I’m one of those girls who lives and breathes for the Fall; however in typical me tradition, my skin went super dry and dehydrated and I came down with a bad combination case of allergies and flu-cold- virus-hybrid when the season truly emerged. I was exhausted, dry and itchy and not sleeping well at all. These are the products that I heavily relied on during this time and continued to use even when I started to feel better, but still kind of felt like my skin was cracking. They also were a lifesaver when it got actually cold and my skin freaked out yet again.

Pestle & Mortar NMF Lactic Acid Toner ($44 US)

This acid toner that I tried in the Caroline Hirons Summer Kit had become — and continues to be — my most frequent choice for a chemical exfoliant and it’s been a godsend as my skin went sore, parched and a bit more sensitized. It features a blend of lactic acid, gluconolactone, niacinamide and a few barrier-enforcing ingredients. It’s a gentler choice and helped my skin remain bright, even in texture and minimally flaky.

La Roche Posay Toleraine Ultra 8 ($25 CDN)

This is the mist that changed my mind on mists. I honestly was starting to believe mists were watered-down milky toners until I tried this one. It contains only eight ingredients and works wonders to plump up and to sandwich in the moisture underneath my milky toner and serum. It contains glycerin, soothing allantoin and the peptide carnosine. Best of all, it never stings on pissed off skin.

Cosrx Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence ($23.81 CDN)

I have zero qualms about putting snail slime on my face. I’m not entirely sure what that says about me. Nevertheless, this gel-serum is 96% snail mucin and also features betaine, sodium hyaluronate, panthenol and allantoin. It’s a fantastic humectant serum that is really healing, deeply hydrating and delightfully non active. It’s great for plumping up that kind of sick tired skin and injecting moisture. I also reckon it would be amazing on hungover skin…

Dr. Dennis Gross Stress Rescue Super Serum ($96 CDN)

This was another product that I was introduced to by the Caroline Hirons Summer Kit and likely wouldn’t have tried otherwise. It’s an expensive milky serum, with niacinamide, squalane, plant oils and a bunch of soothing plant extracts with antioxidant activity. I found it to be concentrated enough to maybe even be worth the money — it’s lasting me months — and definitely barrier reinforcing. I will note that on my most irritated skin days, there was a tiny hint of a sting around the eyes — but this is likely due to the few essential oils it contains. Essential oils aren’t my favourite but I’m pleased that they aren’t citrus or peel oils. This is an awesome serum for sensitized skin and a pissed off skin barrier. It’s so moisturizing, I could get away with using without a moisturizer on top on my dry skin.

Paula’s Choice Omega + Complex Moisturizer ($35 US)

I’ve been loving having this fluffy shea butter containing moisturizer back in my life, especially dealing with dry, dehydrated and irritated skin. It has omega-rich plant oils, fatty acids, ceramides and squalane. It’s really great on sore skin and helps to maintain a healthy skin barrier. Not only is it a favourite to apply after serums and treatments at night, it also wears fantastically under makeup. It’s a good one also to wear underneath a mask to help protect sensitive skin from being aggressed further. 

Dior Forever Skin Glow 24h Wear Radiant Perfection Skin-Caring Foundation ($64 CDN)

For months, it had been so hot and humid that I wouldn’t dream of reaching for an actual foundation and instead was relying exclusively on tinted sunscreens. Now that cooler weather is in bloom, I’ve been enjoying using a small pump of this lightweight skin like foundation applied with my finger tips. It has a luminous finish and sits in the versatile medium-coverage category. It feels lightweight and doesn’t require being set.

Huda Beauty Naughty Nude Eyeshadow Palette ($85 CDN)

On the days I can muster the energy to do more than get myself out of bed and slap some skincare on my face, I have been really enjoying playing with eyeshadow. I recently tried out this palette and have been loving the quality and warm, neutral and smokey colour story. There are a bunch of mattes that serve as blending colours, crease colours and deeper shades to add depth, pretty satin and sheeny shades and fun metallic shades and micro glitters. The shadows are easy to work with and wear well. I enjoy the variety of light to mid-toned shades to use as lid colours and the overall burgundy-plum shift to the palette. The blue duo chrome shade is also to die for. I love that I have so many options with this palette and don’t find myself needing to pull from other palettes or single shadows. 

Briogeo Curl Charisma Chia + Flax Seed Coil Custard ($34 CDN)

Despite being a fine haired gal with a head of waves and looser curls. I’ve been loving using this thicker richer styler as a cream paired underneath a gel. I have high porosity hair that forms juicy clumps with a richer kind of cream and I’m enjoying this one in soaking wet hair. I’m liking how much control this cream gives to my hair and how concentrated the product is. I enjoy the boost of protein along with the glycerin, castor seed oil and shea butter. It also works well to keep my hair in clumps for multiple days and revives clumps on subsequent days. I can also get away with this cream as a single styler.

Zara Tobacco Collection Rich Warm Addictive ($25.90 CDN)

Ever since the chill has come into the air, I’ve been happily wearing this fragrance that’s actually from the men’s line. It’s a warm boozy vanilla that isn’t too sweet or too overpowering. It’s not so intense that it’ll last an obscene amount of time but I find it easier to wear on more casual occasions as a result. This is warm and cozy in a bottle and definitely reminds me of Elizabeth and James Nirvana Bourbon that’s no longer available. 

What have you been loving?
Maggie, x.