My Best Summer Serums, Scents, and Spritzes

  Happy Caturday, guys and gals!!  We all know that rising temps mean changing up routine a bit.  Here are a few of my hair, skin, and fragrance favorites during the summer heat ☼

Naturelle Volumax Spray, L'Oreal Youth Code Texture Perfector cream, Chanel Eau Premiere edt, Bath & Body Works Coconut Lime Breeze fragrance mist

  Naturelle Volumax Sea Salt Texture Spray-- Once in a while, something I read about in the editor's picks sections of the beauty mags I read will jump out at me, and I'm fairly certain that's where I read about sea salt texturizing spray some time last year.  I picked up this Naturelle brand at Sally Beauty Supply for around $10.  The stuff is amazing.  I'm very low maintenance when it comes to my hair anyway, and this product is as low maintenance as it gets.  I air dry, and after I've combed through and while my hair is damp, I spritz this all over.  As my hair dries, I get the coolest body and windblown texture-- perfectly undone for hot summer days and minimal brushing required.  Because this spray contains salt, it's pretty drying, so refresh on the next wash with a nice, rich, deep conditioning mask(I like Neutrogena Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask-- I use it all year long).

  L'Oreal Youth Code Texture Perfector Day/Night Cream-- Okay, maybe I do have an affinity for editor's picks.  This was in the July issue of Glamour, touted as having a light, serum-like nature and absorbing flawlessly into your skin.  This is true! It's nice to wake up without my face feeling slick or greasy (a sign your skin doesn't need as much moisture as you've piled on top of it).  It's a little steep for a drugstore brand, ringing in at $25 for a 1.7 oz. jar.  It doesn't take much to cover my whole face and neck, though, and if you supplement it and switch it out every few weeks (a good thing to do, anyway) it should last you well into fall.  My skin is fairly oily, especially during summer, and this stuff is fabulous.  My only complaint is that it's pretty heavily perfumed-- it's a pleasant scent, a little woodsy and floral, but I prefer an unscented cream.  Performance is king, though, and I can totally deal with a little fragrance.

  Chanel No5 Eau Premiere edt-- The original (current) formulation of Chanel No5 edp is one of my favorite scents, but for summer, I rotate it out and look to its lighter, brighter, more modern cousin, Eau Premiere.  Eau Premiere's got the same heart as its predecessor, orange blossom, roses, jasmine, ylang ylang, amber, vetiver, and sandalwood, but it's done it a soft focus manner and with less aldehyde action right off the bat (those are what's responsible for sparkling quality at the very beginning of No5, and what some people might consider too sharp).  Part of what I love about both iterations is the complete lack of edge; both are creamy, elegant perfection.  Lots of art references are made in regards to the differences amongst the various No5 iterations-- think of Eau Premiere like this.  If the original No5 is an oil painting, Eau Premiere is a watercolor.  If you're one who's had a wary curiosity towards No5, try Eau Premiere.  I suspect you'll fall in love.

  Bath & Body Works Coconut Lime Breeze Fine Fragrance Mist--I didn't actually start caring about any fragrance not in a glass bottle until last summer, and that was sort of by accident.  I went into Bath & Body Works, knowing their Coconut Lime Verbena scent was a nearly spot-on copy of luxury perfumer Creed's Virgin Island Water (better, even) so I went in looking for the edt.  What I found was a reformulation called Coconut Lime Breeze, and no perfume.  I decided to give the mist a whirl.  Coconut Lime Breeze is not as complex as CLV; it's lacking the herbal depth the verbena note provided.  This iteration is still lovely, though, straightforward, light as a feather, and well balanced.  The coconut isn't over sweet, nor the lime too stringent.  Simply, it's cool and fresh.  The lack of essential oil in this mist means there isn't much of a scent projection and I can be liberal in my application.  It delicately scents and feels fantastic on my post evening run, freshly showered skin.  It wears close and doesn't last very long, but that's fine because application feels so lovely and refreshing.

  So what are your summer hair/skin.scent essentials?  Favorite B&BW scent at the moment?  Is $25 too much to pay for a drugstore moisturizer?

  Thank you for reading and have a lovely weekend!! ☼☼