Let’s talk about Summer Fridays: the Instagram It Girl of skincare. The one with the minimalist beige tubes and the kind of packaging that makes you rethink your entire bathroom aesthetic. If Glossier is the effortlessly cool girl who probably drinks iced matcha year-round, then Summer Fridays is her slightly older sister who has a yoga mat in the trunk of her Tesla and knows what “skin cycling” is.
Origins: Two Influencers Walk Into a Lab…
Summer Fridays was founded in 2018 by beauty influencers Marianna Hewitt and Lauren Ireland—because if anyone knows how to market a serum, it’s women whose job it is to look dewy on the internet. The first product, the now-iconic Jet Lag Mask, launched to instant fanfare (and even more selfies), and sold out faster than a Taylor Swift ticket drop.
The brand’s origin story reads like a clean beauty fairytale: two friends frustrated with skincare that didn’t fit their busy travel schedules created a multitasking miracle product. Boom. Brand. But unlike many influencer brands, this one stuck the landing.
Ethos: Clean, Vegan, Instagrammable (and Please Let It Look Cute in My Shelfie)
Summer Fridays markets itself as a “clean,” vegan, cruelty-free brand focused on simplicity and transparency. That means no parabens, no sulfates, no synthetic dyes—and a very curated aesthetic that screams “rich girl at Erewhon.”
But don’t let the pretty tubes fool you: the formulas are genuinely good. They bridge the gap between functional skincare and the kind of product that makes you excited to wash your face at 11:47 PM when you’d rather die than double cleanse.
Their ethos is about making self-care feel aspirational and achievable. They want you to believe that you, too, can glow like a glazed donut even if your idea of “wellness” is drinking water before coffee (sometimes).
What They’re Known For: Dew, Glow, and the Jet Lag Mask
The Jet Lag Mask put Summer Fridays on the map—one of those rare “does it all” products that actually… does it all. Hydrating mask? Yep. Rich night cream? Sure. Makeup primer? Apparently. Existential crutch in TSA-sized form? Definitely.
Other hits followed, including:
- Lip Butter Balm – So good it started replacing actual lipsticks in makeup bags everywhere. Hydrating, glossy, and comes in the kind of shades that make people think you “woke up like this.”
- Cloud Dew – A light-as-air gel moisturizer that makes oily-skinned people feel like they’re in a K-beauty commercial.
- Sheer Skin Tint – A dewy skin tint that toes the line between skincare and makeup, which is great, because committing to either is exhausting.
Basically, Summer Fridays makes the kind of skincare that feels like a vibe—and actually performs.
Scandals: The Jet Lag Mask Reformulation Debacle
Every brand that skyrockets eventually hits a speed bump, and for Summer Fridays, it was the 2021 reformulation of the Jet Lag Mask. The brand updated the ingredients to be even more “clean” (which, okay), but fans noticed it smelled different, felt different, and just wasn’t the same beloved formula.
Cue drama. Reddit threads lit up. Comment sections became war zones. People who hadn’t posted since 2016 logged in just to say, “Why does this smell like plastic now??”
To their credit, the founders addressed it publicly and tried to course-correct by being transparent about the changes. But it proved that even a glossy, influencer-founded brand is not immune to the wrath of people who just want their favorite mask to mask properly.
The Verdict: Is It Worth the Hype?
If you want skincare that looks good on your counter and works (without requiring you to read a 45-minute derm article first), Summer Fridays delivers. It’s more than just a pretty face—it’s a pretty face with sunscreen, hydration, and a perfectly neutral lip.
Is it a little spendy? Yes. Is it influencer-core? Absolutely. But it’s also thoughtfully formulated, luxurious without being intimidating, and it hasn’t made my skin freak out even once.
Plus, I’m not saying the Lip Butter Balm changed my life—but I now own it in like eight colors, and that feels like a commitment.
TL;DR:
Summer Fridays is skincare that understands the assignment: be pretty, be functional, be something I want to pull out of my bag in public.
Your skin will thank you. Your bank account? Maybe not so much.
