Summer’s Secret Skin Weapon: 10 Primers That Do More Than Just Prep

While reorganizing our makeup bags for the coming months, we’re guided by the less-is-more mentality of a beach day or warm-weather getaway, favoring products that allow skin to breathe and be seen. Fortunately, the new breed of all-you-need primers functions as seasonal secret weapons, utilizing lightweight formulas to quietly camouflage skin issues without completely obscuring them—after all, nothing says summertime like letting a few freckles have their day. In balmy climates, editorial makeup artist Suzy Gerstein prefers to apply color-correcting primers in lieu of foundation, spot concealing on top only when necessary. And who can blame her? Once the first step to a full face of makeup, primers are more specialized than ever, targeting dry, oily, and blotchy skin with focused formulas crafted to combat your every complexion woe on their own.

When humidity reaches an all-time high, shine-controlling variations like Cover FX Mattifying Primer With Anti-Acne Treatment minimize the look of lines and pores while instantly muting unwanted oils by way of willowbark extract—which serendipitously contains blemish-fighting salicylic acid. If hydration is your goal, Stila’s Aqua Glow Perfecting Primer stick is water-based, using a blend of snowdrop, aloe, and lemon extract to cool and smooth on contact. For instant and long-term benefits, CoverGirl & Olay Simply Ageless Serum firms the face with an amino-peptide complex, while Eve Lom Flawless Primer supplies a layer of brightening sand lily extract, nourishing Vitamin E, and a UV-damage-fighting cocktail of antioxidants and SPF 30.

Even better, you don’t have to choose just one. According to Gerstein, the formulas work just as well in combination—her favorite summertime makeup routine involves two. “Sunday Riley’s Effortless Breathable Tinted Primer has a luminous aspect, so I’ll use it on areas I want to highlight—cheeks, down the bridge of the nose—supplementing with a mattifying primer on the T-zone where shine can read greasy, especially in sunny-weather selfies.” Here, ten new primers that promise to replace your makeup routine in the coming months.

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