As a beauty editor, I'm lucky enough to test hundreds of new products every year. It's my job to be discerning and sort the good from the bad (and then the great from the good). That said, it's not enough to simply like something. I have to love it, so much so that I incorporate it into my personal beauty routine. When I continue to use a product over the course of many months or even years, and when I repurchase it over and over again with my own money, well, that's how you know it's really something special.
I refuse to gatekeep my go-to products. (It's against my position as a beauty editor, but it's also against my very nature—I love yapping about my favorite things!) So I'm giving you an inside look at my five most-used beauty products. I'm talking about the can't-live-without items that get me ready and out the door in no time flat. Oh, and they just so happen to be on sale right now.
Yep, Sephora's semiannual Savings Event is happening now through November 10 for Rouge Members. (It opens to all tiers, including Insiders and VIBs, on November 4.) During it, you can take up to 20% off all kinds of products—my five favorites included. So without further ado, let's get into it.
My five most-used beauty products
Henry Rose Torn Eau de Parfum
First up, there's this divine perfume that I've made my fall-and-winter signature. It's from Henry Rose, a clean, fine fragrance brand, and features notes of vanilla, vetiver, musk, and sandalwood, so it's equal parts warm and spicy. I wear it and gush about it so often that I even put my 62-year-old mom and 25-year-old sister on it—here's proof. That's how you know I'm *actually* obsessed.
Rhode Pocket Blush (in Toasted Teddy)
I know you probably see these all over Instagram and TikTok, but in my opinion, they absolutely live up to the hype. I have yet to find another cream blush that's as buttery and easy to blend as this one. It basically melts onto my skin, delivering the prettiest wash of believable color. While every shade is worth talking about, I love Toasted Teddy the most. I tried it for the first time after a friend recommended it to me, and it was love at first swipe. The rich, terra-cotta color gives my skin a sun-kissed effect that I just can't replicate with other products.
Ouai Super Dry Invisible Dry Shampoo (in Cape Town)
Here's yet another product I've waxed poetic about. Ouai's Super Dry Shampoo is my favorite dry shampoo of all time. (There, I said it!) It's a heavy-duty formula that uses micro-starch to sop up sweat and oil for instantly clean, fresh, volumized hair. It's a dream come true for my oily hair because it does its thing without stripping too much moisture or irritating my scalp.
And the scent! Both Melrose Place (floral) and Cape Town (herby) are stunning, but I love the latter. With notes of ginger, spearmint, green fig, and basil, it smells like a fresh garden, Italy in summertime, a luxury spa, and any other number of delightful things.
Refy Lash Sculpt Mascara
I'm allergic to goopy, clumpy mascara. Well, not really, but you know what I mean. I left that look behind in high school, and I'm never going back to it. These days, I prefer a long, fluttery, doe-eyed look (aka, natural-looking lashes that have a little extra oomph), and Refy's Lash Sculpt Mascara is how I get them.
The small bristles deposit just the right amount of mascara on my lashes, while the curved wand helps lift them and keep their curl. After just a couple of swipes, I get the long, fluttery lashes I lust after, which is why I always stock my makeup bag with this formula.
YSE Beauty The Overachiever Brightening & Depuffing Eye Patches
People who know me know I swear by these eye patches. Most eye patches don't make a difference in my dark circles and under-eye puffiness, but these ones do (and in just 15 minutes, no less). I previously said they were like auto-correct for my under-eyes, and I stand by that statement. They're essential for travel days and extra-early mornings.
