I'm Ready to Tell You About The Potion
plus, it's sale season!
Well hello there!
I came across a list in my Notes App of a bunch of ideas for Threads (remember Threads??? It was my everything for like 5 days!) I was excited about the opportunity to move some stuff off of Instagram and crucially, out of DMs. I love having conversations with my followers and I’m lucky enough to have met some incredible people, but sometimes I crave a different type of outlet. And since the Threads app on my phone has that little download arrow of neglect, I figured I’d turn one idea into a newsletter.
But first… if your inbox hasn’t alerted you, we are well into sale season. It’s overwhelming mentally and financially. I’ve written before about some strategies and tips for times like this:
Remember that pretty much every product will go on sale again within the next 3 months. Sales around the holidays are often where you can get extra special deals, free gifts and other perks, but don’t stress yourself out thinking this is the only time you’ll be able to find a deal.
Think about the different retailers where something is sold. There are lots of overlaps between Sephora, Ulta, Credo, Revolve, Violet Grey, Dermstore etc. (as well as plenty of exclusives) It’s a good time to strategize the rewards programs/loyalty points you want to maximize. It’s also a good time to reflect on what’s a meaningful discount and where you might be able to find bigger savings.*
Many brands have evergreen (non-expiring) welcome offers on their sites for 10-20% off your first purchase. These discounts might be better than a sale you find, so check those too.
Keep your receipts, don’t rush to open everything new. Most retailers have extended, generous return periods, usually into January, so you can return things if you find a much better deal elsewhere. Some things don’t matter very much, but too many people jump on the 15% off NuFACE deal and then regret when the inevitable 30-50% off deal comes around.
Don’t stock up too much on sunscreen, retinoids or active products that may expire or destabilize before you get a chance to use them.
* A perfect example is happening right now. Credo Beauty is running their annual 20% off sitewide sale. Sephora’s Fall Savings Event starts 10/27 for Rouge, which gets 20% off and 10/31 for VIB and Insider tiers, which get 15% off and 10% off respectively. If you’re Rouge this doesn’t matter, but if you aren’t and were planning to shop the Sephora Sale, make sure you check which brands are also available at Credo, where you’ll be able to get 20% off.
There’s some really fun stuff coming to your inboxes next week around the Sephora Sale, but for now, check out all my top Credo recommendations. A few callouts:
Ceremonia Aceite de Moska Hair Oil - I’ve never smelled anything quite so delicious. Pre-shower and shampoo, coat your strands to nourish your scalp, help remove excess build up, protect and smooth your cuticles and have shinier, happier, healthier hair.
Kjaer Weis Eye Balm, Beautiful Oil and Invisible Touch Foundation - these are recs via my mom, who tells anyone who will listen that these are *the* makeup products for dry, mature skin. In her words, she’s never had such success with preventing creasing, de-emphasizing lines and providing true staying power throughout the day. She swears by the Eye Balm under concealer (this is her fave), and the Beautiful Oil under the Invisible Touch Foundation, though she says the foundation on its own works too.
Tok Beauty Eyes That Tok Mascara - I’ve been talking about this on Instagram since I got it in PR and have now re-purchased 2x. It’s my new favorite mascara for long, separated, natural looking lashes.
Now, onto the main event…
I love explaining things. I love breaking down ingredients, parsing through claims and sharing products you might otherwise not come across. Instagram Stories are my preferred medium to do this, but come with caveats. First, the DMs. You can’t just put something out there on stories without inviting people to reply. 90% of the time it’s fine, but it can get exhausting very quickly. Second is the expectation – by others but also put upon myself – that I need to give the same effort to all products I talk about. That if introduce something complicated, I need to be thorough in explaining the ingredients, the mechanisms, how to use in your routine and who might benefit. And if I am not specific enough, it’s expected that I will reply in DMs. For the most part I can do this and don’t mind. (I boldly attempted to challenge my brain and thumbs to explain NIOD, remember?!) But sometimes I wish I could just put a product rec into the ether and not feel obligated to spend 4 (unpaid!) hours creating slides explaining lupeol triterpenoid.
Threads opened my eyes to this possibility. I saw an opportunity to have an alter ego where I just say things and maybe I’ll reply to the comments but probably I’ll just stick to the character limit and save some brain cells. ALL THIS TO SAY, there is a brand, and particular product, that I haven’t mentioned on Instagram because I know it will take a lot out of me to explain it the way I usually do. Threads sparked the idea to present a product recommendation differently, so here’s what I want to tell you about this oil that’s everything to me that I pay full price + shipping from Canada to slather on my face:
It’s called The Potion from the brand Cipher, which describes their products as “transformative, multitasking skincare consciously curated from the best of science and nature. It’s no-nonsense luxury for your skin.” The oil is $98, made in small batches and often sold out.
It’s kind of like an velvety-oil version of SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore, but so much better and my acne-prone skin loves it.
It’s firms, soothes redness and dryness, restores the skin barrier, plumps and lifts using an exquisitely unique oil blend full of antioxidants, vitamins, fatty acids, advanced peptides and more.
I use a few drops at night after Tretinoin. I could use it every night, but again I pay full price + shipping from Canada so I try to conserve.
The rest of their products are similarly complex, multi-tasking and innovative. Their 88mph short-contact rinse off retinal is an extraordinary product if you don’t already have a retinoid, are afraid of using one and do have $158.
It is sold out on Cipher’s website, but while writing this, I found the single other retailer that has it in stock where shipping in the US is actually free. You’re welcome.
Thanks for reading! I’m off to snuggle with my best friend’s new baby and her perfectly soft skin.
xx,
Jolie
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