Sephora will always have a special place both in my makeup bag and my heart. For me, it's tied to so much nostalgia. Like many beauty fanatics, a trip to Sephora was always a real treat whenever I was heading abroad. Trips to France have always featured a detour to the local Sephora, and the first time I went to New York, I genuinely spent over two hours exploring the store on 34th Street. (It's safe to say I didn't go home empty-handed.)
In my opinion, Sephora has captured what's been lacking from other beauty retailers for years. The stores are a beauty lover's playground, with dedicated spaces to try on makeup, staff who are seriously knowledgable and friendly and a great selection of brands under one roof whether you want affordable beauty products or an investment beauty purchase. And I can't not mention the magnetic draw of the beauty miniatures by the till, the samples with purchase or the multi-brand bundle sets that allow you to try lots of different brands. It's basically beauty heaven.
So you can imagine my excitement when the much-anticipated Sephora store opened in London's Westfield White City. At a huge 6000 square feet, you'll find all the best beauty brands under one roof, such as Fenty Beauty, Drunk Elephant, Sephora's own collection and many more.
However, if you're heading into the new store (or browsing online), the sheer amount of choices can be quite overwhelming. So as true Sephora fan, I've compiled the best beauty products that won't give you buyer's remorse.
The Best Beauty Products at Sephora
If there is one counter I'm making an immediate beeline for, it's Ilia. The brand's formulations are amazing, and I don't feel it gets the hype that it deserves. My favourite pick has to be the Super Skin Serum Tint, which manages to have the right amount of coverage while being almost undetectable, leaving the skin with a dewy radiance. Make sure to shake the bottle thoroughly beforehand, and use the dropper to apply a couple of drops onto the skin. (It does have a "natural" smell, but I see past this because I love the tint so much.) It also has skincare ingredients hyaluronic acid and squalene, which leave skin bouncy and hydrated.
If you skin is compromised from the overuse of skincare actives or the effects of cold weather, then you need to try this moisturiser. It's probably one of my all-time favourite moisturisers. It's best suited if you have dry, sensitive or irritated skin, but even if you have combination or oily skin, this is still a great comforting moisturiser than replenishes your skin's lipids (the building blocks that make up your skin) if you're experiencing occasional irritation from retinol use. This leaves my skin feeling so soft and comfortable that I can't bare to be without it—hence why I'm stocking up in store.
I always, always have bottle of Paula's Choice's iconic 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant in my bathroom. It's one of the products that actually works for acne-prone skin, helping unclog pores—without causing unnecessary irritation—clear breakouts, prevent new breakouts and leave the skin glowy. It has really helped to reduce the acne-scarring texture around my chin that I have been left with after persistent cystic acne for years.
If you're popping into the store, I'd recommend swatching the new Pillow Talk Matte Beauty Blush wands from Charlotte Tilbury, which I've been reaching for time and time again in my makeup bag. My personal favourite is the Pillow Talk shade (a muted-pink shade), but this brighter Pink Pop shade is on my wish list as we head into spring. As they're so highly pigmented, you only need the tiniest dot to create a pretty flush that blends effortlessly.
My biggest makeup gripe is that every eye shadow palette out there always has shades that I would never use. Shimmery neon green? No, thanks. I almost exclusively wear matte eye shadow in neutral tones, so I'm picking up this Makeup by Mario palette, which to my delight has 12 very wearable neutral shades that work across multiple skin tones and are silky soft. Whether you want an everyday, natural eye-makeup look or something more smoky for evening, this palette will see you through everything in between.
When you head in store, don't walk past Sephora's own brand, Sephora Collection. These products are incredible for the price. From affordable skincare through to high-quality makeup brushes, there are so many great products on this counter. The Cream Lip Stain deserves a special shoutout, however. These creamy liquid lipsticks dry down to a long-lasting velvet finish that doesn't budge nor flake. If you can find the shade 96 Red Velvet in stock, I'd highly recommend trying it. It's the perfect cool red that looks amazing worn alone with minimal makeup for a French-girl, red lipstick moment.
As I mentioned, I love browsing the minis in Sephora, and I'm planning on picking up a travel-sized bottle of Tan-Luxe's much-loved tanning drops, which give the skin a healthy-looking yet realistic tan as we head towards the warmer months. The dinky size makes it perfect for travelling, and when I use this, I find I can get away with wearing less makeup, too.
If you're able to pop into the new store, I'd recommend stopping by Commodity's fragrances for a sniff. The scent concept revolves around how far you want your perfume to project from you. The Personal scents are designed to only be noticed by you or those very close to you, Bold can be noticed by those around you and Expressive is for those who really want their fragrance to be noticed. This discovery set contains a mix of intensities, and the scents are amazing—Milk is probably my favourite, which is creamy and musky with a little bit of vanilla.
I've been enjoying Dr. Jart's skincare lately, and this set with some of its best products looks right up my street. The Ceramidin range is perfect for stressed-out skin, and these handy travel sizes are the perfect way to try the range, or pop them in your hand luggage if you're travelling.
I'm putting it out there: This might be the best wave spray of all time. My friend with curly hair loves it, and I love it to enhance the natural wave in my hair. As with all Ouai products, it smells absolutely incredible, leaving you with a trail of scent every time you move your hair.
Bobbi Brown's eye shadow sticks are probably my favourite eye shadows. They're the ultimate low-maintenance eye shadow product—simply scribble on and blend, and somehow, it always looks good. So when I saw this set, I immediately added it to my basket. The shades include cashew, a neutral creamy beige, and golden bronze, a shimmery hue that's so wearable for daytime or evening. The fact that it comes with a mini makeup remover and mascara is an added bonus, too.
I'm running low on my bottle of this fragrance (it's one of my favourite summer scents), and while I'm not ready to fork out for another bottle just yet, I'm very tempted by this travel size. These travel-sized versions of Tom Ford's perfumes are harder to come by, so I'm snapping up the Soleil Blanc scent, which smells like salty, sun-kissed skin in the summer.
Up next: These Fragrance Discovery Sets Ensure You'll Never Have Perfume Buyer's Remorse
