July Makeup Trends: Seashell Themes and Sunkissed Looks

Summer is in full swing. What’s in store for this month?

Happy July! July is one of my favorite months because it’s the heat of summer (literally). And summer is my favorite season, especially here in Chicago. If you have never been to Chicago let me tell you something, there is nothing quite like this city in the summer. The city lights up. There are street fests in different neighborhoods every weekend, people are on patios 24/7, and the lakefront is poppin’. While it’s not a beach city, the lakeshore vibes go well with this months themes…

July Beauty Trends & Themes

I got inspired for this month’s theme by my friend who sent me an article that the 90s seashell theme is back in. In general, the 90s aesthetic has been “in” this whole summer: baggy jeans, brown lips, slicked hair. The 90s seashell necklaces seem fitting, especially for July don’t they? Obviously, this is not a jewelry blog, but the theme gave me inspo for my July color palette: corals, soft pinks and sandy browns.

Hot July Makeup

There are four products I’m super excited about for July. I have everything linked in the product names! Two products are new and two have been around for a bit but I’m finally getting my hands on them. I finally got two products from Make Up Forever that I have been dying to try. The HD Skin Face Essentials – Longwear Full Face Cream Palette, and the Artist Color Pencil Longwear Lip Liner.

So this palette…I have been wanting it for ages and finally caved. It’s a multi-use palette that can create custom foundation, concealer, contour, bronzer, blush and bronzer. I am still playing around with it to figure out what shades to blend to match my skin tone but honestly, it’s a super functional and fun product to have if you’re pretty advanced with your makeup.

I bought the lip pencil in Limitless Brown – Rich Chocolate Brown. I wanted a good, brown lip liner. This pencil can also be used as an eye liner. I love the versatility and quality of Make Up Forever’s products. I have their HD skin foundation and it has definitely become my favorite foundation to date.

The new products I am eager to check out is the Makeup By Mario Softsculpt® Multi-Use Bronzing & Shaping Serum, and the Tower 28 ShineOn Lip Jelly Non-Sticky Gloss. The Softsculpt has been trending all over Tik Tok and Instagram. It’s a liquid bronzer that has both a wand and pump applicator. I’ve seen it go on either before foundation to warm up certain parts of the face, or after foundation to sculpt. You can also mix it into moisturizer. It’s super sheer and hydrating. It’s on my list to buy for July as it never hurts to have another bronzer for summer!

I already own one of the Tower 28 Lip Jellies and I have to say, it’s one of my favorite lip glosses. I have the color Cashew which is a rosy brown. This gloss is non-sticky and so hydrating. It has raspberry oil and rosehip oil in it as well. I could buy every color of these lip glosses. For July I want the Fire color (a vibrant orange) and Oat (a peachy pink). In the summer I feel as though I am definitely more of a lip gloss versus lipstick girl. Which one are you?

Above: Sunkissed & coral vibes!

Super Sunkissed

What is more of a beachy vibe than having a super sunned looking face? There are so many blush trends this summer. I literally can’t keep up with them. In my last post, I talked about the sunburnt blush trend, which I actually really love for this season. A couple other summer blush looks I have been experimenting with are the lifted blush placement, sunset blush, and the boyfriend blush look. I should probably do a whole other post just for blush trends but to sum it up: the more blush the better for summer. The boyfriend blush trend is simply just a flushed cheek look; pulling the placement down to make your skin look more flushed and ruddy. You don’t need to contour with this trend as you want the emphasis on the pinkish or reddish cheeks.

The lifted blush hack is the exact opposite of the boyfriend trend. Place the blush super high on your cheek bones for a more lifted look. A good trick I like to do to make sure the blush looks high is to add concealer to the lower half of the face after you apply your blush. I make a line from the edge of my nostril all the way to my ear and then blend it down.

The sunset blush trend has been everywhere. It has also transferred over to sunset lips, which I discussed in my last post. Probably my fav trend of all these blush looks: you mix two different colors (or more if you so desire) for a very pretty sunset look on the cheek. I also blend my highlighter in as well. This trend works better with liquid or cream based blushes, rather than a powder. I like to do a peach tone with either a red or pink blush, with the peach tone being the color farthest away from the center of the face.

A Cocktail to Cheers Us Into the New Month

The mood board can’t be complete without a cocktail! I’m still drinking martinis this summer (obviously). I recently had a delicious one at Charlie Martin’s in Chicago, where the server shook the cocktail at the table (a very nice touch). I am also loving these cocktail mixers from Mixly (linking here). I came across this brand at an outdoor street market the day of my wedding and my friend and I got to sample a bunch of flavors. They are all fresh squeezed mixers that can also work as mocktails.

I ended up buying a sample pack of the Grapefruit Jalapeño, the Cucumber Mint Lime, and the Pineapple Basil Lime. I also loved the Strawberry Rhubarb and the Bunny Mary, which was a fun take on a Bloody Mary. It was carrot, lemon and dill mix and oh my god was it good. I am not usually a huge Bloody Mary person but this was super light and refreshing. Surprise here, I definitely went online and ordered a couple other flavors to try! Such a great way to mix up the cocktail game at home.

Cheers to July! What’s on your beauty docket for the month? Which blush trends are your fav for summer?

Cheers!