Something I’ve been working on lately is taking my time. Actually tasting my coffee. Brushing my hair a little slower, a little gentler. Lingering in the shower a few moments longer than it feels like I should.
Life has reminded me recently is that we don’t know how much time we have. So while you have it, take it. Savor it.
I've been feeling guilty lately that these posts take me around three months. But the reality is they take that long because they do. And, because I keep choosing life over deadlines. Having limoncello on the porch with my husband. Driving an hour for Sunday dinner with my mom. Learning embroidery.
Those little moments kept me from writing last weekend. And the weekend before that. But here I am, eventually writing it. And here you are, eventually reading it.
The important part is that we make time for a little joy along the way. That’s what taking care of yourself looks like to me.
Now. Enough introspection. Let’s talk BEAUTY.
Incase you’re new here, welcome to part three of a series where I divulge all-things-beauty I’m loving, leaving behind, and thinking about. Loves get top-of-the-counter silver tray treatment. Leave behinds get banished to the beauty graveyard under the sink. It’s cut throat and honestly exhilarating.
My bathrobe is basically a lab coat at this point
There’s a reason everyone is talking about this product. It’s good. I would describe it as a luxurious, soapy sandpaper bar. Leaves you soft, clean, and approximately one layer newer. Eat your heart out, St. Ives Apricot.
I’d seen this so many times that when Violet Grey finally sent me a push, it was already sitting in my cart with a quantity of “3.”
If Kérastase Gloss Absolu is the pretty one and Olaplex is the sensible one, Filament manages to be both. Crowning her queen.
Do you sweat? Are you occasionally too lazy to shower?
I can’t remember who recommended these on here (please reveal yourself so I can publicly praise you), but I am eternally indebted. I went from unhuggable to genuinely clean in 30 seconds. Just buy them. Keep them in every bag, glove compartment, and drawer. Future sweaty you will be grateful.
I am firmly not a mascara wearer…until I saw Anna Newton’s lashes. I tried this for the first time last night and, I can’t believe I’m saying this: I think I like mascara again. Excuse me while I flutter away.
The shade Bourgeoisie is the perfect dusty rose with just a little sparkle. If you don’t want to look like a shimmering rose, carry on.
If you read the thing in my last post where I said I didn’t need another hair oil, no you didn’t. I’m extremely committed to trying every Crown Affair product, okay? Initial impressions are promising – thicker than expected, but still lightweight. Not as glossy as Absolu drops, but more nourishing. I’ll report back.
The ones I keep reaching for – and worry about running out.
It’s blush. It’s bronzer. It’s blonzer. I didn’t even bother putting this in the “testing” category because the test was over after ~six seconds.
It all started with this video of Fara and that slightly sunburnt look I’ve been after all summer. I’ve been wearing it every day and every day I’ve been feeling really pretty. I won’t even try to invent beauty jargon about it. It just makes me feel really pretty.
I’m very much still in a spot-coverage-over-full-coverage moment, and this continues to be my favorite child. I’m using it daily as concealer and it’s an all around MVP. Breathable. Buttery. Velvet for matte. Baume for glow. Yes.
For more of a full beat. I’ve loved this for a few years now but Anna Newton (ftw again) breathed entirely new life into it when she shared that she uses it with a damp beauty blender. Genius? It really is the best your-skin-but-better.
Westman Atelier Bronzing Drops
These are now fully in the mix. Great for those diet makeup days when you don’t want to wear much but aren’t quite ready to bare face the world.
I mix with Avène Cicaflate+ and it kind of makes me look like I just stepped out of an exotic sauna on vacation. (Just salivated typing those words.)
Another test-to-rotation promotion. I’m wearing Beige Matte on my lids almost daily. It just neutralizes the darkness in a way that feels more intentional and less prone to creasing than concealer.
I’ve historically been a Westman Face Trace loyalist, but this summer I’ve only been reaching for Merit’s. It’s lighter and glossier, which is just something I’m into right now. If you’re between the two, the tie-breaker might be finish. Merit is more of a sheen, Westman’s is more of a matte.
Biodance Collagen Mask-to-Foam Cleanser
Why isn’t anybody talking about this cleanser? I bought it entirely blind because I saw it on the shelf next to my beloved Biodance masks. (Insane behavior, I know.)
It’s a cleanser, but you leave it on for a few minutes like a mask. Very clean. Very glow. I put it on in the shower and let it do its thing while I do mine. My kind of multitasking.
If you don’t know about Verdoie, allow me. It’s a French skincare brand built around five generations of mushroom farming and inspired by their healing properties. The founder Sonia GD is an impossibly cool Parisian who, yes, occasionally forages for mushrooms. I mean.
Sonia sent me her line a few months ago, and I wanted to live with it before sharing my thoughts. Verdoie is all about treating the root cause of skin sensitivity, not just masking symptoms – so not the sort of thing you can judge after a few nights.
My thoughts: It’s exceptional. There are products you use because you’re supposed to, and then there are products you reach for because you genuinely want to. This is the latter.
There’s a thoughtfulness to this formula that’s hard to explain until you use it. It doesn’t feel trend-driven or overly engineered. It just feels like someone poured a lot of love into getting one thing exactly right.
The finish is light, silky, a soft kind of radiance. Nothing glossy or outwardly dewy. Just genuinely healthy skin. Very French, in that sense.
I’ve been waking up and questioning whether I even want to put on makeup. Which is kind of the whole point, right?
After Verdoie, I’ve been adding a layer of Avène. A little French skincare sandwich. It seals everything in and adds just a touch more dew. Lately I’m on a Cicalfate > Cicaplast crusade, meet me in the comments if you’d like a flyer.
Chanel Hydrabeauty Micro Serum and Eye Cream
I will continue shouting from the rooftops that Chanel Beauty is criminally underrated. I picked these up at the airport on my way to Scotland because my gate happened to be next to the Chanel counter. Destiny?
These feel like what I imagine my skin would look like if I drank enough water. They also have the faintest hint of camellia, which…water could never.
Jan Marini Bio Clear Face Lotion
Never ventured into Jan Marini, but after a facial a few weeks ago, I found myself in a 45-minute conversation with the spa owner, obviously. This was the one product she insisted I leave with for “glass skin.” (I hate that term, by the way.)
It’s an acidic trifecta of glycolic, salicylic, and azelaic acids, which is terrible news for breakouts.
The finish alone is outrageous. If it had no other benefit I would still recommend it because it’s that good. But also, it works. I’m barely getting breakouts anymore and when one does pop up, it’s usually gone by the next morning. Insane.
My mom gave these to me for my birthday and I’m 90% sure she got them as a free-with-purchase gift. It’s fine. I kind of hated them at first (the bead was throwing me) and I only grabbed one because I couldn’t find a hair tie. Fast forward to present day: I can’t stop wearing them. I never want to be without them. No amount of hair will ever break them. I LOVE THEM.
Destination: Beauty Graveyard
Do you ever put a new product on your face and immediately know your skin isn’t going to absolutely abhor it? This left me sticky, broken out, and sad.
Sofie Pavitt Face is having such a moment. I'm generally hesitant to introduce new skincare but I love her approach to acne and the world she's built around the brand. Enter, intrigue.
The cleanser works beautifully – it left me clean but without that tight feeling. However. It got in my eyes and I had to DIY an emergency eyewash station like a seventh grader in chemistry. I’m aware that’s not a valid beauty critique, but also yes it is. I purged from the mandelic acid, which was enough to send me running. The moisturizer is lovely but, somehow, also broke me out? My overall experience felt like poetic injustice, but such is life.
This is awkward.
Surprising, I know. I love Merit. This formula is objectively lovely. A light, satiny finish that gives you that “is she wearing lipstick?” situation. For me, it just comes down to shade range. Andie and Archival were okay, but most of Merit's lip shades pull too brown or too warm on my olive skin. Onwards.
It’s so good until it’s not. I have very little patience for creasing concealer. This still works well as a regular spot-corrector, though.
I love the RŌZ brand. (Fun fact, my actual job is brand marketing and I recently did some creative work for their milk mousse launch – it looks gorgeous.)
I actually really did not like most of their products for my hair type (sorry, honest) but this one’s noteworthy – I think it occupies a really interesting space. It’s a pre-wash treatment oil. I didn’t find the treatment part to do enough, BUT if you're someone who loves a dirty-hair slick back, it leaves your hair stunningly soft and shiny, plus the the added satisfaction of knowing it's actually doing something.
Thinking about it.
L. Erickson
Now that I've discovered this brand, can we discuss the full line? I'm enamored.
Everything Fara Homidi
The eyeshadow. The lipliner. The lipgloss. The brand. I’m simply bewitched by everything this woman creates. As such, I’m selflessly testing it all for my next.
I’ve heard a lot of good things about this concealer, especially for spot coverage.
Embracing my texture
Sharing my natural hair was actually a really big step for me. It probably deserves its own post, but for now I'll just say that it unlocked something. I'm beginning to see that so many of the things I've spent my life trying to fix – my frizz, my freckles, my wrinkles – aren't flaws at all. They're texture. And texture is where beauty lives. I’m realizing I have nothing to hide and that is the most beautiful thing.
What are you loving – or leaving behind? Have you tried anything new?
I’d love to know what beauty things are bringing you joy (or not) lately.
Until next time. Taste your coffee, linger in the shower, and take care of yourself.
Allison
Editorial note: Nothing in this post is sponsored. I don’t turn on paid, but I do spend an exorbitant amount of money testing beauty products, so if you get any value from these, consider upgrading. It's only $5 a month, which is the equivalent of buying me a coffee while I wax poetically about really good hair ties.
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