Happy June! I can’t believe another month has flown by. Today I am gathering the things I tested in May.

Basic products

There were a few new base launches that I really loved this month. I’ve been a huge fan of Natasha Denona Hy-Glam Concealer and she launched a new Hy-Glam Powder Foundation which has an incredible formula. The packaging is beautifully designed with room for a puff. I use her concealer in Shades N5 to N9 depending on how much lighter I want vs spot concealing. In her Hy-Glam Powder Foundation I can pull off a few of the shades, right now I like NP7 or Y5-7. It’s a really nice blurring powder that looks like skin but has really good coverage. Although it is a powder foundation, I prefer to use this as a setting powder.

Fenty added new skin color products. I really like the Soft’Lit Luminous Foundation in Shade 260 (see it in action here). It has a good medium to full coverage and the Foundation Brush 145 is a must-have for smooth, streak-free application (although you can use any brush or sponge). If you want something more like a skin tint, the Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint is a really nice one especially for summer. It’s lighter but still has pretty good coverage. I wear Shade 9 or 10 in Skin Tint.

Makeup By Mario launched a new SoftSculpt Bronzing Shaping Serum and it took me a few tries to figure out how to best use it. As a liquid bronzer on top of foundation, I found it a little too sheer, but it gives the skin a very natural sun-kissed glow. I like to mix it with foundation to add warmth or use it as a base to warm up/tan the skin – kind of like a self-tanner drop for the face. It is on the emollient side, so I don’t know how those with oily skin will like it (I think it will be too dewy). A new double ended brush has been launched for this product and it works well with the liquid.

For a more traditional bronzer to add warmth, I think the SoftSculpt Transforming Skin Enhancer is better and easier to use/blend.

I really like the look of the new Bronzing Serum, but I’m not sure I’m completely hooked. I love the packaging style. It has a pump to dispense the product, but if you twist off the cap, there is also a sponge tip applicator to use. It has a similar effect to Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Drops, but Makeup By Mario has a slightly thicker and more emollient finish. I have added swatches to compare the undertone.

Bottom line, it’s not really a hit or miss for me. I’m still a little unsure.

New SPF formulas

I’ve been testing a few new sunscreens. I really love Origins Ginzing SPF 30 Daily Moisturizer Sunscreen for the texture and consistency. It’s white but doesn’t leave a white cast and I love the moisturizing feel. It’s moisturizing without feeling too thick or greasy, and it doesn’t pill.

Peter Thomas Roth launched a tinted SPF called Water Drench Hyaluronic Cloud Sheer Tint Moisturizer with SPF45. I really love this as a moisturizer with SPF. The color is a beige but it’s really sheer so once blended it looks pretty much clear on my skin but I like that they have a tinted option as so many white sunscreens end up having a kind of white cast, although they mix well. I like this under foundation. The coverage/pigment is not rich enough to wear as a tinted moisturizer.

Caudalie launched a sunscreen in the US called Vinosun Protect Brightening Daily Mineral Sunscreen SPF50 and this is one of the first mineral sunscreens I really love. It is tinted but it is pale so it leaves a very light white cast. I love that it blends nicely without pilling on my skin, and it has a semi-matte finish that adheres well to the skin.

Kosa’s DreamBeam is a formula I keep wanting to love and I keep trying. It has SPF 40 and the new color in Sunlit is a deeper tone than the original DreamBeam. Color wise I think I would be somewhere between the two shades but even though they had more color options I just don’t like the formula. It’s thick, doesn’t blend well and after putting it on, I really can’t wait to wash it all off. If you want a luminous glowing sunscreen, Supergoop! Glowscreen is a million times better.

Eye makeup

I keep looking for a new eyeshadow palette to love these days, but I keep going back to my staples like Too Faced Born This Way, Patrick Ta Major Dimension, Natasha Denona everything. Something new that I loved were the new shades from Bobbi Brown. They added new shades of Long-Wear Cream Shadows and I’ve really been loving Bronze for an iridescent bronze shade. Swatches below of the shades I’m loving this summer. Bronze and golden light is new.

Coral Crush Lips + Cheeks

I love coral and peach colors and couldn’t be more excited about all the colors that have come out this season! The Dior Poppy Coral tones are such beautiful summer orange/corals. I shared a demo of Rosy Glow Blush, Addict Lip Maximizer, Addict Lip Glow and Lip Glow Oil in action here and I will have swatches + review soon.

Armani Luminous Silk Cheek Tints have been a hit with me. For peach colors, they have two in 50.5 Rosy Peach and 31 Vivid Coral. I think they are so beautiful on the skin and easy to blend. Demo of Rosy Peach here.

NARS reformulated their blushes into a talc-free formula. I think Orgasm and Orgasm X have been so many cult classics but I really love Orgasm Edge which is the same peachy undertone but without the shimmer. You can see it in action here.

Coral Crush Nails

I love a good peachy coral polish for summer. OPI Infinite Shine in On a Mission is the perfect softer peach, while Megawatt Hot is a lighter, deeper coral. Both are opaque with a glossy finish.

Hermes makes the best orange tones for summer. I’ve really been loving Orange Poppy for a super bright electric orange red. They launched Orange Tonique earlier this spring and it’s similar, but pulls more orange.

For a more budget-friendly option, I’m obsessed with Olive and June, especially the Quick Dry formulas in Cape and Picante.

Also wearing the Cape below on the toes, outfit details here.

Lip serum

I love Chanel skin care and lip care so I was really excited to try the new Hydra Beauty Micro Lip Serum. It is packaged in a rubber squeeze tube similar to L’Huile Camelia Nail Oil (love this). Hydra Beauty Micro Lip Serum has small microdrops just like the serums in the Hydra Beauty Line. I had high hopes, unfortunately I have to call this a miss. The formula is so thin it feels like water. It absorbs nicely for an ultra thin layer of moisture, but for me it’s not enough to hydrate the lips and it feels like no moisture has been added after application.

Perfumes

I will have a perfume roundup soon, but there are three I really loved this month. I splurged on another Parfums de Marly in Valaya, which is the perfect floral musk for hot summer months. I couldn’t stop thinking about it from the sampler kit I bought and decided this was for me. I think this is my signature scent this year. Notes include: Bergamot, Mandarin, White Peach, Orange Blossom, Nymphea, Vetiver, Akigalawood, Ambrofix Musk.

Ouai St. Barts is one of the best tropical scents and I love it in body wash and scrub. They launched a Hair and Body Mist which is a really lovely light fruity tropical fragrance that is neither too sweet nor too strong.

Last but not least, Chanel launched new body oils in a couple of their Les Exclusifs perfume scents. These are priced quite a lot higher than all the other body oils in the Chanel range at $350 each. I shared a look at stories and was overwhelmed by the response and questions! I had no idea so many of you were loyal fans of the Les Exclusifs series. I have owned and love Beige. I’ve always had my eye on Gardenia and 1957, but I’ve never thrown away as my signature Chanel scents have been from the Les Eaux de Chanel range.

The Chanel beauty team generously gave me Les Exclusifs de Chanel Body Oil in Gardenia and it’s heavenly. I layered it with the Beige perfume and the combination is the most luxurious combo I’ve ever tried. The scent lasts all day for me, but it’s not as potent or as strong as the perfume.

I think if you have a particular signature scent that you love from the Les Exclusifs line, you will most likely find the body oil worth the splurge. Right now the oils are available in 1957, Beige, Gardenia and Coromandel.

That wraps up my May hits and misses! What did you love and try this past month?