If there is one thing I have learned in my time as a beauty editor, it is this: A great formula does not a successful beauty product make. It’s painful to admit, but believe me when I say that the secret to a successful beauty launch is rarely down to whether or not the product actually works. Once upon a time, the success of a beauty launch was dependent on huge advertising budgets and maybe just a little bit on how good the formula was. Now, however, things are even shallower. In a world where social media runs the game, aesthetics come first, and it is with that shift that my job as a beauty editor has also changed.
Whereas it was once the role of a beauty editor to spread the news and wax lyrical about new launches, now with the power of social media, the job of providing the beauty news bulletins has become defunct. Instead, in 2020, I like to think of it as my job to break through the social media hype blanket and lay it down straight because sometimes people just don’t want to pay £50 for a pretty face cream that doesn’t do the job. So while I must apologise for what was an incredibly long introduction, I beg that you keep all of this in mind as you read what I want to say next: Summer Fridays is without a doubt one of my most-loved skincare brands.
Yes, you read that right. Summer Fridays, the brand behind that powder-blue tube of face mask, is what I believe to be one of the very best skincare brands out there right now. Sure, there’s no denying that the pretty pastel packaging is an absolute wonder to behold, but I promise you there is so much more to this Instagram brand.
When Kim Kardashian West first shared the news that she had been using Summer Fridays Jet Lag Face Mask in 2018, waiting lists around the world filled up with names of beauty buffs itching to get their hands on a tube. After selling out multiple times, the joy that was the Jet Lag Mask was thrust upon every Instagram user out there, whether they asked for it or not, in the form of pretty flat lays and well-composed product shots. And just like that, a social media star was born.
Trust me—I am not the sort of person to head straight out and buy a product because Kim K told me to. I am, however, the sort of person to head straight out and buy a product because Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Jessica Alba told me to. So when both beauty queens posted to their Instagrams that they use (and love) Summer Fridays, I bought every single product the brand had to offer at that time, which was just three glow-inducing face masks.
Upon trying the masks for the first time, I was absolutely sure that these products were not just some sort of celebrity-propelled fad. My skin slurped up the super-hydrating Jet Lag Mask (£42) like it hadn’t had a drink in a year, it shone beyond belief after being veiled in the exfoliating powerhouse that is the Overtime Mask (£39), and the plumping abilities of the R+R Mask (£46) rained on just about every other mask in my collection. Stamping all over every preconception that I had about a natural, vegan beauty line (founded by a pair of California-based influencers, no less), Summer Fridays gave me everything I never knew I needed from a face mask.
Now, whenever my skin is having a down day, the very first thing I reach for is one of my Summer Fridays masks. After just 10 minutes, I can guarantee that my skin will look 100 times better, 100% of the time, no exceptions. And the good news is that recently, the brand has branched out beyond masks. While Rosie Huntington-Whiteley swears by the Super Amino Gel Cleanser (£34), I can’t get enough of the brand-new nourishing Lip Butter Balm (£20). So with all of that said, I’d like to say thank you to Summer Fridays for proving that although pretty packaging and celebrity endorsements help, when push comes to shove, it’s results that matter most.
Next up, I’ve done my research, and these are the best anti-ageing products.
