26 Musts for your Makeup Bag
31 Oct 2016 -
Best Tinted Moisturizer
Smooth on this oil-reducing face finisher for a camouflaging tint one tester said "blends really evenly!"
Best All-Around Foundation
"I'm no makeup artist, but this cool all-in-one brush made me feel like one," a tester enthused about this soft-finish formula.
Best Foundation With SPF
One tester "loved, loved, loved" this product, which has rhodiola (aka golden root) to kick-start skin's healing process.
Best Powder Foundation
Each swipe of this powder is pumped full of time-release antioxidants to smooth skin "without feeling heavy."
Best Antiaging Foundation
The no-fail combination of "good coverage" and six antiaging ingredients (among them Syn-ake peptide to relax wrinkles) garnered kudos from our testers.
Best Primer
This silicone-based gel-cream preps skin for makeup. It left one tester's complexion "flawless but not cakey" under her foundation.
Best All-Around Concealer
A dab of this winner "blends well" to neutralize dark circles, using yellow pigments and Olay Regenerist serum.
Best Concealer With SPF
This "natural-looking" cover-up has white-tea extract and broad-spectrum sunscreen to protect against UV rays.
Best Loose Powder
"I've been looking for a powder that's just sheer enough—and this is it!" one tester said of this powder-and-puff-in-one.
Best Eyeshadow
Finding a shadow that feels good on skin can be tough, but this formula fits the bill. One tester loved how she could "play it up by layering it on for a night out."
Best All-Around Mascara
Each shade of this winner has light-catching minerals that work with your eye color to brighten, while "making fringe feel soft and full."
Best Volumizing Mascara
"I love the way this separates, lengthens and curls in just one stroke—without raccoon eyes," our tester said.
Best Lengthening Mascara
This mascara's unique wand and blend of waxes helps create "clump-free definition" that stays put on your lashes all day.
Best Lip Balm
A "cult favorite in the making," this lip salve uses luxe ingredients such as essential rose oil (it smells like a "real-life rose garden!"), shea butter and SPF 10 sunscreen to moisturize, smooth and protect lips.
Best Lip Treatment
This citrus-scented treatment uses lipids to revive parched lips so they feel "hydrated, soft and smooth—not slimy," our tester said.
Best Lip Gloss
"I have to hold myself back from eating it, this smells so delicious," one tester joked about this gloss, which hydrates and heals lips courtesy of nourishing carrot-root extract and beeswax.
Best Long-Wearing Lip Gloss
Each application of this champ offers up a dose of SPF 15, a promise of up to six hours of enduring wear and "flattering but subtle" shine. Kiss, kiss!
Best Lip-Plumping Gloss
This "pain-free plumper" volumizes lips gently, adding a long-lasting layer of shine. Translation: You get a sexier smile sans stinging.
Best Lipstick
Craving color? This super hydrator has collagen to smooth and enough pigment to "kick it up for after-hours fun," one tester said.
Best Lip Liner
"This liner goes on smoothly and is self-sharpening—a huge plus," one tester said of this rice-bran-infused winner.
Each of these four "whimsical" shades can be swirled together to warm skin all over, or used to add a "burst of color" to cheeks.
Best Highlighter
Use the lighter side of this stick highlighter on the inner edge of eyes to look more awake.
Best Nail Polish Set
This two-tiered bottle houses a bright base color and "the best quick-dry top coat" for easy maintenance.
Best All-Around Nail Polish
One tester's nails were "stronger and perfectly polished" after using this do-it-all formula, which combines strengthener and color with a base coat.
Best Brow Kit
This purse-sized palette is "like 'eyebrows for dummies'—it covers all the bases and comes with illustrations."
Best Eye Pencil
The silicone in this "easy-to-apply" liner helps lock pigment in place so it stays put for hours.