The sun may be shining its last as we enter summer’s last gasp, but sunshine skin can be a year-round thing. Cheating your way to bronzed, fresh and beautiful skin is the easy way to keep it healthy and UV-protected in the hotter months, and still looking lustrous and healthy when it’s cooler. Here, Vogue speaks to make-up artist Cher Webb for her advice on how to get the look now.
1. Maintain a good skincare routine
“Ultimately, the key to creating an authentic, healthy summer glow is to be consistent with a good skincare routine – that way, any make-up products applied on top will further enhance the skin’s natural radiance,” says Webb. Exfoliating acids, such as AHAs, BHAs and PHAs (used in measure), are a good option, used alongside an antioxidant vitamin C product to boost luminosity.
2. Glowy primers are go
One of Webb’s favourites for creating instant radiance is a glow-boosting primer. “By creating a lit-from-within complexion via your skin prep, you give the ensuing make-up step a huge head start,” she says. “The Vita Liberata Face Blur is a dream multi-purpose primer that delivers instant summer skin and a boost of radiance – I love to use it as a base, then just add concealer on the top.”
3. Less is more
When it comes to your base, your aim is to keep your complexion looking fresh and bare, so make use of tinted moisturisers, beauty balms or even just concealer. “Add products to amp up the glow, and ones that add instant warmth and colour,” she recommends. “Bronzers are perfect for this. My tip is to start by sweeping a loaded brush across the forehead, then bring it around the temples and under the cheekbones to gently sculpt the face.” During the summer, she also sweeps the colour over eyelids and the bridge of the nose.
4. Highlight
“Highlighting is the key to a healthy glow and during the summer, I always reach for liquids and creams to add dimension and shine. Apply to the higher points on the face, starting on the cheekbones, Cupid’s bow and inner eye area,” Webb suggests. Her go-to? Chanel’s Les Beiges Highlighting Fluid, which melts into the skin and can be added into your base or moisturiser for a little extra luminosity.
5. Fake toasted skin
How to recreate that gorgeous “toasted” skin effect, as per the sunburn blush trend that’s all over social media right now? It’s all about strategic blush placement. “Sweep a blush – whether pink, red or coral – onto the cheeks and nose. Take the blush quite high up onto the cheeks, where the sun would naturally hit the face during a beachy walk, or follow the rim of your sunglasses as a guide,” says Webb.
6. Freckle up
Freckles are the “epitome of summer – sunshine kisses in full force”, and so enhancing or creating them on your skin is a quick trick to help you achieve authentic-looking sunshine skin. “Brow pencils tend to work really well to create faux freckles as the undertones blend in with the skin’s natural tone,” says Webb. “Go for a brow pencil in your eyebrow shade, and find one that has a tiny, twistable tip, then scatter dots across the nose and upper cheek area.” After that, use fingertips to gently press the product into the skin to soften, blend and make them look real.
