This article was originally published on Adore Beauty.
Being a beauty editor has many delicious perks: playing with makeup all day? An actual, official part of the job.
Getting to try new skincare products before they've launched? It's a tough gig but someone has to do it (it's me, I'm that someone).
But it also means it's my job to be professionally disloyal to brands, and also that I will rarely finish something to the very end.
Even if I like a product — which I often do — if I already have something similar open, it goes straight to the (extremely willing) hands of friends.
Watch: Here are 7 ways to improve your skin while sleeping. Post continues after video.
Because the sad and disappointing fact is that I only have one face, and one (okay, four) cupboards to store beauty products in. I just don't have the room for them on any surface — plus my skin barrier already hates me for all I put it through.
All of this is to say, you know that if a product makes it through to the very end, I loved it — hard.
So here is a round-up of some of those who have made it all the way to empty lately.
A beauty editor's list of beauty #empties.
Ultra Violette Fave Fluid SPF50+ Ultralight SKINSCREEN, $52.
It is not groundbreaking for me to finish a sunscreen, because it's the single product I use, without fail, every. Single. Day.
Also not groundbreaking for me to love an Ultra Violette sunscreen, because they objectively make the best sunscreens in the market.
However, while I was previously a Queen Screen or Supreme Screen girlie, Fave Fluid has become, um, a fave (as advertised!).
Here's why: The consistency is ultra-light and serum-like, so it spreads evenly, without needing rubbing, and it's fragrance-free which is a huge drawcard for me (and sensitive skin types).
Niacinamide, vitamin E and a vitamin C derivative also gives a great skincare feel, and all of this makes it play exceptionally well with makeup.
But how it feels on the skin is where it does its best work, because you don't even know it's there, so for everyone who hates "the feel" of sunscreen, well, no excuses now.
Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil, $48.
I was not blessed with brows.
I did not even need a bad turn with tweezers in the '90s, because they were just never there to begin with.
The brows I do have are coaxed into shape using an array of brow products to give the illusion of… something.
And, since 2016, this brow pencil has had a permanent place in my kit, and subsequently, my empties.
Benefit do exceptional brow products — that is just a fact. And while they were one of the first to really embrace this category, they still remain — in my opinion — the best, despite the influx in this category.
The pencil tip is fine enough for detail so that strokes look natural, the shade range is wide so there's a great chance of finding an exact match, but the formulation is just perfect: pigment that's rich but blendable and soft so it doesn't drag across the skin.
Just excellent definition and foolproof application.
mesoestetic age element brightening cream, $111.
This is the first daytime moisturiser that's impressed me since the Kora Organics one I wrote about here.
It just hits all the right notes to give your skin a little bit of extra oomph during the day.
What does that mean?
Well first, let's talk ingredients: it's got a bunch of antioxidants including vitamin C, niacinamide, vitamin E and ferulic acid, and a host of hydrators to match (think: squalane, hyaluronic acid and glycerin), so it's really in there doing the work.
These all help to even out the skin while serving up smoothness and an overall luminosity that I'll never say no to.
But importantly, the gel-cream formula glides on the skin, and sinks in immediately — leaving you primed and ready for the next step (which is obviously sunscreen).
You wanna know how much I loved this one?
I dropped it on the bathroom floor and smashed the pump, but still proceeded to scrape out every last drop using every tool available.
SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic Serum, $242.
If you are serious about healthy, glowing skin, you are required by law to love this product — I don't make the rules.
This is another regular empty in my life, because it is simply god-tier.
My face hates me when I'm not on it.
So many people have tried to imitate the blend, but in my opinion no one has come close.
It's the precise combination of ingredients (vitamin C, vitamin E and ferulic acid, to name the heroes) but also at the precise levels of each that give it the superior powers: crazy levels of antioxidant protection (essential for those concerned with skin ageing) and legit brightness.
Worth every cent.
Dermalogica Circular Hydration Serum, $96.59.
Hydrating serums come in all price points, and, in my opinion, rarely is there enough difference to warrant the difference in price.
I mean you have ONE job: to hydrate the skin. How hard/exxy could it be?
This serum is the exception — because it is exceptional (and this is my third bottle of it!).
The "circular" part comes from a three-stage approach to hydration using more than just hyaluronic acid (though of course that's in there too).
Polyglutamic acid tops up the hydration reserves, a blend of amino acids and plant sugars prevents transepidermal water loss (so your skin will keep its water and its plump), and an algae extract combined with hyaluronic acid gives immediate and long-lasting hydration.
There are even barrier-protecting ingredients too. The claim is that it increases hydration for 10+ hours, and you know what? I back that.
Okay, I'll be back next year with some more empties, so see you then okay?
For more Sarah Tarca, click here, or follow her on Instagram here.
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