Summertime Fine.

Want to find ways to enhance your appearance this summer for an amazing look? With these time-saving techniques and fun-fix tips for skin, makeup, hair and nails, you will look absolutely stunning.

Skin Loving
As everyone knows or at least should know…the key to amazing makeup is amazing skin. Skin care is a must before any makeup application. The first tip is exfoliating your skin GENTLY! Sloughing off dead cells is the key to a luminous complexion and flawless skin. Remember not to overdo the exfoliation; too much of a good thing is a bad thing, and no matter what your skin, do not use harsh exfoliants.

Use creamy exfoliaters instead and apply them in the shower when your skin is warm and damp for best results. Moisturizing your skin is the next step. Use a moisturizer that works well for your skin and has SPF in it to protect your skin from any heat, sun rays or harsh lights. You don’t want to dry out your skin after washing and/or exfoliating it. Make sure the moisturizer gives the right amount of hydration and protection.

For those with blackheads, whiteheads or pimples…DO NOT POP THEM! They can leave red or dark spots on your face. Just treat them with the right products for a great result.

If you want to do something to wake your skin up try something cold like a cold towel or chilled cucumber slices. If you have redness use a little bit of green concealer to cancel it out. If you have dark circles under your eyes, use a eye brightening concealer or a concealer that is one to two shades lighter than you to waken up your eye area. Another great tip for flawless skin and less dark circles is sleep! Getting adequate rest is your weapon to maintaining a gorgeous complexion. Why? The skin heals itself overnight, so getting enough sleep will result in more luminous skin and brighter eyes. This advice comes from dermatologist Dr. Amy Wechsler.

Makeup
For those divas that do not use false lashes, but want the effect of them try doubling up on mascara for extra luscious lashes. They will be the sexiest ever. Apply one coat of a thickening mascara and then use a volumizing and/or lengthening mascara. Using both mascaras to your lashes makes them look fuller and makes the eyes pop more.

Before you walk out of your house, check your makeup in natural light! Artificial light can make your makeup look perfect, but when you step outside you can look like a clown. To avoid this, do your makeup in front of a window with curtains and shades up so that the light can hit your face. You can see if your makeup needs to be blended more, if you need a bit more foundation or if your powder is too dark or light for you.

If you want to make your eyes look brighter and bigger, simply use a beige or white eyeliner on your water line and use champagne color to your tear duct area. It will create a widening effect and make the whites of your eyes appear more vibrant. To refresh your makeup within minutes without much work just do the following: bloat away any excess oil, reapply lip color, comb through your lashes and if you have your blush of the day reapply a small amount to the cheeks. This makes your makeup look polished without redoing the entire look.

Hair
Summer is one of those seasons we females and some males can’t stand. Why? Because of frizzy and dried out hair! Heat is one thing that can damage hair severely so with these tricks and tips, hopefully you will have amazing hair this summer.

Transform your hair with dry shampoo. Whether you want to boost volume, revive a blowout or add tousled texture, dry shampoo can do it all. When applying, spritz at arm’s length to avoid piling the product on your hair. If you have damaged hair, repair it when you’re sleeping. Apply a pre-poo (pre shampoo) oil treatment to dry hair right before bed once a week focusing on your ends. It can fix fried strands. When you wake up the next morning, rinse, shampoo and condition your hair. After a few times of doing this you will see softer, shiner and healthier hair. Use cold water when rinsing your hair and blow dry your hair in cold after you’ve fully blow dried it. Your hair will get a nice boost of shine and gloss to it.

If you are working on keeping your hair long, hide those ends! Do simple hairstyles that will keep your ends from splitting or getting fried from the heat. Try doing different types of buns, twists, chignons and even do a few braid outs here and there.

This summer, try using less heat and before going out into the sun or using any heat apply a heat protectant. The sun will naturally be a blow dryer or flat iron for you on those days when we have 80° weather.

Nails
Manicures and pedicures are in order every summer as you will be showing off much of your feet and hands.

Keep your nails hydrated as the sun and the heat will dry your nails and cuticles making them brittle and prone to breaking, cracking or splitting. To avoid this hydrate your hands with a moisturizing hand cream after every time your hands are dipped in water. To keep your cuticles hydrated use a cuticle oil at least two to three times a day.

To protect your nails from splitting, peeling or cracking there two tips that always work: one, is using a nail care product that helps against splitting or peeling. The formulas in these products keep your nails strong. Using a nail strengthening and/or hardener will keep your nails strong. The second tip is finding the BEST nail shape for you. Yes, there are several shapes: squoval, square, oval, round, stiletto and much more. Even though these shapes are fun and can be cute, you need to be realistic when picking a shape. If you do a lot of work or work in corporate America those stilettos nails are obviously not the nails for you. If you have children those nails wouldn’t work either for you. Universal nails that work for any circumstance and any person includes squoval, square or round. They are the safe nails that look amazing and stunning on everyone.

Another helpful tip is to file in one direction instead of going back and forth to prevent nails from splitting and always use a base and top coat when doing your nails at all times.

If you are looking to be a bit more unique this season with your colors try using your eyeshadows and clear polish to create new colors. You can also use pigments and glitters as well.

As for your feet, make sure your heels are well hydrated and do an at home pedicure at least once a week or every two weeks to ensure that your feet look amazing when polishing them. Your feet are not only about the polish on your toes, but how hydrated and amazing the skin looks as well.

Hope you get summertime fine!

PS: I wrote this article for Wealth in Wellness Magazine. Check it here.