Rio Ready: Go for gold with these Olympic worthy beauty buys

From sandy beaches to sun-kissed skin, Brazil isn’t exactly lacking for beauty but what about us bystanders? In honour of the Olympics Sarah Young discusses how to get your body Rio ready with a playful edit of Brazilian-inspired beauty.

Brazilian model Alessandra Ambrosio

With the summer Olympics well under way, all eyes are firmly on Rio. A destination synonymous with beauty, Brazil has 4,650 miles of white-sand beaches, a confluence of picturesque landscapes and of course Gisele, Adriana and Alessandra. Teeming with natural beauty it is no wonder Rio is dubbed the ‘Marvellous City’, nor does it come as a surprise that it should make the perfect stage for this year’s sporting season. For the athletes, Rio’s energising sunshine will serve to inspire their fierce determination to succeed but for us spectators the Olympics might inspire in a more unexpected way – to refresh your makeup bag with a host of Rio-inspired beauty products.

Brazilian women are fanous for their glossy hair and glowing tans – something us Britons doggedly struggle to acquire once a year on our holibobs – but thanks to a Rio inspired beauty collection becoming a true Brazilian beauty is never far off the mark.

The country’s ultimate beach Goddess Gisele Bundchen has us lusting over super shiny beach waves, and nor can we side-step the illustrious Brazilian blow-dry. A keratin infused treatment that leaves your hair super-smooth and frizz-free, this salon service promises high-shine, poker-straight lengths but if you’re looking to embrace the August humidity with some at-home goods we suggest Oribe’s Apres Beach Wave and Shine spray or Ouai’s hair texturising spray for beach-ready waves and an incredibly glossy finish.

Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen

Sun-kissed summer skin is a beauty must but unfortunately we aren’t all blessed with unsullied, caramel complexions. To give your skin a Brazilian boost our pick for perfectly bronzed, dewy skin is Bondi Sands Liquid Gold Dry Oil; a fresh coconut formula which sets in a moment and develops in just two to three hours. For skin that oozes a healthy, post-beach glow a radiant finish is key – try Laura Mercier’s Face Illuminator for pearl-esque, multi-dimensional highlight or Hourglass’ Illume Sheer Colour Trio for a multitasking palette that promises to define and brighten. Ready, steady, glow.

No Rio-ready look would be complete without some bikini brights thrown in and, luckily for us, a host of brands have launched their very own limited-edition Rio-inspired collections. For a pop of coastal colour at your fingertips we love Essie’s Rio 2016 collection, which includes their hotly anticipated 1,000th shade Aim to Misbehave in stunning yellow. But, for those of you who haven’t quite mastered the art of nail-painting Elegant Touch has also launched two new Rio-inspired designs of press on nails. If it is a winning pout you are after Topshop’s Rio Rio and Tom Ford’s Solar Affair will promise to simmer day and night.