When it comes to everything bath and beauty, it won’t come as a surprise that I keep things simple and natural. Which, of course, can seem more complicated at first look. Here’s what I’ve noticed: If you head to your neighborhood drugstore and have a walk down the aisles in the hope of finding a product to work some sort of magic without also including a ton of unpronounceable words, you’ll feel overwhelmed. It will seem like it’s impossible and confusing and too much trouble to find a pared down version of whatever drugstore variety beauty product you’re after. But if you generally avoid the bath and beauty aisles altogether, you’ll feel a whole lot more optimistic about the prospect of finding something to up your beauty routine without upping your toxin intake. I’m going to talk a lot more about my general approach to all of this natural beauty stuff in my book, so I’ll try not to ruin surprises in this space, but since my tome isn’t a 500 page treatise on natural beauty, I thought it might be nice to unpack some of the specifics here.

Without further ado, toner.

Let me back up and say that in a lot of ways, my summertime skin is my favorite skin. It’s not as dry as it is in the wintertime and I wake up from a night’s sleep feeling just a little bit glowy—you know, that little we-don’t-have-an-air-conditioner je ne sais quoi.

In the hottest months of the year, one of my favorite ways to stay hydrated and to feel fancy is by spritzing myself amply with a little something that I’ll call toner, but that also masquerades as facial tonic, mist, spray, elixir, magic potion, etc. I keep mine refrigerated so that it’s always ready for a little midday cool-down.
Toner as one of the first beauty products that I ever used, if you don’t count the After Bath Splash (dear God) that I doused myself with liberally as a four year old. Toner is also one of those mystifying beauty products that I’m not sure is the secret to the fountain of youth, but it can sure feel that way. And what’s a beauty product if not a ritual anyway? It’s the refreshing spritz, the act of closing your eyes and misting your tired skin with a little bit of something meant to make it feel better, or at the very least smell better. I grew up using mostly Thayer’s Witchhazel Toner in the rose scent. I’d pour a bit onto a cotton ball every night and while I freely admit to never being much a face washer, I’d feel refreshed and clean and ready to hop into bed after a good wipe down.