Back in June, London was hit by a heatwave. Or so we thought. The temperature rose to around 30 degrees, and I wrote a piece on my heatwave-proof makeup.
Now, a month on, the mercury has climbed to 38 degrees, and we're doing everything we can to keep cool, from carrying handheld fans everywhere to sleeping with frozen hot water bottles – thank me later for that tip.
Soaring temperatures or not, beauty launches wait for no woman, so on the hottest day of the year so far, I found myself travelling up to Harrods' rooftop for a makeup masterclass with D&G makeup artist Naoko Scintu, who works with the likes of Kate Hudson, Yerin Ha, Jessie Buckley and Chase Infiniti.
Given that Naoko applies red-carpet makeup to some of the most photographed women in the world, she knows a thing or two about ensuring makeup looks fresh, flawless, and, most importantly, heatproof.
My new favourite summer makeup
Sitting amid fellow beauty journalists, with a pleasing breeze wafting around the terrace, Naoko introduced us to what has now become my favourite makeup base to wear – D&G's Blueberry Nutri-Tint, £46.
The ultralight, skin-perfecting tint is one of Kate Hudson's favourites too, according to Naoko, who says that whenever she uses it on her celebrity clients, they ask her if she can keep it. "I can't keep it in my kit!" she joked.
On why the skin tint is such a hit with the A-listers - Kate Hudson in particular - Naoko explained: "Kate always says to me, 'You make my skin feel like I'm not wearing makeup', which is such an amazing compliment."
© InstagramI have to agree with Kate. For the uninitiated, skin tints occupy the space between foundation and bare skin, offering minimal coverage but gently easing the appearance of redness or pigmentation with a light wash of colour.
The Nuti-Tint adds a subtle luminosity to the skin, unifying my complexion and making me look like a fresher, more put-together version of myself, without feeling like I have any makeup at all on my skin, which is my number one demand at the moment. If it's not lightweight, I don't want to know.
Naoko advises applying the skin tint onto the back of your hand before lightly dabbing it onto the skin, either with a fluffy brush or with your fingers. She recommends applying it to the middle of your face and working your way outwards, but the formula is foolproof, so no matter how you apply it, it looks flawless. This morning, I used the nozzle to apply it directly to my face, then rubbed it in with my fingertips and it looked as good as it did when it was buffed in with a brush.
Replacing makeup steps with one product
While I normally apply my skin tint, followed by concealer to pinpoint any redness, then highlighter or bronzer, simply wearing Nutri-Tint feels like enough. This one tint has wiped out a three-step routine for me, meaning I can get ready quicker in the morning – ideal when it's so roasty out.
If I do want to add a bit of colour back in, Naoko also introduced us to the Cherry Glaze Bar, £40, which you simply stamp on (do NOT swipe as I did, it's way too pigmented to use more than a tiny dab), and blend in.
Of course, you can't skip SPF. Even though the Nutri-tint has SPF20 (that protection level was chosen so as not to interfere with the formula), you still need to apply SPF50 before anything else. Today I used Byoma's Ultralight Face Fluid SPF50, £14.99, which gave my skin a glow before I applied anything else.
With people musing that these super hot temperatures are here to stay, this is the skin tint I most recommend for summer - let me know what you think, if you've tried it.
