Our #DamnGood Best of Spring 2026 Edit is Here!

12:32Jodi R. D.:They are. Yeah, they're called the flexible, flexi powder eyeshadows. Oh, so it's really a very unique texture. Yeah, that you have never seen before. And you can like squeeze it and kind of, you know, like hold it together and it doesn't break. Wow. It is a flexible powder and there's no pan, everybody, if you're not watching. Yeah, it is absolutely bonkers.

12:56Carlene Higgins:It looks like it doesn't break down. Yeah. It looks like it's something that, so when I put my finger on it, it's giving me this glossy gleam. Yeah. Kind of like the Balm Essential from Chanel. But it looks like it's not taking away any of the product. Like it's going to stay there and you constantly just wipe it. Right.

13:20Jodi R. D.:So there's playtime involved with this, which is really fun. And where it actually shines, Carlene, is the idea is you can use it wet or dry. So I do you have a napkin? No, I think I do.

13:32Carlene Higgins:I forgot my wipes. We need a company to sponsor our Damn Goods episodes just with the wipes.

13:41Jodi R. D.:So what they say is that it's a shape shifting water activated pigment disc. OK. Amplify, flex a powder, and it challenges the definition of powder itself. And it's engineered to bend, ripple, activate with water or setting spray, reform, delivers everything from a sheer wash to sculpted high impact payoff across eyes, cheeks and lips. I used it on my eyes today. This is their first product. And the idea is that they will continue to innovate all these different products from the lab.

14:13Carlene Higgins:And so do you be, do you, tell me about what you're buying. So are you buying a lab sample or are you buying a membership to get access to these lab samples? How is this working?

14:24Jodi R. D.:So they say it's a four-step system. There's creation. So formulas and concepts are curated and developed by Alexis in close collab with the chemists and artists and innovation partners. And then there's a release. Products are released in limited quantities as controlled leaks, allowing innovation to reach consumers without waiting for traditional brand timelines. Then there's real-world evaluation. So performance is observed through real life users like me or whatever or their focus group across diverse routines, climates and application styles and then refinement or archive. So they will select the formulas that may evolve into an expanded release.

15:01Jodi R. D.:So they're saying up front, some things will be, you know, love them and leave them and some things will be popping off and L 'Oreal will probably come talking to them and want to buy it. Right. Right.

15:13Carlene Higgins:So do you pay for the lab sample or do you buy it? OK, so you're paying one time for the lab sample and then you take part in this journey with that. OK, so how much is it? That is a good question. Well, it's interesting. I mean, I think it's quite niche. I'm being honest. That's a big swing. Yeah. You have to want to you have to be a real beauty hobbyist to want to kind of join this club. That's why I ask about whether you're actually buying the sample or whether you're paying to be maybe more of a member. Like, I think what would make sense is if you were kind of a member of this panel and then maybe you paid an annual rate and then every month you got these dropped leaks versus sort of buying one lab sample.

16:04Carlene Higgins:To answer your question, Carleen, it's$34 for the product.

16:08Jodi R. D.:Yes. Okay.

16:09Carlene Higgins:And you're buying it. That's$34 for the lab sample. Correct.

16:13Jodi R. D.:But I'd be very curious to see what the next drop will be too.

16:18Carlene Higgins:Will it always be this innovative? Yeah. Remains to be seen. That's right.

16:23Jodi R. D.:Interesting concept.

16:24Carlene Higgins:Yeah, absolutely. Okay. Well, speaking of innovation, I do feel like we're making some serious strides in some areas. one of them being fragrance and we know that fragrance and body care is it is the category right now that everybody is talking about that's all retailers carry about i've been told that retailers are looking to stock with body care and fragrance right now specifically yeah i think they all read the same wwd article and that's what they're going with so one of the biggest innovations that I have seen currently is this idea of milk perfume. Okay. So Noise has just launched. Milk de Parfum.

17:12Carlene Higgins:Yes. And I'm holding it here. It's a fine fragrance milk. And when I first saw this, it immediately reminded me of Dior, which you talked about back in the day, Dior J 'adore, because when I saw this and I saw the press release, they had said that this is a first to market milk to parfum. And I thought, well, no, it's not. That's not fair to Dior who launched that product, you know, probably five years ago now. But really when I dug into it, I do think that there are some not so subtle differences. So one of them is that this one is not a spray. So you open the cap and you actually pour it out and it pours out kind of like a, like a skincare milk that we've seen with serums and toners.

18:02Carlene Higgins:So this one is in the fragrance Only Human. And I tried Only Human in the solid and I really loved it. So this is an extension of that. They have two other scents as well. This one in Only Human is a skin-hugging gourmand. So it has a bit of that, you know, that vanilla, that sweetness, and it's$95 US. So it does ship to Canada as well, but it's$95 US. So again, I think it's a bit of a higher price point than you would expect, but it's also five fluid ounces and it does have that sillage, if you will, that the same equivalent to an eau de parfum. I need to ask you though, literally, how do you

18:50Jodi R. D.:put that on. I don't want that all over the palms of my hands. I'm very sorry to the noise people. Yeah.

18:55Carlene Higgins:So I actually really like it, but this is something that I think is a bit confusing because if you go to their website, what it says is to apply it to your pulse points and where you would want to have your perfume and then you can actually layer. I personally think that this makes no sense because it is actually quite potent. Like when I wore it the other day, I applied it all over my arms. Yeah. And I was smelling it all day. I really don't think that you need to layer this product. And if it is that intense, why would you? The other thing that doesn't make sense to me is that it is a pour on fragrance milk, but they say that they say that you should apply it as a first step or a primer.

19:43Carlene Higgins:But again, you don't need to and you wouldn't apply it, the pour over implies that you you put it on like a lotion. Yeah. So this actually has 15 times the scent power of a body lotion. But what I like about it is that it does have skincare ingredients in it as well. And that's what I think makes it so unique. It has hyaluronic acid, sunflower seed oil. So when you apply it, it really does feel like one of those milky toners. if you think about like the road one, what have you. It is a lovely, lovely consistency. And I personally do prefer it to a body lotion. I love the texture that this is, and it does give you so much more fragrance.

20:29Carlene Higgins:So I think it is a cool innovation. I'm into it. The only thing that I would say is that for people who are, again, if you're sensitive or you just have a lot of allergies, the number two ingredient is the perfume. First it's water, then it's perfume. So if you have a lot of allergies or what have you, like, I'm not sure that you're going to be able to, I mean, I guess you could say the same might be true for a body lotion, but because it's so potent, I don't know. I don't know.

20:59Jodi R. D.:I think of this being fragrance first, skin second, and the opposite true with a body lotion. Body lotion is skin first, fragrance second.

21:06Carlene Higgins:Yeah, exactly. So it's an interesting mix. I really like it. I will put it on my legs in the summertime. Yeah. And I think it's very cool. I like the pour out milk concept and I love the sense of these noise ones as well. So I'm I'm a fan. Yeah. Yeah.

21:26Jodi R. D.:This seems to be like a very cool like Gen Z brand. Yeah. All of the girlies are talking about it.

21:31Carlene Higgins:And it really is merging. and this is the trend that we're seeing. It really is merging the fragrance and the body care together. So I think this is gonna be a hit.

21:41Jodi R. D.:Yeah.

21:50Carlene Higgins:Today's episode is brought to you in part by ArnCo. So this spring, Jill and I, we are traveling here, there, and everywhere. There's so many live events and talks that we've been invited to do, panels. We're so excited. I'm getting all of my outfits planned and I'm really thinking about my hair and my glam and just upping it. And when it comes to hair, R &Co is the brand that I've just ordered some products from. If you don't know about this brand, it was founded by a collective of world-renowned hairstylists, one of them being Garen, who I remember as a baby beauty editor, like growing up reading his column in Allure magazine.

22:26Carlene Higgins:And so R &Co is really about combining that high performance ingredients with modern technology. So one of the items that I ordered is the micellar powered dry shampoo. I'm so excited because it uses micellar technology to like pull the oil from your hair instead of just clouding it with powders. They also have weightless volumizers, heat protecting styling balms, really designed to be layered and customized to give you like that editorial look that the founders are known to have done. And R &Co formulates with vegan, Leaping Bunny certified, gluten-free and color safe formulas. And they don't contain any parabens, sulfates, mineral oil, or petrolatum, which is nice too.

23:09Carlene Higgins:So I'm so excited to get them. And we have a promo code. If you guys want to try an R &Co for yourself, visit rnco.com and use code Beauty 20 at checkout for 20 % off your first purchase. That's R-A-N-D-C-O.com. Use code Beauty 20 for 20 % off your first order.

23:29Jodi R. D.:Qualia is one of our show partners this week. In 2026, I've definitely stepped up my supplement game. I have my essentials for daytime and essentials for nighttime. And one thing at night that I swear by is the Qualia Magnesium Plus. So a lot of people know that magnesium, it's critical for sleep, but some forms help muscle recovery, brain function, heart health, bone health, mood, and over 300 functions in the body. That was definitely news to me. And that's why I appreciate that the Qualia Magnesium Plus is the only product to combine 10 bioavailable forms of magnesium with more than 70 trace minerals that help to fuel magnesium's support.

24:08Jodi R. D.:So when I take Qualia before bedtime, I notice that I'm sleeping deeper. It helps you think sharper, recover faster, and it's really supporting muscle strength, giving you a steadier mood, helping with stress response and just better energy metabolism. So it's really just not a sleep supplement. It's a full body magnesium system. So you feel your best every day. And so if you'd like to try Qualia for yourself, we have a special promo code. Experience the most trusted magnesium for purity, potency, and performance. Plus it's non-GMO, vegan, and gluten-free, making it a choice you can feel good about.

24:46Jodi R. D.:So go to qualialife.com slash beauty for 50 % off. That's right. 50 % off you guys. And here's a bonus. Use the code beauty for an additional 15 % off your order. So that's spelled Q-U-A-L-I-A life.com slash beauty and use code beauty. Thanks to Qualia for sponsoring this episode. We'll link to this offer in our show notes and on our website. Now back to the show.

25:19Jodi R. D.:Earlier in the year, we talked about what we thought was going to be popping off in 2026. That was in January. And we talked quite a bit about Summer Fridays and just how they were killing it, like Gap collabs. And they'd come out with those like limited edition sets at the holidays, which like flew off the shelves at Sephora and they just feel like kind of unstoppable right now. And Summer Friday's Butter Bomb was the number one SKU at Sephora last year. Like insane. So they are coming out, everyone, with a fragrance. It just dropped yesterday and we got a sneak peek of it. And I think that this is really tapping into what I'm calling like the quiet gourmand trend.

26:00Jodi R. D.:So this is called the Summer Friday's Sunlit Vanilla Eau de Parfum. There's two different sizes and it's 85 US dollars, 110 in Canada. That's for the 50 ML and then it's$40 for the 10 milliliter. So they do have a smaller size. It really does feel so on brand for this, for this brand, you know, with Mariana, she's going to always have something very tastefully curated. And, you know, she said some people who are listening or watching our show right now, they might remember that Summer Fridays did come out with a limited perfume in 2021.

26:39Carlene Higgins:Do you remember that? No, I didn't know that at all.

26:42Jodi R. D.:They had a limited edition vanilla rollerball perfume oil that they came out with those many years, say five years ago at this point, long before Gourmand scents were trending, which is true. Once again, Mariana did it first and they said that they were maybe a little ahead of their time. So they've always had, you know, people asking them to bring a fragrance into the mix. And obviously so much of their brand is about scents and flavors and the take me away, you know, with the whole notion of being summer Fridays. So top notes is bergamot. How do you say that? Is it bergamot or bergamot? I don't know.

27:22Jodi R. D.:It probably depends on whether you're speaking French or English? I always say bergamot, but I truly think I'm not correct on that. But I do love any fragrance that has bergamot in it. Heart notes are caramel and coconut. Base notes, vanilla, creamy musk, tonka bean, and amber. I do feel like it lasts. It has a good ciliage and it feels very vintage. The bottle itself is like, what would you call it? It's like not ribbed, but ribbed for your pleasure. In design, it would be called something fancier.

27:54Carlene Higgins:Yeah, well, it is sort of ribbed. And it reminds me of old school Estee Lauder. I'm sure that they had a fragrance that had this kind of like ribbing on it. And you know who else is maker doing this type of a bottle? It's giving maker vibes a little bit.

28:11Jodi R. D.:Yeah, this feels a little bit more of a throwback, this bottle. Like this shape and style of a bottle could have been on like my mom's vanity in the 80s. Absolutely, absolutely.

28:21Carlene Higgins:Right? Now, I will say just having taken a whiff myself, I know you're saying quiet gourmand and maybe it is, but this definitely is giving like Sol de Janeiro, giving it a run for its money. Oh, I don't think so. But just there's something about it where I feel like everybody's going after the Sol de Janeiro dollars. You know what I mean?

28:41Jodi R. D.:I do think them putting the word caramel in here is indicative of definitely people wanting that. Like a more sophisticated version, a more Mariana Hewitt version.

28:52Carlene Higgins:But I still think it's probably, you know, trying to capture that audience.

28:58Jodi R. D.:Yeah, that's very. So I would say it's like. And the noise one, too. Yeah, a little bit warm and spicy, but not. It's still very much like a girl's girl perfume. But I do think it lasts. That's always the number one question I get is like, does it last? Whatever. So I thought that it does. And I'm sure it's going to be a runaway hit. just like their lip stains are.

29:19Carlene Higgins:If I had to guess, I bet Body Care and that fragrance is coming out next. Of course. I mean, that would just make all the sense in the world. Of course.

29:25Jodi R. D.:To me, Summer Fridays is giving, in this current moment, that they must be going to be up for sale soon. Like, because they're just coming out with so many launches. They're all huge hits. Yeah. They're so big. So I think, you know, it must be imminent. Yeah. Because I feel like they've ramped up their launches. Yes, I agree with you. kind of an indicator in my opinion.

29:48Carlene Higgins:Now, let me tell you why some people may not be in love with the Summer Fridays Lip Flush. And same thing for the NYX product that I talked about in the last Damn Goods episode. There's something about these marker style lip stain liners where when they dry down, they go hot pink. Okay. It's something about the chemistry in them where even though, because I'm wearing the Summer Fridays one, probably an almond as well. It's the most, it's the beigiest one that I could find. But when they dry down, they go to this hot pink. And so that's the one drawback to keep in mind. Now, what I have found and I have been loving, and I think is the perfect kind of like solution to that challenge is this is the Kolfi Lassie Lips staining lip liner.

30:44Carlene Higgins:It's$24 US,$36 in Canada. There's seven shades of it. And when I saw this right away, I was like, girl, if you do what you are saying you're going to do, you will be my best friend forever. And the reason for that, if you are not watching this on YouTube, is that this is a staining lip liner that is a crayon pencil. It is not the marker at all. So when you apply it, I just put it on my hand. So it's a lip, it's a lip liner. Yeah. It's a, it just looks like a regular crayon lip liner, but it's a hybrid. So it is a lip stain and you're like, how is that possible? Right. But I have tried it many times.

31:25Carlene Higgins:I would say it lasts about six hours. It's not going to last like all day. Yeah. And if you think about it, Jill, remember the Maybelline? I feel like these are all, we're all born from the Maybelline. We talked about that in the... Those ones, for sure, it was hot pink. After you had it on for so much time, it would leave this hot pink stain on your lips. So that's what I love about this one, especially if you think about Kofi, the brand, is that they are very brown skin, black skin friendly. So the shades are mostly beigey toned. It's meant to be like a nude lip liner effect. And so I love that because it kind of sidesteps this hot pink issue.

32:06Carlene Higgins:And the chemistry clearly is different because it's a crayon. So I've been super into this hybrid. It has vitamin E and peptides in it. So it doesn't give you that dry out effect that you and I have just been talking about. It launched in February. It goes so well under a gloss, a balm. Yeah. And this is something that like when this episode is over, it is staying in my makeup bag.

32:31Jodi R. D.:Oh, yeah,

32:32Carlene Higgins:Yeah, absolutely.

32:33Jodi R. D.:And I think they've done a good job at that brand. To your point, they're really, they do, even looking at the shade names, it's like there's like the warm rose or there's cool taupe. It's like you're able to choose based on the undertone that you want, which I think is unique in the offering for sure.

32:49Carlene Higgins:Exactly. It's just one of those things that when I tried it, I was like, all lip liners should be this, like a long wear crayon lip liner there. And they probably all will be now. And that's why Indie Brand, let's support them. Kolfi did it first. Get it. It's hashtag damn good. Yeah, exactly. All right. Anything else in the lips category, Jill?

33:14Jodi R. D.:Oh, two things that I want to shout out. And they both happen to be from Canadian founders. Yeah. And so the first product that I want to shout out is from Hung Van Gogh Beauty. He has come out with really beautiful lip hues. Let me get the exact name. It's the Hung Van Gogh Beauty Glossy Lip Hue Hydrating Lip Shine with Hyaluronic Acid. It's$26 and$36 in Canada, 12 shades. It's a hybrid of a gloss lipstick and a balm. Oh, interesting. It's really good. I'm obsessed with them. The color they sent me, New York Red, which is like his signature red shade. They sent me Nothing to Lose. And then they sent me a more pink one, which is called Worth Every Penny.

34:01Jodi R. D.:I do believe, yeah, this is the one I put on today. It is just so comforting to put on. It has like a cooling tip, kind of like the Hourglass lip oil does. But I find that it really is that perfect hybrid because I'm not really one to wear a lot of lip gloss. Okay. But this I have been wearing because I just feel like it gives your lips. It's not that goopy tacky. Yeah. Like stuff where I'm worried that it's like going all over the place. I'm just like obsessed. If you want to swatch a couple of the colors. And interestingly enough, Hung Van Gogh, of course, is a makeup artist. He works with Rose Byrne.

34:40Jodi R. D.:He works with Selena Gomez. And when we chatted with him, he said his lip sticks have been like the number one selling product. Yeah. Remember, we thought it was going to be those blockbuster eyeshadows because he came out with eyeshadow palettes, eight of them, eight of them. So I'm not surprised that he this was now after his big initial launch that he's gone back to lips. Yeah. And I think this is a very unique product in the mix. And it's kind of like a good transition product from winter into spring where you want a bit more of moisture still. And or if you're wearing these lip stains and you want to put them on.

35:15Carlene Higgins:I'm going to I'm going to do a beauty editor flex right now. Yeah. Hong and I were DMing each other. I love him. And he was talking. He mentioned something about this new launch. And I said, well, I can't wait for your other new launch, which I'm not going to say what it is. And I said, I cannot wait to try it. And he wrote me back and he's like, who told you? and I was like Hong you told me yeah you know he thought there was like a leak somewhere on his team I was like darling it was you yeah we had lunch with him at his event yeah I can pretty

35:49Jodi R. D.:much guarantee you I know what that is yeah yeah anyway love him keep supporting him and fellow Canadian and I'm going to shout it at another Canadian who's back in the beauty mix honestly

35:59Carlene Higgins:Canadian beauty is just making its reputation right now yeah we've got Cassatt we've got Hong

36:06Jodi R. D.:Van Gogh. Guess who's back? Back again, Suzanne Langmuir. She is the founder of Bite Beauty, which unfortunately no longer exists. However, their lip labs exist. I was just in Palm Springs last month. They just opened a Bite Beauty lip lab. Yeah, it's growing. We were in Brooklyn where we stayed. There was one right around the corner. And you can also make cheek colors there now as well. Oh, good to know that. Yeah. I'm not here to promote that, but whatever. That's the legacy that's left from Bite Beauty. So this brand is called Lixr, L-I-X-R. And what Suzanne is so extremely skilled at is like she formulates like nobody else.

36:46Jodi R. D.:And a lot of people loved the Bite Beauty lip mask, the Agave lip mask. Well, she has brought a new iteration forward of lip masks. This one I'm obsessed with, Carlene. It's called Napa Cherry. Here, let me swatch a little for you because I've already put my finger in this one. Okay. I'll put a little on your hand if you want. Okay. So she's brought back the lano in, everyone. She's brought back the beeswax. I love that she went there. But I think she has improved upon it. Really? I do. And I don't think, knowing her, I don't think she would bother doing this again unless it was better. Right.

37:25Jodi R. D.:Don't you think? Yeah. Why would she do that? And I was reading an article where she was introducing the brand and she said that she called up the buyer from Sephora, Suzanne did, and said, these are the best formulas. These are my best formulas yet. And I would regret not showing them to you. And then she got on a plane. Yeah. And here we are. So it's launching in Sephora.

37:44Carlene Higgins:That's the big news because Lixir, we talked about maybe two years ago and they had launched with a freestanding store on Queen. and the big news was the customizable foundation. Yeah. So this is sort of a relaunch, is it?

37:59Jodi R. D.:I guess it's more like making it official and making it more of a comprehensive range versus her tinkering in a store making custom foundations. Is there still custom foundations available? By the way, everybody, if you're like Jill and Carlene, the biggest news of 2026 is all the foundations being reformulated and you haven't mentioned it once. We're doing a whole episode about that next month. There was too many to cover here. Bear with us.

38:24Carlene Higgins:And lots of news and everything.

38:25Jodi R. D.:We're reviewing them all. Trust. She is bringing the complexion product to Sephora, but it's not custom.

38:32Carlene Higgins:Oh, interesting. Right? Yeah. Well, I'm sure that it's just impossible to scale. Sephora was like, no thanks.

38:38Jodi R. D.:I'm sure. Exactly. But anyway, if you loved the original Bite Beauty mask, they have a clear version and they have these tinted lip masks. Yeah. And I do think she found any, I was like, there's so many lip. products. We have enough. I think she found a niche. Yeah.

38:55Carlene Higgins:Well, I love the shade of that. I'm freaking obsessed with the Napa cherry. Yeah. It really, it reminds me of the red blush trend that we've been talking about. You know what the shade is very similar to? Benetint. You think? Yes. The original Benetint was that beautiful, like popsicle red. And that's what this cherry reminds me of, except not drying the way that Benetton is drying because it's in this sort of gloss format. I love that. I need one of those.

39:26Jodi R. D.:And I am excited. Yeah, I know. She sent me all of the colors. And she lives around the corner from me. Invite me over. Let's get in the lab. But I love Suzanne and I'm happy for her. And I think that it's just a no brainer. Yeah.

39:41Carlene Higgins:love it yeah okay well canada i have one last lip product before we move on it's the merit signature lip lightweight lipstick blush it's 28 us 38 in canada it is a bomb plus matte and this is a category that we've been seeing a lot of formulas like this yeah oh my god we've seen

40:04Jodi R. D.:What have we talked about today? Glosses, mattes, masks. Oh my gosh.

40:08Carlene Higgins:It's all about textures. We're obsessed. North America is obsessed with textures now inspired by K-Beauty. And this is definitely one of those categories. Everybody has been taking a bite out of K-Beauty. And I actually don't remember if I've talked about this category on the mic or not yet. This matte plus bomb. And the reason for that is because it's a love it or hate it product. It truly is. And so I think I've cut it from a lot of episodes because I'm like, you know, we only like to talk about the things that are all the way thumbs up. But the reality is, is that some products are love it or hate it.

40:48Carlene Higgins:And that's okay. It might not be right for everybody. Some of my favorite ones you hate and vice versa. Exactly. Yeah. So this is what they're saying. A next generation sheer matte lipstick for effortless everyday wear. It was first launched in Merit's limited edition 2023 holiday set. And people want the fans wanted it. So it came back as a permanent collection of eight shades. So what they say is that it's got the ease of a bomb delivering a soft, blurred wash of color. It's all about that blur. but it's giving you this kind of matte soft effect. Okay, so this is what I mean where if you think back to the MAC, you know, it was matte, but it was, that's really siliconey and Rare Beauty did it.

41:36Carlene Higgins:So many brands have done this. It had this really slick, siliconey feel. So it's all about this lip blush. Now, here's what I would say. It goes on, again, quite kind of like sheer. I don't need a mirror to put it on, which I love, but it does get drawing. I won't say it's not like a bomb where I like what you're talking about there with Lixir, where I'm like, oh, it's a one and done. It's a hybrid that way. It's really more about the finish that we're talking about, where you get this beautiful, blushy look. And that's where I think Merit is winning. this shade is called September. I'm obsessed with it.

42:18Carlene Higgins:It's just like this beautiful brick red. Yes. Very 90s. I think the shades are curated so, so well. And that's why I love this product. But because it is matte, you need to do the old school makeup artist matte trick. So if I knew I wanted to wear this look, let's say out for an evening, I would use an exfoliating balm in the morning or maybe a washcloth. You got to try to get those dry bits off because this sheer formula, it's kind of an uneven application. So if you have flakiness, it's going to darken only in that spot and then everything else will be lighter. And that's the kind of flaw that you run into with this, with all of them, all of the ones that I've tried.

43:04Carlene Higgins:That's what happens. And some of them are worse than others when it comes to this uneven approach. Like the Violette one, I was like, I wanted to talk about it, but I was like, I can't get an even shade. Like I had to smush my lips together so many times. So some brands are doing it better than others. The reason I'm talking about this now, I think Merit is doing it better than others. And the shades make it a winner to me. It gives you pigment without the pow. I don't know how else to explain it. It's like your lips aren't walking into a room before you, but you still, you can wear that red because it's kind of sheer, but not in a glossy way.

43:43Carlene Higgins:So I've talked about this before. I love matte. I don't care that it dries out my lips. It gives you this like perfect pigment and the gloss just doesn't suit me when it's really pigmented. So that's why I love this.

43:55Jodi R. D.:Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Well, they do lips. I think the best of all the categories that they do, my opinion is that they do lips the best and I'm not surprised that they have another new lippy in the mix. Absolutely.

44:09Carlene Higgins:All right. Well, we have to talk about skincare, of course. And to me, the biggest winner of the season, I have a feeling you're going to agree with me, Jill, is the Sophie Pavitt Screen Time Non-Comedogenic Hydrating Sunscreen SPF 30. It's$38 in the U.S. And because it's a sunscreen and we know Health Canada has different rules, it is not available in Canada as of yet. Sophie isn't, her whole brand is not available in Canada yet. So something, if you're crossing the border, Sophie Pavot is a thing to stock up on. Absolutely agree. Yeah. Now they're saying it's an everyday sunscreen, safe for acne prone skin.

44:48Carlene Higgins:And I think it actually says either in the press kit or on the website that it's a first to be proven to be acne safe.

44:55Jodi R. D.:It's on the label, acne safe. Yeah. And I think it's genius to put that on the label.

45:01Carlene Higgins:I do think, and I've said this before, there's something to be said for clear labeling. And sometimes an innovation can be just choosing the right wording. There might be other acne safe sunscreens out there, but there's still so much confusion that it's not been made clear.

45:18Jodi R. D.:And I think kind of a pun on the word clear, the way that they get around that is Neutrogena used the word clear.

45:24Carlene Higgins:But that could also, in the consumer's mind, indicate that it's clear on your skin. That's right. It doesn't leave a white cast. That's right. I think a lot of them maybe have focused on oil-free, which makes you think, okay, that's probably oil-free, non-comedogenic. That's probably going to be safe for my acneic skin. But going all the way and saying that it's safe for acne-prone skin is, to me, what's going to make somebody buy it off the shelf. if you're prone to acne, but you have to be able to back that up. That is a bold statement to be able to say definitively that this is not going to break you out is bold.

46:05Carlene Higgins:It has been clinically proven to be acne safe. So I think that's where they get that confidence to be able to claim that. And it probably just costs a different amount of money to run that type of test. Now, in addition to that. It is, of course, non-greasy. It's lightweight. It doesn't leave a white cast. It's non-comedogenic. And we know that Sophie Pavitt has that ingredient checker on her website that you can check if your ingredients are non-comedogenic. I used it for myself when I was formulating for Cassatt to make sure it would pass. By the way, Sophie Pavitt is an

46:43Jodi R. D.:esthetician here in New York City. She's been on our show as well. So that's the other thing she has going for her is that she's known as the acne whisperer, right?

46:54Carlene Higgins:Yes, of course. And so when the acne whisperer herself comes out with a acne-proofed sunscreen, that is just a runaway bestseller. I think this is going to be a massive hit. This is considered a chemical sunscreen, just so you know. It has homosalate, octosalate, avobenzone, which are the proven top-rated ingredients for for sunscreen. But just so you know, it's not a mineral sunscreen. It also has, of course, skincare ingredients not uncommon, ectoin, niacinamide and vitamin E. I find the finish is dewy, but not that glossy where it's going to make my makeup slip around.

47:37Jodi R. D.:Yeah.

47:37Carlene Higgins:So I really appreciate that. Yeah. And I would think you've tried it and you have oilier skin than I

47:44Jodi R. D.:It's not matte at all. It's hydrating, but it's not the super goop disco ball face either. And so I actually wore it under makeup. I thought it lasted really well. My big thing when I'm testing chemical sunscreens on my face, did it make my eyes sting? This one did not.

48:03Carlene Higgins:Anything in the skincare realm that you must mention, Jill?

48:07Jodi R. D.:Really what I wanted to bring on this trip was the You Beauty Bio Barrier Mist, but I didn't get it in time. Yes. And I just love the YouBeauty formulations. They agree with my skin. Because whenever we travel, my barrier gets wrecked, basically. So it's the bioactive mist. And it's really meant to be a spray-on serum. Yeah. I feel like spraying on a mist makes so much sense. You can do it on a plane. Okay, everybody. That's our hashtag Damn Good episode. Every single thing that we mentioned, we're going to list over on our website. You can shop through our links if your heart desires. And we're going to also be showing everything on YouTube.

48:43Jodi R. D.:So join us there. Yes.

48:45Carlene Higgins:Thank you everyone for joining us and we will see you next Wednesday. Thanks for listening. You can find details on every product mentioned in today's episode, along with our exclusive promo codes on our blog at breakingbeautypodcast.com.

48:58Jodi R. D.:While you're there, be sure to sign up for our newsletter. Every episode will be delivered directly to your inbox so you won't miss a single thing.

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49:52The Lipstick Lesbians:Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.