Friday, July 27, 2012

Summer 2012 Beach Must-Haves

Summer 2012 Beach Must-Haves
I'm sad to say that my vacation is coming to an end.  I have had a wonderful family vacation.  Work has been the furthest thing from my mind.  However, I do love blogging, and I love linking up my favorite things, so I thought I'd share some of my favorite must-haves for summer, especially trips to the beach. It's a little late, considering most people have already had their vacations, but these products are really great year-round.

Sunscreen
All right, you all know that I'm very passionate about sunscreen, especially natural sunscreens that don't contain oxybenzone.  I have included some new favorites:  Surf-vival Sunblock and Banana Boat Natural Reflect, which were recommended when I did a google search for "best all-natural sunscreens."  And, some old favorites:  Eminence Tropical Vanilla is always a splurge, and you'll understand why when you've compared it to other organic, all-natural sunscreens..it's like butter, I tell ya.  I've also been really happy with Neutrogena pure & free, which is a line marketed towards babies.  Sunscreen is serious business when you're protecting a family of four.

Makeup
As for makeup, I have to admit, that I still usually do put makeup on to go out.  I definitely don't bother with it around the water, but come time to shop, stroll, and dine, I do try some "beachy" looks that focus on cheeks and lips.  I always start the day with a tinted moisturizer SPF 25, and I love to use lots of bronzer, a bright pink lip, metallic brown shadow, a pop of bright pink blush, and mascara to finish it off.

Fragrance
I go through spells where I am lucky to leave the house with makeup on, but this summer, I'm trying to get out of the house with makeup, jewelry, and fragrance.  Crazy, I know.  I have two favorites for the beach:  a new body butter from Victoria's Secret and Dolce & Gabbana's Light Blue Eau de Toilette.  Check out the links below.

Jewelry
For jewelry, I did pack a couple of options, but it wasn't necessary.  Everyday, I put on my trusty starfish jewelry from J. Crew.  The earrings came from the Factory site, and the necklace came from the regular site.  I am so loving these pieces!

Reading
Last but not least, summer reading.  I recently acquired a Kindle.  I consider myself a purist, so I stayed away from e-readers for as long as I could, but now I'm hooked.  The first book I purchased came highly recommended, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn is definitely a psychological thriller, one that I eagerly read every spare minute I could find.  And, I'm a big fan of having a Kindle at the beach...it takes splashes pretty well, and it remembers its place when you have to put it down a million times to watch your kids cannonball in the pool...again and again ;)





Hope you're having a wonderful summer.  To celebrate, I have another giveaway up my sleeve.  I have a pair of my favorite starfish earrings to giveaway (as seen above).  One of the reasons for the giveaways is to thank loyal readers.  Another reason is to acquire new readers.  I'm hoping that the transition to my new blog will be easy.  It's not quite ready yet, and I didn't want to hold onto these earrings for much longer, so I'm going to go ahead and do it.  Please share this blog with any friends you have that might be interested.  Help spread the word.  


  • To be entered to win the earrings, please leave a comment on this post about your favorite outing or trip this summer.  You can also share your summer must-haves as I love word-of-mouth recommendations.




  • You can share this giveaway on your own blog.  Just link up and spread the word (and comment here that you've done so).


  • You can also share on your Facebook wall.  When I share the blog post on Riversong Spa's facebook page, just click the Share link (to the right of the Like button).  Please comment to original post that you shared so I can track shares.






THAT'S 4 CHANCES TO WIN!!!

I may keep this giveaway open for a while since it's such a good one.  I will keep you posted as to when I will announce the winner.  Thanks for reading!

8 comments:

  1. Love the Tropical Vanilla!

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  2. Just read your blog and found at least 3 items that I'd love to try! The natural sunscreen, the tinted glo (moisturizer) and the eminence moisturizer with SPF! I'll ask about some of this stuff when I come in for my facial!

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  3. Both Lauren and I love the Tropical Vanilla. SPF the natural way that smells great!

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  4. I definitely needed to try the Tropical Vanilla SPF on our trip to Colonial Williamsburg this past weekend. It was 100 degrees in the shade, but a great "olde" time was had by all!

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  5. I would love to try the vanilla sunscreen. Does it smell good and not have the sunscreen smell? How much is it?

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  6. For summer makeup at the beach I try to keep it very minimal. Usually I get color during the day so I may not even put any on. Fragrance: loving Vera Wang Princess right now! It's light but sweet...but not TOO sweet. And jewelry at the beach for me is all the fun shells and hippie-style pieces I can't wear during the week to work. I love keeping it simple and down to earth!

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  7. Favorite outing so far would have to be hanging around the pool with the kids and my sisters and parents...however, we have a beach trip coming up that may top that - we all love the beach and enjoy getting "dolled up" to go out to shop, eat, etc. after a day at the beach. With the girls starting to wear makeup - we're always looking for ones that are good for their skin. Happy Summer!

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  8. Michaela McWhorterAugust 1, 2012 at 3:29 AM

    My favorite outing this summer was a weekend spent with my daughter In PA. I cherish any chance I get to spend with my daughters, as they are both in college and have busy schedules, so I was beyond thrilled to be asked to go on a getaway weekend. Of course, we took the wrong roads, got lost even though we had a GPS, had plenty of laughs, and ate all of the time. Making memories!!!

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