Tis’ the season for holiday sales! In today’s blog post, I wanted to share with y’all a few of my holy grail skincare items from Sephora that I absolutely LOVE! When it comes to shopping for skincare, I prioritize the following factors - quality of ingredients, texture, absorbance level, packaging, and more. If there’s one thing off about a product, it will NOT become my go-to product. Whether you’re a Sephora Rouge (20% off), Sephora VIB (15% off), or Sephora Insider (10% off), let’s start filling up those shopping carts! ;)

Cleansers

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Dermalogica Pre-Cleanse: I always make sure that I have at least 5 of these bottles in stock at all times in my home - I’m not kidding y’all. If my inventory ever depletes to just one bottle, just know that I’ll be stressed as hell, LOL! I’m absolutely obsessed with this oil and I always use it to help remove a full face of makeup at the end of a tiring day or if I want an extra cleanse in my skincare routine. Been using it for years.

Dermalogica Ultracalming Cleanser or Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel: If you love gel cleansers, these babies are awesome! Just apply a dime-sized amount on to the palm of your hands and combine with lukewarm water before massaging your face in soft, circular motions. P.S. I love the huge 16.9 oz pump sized cleansers to put in my shower stall when I want to wash my face in the shower!

First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser: A great starting cleanser if you don’t know where to start with cleansers. Good for people with sensitive skin or eczema.

Exfoliants, Masks, & Acne Spot Treatments

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Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant: Can I just say that this product helped shrink my pore size in just ONE night?! I know, I can’t believe it either! Personally, I do prefer their gel exfoliant (same product, same ingredients, different texture), but Sephora doesn’t carry the gel version so linking this one here in case you wanna get it on sale!

First Aid Beauty Radiance Pads or First Aid Beauty White Clay Acne Treatment Pads: Love using either of these pads when I want to add another step in my skincare routine to help exfoliate my skin!

First Aid Beauty BHA Acne Spot Treatment Gel 2% Salicylic Acid: I love applying this product to any region of my face that has the most acne or blackheads - which is mainly my chin (cystic acne) and T-zone (large, congested pores).

Wander Beauty Baggage Claim Rose Gold Eye Masks: If you’ve been following me for a while, then you’ll know just how much I LOVE these. In fact, I even used these this morning, lol! They’re bougie, hydrating eye masks that come in the colors gold or rose gold and they serve as the perfect stocking stuffers! Also, my eyes feel instantly refreshed whenever I use these. I always make sure to have a pair on if I ever have 10 - 20 minutes to spare while doing chores, laundry, cooking, or relaxing with a sheet mask!

Serums

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Sulwhasoo Anti-Aging First Care Activating Serum: Korean beauty doesn’t get better than Sulwhasoo! This was one of the very first Korean skincare brands that I’ve ever tried and I instantly fell in love upon application. There’s just something about all of their products that make your face feel like a million bucks - this serum being one of them. Extremely dewy, hydrating, and worth every penny.

Dermalogica BioLumin-C Serum: Another holy grail product that my skin is OBSESSED with. As a huge lover of Vitamin C skincare products, I’m extremely picky when it comes to which Vitamin C product I use. The smell has to be citrus-y and amazing. The absorbance level has to be PHENOMENAL. The texture has to feel hydrating and dewy. This Dermalogica product hits all the marks - I HIGHLY recommend buying it!

Kiehl’s Powerful-Strength Vitamin C Serum: If you love tingly sensations, then you’ll LOVE this Vitamin C product by Kiehl’s! I was obsessed with this product because of its citrus smell and tingly sensation-causing vibes. This product has a more cream-like texture, while the Dermalogica product above has a more dewy gel like texture.

Kiehl’s Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Correcting Serum: If you’re looking to diminish dark spots, this is a solid serum to try! It’s a thick serum that absorbs into the skin easily. Comes fragrance free if you don’t prefer certain smells.

Moisturizers

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First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Hydration: If you haven’t tried First Aid Beauty before, you need to try at least ONE product from their collection. My best friend raves about this brand and I never understood why until I tried it for myself. I absolutely love all of their products, as this brand is suited for people with sensitive skin or and/or eczema. I’ve tried their cleansers, eye creams, moisturizers and I want to say that this ultra repair cream is AMAZING. Not only does it come with a huge amount in a jar, but it really gets the job done! Highly recommend if you just want a simple skincare routine - you can literally just use this product and head to bed if that’s what you want!

First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer: This is VERY similar to the aforementioned FAB Cream above except for the fact that I find this one to be more lightweight and less thick. It works amazing! I prefer using this moisturizer during hotter temperatures and the cream during the cold winter season.

Biossance Squalane + Omega Repair Cream: As you can tell, I definitely love my creams, lol. Biossance is a brand that I haven’t tried until just recently, but it’s definitely all the rage on Instagram. Personally, I enjoy using Biossance products and have no complaints about their serums, creams, or eye creams at all. Not only is Biossance cruelty-free, but their packaging radiates elegance as well. If you’re looking to gift a skiincare brand to a family member, friend, or relative, Biossance is a good choice to go with!

Sulwhasoo Essential Firming Cream: A staple in my skincare collection. It’s a thick cream that I generously lather on to my entire face so that it gets the hydration it deserves. A splurge, but definitely worth every penny.

Sulwhasoo Bloomstay Vitalizing Cream: Another one of my favorites with a fragrant scent. Less thick in texture than the essential firming cream, but just as hydrating. Just look at the cute pink packaging!

Eye Creams & Eye Gels

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The First Aid Beauty eye creams have more of a lotion-texture, whereas the Biossace Eye Gel has more of a dewy, gel-like texture! All of these work amazing for addressing the dark circles under my eyes so I’d recommend getting whichever texture you prefer most!

Makeup/Cosmetics

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https://rstyle.me/+SIYMEpcGXNqwODsgPSlCaw

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Laura Mercier Flawless Lumiere Radiance-Perfecting Foundation: I have raved about this liquid foundation over and over again on my Instagram stories. Plus, it’s been years since I’ve used a different liquid foundation. To be honest, I’ve also tried Mac and Smashbox liquid foundations, but nothing has compared to the quality of Laura Mercier’s. Not only does my skin instantly look and feel smoother and more flawless, but it offers a nice coverage that doesn’t appear too “cakey”. Think of it like a light Instagram filter applied to your face, but more natural and less filtered (lol). If you’re in the market for a new foundation, THIS is the one!

Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Natural Skin Perfector Broad Spectrum SPF 30: If you love Laura Mercier products or trust my review mentioned above, I also highly recommend their tinted moisturizer. You can think of a tinted moisturizer similarly to a face lotion with foundation coverage. In other words, it “tints” your face to look like you’re wearing foundation except without the . I find this product to be AMAZING on days when you still want to achieve a smooth complexion or cover up any blemishes, but you don’t have the time or energy to do a full face of makeup. THAT’S when this product comes in handy! Also, I find that it offers a bit LESS coverage than the liquid foundation, but still works good overall. I always carry this with me in my purse at all times in case of emergencies (like when you run into a hottie celebrity or somethin’, heh ;) ) The best part? It has SPF 30 as well - yay for sun protection!

Laura Mercier Flawless Fusion Ultra Longwear Concealer: So, I currently have a HUGE ingrown pimple that hurts and it is NOT the vibe these days. Unfortunately, I never break out above the chin area except for recently (lucky me!) and this pimple has not been showing any signs of goodbye any time soon. I had to film a video shoot recently for one of my clients and this pimple was just staring the camera in the face PROMINENTLY. Thus, I whipped out this magical concealer and it definitely helped conceal this giant pimple by 80%. I’m not saying 100% because I want to be completely honest with my review, but 80% improvement is pretty damn impressive in my opinion. Love this concealer!!!

Benefit Cosmetics Goof Proof Waterproof Easy Shape & Fill Eyebrow Pencil: I’m going to be honest - I HATE doing my brows. It’s my least favorite part of a makeup routine. However, I’ll also be honest that Benefit Cosmetics’ Goof Proof Eyebrow Pencil makes this task a lot more enjoyable because of its pencil tip shape and product quality. Not only does the slanted pencil tip (which honestly feels more like a crayon) make it easy to fill in my brows, but it’s a double-ended pencil that comes with a spoolie to fill any gaps. I don’t know anybody who DOESN’T love Benefit Cosmetics, tbh.

Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow+ Tinted Volumizing Eyebrow Gel: You know how makeup primer comes before makeup? And how makeup comes before setting spray? The same goes for this product. I don’t really question the process, but just do it. Every time I use my Benefit Cosmetics eyebrow pencil, I follow up with this brow gel so that my brows stay intact throughout the day!

Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick: Hands down, the BEST lipstick I have ever used. Smudge-proof and perfect for a date night! Also, this is my PSA to y’all to PLEASE invest in a good lipstick - I once went on a first date and I used a cheap liquid lip and it literally smeared ALL over my face during dinner time. NOT attractive. Good thing we didn’t really hit it off, BAHAHA.

Items I Bought and/or Am Eyeing

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FREEBIE ALERT!

If you’ve made it THIS FAR, then am I PROUD of you! Also, for reading this far, I’ll let you in on a little secret - you can get CASH back for your Sephora purchases by downloading Rakuten for FREE. If you use this link to sign up, we each get $40 in cash sent via PayPal once you spend $40! Talk about a win-win deal!

What products catch your eye from the Sephora sale? Are there any products or brands that you’d love for me to try that I haven’t reviewed already? Let me know in the comments below - let’s chat!