look during the summer?

I don’t have a go-to look these days for any season, haha! I really do focus most of my time on testing new makeup, and even on the rare occasion I’m not, I’m either not wearing makeup or I’ll re-wear something I recently reviewed and really enjoyed! But I like to think that my go-to look would be medium coverage foundation, brows, shimmery coral lip, coral blush and rose gold highlighter, and then some teal eyeliner on my lash line… eyeshadow would rotate.

— Christine

23 Comments

Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!

Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).

We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!

Comments on this post are closed.
Seraphine Avatar

I live in a climate that’s warm all year, except for a few days here and there in January and February, so my makeup doesn’t change with the seasons. I’ve never been one to follow seasonal fashion rules anyway (thumbs up to boots in summer…who cares if it’s too hot outside, every building has central air conditioning!), so even if I did live somewhere with seasonal climates, I’d still wear whatever I felt like wearing on any given day.

JoAnn Moran Avatar

I love,your perfect summer look idea. Would you expand on it and say what exact blush, highlighter, lipstick, and eyeliner you would,use?

Tracey E. Avatar

My go to look for hot and humid summer weather is Charlotte Tilbury Jean cream eyeshadow, mascara, and a raspberry lip. If wearing eyeliner, it’s a pencil that comes across the lashes and slightly up into the crease, then blended into the crease. I always foundation, under eye concealer and powder my t-zone. Bobbi Brown’s Skin Long Wear Weightless Foundation has gotten the call on the most humid days this summer.

Linda Avatar

Not much changes in technique or basic look except that I bust out a little more bronzer and warmer toned highlighters. When I’m tanned I can get away with less foundation – just covering redness in center of face so I looooove that

Nancy T Avatar

I’m not so sure I have a set go-to summer look! About the only things I *may*do differently is wearing more coral and orange toned lips and cheeks than I usually would. Also, because of the extreme recent humidity, high dew points, and much more rainy weather than any of my previous 15 summers here, I have been doing simpler eye looks, because everything just goes all melty anyways! ??

AB Avatar

I don’t have a specific look, I just trend lighter in colors and probably degree and amount of makeup used. Such as — using a pink in the summer where I might in the winter use a berry (lip, blush, etc), or a lighter neutral versus a darker. More shimmer; sheerer foundation coverage; easy on the powder because in heat and humidity that can get cakey.

GUSnail Avatar

Recently I’ve been going for a minimal products look using cream products. I use concealer (either one from Nars or RMS) under eyes and around my mouth (for discoloration) cream bronzer (Milk or RMS) in perimeter of face and on eyelids, cream mulit product as blush and lipstick (RMS Lip2Cheek in Beloved or Bite Mulitstick in Brioche or Papaya). Top off with powder, mascara and brow powder. This look is really quick to put together, and the products are all creamy and lightweight on the skin.

Deborah S. Avatar

Yeah, I don’t have a go to look for any season! I am always “playing” with makeup and since I live in such a small, rural area of Montana it doesn’t matter what kind of a makeup look I am wearing as no one else will be wearing any makeup at all. I will occasionally see lipstick on someone but that is about it. I just did a blown out teal smoky eye look the other day. The closest I can come to a summer look is when I use the Dr. Jart BB Cream, Ciate Summer Love blush/highlighter, one shade of eye shadow (usually a light shimmery shade like Milk Makeup’s Hotel Lobby or After Party, and a rose colored lip pencil with balm or one of the L’Oreal Colour Riche Shine.
I think my aesthetic for summer is really perfected skin, minimal eye makeup and an understated lip or a really bold lip. Since I tend to wear a lot of bold lips I like to go with something more toned down. I do have super pigmented lips to I can’t wear anything too nude looking, both because my lip color tends to change the shade on top but also because most nudes don’t look very good on me.

Mariella Avatar

Summer or winter, I vary my look depending on my mood, how much time I have, what I’ll be doing, etc. but for summer, I like to have the least amount of product on my skin as possible. It’s generally hot and humid here so I skip foundation in favour of a good sunscreen product and, if I feel my skin needs a bit of “perfecting”, a bit of powder foundation here and there. Concealer under my eyes. For my eyes, the left side of the NARS Kalahari duo sort of sums up the type of look I like, with some dark bronzed brown liner and a darker matte shadow to define the crease. I’ll sometimes skip blush in favour of a light dusting of Chocolate Soleil bronzer or if I’m wearing blush, it’s likely to be MAC Sweet Sentiment. Lips – I don’t look good in corals so it’s either my HG MAC Craving or Givenchy Fuchsia-in-the-Know lipstick.

LindaP Avatar

Out comes the warmer bronzer (Guerlain Terracotta 01 instead of Hoola Bronzer). I tend to use more pink blush with Nars Erdem Love Me Not providing the sheen usually provided by Chanel’s Golden Sun. Then I top the Nars sheen with a shade like Paaarty by Tarte or Dior’s Rosy Glow (this is a fantastic product if you haven’t tried it). Eyes stay about the same b/c I’m pretty classic all year round.

Monica Avatar

Here’s a quick look at what I’ve been doing lately in this heat- sometimes I switch up the blush or lip, but this a go-to, simple makeup.

Primer: Laura Mercier Oil-Free
Foundation: Mac Face & Body
Eyes: Pretty Minimal – either its been Too Faced Bronzer or Bobbi Brown cream shadow in Beach Bronze
Cheeks: Too Faced Dark Chocolate Soleil Bronzer, Clinique Peach Pop
Lips: I’ve fallen back in love with KVD’s Lolita. Then add a bit of NYX gloss on top.

Then because I live in DC and the humidity is a face ruiner. UD All Night Setting Spray.

Shannon. N Avatar

Sheer base (maybelline fit me concealer is my go to Spot concealer in the summer!) glowy warm cheeks (mug romance blush, wnw precious petals) warm golden bronze eyes (mac woodwinked, mute ice brown, mute celestial earth eye shadows) BRIGHT LIPS GALORE (bite radish, lush Santa baby, bite candied, etude house fresh cherry tint)

DVa Avatar

Toned-down on the colour.
I have reinstated my Becca x Chrissy palate from last year, warm and glowy. It makes my cheekbones pop.
Eyes: nudes with some shimmer or peachy or pink palettes.

Lips: nude glossy lip or the Nars Orgasm gloss, Buxom White Russian, or Fenty gloss bomb.

Face: Bronzer at this time of the year; in the winter I contour but don’t bronze. I carve my cheekbones with Marc Jacobs O!Mega Bronzer (also on jaw and neck) and then use TARTE Park Ave Princess on forehead and to blur the cheekbone contour. It’s an amazingly sharp look, my cheekbones look incredible.

Brenda C Avatar

I definitely tone down my makeup for summer. Lighter summery colors, peachy, coral, bronze. It seems like it’s too much trouble to apply a lot of makeup when you’re out at the beach, boating and just having a relaxing summer day.

Leilah Gobir Avatar

My go to look in the summer is glowy skin, a messy bun, and a bright lip! I find in summer that it’s fun to experiment with pops of color and I like to do so on my pout because because it won’t get covered up by sunglasses.

Silvia Avatar

I like to bring out forward from my stash my coppers, gold, rose golds and hmmm cool eyeshadows except I still haven’t worn the cools I bought I really rather wear warm tones. Peachy, corals on cheeks but pinks are always welcomed or I mix them with a highliter love Precious Petals. On lips tones of peach, orangy, berries I tend to leave the reds for winter but depends. I’ll wear more colored lip gloss alone too. Living in S. California is way laid back over here with pleasant weather most of the year. Some hardly dress up for a party we’ll, especially a bbq party I went in Venice Beach some wearing ugly big pockets cargo pants, an old t-shirt and flip flops as if they came from fishing looking dirty. A girl from Spain visiting approached me and actually commented on that and we busted laughing. Is true. Looks as if they hadn’t bathe even. What’s up with that? Lol! I remember living in Chicago people would dress better. We test out lots of restaurants but nothing fancy so it is rather casual. I’m on the West Side in LA between Mar Vista & Culver City and have I mentioned before I’m fully bombarded by makeup stores whithin very short driving distances. Target, CVS, Rite AIDS, bunch of Ultas (oh! Lordy!) and Sephora’s! No bueno for a beauty junkie. Lol!

Belle Avatar

In summer I wear mostly peach and coral colors (warmer colors), in winter more purples, berries and gray/silver tones (cool tones). This is applicable to my clothing choices as well.

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!