All the August 2026 beauty drops you need to know
Valentino Beauty BTS
Gallery / 29 images
While summer might be winding down for most and the weather is taking a turn towards rain (our thoughts are with everyone at a UK music festival this bank holiday), beauty brands are keeping things hot with their new campaigns. Dazed favourite Fara Homidi launches its first mascara, the Pool Slick Lash Lacquer, with a campaign starring Paloma Elsesser and shot by Zoë Ghertner.
Meanwhile, Dakota Johnson and Alexander Skarsgård turned up the heat with a sexy short film for Valentino Beauty’s latest Vendetta campaign. Directed by Romain Gavras and shot by Inez & Vinoodh, the campaign is all about magnetic attraction and introduces two new scents: Vendetta Donna, described as “floral and woody”, and Vendetta Uomo, a “bold, woody and spicy” fragrance. See BTS images from the campaign in the gallery above.
Elsewhere across beauty this month, brands have been exploring their spicier sides. Aesop turns up the heat with its new Antithesis Intense Body Cleanser, pairing cooling coriander seed with black pepper and patchouli, while Byredo leans into leather with Suede Osmanthus, its new Harrods-exclusive fragrance blending peach and florals with suede, oud and labdanum.
For skincare, we’re still seeing new SPF products hit the market, with Medicube’s No Cast Just Dew PDRN Sun Serum and Beauty of Joseon’s new body SPF range serving as a reminder that, while the sun might be going down on summer, SPF is still an everyday essential.
Read on for the other beauty drops this August.
Byredo is getting a little darker with its latest drop, Suede Osmanthus, a new fragrance created exclusively with Harrods. While the scent starts with peach and magnolia, it gives way to suede, oud and labdanum for a darker, leatherier finish.
Aesop is spicing up shower time with its new Antithesis Intense Body Cleanser. A twist on the brand’s much-loved Coriander Seed Body Cleanser, the new formula pairs cooling coriander seed with black pepper and patchouli for a spicy and woody scent to add to your daily routine.
Vivienne Westwood’s new fragrance takes inspiration from the old perfumes that Vivienne herself loved. Boudoir has notes of bergamot, orange blossom and damask rose, before settling into vanilla, tobacco leaf and sandalwood. It also comes complete with staples of Westwood iconography across the packaging.
Chanel is taking Coco Mademoiselle from the fragrance counter to the makeup bag with its limited-edition collection. The drop includes a mauve-lilac Rouge Coco lipstick, a nine-shade smoky eye palette and a delicate pink Le Vernis, all inspired by Coco’s “irresistible, free-spirited nature”.
Medicube has become the go-to for viral K-beauty products, and its latest drop is making SPF a little less of a chore. The new No Cast Just Dew PDRN Sun Serum promises hydration and a dewy finish without the dreaded white cast or greasy residue. What more could you want?
After a decade of cushion foundations in other markets, YSL Beauty is finally bringing one to the UK with its Skin Affair Soft Glow Cushion Foundation that comes in 31 shades and in a refillable compact.
Fara Homidi Beauty delivers another standout product with its Pool Slick Lash Lacquer. The brand’s first-ever mascara comes in its signature acid-yellow packaging, with a glossy, smudge-proof formula. We’re not sure how much pool time is left this summer, but Pool Slick can stick around.
Beauty of Joseon’s new Hydra Shield Body Sun Lotion SPF 50+ combines fermented brown rice and ceramides in a lightweight formula that leaves no white cast or sticky finish. Take this as your reminder that SPF season is every season.
Created by master perfumer Dominique Ropion in collaboration with Andrew Everett, Donna is a floral gourmand woody scent built around the most carnal expression of tuberose. Meanwhile, Uomo, composed by master perfumer Marie Salamagne, is a woody spicy gourmand fragrance defined by contrast and texture.
