Sephora Beauty Insider Sale Details & Recommendations

The first of Sephora’s two semi-annual sale events are arriving soon! If you’ve been shielding your bank accounts from previous Sephora Beauty Insider sale events, aka VIB sales, each Sephora rewards level receives certain dates where they receive 10-20% off purchases, with VIB Rouge members receiving the largest discounts & the most shopping dates.

• ROUGE MEMBERS: 20% off April 26 – May 6 with code HEYROUGE
• VIB MEMBERS: 15% off May 2 – May 6
• BEAUTY INSIDER MEMBERS: 10% off May 2 – May 6

Makeup

• NARS Blush in Sex Appeal, $30: One of my absolute favorite shades feels fresh again this spring. The soft peach shade adds the slightest hint of warmth to my cheeks on my fair skin & if you’re pale like I am, I can’t recommend it highly enough.
• NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer, $30: A recent addition to my collection, this concealer took me by surprise. The name and online reviews suggest that it has a stiffer consistency, but I find it to be so easy to blend. I bought shade Chantilly instead of Vanilla, which I wear in the Radiant Creamy Concealer because it tends to run dark and it’s the perfect shade for under my eyes.
• Fenty Beauty Stunna Lip Paint in Uncensored, $24: This shade of red is perfect for every complexion, the packaging is absolutely gorgeous, the applicator is innovative, and the formula is divine. What’s not to love?
• It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream, $38: The shade range isn’t all-encompassing (I have to mix Fair & Light for my complexion), but if you can find your shade, the formula is nearly perfect. High coverage, high moisture, high SPF. If you find it to be too dewy for your skin type, I recommend wearing it alone without moisturizer.
• Pat McGrath Mothership I Eyeshadow Palette, $125: Of the four Mothership palettes that I own, this is still the one I reach for most. The gradient of beautiful cool tones punctuated by the vibrant blues and etherial glitters make it the most versatile of the Mothership collection.
• Make Up For Ever Step 1 Smoothing Primer, $37: This is the only pore filling primer that consistently keeps foundation from settling into my pores and creating craters on my nose.
• Surratt Lash Curler, $30: I resent how expensive this lash curler is, but damn if it doesn’t put every other curler I’ve ever used to shame.
• Tatcha Silk Canvas Primer, $52: This primer is so silky smooth that I grabbed the last box in Sephora immediately after touching the sample and a guy friend who was shopping with me had the same reaction. It’s decadent and delightful.
• Urban Decay Hi-Fi Shine Ultra Cushion Lip Gloss, $20: I received the color SPL in a Sephora Favorites kit and although it was one of the items I was least excited about, it has turned out to be my most used from the set. The texture is cushion-y and smooth, without a hint of sticky, and the shimmer looks beautiful over lipstick or bare lips. This isn’t the type of gloss formula that I would recommend purchasing every color in, but if there’s a shade that catches your eye you won’t be disappointed.
• Pat McGrath LUST Lip Gloss, $28: I wish I didn’t love three of the four Pat McGrath glosses that I own as much as I do. Twilo is consistently the most beautiful coral shade, Paraphernalia garners compliments every time I wear it, and Blood 2 manages to be a boldly pigmented gloss that doesn’t bleed. Blitz Gold isn’t my favorite shade because I find the glitter to be gritty. My love for this formula makes me want to own every shade, but realistically, Prima Donna and Heavy Petal are high on my wishlist.

Skincare

• L’Occitane Almond Shower Oil, $25: This decadent shower oil is an oil that foams on contact with water, not unlike cleansing oils, smells like cookies, and provides far more hydration than a standard gel or cream body wash. It also makes a great shaving oil in a pinch.
• Sol De Janeiro Samba Foot Fetish Cream, $27: This is the single most effective foot cream I’ve ever used (and my feet are R O U G H). Plus, the included surfboard-shaped file is a nice touch.
• Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Body Oil, $23: Another decadent oil recommendation, this formula does for my body what the Ceramidin Cream does for my face (hydrates & plumps the skin).
• Kiehl’s Creme de Corps Body Lotion, $30: The most hydrating body lotion I’ve ever used, period.
• It Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye Eye Cream, $48: One of the best eye creams for prepping the under eye for makeup and helps minimize creasing & fine lines.
• Eve Lom Cleanser, $80: One of, if not the original cleansing balm, Eve Lom’s fragrant, luxurious, and soothing formula is one that everyone should experience if your budget allows.
• It Cosmetics Confidence In A Cream, $48: A rich moisturizer that always leaves my skin plump, hydrated, and glowing, even the morning after use. Ceramides FTW.
• Origins Original Skin Retexturizing Mask, $26: It’s been a couple of years since this clay mask has been in my collection, but I’m missing it in a big way. After just one use, my skin looked refreshed, revitalized, and instantly glowy without feeling tight.

Fragrance, haircare, and tools

• Tom Ford Lost Cherry, $320: When this fragrance was first released, beauty lovers everywhere were shocked and delighted by the suggestive scent description, myself included. While I love many Tom Ford fragrances, Lost Cherry has risen to the top of my favorites list, bested only by Black Orchid. Lost Cherry reminds me of my favorite cocktail, a Manhattan straight up with extra cherries, on a crisp winter day. Don’t be fooled by the scent’s bright opening notes. It warms upon dry down and like any good relationship, blossoms over time.
• Sephora Pro Airbrush #55, $34: A wonderful multitasking brush, I’ve used #55 for everything from all over powder, bronzer, or even blush.
• Kat Von D Lock-It Edge Concealer Brush, $24: This is a great concealer brush for my under eyes, but I love it even more for cleaning up my lip lines because of the precise edge.
• Tangle Teezer Compact Styler, $16: Years after I first tried Tangle Teezers, they are still the only brushes I use in my fragile, processed hair on a daily basis.
• Klorane Dry Shampoo Loose Formula, $20: If you have fragile, damaged hair, you should consider switching to a non-aerosol dry shampoo formula without drying alcohols, like this version from Klorane. Plus, if you travel often, you won’t have to worry about the TSA confiscating your bottle.

My wishlist

• Laneige Lip Mask, $20: I’ve heard too many good reviews to not be curious
• Summer Fridays Jet Lag Mask, $48: My friends have been raving about it
• My Clarisonic died (RIP) and I’m torn between a new Clarisonic or a Foreo Luna
• Olaplex No 3, $28: I have about two uses left in my first bottle, so I might as well restock at a discount
• I’m considering trying a lash serum after recent conversations on Twitter. Perhaps GrandeLASH or Lash Food, or another option not offered by Sephora
• Every time I swatch the new Buxom Wanderlust Primer Infused Blushes ($22) in store, I almost buy Seychelles and Havana, but I’ve been saving the splurge for the VIB sale.
• I’ve been eyeing the Pat McGrath Lip Fetish Lip Balm ($38) in Blow Up since the collection launched and I still can’t get it out of my head.

Recommendations with reviews