These 7 Products Made Our Best Friends Ask If We Had Work Done
Consider us flattered.
by The Candidly Team
It’s very hard not to get overwhelmed by how many skincare products are out there saying they’ll do the same thing. It leaves us like deer in the headlights, sick to death of sponsored TikTok claims. Paralyzed about what to try. And ugh … so, soooo nervous we’ll choose wrong and our dollars will be wasted and our skin will wither as a result.
We say all this as 40-plus-year-old beauty editors, being paid to be your guinea pigs, so we can only imagine how you feel. Well, we are here to hopefully help. Because today, we share with you the products that landed us with wild before and afters, emotional moments in front of the mirror, and questions from friends, spouses, parents, loved ones, and strangers on the internet of “did you get work done?”
We have been nothing short of blown away by these things. Some were sent to us for free (we wouldn’t be able to afford to guinea pig ourselves for you otherwise) but every single one we would buy again. Most we cannot go a week without. And here they are:
1. The Most Transformative Product We’ve Tried This Year
WHAT: Sunday Riley Good Genes All-In-One AHA Lactic Acid Treatment
WHY: Don’t be scared off by the fact that you might have no idea what a lactic acid treatment even is. We didn’t. But we’d been hearing so many raving, almost hard-to-believe reviews about this product that we felt we owed it to ourselves to try it. And before we say anything else, we’re just gonna show you our results after two weeks of use:
We shared this photo on our social channels and immediately got comments accusing us of getting filler. We decided to try to take that as a compliment.
In a way, it doesn’t fall easily into any existing category of skincare that we knew about. But essentially it’s a formula that uses lactic acid to exfoliate in a way that makes your skin look mildly reborn, so fresh, dewy, cleared of lines, redness, blemishes (which almost seem to dissolve before your eyes). At the same time, it moisturizes and soothes the skin, so what’s left is bright and hydrated as well as clarified. This is critical to women with mature and more easily irritated skin, because it does all of these things without stripping. In fact, it’s a dream for sensitive skin.
How you use it: All you do is apply 1 or 2 pumps to the skin and leave it. If you’re extra sensitive, you can keep it on for 15 minutes and wash off. We use it at night, and it has basically replaced our entire evening skincare routine. If you run dry, you can add a moisturizer after, but it’s shocking how many products are rendered unnecessary once you start using this.
Price: $122
2. The Moisturizer That Makes Good On Its Promises
WHAT: Kinship Super Rich Firming Face Cream
WHY: Isn’t firming what we’re all really after in our anti-aging skincare quest? It’s the thing that actually makes the difference - more than fine lines, more than texture. The problem is that the word gets overused in the land of skincare to the point that we stopped even noticing it on packaging. But this cream from Kinship is the real deal. You can look at the stats - 100% saw firmed, smoothed, hydrated skin - 87% saw plumping (another word that fills us with desire). But for one of us, it was having her husband ask why her skin looked so amazing, which was as much a win as a stranger asking if she had work done in her book
It’s filled with plant-based ceramides that quench the skin and redness-reducing pre-probiotics, but the real magic comes from collagen peptides sourced from Icelandic algae (sounds like magic, no?), and this is where all that “firming” and “plumping” comes into play. It’s designed to boost and restore collagen longterm, but the anti-aging effects are very noticeable very quickly.
How to use it: As a moisturizer - day or night (though it’s rich, so choose night if you have to choose one).
Price: $45
3. The Anti-Aging Vitamin C Serum We Will Never, Ever Be Without
WHAT: Skinceuticals C E Ferulic
WHY: Vitamin C is one of 3 things proven to be anti-aging with real, science-backed results. We test out new formulas all the time (part of the job), but we would be lying if we didn’t say that this is the most effective. We have written about it as our “desert island” product that we just can’t risk omitting from our routine.
The powerful vitamins C and E formula targets wrinkles, lines, and yep, promotes firmness. There are incredible before and after photos on their site that demonstrate this. But we are personally addicted to the immediate, radiant glow after application. Take a look:
How to use it: Put about 4 drops on the fingers. This is key because it’s not cheap but it lasssts. Then just press it on your clean skin. No rubbing necessary. Follow with moisturizer and other skincare. We like it in the AM for that sunlit look.
And you can use the code CANDIDLY to get 15% off.
Price: $182
4. The Closest Thing We’ve Ever Had To A Professional Chemical peel At Home
WHAT: iS Clinical Active Peel Treatment System
WHY: We wrote about this as being one of only a small number of things we use at home that feel like we made a trip to the facialist. And honestly, almost everything we’ve tried from iS Clinical has given us a real “whoa, how did I ever live without this?” moment. It’s called a peel system, but don’t be intimidated; it’s just two pads you use one after the other. You’ll notice right away that it’s remarkably powerful - the sort of product you can feel working, yet it takes almost zero time to apply and results are immediate. The first pad is a gentle botanical exfoliation formula that tones and smooths your skin like it’s on steroids. The second pad is just deeeeep hydration. We notice looking look supple, bouncier, and resurfaced after each use, and you don’t have to use it every day to get ongoing results.
How to use it: The brand recommends using it every other day. We’ve honestly been happy doing it just twice a week, though we love to use it the night before we have an “occasion” to look especially good for. All you do swipe pad #1 all over your face. Leave it on for 3 minutes, and have something to fan yourself ready cause it can get that hot kind of cool. Follow with pad #2 and poof, you’re done. Every case has a set for 30 days.
Use the code CANDIDLY to get 15% off.
Price: $96
5. The Holy Grail Face Oil That Changed Our Skin
WHAT: Furtuna Skin Due Alberi Biphase Moisturizing Oil
WHY: Of course we have to talk about Furtuna’s liquid gold oil. Truth be told, we’re almost as sick of writing about it as you probably are of reading about it if you spend any time at all on this site. But what can we say? This is the holy grail. The line-melting potion that makes us look like someone lit a lamp under our skin, and therefore, we feel required to write about. It’s won many awards, and we imagine it’s because there is so much plumping power packed into this little bottle. It is not remotely cheap, the brand being incredibly selective about its ingredients, but because you only use a few drops, it takes forever to run out.
Here is a before after of one of our chest lines after 6 weeks of using it:
Use the code CANDIDLY20 to get 20% off.
Price: Starting at $100
6. The SPF That Makes You Glow To The Heavens
WHAT: True Botanicals Skin Barrier Sun Shield SPF 30
WHY: Our Editor-in-Chief tried this product and her glow was so sudden and perplexing every one of us separately asked what she was using, and she had to tell us, it’s my SPF. Granted, it’s also a gorgeous skin tint and dewy moisturizer, but still it was wild and exciting to think our sunscreen could do all this.
SPF is also one of those 3 skincare things we mentioned that’s proven to be anti-aging, which is no great surprise given that the sun is responsible for about 90% of skin aging.
Anyhow, here’s a little look at our EIC wearing only THIS SPF with THIS blush, which, sidenote, also gives the most blinding but not fake-looking glow.
How to use it: Last step before you step out. Reapply as needed for renewed protection and to look like you simultaneously have just spent a day at the beach and have never spent a minute in range of a UV ray.
Price: $65
7. The Serum That Brought Back Our Bounce
WHAT: iS Clinical Active Serum
WHY: You’ve probably heard of this serum. It’s famous for its ability to diminish the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, pores, blemishes, and unevenness. And we have to wholeheartedly agree that it deserves its fame. Hydration gets to be a boring word in the world of skincare, but it really is what’s making you look younger. And this serum amplifies hydration. It’s another thing you just have to dab on after moisturizer to feel like you did something powerfully anti-aging. In fact, when asked by her mom if she really doesn’t get any procedures done, one of our editors replied “no, any change you see right now is all thanks to iS Clinical,” most especially this serum. And we think that so perfectly sums it up.
How to use it: Dab about 4 drops all over your face and neck (the usual serum deal). We use it at night, and it can basically interchange with night cream, it’s that moisturizing. Plus, it saves you product.
Use code CANDIDLY to get 15% off.
Price: Starting at $92
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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