Beauty

Shampoo That Doesn't Weigh Hair Down: Best Picks for Wavy Hair

A shampoo that doesn't weigh hair down cleans the scalp without leaving waves flat, and a weekly clarifying wash keeps them bouncy. I went through lightweight and volumizing shampoos, light conditioners and styling that brings the wave back.

How to Prep Lips Before a Matte Lipstick

Lip prep before lipstick is two steps: a gentle sugar scrub, then a rich balm that fills the tiny lines the scrub reveals. I pick scrubs, balms and comfortable matte lipsticks that reward the prep, all in about two minutes.

Beauty Essentials: Blush, Bronzer, Lip Color and Skincare

Beauty essentials in this edit run from liquid and powder blush and bronzer to lip oil, a cleansing balm and body care. It is new and trending makeup and skincare, chosen to go with how you dress.

The Best Pimple Patches Started Out as Wound Dressings

The best pimple patches borrow a wound-care material called hydrocolloid, and now come as stickers, liquids and kits. Here is how to tell which kind your spot wants.

Best Eyeshadow Sticks: Charlotte Tilbury, NARS, Dior and More

The best eyeshadow sticks glide on like a lipstick and set enough that they do not crease or migrate under the eye by lunch. I compare cream sticks from Charlotte Tilbury, NARS, Hourglass and Dior, and I flag the few picks that are not sticks at all.

How to Use PanOxyl for Back Acne: Body Wash, Spray and Patches

How to use PanOxyl for back acne starts with picking a strength, from the 10% benzoyl peroxide foaming wash to the 4% creamy wash. I go through eight PanOxyl picks for body breakouts, then eight other body washes to compare.

The Best Mineral Sunscreen Picks, and the Two Filters the FDA Backs

The best mineral sunscreen relies on zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, the only two filters the FDA proposed as safe and effective in 2019. Here are eight mineral sunscreens for every day and eight tinted, powder, stick and serum formats I compared them with.

Thermal Brush Guide: Ceramic Rounds, Hot Brushes and Blowout Sprays

A thermal brush is a ceramic-barrel round brush that holds heat and shapes hair as you dry it. These are the round and paddle brushes, heated brushes and blowout sprays I would pick, plus how to match barrel size to your hair length.

Not Your Mother's Curl Cream: The Curl Talk Line and Other Picks

Not Your Mother's curl cream is the center of a Tampa brand that started with six items in 2010 and built a whole Curl Talk line in 2018. This edit covers the creams, gels and mousse, the rest of the brand's shelf, and curl creams from other makers.

Manucurist Paris: A Salon, Her Mother's Idea and Nail Polish

Manucurist Paris is a nail polish brand that began as a professional nail salon in Paris in 1996. I go through the Active treatment polishes and the Green Flash LED gel alternative, then the hand and cuticle care I pair with them.

Aesop Hand Soap Dupe: Amber Bottle Look-Alikes

This Aesop hand soap dupe edit covers amber glass hand washes, creams, sets, refills and body cleansers from other labels that share the botanical, woody-citrus mood. I would start with the bottle, then match the scent family.

Rare Beauty Bronzer Stick: Warm Wishes and Cream Stick Rivals

The Rare Beauty bronzer stick is Warm Wishes, a liquid-like cream bronzer in stick form. I pair it with eight Rare Beauty cheek and complexion picks and other cream bronzer sticks.

The Rat Tail Comb Is the Smallest Tool on My Shelf and the Sharpest

A rat tail comb is the tool behind every clean part, neat section and tidy ponytail. This edit covers tail, cutting and fine-tooth combs, the wide-tooth combs for wash day, and the edge brushes for slicking things into place.

KIKO Milano 3D Hydra Lipgloss: Shades and Lip Oils I Would Pick

KIKO Milano 3D Hydra Lipgloss is a moisturizing gloss enriched with passion fruit oil, here in shades like 45 Enchanting Rosewood. I also pick the 3D Hydra Lip Oils and a few glosses from other brands to compare.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Velvet, Nudes and Matte Alternatives

The Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Velvet is a velvet-smooth lip mousse with a true matte finish, and the nudes are where it shines. Here are the shades I would try, the liners and lipsticks that go with them, and matte liquids from other brands.

Power of You Armani and the Fruity Vanilla Perfumes Around It

Power of You Armani arrived in January 2026 as a passion fruit and vanilla gourmand with a ruby bottle. Here it sits next to the rest of the Armani women's shelf, plus fruity, amber and vanilla wood perfumes I would wear beside it.

Aquaphor Lip Balm and the Thick Repair Balms to Pair With It

An Aquaphor lip balm is the plain, protective ointment so many people grew up with, now in sticks, tubes and sunscreen versions. Here is how I sort the Aquaphor range, the thicker repair balms beside it, and the overnight masks for the worst days.

Amika Hair Products: Where It's From and What to Buy

amika hair products began in a Brooklyn neighborhood in 2007 and the name means friend in Esperanto, which tells you a lot about the tone. Here are the styling sprays and creams I reach for, the masks and treatments for dry or frizzy ends, and the two brushes that finish a blowout.

Skinfix Barrier+ Cream: Rich Barrier Creams and Balms Like It

Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Peptide Cream is a rich, refillable barrier moisturizer with ceramides for skin that feels tight once the heating comes on. I put it next to other rich barrier creams, lighter gel creams for daytime and balms for dry patches.

Giorgio Armani Foundation: From Luminous Silk to the New Formula

The Giorgio Armani foundation most people mean is Luminous Silk, launched in 2000 and reformulated for the first time in late 2025. Here are eight Armani Beauty complexion picks and eight foundations I compared them with.

Hair Thickening Growth Products: Serums, Supplements, Shampoos

Hair thickening growth products fall into three groups: scalp serums for thinning hair, supplements, and volumizing shampoos and sprays. I describe supplements only by what the label says, and I would pick one serum and give it a few months.

Clarifying Wash for Curly Hair: Shampoos and What to Do Next

A clarifying wash for curly hair is a shampoo that resets curls weighed down by gels, creams and oils, and I use mine about once a month. These are the clarifying shampoos I would try, plus the deep conditioners and stylers to follow.

Dior Addict Shine Lipstick Shades: The Ones I Would Wear

Dior Addict Shine Lipstick shades include 558 Bois De Rose, 727 Dior Tulle and 524 Diorette, in a refillable, shiny lipstick. I pick shades by how much color you want, then compare Rouge Dior and shiny lipsticks from Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.

Best Ariana Grande Perfume: Cloud and Other Creamy Vanilla Scents

The best Ariana Grande perfume to start with is Cloud, the 2018 creamy coconut and vanilla gourmand. I go through the rest of her lineup, then other soft vanilla scents, body mists and hair perfumes.