New Additions 2020

Welcome to New Additions 2020! In case my New Additions posts are new to you, they’re basically where I round up my absolute favorite finds of the year. It takes a lot to make my New Additions list; I am a beauty and skincare junkie, I got through a LOT of products each year, and I am ruthless when it comes to dismissing items which don’t make the cut in improving my day-to-day life.

I case you missed them, here are past entries:

New Additions 2017
New Additions 2018
New Additions 2019

Please note that nothing here or in any of my New Additions posts is sponsored!

Probably my favorite part of these posts is reading about YOUR New Additions in the comments, so be sure to share them below! Without further ado, here are the products that I not only discovered in 2020, but that I fell in love with enough to keep in the rotation and even recommend…

BEAUTY

Youth To The People Superfood Antioxidant Cleanser ($36): I’ve had an if-it-ain’t-broke perspective on cleanser for awhile and have been a longtime Philosophy Purity loyalist. And don’t get me wrong, Purity is still bar none the best cleanser I’ve ever used in terms of makeup removal. Unless you wear stubborn waterproof mascara on a daily basis, I’d go so far as to say you hardly need makeup remover with Purity.

However, with Purity, I became pretty used to seeing a noticeable amount of leftover gunk on my bamboo rounds (below) after a swipe of toner. After watching my share of Hyram’s Youtube videos, I learned that shouldn’t be happening. Basically, your toner shouldn’t be working overtime as a retroactive cleanser. So, I took a chance on his consistently recommended favorite, this Youth To The People cleanser. And trust me, he did not lead me astray!

This is really the goldilocks of cleansers. It has a lovely, gentle lather but isn’t too lather-y or stripping. It removes all of my makeup, which at a glance (based on the cleanser’s transparency and consistency) I was not expecting. It doesn’t sting my eyes in the slightest, something I encounter with most cleansers I try. The scent is subtle and never sickening. It really does get your skin squeaky clean, but sans a dry, tight feeling. As an added bonus, the company really cares about sustainability, as evidenced by the recycled materials they use and the recyclability of their packaging. (Given the mind-blowing amount of waste in the beauty industry, this is really something to celebrate.) Tip: I’ve heard you can even remove the silkscreen print off the glass bottle to reuse it for other purposes (eg. a minimalist hand soap dispenser).

I personally credit this cleanser with combatting and officially overcoming my brush with 2020’s dreaded “maskne”. If that doesn’t earn a product New Additions-worthy status, I don’t know what does.

First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Wild Oat Hydrating Toner ($22): If you read my Summer 2020 Empties post, this won’t come as any surprise. I won’t repeat myself after raving about this stuff over there, but suffice to say this toner is keeper. I use it around eyes and on my neck during the day, using P50 on the rest of my face. At night, I apply it to my entire face and neck before applying my nighttime treatment products.

This is one of those rare products that has changed the way I view skincare, focusing more on protecting my skin’s barrier and maintaining a less-is-more approach. It’s aiming to nurture rather than actively (or aggressively) “treat”. It has been positively transformative to my skin in terms of dryness and flaking, and I credit it for finally getting me over the retinol acclimation hump.

The cherry on top is the affordable price—I would honestly pay way more for the results I get with this stuff…. but don’t tell First Aid Beauty that. :)

Laura Mercier Flawless Fusion Ultra Longwear Concealer ($29): This concealer finally deserves love proportionate to the amount I use it. Historically, I’ve been pretty unloyal when it comes to concealers, and I’ve been known to flit from brand to brand, looking for my Holy Grail. But when I tried this one on a whim, partially based on its stellar reviews, I was converted.

I’m not sure if I’ve ever found another concealer as natural-looking as this one—it provides medium coverage, which, if you’re like me and just like to use concealer sparingly, is perfect. I often find concealers are either high coverage and difficult to blend, or they’re easy to blend but give crappy coverage. This stuff is the perfect happy-medium; it’s easy and forgiving to blend, but doesn't disappear when you blend it. It gives a dewy and impossibly skin-like finish. Its stays put reasonably well throughout the day, especially with a little powder to help it out. IT NEVER CREASES IN MY UNDER EYES. (This alone earns it a spot on this list.) It’s just a pleasure to use all around.

Best of all, I have a perfect color match in this stuff, which tends to be difficult for my half-Asian complexion—most concealers tend to veer too golden or too pink. (For my fellow hapas, I use 2W!) I’ve repurchased this multiple times now. My wandering eye has led me to try other concealers in this past year but I inevitably come crawling back to this one.

Benefit Roller Lash Curling & Lifting Mascara ($26): I was frankly annoyed when I discovered how much I liked this mascara. ANNOYED, I tell you. I’ve always used and had no issue with my go-to mascara, Maybelline’s Voluminous, and have not-so-secretly loved that my Holy Grail was under $10. But… duh duh duh… I got a “deluxe sample” of Roller Lash in one of my Sephora orders and my mascara world got turned upside down. I often use those mascara samples once or twice before tossing them as they’ve never come close to comparing to Voluminous. But with Roller Lash, I not only finished the entire sample tube, but then proceeded to buy a full size, and then another full size after that. Eek.

Why do I love this stuff? It gives a great balance of volume and length, and while it would take a miracle for a mascara alone to be able to “curl” my stubbornly straight lashes, this stuff doesn’t LOOSEN my curl, which is huge for me. (This is a problem I have with mascaras, where the “wetness” of the formula promptly undoes my eyelash curler’s hard work.) Roller Lash doesn’t clump, and I like how you don’t need to wipe off excess—the wand exits its tube perfectly coated with the exact right amount of product. It’s shockingly run-proof, and after being out in the rain, I’ve been amazed to come home to discover no raccoon eyes. Considering it’s not advertised as waterproof, and it washes off really easily, this is impressive. (Bear in mind, this is while using a different mascara on my lower lashes, which you may recall I mentioned in my All About Lashes post.)

Now, am I going to claim Roller Lash is worth THREE times the price of Voluminous? Ehh, probably not. Voluminous is an insane value for how good it is. In fact, I would say Voluminous layers better than Roller Lash. But Roller Lash keeps my lashes better lifted and perky-looking, which is something I have a harder time finding. Suffice to say, I have both in my arsenal!

AmorePacific Moisture Bound Skin Energy Hydration Mist ($35): I’ve never put too much stock in any product labeled as a “mist”. Mists have always felt a bit hokey and like a product you couldn’t possibly need. This stuff has proven me wrong.

I’ve been lucky enough to be on AmorePacific’s PR list and I have been gifted some fantastic stuff over the years. (I do pick favorites and theirs is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE PR delivery—I literally cheer when I get a package from them to the point where Andy actually recognizes the brand name.) You know by now, though, that my positive reviews can’t be bought with gifting. I’ve been gifted many products over the years which I’ve given a solid “meh” ratings. So don’t write off my praise as transactional–I first got this mist in a mini size as part of a holiday kit from the brand, but have repurchased the full size with my own money several times since.

At first I figured I’d use this stuff just to not waste it, but I pretty quickly realized it was bonafide magic on my skin. I use it two ways: I either pat it on my face after my toner and before my serum (that “liquid application”, as they call it), or (more often) I mist it over my fully made-up face, like a setting spray, giving my finished face a lovely, natural-looking, dewy fish. It hydrates my skin in a way no moisturizer seems to, but never allows it to veer into greasy-looking territory.

Using this in conjunction with the First Aid Beauty toner (above) has been my dream team combo for staving off Winter dryness, when I normally struggle with unbearable flakiness. I do enjoy all of AmorePacific’s products (I have yet to find a single product I dislike), but their stuff tends to fall on the pricey side—I mention this to point out how surprisingly affordable this stuff is. It’s certainly the best AmorePacific product I’ve used in terms of bang for buck.

FASHION

Unsurprisingly, I have no New Additions in the fashion department. 2020 was all about casual comfort and there were no discoveries on my end worthy of adding to this list. You know I hate to force anything on these posts and won’t recommend something I don’t genuinely love, so no fashion New Additions this year!

LIFE

Saalt Menstrual Cup ($29): I’d been hearing about menstrual cups (not to mention the well-documented love for them) for awhile. But it wasn’t until pandemic times (when I realized just HOW. MANY. TAMPONS. I was going through) that I decided to try one out for myself. (Something about not being out and about and on-the-go all the time really puts into perspective how much you use of what!) While I don’t think my “flow” is any more extreme than the next woman’s, there was no denying I was going through several boxes a year. And when you take into account the amount of wasteful packaging and plastic… well, it adds up. It turns out tampons, pads, and liners generate 200, 000 tons of waste per year, and nearly all of them contain plastic. Yikes.

Even if you don’t care too much about the environmental impact, this thing is pretty life-changing from a functional standpoint. After getting past the initial learning curve of angles, depth, and suction, I haven’t experienced a single “accident” (which is really saying something considering all the times in my life things have gone awry in the period department... hey, we’ve all been there). Without having to routinely buy period supplies, this cup paid for itself after about 4 months. Personally, I chose to go with Saalt when I read about the ways they give back, but from what I can tell most brands’ cups do seem to work similarly!

But even past the environmental friendliness, impressive functionality, and longterm savings, this cup has transformed the way I interact with my period, and in some ways, my body. Yes, it’s way more intimate and graphic than quickly disposing of a tampon or pad, but at the risk of sounding dramatic, at the same time it’s almost an awe-inspiring experience. I’m so much more aware of what’s going on down there now, and every month I feel a sense of amazement at what our bodies do without our even realizing it. My menstrual cup has changed my relationship with my period, period… it has gone from this irritating monthly occurrence to an event I truly don’t mind, and possibly even… enjoy? (That seems crazy to put in writing but it’s true). In short, I’ve gone from one of those people who saw the menstrual cup devotees as kind of cult-ish to officially being a proud member of said cult. :)

Bamboo Reusable Makeup Remover Rounds ($7-14): I realize I’m late to the bamboo rounds party. I don’t know why it took me so long; I think it was a purchase I knew I’d get around to eventually but just slept on. Well, over a year later after my initial (and sole) purchase of bamboo rounds, I can officially declare myself a convert.

As with the menstrual cup, these are simply way better for the environment than regularly using (and disposing of) cotton rounds or balls. They really keep up even after countless trips to the washing machine and, without routinely buying cotton rounds, have more than paid for themselves over time. As bonuses, the texture gives a bit of gentle exfoliation, and the pads themselves are pretty big, which is surprisingly useful. (In my case, since I now use two different toners on different parts of my face, with a surface area so large, I can use one toner on each half of the round.)

Not much else to say about these. They’re great and should be in your bathroom if they’re not already.

UBeesize Selfie Ring Light with Tripod (~$30): This ring light may not be pictured, but that unto itself is a sign of how well-used and beloved it is. Scroll up to the first two photos—you can see it working hard in the bottom right corner of both. I sometimes photoshop out ring light reflections but figured I’d leave them in here for demonstrative purposes. :)

Those of you who tuned into my first Ask Me Anything video chat in January heard me mention this ring light. I shared how, when I appeared back on TV for the GOAT recap of my season, I was sent this ring light in the mail by the show. It appears it’s their go-to for basic TV-friendly video calls.

To put it simply, this thing is fantastic. I already owned a classic large ring light (HERE) but I find this smaller size to be far more versatile, especially if you have more than one and can place them according to your needs, lighting, and space constraints. It’s dimmable, has 3 different tones (regular, cool, and warm), and has an adjustable neck, so you can literally twist the ring sideways. I now own 4 of these (yes, FOUR)—we use three for Dear Shandy episodes, and since one has been acting up lately, I have a fourth in the closet as a backup.

An added bonus is that the tripods themselves are really versatile and useful on their own, without the ring light affixed. It’s lightweight enough to carry around in your tote, yet shockingly durable. (It’s more sturdy than similar-sized tripods I’ve bought as tripods alone.) I’ve used this tripod to take my own photos on my recent opera contract in Seattle—examples here and here.

If I have to mention a con, it’s the wiring. One light has a tendency to flicker if it’s at maximum brightness, while the other disconnects from power depending on how the wire is twisted. Nonetheless, for the price and overall bang for buck ratio, it’s still a fantastic value, especially for how long and how hard I use these. If you’ve been needing a light for your Zoom meeting (or podcast!) needs, I highly recommend this one.

That’s it for my 2020 favorite finds!
Any discoveries of yours I should know about? I am always on the lookout, so let me know in the comments below...

Thanks for stopping by!