There’s something infinitely alluring about a sun-kissed glow on bare skin. It’s especially alluring during those late spring and early summer days, when your body is still trying to shake off the cool, dry, yuckiness you developed during those gloomy winter days. In Los Angeles, where we are, we’re graced with the kind of year-round sunshine that makes our state the envy of so many others. Never mind that, though. The summer months get us just as excited as anyone else from a season-filled state. Indeed, we revel in any and all tools that will quickly transform us into the bronzed beauties of summertime.
By now, though, we all know that spending days tanning at the beach is but one way (and a dangerous way) of achieving that bronzed Goddess look. That’s why bronzers, highlighters, and all sorts of illuminating products designed to give us a sun-kissed glow quickly become favorites during the summer. After all, the golden and glow-inducing powers of bronzers become doubly believable when the sun is shining.
To grasp which bronzers are actually the best, we looked at some of the favorite products beauty influencers and vloggers have raved about. Without further ado, here they are:
The ones with the right duos:
The great thing about the right palette of makeup is that you have a color range that a professional has selected for you to quickly mix and match from, for the right color combination. The right bronzer palettes offer a range of colors that can help you subtly change up your look throughout the year, depending on your shade, or you can mix colors for a more dramatic date-night look.
This Naked Flushed palette from Urban Decay offers a range of color combos that all have a bronzer, highlighter and blush for you to create a finished look without much work. Maybelline’s FaceStudio Master Bronze Kit doesn’t have quite the same shade range but it’s a budget-friendly option that can’t be beat. As YouTube vlogger Rachel Leary points out in one of her videos reviewing the Bronze Kit, the colors don’t have a lot of shimmer but they do have a nice satin finish.
The ones with perfect colors:
Classic bronzers come in a compact case with a mirror that allows you to carry around for a quick touch up. It’s an especially appealing packaging option since one of the beauties of bronzers is that they can be repurposed. You can use them for a quick sweep across your face for an all-over glow or you can buff them along your cheekbones, nose and forehead for some minimal contouring or highlighting.
These bronzer options from Becca, Guerlain and MAC all offer a variety of shades from light to deep, which has helped them earn the admiration of a range of beauty bloggers with varying skin colors. In one of her classic YouTube videos rounding up her favorite bronzers for deep skin tones, vlogger Jackie Aina lists Guerlain as one of her favorite bronzers for a year-round warm glow that has the right amount of neutral tones.
The ones for a megawatt glow:
One of the first perils of bronzer is that you can overdo it and end up with a orange-looking face that conjures up images of Oompa Loompas. Usually a light hand will remedy this problem with even the most orange of bronzers (though fret not, none of this applies to any of the above!) The second peril great bronzers avoid is looking too flat. That is, they don’t have the kind of sparkle create that “glow” effect when the light hits you. That’s why bronzers like Estee Lauder’s Bronze Goddess Illuminating Powder Gelée and Stila’s Heaven’s Hue Highlighter are ideal for building up the right sheen on your skin. The Bronze Goddess powder can be used sparingly or be built up for dramatic look.
Stila’s highlighter is a favorite among beauty content creators like Iris Puello, who told Girlboss she loves using the sun-kissed highlighter along with a setting spray like Fix+ by MAC. “The putty like texture gives it a finish that stands out to me, and it also makes it for everyone to use whether you have dry to normal skin,” Puello says. “I also can’t forget to leave out, for a extra dewy glow finish,always set your face at the end.”
