Who needs lash extensions — which, while gorgeous, are expensive, high maintenance, require a lot of care, are limiting in terms of what products you can use with them, and time-consuming — when you can have Urban Decay’s Tube Job Mascara.
Rather than coat lashes with color and thickness like traditional mascaras, tube formulas form water-resistant sleeves around lashes, so that the color does NOT budge. UD’s formula claims to bring a 45-degree boost to lashes that lasts for 24 hours. I can’t actually measure such a metric and not every single product is a complete game changer, but what this is… is VERY GOOD. The formula is also infused with lash-conditioning ingredients like peptides and castor oil! The applicator is twice as thin as a normal brush so it can REALLY latch onto lashes at the root and deposit more color and lift. It won’t weigh your fragile lashes down, either. I’ve been using this for the past few weeks and I can feel the brush hit the roots of my lashes — and it covers up any powder residue that lands on my lashes from non-black eyeshadow, which can add an unwanted and dusty cast. I am all for the Tube Job.
MERIT Signature Lip Lightweight Lipstick Blush serves many masters. It’s sheer. It’s light. But it’s also mega matte. Seriously. It layers lips with a flush of color that doesn’t forsake pigmentation and velvet texture in favor of moisture and cake-free color. It literally allows for ALL of the above. The formula was initially part of this simple, clean brand’s 2023 holiday limited edition offerings. However, makeupistas loved it so much that the brand brought it back permanently and in eight shades, ranging from roses to browns. It’s a bullet lippie that’s fragrance-free, glides across the pucker like a balm but wears like a flushed, blurred blush, and has that sought-after matte finish that is never crusty or dry! This isn’t your 2010s matte by any means. It doesn’t require a dry down like liquid lippies or leave a ring around the mouth while wearing off in the center. This formula mattifies without sopping up all the moisture in the region! I’ve said it before and I will say it again. A good lippie like this can make you feel as glam as a full face of makeup. Pair it with a killer volumizing mascara, a spritz of glowing setting spray, and be done with your makeup for the day.
Generally, eyeliners fall into three different categories. Liquid. Pencil. Gel. Right? Right. Well, leave it to Urban Decay to craft the 24/7 Liquid Stick Retractable Liner, which checks off ALL of the boxes. It’s a gel formula but it offers liquid liner-like pigmentation. It has two ends —one with a slanted angle liner and the other with a blending brush to buff lines to your preferred degree of soft smokiness. The formula also sets quickly so decide what look you are trying to achieve before applying because it does not move or migrate. It’s waterproof, transfer-proof, and smudge-proof… unless thats what you are going for. I definitely appreciate the color payoff and the stay put nature. But it didn’t have that same intense precision as a true liquid liner.
I have a love-hate relationship with my waterproof and long-wearing eyeliner and mascara.I love that it doesn’t budge and I don’t have to re-apply it. EVER. But I hate that I have to double and sometimes triple cleanse to get it off at night when all I want to do is wash, hydrate, and GO TO BED! Despite my best efforts and multiple cleanses, sometimes, I wake up with smudges —that I did not intend or want as “next day” or “lived in” makeup — along my lower lashline. I was not expecting these liner leftovers. Well, iUNIK’s Calendula & Jojoba Oil Cleansing Oil makes sure that not a single smidgen of residue is left behind. You don’t have to tug and tug and wipe and wipe, potentially damaging sensitive, around-the-eye skin to remove your makeup! It’s a gentle makeup melter that moisturizes skin, especially that delicate around-the-eye area.
Ceramics. You know — a beautiful coffee table vase or piece of art. That’s the inspo point behind ILIA Beauty’s Overglaze Hydrating Gloss. There’s no fragrance, no taste, no gimmicks, no hype. Just a hint of sheer color — like a glossy glaze on a gorgeous ceramic centerpiece — and a whole lot of shine. The cushiony, gel texture wears comfortably. It’s a gloss so of course you have to re-apply like six times a day, which is fine. I like to give my lip shine a refresh every few hours. There are 12 supple shades, in the pink, berry, and red tones. The hue is buildable. Two coats give a nice glaze. Four makes things mega pretty. It’s not sticky or goopy, either. This is Lip Gloss V. 2026.
Halsey’s beauty brand about-face is always edgy and cutting edge. I have not met a product I don’t like, and I cannot say that about most celeb-backed makeup companies. a-f is now offering up Supporting Act, a setting spray that is not your typical setting spray. It’s not just amped up water that you blast on your face to “set’ makeup or to refresh and moisturize mid-day. It’s a collision of serum and spray that you use to prep skin prior to makeup application. That way, it hydrates your skin and you can apply your product with a dewy glow. It’s a biphase formula (so give it a hearty shake before spritzing) that will give you an added dose of radiance and luminosity. The main takeaway — apply it BEFORE the rest of your makeup, not after! The brand does offer this hot take on usage: Apply over powder to set and for a melted powder, glassy look. It’s about 75% skincare, 25% makeup, and you should never neglect your skincare.
