Simplifying Wellness: My Simple Summer Makeup Routine

Jul 27

Do you want to live a healthier lifestyle, but feel completely overwhelmed trying to figure out where to start or what advice to follow? In my conversations with clients, the top barrier to taking action usually comes from feelings of overwhelm and confusion on how to find the tools and habits that are actually sustainable for the long-haul. There’s a lot of information to sort through, and more diets, products, and resources than ever! In some ways, it seems like we’ve been over-complicating and over-thinking health and wellness for a long time. Only now, instead of the low-fat diets and jazzercise crazes of my youth (80s babe), we’ve broadened our perspective, focusing on sleep, mindset, stress management, relationships, and more. Phew!

As a functional nutritionist and health educator, I’m in full support of taking care of the body in a holistic way. But, the key to leading a sustainable healthy lifestyle that encompasses all of these areas lies in simplicity. Finding the tools and actions you can easily implement and integrate into your life on a consistent basis is foundational to grow on your own health path. Because, when you consistently stick with small actions, they eventually make a big difference in your health and happiness.

From the start of your day to the end, and all of the decisions you make in between, there are so many opportunities to bring balance and positive changes to your body on a deep level. Functional nutrition takes a holistic approach to health, considering not only dietary modifications, but also factors like sleep, stress management, physical activity, mindset, and lifestyle choices.

These are all opportunities to create overall wellness in your mind and your body.

In today’s post, I’m sharing a way I’ve simplified one of my lifestyle choices: My makeup routine.

I’ll never forget a summer day back in 2012. I spent the majority of that day on the floor of my bathroom, sorting through a tub of makeup, googling ingredients to find out if they contained gluten or soy. I’d recently discovered that these ingredients were causing immune dysfunction in my body, and was clearing it out of my diet and my personal care products. I know I’m not alone in this tedious, headache-inducing process. I’ve talked to many people over the years who have shared similar stories. Thankfully, it’s become much easier to identify product safety in the last decade; but, good grief! That experience left its mark. It was a struggle to find products that were both safe and effective. I also learned a lot from googling ingredients like sodium laureth sulfate and diethyl phthalate. (We’ll get into ingredients to avoid in another post!)

Unfortunately, this whole experience led to a strong distrust in beauty products, as well as a bit of apathy around routines that I usually enjoyed: skincare and makeup.

There are over 10,000 chemicals used in personal care products like cleansers, serums, and makeup – the majority of which have never been evaluated for safety. (I’ll share more about this in future posts, too.) Your skin is your largest organ of detoxification and an important component of your immune system. As someone who has dealt with an overactive immune system since birth, keeping my skin healthy with safe products is critical to my overall health goals. Thankfully, my quest for safer skincare and makeup became much more simple in 2019 after a childhood friend shared Beautycounter with me. (You can read more about this here.)

When it comes to simplicity, Beautycounter checks all the boxes for me. From a list of 2,800 ingredients they will never use in their formulations to strict safety standards by which every ingredient is screened and assessed, Beautycounter has truly become my one-stop-shop for all things skincare, makeup, and body care.

And I love being able to share this resource with my nutrition clients, who are working hard to get out of overwhelm, resolve pressing health issues, and start living their lives with more joy and energy.

So, if you’re interested in simplifying your morning makeup routine, you're in the right place!

Here are a few recommendations for getting started, along with my exact simple, summer makeup must-haves:

Flawless in Five

This is the ultimate simple solution for a polished, natural, everyday look in under five minutes. You get six products that are curated to your shade and color preferences. This bundle has streamlined my morning routine, helped me confidently step into my day, and kept my health in the forefront – both with Beautycounter’s commitment to safety AND my mental energy.

**Here’s my exact summer makeup routine:**

Dew Skin Tinted Moisturizer — this is a great multi-tasker that provides light coverage, SPF 20, a dewy look, and skincare benefits with a blend of nourishing skin ingredients. I don’t go a day without this!
Merit Beauty’s Perfecting Complexion Stick — trying to use this up before getting back to my Beautycounter concealer. This product is a little less creamy than Beautycounter’s concealer, which I don’t love for my skin.
Cheeky Clean Cream Blush — another versatile product in my routine that can perform as a blush or lip color, and I’ve even seen some people use it on their eyelids. Like most Beautycounter products, this is makeup and skincare in one product, combining squalane and jojoba esters for moisturizing, supple skin. I love this blush formulation.
Cheeky Clean Highlighter Balm — This is one of my favorite new-ish product from Beautycounter and the name says it all: It truly is a balm that leaves my skin both radiant and nourished, thanks to ingredients like squalane and castor oil.
Brilliant Brow Gel — this is a daily non-negotiable product for me. If I get sunscreen, groomed brows, and a swipe of gloss, I’m good to go. This brow gel never flakes as the day goes on and is super easy to apply. I don’t fill in my brows with anything else, so it’s literally brush and go!
Think Big All in One Mascara — I wasn’t the biggest fan of Beautycounter’s mascara until this formulation came out! It’s incredible and every person that has tried it has said the same thing. It also supports stronger lashes with lash-care conditioners, which is a win in my book!
Beyond Gloss in Magnolia Shimmer — this is my go-to gloss for everyday occasions. It leaves my lips feeling conditioned and shiny, and is a breeze to apply. There are several color options, but this was my favorite for a summery look.

Whether you’re a busy, on-the-go mom or professional – or you just love a quick clean makeup routine – I love that Beautycounter helps you simplify and feel confident in knowing you're using products that prioritize your health.

If you want guidance in simplifying any aspect of your beauty routine, please reach out to me directly (hello@nourishedfood.co — NOT (dot) com). It brings me so much joy when I help you find products that work for your skin, so you can stop wasting time (and money) on products that don’t.

If you’re new to Beautycounter, please reach out so I can share a discount code with you! I can’t wait to help you.