Talk Of The Team: 10 Products mbg Beauty Editors Adored In April

The bedrock of any good skin longevity routine is a good sunscreen. You can invest in all the collagen-restoring ingredients and pricey gadgets you can get your hands on—but if you don’t protect your vulnerable skin from excess UV exposure, it’s a waste. Is $40 a bit pricey for a sunscreen? Perhaps, but if you’ve yet to find a formula you’ll actually commit to, I’d wager this one will make you genuinely excited to slather on. 

While zinc oxide is notoriously difficult to blend, this formula comes with a peachy-pink hue to help neutralize the cast. And thanks to ceramides, peptides, hyaluronic acid, and allantoin, it doesn’t just sit well under makeup—it actually enhances it by leaving behind a dewy, plump film over your pores. From a skin care-first makeup brand like Kosas, I would expect nothing less.  —Jamie Schneider, mbg beauty editor

Body care is how I ground myself: taking a moment of pause to coat my skin with a comforting lotion or cream; rinsing a long day off in the shower and allowing myself to feel renewed again; protecting my precious skin with an anointment of oils. This rich body cream is like a blanket of deep moisture—it slides over my body, then sinks in feeding my skin nutrient-rich botanicals.

A few I like to highlight: organic aloe vera is a humectant that can help smooth texture, mango seed butter is an emolient that's a natural source of skin supporting vitamin C, and tucuma seed oil is fueled by beta-carotene, a healthy aging powerhouse. —Alexandra Engler, mbg beauty director

Phlur’s Missing Person fragrance isn’t new to the market, but the transportable fragrance oil version is—and it’s worth a second round of applause. The scent was designed to smell familiar to all, as the scent of your own skin or that of your lovers is. In detail, the blend includes floral hints of jasmine and fresh orange blossom and fused with a light trail of soft woods, altogether providing a scent that can only be described as grounding. With the new oil roller ball format, you’ll be able to soak up this scent on the go, grounding yourself in any situation, place, or crowd. —Hannah Frye, mbg assistant beauty editor

This month's theme is grounded, and I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge what we're grounded to—the earth—and how our beauty products affect our precious home. Sustainability in beauty is a complicated conversation, and our approach is to be as thoughtful as possible very step of the way (even when it costs us time and energy).

For example, the formula is made with biodegradable, plant-derived surfactants made from renewable resources. This is important as wash off formulas almost immediately re-enter the water supply, and ingredients in the formula should be biodegradable as not to pollute these precious ecosystems. (For context: lots of cleaning agents aren't.) The formula itself is created and filled in a factory powered by wind energy. It's housed in aluminum bottles, which are not only endlessly recyclable — but have a higher probability of actually being recycled. Then it's shipped in boxes made from recycled paper that land on your doorstep. —Engler

My daily makeup routine isn’t complete without a few fundamentals: a taupe tinted brow gel, a peachy cream blush, and a juicy lip oil. The latter is fabulous for just a kiss of color and shine without looking like you dollopped on a goopy gloss, and recently, I’ve been keeping Merit’s ultra-sheer formulas on my person. 

The brand’s new Shade Slick Gelées provide a very light tint of color in four equally swoon-worthy shades inspired by early Y2K. Each drenches your pout with squalane and quinoa seed oil and keeps looking supple over time, but I’m especially impressed by this Jeté shade—an everyday nude that fills out lip lines and enhances your natural color.  —Schneider

Scalp care can be confusing—should you use a serum? Exfoliant? How should you massage? If you’ve ever wanted to get into scalp care but find it daunting, this set is a dream come true.

First, you get the pre-wash treatment that helps to gently exfoliate the scalp and clear buildup. Massage it in with the lovely crystal gua sha comb, then leave it in for five minutes before rinsing. Post-wash, apply the daily serum throughout the scalp and massage it in with the comb to help hydrate and renew the scalp. Personally, I find the ritual of massaging my scalp incredibly grounding, especially when using a crystal tool like this. Not to mention, it’s high-quality scalp care made simple. —Frye

Scent memories are quite powerful, and this complex floral instantly transports me to a hot summer evening at my family’s home in Rosanky, Texas: the dried pine needles scattered across the lawn, the wildflowers poking up from the garden, the campfire ash clinging to my clothes. Gloam essentially grounds me with just a spritz. 

I also tend to fall in love with just about any perfume that features pink peppercorn. It’s an ingredient often formulated in subtle skin scents, thanks to its spicy yet delicate aroma, and it often gives a fragrance that special something. But the perfume itself is inspired by landscapes—both real and perceived spaces—that feel comfortable, intimate, and serene. I’d say Aesop absolutely nailed it. —Schneider

There’s arguably nothing more grounding than playing with clay. To slather your face in the Earth’s purifying minerals feels quite on par with this month’s theme, but unfortunately, clays do tend to be quite drying. This creamy new formula, however, adds snow mushroom extract (a humectant that can famously hold 500x its weight in moisture) to the kaolin and bentonite base, which means it will never strip the skin. 

I can certainly attest: After washing off the lightweight formula, I was left positively radiant. I can also thank the blend of five fruit AHAs for my brighter skin tone, as well as echinacea, an adaptogen that helps enhance skin’s resilience to stress. —Schneider

If there’s anything that brings me down to Earth in stressful times, it’s intentional self-care. For me, massaging my body with oils is a must, and this body melt is my newest favorite tool. When I say it has a tropical scent, I’m not referring to the classic coconut and pineapple artificial-smelling profile, I more so mean it smells like you’re in a tropical rainforest. The divine aroma is created using yuzu extract, passionfruit oil, superberry camu camu, and rich buriti oil. Of course it’s deeply nourishing and adds lasting radiance, but the dynamic blend also exfoliates the skin via gentle poly-hydroxy acids. —Frye

First of all, I love Abel founder Frances Shoemack’s “one in, one out” approach to product launches: For each new fragrance she adds to the repertoire, she takes one of the existing, similarly constructed favorites off the market. This not only minimizes excess and makes the process more sustainable but it also inherently breeds innovation—the brand works towards making each fragrance good enough to replace its own kin. 

This month, the brand launched Black Anise, a moody, spicy number to replace their beloved Grey Labdanum. Shoemack describes the scent profile as rich, bold, and meant for rule breakers. I can see why: Upon first spritz, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the licorice-like top notes (which stem from star anise), but it actually develops beautifully on the skin. Now, I can’t get enough! The tobacco base and vibrant, smoky amber mingle together to create something so sophisticated and just plain sexy. The verdict? This is my official date night perfume. —Schneider