Gone Style: Summer Beauty for Face and Head

*ED: Updated with winner, below*

Ugh. The heat. Am I right? Am I right? What's a girl to do with her sanity when it's 673893 degrees outside. Hair? Makeup? What the fuck, sun! What. The. Fuck. Sometimes the best way to fight fire? Is with fire, baby! Bomp-chicka-wow-wow...

...So let's talk summer must-haves and quick tips for staying hot hot (in-the) heat.

First. Bangs. Ugh, you guys. As someone who has had bangs for most of her twenty-nine years, I must tell you, bangs and summer? Not a great mix. Sticky bangs are not cute and it's sort of impossible to avoid their cement-sweat-yuck when it's 102 degrees. Or even 89.

So? Unless you plan on carrying dry shampoo on your person all day long...

Which brings me to summer must have #1: Dry Shampoo! I've written about dry shampoo before complete with before and after photos. I use Klorane, which came recommended via the lovely Liz and has since changed my life. I wash my hair, at most, twice a week but work out at least three times a week so dry shampoo is mas importante. Helps me control the grease monkeys that live in my locks.

I digress. Back to bangs. (That's what she said.)

I have bangs.

Hello, bangs.

But in the summer, they disappear:

Goodbye, bangs.

Bobby pins are my friend and I take advantage of their loyalty to my scalp by utilizing them on the daily. Headbands, too. Which brings me to my next summer must-have: #2. Bobby Pins. A three-dollar pack will last you all summer. Just pull bangs back and pin voila.

But not before you... #3. Flat Iron!

I was never a huge flat iron fan until I was recently introduced via Nancy O'Dell/Momversation who offered to send me the Rusk w8less flat iron + blow dryer a few months back. I am now obsessed and the flat iron (I blow dry my hair once in a blue never. Don't have the patience for it.) and have ordered everyone I know to snag themselves one. To be fair, before giving the Rusk a whirl I had only ever used to same straightener since high school, which could very well have been expired/broken. Regardless, this babe is solid. I totally recommend. (See above pics for post flat-ironed awesome.)

(For reference, this is what my hair looks like when I wake up after sleeping on it wet. Pardon my early-am, pre-coffee man-face.)

Poodle-riffic.

And speaking of faces that look less mannish with a bit of makeup...

Makeup in the summer is a subtle art. Waterproof mascara is disasterville - will break your eyelashes off within a week and for what? No one's looking at your eyes in the pool, anyway. They're looking at your boobs. In my case they're looking at my boobs and then promptly looking away. Two breast reductions and two babies have fucked my shit clear up but it doesn't really matter anyway because I'm married. April fools, Hal! Forever April fools!

Seriously, though. If I'm going anywhere near a pool or body of water, I stay away from eye-makeup completely and wear chap stick, tinted-SPF and bronzer. Mainly, for day to day, I go for light, barely-there makeup so people don't think I'm a dude.

BEFORE MAKEUP (ED: AND UTILIZING THE #2 BOBBY PINS!):

For summer, besides #4 - A Good Facial SPF. I carry Neutrogena's oil-free sunblock stick on me at all times. I use it on the kids, too.

The following are my summer everyday makeup must-haves:

#5. Concealer - for pimples, under-eyes et al. My two favorities are this one by MAC and this by Josie Maran Cosmetics.

#6. Bronzer - been obsessed with the "10" bronzer from Benefit for years now. It's pricey but will last you two years. (Apply with lighter shade up to define cheekbones.)

#7. Neapolitan (shades of) Eyeshadow - (ED: think strawberry, vanilla, chocolate when choosing your three summer shades and then applying them to your eyelids one shade after the other.) In the below photos I'm wearing Josie Maran's "pinkalicious" on inner corner, followed by "sand" and "pewter" on the ends.

#8. A good, light mascara: I'm currently experimenting with Maybelline's Lash Stiletto.

#9. Burts Bees lip shimmer in Watermelon. For pale complexions such as mine, this shade is tops but all Burts shades are awesome and will flatter any skin-tone. Fine one that works for you and buy ten of them. (If you're anything like me, you will lose one every few days.)

AFTER MAKEUP (ED: NEED AN EYEBROW WAX):

Yeah right. Like anyone can comfortably wear their hair down in the summer. Not me, anyway. My hair sticks to my neck and my skin starts itching and ew. Hair up, por favor.

Enter #9: The messy bun.

This is how I typically wear my hair in the summer. Unless I know I'm going to be spending the day in an air-conditioned space. Here also is a better view of eye-makeup in three shades.

Oh and sorry about the pimples. I don't know how to airbrush.

I wasn't thinking very far ahead when I took these pictures this morning. If there's any confusion with the makeup application, please let me know and I'll do a summer-makeup tutorial vid re-cap type situation.

In the meantime, here's a birds-eye view of the messy bun. An ideal nest for birds to rest their weary wings/comfortable and casual way to wear long hair in the summer.

Annnnnnnnnnd... now that you survived all that...

This week I have two majorly exciting giveaways:

1. Rusk W8les str8-iron + blow-dryer c/o Rusk (thanks, Rusk!)

2. Josie Maran Cosmetics summer makeup basket c/o Josie Maran Cosmetics (thanks Josie and Polly!) which includes tinted moisturizer w/ SPF, cream blush in "sunkissed," pressed powder, lipstick in Dyani + black mascara. (ED: Get 25% off at JM check-out using the code "dailycandy.")

To win? Tell me your summer beauty must-haves. Winner to be picked next Tuesday PM via random.org. Good luck!

GGC

*I'm super excited to announce that my friend Christopher Collins (you may remember him from this giveaway last year!) will be appearing on the new season of Project Runway, debuting next THURSDAY (July 29th) which is very exciting round these parts. (My cousin Erica is Christopher's business partner + my mom's entire wardrobe is CC. Exhibit A: my mom's white coat pictured at the bottom of this post.) Check him out here and here and follow Christopher Collins Collection on twitter! The dude is one of the nicest, most ambitious/talented/interesting humans in existence and I'm so SO proud of him (and Erica). So sososososo proud.

** Congratulations to #284 Edensky for your new Rusk hair products and #36, LC for your Josie Maran makeup basket! And thank you everyone for participating in the giveaway! Will be doing more amazing giveaways soon! You're awesome!