The Top 10 Beauty Questions We Get at goop

news7g11/16/2021

9 7 minutes read

The Top 10 Beauty Questions We Get at goop

Photo courtesy of Anna Dabrowska/The Licensing Project

How do I find the perfect shade of tinted moisturizer? Should I layer my skin care? What’s the best way to treat dry skin? Breakouts? The beauty concierge team—they’re part of goop’s new personal shopping department, and they’re there to field your beauty questions every weekday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. PT—has the answers.

1 How do I pick a foundation shade online?

Send a selfie or a close-up picture of yourself—with clean skin, in natural light—to [email protected], and they can help you choose your shade based both on brands you like and whether you want subtle or more-intense coverage (it helps to send your current foundation shade, too). Also keep in mind that no matter your skin color, undertones matter. If you have pinkish undertones in your skin, foundations listed as cool match best; for golden undertones, foundations listed as warm blend in better. For more tips, we have a great article here on shade-matching (Westman Atelier founder and makeup artist Gucci Westman and Kosas founder Sheena Yaitanes have some cool tricks to share).

Creamy Foundation and Concealer in One

Westman Atelier
Vital Skin Foundation Stick
goop, $68

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Sheer Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 20

Beautycounter
Dew Skin Moisturizing Coverage
goop, $45

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Ultramoisturizing
Tinted Face Oil

Kosas
Tinted Face Oil
goop, $42

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Foundation Brush for Subtle Application

Westman Atelier
Foundation brush
goop, $80

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Tinted Serum with SPF 40

ILIA
Super Serum Skin Tint
SPF 40 Foundation
goop, $48

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Light Cream for Dewy Skin with SPF 35

Saie
Slip Tint
goop, $32

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2 What’s the best moisturizer for dry skin?

Occlusive formulas—thick creams, rich face oils, and balms that lock in moisture by forming a barrier over skin—work best for intensely hydrating and soothing dry skin. Layering your skin care takes the moisturizing to another level: Smooth a hydrating serum onto cleansed skin as the first step and follow with face cream or face oil if your skin is especially dry. So does exfoliating regularly. Sweeping away dead skin and grime allows moisturizer and any other products you apply to penetrate your skin better. In fact, alpha hydroxy acids were initially developed to treat dry skin.

Aloe Gel

Dr. Barbara Sturm
Aloe Vera Gel
goop, $70

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Serum

Dr. Barbara Sturm
Hyaluronic Serum
goop, $300

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Light Lotion

goop Beauty
GOOPGLOW Glow Lotion
goop, $58/$52 with subscription

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Firming Supercream
for All skin Types

goop Beauty
GOOPGENES All-in-One
Nourishing Face Cream
goop, $95/$86 with subscription

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Balm

Furtuna Skin
Rinascita Delle Olive
Replenishing Balm
goop, $185

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Thick Cream

Tammy Fender
Celestial Rose Crème
goop, $145

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Skin-Balancing Face Oil

Vintner’s Daughter
Active
botanical Serum
goop, $185

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3 What’s the most flattering way to apply bronzer?

Smooth bronzer anywhere the sun might naturally hit—along the bridge of the nose, on the apples of cheeks, sparingly across the brow bone. For a subtly chiseled effect, blend it from the cheeks at a slight diagonal up toward your temples. Dusting a touch over eyelids adds gorgeous warmth and instantly wakes up your entire face. Bronzers with gold undertones light up darker skin shades beautifully, while bronzers with cooler bronzy tones flatter fairer skin types. Bonus: For a just-back-from-vacation radiance, sweep on a sheer blush before blending bronzer on top.

Powder

Westman Atelier
Beauty Butter
Powder Bronzer
goop, $75

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Cream

ILIA
Nightlite
Bronzing Powder
goop, $34

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Fluffy Brush

Westman Atelier
Powder Brush
goop, $85

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Blush

Westman Atelier
Baby Cheeks Blush Stick
goop, $48

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4 What’s the difference between GOOPGLOW 15% Glycolic Acid Overnight Glow Peel and GOOPGLOW Microderm Instant Glow Exfoliator?

Both are exfoliating and packed with replenishing botanicals, and both leave skin impossibly glowy—but they differ in terms of how and when to use them. Once a week, sweep the overnight peel over clean skin. The blend of glycolic acid and fruit extracts retexturizes skin while you sleep (GP wanted it to mimic the skin-renewing effects of an in-office chemical peel). Swipe it on clean skin and go to bed—that’s it. It’s a powerful peel, so go easy on anything exfoliating the following morning. The glowy effects should last about a week, until your next treatment.
goop Beauty
GOOPGLOW 15% Glycolic Acid Overnight Glow Peel
goop, $125/$112
with subscription

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Microderm, on the other hand, is an exfoliator designed to be used two or three times a week, depending on what your skin can handle. It’s made with both physical and chemical exfoliants—micro minerals sweep away impurities, while glycolic acid dissolves dead skin—and it can be used morning or night. Smooth it over wet skin and let it sit for two or three minutes before rinsing. Apply your usual toner, serum, moisturizer, and sunscreen afterward.
goop Beauty
GOOPGLOW Microderm
Instant Glow Exfoliator
goop, $125/$112 with subscription

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Note: Don’t use the peel and Microderm consecutively. They are powerful treatments, and exfoliating excessively is irritating. If you have very sensitive skin, forgo the peel and (after patch-testing) start off using Microderm once a week.

5 in what order do I apply my skin care?

Go from lightest to thickest: After cleansing, smooth on toner or facial essence. Toning helps the rest of your products penetrate more effectively and removes any residual impurities. Serum comes next. Give it a beat to absorb—the time it takes to smooth on some lip balm is perfect—then layer on a moisturizing face cream or oil. (Or both, if your skin needs it. We like to apply face oil over cream, but it’s personal preference.) Finish with sunscreen, the most effective way to protect skin against UV damage, preserve collagen, and stave off premature wrinkles.

Serums

6 When do I apply face oil?

Whenever your skin feels dry or in need of a midday pick-me-up or if your makeup needs refreshing (instead of applying more pigment, spritz on a hydrating face mist and press in a few drops of oil to instantly wake up your skin). Clinically proven to help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles (it’s made with bakuchiol, a retinol alternative), improve firmness, as well as nourish and boost glow, there’s no downside to using the GOOPGENES face oil multiple times a day. It’s deeply moisturizing on its own, but layering it over a face cream seals in all the nutrients and leaves skin with an especially gorgeous sheen.

7 Which products best address fine lines and wrinkles?

A healthy diet is critical to how your skin looks and feels, which is why GOOPGLOW Morning Skin Superpowder—it tastes citrusy and refreshing—is such a brilliant way to get a daily dose of antioxidants, vitamins, and skin-boosting nutrients to help protect against physical signs of aging like dullness and fine lines. GP calls it her drinkable skin care.*
goop Beauty
GOOPGLOW Morning Skin Superpowder
goop, $60/$55 with subscription

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Powerful topical skin care can make an enormous difference, too. One of the most researched antioxidants for improving firmness and tone, as well as brightening skin, is vitamin C. The vitamin C serum from goop combines L-ascorbic acid (the best-for-skin form of vitamin C) with moisturizing hyaluronic acid; you mix the two together on your first use to maintain potency. The serum leaves your skin looking noticeably smoother and more youthful—usually in less than a week, someone will ask, “What are you doing with your skin?”
goop Beauty
GOOPGLOW 20% Vitamin C + HyaluronicAcid Glow Serum
goop, $125/$112 with subscription

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Follow the serum with a high-tech moisturizer like the one from GOOPGENES, which is clinically proven to improve firmness and elasticity, or the velvety anti-aging face cream from Dr. Barbara Sturm, which is loaded with antioxidants, hyaluronic acid, and nourishing botanicals to help restore tired skin. We also love devices: Designed to stimulate collagen and elastin by delivering microcurrent into skin, the ZIIP OX subtly sculpts, tones, and lifts.

8 I’m looking to switch to a clean mascara.
What are great ones that really perform?

There’s no reason not to switch at this point—the clean tech is there, and the only things you’re sacrificing are the microplastics and by-products of coal-tar combustion that are commonly found in conventional mascara. These are our favorites for gorgeous, glossy, defined lashes that give your whole face a boost.

For Fluttery Length

ILIA
Limitless Lash Mascara
goop, $28

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For Sexy Volume

Westman Atelier
Eye Love You Mascara
goop, $58

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For Inky Definition

Kosas
The Big Clean Mascara
goop, $26

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9 What’s a routine to help treat blemish-prone skin?

10 How do I choose a flattering blush shade for my skin?

Generally, deeper skin tones are enhanced by deep red, pink, and berry shades (pale pinks can show up chalky on dark skin), while fair complexions benefit from dusty-rose and peachy tints. Sheer, hydrating pigments that melt right into skin, like the ones below, leave a subtle just-went-for-a-jog warmth and are forgiving and buildable enough to work on all skin tones.