Can you believe that in less than 5 months, the holiday season will be upon us?? 2026 is halfway OVER! *mindblown emoji*
So about every six months, I like to look back and see which products earned a permanent spot in my beauty routine. Not the ones that looked pretty on a shelf or sounded good in a marketing campaign – the ones I genuinely used, wore, and recommended over and over again. I’ll call them my “Beauty MVPs!”
Now if you’re curious about the best of the best from the first half of 2026 (in my opinion of course) here’s the short list…
In fact, some of these products you’ll see in this post, you might be sick of hearing about if you read my weekly Saturday column here – because I can’t stop talking about them, Ha! These are the products I’d tell my bestie about if she wanted to know what products I thought were truly worth investing in this year. I’ve done the testing, the comparing, and yes, the money-spending, so you don’t have to.
Key Takeaways
- Best under $15: Palmer’s Cleansing Oil ($10) and Garnier Micellar Water ($12) — both remove a full face of makeup without stripping dry, mature skin.
- Best splurge: Colleen Rothschild Illuminating Tinted Eye Cream ($48) — brightens under-eyes on its own or as a concealer primer.
- Biggest surprise: CoverGirl Simply Ageless Skin Perfector Tint ($13) — a true “your skin but better” finish for around the price of lunch.
- Bottom line: Great skincare is worth investing in. Great color is often not — the drugstore is winning on tint, setting spray, and mascara this year.
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The Best Skincare for Dry, Mature Skin
1. Palmer’s Skin Therapy Cleansing Oil — $10
Why it made the list: It melts off a full face of makeup and leaves skin soft instead of tight.
With more than 12,000 Amazon reviews and a 4.6-star average, this one had a reputation before I ever tried it. My purchase history says I’ve bought it five times now — the moment the bottle gets low, a replacement goes in the cart.
It isn’t a fancy brand or a beautiful package. It’s a non-comedogenic cleansing oil that dissolves everything I wear and leaves my skin clear, soft, and brighter every single time.
Skip if: You prefer a foaming cleanser
Best for: Dry, makeup-heavy days
2. Garnier Micellar Water with Hyaluronic Acid + Aloe — $12
Why it made the list: It’s the lazy-night makeup remover that still does a thorough job.
Soak a cotton round, wipe over the face, done. No rinsing. Skin feels clean and refreshed rather than stripped, and the hyaluronic acid means it never leaves that squeaky, tight feeling. I reach for this over a face wipe every time.
- Best for: Late nights when a full cleanse isn’t happening
- Pairs with: The Palmer’s oil for a double cleanse
3. Colleen Rothschild Moisture Veil Silk Emulsion — $48
Why it made the list: The best makeup base I’ve found for dry skin.
This is a pump-format hydrating cream, which I love because there’s no dipping fingers into a jar. Once it’s on, my skin feels cushioned, nourished, and silky — and my makeup wears beautifully over it all day.
- Best for: Dry to very dry skin
- Texture: Rich but never greasy
4. Colleen Rothschild Illuminating Tinted Eye Cream — $48
Why it made the list: It brightens tired under-eyes with a single drop.
I’ve talked about this one plenty, and it still earns its spot. Wear it alone on a gym morning, or underneath concealer to make the concealer look better. A tiny drop is all you need, so the bottle lasts and lasts. You’ll be as surprised as I am every time you apply it.
- Best for: Dark circles and crepey under-eye texture
- Wear it: Alone, or as a concealer primer
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The Best Drugstore Makeup for Mature Skin
Here’s where the drugstore genuinely outperformed prestige this year.
5. L’Oréal Infallible 3 Second Setting Mist — $13
Why it made the list: My makeup stays put for hours without looking stiff.
This bottle surprised me more than almost anything else in 2026. The aerosol distributes the product far more evenly than a pump sprayer does, and the fine mist never leaves skin looking overdone — just locked in.
One tip that applies to any setting spray: you have to use enough of it. Cover the entire face. I count to five before I stop spraying.
- Best for: Long days, humidity, all-day wear
- How to use: Spray generously, count to five
6. CoverGirl Simply Ageless Skin Perfector Tint — $13
Why it made the list: The most convincing “your skin but better” finish at any price.
CoverGirl impressed me here. The formula uses pigmented capsules that burst as you apply, blending into a sheer, even tint with a genuinely radiant, bare-skin effect. It’s clean and cruelty-free, too.
I wear “medium” in summer and wore “light medium” in spring — and some days I mix the two for the exact right shade. I also raved about it in my under $100 drugstore face post.
- Best for: Light, breathable coverage over 50
- Shade tip: Mix two shades seasonally
7. ColourPop Stone Cold Fox Palette — $35
Why it made the list: Thirty wearable shades for $35, with no filler pans.
Nothing compares to this palette right now. It balances mattes and shimmers across cool tones, neutrals, a couple of warm browns, plums, grays, and silvers — which means it works for a soft daytime eye and a defined evening one out of the same compact. For a 30-shade palette, the price is almost unreasonable.
- Best for: Travel and one-palette wardrobes
- Finish mix: Mattes and shimmers
8. Natasha Denona HyGlam Concealer — $32
Why it made the list: Full coverage that never settles into lines.
I don’t know what’s in this formula, but it’s the best I’ve used. The pointed doe-foot applicator places product exactly where you want it, and the coverage never turns cakey. I keep several shades in my kit and use this on every age range I work on.
I’m wearing N2 here, layered over the Colleen Rothschild tinted eye cream, and I switch to P2 when my under-eyes are darker than usual.
- Best for: Under-eyes on mature skin
- Shades shown: N2, and P2 on darker days
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Tools and Lips
9. BK Beauty Makeup Brushes — various prices
Why it made the list: Your tools matter as much as your products.
The brush you use to apply drugstore makeup can make it look like prestige — and the wrong brush can do the opposite. I own most of the BK Beauty line and use it daily. They feel luxurious without a luxury price tag.
If you’re starting out, my two picks are the brush set for hooded or smaller eyes and the founder’s favorite face brush bundle.
- Best for: Anyone whose makeup looks patchy or heavy
- Start with: The hooded-eye set
10. Buxom Lip Plumping Cream — $26
Why it made the list: A classic gloss formula that delivers shine, comfort, and a fuller-looking lip.
Some products become classics for a reason. These glosses pair with everything; they give that signature tingle, and the shine is unmatched with genuinely decent staying power for a gloss. I own more than ten shades.
I’m wearing “Hot Toddy” here, which I wear constantly. It’s described as a tawny nude but leans slightly pink on me — and it’s so pretty.
- Best for: A fuller lip without liner
- Shade shown: Hot Toddy
Honorable Mentions
Narrowing this to ten was harder than it should have been. Three more I keep reaching for: this L’Oréal mascara, these plumping cream blushes, and this eyeliner, which comes in more colors than you’d believe.
And if you haven’t seen it yet, my Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Beauty Edit breaks down only the cream-of-the-crop beauty deals. The sale ends August 9, and a few things I’d added to my cart already have that dreaded SOLD OUT underneath them.
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