This brand. I thought they nailed it with their light-as-air Bare Skin foundation. But now this.

O.

M.

G.

bareMinerals Complexion Rescue is a cross between a BB cream and a tinted moisturizer. Skincare + makeup! It’s lighter in texture than a BB (or CC), it provides light-to-medium coverage like a tinted moisturizer, but with an added antioxidant boost and great sun protection. It’s main bragging right, though, is its moisturizing properties. With all-star emollients and water-binding agents like natural squaline, it’s gel texture goes on silky smooth but dries instantly. I prefer lighter textures, as I have combination skin, and I love this formula.

You will love this if you already wear tinted moisturizer. You will love this if you feel like BB or CC creams can be too heavy or thick. You will love this is you love the brand’s Bare Skin. Suitable for all skin-types. I don’t see this at all as a dry-skin product—hydration is important for all skin types.

File under: New Go-To.

I’ve long been a fan a Perricone MD. I believe in his science-based approach to beauty and skincare (also now, cosmetics.)

I tried this cream in a sample kit I bought from Sephora and I was instantly obsessed. It is AMAZING under makeup, creating a smooth, radiant finish that lasts all day. It provides moisture without grease or shine, while supercharged ingredients like ALA, DMAE, and vitamin C ester work behind the scenes to nourish, protect and diminish fine lines and wrinkles.

I love a multi-tasker.

If you don’t like primers, this is your answer to what to put on before makeup. Or, put this on before primer if you like. At the moment, I am using this alone under my favorite BB cream. 

Apparently, I love all things Canadian: my Dad, my fabulous new friend and neighbor, N., my beloved Marcelle mascara and now, this Miracle 10 AHA cream.

Where to begin? Because I certainly wasn’t looking for an alpha hydroxy acid product. Historically, AHA’s and I haven’t gotten along very well. We tend to start out okay, but then, over time, I get flakey and dry. And red. (And, ultimately, resentful.)

But I was introduced to Miracle 10 when I interviewed Gilt Co-Founder and Glamsquad C.E.O. Alexandra Wilkis Wilson because she included the brand’s (amazing) cleanser in her list of can’t-live-without-beauty-products. They assessed my skin online and sent me a regime to try, including the cleanser, toner, this weightless serum, this AHA cream and a heavier night cream. After some research, I became intrigued with the brand and decided to commit to it for a month.

Two months later, I’m still using it all religiously. Actually, I recommend the whole line—the products do work together in the regime Miracle 10 will customize for you—but I like to stay focused here so I’m honing in on this wonderfully gentle, extremely nourishing, carefully exfoliating AHA cream. No redness. And definitely no dryness. The cream combines lactic acid 6%, with vitamin E and hyaluronic acid (the stuff that’s in skin-plumping injectibles) to create skin brightening, pore tightening AHA magic.

Perk: Miracle 10 is offering a 25% discount to BeautyMama readers with the code “BeautyMama.” No minimum purchase. And free shipping on orders over $75. Yay!

As winter sets in, it might seem counter-intuitive to exfoliate, but it’s one of the best ways to keep turning over dry skin and maintain radiance. You just have to be gentle. I am in LOVE with this Tata Harper Regenerating Cleanser. It’s the kindest exfoliator I’ve ever met, with an extremely fine grit that combines fruit enzymes, clays and essential oils. It smells so subtly divine—but results are anything but subtle. I have combination skin and tend toward redness—when I use use this cleanser consistently, I definitely see an increase in radiance and a decrease in inflammation. My skin also seems more balanced.

Here’s how it works as a 4-in-1, according to Tata:

Apricot Seed Powder gently and effectively exfoliates the skin to reveal smooth and glowing new skin

Pomegranate Enzymes dissolves debris and blackheads, while reducing the look of pores

Willow Bark is a natural form of salicylic acid, helping to fight breakouts and reduce redness & inflammation

French Pink Clay detoxifies the skin, stimulates circulation and helps reduce pore size

(This cleanser is also free of all soaps, detergents and alcohols, suitable for all skin types, all year-round.)

I have a “thing” about bare lips. I must have a balm or a gloss or a stick on me at all times, otherwise my lips feel really dry.

This lipstick from one of my favorite dermatologists, Dr. Nicholas Perricone, is the perfect marriage of color and treatment. I swear, this subtle, sheer pink looks good on everyone. It is meant to mimic the natural rosiness of youthful lips. It lends just the right punch of color to brighten your complexion while smoothing lines with anti-aging peptides and protecting with SPF 15.

Oh, and it has this super cool texture the brand accurately calls “solid-to-serum.” It feels and smells delicious.

Bonus: you can layer your own lipstick or gloss over it to play with the color. I have worn it every day for almost two weeks now, with every look from a bare face to smokey evening eyes, when I mixed it with my favorite nude Tom Ford lipstick. 

I first discovered Laura Geller almost 20 years ago in New York City. She had the loveliest cosmetics boutique on the upper east side. At the time, I was a 20-something working girl who could not afford her luxurious products and services, but, oh, how I coveted looking into that gilded window. Geller’s storied studio was *the* place to go to get your makeup done for special events. This being before Glamquad and Sephora really, there was nothing like it.

I don’t know where I’ve been, but I didn’t realize how global Laura Geller had gone. As in, QVC and department stores everywhere! I’ve been road-testing a bunch of her products the past few weeks and I love love LOVE them! I plan to tell you about a bunch more, but I’m so excited about this primer, I couldn’t wait.

First, let me tell you that I have never worn a makeup primer. Not because I don’t want to. They just all make me break out. I’m certain it’s the dimethicone, which is an emollient in most primers (and moisturizers and BB, CC creams, etc). And since my life-changing success with my eye shadow primer, I’ve been longing more than ever to find a comparable product for my face.

This is it.

Spackle! I even love the name. No wonder it’s award-winning. It does what it’s meant to do—creates a smooth foundation for your makeup and locks it in place. It’s lightweight, dries instantly and gives skin a protective, moisturizing boost of antioxidants, white tea and aloe vera. Without dimethicone. I’ve been using the Champagne Spackle, which has a really subtle hint of shimmer, but it comes in a variety of finishes and formulations. I’m also really into the Supercharged Fortified Spackle, which is loaded with anti-aging properties.

Wow Laura, it’s so nice to finally meet you!