As summer draws to a close, we will cope the best we know how: by dreaming of what we are going to use our Sephora discount on (or have in Lyn’s case!)

We made a special Sunday trip to Sephora to get a first hand look at what’s out right now–which we shared on our Instagram story–and picked our favorites.

And then we looked through our stuff to see what we are loving that might be a little on the high end but still recommend and things we are running low on that we can’t live without.

Here are some things that we are either planning to stock up on, or splurge on, or think YOU should buy as our proxy:

Jess:

Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer

A handful of years ago, the three of us were having a rambunctious girl weekend in NYC. It was hot and smarmy in SOHO, so we bopped into a Sephora for a spritz, as we do. A lovely Sephora employee (cast member? What is their official designation??) saw me wilting, and asked if he could introduce me to this primer. “But I have makeup on already!” I worried aloud. He told me not to fret, as it didn’t matter- it would still be magical, and hey, it’s what Madonna uses. SIGN ME UP. My face was instantly human again!

I stopped using it for whatever reason (probably “it’s expensive”), but recently picked up the small bottle on a whim of nostalgia. And you know what? It’s still the best. It mattifies without dulling, and it doesn’t have that weird silicone/pilly feeling of other primers. It holds your makeup on like a champ, too, without turning into a greasy mess. A little goes a long way, too, so that helps reconcile the cost.

Kat Von D Stuff

Oh, Kat. She’s been a bit problematic lately, and that’s a real bummer, but there’s still hope that she will turn her personal ship around. Makeup-wise, she is still killing the game, and there’s a few new items in her line that I think are worth picking up:

Brow Struck Dimension Powder

I’ve written about this before, but this powder is some kind of magic. It seems glittery, but it’s not- it just adds a bit of shimmer that makes the product look more like your own natural, lustrous brow hairs. You only need the tiniest bit, too, and it’s pretty forgiving to apply, especially if you start in the middle of your brow and work your way out.

Lash Liner Liquid Inner Liner

This is kind of a gimmicky product, but one that appeals to me for the simple fact that any time I line my inner rim, it’s gone in like 30 seconds. I have really watery eyes, and I think they also want to repel any notion of looking like a 1992 burnout (that’s what we called the trashy smokers in my high school. Sorry guys.) Anyway, this stuff is legit. Yes, it’s totally weird to put liquid eyeliner on your inner rims- you kind of have to pat it on. But it dries down pretty quickly and then it stays put, making for a really dramatic eye. Sure, it eventually makes its way off my face, but it is for sure the longest lasting stuff I have ever used that close to my eyeball, so it wins.

Fenty Beauty Mattemoiselle Plush Matte Lipstick

Has Lyn convinced you to buy this yet? No? Well let me try: this is THE JAM. A few years back I impulse purchased a limited run lipstick from MAC which ended up being my holy grail- it was the perfect formula (their short-lived Mattene- an airy, satiny matte that wasn’t drying), the perfect shade of electric pink with blue undertones, and I wore it every chance I got. Obviously, I’m now down to a tiny nub of product, having come close but never finding the perfect replacement. Well God bless Rihanna, because this is it!!! I have it in Candy Venom, but the shades Ma’Damn and Spanked are also calling to me. They’re only $18, so with the discount, I think buying both is the answer!

Josie Maran Vibrancy Argan Oil Full Coverage Concealer Fluid

Here’s one on my personal intrigue list- I haven’t been wearing a lot of face makeup lately, but as summer winds down, I will probably need to start using concealer again to hide my winter sadness (and dryness). I swatched this at the store yesterday, and it felt really nice while laying down a good amount of pigment. However, while I was trying to decide on a shade, the security dude, apparently concerned that I was stealing because I was facing all of the tubes to get a good look at them (?), called for an employee to check on me and she flew over like a crazy person. It was super unnerving! I was wearing my gym clothes and had garbage hair, but come on: it was Sunday.

Dr Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Cream

I have been eyeballing this for a while, and a discount might be the thing that makes me pounce. (Raaawwwrr). You know I love the Cicapair Color Correcting Treatment, and this is all of those wonderful ingredients minus the color correction and minus the sunscreen, making it really appealing as a fall/winter night cream, especially as I am prone to winter eczema.

Lyn:

So I’m ridiculous and I’m VIB Rouge so I made my 20% off purchases yesterday so I could also get 1.5 points per $1 spent. I did notice this time that there is only a one time online use of the discount code–which is probably a good thing–so I’m glad we did a walk around on Sunday.

Here are the things I picked up:

Hourglass, Caution™ Extreme Lash Mascara: Jess and I were both drawn to this mascara and its promises to give you cat lashes? (raaawwwrr?!!!) Regardless, I don’t really need more mascara–like at all!–but I’m also super curious. So I picked up the small one. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Marc Jacobs Beauty, Highliner Gel Eye Crayon Eyeliner in (Grape)vine 63 – dark purple: I bought one of these during the last 20% off in O(Vert) 56, a forest green and really like it. I kinda love alternatives to black and brown liner (see below) so this purple is perfect. And while these are pricey–they LAST!! Like whoa.

Milk Makeup, Matcha Toner: I just wrote about how much I’ve enjoyed these wacky sticks. I’m almost out of this one, so I picked up a replacement.

Drunk Elephant, Protini™ Polypeptide Cream and Lala Retro™ Whipped Cream: A while back I got a sample of the Lala Retro cream and LOVED it. I just started using a deluxe sample of the T.L.C. Framboos™ Glycolic Night Serum which I’m super digging too.  So LAST WEEK I bought the full size, before the sale was announced. I’ve used it a few times but I think I’m going to return it to Sephora and repurchase it to get the discount on it, since they don’t do price corrections like some places do when items go on sale (thanks, shopbop.com!) which is why it’s on my list of recommendations AND the list of things I’m picking up. I also read about the Polypetide cream and I’m curious about that one and how it differs and what it’s all about. The reviews are incredible online so I grabbed that, too and I’ll let you know a review of how they seem to work and how they are different.

O&M, Style Guru™ Styling Cream: I’ve written about this before and although I keep trying other things, I like this one the best. So I grabbed a new one.

And then here are my recommendations for things you should pick up that I love–many of which I have written about in the past and STILL love like the Fenty lip products, SKII,  IT Cosmetics, Bye Bye Poreless Powder and the Fenty Highlighter

I also concur on the KVD brow product. I grabbed it when Jess recommended and it’s MAGIC!

A full review is coming soon–but spoiler alert!–I got the Born to Run palette and I love it! Same with Overdrive and Double Life liners, two new liners from the Born to Run launch to go along with Alkaline and Torch.

And I’ve really been using my O&M, Atonic™ Thickening Spritz a lot this summer. It’s great on days where I don’t wash my hair, just rinse it in the shower. I spray it on and it gives it a bit of life again instead of using dry shampoo which can be too drying or get gunky in the humidity.

So there you go! Go spend all the money!! 🙂

But also remember–there is a holiday 20% off coming soon and Ulta will surely have one. too–so don’t panic.

You’ll have more opportunities for buying makeup you don’t need soon enough.

Let us know what you pick up or what you have your eye on for the sale.

And as always–these purchases were made by us–for us!