Effortless Beach Style

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MyBeachBlonde  #CollectiveBias

When summertime rolls around, there is only one place this artsy mama wants to be…the beach! Unfortunately, since I don’t live in a coastal city, I only get to spend about two weeks at the ocean during our family vacation. But that doesn’t mean I can’t channel my happy place with some beach-inspired style all summer long. Today, I thought I’d share some of my favorite tips for looking and feeling like you’ve got your toes in the sand no matter where you might actually be.

The Hair
First of all, let’s start with a simple beach-inspired hairstyle. If you’ve ever spent any time at the beach, you know that the salt from the ocean combined with that ever-blowing breeze make for a very casual windswept look. It’s a time to forget fancy styling and let nature do the work for you, right?

Now, with the new line of Beach Blonde™ products from John Frieda®, you can easily achieve that same carefree beachy style right in the comfort of your own home.

I picked up the three essentials {you can find them at Walmart} to see how they worked for me, and I quickly fell in love with this whole line. Honestly, since my hair is naturally 100% stick straight, I had my doubts about what would happen, but I truly do get great results every time I use them.

First, I wash my hair with the Cool Dip™ Purifying Shampoo, which is designed to detoxify and nourish so that your hair has more texture and fullness. Then, I use the Smooth Seas™ Detangling Conditioner to get rid of tangles and give hair a soft, touchable texture. Both the shampoo and conditioner have a refreshing, energizing minty scent that really appeals to me. Once I’m finished washing and conditioning, I towel dry my hair and spray in my favorite of the products, the John Frieda® Beach Blonde™ Sea Waves™ Sea Salt Spray.

The spray, infused with natural sea salt, is designed to help achieve piecey perfection, windblown waves, and tousled texture all year round…and guess what? It does! Even my stick straight hair looks windblown and slightly wavy when this spray does its work! To make it happen, I just spray it into my towel-dried hair, use my hands to scrunch and create a bit of texture, then grab all of my hair and loosely clip it on top of my head. While it’s clipped, I blow dry it a bit to help set in the texture. Then, I take out the clip and let it finish drying naturally.

The other awesome thing about the Sea Waves™ Sea Salt Spray is that it smells amazing, like coconut! Every time I smell it, it makes me think of sunscreen, pina coladas, and beach towels drying in the sun. You can see that the end result is an effortlessly undone style, completed by pulling my bangs back from my face just like I do when I’m caught in that ocean breeze. You may be thinking, “But wait a second, you’re not blonde!” And you’re absolutely right, friend! The great news is that despite the name, women of any hair color can use these products to achieve the beachy hair style they desire, not just blondes. Take it from a faux auburn who needs to touch up her color job…they still work!

The Outfit
I’m all about being comfy and casual at the beach, but still being stylish too. I love long loose tank tops, and if they happen to have an island-inspired print, all the better! Blues and teals are my favorite colors to wear while soaking up the sun, along with white. Something about white just screams summertime to me, plus it reflects the heat and keeps you cooler. This year, I’m kind of obsessed with white linen shorts and pants, especially roomy ones that give off a relaxed vibe. I’m all about things that aren’t too tight…I may or may not have decided years ago that calories don’t count on vacation, so that probably has something to do with it. Add a pair of sandals or {my favorite} jellys, and you’ve got a head to toe beach-inspired look no matter where you are.

After taking these photos, I headed to a get-together with some of the folks from the theater company I performed with this Spring. My friend Greg looked at me and commented, “You look like you’re ready for the islands.” Exactly. That means I nailed it!

The Makeup
At the beach, we all know less is more. The same is true if you’re going for this style at home. I use a tinted moisturizer, very light white and beige eye shadow, mascara, and a light natural-looking lip gloss. Sometimes I use a bit of bronzer too. Keep it low-key or it’ll look off balance with the rest of the look.

I am absolutely loving this look for summer, what about you? Are you a beach lover? Do you enjoy wearing ocean-inspired outfits?

For more beach style inspiration, be sure to check out John Frieda on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and/or YouTube. Have you tried any of the new John Frieda® products yet? I’d love to hear about your experiences and your favorite style tips!