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Spritz

Just Leaf It


Of all the herbs, cilantro has to be the most polarizing. To those who find it intolerable, calling it coriander doesn’t help. That didn’t stop the perfumers at Le Labo from diving headfirst into the leaves, making a refreshing, zesty fragrance that feels bright and green. Coriandre 39 is their tribute to Mexico City, and the scent fittingly mixes cilantro with a spritz of lime and a slightly musky undertone. If this sounds like your nightmare, feel free to move along. For the rest of us, it’s exactly what summer smells like. ($170, lelabofragrances.com) —Linda Wells

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Winning Bronze


I’m generally fine with my S.P.F.-induced pastiness, but in bare-legs season, I welcome a glow-up. I didn’t have high hopes for This Works Perfect Legs Skin Miracle, a tinted serum that promises to make extremities look smooth and glossy, because who believes anything these days? But I slathered my limbs in the stuff before a certain high-profile concert, hoping that its blend of caramel pigment, vitamins C and E, and arnica oils could work some sort of magic. Maybe there is a god, because I’m pretty sure those who saw me from the waist down would never dare to describe me as a “Senior Swiftie.” The overall effect was airbrushed—my freckles, stretch marks, and cellulite were delightfully obscured under a luminescent layer of bronze that can fairly be described as “Gisele-like.” Yes, my face remained as ghostly as ever, but I’m confident that everyone was too busy ogling the Taylor-Travis eye contact to notice. ($48, thisworks.com) —Ashley Baker

Sip

Hot Tonic


What if there were a potion that made you more alert, more focused, and even more articulate with less caffeine than coffee and not a speck of Adderall? It’s called Magic Mind, which sounds a little trippy and perhaps a bit risky. It contains lovely things like matcha and B vitamins, trendy things such as ashwagandha to reduce stress, strange things like lion’s-mane mushrooms, which small studies have associated with cognitive improvement, and Bacopa, used in Ayurvedic medicine to improve memory. It’s the creation of James Beshara, who was diagnosed with a heart condition and told he had to ease up on the coffee. He suggests downing a two-ounce shot each morning to “reclaim your brain.” Sign me up! ($90 for 15 bottles, magicmind.com) —Linda Wells

Slather

Brighten Up


Most people with faces know about the benefits of vitamin C serum. A reminder: it fights dullness and hyper-pigmentation to make skin look clear and bright. But the body, which also happens to be covered in skin, hasn’t had a vitamin C to call its own. Nécessaire is now giving your chest, arms, and legs, and perhaps your abs and glutes, some much-deserved attention. Its new serum, the Body Vitamin C, contains 2.5 percent of the stabilized, bio-available vitamin in an appealing gel-like emulsion. It also includes a trio of enzymes, vitamin E, and niacinamide—all the buzzy ingredients in one tidy package. The gel slides easily on the skin—no stinging or stinking—and has a faint but flattering tint. Well, look at you; you’re glowing. ($55, necessaire.com) —Linda Wells

Frenchify

Seeing Red?


There are red-lip people, and there are those who wish they were. I am, sadly, in the latter camp and gaze with wonder at anyone who can swipe on a perfect red and skip out the door looking as if they’d spent hours in front of the mirror. The makeup artist Violette Serrat, known as Violette_FR, understands this longing. She created a lipstick shade for those who don’t wear red, and I’m here to attest to her success. It’s named after the French candy Bonbon Coquelicot, known for its poppy red color. The shade is a mix of red and beige in her beloved Bisou Balm texture and makes your lips look blurry, as if they’d been vigorously kissed. It’s “wearable even for those who typically shy away from reds. It’s got that special vibrancy that makes it truly unique,” says Violette. Sweet. ($29, violettefr.com) —Linda Wells

Dab

It’s the Balm


I don’t believe in miracles, but I am an evangelist of Miracle Balm. On work-from-home days, the hero of Bobbi Brown’s Jones Road line is often the only makeup on my face. The light-reflecting multi-purpose tint gives your skin a flattering brightness and a much better glow than a Zoom filter. And the jojoba and argan oils add a welcome dose of moisture. Now Brown has put her best-selling Miracle Balms in three handy palettes, each with three shades and distinct roles: a blush, a highlighter, and an all-over tint. Use your index finger to break the surface, lightly rub, and then apply it anywhere that would benefit from a bit of color or sheen. Which, in my case, is the cheeks, lips, brow bones—well, everywhere. ($32, jonesroadbeauty.com) —Ashley Baker

Issue No. 18
August 2, 2024
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Issue No. 18
August 2, 2024