I have combination skin, so finding beauty products that aren’t oily but still make me feel hydrated is a major feat. It took a lot of trial and error when searching for skincare that not only made my face feel refreshed, but also makeup products that actually helped it stay on (because there is nothing worse than sweating off makeup that you put a ton of effort in).
Coachella is one of those events that rely on the hot desert sun — with night time being chilly, which I learned the hard way — so it’s vital to grab the best products that aid all-day wear so that you can take some Insta-Worthy pics. Here’s a compilation of my fave skincare and beauty items that were pretty much my lifeline for Coachella weekend one.
Image via Neutrogena
I cannot say enough good things about Neutrogena’s Hydro Boost Gel-Cream. The product is fragrance free for extra-dry skin and includes hyaluronic acid which helps maintain skin hydration. What I loved most about this cream is that it’s cool to the touch when first applied and felt like the perfect water boost. Plus, it’s not at all oily, which is bothersome with similar skincare products. Definitely a desert go-to!
Image via Sephora
There’s a reason people swear by Milk’s Hydro Grip Hydrating Makeup Primer. It’s meant to be applied before foundation or tinted moisturizer (whichever suits your fancy), and allows the makeup to stick to it while also giving a dewy finish. My makeup lasts hours without having to touch it up since I started using this primer—making it a total game changer for the festival and future concerts.
Image via Neutrogena
Say it with us: sunscreen is important. Neutrogena’s Invisible Daily Defense Face Serum SPF 60+ is a bit oily at first, but feels very lightweight and works incredibly well under makeup. The product contains ginger, Vitamin E, and Feverfew (a plant in the daisy family that has a number of anti-irritant benefits, per Aveeno). The sunscreen totally holds up in the desert sun and does not add any more texture to your skin! Be sure to reapply to get lasting SPF coverage, though!
I came across Milani’s Make It Last Setting Spray at my local drug store for only $10.99…and I never went back. Like most setting sprays, you just spray it onto your newly applied makeup for a long-lasting wear. They also have a Matte and Sunscreen version depending on what look you are trying to achieve.
Okay, so this setting powder might be on the pricier side compared to others, but it’s completely worth the splurge. Laura Mercier’s Translucent Loose Setting Powder gives you a matte finish that’s perfect for oily skin (especially in that pesky T-zone area). I like to first apply the powder with a beauty blender, then tap it in with a powder brush for maximum results—like this Real Techniques facial powder brush from Ulta.
Still not convinced? I took this photo after HOURS of wear, and my skin still felt fresh (and my makeup looked cute TBH)!
Swipe through to see how all my looks lasted throughout the weekend. 😘
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Brit + Co. may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.
Header image via Olivia Bria
This edible crescent-roll cornucopia is our way of making a normal cheese boardmore festive — and definitely more fun — during the holiday season. Our go-to this time of year is a massive cheese plate that can stand alone and be the main attraction, or the starter for a larger meal. Press on for the surprisingly easy steps to braid a breaded cornucopia.
Chris Andre
Chris Andre
Start by sculpting tin foil into the shape of a cornucopia (it looks like a cone with an upturned tail). Pro tip: Lightly pack tin foil so it's easier to remove later from your baked cornucopia. Crescent rolls should be buttery enough that this shouldn't be difficult.
Chris Andre
Your tin foil mold should look a little something like this.Chris Andre
Pop open the crescent rolls and cut the triangles into strips. Pinch together the ends of strips to make strips longer.Chris Andre
Braid crescent roll strips. You can make these as fancy as you want. Not a braiding pro? Skip this step and leave those strips alone.Chris Andre
Wrap tin foil cornucopia with braids/strips. Make sure you cover all the tin foil. Leave a little wiggle room at the opening of the cornucopia, so that when you’re done baking you can pull some of that tin foil out.Chris Andre
Use any extra dough to cover the bottom of your cornucopia. Pinch the sides and anchor those braids/strips in.Chris Andre
Brush on egg wash before placing your cornucopia in the oven. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes. Take out of oven and cover spots of cornucopia that are already golden brown with extra tin foil. Bake for another 20 minutes at 250 degrees Fahrenheit.Chris Andre
Let it cool down until it’s easy to handle. Remove tin foil.Chris Andre
Place cornucopia in corner of your cheese plate. Arrange cheese on your serving tray.Chris Andre
Add crackers — we like to have two or three options.Chris Andre
Don’t forget to fill up your cornucopia. It's called "the horn of plenty" for a reason. Fill with fresh fruit like grapes, apples, and pears.Chris Andre
Add nuts like walnuts and pistachios to fill in any empty spaces. Garnish with fresh herbs like rosemary and sage to finish it off.Chris Andre
Voilà! Invite over your friends, open a bottle of wine, and dig in!Chris Andre
A cornucopia cheese board will become your new favorite holiday tradition.Show us your crescent-roll cornucopias on Instagram and check out our baking classes (and our Easy Thanksgiving Desserts piece) for more holiday food inspo!
DIY Production and Styling: Paris Fried
Paris Fried: Paris loves any excuse to celebrate and throw a themed party. She loves experimenting in the kitchen and has a terrible sweet tooth. When she's not crafting in her studio, she's at the farmers' market buying seasonal produce or at her favorite local theater watching double features.
This post has been updated.
All that dancing under the summer sun will leave you feeling thirsty, especially if you’re indulging in some cocktails. It is quintessential for your inner and outer beauty that you stay hydrated. Up your H2O game by adding slices of fruit and herbs in your bottle — voila, “Spa Water” to go.
Lather up in SPF; your sunburn-free skin and older self will praise you for this. To take your sunscreen to the next level, mix in a loose shimmer powder. You’ll be glowing all day long.
Keep the frizz at bay by starting your morning right, blowing out your hair with Caviar Anti-Frizz Blowout Butter. Y’all, this stuff is butter in your hands! The lightweight, melting cream-to-oil formula tames even the most defiant, frizzy hair while protecting from heat-styling and humidity. It helps seal in moisture and keep hair smoother for a longer period of time, 80 percent less frizz for up to 72 hours to be exact! AKA, while you dance the weekend away to your all-time fave artists!
A half-up half-down look is the perfect way to stay cool and keep a polished look. The inside-out waterfall French braid is a festival goer’s BFF. To achieve this look, start with a natural center part for a sophisticated, softer look.
Begin by evenly applying Caviar Anti-Frizz Blowout Butter to damp hair and blow dry. Starting at the left or right section of your part, create three sections. Begin a regular braid, and once you’ve completed your first three over/unders, pick up a small section of the hair above the braid and incorporate it by bringing it under. Work at a downward angle, so that braids from the left and right will meet at the mid back section of your head. Continue adding upper pieces of your hair to the braid. Once you’ve reached the back center of your head, stop adding pieces and finish with a regular braid. Repeat on the other side; you’re almost done!
Separate hair with your fingers to create a thicker, full braid. Using small bobby pins that match your hair color, pin up braids, hiding the ends. Once you’ve completed pinning up your braid, add waves. The bigger the curling iron, the softer the body of your hair will be, creating subtle waves.
Spritz your way to a refreshed face with a DIY face mist. To create your own, you’ll need glass spray bottles, rosewater, witch hazel, and tea tree oil. Mix equal parts rosewater and witch hazel and add a drop of oil. You will instantly feel rejuvenated upon applying.
How will you beat the heat this festival season? Tag us on Instagram and subscribe to our email newsletter for more!
Photography: Brittany Griffin
Styling + DIY production + Author: Cassidy Miller
Model: Torii Burnett
Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.
This post has been updated.
Though Black Friday is traditionally the official start of the holiday shopping season, we argue that it’s been kicking since mid-October. We know, we know: it still feels extremely early to start thinking about the holidays, but they’ll be here before you know it! Plus, many brands and retailers are already promoting their holiday goodies with plenty of sales and discounts available right now.
If you’re ready to embark on your holiday shopping journey, but still need answers to questions like ‘when’s the best time to shop?’ and ‘where should I shop for gifts?’ and even ‘how the heck do I save money this season?’, you’ve come to the right place. Consider this your go-to guide for holiday shopping in 2024.
Scroll on for our best guidance on navigating this busy time of year and finding the best gifts possible!
Kaboompics / PEXELS
The best time to do holiday shopping really all depends on your personal shopping goals. Do you want to get a jump on items you know will sell out soon? Do you want to save the most money possible? Do you want to focus on handmade, personalized gifts? These factors will undoubtedly influence your holiday shopping schedule.
Cottonbro Studio / PEXELS
Shopping early can be advantageous for all of the aforementioned goals. A lot of retailers start promoting their holiday products early on, giving you ample time to snatch up that limited-time lip kit or fancy water bottle you’ve been eyeing way before the holidays.
Plus, some of the best deals for holiday shopping happen ahead of Black Friday and Cyber Monday – in 2023, Experian observed a surge in early spending in October, thanks to early discounts, a trend likely to continue in 2024.
Finally, shopping early can be especially helpful if your plan is to focus on handmade or personalized gifts, giving the artisan you buy from (or yourself, if you’re DIY-ing your gifts) plenty of time to craft the item with love and care.
Gallup reported in 2023 that one in four shoppers start shopping as early as September, a trend likely to continue in 2024 – so you might already be embarking on your shopping spree!
Mikhail Nilov / PEXELS
If right now is just still too darn early for you to start holiday shopping, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are some of the best times to shop since so many retailers offer their largest discounts of the entire year. Plus, the late November-early December timeline can feel a bit more appropriate for the gifting season opposed to late October-early November, when everyone’s still recovering from Halloween.
The only thing to consider during this time is the shipping timelines for the items you purchase – but most retailers will typically advise their specific shipping schedules, so you don’t risk your goodies arriving late.
Ron Lach / PEXELS
You have three main options when it comes to where to shop for holiday gifts: online, in-store, and via our amazing gift guides. Of course, each method has its advantages and disadvantages.
Shopping in-store offers a tangible experience: the opportunity to hold specific items in your hands and gauge exactly what they’ll be like when you give them as a gift. The pitfall with shopping in-person is that it typically requires a commute and journeys through potentially very busy malls and shopping strips, which can add to the already-stressful holiday experience.
In-store shopping can be more physically exhausting, but it’s all about preference! Sometimes strolling through the stores that get all dolled up for Christmas is the best part of the season.
Andrea Piacquadio / PEXELS
Per Google, 65% of those planning to shop for the holidays say they will shop online more. Shopping for gifts online can be super helpful since you can centralize your findings in your browser’s bookmark tab or via virtual cart(s). Plus, shopping online can pose more opportunities for saving some money: lots of retailers typically offer discount codes for online users, especially if you sign up for their digital marketing channels (like email and text) and make a purchase.
Shopping online isn’t just shopping, either. The internet can be a stellar research tool to help you vet whether certain products are worth it, where they can be bought, and when they’ll be available. In fact, Google reported that more than half of U.S. holiday shoppers who went into a store last year say they looked up product reviews online and/or located an item in-store by checking it online.
Kaboompics / PEXELS
Last but not least, scrolling gift guides has to be our favorite place to shop for gifts – and not just because we write and publish them.
At their very core, gift guides help streamline the holiday shopping process, alleviating the stress that bubbles up when you’re wondering what the heck to shop for in the first place. Our gift guides are backed by real people, real experiences, and real opinions from our editorial team. We only promote products that we really love and believe in, oftentimes ones we’ve tested and reviewed ourselves.
We have gift guides for just about everyone on your list, with more on the way! Check ‘em out:
Kaboompics / PEXELS
The best kinds of gifts to give are thoughtful gifts that consider the giftee’s interests, wants, and needs. These gifts can be sentimental, practical, or both simultaneously. What matters most in a gift is that it’ll be meaningful to them past just the holiday season, whether it’s helping them get through daily tasks, reminding them of a memorable trip or event, or giving them small doses of joy.
“Shoppers are increasingly looking for personalized and unique gifts that reflect the recipient's personality and interests,” says Mia Anderson, Owner of ChicSew. “With the rise of online shopping, many consumers are opting for curated gift boxes or experiences that add a special touch.”
Cottonbro Studio / PEXELS
Gift boxes, personalized items, books of interest, self-care goodies, and even gift cards can all be thoughtful gifts depending on the recipient. If you have no clue what your giftee is into, it’s not a bad idea to ask them what they want the most!
“My idea of a great gift is something that is in tandem with the recipient's interest and offers something new to the person, be it learning a new skill, enjoying a calming activity, or simply spending quality time with the family,” says Alfred Christ, Sales Manager & Marketer at Robotime. “This season, we encourage shoppers to shift their focus on quality and the memories their gifts will create and not just merely material aspects.”
Sora Shimazaki / PEXELS
Black Friday is always the Friday after Thanksgiving. This year, Black Friday lands on November 29.
Kindel Media / PEXELS
Cyber Monday is typcally the Monday after Thanksgiving. This year, Cyber Monday will land on December 2. Oftentimes, retailers and brands extend their online offers through the week (coined Cyber Week) after the event. Salesforce reported that 67% of shoppers in 2024 plan on shopping during Cyber Week!
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The holidays at Starbucks are creeping up on us, people! Peppermint Mocha season will return on November 7. If you’re a die-hard Starbucks fan, you know Red Cup Day is a whole holiday in itself – the frenzy for a free reusable cup is truly no joke. There’s even an entire website dedicated to counting down the madness! Even though there’s no official word on when Red Cup Day 2024 will be, there are several clues that cue us into the annual event. Scroll on for details!
Starbucks
Red Cup Day is Starbucks’ highly-awaited annual event that marks the start of holiday beverage season at the coffee chain. For one day only (and while supplies last), customers who order any of Starbucks’ holiday drinks will receive a reusable red cup that features a bespoke design for the respective year.
Starbucks
Here’s a list of all the drinks rumored to be available on the Starbucks holiday menu starting November 7:
Starbucks
Starbucks hasn’t officially announced when Red Cup Day will be for 2024, let alone what the famed red cups will look like this go-around. The one obvious point is that the cups will be red! They’ll also likely feature some festive motifs that echo the holiday season. Last year’s red cups boasted playful white and green stars and ornament-like shapes.
Starbucks
Red Cup Day = freebies, which can feel really rewarding if you’re really into receiving free goodies. Plus, it’s just a fun way to lean into the holiday spirit. The red reusable cup keeps giving beyond Red Cup Day, though! Every time you use the reusable cup for future Starbucks orders, you get a 10-cent discount as well as 25 bonus stars toward your Starbucks Rewards account to save up for more discounts on drinks, food, and merchandise.
Starbucks
Again, Starbucks hasn’t alerted us on when Red Cup Day will be for 2024, but based on previous Red Cup Days, we can infer it’ll land on the third Thursday of November. In 2022, Red Cup Day happened on November 17, and for 2023, it was November 16. The third Thursday of November in 2024 hits on November 21, so mark your calendars, everyone!
Additionally, check back here for official info as Red Cup Day approaches.
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This post has been updated.
