"High Maintenance to be Low Maintenance."
My summer beauty philosophy. Plus: favorite audiobooks, everything I read last month, matching sets for summer.
Hi, hi!
I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July! I wrote this letter on Wednesday as I took yesterday off to spend the day with my family. So I will just say that I bet it was great. The plan: a pool party and I planned a fun menu of burgers (dad’s job), salad (my sister’s job), appetizers (my job), cocktails (also my job), and dessert (my mom).
Today I thought it would be fun to talk about summer beauty. When it comes to my summer beauty routine, I am decidedly “high-maintenance to be low-maintenance.”
What I mean by that:
An expensive, annoying keratin treatment (I go to Largo here in Charleston, where I see Marlee) so that I can air dry my hair all summer long. I truly hate getting this treatment (it takes a while, it smells bad, it’s just gross) but I love the results so much that I happily suffer through it. I used to get this at Frederic Fekkai in New York (I wrote about it here) and I liked that better but Largo does the job (and it’s half the price it was in New York).
Facials every 4-6 weeks (she also tints my brows and lashes when I go) so that I can more or less skip makeup unless I am shooting something.
Actually remembering to use my lash serum so that my (tinted) lashes are nice and long and I can skip mascara.
And once those things are done, I am in the place to be pretty breezy about my routine. My skincare routine is the same way: high maintenance in the evening, low maintenance in the morning.
Evening: I do a double cleanse to make sure I’ve removed all traces of SPF. Right now, my combo is the Rhode pineapple cleanser (I LOVE this stuff) and then Farmacy’s gentle cleanser. Three nights a week I use retinal (this is my favorite), 2 nights I use an acid toner (right now that is a Dennis Gross peel pad). After the serum, I apply this serum (it helps with moisture and elasticity!), slather myself in my most luxurious moisturizer and then lock it in with a drop or two of face oil.
Mornings: Just a splash of water. Then I pat my face completely dry as water can effect Vitamin C’s stability (more on that here!). I pat on four drops of this Vitamin C/E serum. I let that dry (about a minute), and then I use this moisturizer. Then, a healthy dose of SPF. This is my favorite everyday SPF but I’ve been testing this one from Kate Somerville and love the tint/slight glow.
As for makeup, I don’t do much right now as it’s so hot and humid. A little bronzer, a little blush, maybe a sweep of eyeshadow and some mascara — keep it simple! I filmed a 3 minute makeup tutorial this week and that will be on stories next week. 5 products, one brush!
When I lived in New York, I was always being invited to try out new spa treatments and innovations with hopes of being covered on my blog or social media. It was fun! It was also time consuming if I am being honest. And I don’t like putting my skin through too much. Less is more, you really don’t want to torture your skin or get facials any more than every 4-6 weeks. In Charleston, comping influencers is way less common so I just go see Anna Brigid, where I happily pay for my services (and love the results). I really love that she bundles what she calls “the maintenance” (dermaplaning, lash + brow tint, brow grooming, nose wax) into the facial. I walk out a new person!
Honestly? I like this way better. A “gift” from a brand or spa always comes with strings. I would rather pay my own money for the thing that I deem best. And I really like seeing the same person consistently for a facial! They get to know your skin and what it likes.
What’s your summer beauty philosophy? Sound off in the comments!
Fun: Anthropologie made us a code! Use GRACE20 for 20% off apparel, accessories & beauty.
Some things I’ve recently bought and loved:
This stick of butter yellow dress. (It comes in other colors and patterns!)
We all LOVE this dress (it looks great on everyone!) and there are some really pretty new patterns.
This patterned shirt dress (I sized down) which is perfect for the pool or vacation.
This comfy shirt dress (I got the green print!) which is gorgeous and reminds me of La Double J. I like flying in this as it’s 100% cotton and long.
This striped shirt dress (mine hasn’t come yet but I was so excited to be able to pre-order it as it sold out so fast the first time).
This black and white Farm Rio dress - saving it for a special occasion; love the graphic motif.
I’m still eyeing this necklace and noticed that Anthro carries a TON of great Alémais which might mean it’s time to treat myself.
Ends Weds 7/10, online only, can’t be combined with other promos.
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On The Stripe (my blog!) this week.
We started the week with everything I read last month. It was a solid month of reading. Eight books, all (for the most part) of which I would recommend.
And then, in partnership with Audible (!!! this was a huge deal to get to partner with them), a list of my twelve favorite audiobooks of all time, plus a special offer for Amazon Prime members.
A fun summer fashion post: the best matching sets. I loved this one as cute little sets are my favorite thing to wear right now. (I also filmed a reel with even more sets).
This Week in Reading:
I finished listening to The Art of Small Talk by Casey Wilson and Jessica St. Clair. I absolutely loved it. It’s only available as an audiobook and it’s a quick but fun listen. It gets deeper and deeper as the book goes on and I loved all the guests (Malcom Gladwell, Amy Poehler, etc.) Definitely recommend it as a book that is equal parts helpful and entertaining.
I read You’re Safe Here by
in just a few days… absolutely loved it. It’s a little bit literary, a little bit sci-fi, but also a thriller. I couldn’t put it down. It’s set in the future (but not too far away) in 2060, where airplane travel is prohibitively expensive, beer is a rare commodity, and technology is king. The book is set in California, where we meet three women There is Emmett, the illustrious co-founder; Maggie, who just wants to get away from her life; and Noa (her partner) who will do anything to protect Maggie. Wellness, motherhood, and technology — and a plot line that is a little bit scary (but also not unreasonable). I can’t stop thinking about it!Next on my list is the new Lisa Jewell, Breaking the Dark. It is the first of her Marvel Crime Novels so I wasn’t sure what to expect but I will read anything she writes. It’s great so far. It’s got a small (at least so far) Marvel element but still feels like a Lisa Jewell novel. I am not that far into it but look forward to sharing more next week… I’m sure I’ll finish it over the weekend!
On audio, I am listening to James by Percival Everett. This is a reimagining of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, told by the perspective of Jim. It is excellent so far. I try to walk for about an hour every day and it’s the perfect walking companion.
I highly, highly recommend the vitamin C serum by Poems from the lab. Crazy effective and a steal compared to other options. I swear by skincare recs from Fifty Shades of Snail and this one is SO good. I am super pale so I slather in sunblock, the new biore formulation is great. It's so annoying that the US won't allow better sunscreen formulas. The Asian beauty ones are miles better than even the fancy ones here. I firmly believe sunscreen should be cheap enough that you feel ok slathering it on vs only putting on a tiny bit because it's expensive
Question on the Keratin treatment...I had one about 5 years ago and loved that the frizz was gone but it was pretty flat at the roots. How do I counter this or has the treatment changed? I am traveling in Sept.and if I could wash my hair/dry and go without worrying about i.e. a flat iron to tame the frizz it would be great but also with a round face ....flat hair is not flattering. Thanks as always.