We’re moving in three (!) weeks and I’ve been clearing out my makeup/skincare/haircare arsenal, donating unopened products I don’t need, giving extra-good winners away to friends, tossing useless potions straight into the trash, really evaluating the cache of items I own.
As it turns out, in service of my day job, I tried dozens of products this year. I tested them for quality (things like ingredients/texture/value) and how each initially made my skin/hair/face look and feel (for example, if a product burns or significantly irritates out of the gate, I’m not using it again). I also tested for effectiveness — did this product do what it said it would? In the case of skincare, did it do anything over time?
And I spent hours interviewing dermatologists and scouring Reddit beauty threads (both experiences dark in their own ways!)
The following were my favorite beauty products, treatments and tricks of 2024. For the free, G-rated, less “tell me how you really feel” version, you can check out my official, for-work best list here.
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