If you’re anything like me, you’ve experienced the struggle of feeling your makeup melt off your face in the summer heat. Plus, you may feel the need to spend money on this year’s trendiest products. I’m here to share 5 timeless summer makeup tips which don’t require you to spend a dime.
- Moisturizing Sunscreen
If your morning skincare routine sits under your makeup, you might want to minimize the number of products you use so that way your makeup doesn’t shift around during the day. One tip is to consolidate your products by mixing your sunscreen with a moisturizer.
The sunscreen will be less heavy on your face and leave less of a white cast, and the moisturizer will also help your skin throughout the day, especially if you tend to have dryer skin. If you don’t want to buy a new product (I recommend Cerave 30 spf moisturizer), you can use the back of your hand to mix the two products together or even get an empty container to speed up your routine. This hack will help you protect your skin and your makeup.
- Glowy Foundation
Glowy bases have been all the rage in 2024. If you’re about to buy a new foundation to get a glass-skin effect, stop right there. You can take the liquid foundation you already have and mix it with a little hyaluronic acid. Most glowy foundations already have it as an ingredient and hyaluronic acid is a product that is most likely already in your skincare collection, not to mention your skin will be feeling more healthy.
- Brave the Bronze
If you tan your body, you’re going to want your face to match. Bronzers are a very popular summer product that help give you a more tanned look and contour your face more naturally. I’m a naturally pale person and I was always afraid of my bronzer looking harsh. One way to improve your bronze is to find out your undertone and try any new bronzer before you buy it. For me, a lighter, more shortbread color of bronzer would look much more natural.
But we’re not buying new products today, we’re learning to use what we have. So if you’ve attempted bronzer, but find it harsh, it may be your application. For powder bronzer, you can take a fluffy brush (it can be more round or square) and dip into the pan. Now to ensure your product is evenly distributed onto your brush, you can rub the brush around on the back of your hand. This removes extra product and makes sure that you won’t have a dark spot where you touch your brush down.
Liquid bronzers are also trendy at the moment, specifically the Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Drops, but I’ve never used them because I can’t justify $38 for one product. If you really want to invest in liquid bronzer, I’ve heard Elf has a pretty good dupe. I find myself using Elf dupes often and their products are pretty high quality and affordable for teens.
- Switch up your Eyeliner
You probably have plain black eyeliner in your makeup bag. For summer, I’d recommend switching to a brown one. The brown eyeliner I have is the 99 cent Wet N Wild pencil eyeliner and honestly it doesn’t get much cheaper than that.
However, you probably have brown eyeliner and don’t even know it. If you have a brown eyebrow pencil or lip liner, you can see if it’s eye safe. If you do have brown eyeliner, you can use it in many ways. Create fake freckles, fill in your brows, blend it with a brush for a matching eyeshadow, or line your lips for that Hailey Bieber “glazed donut lip”.
Also, one eyeliner pencil is easy to carry around if you want to touch up your makeup throughout the day. So many products are multi-use; explore the possibilities. And if you’re going to use brown liner, you may want to switch your mascara to something more brown-toned. This will give your makeup a more cohesive look.
- Set it All Down
If you have oily skin or if you tend to sweat a lot you may notice that your makeup disappears after a few hours. If you want a summer look that lasts all day you have to set your base somehow, with setting powder and/or spray. I’ll weigh the pros and cons of each and show you how to get a sparkling finish.
First, I tend to like setting powders, specifically a translucent powder all over the face because it will set everything without leaving a cast. I also like a colored setting powder to use under my eyes and reinforce my concealer.
The cons of setting powders are that they are mattifying, meaning they can reduce the oiliness of your skin but will give you a less glowy base. Setting powders tend to make your makeup look more heavy and less natural, and natural might be the goal of your summer look.
If so, use a setting spray to keep your base looking luminous. Setting spray holds all your makeup down, keeping it from melting off. I use setting spray, even when I don’t use powder. If you have a setting spray, makeup remover, eyeshadow, and a spray bottle, you can also DIY your own glitter setting spray. Glitter setting spray can make your face sparkle and it’s great for the beach or a party.
Crush up an old shimmery eyeshadow (I used the back of a brush), then mix the pigments into your spray bottle with your setting spray. Shake it to combine. You may notice some chunks and the spray might not come out easily. This is when you add your makeup remover (you don’t need much, just enough to break up the pigment clumps). Remember to shake well before using.
I hope you enjoyed my 5 summer makeup hacks! I know it’s hard not to buy new makeup, but chances are you already have something just as good. If you tried any of these hacks, be sure to tell us at Port Press how it went!
