"I’ve made a conscious decision over the last year to be more mindful of the way I spend money, and for someone who is embarrassingly obsessed with makeup and skincare, it has certainly been a challenge to curb my Sephora purchases. I looked up one day and realized that I was surrounded by a ton of products that I didn’t really love, and I was constantly buying more stuff to make up for the disappointment I felt for what I already had.
I’ve never been a brand loyalist; I’ve always wanted to try as many new things as possible, which is how I accidentally became a product hoarder. In order to break myself from compulsively spending money, the first habit I had to break was my inability to repurchase the products I already knew I liked.
Now, I’m not saying that expensive makeup and skincare are the only ones worth purchasing—there are plenty of drugstore items in my rotation. I had to make peace with the fact that in order for me to always get exactly what I wanted out of my products, I was going to have to spend a little extra from time to time. Here’s my short list of Sephora selections that are worth saving up for:
The fact that this is Sephora’s #1 selling foundation comes as absolutely no surprise. This cult favorite is truly magic in a bottle. Armani’s patented formula features what they call Micro-fil™ pigments that lay flush with the skin and allow for seamless blending. This type of pigment differs from conventional, spherical-shaped pigments, which can break apart when combined with your skin’s pH. It’s certainly the most high-tech foundation on the market, making the price tag feel worth it.
Take it from someone who frequently has to use hotel blow dryers when traveling for work: There is most certainly a difference between cheap and expensive dryers. Not only does the Dyson dry your hair in half the time a regular dryer would, but it also emits negative ions to reduce frizz and promote shine, all while protecting your strands from overheating with its internal temperature control technology.
All skin types benefit from a daily dose of vitamin C, but not all serums are formulated for all skin types. For vitamin C’s effectiveness to be fully realized, it requires daily use over a period of time, and if your skin is sensitive or reactive, finding a product that won’t irritate your skin can be difficult. This serum combines a potent dose of Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (an oil soluble vitamin C) along with hydrating squalane to make for a balanced, moisturizing, and effective treatment.
An effective anti-aging serum that won't leave you dry and irritated is worth the splurge in our books. Retinol is historically harsh and can take a while to show results, but Shani Darden cracked the code.
Spending $20 on a lip balm might make you wince at first, but once you try this, you'll never want to be without it ever again. In just one night, this mask will take you from chapped, dry, cracked lips to plump and smooth. Our editors haven't worried about chapped lips since they discovered this.
The world's most Instagrammable skincare product is more than just a pretty face. It immediately hydrates skin, feeling like butter when you apply it. You'll be hard-pressed to find us traveling without it, but it lives permanently in our skincare rotations even when we're at home.
If you battle with damaged and dry hair, you can rejoice in Olaplex: the #1 hair treatment for actually healing your hair. Olaplex uses a patented bond-building technology that relinks the bonds in your hair that are severed by color treatments and heat damage. If you want to impress your hairdresser at your next appointment, invest in this concentrated treatment and watch your hair transform.
Our editors have tried hundreds of beauty products in our tenure at The Everygirl, but the one we literally cannot stop recommending is the NuFACE. This device tightens and tones skin using microcurrent technology. Unlike other skincare products, you'll notice a difference in your skin immediately and over time as you use the device. It's expensive, sure, but you'll know how impeccable it is upon first use.
Dewy, model-esque skin is a reality with this cream. It's a luscious, luxurious moisturizer that doesn't clog pores or feel heavy on the skin. Tatcha combines a variety of Japanese superfoods—such as green tea, rice, and algae—and hyaluronic acid to create this incredible product.
A good highlighter has a few key traits. It seamlessly blends into skin, matches your skin's natural undertone, and looks natural. Very few hit all the marks and then some like this one from Merit. It does the impossible by looking natural yet blindingly glowy—no rogue chunky glitter involved.
We've been recommending the Fenty bronzer since the day it launched, and it still blows us away as a blendable, easy-to-use product. The shade range was unprecedented at the time, and other brands are still struggling to get a range this good. If you feel like other bronzers make you look orange or muddy (or worse, ashy), you can put your trust in this one.