Sephora Spring 2019 Beauty Insider Sale: Product Recommendations
Y’all..the time has come. The Sephora Beauty Insider Spring Sale is here. Get with it or get lost!
Sephora is offering Rouge cardholders (spend $1k at Sephora annually) 20% off all products online and in-store. The sale started on April 26th, and ends on May 6th.
Not a Rouge cardholder? Don’t panic! You’re time is coming soon! Sephora will be offering VIB cardholders (spend $350 at Sephora annually) a 15% off discount May 2nd-May 6th. During this timeframe, Beauty Insiders (free to join) will also be able to get a 10% off discount.
The Beauty Insider sale is a great opportunity to not only stock up on your staple products, but also try out new things you’ve been itching to buy. Sephora can be a little overwhelming, so I wanted to offer some guidance and provide you guys with some makeup and skincare product recommendations.
Side note: I’m sticking with the big dogs for these recommendations. Eyeliner, mascara, brow pencils, etc. perform relatively the same. Of course there are outliers, but in all honesty, you can find a good eyeliner pretty much anywhere. For that reason, I wanted to place more of an emphasis on products that are harder to vet.
Okay, let’s get to gettin’!
Foundation Prep: Sun Care & Primer
Sun care and face primer are absolute musts when it comes to prepping your skin in the morning; especially now since the sun is out. SPF protects your skin from harmful sun rays. The sun can do some damage to your skin, so you want to ensure you’re protecting it. Not a lot of sunscreens are made with women of color in mind. I wonder when brands will realize that we don’t want to look ashy after putting on SPF. Luckily, Supergoop! has our backs!
Face primers create a barrier between your skin and your makeup. They do a great job of blurring imperfections and creating the perfect base for foundation.
Here are some sun care and primer recommendations:
Complexion: Foundation & Tinted Moisturizer
When it comes to the spring and summer seasons, I really like to let my skin breathe and shine through, so I mostly stick to lightweight foundations and tinted moisturizers. I just hate the feeling a heavy, matte foundation gives me on a sunny day. Although the complexion products I reach for are lightweight, I’m also aware that it gets hot as hell during the summer, and standard lightweight products aren’t going to cut it. This is why I ensure the products I use are both lightweight AND long wearing.
Here are 6 radiant and long wearing complexion products that I recommend:
Concealer
I use concealers for three things: concealing/highlighting under the eyes, covering imperfections, and contouring. I reach for light, creamy concealers, like Nars’ Radiant Creamy for highlighting and contouring, and thicker concealers, like Nars’ Soft Matte, for spot concealing. Concealers can be tricky because there are many factors that come into play like the shade, undertone, consistency, coverage, longevity, and how they wear/settle on your skin throughout the day. A lot of trial and error comes with testing out concealers, so once you find a few good ones, hold on to them!
Here are few good concealers you should try out:
Cheeks: Bronzer & Blush
Finding good bronzers and blushes that work well on brown skin is tough! Bronzer and blush are the two products that I haven’t really gotten the opportunity to experiment with. I’ve been using the same products for years, but I’m excited to switch it up. I’ve got to give it up to brands like Fenty Beauty that aren’t leaving women of color as an afterthought.
Side Note: I’ve really been feeling liquid and cream blushes; especially during the warmer months. They blend in so nicely, and give a beautiful flushed look.
Here are some cheek products worth picking up and testing out:
Lips: Glosses & Balms
My lipgloss is poppin; my lipgloss is cool!
I don’t wear lipstick super often, especially matte lipsticks because they have my lips crying for moisture. I’m more of a gloss and balm girl. My lips are also really sensitive, so I prefer for them to be moisturized.
Here are some lip glosses I recommend that are moisturizing, but still have some color pay off:
Cleansers
I love gentle cleansers that hydrate my skin without leaving it dry and tight. I’m not a huge fan of cleansers with tons of active ingredients because they tend to be too harsh on my skin for everyday use. On top of that, I use toners, serums, masks, oils, etc to target my problem areas. Combining so many chemicals can actually do more harm than good, so I stick with gentle cleansers with minimal ingredients. This strategy keeps my skin clear without compromising my skin barrier due to constant irritation. Gentle cleansers are perfect for everyday use!
Here are my favorite gentle cleansers that I recommend testing out:
Toners
I used to be very skeptical of toner; I just didn’t get the point of using one, but after trying out a few, I’m now a believer. The main sell of toners is that they do a great job of purifying the skin and whisking away any residual makeup, dirt, etc. that you may have missed while cleansing. Toners also have added benefits depending on which one you use. My favorite everyday toners are hydrating toners. When my skin is being problematic in terms of acne/texture, I like to reach for an oil control toner with salicylic acid. I also have dark spots that I like to treat 2-3x a week, so a dark spot toner is great for those days.
Toners are applied directly after cleansing, so they’re able to sink into freshly clean skin and really do their job. If you pick a toner(s) that’s geared toward your skin concerns, you can really see magic happen.
Here are some toners that I highly recommend testing:
Face Oils/Serums
A good face oil/serum will change your skin for the better. Face oils and serums are the types of products that I probably test out the most because there are so many of them and they all do different things. My main skin care goals are to fight off texture, ensure my skin maintains its radiance and hydration, and to get rid of my dark spots. I usually reach for serums that can tackle at least one of those concerns.
I’ve seen the fastest results when adding serums/oils into my routine, so I 1000% recommend you picking one up if you haven’t dipped your toes into the world of serums/oils yet.
Here are some serums/oils I recommend testing out:
Moisturizers
I love me a good moisturizer. Moisturizers are another type of product that I love testing out. I have combination skin; some areas of my skin are oily, while I have dry patches in other areas, so I’m a bit picky when it comes to moisturizers. Thick formulas don’t do it for me; they’re difficult to blend, and make my pores feel clogged. On the other hand, if a moisturizer is too lightweight, I don’t find it to be moisturizing enough. I have even noticed some lighter moisturizers leave my skin feeling tacky (which I despise). I’m always struggling to find a moisturizer that is both lightweight AND moisturizing. If you feel me, say AMEN!
Here are some lightweight moisturizers I think hit the nail on the head!:
face masks
Lastly, we have face masks. I love face masks, and I typically do one 2x a week. There are tons of face masks, and it can get quite overwhelming in terms of which ones you should choose. Luckily, I have a whole blog post about this that will hopefully make the selection process easier. The main piece of advice I give in that post is to choose face masks that are both achieving your skin care goals, and would work well with your skin type. Face masks can really improve your skin and help resolve your skin care concerns if you’re choosing the right ones.
Here are some of Sephora’s best selling and top rated face masks. Remember to choose ones that make sense for YOU:
That’s all folks! Let the shopping commence!
As always, feel free to email me or slide into my Instagram DMs if you have any questions or would like input on a product that didn’t make this list. I got you!
— Riss 💋