You guys know I only buy something when I absolutely have to and / or if there’s a great sale. The Sephora Sale begins April 14. Depending on when you’re reading this – that’s tomorrow, or today…but hopefully it hasn’t already ended.

For the last couple weeks, in anticipation of the sale, I spent time reviewing what products needed replenishing. Doing so also allowed me to declutter a bit, which is nice to do for myself.

Going through everything got me thinking – it would be fun to share the products I can’t live without, those I will not be purchasing again AND products I’m trying for the first time.

Let’s go!

WHAT I’M BUYING AGAIN

I have some serious die-hards that I’m loyal to because they absolutely work. Keep in mind while reading, I don’t use everything at the same time. I pick and choose based on the season or that “time of the month”. So if it appears I have a lot of stuff, I may (according to some), but I don’t use everything daily.

Important to note – I have psoriasis and otherwise very sensitive skin. I avoid the sun as much as possible. I’m very fair, therefore, the sun isn’t my friend.

Before we dive in, here’s a recent picture of my skin and I’m wearing make-up in this photo as well. Thought it would be good to share my recent self…considering I AM sharing products I profess work well…lol! And I’m somewhere in my 40s…

Starting with skincare – here’s my Kiehl’s line-up…

I wash my face morning and night with the ultra facial cleanser, then remove any residual make-up or mascara with micellar water. The cleanser works well no matter the season and a little goes a long way.

The two eye creams I love are the creamy eye treatment and the multi-corrective anti-aging eye cream. Loved this one so much that I scraped the jar to the very bottom…

Obviously, am buying this during the sale.

The moisturizer I use in the morning is the ultra facial cream. I love that you can purchase a refill to reduce plastic in the landfill. I keep my jar and refill as needed. I need to purchase one during the sale because she’s running low…

At night, I alternate between a few different moisturizers. Again, this depends on what is happening with my skin. Sometimes I need a lot of hydration, sometimes not. I love the overnight hydrating mask. Works very well! I use this a couple times a week and otherwise use CeraVe PM Lotion. My skin totally drinks it in and it’s less pricey. AND it’s highly recommended by my dermatologist.

A few times a month I do the clay mask in the morning before showering. And I occasionally use both the vitamin-c serum for the face and eyes.

Their hydrating body lotion is a staple.

This isn’t pictured but I am religious about sunscreen daily. I love GlowScreen from Supergoop. It adds a really nice shimmer to your skin. They have an option without the shimmer as well, but I love the slight brightening effect…

Moving on to treatments, these are just a few because they are found at Sephora. I also use a couple SkinCeuticals products, but I generally purchase those from my dermatologist or Dermstore.

For a Vitamin-C, I alternate between two Sunday Riley products – their brightening serum and the tumeric + vitamin-c oil – love both! The face oil is totally empty right now so I’ll be purchasing that again. The serum is more of a creamy texture. I also use this one from SkinCeuticals.

In the evenings I rotate a few products. I love the Sunday Riley Luna face oil. I also love Dermalogica’s overnight repair serum (not found at Sephora…or anywhere, actually – bummed!). The retinol I use is from SkinCeuticals.

I was only using the retinol every few nights but the last time I saw my dermatologist, she asked me to start using it nightly.

If my skin is very dry, I sometimes use Augustinus Bader the rich cream. Admittedly, I didn’t purchase this myself. One of my best friends works for the company (score!) and she shares products with me from time to time. It’s a rather expensive line, but can share that it works. Not sponsored, obviously!

A few months ago I went into Sephora to purchase my favorite drunk elephant lip balm. They were sold out, but the saleswoman shared an alternate lip treatment and I actually love it. I use this morning and night. It’s the peptide lip treatment from Olehenriksen. Stays on for a while, which I enjoy. I know most of you are aware of the Laneige sleep mask. I own this as well and keep it in my bedside table. But the peptide lip treatment is great!

The Summer Friday face oil on the far right is amazing for a lymphatic draining face massage. I do this a few times a week with my fingers and it feels amazing! I follow a Dr on YouTube who shares a great tutorial – I never do a face massage recommended by anyone other than a licensed professional. Too worried it will affect my skin, you know? 🙂

One of my favorite things to do in the morning is throwing on a couple eye patches and ice rolling as well…

These are the two eye patches I can’t live without.

THIS is the one I am not a fan of…

They are all from Peter Thomas Roth, but wasn’t a fan of the collagen face and eye patches. This jar is basically still full.

I purchased the set last year because it was cheaper to buy the pack of three then to buy one jar solo. I have purchased the hyaluronic and hydra-gel patches many times, so I didn’t hesitate when buying the pack of three. But the collagen patches don’t work well and they don’t adhere all that well to your face. Strange!

I am due for two new packages of my go-to’s though…

Swear by these! Totally hydrating under the eyes.

Moving on to make-up I always purchase from Sephora…

There’s just a few make-up products I purchase from Sephora…don’t really wear much make-up and keep that routine pretty simple. So that’s why this list is short.

But what I do wear – I LOVE.

For lashes, I start with the Dior lash primer and then go in with my favorite better than sex mascara. Love this mascara and really appreciate it on sale. I am currently using this Dior eyeliner which has been nice. And I love this Anastasia brow pencil. Don’t need to replace that just yet, but wanted to share what I use for brows.

My bronzer and highlighter are a daily use…

And they will be purchased during the sale too! You can see we’re getting low.

Now to hair products! This week I had a hair appointment – snapped this before leaving so I could share it with you for this post…

You can also see my hair in the first photo I shared, but my hair is on the long side. It’s fine, but I have a lot of it. Generally, I wash my hair only one time per week – sometimes twice. Depends on how hard or intense my workouts are each week. But really, I don’t like the hair drying process so I avoid washing as much as possible – lol!

I’ve been going to the same hair salon since moving back to the Bay Area in 2013 – that’s ten years! And I won’t ever change where I go as long as I’m living here. Elizabeth, who is the owner of the salon, has also become a dear friend. I trust her completely and heed her advice when she suggests anything.

To start with shampoo and conditioning…

I wash my hair with this shampoo and alternate between the coordinating hair mask and the blonde conditioner. Both are exceptional products and have used these for several years.

After washing my hair, I apply a few products – depending on what I feel is necessary or what I’m doing. Sometimes I blow my hair out completely…sometimes I leave it damp and put it in a nice bun that air drys well.

I have a collection of hair products, but like my skincare routine, I mix it up depending on the season or how my hair is feeling.

I use this turntable to contain everything under my bathroom sink…

These are mostly treatments to use on damp hair and prior to blow-drying. A couple are heat protectants. One of them can be used on dry hair to repair damage on the ends. They are all immaculate!

From left to right: Kerastase heat protectant | Kerastase Hydrating Hair Oil | Shu Uemura Nourishing Protective Hair Oil | Shu Uemura Hair Primer | Shu Uemura Damaged Hair Serum | Shu Uemura Strengthening and Thickening Rice Water | Shu Uemura Blow Dry Spray | Kerastase Heat Protecting Leave In Treatment

Wanted to link them first and then explain how I use these. I start with towel dried hair and spray on the rice water. It’s a new to me product – have been using it for a couple months and I love it! I spray it all over and then comb out my hair. After that I add the Absolue to the ends and add in a blow dry protectant. I just pick one and use it – sometimes I use the oil and sometimes a spray.

Then I blow dry. I don’t add any of these products after my hair has been dried. But I occasionally use a volumizing powder…

I’m not a fan of hair spray because with fine hair it gets weighed down, but the VIP Powder is great! Adds some volume and keeps my curls in place a bit longer. The Kerastase dry shampoo is really nice and has a very pleasant scent. I only use this occasionally. If I really want to eek out another day of not shampooing and won’t be seeing anyone – lol! – then I’ll bust this out. Not a huge dry shampoo gal.

When it comes to hair thinning or loss, I’m not immune to this from time to time. Stress or seasonal changes are when I really see an impact in my hair. I have been using a few treatments that help with thinning or loss and they work very well!

The small bottle on the left isn’t available at Sephora. It came as a set of 8-10 bottles, I think? This is the last bottle I have and Elizabeth gave me the set a few months ago. She mentioned they were testing out the product, so maybe it’s not available anymore. ??

But I can attest to the other two bottles you see and they are available at Sephora. The initialiste helps with strength and volume while the resistance helps regrow hair. Both are amazing!

I use these a few times a week and can use them on damp or dry hair.

WHAT I’M NOT BUYING AGAIN

In addition to the eye patches I already talked about, I won’t be repurchasing these products.

Funny enough, when I tried to get a link to share them – with the exception of the Farmacy product – they weren’t available for sale on Sephora. Interesting!

The Farmacy resurfacing treatment burned and irritated my skin. Anytime I feel that sensation – and it’s not in my dermatologists office where she is explaining why I may feel a tingle / burn – it’s over.

WHAT I’M TRYING FOR THE FIRST TIME

At my hair appointment, I heard about this hair serum but they were out of stock in the salon. I’m going to give it a shot…

This is supposed to help with hair growth and is especially helpful around the hairline.

Since my Dermalogica overnight serum is not available, I am going to give this one a shot…

It has great reviews and I’m finding I need more serums in my life that add moisture and help with fine lines.

You already know my go-to lip gloss. I have one in my car, gym bag, office desk, work bag…everywhere. Love it!

Love this light color but think I need to branch out and add a little something. So I’m going to check out this color…

I know, may not seem like a huge difference but on my pale skin…it will be. lol!

I’d love to hear about the products you swear by! Anyone else going to take advantage of the sale? Don’t forget, you can get some great Mother’s Day and grad gifts during the sale too!

Have a great day guys!

xo,

Sam