Welcome to Stuff We Want, where we show you the best new beauty products we tried each month. These are the things our editors loved most in February, from old favorites to brand-new releases.
February, with its shiny cards and candy hearts, brings some much-needed light to the dead of winter. And that includes the month’s biggest beauty trends: Ballet slipper lips and romance waves made our routines more fun and gave us a lot of new products to love.
This past month, Glamour editors bought more basics, and we’re not just talking about Levi’s that were inspired by American Love Story. We found everyday heroes that helped us look our best, from serums that were good for winter skin to concealer and foundation formulas that worked well. Plus, the new products from our favorite brands that we were most looking forward to in February didn’t let us down. They included Rhode’s new lip and face masks and a lot of new K-beauty products.
What else helped us get through the shortest, coldest month? Fun pink and red dark spot stickers that get rid of hyperpigmentation and look good doing it, a new perfume milk that has skin-care and long-wear benefits, a brilliant frizzy hair product for keeping flyaways in check on windy mornings, and so many more must-have items that will make you swoon.
This February, Glamour editors used these new beauty products over and over again.
the best new beauty items
Skin Care Favorites
Laneige Water Bank Aqua Facial Serum with BHA and AHA
$36 Sephora
Every new skincare product that comes out these days seems to promise “glass skin in a bottle.” But I can vouch for this one: This serum gently exfoliates with glycolic acid while hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and PDRN soothe and restore the skin barrier. It’s the perfect mix for dull, dry winter skin. The packaging is also new and fun to use. To easily put 2–3 drops of serum directly on your skin, just push down on the squishy top of the bottle. I notice an instant boost in hydration when I use it every night. After two weeks, my skin looks brighter and more even-toned, and I don’t have the flaky redness that most chemical exfoliants cause. —Grace McCarty, beauty editor assistant
Topicals Faded Tranexamic Acid Dark Spot Patches for Skin with Dark Spots
$22 Sephora
I’ve tried a lot of dark-spot correctors (maybe even a hundred by now) to help get rid of the stubborn acne scars on my chin from when I was a teenager. These cool little patches are nothing like anything I’ve tried before. They stick on like a regular pimple patch, but they also help fade areas of hyperpigmentation. I’ve only been using these for a little over a week, but I’ve already noticed that the skin around my mouth is clearer and brighter. —A.M.K.
Then I Met You Snail Mucin Eye Cream That Firms and Brightens
$46 Sephora
Even though I’m in Seoul, where there are a thousand K-beauty eye creams, I was still mad at myself for not packing this one. I use this plumping, bouncy blue formula every day and night since Then I Met You came out with it. Azulene from chamomile gives it a calming color, and volufiline and snail mucin work together to make it firmer. It not only moisturizes my skin, but it also helps smooth out the lines under my eyes and make my dark circles look a little less hollow. I know that forgetting it at home is why people keep telling me I look tired. It could be the jet lag, but I choose to blame this packing mistake. —Sarah Y. Wu, a contributor
Hanyul Artemisia 2-in-1 Mask to Foam Cleanser
22 dollars Sephora
This cleanser is great because it makes cleaning fun. It looks like any other gel in the tube, but when you squeeze it out, you’ll see that it has the soft, stretchy bounce of Korean rice cakes. This is because the formula was kneaded 5,000 times for 100 minutes. That part is mostly for the sensory effect, but if you leave it on like a mask, it also helps it hold onto dirt. I like to wet it right away and turn it into a cloud-like foam that makes my face feel soft, soothed, and refreshed. —S.Y.W.
Revive Firming Moisturizer from Beauty of Joseon
$24 Amazon
I’ve written a lot about how much I love Korean retinols. The formulas are gentle and don’t make my skin red and flaky like most other retinol serums and moisturizers do. This juicy gel cream from Beauty of Joseon, which has fermented retinol and ginseng ceramide in it, is my new favorite. The mix keeps my face calm while the retinol dose that is easy for beginners to use starts to work. It doesn’t work for big, quick changes, but if you want to slowly get used to retinol, this is a good choice. —S.Y.W.
Rhode Caffeine Reset Sculpting Cream Mask
$38 Sephora
This month, I had major surgery and have been recovering from it. This has completely messed up my skincare routine and made almost every part of my body, including my face, puffy and swollen. The good news? It was the perfect time to put Rhode’s new caffeine reset mask to the test. It promises to de-puff, shape, and basically act like a “cup of coffee for your face.” Once again, Rhode came through with this fragrance-free mask made with real caffeine, peptides, and tingly vanillyl butyl ether, which I trust with my sensitive skin. I usually like sheet masks because they are comfortable and easy to clean up, but Rhode’s creamy formula didn’t feel slippery or heavy on my skin and washed off quickly without leaving my skin feeling tight. I could tell right away that my skin was less puffy and more bouncy, especially around my eyes. I would definitely say that it made my neglected face look better and will help me get back on track with my skin care routine. —E.T.
Centellian 24 Expert Madeca Cream PDRN
$38 Amazon
This Korean moisturizer saved my skin barrier this winter. It has the same popular ingredients as its best-selling anti-aging cream, centella asiatica, but it also has PDRN (salmon sperm). This popular K-beauty skin care ingredient is known for helping wounds heal and recover. It has a thick, gel-like texture and leaves a dewy, glowing finish. People have been saying nice things about my skin since I started using this, and my skin has been glowing. —J.C.
Lancer Gravity Dark Spot Correcting Serum
$115 Lancer
Lancer Skincare’s newest and best product does more than just get rid of dark spots on your skin. It also makes skin tone more even and smooths out the texture. I’ve been looking for something to even out the texture of the left side of my face since I noticed that it feels different from the right side (probably because I drive a lot). Thanks to Exosomes, Alpha-Arbutin, and Nonapeptide-1, this serum is the best. It’s also gentle enough for my sensitive skin, which is a huge relief because I don’t want to stop using it. —J.R.
Lip Products
m.ph by Mary Phillips Lip Ciggy Sheer Lip Balm
$26 Sephora
This month, my feed has been full of tributes to Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s timeless beauty. I’ve been looking for the perfect blurred, ’90s-style red lip. My favorite right now is this sheer lipstick balm in Lose My Breath by celebrity makeup artist Mary Phillips (who does Hailey Bieber’s makeup, by the way). The color is bright and buildable, but it’s not too heavy, so it doesn’t feel like you’re making a big commitment. The balm-like texture is also moist and doesn’t dry out. For spring, I’ll definitely be getting a lot of the lighter colors. —G.M.
Rhode Peptide Lip Boost
$23 Rhode
$23 Sephora
I have to admit that Rhode’s Peptide Lip Tint in Toast has become a daily must-have for me. I had high hopes for Lip Boost, the brand’s new lip mask, when it showed up on my desk. I was curious if the mask would live up to these high expectations because the Peptide Lip Tint does a great job of coating lips with a shiny layer that stays on all day. Spoiler alert: it did, and then some. I have been using this one since the day I opened it. It has a mix of peptides, hyaluronic acid, and vanillyl butyl ether, which is a fancy ingredient that makes the lips tingle and plump. The formula is thick and buttery, and when I wake up in the morning, my lips are soft and smooth. Hailey did it again! —Alanna Martine Kilkeary, a writer about business
Lust Gloss from Pat McGrath Labs
$29 Pat McGrath Labs
$29 Sephora
This lip gloss was better than I thought it would be, and now I use it every day. The color is beautiful and understated. I use Bronze Venus, which is a brown-tinted base with a pink pearlescent finish. The shimmer is just right for me as an older millennial. —Lauren Brown, assistant director of visuals
Thrive EmpowerGloss Ultra Glossy Lip Serum
$28 Thrive Causemetics
This lip color has the most moisture in it of any I’ve ever used, and a little goes a long way to give you a beautiful color (there are many shades to choose from). The best part is that it doesn’t stick, and my lips stay soft and smooth for hours. I gave some of these to friends for Valentine’s Day, and they can’t stop talking about how great they are. —Jessica Radloff, senior editor for the West Coast
Face Makeup
Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Blur Concealer
$22 Sephora
I already love Charlotte Tilbury’s skin care products, so I was very excited to hear about the brand’s new concealer. It has a thick, rich formula that lets you hide texture and uneven tone with just one swipe. It’s everything you want in a full-coverage cover-up. The formula is easy to build up, and a little goes a long way, so I suggest starting with a small amount. This one has helped me cover up some inflamed pimples, lighten up my dark circles, and hide fine lines around my nose without creasing or caking, even at the end of the day. —A.M.K.
Double Wear Stay-in-Place Matte Foundation by Estée Lauder
$52 Amazon
This foundation has been my favorite all month. I like how light it feels and how it keeps my skin hydrated with glycerin and hyaluronic acid. I usually stay away from matte foundations, but this one is a rare exception because it doesn’t look or feel dry at all. It makes my skin look smooth and makes pores less noticeable. It is also very comfortable to wear all day. —F.K.
Fragrance Picks
Noyz Mylk de Parfum
$95 Buy Now
$95 Ulta
I can’t believe I haven’t looked for a product like Noyz’s Milk de Parfum before, since I’m obsessed with scents that smell like second skin. The hyaluronic acid-infused serum soaked right into the crook of my elbows and wrists, leaving my skin feeling hydrated. It also left a lived-in scent of mandarin and vanilla that lasted through an afternoon of playtime with my messy four-year-old nephew. Detour is a great scent for everyday wear this spring, but I know that the fragrance milk will keep my spicier (and more expensive) perfumes going all night long when I really want to make an impression. —Emily Tannenbaum, a contributing editor
Valentino Donna Born in Roma Purple Melancholia Perfume
$180 Sephora
This is the prettiest bottle in the Born in Roma fragrance line so far (the purple!), and the scent is so good because it has Juicy Plum Accord, Osmanthus Accord, and Rich Vanilla in it. It smells like warm flowers and will take you from winter to spring. Everyone will compliment you on it. —J.R.
Glow and Finish
Polite Society’s French Rose Milk Moisturizing Glaze Mist
$36 Ulta
This product makes my makeup look dewy and glowy, which I love. This is the best finishing spray for my look, especially in the winter when my skin tends to get dry. It ties everything together and gives you that “no-makeup” look on days when you don’t wear much makeup. I also used it during the day to make my skin feel better, and it worked well for that too. —Designer Falak Khoja
I did 10 minutes of Pilates every day for 2 weeks - my core and posture have never felt better
