It’s here! The Diptyque Limited-Edition Baies Candle 2020 ($74) has launched from 11/27 to 11/30 while supplies last. For the past three years they have launched a special design for their best selling Baies candle and this year’s design is beautiful! It comes in a black glass jar in the Classic 190 g size. The design is embossed printed onto the black jar (versus a sticker). It has black wax and has the special 2020 mark labeled on the back. This Black Friday 2020 Baies Candle is available at Diptyqueparis.com.
Baies is my most burned candle in my home. It has a beautiful unique mix of berries, blackcurrant and rose with a slightly green undertone. I love that it’s sweet but not sugary sweet. Both Andrew and I adore this in the candle, large candle and spray versions. We’ve tried a number of room sprays and while they won’t last as long as a candle or diffuser the Diptyque room sprays are among the strongest we have bought.
The 2020 Black Friday Baies comes in the standard size which is 190 g/ 6.5 oz. Approximate burn time is 60 hours. If you’re interested in this particular scent it is also available in their regular line up with the clear glass jars and white wax and a few other formats:
Mini Scented Candle 35 g size (usually a GWP size or in their mini sets)
The Diptyque team kindly gifted the Black Friday Baies 2020 candle. Each year they’ve launched I’ve also bought an extra backup. Here’s a look at the candles from 2018, 2019 and 2020.
You can find the Diptyque Limited-Edition Baies Candle 2020 available 11/27 to 11/30 while supplies last at Diptyque. They usually have special gift with purchases available. Check out their Special Offers page for the latest one (they have the promo code there too).
Baies 2020 gifted for review. All other items purchased by me.
This year the Chanel Black Friday 2020 launch is a new Rouge Coco Flash in Coco Club 136 ($38). It’s a smooth glossy berry shimmer that flashes both plum and red at the same time. Pigment is full and opaque but with a tiny bit of translucent finish with the shine. On my lips and complexion reds and plums tend to pull bright fuchsia red and this is the case with this color. If you find reds pull more true to the tube color you will find it more on the red-plum side. Coco Club is a classic glam color. For me – I tend to gravitate towards pinks or corals for brighter shades this one pulls more dressy. You can find this now at Chanel.com.
Finish is glossy but it stays put for several hours before fading. To extend the wear or help keep it in place I recommend using a lip liner. I wore this by itself for the post. If you’re looking for a Chanel Lip Liner, I swatched their new Le Crayon Levres Longwear Lip Pencils earlier this spring here.
Quality, lasting power, pigment and shine are a solid A+. You can find the Chanel Rogue Coco Flash in Coco Club available now online at Chanel.com. What do you think? Will you be ordering this one? Stay tuned for a look a their Cyber Monday launch coming soon!
Chanel Black Friday lipstick provided for review. Other press samples have a * next to them. All other items purchased by me.
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you have a wonderful start to the holiday season. Black Friday and Cyber Week deals have already started! I’m rounding up all the Best Black Friday Sales and Deals I have on my radar. Many are already live right now and a few will be starting on Friday (dates noted below). Check back later this week because I’ll be able to share more info on some special launches this Friday!
AmorePacific – 30% off best sellers, starts 11/25 – 11/30
Anastasia Beverly Hills – 30% off brow, palettes, blush + bronzers, up to 50% off lips, now through 11/29
Becca Cosmetics – 25% off sitewide + gift with purchases at $75+ and $100+ no code needed, runs through 11/27
Bergdorf Goodman – Rewarding Beauty Event, save up to 25% off beauty purchases with code BEAUTY at checkout, running now through 12/6 instore, ends 12/3 online
$35 off purchases $250
$100 off purchases $500
$250 off purchases $1,000
$625 off purchases $2,500+
Bite Beauty – 35% off sitewide, starts 11/25-11/30
Charlotte Tilbury – Save 30% off select kits and receive a free Bella Sofia Palette with orders over $125, discount runs now through 11/30, GWP runs through 11/28 or while stock lasts
Cyber Week Bonus gift with purchase set with orders $250 or more (pouch with samples of The Serum, La Creme, Clarifying Cleansing Foam and Vitality Enhancing Eye Mask Supreme)
Black Friday Sale 20% off $200+ orders, 50% off last call items, free 2-day shipping + samples, valid 11/27-11/29
Clinique – 30% off any order with code JOY30 and free 6-piece kit with orders $65+
Decorte – 20% off site with code BLACKFRIDAY20, valid 11/23 – 12/1
Dermstore – Save up to 30% off participating brands and products with code SHARETHELOVE, runs through 11/30
Diptyque – special 2020 Black Friday Baies candle available for sale from 11/27 – 11/30 while supplies last (there will be a gift with purchase as well)
EM Cosmetics – 20% off sitewide with code BLACKFRIDAY starts on Friday 11/27 (excludes Faded Clementine Lip Cushion and Palette)
Fenty Beauty – 30% off Fenty Beauty products, no code needed, ends 11/30
First Aid Beauty – Black Friday Gifts, purchase any select FAB Favs and receive a free gift with each purchase
Offer from 11/19 – 11/24 buy two, receive third product free with code HOLIDAYTRIO (third item must be equal or lesser value than other two), receive a 5-piece beauty set with orders $100+
From 11/27 – 11/30 enjoy 30% off sitewide, Armani will donate your 30% saved to support UNICEF Acqua for Life, with code DONATE30
Kerastase – 11/23 – 11/26 free travel size Dry Shampoo with orders $100+ using code GFTG20 at checkout, from 11/26 – 11/27 20% off and free Kerastase Tote Bag with code THXFF20
Kiehl’s – 25% off all purchases, plus get a 2-piece gift on orders $125+, use code CYBER at checkout, valid 11/24 – 11/30
Kosas – holiday sitewide sale, 20% off $25+ orders, 25% off $50+ orders, 30% off $75 orders
La Mer – Black Friday Customizable 4-Piece Gift and 3 Spa Accessories With $150+ purchases, while supplies last through 11/28
L’Occitane USA – Black Friday exclusive value sets and gift with purchases
Hope you find some great deals! I’ve already shopped from Anastasia Beverly Hills, La Mer and The Daily Edited. I ordered one of the Our Place Always Pans although it won’t ship until end of next month (but I’m still excited). I have my eye on some things for the home too!
So many of you have asked for more budget beauty features and I’m thrilled to share a Budget Beauty Gift Guide with some cute stocking stuffer ideas! I’m partnering with Walmart to share some of my latest finds. I have a roundup of some new discoveries along with a couple tried and true favorites.
My Favorite Lash Duo
The L’Oreal Lash Paradise Mascara has been my favorite for several years. I love both the regular and waterproof version. They have a cute Lash Paradise Mascara and Primer Holiday Kit at a value price. I use the primer almost daily (it’s one of the few mascara bases I really like and have repurchased countless times).
Best Plumping Lip Gloss
The Maybelline Lifter Glosses are my latest budget beauty discovery. I love the sleek simple packaging and these are some of the prettiest plumping lip glosses I’ve tried. They have a sweet cookie like scent and give the lips a plumping look and feel without an intense sting (they will tingle a little). They have Hyaluronic Acid and make the lips look super glossy. I cannot pick a favorite! I’m wearing Moon in this post which is a sheer smooth shimmery pink. There are some cream colors without shimmer too. A few more swatches below.
Best Bronzers
The best budget-friendly bronzers I’ve tried are from L’Oreal. I love the Summer Belle Bronze Please! in the shade Amalfi (Medium). I recently bought the darkest color in Taormina (Dark) which is a good non-orangey deeper bronze. If you want a softer look the True Match Lumi Bronzers are also nice for a luminous glow.
Favorite Affordable Brushes + Tools
So many friends and family members ask what the best affordable makeup brushes are. Many of them have teens or younger ones just starting to get into makeup and want to know what a good brush set is to start. Real Techniques Brushes are my favorite. They’re well made and functional. They have several cute sets or you can buy them individually. Sometime last year I discovered the Everyday Essentials Makeup Brush Set and use all the brushes in the kit. Brush 200 is perfect for foundation, 401 is a great multi-tasking brush and I love the other two for highlighting or blending.
I just bought the Artist Essentials Brush Set (one featured in this post) and think it’s a great addition to my current lineup. They’re soft and gentle on the skin but effective in picking up product. I also picked up another Concealer Brush because it’s one of the best I have tried and super versatile for both concealer or cream eyeshadow.
For beauty sponges the Elf Blending Sponge is hands down the best drugstore sponge I’ve tried!
Cute Stocking Stuffers
Elf Bite Size Palettes make for super cute stocking stuffers! I think they’re super cute – the Bite Size Eyeshadow Palettes have 4 shades for a complete look and I bought a few extras to keep for myself. The Bite Size Face Duos have a mini blush and highlighter in the same size compact in easy to wear colors.
Best Nail Care Picks
For nail care Tweezerman makes the some of the best nail tools. I swear by their Pushy Nail Cleaner to push back cuticles and also their Cuticle Clippers. This Mini Manicure Kit is a great buy – they have a few variations and I think they’re one of the most underrated accessories.
OPI nail polishes are perfect for any beauty lover. Out of all the gifts I’ve given, any OPI nail polish seems to get more excitement than anything else! I’ll sometimes put together a mini nail kit basket or tie a couple up in a cello bag for gifting. A few of my favorite neutrals swatched below.
That wraps up my Budget Beauty Holiday Gift Ideas roundup! It’s super easy to take a couple of items and make a cute gift with a pretty bow or tiny ornament. I hope this gives you some ideas in case you need some quick and easy ideas for stocking stuffers!
Sharing 10 Things I’m Loving Right Now today! A few of my favorite everyday staples that I have had in rotation lately.
Glowing Base Favorites
For my base I’ve really been loving that natural glow. Two favorites are the Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer in Sand 3N1 (1) and the Laura Mercier Flawless Lumiere Radiance Perfecting Foundation in Latte 3N1.5 (2). You can see the before/after application of the Tinted Moisturizer on my face here and the Flawless Lumiere in this post as well. Both offer a nice natural glow to the skin with good lasting power.
Quick tip: Sephora carries the Tinted Moisturizer in a Mini Size in case you wanted to try it out before committing to buying the full size. They also have a Prime+Perfect Set you can customize as well which has more mini sizes.
The Anastasia Beverly Hills Soft Glam II Mini Eyeshadow Palette (4) was a recent beauty buy. It is a mini version of their Soft Glam Palette. There are 2 shades in the mini that are slightly different than the full size version. If you have the original you don’t really need the new one unless you’ve used it up or are looking for a convenient travel size version. The colors are super smooth and easy to blend/layer. They look a little boring in the pan but it’s a really great palette that has everything you need for a complete eye look!
Beauty look wearing all my favorites in this post:
Earrings are the 6-6.5mm Pearl Earrings (not new, but several of you have asked the size)
Eye Staples
I’ve also been loving the Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise Cream Shadow in Copper Sunrise (5, new shade reviewed here) for a soft wash of color. It’s a nice one and done kind of color and super flattering on the eyes! So many of you have messaged me asking for a good long-wear eyeliner, I think it depends whether you want a pencil or liquid but for pencil, my go-to has been the Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliner (6, swatches here). I like a lot of the colors and am wearing Black Wood in this post.
Last but not least – the combo that gets me the most compliments and questions “what are you wearing on your lips?” is the Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Pillow Talk (9) + Charlotte Tilbury Jewel Lips in Pillow Talk (10) combination. I love ALL the Pillow Talk Lip colors and many of you want to know “do I need them all?” especially for the glosses. I personally think I do, but if you don’t want dupes or colors that are too similar here are the colors swatched side by side.
My take on the difference between the glosses:
Lip Lustre is most opaque and has a more dusty rose color (on the face/lips here and here)
Collagen Lip Bath is the most sheer out of the three, has a translucent finish and gives the lips the most full plump effect (without the tingle, other colors also swatched here)
Jewel Lips has some shimmer, is brighter in undertone, super glossy (review here too)
That wraps up my 10 Things I’m Loving Right Now! Would love to hear what you are loving lately. Any beauty staples you have in rotation that you can’t get enough of?
Happy Thursday! Rounding up some of the cutest beauty gift sets $25 and under! There are lots of great hand and nail care options which I think are perfect for any age. L’Occitane makes some of the best hand creams and their Intensive Hand Balm is available in a mini size now! There are also lots of cute boxed sets which make for easy effortless stocking stuffers. A cute Silk Mittens Hand Trio popped up online for MAC and I am ordering this today!
There are lots of cute mini makeup palettes available at Sephora, Ulta and Walmart. I’ve heard great things about the Lawless Eyeshadow Minis so I plan on ordering a couple to try. You can find affordable minis from Tarte, Too Faced, Elf and more (linked below in the carousel).
Another great brand to look for skincare sets is Fresh. I am 100% obsessed with their lip balms and love that they have different variations at different price points. I linked the ones Under $25 in this post but they have a wide range of sets to choose from.
The BEST shower creams are from Sol de Janeiro. The Brazilian 4 Play Moisturizing Shower Cream-Gel is available in a mini in their Carnival Flight Set. There is also another variation in their Coco Cabana Jet Set which I also love. I think these are a good deal ($33 value for $25 each) and an easy win for anyone!
Last I wanted to mention that Kosas has some nice sets on their website (also a few available at Sephora and Nordstrom). I think their – swatches of their makeup in my Kosas Cosmetics Roundup post in case you missed it and want swatches!
The weather has shifted and dry season is officially here and my skin has been in desperate need of some extra TLC. So many of you had mentioned Skinfix to me as a new brand that you really love and I am thrilled to partner with them to give you a closer look at their Barrier+ Triple Lipid Peptide Cream.
The Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid Peptide Cream is my latest skin saver. It’s a rich hydrating cream that comes in a pump dispenser jar. I love that it is unscented, soothing and has that lush creamy feel without a super heavy texture. The Triple Peptide Cream is one of those moisturizers great for stressed or sensitive skin. It’s great especially if you have eczema or irritation from acids or retinol – there’s no stinging when you apply and it is very soothing.
For those who are into natural skincare, you’ll be happy to learn that the cream is 95% naturally-derived. The highlighted ingredients include:
Triple Lipid Complex – to restore natural lipids, it makes the skin glow!
Peptide Protein Blend – supports skin barrier function to protect it
Lily Root Extract – to tighten the skin and help skin retain moisture
I’ve been using this for nearly a month now and skin is more hydrated and smooth without any irritation. I love it during the day or at night. I even use it on the hands and body although they do have an Eczema+ Hand Repair Cream and Body Cream I am really eager to try.
Bottom line if you’re looking for a good no-fuss moisturizer that is good for sensitive or stressed out skin, I highly recommend giving the Lipid Peptide Cream a try. I frequently give skincare to friends and family, my brother has eczema and I’m sending him one of these creams for Christmas!
