A Ginger's Guide to Summer - Step 2

Right, your sun protection's sorted so Step 2 is all about lookin' goooood! Redhead beauty is difficult enough at the best of times, but it's nigh on impossible to find pale make-up shades that will withstand Summer temperatures. My May to September beauty palette is constantly changing but here's a round-up of my current favourites.

Foundation

With brands like Mac and NARS now offering a wide selection of colours and Dainty Doll catering specifically for paler ladies, finding the right foundation for porcelian skin does seem to be getting slightly easier. When the weather's warm though and your skin's at its most glowy, it seems a shame to mask it too much, which is why I'm currently opting for a BB cream. As I have very oily skin which needs a powder to stop it becoming too shiny, I keep the base very simple with cheap BB creams that I can easily pick up from the high street - at the moment I'm using Nivea's BB but Garnier's works a treat too and both do 'Light' shades (Available at Boots, Superdrugs and Supermarkets nationwide). If your skin tone needs a little more evening out, try a CC (Colour Correcting) Cream instead. I'm hearing very good things about BareMinerals Complexion Rescue.
www.bareminerals.co.uk

Base

Although BB creams have built in moisturisers, I always like to layer them over a hydrating cream with built in SPF. Benefit's Dream Screen SPF40 and Clinique's SPF40 Face Cream are particularly good.

My skin has a habit of eating my makeup through the day, but a good primer gives it a lot more staying power. The best one I've found is Benefit's Porefessional.
https://www.benefitcosmetics.com/uk/en-gb

Eyebrows

Red hair and blue eyes is the rarest colour combination on Earth and in my case, that also means white blonde eyebrows. I ache for the dark, face-framing arches of Karen Gillan and Adele, but mine are almost invisible to the naked eye. But that was until I discovered a miracle. After years of struggling with eyebrows pencils and powders that somehow adhere to the skin underneath whilst leaving my ghostly blonde hairs weirdly uncovered, Benefit have invented the wonder that is 'Gimme Brow'. It's applied like a mascara, adhering directly to the hair and the colour builds gradually depending on how much you apply, so you can choose your own, natural looking shade. A MUST HAVE!

Fixing/Setting

Now I need to tell you a little bit about the powder I mentioned earlier. It's actually a mineral foundation, but can be built up for light to full coverage and I cannot recommend it highly enough. It's the creation of up and coming British make-up brand Lily Lolo and much like its American counterpart Bare Minerals, it is chemical free, has built in SPF and comes in a multitude of shades perfect for redheads. Unlike the Original Bare Minerals powder which became oddly shiny on my skin after a few hours, this stays beautifully matte and a quick switch to a concealer brush gives much deeper coverage, perfect for hiding blemishes. Lily Lolo also do a fantastic range of blushers. It's seriously worth checking out their range of products
http://www.lilylolo.co.uk/

The very last part of my Summer make-up routine is a setting spray which stops everything sliding south as the day progresses. I don't use anything fancy, just Maybelline Superstay 24HRS - a piece of advice with this; when the bottle says 'shake' do so ... vigorously. Otherwise you'll be left with hundreds of white powdery freckles - not a good look.
https://www.maybelline.co.uk/

Accessories

When it comes to accessories, my top TOP tip for Summer shopping is, believe it or not, TK Maxx. Currently stocking a fabulous collection of wide-brimmed sunhats, a few months ago I also purchased a gorgeous pair of Marc Jacobs Tortoiseshell Sunglasses that retail at £130.00 for just £30.00
http://www.tkmaxx.com/