Start Test-Driving Your Summer Glow With These Barely-There Coverage Products
The best lightweight makeup gives just enough coverage to disguise the blemishes that chip away at your confidence. When you’re wearing it during the summer, it also doesn’t leave you with the cakey finish that feels like a warm (and welcome) blanket during winter. It’s makeup for people who don’t like makeup but still want something. It’s coverage for self-professed lazy people like me who have just enough energy for five minutes of application before running out the door. In other words: it’s that perfect in-between for when you can’t make up your mind and want the option of putting on more later.
If you’re someone whose routine is dictated by the trends of the moment, you’ll be happy to know that skin is in for the coming months. Laura Mercier Artist Executive Jerry Johnson’s predicted a much-needed return to light and airy skin with a dewy finish, otherwise known as “no makeup-makeup.” There are a lot of ways to go about achieving this. You can swipe on one layer of your favorite sheer foundation, invest in a tinted moisturizer, get familiar with a BB cream, swipe on a little highlighter, or spot-cover with concealer. Whatever you choose, the goal is that second-skin, lightweight finish that feels comfortable enough to wear on the beach and actually lasts until dinner after.
My favorite way to apply these type of formulas is with my fingers (clean ones, of course) or a damp sponge, but a flat brush always works too. Just don’t forget to wear your sunscreen underneath. Check out any of these top-sellers and start test-driving your summer glow now.
GLAMGLOW GLOWSTARTER Mega Illuminating Moisturizer
A botanical-powered moisturizer available in two iridescent, tinted shades for just enough shimmer and a dewy finish.
$49 at Sephora
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Illuminating SPF 20
A cult-favorite and top-seller for the best of the best sheer coverage and SPF protection.
$46 at Laura Mercier
Kosas Tinted Face Oil
Available in 10 sheer shades and packed with vegan hydrators (avocado, red raspberry, rosehip seed oil, etc.), this self-adjusting sheer formula evens out skin tone and leaves behind a healthy glow.
$42 at Revolve
Cover FX Custom Enhancer Drops
Mix this highlighter with your coverage of choice for an elevated glow without the greasy finish.
$21 at Revolve
NUDESTIX Nudies Bloom All Over Face Color
A water-resistant, multipurpose balm available in three blush shades for warming up a dull complexion.
$32 at Revolve
BECCA Skin Love Glow Glaze Stick
The name alone should make you want to try this highlighting balm, made with Vitamin C, ginger, and cold-pressed for a healthy glow.
$28 at Revolve
RMS Beauty Luminizer x Quad
Four cream luminizers in one palette so you can customize and switch-up your look whenever you see fit.
$48 at Revolve
Olio E Osso Berry Balm
When it’s too hot for lipstick but you still want some color, paint your lips and cheeks in this sheer stain.
$28 at Olio E Osso
NOTO Color and Glow Stick Trio
A trio of travel-friendly multi-use sticks for giving your entire face or just parts of it a healthy-looking flush.
$50 at Free People
RMS Beauty Lip2Cheek
Another two-fer in nine different shades for adding just a hint of color to the lips and cheeks.
$36 at Free People
Marc Jacobs Beauty Dew Drops Coconut Gel Highlighter
A golden bronze, coconut-infused formula that can be mixed with your favorite coverage or applied to naked skin for a hydrated and radiant complexion.
$45 at Sephora
Charlotte Tilbury Glowgasm Beauty Light Wand
Apply this peachy tint to your cheekbones, on the brow bone, and down the bridge of your nose alone or over your coverage for an illuminated glow.
$32 at Net-A-Porter
Wander Beauty Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer
Spot-cover blemishes with the matte formula and use the illuminating liquid on the opposite side to even out your overall coverage for a natural-looking finish.
$29 at Wander Beauty
BECCA Summer Radiance Kit
With a pearl-infused primer and golden bronzer at your fingertips, you have all you need for a makeup look that won’t melt at the beach.
$19 at Sephora
