By now, you've probably guessed that we test a lot of beauty products here at Who What Wear HQ. From nail polish and makeup to hair and skin care, we're into all things new, exciting, and worthy of things on eyebrows. However, due to the number of products we come in contact with, we've also grown to be the most picky beauty consumer. Within seconds, we can tell if a new hair oil is too heavy and we are quick to ignore a serum that gives disappointing results.
The good news? We're far more impressed than unfazed after trying a new product, and usually we can't wait to get the word out to all of our beauty junkies (aka you!). Because of this, we decided that flooding our latest favorite products should become a monthly ritual. Every 30 days or so, you can expect a full report listing the highlighters, hair sticks, and overnight skin care savers that we are quick to fall for.
For the most part, we'll be looking at Buzzworthy product launches (as these usually do most of the action on our product-filled desks), but we're not going to turn down any new products for ourselves either. Sometimes our best discoveries can be found in a friend's vanity or someone else's face at the bar (true story before quarantine). Ahead of us are the best beauty products we tried in January! Grab your game face and your wallet. You will need both.
So this product is not new, new, but it's new to me! I've heard such great things about this foundation stick. Not only is it Black Opal's number one best seller, but makeup artists and associate editors rave about it endlessly. Of course, I had to try it out myself. I was pretty happy with my foundation so I went for a darker shade that allows me to slightly contour my face in a bronze color. Guys! Guys. This product is amazing. It's so deliciously creamy and mixable, and unlike most of the sticks I've tried, it has such a seamless and customizable application. You have 19 shades to choose from, so you can use them like me as a base, concealer or contour / bronze situation. It's long-lasting, SPF-rated, and features key Shade ID technology that uses multicolored chromatic pigments to blend in with your skin's undertones and filter out any areas you want to camouflage. It's packed with tons of great ingredients too (think vitamins C and E), and you can bet I immediately ordered additional shades for my foundation and concealer needs.
I rarely, if ever, find a new mascara that I like. (I've subscribed to two specific formulas since high school and only religiously incorporated two other formulas into my routine since then – yes, really.) So you know how big the deal is in writing over here about this brand new one from Maybelline. The lift! The length! The curl! The separation! Ugh, where do I start? I love pliable rubber mascara brushes (versus oversized, fluffy ones) so the design and comb-like style are just right for me. While it's a super-light consistency, it still delivers plenty of volume without sacrificing curl, length, or definition. You can literally get every last whip. It's a fiber mascara so you get that long and luscious falsie effect, and it's even saturated with nourishing ingredients like bamboo extract to help protect the integrity of your lashes in the long run. I just can not get enough
If I was lazy about styling my hair before 2020, you can imagine how my relationship with my collection of styling tools has been since COVID. (Very estranged.) However, once I'm inside a blue moon, I get inspired to pick up a new styling tool for a test drive. When it comes to frizzing my hair, I can't mess with clamps, so I almost always use a magic wand. I've been with my family in Arizona for a few months so I don't have my usual favorite. When Harry Josh sent me his ceramic 3-in-1 curling iron, I was excited to give it a swirl. First of all, it's brilliant because you can get the professional results of a Marcel clamp or a spring clamp with the simple, airy flexibility of a magic wand, or you can remove the removable Marcel or spring clamps (which I do) to use the ceramic wand alone. You'd think all curling irons are the same, but they definitely aren't and this is my new favorite. I don't know if I've ever achieved such voluminous, crimp-free, and long-lasting results as this effortlessly delivers. I literally have no reason to curl my hair straight, but the results are so pretty that I just do it. tilt. stop.
I'm not really that much of a product person when it comes to my hair. I despise the feeling of product in my hair (residue, no thanks!), So I've never been one to go crazy about spraying my hair with volumizers, mists, or texturizers. Even so, this new root spray and texturizing spray from R + Co has quickly become my newest favorite, and when combined with my new favorite curling iron (see above) the results are really damn good. Technically, this formula is all about adding volume and texture to the roots, but I love it on my mid-lengths and ends too. It smells heavenly (like palo santo, white cedar wood, smoky tobacco leaf, fresh pine needles, and water lily), absorbs oil, and blends seamlessly with any hair color. It's almost as if your strands get more pillow-like and voluminous the longer you wear them. Is it expanding? Is it bewitched? Is it the perfect dry shampoo / texture spray hybrid? I honestly don't know, but I haven't been that excited about a styling product in ages.
I now know that I have a relationship with my collection of Tom Ford perfumes that I couldn't live in without them, and Costa Azzurra, the label's newest edition, really has me under control. It's all I can wear, and I've found it's the perfect winter scent to be cozy with this season. At first glance it's admittedly quite brave and – don't hate me when I say that – "manly". (This is definitely an earthy and woody scent.) But right now the blend of juniper, cypress, oak, and notes of "warm wood" and "green" are softening for a truly unique finish. It has become my branded perfume pretty quickly this season.
Even in the best skin care lines, there is almost always a weak link, but Shani Darden's editing of Skin Saver is perhaps the only exception. I tell everyone I know that I'll be using their cleansing serum ($ 38) and their legendary texture reform ($ 88) until the day I die, and now I'm adding their latest launch (an eye cream!) To my list -or-the favorites. It is a rich, intensely relaxing formula full of ingredients that a stressed, thinned eye area craves – peptides, silk tree extract, squalane, ceramides and niacinamide … the gang is all there! I haven't had too many major lines or wrinkles issues yet, but this rich formula definitely fills in and diminishes the fine lines I have and helps filter out my dark circles a bit.
I was lucky enough to try Hum & # 39; s latest rubber release for about a month before it was released and I want to tell you that I've been counting down the days to the lift of the embargo pretty much and from the top, my love could scream to these soothing gums In all honesty, I've never had any luck with stress-related and / or adaptogenic supplements in the past, but this strategic blend of Ashwagandha and L-theanine really does the trick. Obviously, this doesn't help with serious anxiety or panic (if you have any problems please contact a trusted doctor), but when I start getting my heart rate up or my nonstop does not seem worrying or rethinking I pop just two of those delicious gums and almost instantly begin to calm myself down a little. I've always loved the Hum range of products, but the brand had really outdone itself with this new launch. Highly recommend, and the Sour Patch Kids-esque tart cherry flavor is amazing too.
I'm so excited that fashion legend Jason Wu has officially entered the beauty space with a brand new line of makeup and skin-centric products. So I'm all the more pleased that the products are really fabulous. I still work my way through the entire line, but so far this beautifully shimmering shadow compact has been my everyday obsession. I'm a neutral shade girl through and through, and the pan named Desert Rose has everything I need for a subtle sparkle and definition on my lid.
I was a little "out" of toner for a while, but I'm back in the game with this new formula from M-61. I've long been intrigued by the brand's iconic PowerGlow Peel ($ 66), and this gently re-emerging, glowing elixir is like its slightly less intense second cousin – cut from the same fabric but delicate enough to use once or twice – daily use. It has so many fantastic ingredients, including glycolic and salicylic acids, aloe, and blueberry. It's surprisingly moisturizing and really plump up my skin so sometimes I don't even feel like I need my moisturizer. I've been using it regularly for a few weeks and I've definitely noticed that my complexion looks lighter, smoother, and significantly more even and clearer.
As a beauty editor, my job is to be very picky about beauty products and of course I tend to find something wrong with every new formula. Still, I can't find a single flaw in this excellent new lip oil from Merit. It's pure perfection and the perfect antidote if I want to achieve shine, moisture, filling and a natural color wash in two seconds. I can't stop wearing it and I plan to collect every shade. Right now I'm Pink Beet, but Sangria is barely a second.
I'm very obsessed with Klur (every product I've tried has significantly improved my skin), and I was very excited to try this gentle but powerful exfoliating potion that Klur's founder Lesley Thornton recommended for my acne – Vulnerable skin. Really – this restorative complex is like that multivitamin your skin never knew was needed. Unlike so many exfoliating formulas, this all-natural blend didn't irritate my skin or cause retaliation or inflammation. I used it a couple of nights a week after cleaning (trust me – you don't need anything else before or after) and I let it work overnight. Vitamins A, C, and B soothe, correct, and reappear, while additional herbal ingredients bring in the moisture and much-needed DC for a brighter, happier complexion in the morning. It's a beautiful composition and a new nightly ritual that I'm really looking forward to.
I have been heavily reliant on acne points for the past year as there were few facial appointments (when I usually got a lot of extractions). However, some points are far superior to others, and as someone who has literally tried them all, I can easily say that these new ones from ZitSticka are by far the best I've ever had. Well these only really work if you have the kind of pimple that's bursting at the seams (sorry for the picture) and tapering – they won't be of much use unless you keep pimply fingers at bay when you do this have cystic acne or bumps that are not on the verge of cleaning. That said, if you get pimples with that tell-tale whitehead on top, these are going to be magical for you. Yes, they are hydrocolloid patches, like most acne spots, but they're not your average hydrocolloid patch. Instead, unlike other formulas, extra ingredients are added to each point to soothe redness and cleanse the skin (like niacinamide, salicylic acid, vitamin C, and tea tree) while absorbing and extracting the infection in your pores that make your breakout caused . They're quick, effective, and super satisfying. Plus, they can be secretly brought anywhere, anywhere.
I'm head over heels in love with Rare Beauty. So many celebrities have come out with makeup and news flash, a lot of that is junk. But it is so clear to me that the Selena Gomez team really cares about this project because the products are so incredibly good. I was already a huge fan of the Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation ($ 29) and the brand's Liquid Touch Brightening Concealer ($ 19). When it was recently expanded to include the Stay Vulnerable collection, it was supposed to "create the soft, flushed look we get when we feel." most vulnerable, "I was immediately intrigued. The Melting Blush is my favorite of the recent launches. It's light and so easy to apply with your fingers or dab with a brush.
Fashion designer Jason Wu is the new kid on the beauty block, and the debut SKUs of his eponymous makeup line are surprisingly good. No shade provided! Of all the options available, I love this pretty eyeshadow palette that has all of the hues required for a pink smoky eye. The shades are accessible and equally suitable for day wear or more dramatic looks, but the kicker is that it's only $ 15! This is a really good price for such high quality, pigmented and mixable eye shadows.
Confession: I've never done color grading before. It feels like a pro makeup step that mid-level makeup enthusiasts like me don't have to deal with on a regular basis. However, this powder is cool in that it combines separate sections of green, purple, and pink corrective powders in a pod along with a translucent powder in the center so you can spot-on with each color, or swipe your brush over the entire surface for a full spectrum correction effect. It's cool! I've used it under the foundation (a trick I picked up on TikTok … the jury still isn't on it), and it seems to bring me a little closer to that coveted flawless finish.
I recently ran out of my quick-drying brush cleaner so I decided to try this cleaning spray. I'm excited! It's made from lemon, grapefruit, and tea tree oil to quickly and gently remove makeup residue from my brushes and refresh them with a foam detergent and water every day between less frequent deep cleans. It's more oily than other daily brush cleaners I've tried, but that definitely dissipates after you've polished the product off the brush and the solution has dried. So far, so good.
I didn't even want to add a new serum to my regimen, but I just can't help but give a spin on every Tatcha start. The products are always solid and the formulas are always unique and impressive. This one is no different! It's a silky, plump serum with lactic acid, hyaluronic acid and squalane that glides well and makes my skin cool and soothed after application. The directions say I should use it mornings and evenings, but since my nighttime routine is pretty tight, I used this as the first step in my morning routine after rinsing my face in lukewarm water (and on alternate days as mine Vitamin C serum). I was hesitant to add this to my morning lineup as it contains lactic acid and I am very careful about using acids during the day but since I am still mostly hidden in my house I am fine now.
I have a pretty moody relationship when it comes to face cleansing. (Hello, we exist!) Some days I want a cleanser that is gentle and nourishing, but sometimes I opt for something with a little more grip so I can really wash away any residue and debris. This Moon Juice Milk Cleanse is the best of both worlds – it's ultra-hydrating and very effective at removing residue and never feels like it's sloughing off your skin. Plus, the packaging is fully recyclable (the tube is made from sustainable sugar cane) so I think this facial cleanser is an all-round winner.
I only started using this toner late last year and it has already become a hero product in my routine. With key natural ingredients like antimicrobial aloe leaf juice and soothing plant extracts, it really helped improve the texture and elasticity of my skin. And the extra hydration step was a much needed addition for the winter months.
This stuff is pure gold. I've been using it for over a month and I can honestly say that my skin has totally changed for the better. Not only does it smell refreshing, it is also absorbed very quickly and leaves a subtle, moist sheen on my skin. I swear my skin is less red, plumper and more radiant. And that's all due to the formula. It was created using two powerful technologies – the 1: 1: 1 biomimetic lipid ratio and the patented niacin form of StriVectin, NIA-114 – that remove signs of an impaired skin barrier such as fine lines, wrinkles, visible redness, and loss of radiance . It's not cheap at $ 119 per tub, but it's really worth the price.
I love big brows and have tried my fair share of products over the years. But it wasn't until this voluminous pomade came into my life that my arches really had a moment. It adds a nice, natural looking color and makes my brows look so fluffy and chic! I also like how quick and easy it is to use. Basically, I use the coated spoolie to repeatedly brush my hair down and up again until I get my desired shape. That's it. My kind of product!
I live for lip gloss and I have to say I haven't taken it off since applying Rare Beauty’s latest gloss balm. I love that the shine formula is super light, non-sticky and lasts longer than most of the tinted shine products I've used before. I love the berry-like shade with my skin tone, but the different shades give you the pop you expect from your shine.
I usually doubt any form of beauty product that claims to do more than one thing. Even so, Iris & Romeo's multifunctional tinted moisturizer makes me seriously rethink my stance. While I wasn't sure if the rich shade would match my skin tone, it blended seamlessly into my skin when I applied it, so I've found that most foundations are unable to achieve this. I also like how light the formula is because I despise the feeling of a caked foundation. Could that be magic in a bottle? At the moment I say yes.
I've said it before and I'll repeat it: I'm obsessed with Merit's forehead product. I haven't used any other forehead product since getting this one. The formula strikes the perfect balance between adding a nice tint to your brows and overpowering it like many brow products do.
Confession: I haven't changed my typical perfume scent in more than 10 years – I'm pretty nostalgic when it comes to fragrances. But I have to say I was (literally) more bubbly with Juicy's newest perfume. The fascinating thing about this fragrance is that it mixes pink berries, gardenias, and amber, resulting in this fragrance that literally makes you feel more bubbly than you ever did in middle school.
I'll admit it: this product finally caught my attention because of TikTok. One woman best known for her makeup tutorials had received so many comments that her skin always looks like it's covered in primer before even putting anything on her face. When she chalked it up with this liquid scrub from Paula & # 39; s Choice, I put it in my shopping cart so quickly. I've only been using it for a week and am trying to use as little extra product as possible to really see if this works for my skin – so far I think it does. My skin feels softer, has a more even tone and is much firmer. I've used it mornings and evenings as the bottle suggests as I don't have hypersensitive skin, but according to my research, some people prefer to use it only once a day. So if you haven't tried this before, I say it is 100% worth it.
I can't fail to see how much I love this new Summer Fridays gel cream. My skin is painfully dry these days, but it feels calm and happy the moment I put it on. It also helped reduce my redness and is the rare moisturizer I can wear under sunscreen and makeup. The skin shines nicely, but is not oily at all. I think it will be perfect even in summer.
This new device is my favorite thing right now. I've been looking at lines that form around my lips and the folds of my nose lately, so I've been focusing on these areas. You can also use it around the eyes and on the forehead. The most interesting thing I noticed is that my lips have been looking plumper since I started, and I don't think it's just in my head. That being said, my fine lines are already starting to fade a bit. I can't wait to see the results after using them a little longer.
I'll try any skin care product that has vitamin C as a main ingredient, and this Sunday, Riley face oil is no exception. I used it under makeup during the day and was surprised how pretty it is. I usually only wear face oils at night, but I have C.E.O. Glow like during the day – it makes my skin significantly more radiant and smooth.
I'm pretty wary of anything anti-stress geared as it's more of a marketing gimmick, but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by Hum's Calm Sweet Calm gummies. They contain two main ingredients – ashwagandha, a stress reliever adaptogen, and L-theanine, a mood-enhancing amino acid – that lower your cortisol levels (the combat or flight hormone). I've been taking them for the past two weeks and I've found that my anxiety isn't that severe, which I think says a lot given the news over the past year. I also appreciated the fact that they can basically be taken at any time of the day. Unlike some CBD gums, which are great at combating stress, these aren't drowsy. It doesn't hurt that they taste good too.
Merits Flush Balm Cheek Color has quickly become one of my favorite makeup products. I found it super easy to use straight away – the rich cream formula slides straight on and gives a naturally moist, hydrated look. While it's technically a balm, I love to play with other methods of applying it and have dabbed some on my eyelids and even used it as a lip color to create a cohesive makeup look.
Obsessing is an understatement about how I feel about this lip mask. I tried it when my brother, who is arguably more of a skincare fan than I am, brought it home for Christmas, and I've loved it ever since. It has a nice glossy finish that is easy to wear during the day, and if I apply it before bed I wake up eight hours later to find that it's still on and doing its magic.
Thanks to TikTok's beauty page for bringing this game-changing product to my attention. A color correcting cream that turns green and then literally changes the color of your skin in front of your eyes? How did I not know earlier? Hyperpigmentation and redness are the MO of my skin so trying this tonight product was like going out of a lightbulb. I'm used to wearing a tinted moisturizer, but this Dr. Jart + Cicapair color correcting treatment is lighter and doesn't clog my pores like traditional BB and CC creams. This makes it a great lightweight base for home work and calls to Zoom meetings.
I feel like I'm overdoing every rare beauty product I try, but I promise the products are just that good. I bought the Melting Cream Blush in Nearly Mauve as soon as I saw a swatch test on YouTube and I think it's my favorite. It blends seamlessly with the skin and the case is compact and straightforward, so you can simply slip it in your purse for mending.
I was so excited to try this Jason Wu forehead product and was even more excited when I found out I could pick it up at my Target run. It offers the most perfect volume and fluff without going overboard.
I know wearing lip gloss under a mask is almost silly, but I do it anyway. This feels so light and moisturizing on the lips and the shade matches my skin tone perfectly.
If a product category had to be selected to be stranded on a desert island, it would be lip products. (Let's just imagine I had a big hat for sun protection too.) I love the way a streak of color brightens my face and makes me look like I've tried. Accordingly, I've tested a ton of lip products and now I'm pretty picky about what I'm going to wear. For me, traditional scrap pictures are usually off the table. Too sticky and shiny for me. But a lip oil, aha! What a find! It's nutritious and leaves a slight sheen, but nothing that comes close to a normal glow. It's also super buildable so I can get a completely different look if I do a light application (I made a super light one in the photo) or a heavier one (see how it looks on some models on Merit's website). I like the sangria color, but I also have Marrakech and Au Naturel in my arsenal if I want something more subtle. Next up, the internet and our editors spoke: These are the 18 best hair oils
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
