Fall 2017 Beauty Favorites
While everyone else is sharing their 2017 yearly favorites... I'm over here sharing my fall favorites #procrastinatorproblems. I'm actually not that late because I like to wait for the season to be over before I write my seasonal favorites and technically fall only officially ended a week-ish ago.
I will always aim to be as transparent as possible with my content so as a disclaimer, the items marked with an asterisk* in this post were PR gifts, but even the ones that I didn't mark with the asterisk were also ultimately received as PR gifts. And that does sound a bit convoluted but what I mean is I purchased them myself and started using them, and then afterward I received a second of the item as a PR gift. For example, I purchased the LJH propolis ampoule over the summer, but later in the fall I received another bottle as PR from the brand. So basically everything in this post has been a PR gift at some point.
I try to feature a balance of items that I've personally bought and items I've received as PR because I don't want my platform to become a billboard for advertising PR. When writing this post I thought about changing up the favorites to include products that I've never received as PR because I don't want to seem like a shill. But I decided against that because these are truly my favorite products from the past 3 months and changing that to purposefully include products that weren't my tippy top favorites seems contrary to the point of the post.
So basically yes I did receive these products as PR, but they're all products I have/ would/ will spend my own money on too.
Ingredients: Opuntia Ficus-Indica Stem Extract, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Squalene, Dimethicone, 1,2-Hexanediol, Tocopheryl acetate, Niacinamide, Polymethysilsesquioxane, Glyceryl Stearate, Polyglyceryl-3 Dicitrate/Stearate, Hippophae Rhamnoides Oil, Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil, Morus Nigra Fruit, Bisabolol, Glutathione, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate, Crosspolymer, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Trisiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, Farnesol, Ethyhexylglycerin, Water, Cytric acid, Fragrance
I blame the Glow Recipe pop-up for my slowly growing Huxley collection. After playing around with their products IRL and buying some minis at the beginning of the year, I've been itching to try more and more from the brand. I've purchased all their essences at this point so look forward to a post comparing them next year 🙃
But onto this essence! I believe this is the newest essence release from the brand. According to the product page, it's supposed to help brighten skin and protect it from environmental aggressors aka pollution. Star ingredients include prickly pear extract (found in all Huxley products), squalane, niacinamide, and glutathione.
I'm a lover of acids so I don't really expect to see much brightening results from gentler serums. And I don't think I saw any brightening from this or at least none that I noticed. But it did help calm and moisturize my skin! Like with the ordinary niacinamide serum, I found that when I used this essence consistently, the texture of my skin was considerably smoother.
I'm also happy to report that this essence plays nicely with oils and creams and primers of all sorts. When I see dimethicone relatively high up on any ingredients list, my fears are two-fold. 1) That it will irritate my skin and 2) that it will pill. Thankfully this serum does neither! I think it's because, despite the fact that it's the 5th ingredient listed, there isn't actually all that much dimethicone present. Many Huxley products have a high percentage of prickly pear extract and I'm going to guess so does this one.
Consistency wise I find this to be thinner than their grab water and oil essences. The perk of this is that it didn't get stuck in the dropper like the other two. While the other two formulas are a bit too thick for dropper bottles, I think this one suits it just fine. My only complaint is that the dropper doesn't reach all the way to the bottom of the bottle. So once it comes to the last drops of product, you need to bang the bottle upside down to get the product out. But otherwise, I have no other complaints about the package. I like the look and feel of the glass bottle. I've accidentally dropped it a few times and haven't had anything crack on me *knocks on wood*
Also, I must say that I consider all of the Huxley essences to be serums as opposed to essences. They have a more concentrated amount of star ingredients, have a thicker consistency, and come in 1 fl. oz bottles. Sounds more like a serum than an essence, right?
Lastly, the smell. It smells sooo good, I know it's probably because of the added fragrance but I don't care cause it doesn't irritate my skin, is at the bottom of the ingredient list, and smells amazingly refreshing.
As you can tell from my photos, I've already finished up this little bottle of sunshine. But it's okay cause I've got a backup in my stash 😏
This is one of those products that's left me wondering-- why the fuck did I wait so long to try this??
The main ingredient in this ampoule is propolis. If you're unfamiliar with the ingredient, it's antibacterial, anti-fungal, soothing, smoothing, moisturizing, and anti-oxidant rich. It's a power player.
First off, the teensiest amount of this ampoule goes a long way. If you've not done your K-beauty 101 homework, an ampoule usually has a higher concentration of active ingredients than a serum so it's even more potent. That's very much the case for this guy. Usually I would use 2 or 3 drops all over my face, and it had me covered.
My skin feels instantly moisturized and soothed after applying this. Even though it sinks in really quickly, I'm not left feeling dry or matte. Quite the opposite in fact, my skin feels more bouncy and supple.
The one complaint I have is that the bottle is soooo small. If they offered a larger size at double the price, I would quickly buy it because it's just that dang good. They recently released a hyaluronic acid ampoule which comes in a 1 fl oz bottle so I can only hope that one day in the future they'll release this ampoule in a 1 fl oz bottle as well.
I really didn't think I would be the kind of person who would feel justified in spending over $30 on a tinted lip balm yet here I am...
The hype is real. Somehow this manages to deliver the perfect touch of color and shine without making my lips sticky yet also keeping them moisturized for a decent amount of time. It's some magical shit.
Usually I'm wary of sheer lip products, especially those in lighter color because I have dark pigmented lips. And if you also have dark lips, then you know that sheer light color + dark lips = coked out clown lips most of the time. But I think the reason this one works is because it doesn't try covering up my dark lips, instead it enhances their color and gives them a flushed look.
It's very easy to reapply. I don't even bother looking in a mirror, I just slide some on and smack my lips a few times. If I accidentally get some outside the lines it's not a big deal because the color is so sheer you won't even be able to tell.
They recently came out with a few new shades and I've already bought one, but I may have to go out and pick up a second one... *and a Dior addict was born*
I already reviewed this in a post earlier this month so there ya go!
Ingredients: Water, Dipropylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Squalane, Cyclopentasiloxane, Caprylyl Trimethicone, Dimethicone, HDI/TriMethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Sucrose Polystearate, 1,2-Hexanediol, PCA Dimethicone, Panthenol, Triethylhexanoin, Cellulose, Ceramide NP, Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract*, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract*, Nepeta Cataria Extract*, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Leaf Extract*, Baptisia Tinctoria Root Extract*, Stellaria Media (Chickweed) Extract*, Alchemilla Vulgaris Leaf Extract**, Viola Tricolor Extract**, Rosa Damascena Flower Extract**, Spiraea Ulmaria Flower Extract**, Althaea Officinalis Root Extract**, Achillea Millefolium Flower Extract, Symphytum Officinale Leaf Extract, Trifolium Pratense (Clover) Flower Extract, Menyanthes Trifoliata Leaf Extract, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, PEG-10 Rapeseed Sterol, Glycereth-20, C14-22 Alcohols, C12-20 Alkyl Gucoside, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymwer, Polysorbate 60, Hydroxyproline, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Trisodium EDTA, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil+, Rosamarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Oil+, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower OIl+, Citral, Citrannellol, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool. *Napiers original formula. **Napiers moisture formula. +Fragrances of natural origin.
I never thought that an eye cream would make it into my seasonal favorites because until now, I never consistently used an eye cream for a period of 3 months. I initially started using it consistently because I was partnering with Belif on a sponsored post for my Instagram. But even after the post went up, I continued using the product daily because it's that dang good. Tbh my thoughts haven't changed since that post and I think that review is still relevant. Instead of rehashing the same thoughts out a second time, I'll direct y'all to the post if you're curious to hear my feels on the eye cream!
$32.00 available via Dermstore, Anthropologie, Blue Mercury, the Detox Market, Cult Beauty, & Nordstrom
Ingredients: Aqua, Sodium Olivate (Fatty Acid from Olive), Glycerin, Rosa Rubiginosa Seed Oil, Chondrus Crispus (Irish Moss), Eriobotrya Japonica Extract (Loquat)
I've tried a lot of cleansers but very few of them truly knock my socks off. This is the aforementioned sock knocking exception.
It's incredibly gentle, properly rinses off without leaving a film or soapy feel behind, doesn't dry out my skin, smells amazing, has a fun jelly texture, is packaged in a gorgeous glass bottle (although it is prone to getting dirty from all my fingerprint smudges), and comes with a pump. AND it's made by a woman-founded, vegan, cruelty-free, made in the USA brand. Plus it has a relatively affordable price tag for a prestige/ higher-end cleanser. There's literally nothing I don't like about this stuff. It's even pink!!
I love it so much it's knocked my previous favorite-- Fresh's soy face cleanser-- out of it's number 1 spot.
Ingredients: Purified water (aqua), Aloe Barbadensis, Coenzyme Q10, Hyaluronic Acid, Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile), Salvia Officinalis (Sage), Carica Papaya Leaf Extract, Cucums Sativus (Cucumber) Extract, Citrus Aurantium Flower Oil, 1.3 propanediol, Ethylhexylglycerin
Will Indie Lee ever make a product I don't love? (Yes, their ylang ylang bath soak but that's not the point.) This is another superstar product from the brand that I quickly fell in love with. It's lightweight and absorbs quickly into the skin without making it sticky. While it's thin, it's still got some slip to it so you don't have to worry about it dribbling down your wrists as soon as you pour it out. It has a sweet honey scent that reminds me of the Papa Recipe honey bombee sheet masks.
And let's talk about the ingredient list-- again it knocks it out of the park. Aloe, hyaluronic acid, chemomile extract, and cucumber extract make for a very nourishing and moisturizing combination. Even when I feel like my face is feeling irritated or raw, this has never stinged my skin. The claim to fame, of course, for this toner is the CoQ-10. It's a helpful antioxidant that's supposed to help soothe the skin and provide anti-aging benefits.
The one complaint I have about this product is the packaging. While it looks stunning, I'm not crazy about the drop top. Before recieving this full-sized bottle from Dermstore, I bought gift sets that featured this toner in travel sized spray bottles. I much prefer this toner when sprayed on, even if it is heavier than your usual mist. I think it's neater to apply this way and I've personally decanted mine into the mini spray bottles I have for ease of use. If they repackaged this into a spray bottle it would boost it's current 9/10 rating to a 10/10 for me!
That's a wrap!
And this is officially my last post of 2017! I'm not in the mood to get all gushy so I'll just say thank you for all the support and love this year. Hope you have a kickass start to 2018!
I will always aim to be as transparent as possible with my content so as a disclaimer, the items marked with an asterisk* in this post were PR gifts, but even the ones that I didn't mark with the asterisk were also ultimately received as PR gifts. And that does sound a bit convoluted but what I mean is I purchased them myself and started using them, and then afterward I received a second of the item as a PR gift. For example, I purchased the LJH propolis ampoule over the summer, but later in the fall I received another bottle as PR from the brand. So basically everything in this post has been a PR gift at some point.
I try to feature a balance of items that I've personally bought and items I've received as PR because I don't want my platform to become a billboard for advertising PR. When writing this post I thought about changing up the favorites to include products that I've never received as PR because I don't want to seem like a shill. But I decided against that because these are truly my favorite products from the past 3 months and changing that to purposefully include products that weren't my tippy top favorites seems contrary to the point of the post.
So basically yes I did receive these products as PR, but they're all products I have/ would/ will spend my own money on too.
Huxley Brightly Ever After Essence
$37.00- $58.00 available via YesStyle, Jolse, Bomi Beauty, Nordstrom, & AmazonIngredients: Opuntia Ficus-Indica Stem Extract, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Squalene, Dimethicone, 1,2-Hexanediol, Tocopheryl acetate, Niacinamide, Polymethysilsesquioxane, Glyceryl Stearate, Polyglyceryl-3 Dicitrate/Stearate, Hippophae Rhamnoides Oil, Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil, Morus Nigra Fruit, Bisabolol, Glutathione, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate, Crosspolymer, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Trisiloxane, Cyclohexasiloxane, Farnesol, Ethyhexylglycerin, Water, Cytric acid, Fragrance
I blame the Glow Recipe pop-up for my slowly growing Huxley collection. After playing around with their products IRL and buying some minis at the beginning of the year, I've been itching to try more and more from the brand. I've purchased all their essences at this point so look forward to a post comparing them next year 🙃
But onto this essence! I believe this is the newest essence release from the brand. According to the product page, it's supposed to help brighten skin and protect it from environmental aggressors aka pollution. Star ingredients include prickly pear extract (found in all Huxley products), squalane, niacinamide, and glutathione.
I'm a lover of acids so I don't really expect to see much brightening results from gentler serums. And I don't think I saw any brightening from this or at least none that I noticed. But it did help calm and moisturize my skin! Like with the ordinary niacinamide serum, I found that when I used this essence consistently, the texture of my skin was considerably smoother.
I'm also happy to report that this essence plays nicely with oils and creams and primers of all sorts. When I see dimethicone relatively high up on any ingredients list, my fears are two-fold. 1) That it will irritate my skin and 2) that it will pill. Thankfully this serum does neither! I think it's because, despite the fact that it's the 5th ingredient listed, there isn't actually all that much dimethicone present. Many Huxley products have a high percentage of prickly pear extract and I'm going to guess so does this one.
Consistency wise I find this to be thinner than their grab water and oil essences. The perk of this is that it didn't get stuck in the dropper like the other two. While the other two formulas are a bit too thick for dropper bottles, I think this one suits it just fine. My only complaint is that the dropper doesn't reach all the way to the bottom of the bottle. So once it comes to the last drops of product, you need to bang the bottle upside down to get the product out. But otherwise, I have no other complaints about the package. I like the look and feel of the glass bottle. I've accidentally dropped it a few times and haven't had anything crack on me *knocks on wood*
Also, I must say that I consider all of the Huxley essences to be serums as opposed to essences. They have a more concentrated amount of star ingredients, have a thicker consistency, and come in 1 fl. oz bottles. Sounds more like a serum than an essence, right?
Lastly, the smell. It smells sooo good, I know it's probably because of the added fragrance but I don't care cause it doesn't irritate my skin, is at the bottom of the ingredient list, and smells amazingly refreshing.
Leejiham Vita Propolis Ampoule
Ingredients: Propolis extract, Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract, Panthenol, Rosa Centifolia Flower Water, Niacinamide, 1, 2-Hexanediol, Ethyl Ascorbyl Ether, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Bark/ Twig Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Carbomer, Arginine, Spirodela Polyrrhiza Extract, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Adenosine, Sodium HyaluronateAs you can tell from my photos, I've already finished up this little bottle of sunshine. But it's okay cause I've got a backup in my stash 😏
This is one of those products that's left me wondering-- why the fuck did I wait so long to try this??
The main ingredient in this ampoule is propolis. If you're unfamiliar with the ingredient, it's antibacterial, anti-fungal, soothing, smoothing, moisturizing, and anti-oxidant rich. It's a power player.
First off, the teensiest amount of this ampoule goes a long way. If you've not done your K-beauty 101 homework, an ampoule usually has a higher concentration of active ingredients than a serum so it's even more potent. That's very much the case for this guy. Usually I would use 2 or 3 drops all over my face, and it had me covered.
My skin feels instantly moisturized and soothed after applying this. Even though it sinks in really quickly, I'm not left feeling dry or matte. Quite the opposite in fact, my skin feels more bouncy and supple.
The one complaint I have is that the bottle is soooo small. If they offered a larger size at double the price, I would quickly buy it because it's just that dang good. They recently released a hyaluronic acid ampoule which comes in a 1 fl oz bottle so I can only hope that one day in the future they'll release this ampoule in a 1 fl oz bottle as well.
Dior Addict Lip Glow Color Reviver Balm in 001 Light Pink*
$34.00 available via Sephora, Macy's, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, & BergdorfsI really didn't think I would be the kind of person who would feel justified in spending over $30 on a tinted lip balm yet here I am...
The hype is real. Somehow this manages to deliver the perfect touch of color and shine without making my lips sticky yet also keeping them moisturized for a decent amount of time. It's some magical shit.
Usually I'm wary of sheer lip products, especially those in lighter color because I have dark pigmented lips. And if you also have dark lips, then you know that sheer light color + dark lips = coked out clown lips most of the time. But I think the reason this one works is because it doesn't try covering up my dark lips, instead it enhances their color and gives them a flushed look.
It's very easy to reapply. I don't even bother looking in a mirror, I just slide some on and smack my lips a few times. If I accidentally get some outside the lines it's not a big deal because the color is so sheer you won't even be able to tell.
They recently came out with a few new shades and I've already bought one, but I may have to go out and pick up a second one... *and a Dior addict was born*
Slip Silk Pillowcase
$79.00 available via Dermstore, Urban Outfitters, Sephora, Bloomingdale's, Anthropologie, Nordstrom, Pottery Barn, & ShopbopI already reviewed this in a post earlier this month so there ya go!
Belif Moisturizing Eye Bomb*
$48.00 available via SephoraIngredients: Water, Dipropylene Glycol, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Squalane, Cyclopentasiloxane, Caprylyl Trimethicone, Dimethicone, HDI/TriMethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Sucrose Polystearate, 1,2-Hexanediol, PCA Dimethicone, Panthenol, Triethylhexanoin, Cellulose, Ceramide NP, Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract*, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract*, Nepeta Cataria Extract*, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Leaf Extract*, Baptisia Tinctoria Root Extract*, Stellaria Media (Chickweed) Extract*, Alchemilla Vulgaris Leaf Extract**, Viola Tricolor Extract**, Rosa Damascena Flower Extract**, Spiraea Ulmaria Flower Extract**, Althaea Officinalis Root Extract**, Achillea Millefolium Flower Extract, Symphytum Officinale Leaf Extract, Trifolium Pratense (Clover) Flower Extract, Menyanthes Trifoliata Leaf Extract, Salix Alba (Willow) Bark Extract, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Silica, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, PEG-10 Rapeseed Sterol, Glycereth-20, C14-22 Alcohols, C12-20 Alkyl Gucoside, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymwer, Polysorbate 60, Hydroxyproline, Carbomer, Tromethamine, Trisodium EDTA, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil+, Rosamarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Oil+, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower OIl+, Citral, Citrannellol, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool. *Napiers original formula. **Napiers moisture formula. +Fragrances of natural origin.
I never thought that an eye cream would make it into my seasonal favorites because until now, I never consistently used an eye cream for a period of 3 months. I initially started using it consistently because I was partnering with Belif on a sponsored post for my Instagram. But even after the post went up, I continued using the product daily because it's that dang good. Tbh my thoughts haven't changed since that post and I think that review is still relevant. Instead of rehashing the same thoughts out a second time, I'll direct y'all to the post if you're curious to hear my feels on the eye cream!
Indie Lee Rosehip Cleanser*
(PR gift from Dermstore)$32.00 available via Dermstore, Anthropologie, Blue Mercury, the Detox Market, Cult Beauty, & Nordstrom
Ingredients: Aqua, Sodium Olivate (Fatty Acid from Olive), Glycerin, Rosa Rubiginosa Seed Oil, Chondrus Crispus (Irish Moss), Eriobotrya Japonica Extract (Loquat)
I've tried a lot of cleansers but very few of them truly knock my socks off. This is the aforementioned sock knocking exception.
It's incredibly gentle, properly rinses off without leaving a film or soapy feel behind, doesn't dry out my skin, smells amazing, has a fun jelly texture, is packaged in a gorgeous glass bottle (although it is prone to getting dirty from all my fingerprint smudges), and comes with a pump. AND it's made by a woman-founded, vegan, cruelty-free, made in the USA brand. Plus it has a relatively affordable price tag for a prestige/ higher-end cleanser. There's literally nothing I don't like about this stuff. It's even pink!!
I love it so much it's knocked my previous favorite-- Fresh's soy face cleanser-- out of it's number 1 spot.
Indie Lee CoQ-10 Toner*
(PR gift from Dermstore)
$32.00 available via Dermstore, Anthropologie, Blue Mercury, the Detox Market, Cult Beauty, & NordstromIngredients: Purified water (aqua), Aloe Barbadensis, Coenzyme Q10, Hyaluronic Acid, Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile), Salvia Officinalis (Sage), Carica Papaya Leaf Extract, Cucums Sativus (Cucumber) Extract, Citrus Aurantium Flower Oil, 1.3 propanediol, Ethylhexylglycerin
Will Indie Lee ever make a product I don't love? (Yes, their ylang ylang bath soak but that's not the point.) This is another superstar product from the brand that I quickly fell in love with. It's lightweight and absorbs quickly into the skin without making it sticky. While it's thin, it's still got some slip to it so you don't have to worry about it dribbling down your wrists as soon as you pour it out. It has a sweet honey scent that reminds me of the Papa Recipe honey bombee sheet masks.
And let's talk about the ingredient list-- again it knocks it out of the park. Aloe, hyaluronic acid, chemomile extract, and cucumber extract make for a very nourishing and moisturizing combination. Even when I feel like my face is feeling irritated or raw, this has never stinged my skin. The claim to fame, of course, for this toner is the CoQ-10. It's a helpful antioxidant that's supposed to help soothe the skin and provide anti-aging benefits.
The one complaint I have about this product is the packaging. While it looks stunning, I'm not crazy about the drop top. Before recieving this full-sized bottle from Dermstore, I bought gift sets that featured this toner in travel sized spray bottles. I much prefer this toner when sprayed on, even if it is heavier than your usual mist. I think it's neater to apply this way and I've personally decanted mine into the mini spray bottles I have for ease of use. If they repackaged this into a spray bottle it would boost it's current 9/10 rating to a 10/10 for me!
That's a wrap!
And this is officially my last post of 2017! I'm not in the mood to get all gushy so I'll just say thank you for all the support and love this year. Hope you have a kickass start to 2018!
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