Beauty News

The best beauty highlights of 2017

As we get set to welcome a shiny new year we look back on the best beauty highlights of 2017 – from the crème de la crème of skin care to the internet-breaking make up the beauty world held its collective breath for – here’s a look back at the hits from another incredible year of {Cult Beauty}

Arriving in time to ‘spring clean’ your skin care regime, Indie Lee’s super-natural range of botanical lotions and blogger-approved potions arrived on our site back in January – bringing a welcome shot of Californian sunshine to the darkest depths of winter. Brimming with potent plant extracts (without any comedogenic synthetics), the pink Rosehip Cleanser and CoQ-10 Toner proved immediate hits with discerning CB-devotees…

Purveyors of palettes to whet even make up-averse appetites, Violet Voss joined our formidable cosmetics force back in Feb, bringing glitter to what is a typically pretty s**t month. Her range of {Super Sparkles} fuelled our burgeoning obsession with adornment, while the Nicol Concilio eyeshadow edit brought us twenty new hues to lust over…

Fuelling our matte lip obsessive, Lime Crime joined our make up ranks in March to revolutionise our lip wear wardrobes. Boasting nearly-nude hues and bold, avant-garde shades to inject some ‘pizazz’ to our tried-and-tested make up menus, the Matte Velvetines cloak kisses with incredible (indelible) pigment, while the Perlees perfect pouts with soft, shimmering colour instantly updates go-to beauty looks.

Bringing some Brazilian sunshine to Great British springtime, {Sol de Janeiro} flew into CB during April – just in time to ensure über-soft, beach-ready skin and ‘lifted’ bottoms worthy of the itsy-bitsiest bikini. The aptly named {Bum Bum Cream} caused a furore when it first arrived at CBHQ – delectably scented, this is a summer holiday distilled into the richest, most indulgent body cream of LIFE – and don’t get us started on {4 Play}… the cheekily entitled body wash that’s guaranteed to banish Monday blues…

Having graced the ever-envied cheekbones of the supermodel Jourdan Dunn, {ICONIC London’s} edit of to-die-for highlighters, foundation sticks and pro-quality brushes became part of the Cult Beauty make up family in May. The incredible range of cosmetic essentials sparked *heart eyes* all over our Instagram feed, while the molten metallic glow-bestowing drops kept us glued to our phone screens for dayz… and now they’ve new game-changing {Eyebrow Cushions} to ensure immaculate arches…

Cutting-edge formulations at pocket-money prices, {The Ordinary} MADE our June. These vials of super serum have democratised the skin care industry – bringing age-defying formulations to the masses with their youth-boosting, line-freezing, plumping and brightening actives. A veritable feast for all complexions, “Buffet” is consistently bestselling – targeting every concern with its potent concoction of actives.

Skin care for make up mavens, Farsáli’s specialist blends hit our virtual aisles in July – promising to revolutionise your make up application. Boasting skin-loving extracts to battle breakouts, replenish precious moisture and soothe signs of irritation, the world went berserk for the Unicorn Essence – a pink serum-primer that bestows a beautiful, luminous glow while deflecting the ageing effects of pollutants.

Hailing from Hawaii, Leahlani’s super-natural skin care formulations brought some much-needed escapism to countless August staycations. Infused with ‘Aloha’, each specialist, hand-crafted product boasts salts, plant and mineral extracts from the island’s rich resources – ‘feeding’ cells with moisture, vitamins and age-defying actives to ensure an enviable, well-rested effect. You’ll look like you’ve just come back from a two-week retreat in Honolulu at ALL times…

Beloved by the pros, Cover FX brought its specialist range of complexion-enhancing, perfecting, hydrating and mattifying drops to our shelves in September. With a swathe of shades to complement the rainbow of skin tones, this brand has inclusivity at its core – painstakingly creating hues to flatter every face. We’re obsessed with the Contour Kit, and can’t get enough of the Custom Enhancer Drops… *swoon*.

Everything from its millennial pink hue to its unrivalled skin-transforming capabilities made Sand&Sky one of the year’s greatest hits. A mask unlike any other, this unique mix of detoxifying Australian clay and cell-stimulating retinol reveals the smoothest, baby-soft skin of our dreams – instantly lessening redness and breakouts while firming and ‘tightening’ skin to reveal a fresh, wrinkle-free visage in the time it takes to brew a cup of tea…

NOT a new brand but without doubt the chart-topping smash of 2017, Huda Beauty’s Obsessions Palettes launched EXCLUSIVELY with yours truly in November – causing checkout chaos as you raced to get your eyelids under Warm Brown, Smokey, Mauve and Electric. From undisputed queen of the beauty scene, these grids of nine sumptuous shadows saw our make up fantasies made real, and you went gaga for them… understandably.

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Verity Douglas

Verity Douglas

Content Editor

Cult Beauty’s Content Editor and a Cult Beauty OG, Verity loves nothing more than the marriage of language and lip balm. A quintessential Libran, she’s a self-professed magpie for luxury ‘must-haves' and always pursuing the new and the niche — from the boujee-est skin care to cutting-edge tech. Balancing an urge to stop the clock with her desire to embrace the ageing process (and set a positive example for her daughter), Verity's a retinol obsessive and will gladly share her thoughts about the time-defying gadgets, masks and treatments worth the splurge...