A Potential Sephora Cart
Because the sale starts this week
I have a few Sephora items on my wish list, and with the spring Sephora sale launching this week, I thought it would be fun to discuss these items and whether the purchases makes sense for me.
One thing I want to point out right away is that I only have two four five items on my list here. I feel like it’s rare to see anyone in a social media space who creates content around beauty to have a short list. I don’t make any money off of this beauty content, and I don’t make any money if you buy something based on my recommendation. My list is truly for me. I’m a regular person who often buys a few items during the Sephora sale, and I wanted to show up in this space as a regular person. Consider this a slice of counter-programing against the Sephora sale content you might be seeing from other creators :-) (And no shade to them. I enjoy Sephora sales videos, too, but I’d love to hear more regular people talk about the sale and how they approach it.)
All of the product images below are screenshots from sephora.com and cropped by me.
Summer Fridays ShadeDrops Mineral Milk Sunscreen SPF 30
Price: $36.00
I have had this sunscreen on my wish list for a month or two, thinking I might buy it in time for summer. However, as I was doing my research for this post, I saw that in the Sephora reviews, a number of people reported allergic reactions or chemical burns, and they posted photographic evidence to prove their case. Yikes! I’ve been curious to try other facial sunscreens, especially formulas with an SPF of 30 or higher, but the risk of a bad reaction with this one is too high. I’m crossing it off my list.
NARS Afterglow Tempting Eyeshadow Palette
Price: $49.00
I was absolutely influenced to consider this NARS eyeshadow palette by Hannah Louise Poston. I think the shades are gorgeous—the mattes look robust and rich, the shimmers ethereal and lovely. I especially like the twinkly pale shades (Love Me Not and Sweet Nothing) and the shimmery duochrome (Feeling It). I think I would use all three of the matte shades, especially the rusty red shade Unwritten. In short, it’s a beautiful palette and full of eyeshadows that would be easy for me to wear every day. This palette is probably the closest thing to a “yes” on my Sephora list.
However! I have been feeling very content with my eyeshadow collection lately. Most of the shades in this palette could be duped with shadows in my existing collection. I try very hard to identify the category that a makeup purchase will fill for me—for example, cool-toned shimmers or neutral mattes or even just green eyeshadow (more on that below). This palette is very beautiful, but it would certainly be a frivolity to add to my collection. That doesn’t necessarily make it a bad purchase, but I like to be honest with myself about the potential for excess in my various collections.
Ilia Eye Stylus Shadow Sticks—Long-Lasting Cream Eyeshadow
Price: $32.00 each
Ugh, Ilia is a brand that gets me. I like a lot of their releases, even though I buy very little from them. I like their mascara and would buy it again. I kinda want to try their stick blush again, but I’ve held off because I was disappointed by the first Ilia stick blush I purchased, plus I’m feeling quite content with my cream blush collection these days. I want to try their cream highlighter and even bought what I think is a functional knockoff (and I quite like it!). Ilia is a brand that makes me stop and look. I’ve heard people call it a basic white lady brand and well—you got me.
Ilia released these eyeshadow sticks in an array of mostly neutral pinks and browns, with a few pops of color thrown into the mix. I am interested in the green shades—a shimmer called “Vignette” and a matte called “Filigree.” I love green eyeshadow and have a few greens floating around in my collection. But if I’m honest, I don’t wear it very often. It’s a color that represents a fantasy version of me. Green eyeshadow always makes me look more done up because it’s colorful, not neutral, and I often feel like it’s too much of a statement.
I don’t know if I would wear green more often if I bought one of these eyeshadow sticks. Maybe. The shades are different from those in my collection, so they wouldn’t really be dupes. At $32 each, these are quite expensive.
Sephora Favorites What’s in My Bag: Makeup, Hair, and Body Value Set
Price: $52.00
This favorites set is probably the most superfluous item on my list, and I’m unlikely to buy it for two reason: 1) it’s out of stock and 2) I am not a big fan of buying sets. I’d rather just zero in on the one or two items that I’m most excited about and buy them separately.
I saw a YouTube short of someone unboxing (unbagging?) this set, and I was pretty intrigued by the excellent variety of products. I counted at least eight things that I could see myself enjoying, including the Rare Beauty liquid blush, the Charlotte Tillbury setting spray, the Dae hair styling cream, the Benefit mascara, the Milk blush, the Glow Recipe toner, the Tarte lip gloss, and the Amika dry shampoo. It’s a lot!
And yet…it’s a lot. Do I need a huge influx of new products into my collection? No. If I were to narrow it down, the one product I might consider buying on its own is the Dae Cactus Fruit 3-in-1 Styling Cream. The set is probably a “no” from me, even if it comes back into stock, but the Dae product is on my wish list for future consideration.
Glossier Balm Dotcom in the Flavor “Black Cherry”
Price: $16.00
This item might be on my list out of spite. Black Cherry is the newest Balm Dotcom, and it is literally never in stock at my local Sephora stores. At this point, I’m just annoyed, so let’s cross it off the list together!
More seriously, this lip balm is a strong “maybe” for me, as it does appear to be in stock locally. I love the Balm Dotcom formula, though I’m less of a fan of their fruit scents. My favorite is Cookie Butter, which I will buy in a heartbeat if it returns to the market. Right now, I am trying to use up my three balms, especially Cookie Butter and Wild Fig, which got a lot of play last year.
Total Cost of My Full List: $185
Total Cost of the Strong Maybes: $65
(I didn’t include tax or the Sephora discount in either of these total cost calculations.)
My strong maybes are the NARS eyeshadow palette and the Black Cherry Balm Dotcom. I’m only a Beauty Insider, so the sale would give me 10% off my purchase. Plus Sephora often sends out a 20% off email coupon after the sale—a real stealth (or not-so-stealth) move to tempt those of us who resisted the sale. I’m honestly on the fence about buying anything from Sephora right now, given how well-stocked I am for beauty. But it was fun to put together this fantasy list for Ordinary Beauty and work through questions of desire and value!
Happy spring, y’all! It’s been absolutely beautiful here, so I hope you are getting out and enjoying nature’s gift, no matter what else is happening in your life.
