The best highlighters and bronzers for a golden summer gleam

Ready to let the good times roll again, SS22 is dripping in gilt. The spring/summer 2022 runways were immersed in gold, with Fendi x Versace’s shimmering chainmail gowns, Tom Ford’s sparkling metallic dresses, tanks and skirts, girded gold waists at Louis Vuitton, and shiny swimsuits at Chanel. There was an actual gilded nose, coated in gold pigment at Kenneth Ize, gold shimmer was dusted on ears at Collina Strada, and in other fashion news, a glimmering $5 million Marilyn Monroe dress you probably heard about against your will.

In Tom Ford’s SS22 show notes, he quoted Diana Vreeland: “I know it’s a lot but is it enough?” – which should be your approach to bronzing this summer now that every new launch has been given the Midas touch to make you radiant with a luminous complexion. Charlotte Tilbury has launched her first cream bronzer in four shades that become one with the skin for a natural sunlit gleam, with a truly magical formula of hyaluronic acid that improves the look of skin, pro-vitamin D3 that somehow converts into vitamin D when exposed to sunlight, while being sweat- and humidity-proof and lasting up to 16 hours. Chanel has added a Medium Bronze shade to its cult hero, Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream Soleil Tan, that looks like actual sunlight on the skin, along with its biggest bronzing powder yet and a dry Illuminating Oil, €80, that radiates the skin with soft copper and gold shimmer that reflects in the sunshine.

Warm up the skin with cream bronzers from Refy or Sculpted by Aimee Connolly that miraculously capture the glow of a day in the sunshine in a natural effect, blending seamlessly into the skin with the heat of your fingers. For a hint of sunlight that’s as good as gold, Miracle Balm by Jones Road, €36.19, Westman Atelier Lit Up Highlight Stick in Brûlée, €52, UP Cosmetics Champagne Kiss High Shine Powder Highlighter, €20, and Yves Saint Laurent Nu Glow in Balm, €32, enhance skin with a wash of illuminating moisture with just a touch, and old favourites like Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette Volume 3, €70, and MAC Extra Dimension Skinfinish in Lunar Luck, €30, add a candlelit polish to even the most housebound of complexions.

Glowy highlighters and bronzers for a sun-kissed gleam

Catwalk and backstage beauty images by Stefan Knauer and Jason Lloyd-Evans. We may earn a commission if you buy something from any affiliate links on our site.

This article originally appeared in the Summer issue of IMAGE Magazine.