Week 13: Grace Kelly. 5 Summer Beauty Weapons

Summer is in full reign and it’s about time I share some of  Grace Kelly's and my own beauty secrets as well as some hot-weather essentials.

1. Must Have Box

Firstly, I would like to start with subscription boxes. I have been curious about beauty and fashion surprise boxes since I was living in London. One of my best friends, Ania Pawlak, who now has her own blog, Beauty Obsessed, had been getting some of the boxes when we were living together and it was always fun opening them with her.

Special Edition Resort Box by Popsugar

Subscription boxes are so popular because they give you a sense of excitement every time you open a freshly delivered package filled with surprise goodies. There is always some great product by some brand you have never heard of, cute things you would never try otherwise, or something that you didn't even know you needed.

One of the most beloved subscription boxes in the US is Popsugar Must Have. They  not only have makeup and beauty products, but lifestyle and decor items as well. I was thrilled when Popsugar selected me to be one of the bloggers to review their June box. To be honest, I completely forgot about it until this morning when I woke up to a package. It felt like Christmas!

The June Box has 7 items, including a card game, a very sparkly nail polish, deodorant wipes (I didn’t know such a thing even existed!), a sarong, and a very cute bottle opener. Here are the pictures of the surprise items that arrived in my Popsugar Must Have Box.

Check their website to see "inside" previous boxes. Each one is so different and has a great curated collection of items. It is great that you can get a box of fabulous goodies for a fixed monthly price and get items triple the value or even more. So you don't have to worry if there is something you don't actually need.

Let me know if you have ever used a subscription box service. I would love to hear about your experience.

2. Hand cream

Grace Kelly was obsessed with keeping her hands moisturised and always had a little hand cream in her purse. She revealed that it was one of her most important beauty secrets and that "a woman's age shows on her hand much quicker than anywhere else."

Following her advice, I do actually keep a tiny pack of hand cream in my purse and a big one on my bedside table. My favourite small one is Magic Food Banana Hand Milk by Korean brand Tony Moly. It not only has the cutest packaging but smells absolutely delicious and is quite cheap. I get my Korean beauty supplies in a Tony Moly shop in NYC, 35 W 32nd St, Korea Town.

3. Self-tanning

Princess Grace of Monaco is famous for her beautiful fair skin, but not a lot of people know she loved spending time on the beach and swam a lot to keep her figure slim. Grace knew the importance of keeping her skin hydrated and protected from the sun with lotions with higher SPF.

I naturally have very pale skin as well, but I don't think it suits me. I just simply prefer to be tanned. It was easy to get a beautiful bronze glow when I was living in Miami, but now in New York I have to use self-tanners.

Here are my favourite self-tanners I currently use:

4. Fabulous Floaties

Ok, not really a beauty secret, but a fun, bright float is a serious summer 2016 essential if you have a pool or a beach nearby. It adds fun to your tanning process and also looks great in pictures.

5. Lipstick

I am wearing Anastasia Beverly Hills in Dusty Rose.

Grace Kelly didn't wear much makeup, especially on hot summer days, but she almost never forgot to put on lipstick. She preferred bright red and dark rosy hues.

I, on the other hand, have never been a huge lipstick fan, but during one of my visits to Sephora, I tried Anastasia Beverly Hills Liquid matte lipstick and fell in love. So many beautiful colours to choose from and, most importantly, it stays on for hours without feeling gross on my lips like most lipsticks tend to.

 

So there are my 5 summer 2016 beauty weapons inspired by my latest purchases and Grace Kelly's own beauty secrets. Do you enjoy reading beauty posts? Let me know in the comments!