Before you welcome the end of Ramadan and revel in all your Hari Raya celebrations, make sure you’re not forgetting to stock up on your beauty essentials!
As you’re preparing to put your best face forward during visiting, besides indulging in beauty services, a great skincare routine is essential too. The good news is that with the help of these beauty products – some of which promise instant results – you’ll be back in shape in no time at all. Think luminous skin, flawless makeup, and luscious hair.
We’ve picked the best of the best beauty products that’ll have you more than ready to greet guests and be a vision for all to appreciate. Read on for skincare, makeup, and haircare you should invest in, based on your skin type and hair concerns.
Skincare for normal and combination skin
Drunk Elephant C-Firma Fresh Day Serum
Not your ordinary serum, Drunk Elephant‘s C-Firma is incredibly potent with 15% vitamin C and packed full of a powerful antioxidant complex, essential nutrients, and fruit enzymes.
Designed to be mixed by you before the first use, the formula is kept as fresh as possible and even more effective than its vitamin C counterparts. The antioxidant complex includes 15% l-ascorbic acid, 0.5% ferulic acid, and 1% vitamin E — revealing a brighter, firmer, and more even-looking complexion.
The serum’s formula also has pumpkin ferment extract and sodium hyaluronate crosspolymer to help enzymatically dissolve surface dead skin cells while hydrating your skin to be radiant and luminous.
Drunk Elephant C-Firma Fresh Day Serum retails for RM355 on Sephora.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hyaluronic Acid Water Gel
In case you didn’t know, this gel-based moisturiser is highly raved to be a great option to treat combination skin and won’t break the bank either.
Not only does the ultra-refreshing product provides lightweight hydration for oily skin, but it is also formulated to nourish extra dry spots too. Hence, making it a solid choice for those with combo skin.
Resulting in plump and glowing skin, this non-comedogenic (won’t clog your pores) moisturiser is supercharged with hyaluronic acid to help retain water for long-lasting hydration, amino acids to support and strengthen your skin barrier, and electrolytes to boost ingredient absorption.
If you’re an avid user of this moisturiser, the brand also offers refills only.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hyaluronic Acid Water Gel retails for RM65.53 instead of RM77.10 on Watsons. Also available in stores at Watsons and Guardian.
Skincare for dry skin
Laneige Water Sleeping Mask_EX
Wake up with firm and smooth skin with this winning sleeping mask! Featuring a sleeping microbiome and an enhanced pro-biotics complex, this hydrating mask strengthens the skin’s defence to eventually reveal a clear, bright, and well-slept complexion.
With a moist gel-like texture and hypoallergenic formula, this mask contains the powerhouse ingredient squalane which gives intensive overnight hydrating care without feeling too heavy on the skin. This product’s technology works to rebuild skin balance that had been damaged during the day while providing a skin-relaxing effect for better rest.
Laneige Water Sleeping Mask_EX retails for RM59 instead of RM145 on Shopee.
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream
This award-winning moisturiser will answer all your cries about eczema or dry, distressed skin. Rich and fast-absorbing, the soothing cream provides instant relief and long-term hydration.
The Ultra Repair Cream is formulated with colloidal oatmeal, a skin protectant, that will leave your skin feeling smooth, hydrated, and comfortable after just one use. It also contains shea butter, an emollient rich in vitamins, minerals, and essential fatty acids.
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream (170g) retails for RM172.50 on LOOKFANTASTIC.
Skincare for sensitive skin
Avène Tolérance Control Soothing Skin Recovery Cream
Quench your skin with this daily moisturiser that’s made to hydrate dry, reactive, intolerant, hypersensitive, and allergy-prone skin. Enriched with the famous Avène thermal spring water, the gentle formula can calm your skin in 30 seconds and works to support the skin’s natural barrier while balancing its microbiome.
Your skin will thank you for being left super moisturised and with its barrier restored in 48 hours. Plus, the Sterile Cosmetics® tube protects the formula from the outside air and bacteria.
This recovery cream is also safe to use for children.
Avène Tolérance Control Soothing Skin Recovery Cream retails for RM79.50 instead of RM113 on LOOKFANTASTIC. Also available in stores at Watsons and Guardian.
Cetaphil Bright Healthy Radiance Instant Radiance Mask
Clinically proven to improve your skin’s radiance and visibly reduce dullness and fine lines from the first use, Cetaphil‘s latest product in its Bright Healthy Radiance range is a mask-have.
Made with the brand’s GentleBright Technology™, which ensures that it’s suitable for sensitive skin with 24-hour hydration, one mask is equivalent to two weeks’ worth of the Cetaphil Bright Healthy Radiance Perfecting Serum. That means you’ll be enjoying seven times the benefits of luminous skin and improving your skin texture.
It also defends against the five signs of skin sensitivity: dryness, irritation, roughness, tightness, and a weakened skin barrier. For an ultimate skin boost, use this mask alongside the other products in the Bright Healthy Radiance range.
Cetaphil Bright Healthy Radiance Instant Radiance Mask is currently unavailable in Malaysia but retails for S$20.20 instead of S$26.90 on Shopee. Also available in stores at Watsons, Guardian, Unity, FairPrice, and Cold Storage in Singapore.
Makeup for normal and combination skin
IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream Full-Coverage Foundation with SPF 50+
A blessing for every skin type, even sensitive, this full-coverage foundation is also a hydrating and anti-ageing serum and a broad-spectrum SPF 50+ sunscreen.
It can easily camouflage any skin imperfections like wrinkles, redness, acne scars, large pores, and dark eye circles to give you a flawless and natural base. Simultaneously, the colour-correcting cream includes niacinamide, vitamin E, and hyaluronic acid to keep your skin hydrated.
The brand has also worked with dermatologists and plastic surgeons to extend the shade range and introduce clear SPF50+ in the deeper shades without any white cast!
IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream Full-Coverage Foundation with SPF 50+ retails for RM185 on Sephora. The new darker shades are available for about RM170.20 at Selfridges.
Milk Makeup Matte Bronzer
The pure definition of small but mighty, this little cream bronzer stick can be used for up to 1,000 swipes and provides a natural definition for your face.
If you’re yearning for a sun-kissed, chiselled look for Raya, this could be the missing product you need. Made with mango butter and apricot oil, the bronzer stick glides onto the skin like a dream and hydrates your skin too. It also blends effortlessly, is buildable, and has a rich coconut scent.
Milk Makeup Matte Bronzer retails for RM117.67 on Amazon.
Makeup for dry skin
Maybelline Fit Me Dewy + Smooth Foundation
Bid farewell to a cakey, patchy base and blend your way to an even and stunning complexion! Dermatologist-tested and fragrance-free, this drugstore gem hydrates your skin without being greasy, doesn’t dry out your skin, and protects your skin with SPF 23.
Its creamy and illuminating texture gives a finish that rivals its luxury counterparts. And as a lightweight fluid, it’s buildable and non-comedogenic too.
Maybelline Fit Me Dewy + Smooth Foundation retails for RM53.90 on Maybelline.
Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder
This cult favourite remains at the helm as the best translucent setting powder the beauty market has to offer. It comes in three shades of buildable coverage and with a translucent pigment that can fit a wide range of skin tones.
Keeping your makeup on for up to 16 hours, this non-drying powder maintains the colour of your base, has a 24-hour shine control, and gives an iconic soft-focus finish with zero flashbacks. Meaning to say, it’s absolutely perfect for a whole day of Hari Raya festivities and photo taking!
Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder retails for RM220 on Sephora.
Makeup for sensitive skin
Estée Lauder Futurist Hydra Rescue Moisturizing Foundation SPF 45
We love a makeup product that serves as skincare and sunscreen too! Dermatologist- and ophthalmologist-tested, this foundation is formulated specifically for sensitive skin. Better yet, it’s infused with skin-loving ingredients like vitamin E, chia-seed extract, and ion-charged water complex to keep your reactive skin soothed and nourished.
With medium to full coverage, the buildable foundation can cover any skin imperfections without weighing down the skin with its breathable formula. Coming in 28 shades, it works well on mature skin too as it doesn’t settle into fine lines and wrinkles.
You’ll be sure to wow your loved ones with your glow during Hari Raya celebrations!
Estée Lauder Futurist Hydra Rescue Moisturizing Foundation SPF 45 retails for RM241.70 on Nordstrom.
Chantecaille Cheek Gelée Hydrating Gel-Cream Blush
Blush is arguably the most important tool to help you show off a superb sun-kissed Raya makeup look. This hydrating gel-cream blush is free of harmful ingredients, has great staying power, and can be used on both the eyes and cheeks.
With a fragrance- and oil-free formula, one drop will give you a rich, vibrant pigment and sheer luminosity for that healthy, coveted glow.
Chantecaille Cheek Gelée Hydrating Gel-Cream Blush retails for RM232.03 on Nordstrom.
Haircare for dry and dull hair
Kérastase Nutritive 8H Magic Night Serum
Sometimes, going for regular hair treatments can empty your wallet faster than you realise. Why not invest in quality hair products that can give you the same results, even those of high-end salons?
This leave-in, overnight serum is the perfect addition to your haircare routine the night before Hari Raya. It contains iris root extract that continually nurtures and coats your hair fibres while reversing the loss of nutrients. Meanwhile, its five-vitamin blend seals and anchors nutrients to give a satin finish.
Absorbed over eight hours, you’ll wake up with nourished, detangled, and lustrous locks, and you won’t need to rinse it off either. Truly the opposite of “you snooze, you lose”. Your soft and protected hair will also be ready for any styling, should you require it.
Kérastase Nutritive 8H Magic Night Serum retails for RM282 on Zalora.
Haircare for frizzy hair
Briogeo Farewell Frizz Blow Dry Perfection & Heat Protectant Crème
This highly effective and ethical formula will eradicate frizz for all hair types, including coloured and permed locks!
The lightweight cream uses the brand’s well-known Farewell Frizz trio of argan, rosehip, and coconut oils to tame your hair, anticipate and prevent future frizz, and work seamlessly into your styling routine. It can even guard your hair against heats of up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit (232.22 degrees Celsius) while its proprietary NOVA Complex locks in heat and moisture to protect your tresses from humidity.
You’ll be left with no flyaways, smooth and glossy hair, and a jaw-dropping Hari Raya hairstyle.
Briogeo Farewell Frizz Blow Dry Perfection & Heat Protectant Crème retails for RM172 on Ubuy.
Haircare for limp and greasy hair
amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo
When Raya visiting becomes a daily thing and your schedule gets busier, your hair may get duller and greasy, especially in our hot and humid weather. Enters a handy solution that’ll leave your second-day hair refreshed and volumised.
This talc-free dry shampoo cleans your hair by absorbing excess oil and dirt that weighs down your locks. And unlike other dry shampoos that use aluminium shavings, amika’s Perk Up Dry Shampoo is enhanced with natural rice starch. It also includes sea buckthorn berry extracts that condition your hair and leaves it soft and manageable.
Other than giving a clean and sweet scent, this dry shampoo’s formula (and all of amika’s products’) are free from over 1,300 questionable chemicals.
amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo retails for RM183 on Ubuy.
