Editor’s Beauty Picks for August 2021, including the highly-anticipated Coco & Eve Shampoo and Conditioner set

Here’s what to buy this month that’s new in beauty:

COCO & EVE SUPER HYDRATING SHAMPOO AND CREAM CONDITIONER
$36.90 each  (250ml), available from sephora.sg soon

If you love Coco & Eve’s hair masque, you’ll really love this sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner set. After just one try of these products, my hair was less frizzy, softer and actually shinier (really!). But it was the reduced frizziness that had me sold. My hair was so much easier to manage, and looked remarkably healthier. Like magic.

What’s behind the magic: These formulas were five years in the making, and are infused with powerful active ingredients such as ResitHyal technology made from Hyaluronic Acid (this boosts hydration by 51%), Pea proteins (this reduces damage by 65%), and Featherlite oils (that increase shine by 46%), and paired with Balinese botanicals like Coconut Oil (the main scent of this brand), Pineapple and Avocado.

RARE BEAUTY BROW HARMONY PENCIL & GEL
$33, available in 8 shades from sephora.sg

This duo-ended brow product appears pretty standard; one side is a brush-on tinted gel, while the other holds a twist-up angled brow pencil. Lots of brow products are like this, but this made my list because it works really well. The gel isn’t too dark or too light, and just the right amount brushes onto brow hair, and the pencil draws on extremely naturally; the colour comes out just right and far from severe. If there’s just one product I’d recommend from Rare Beauty, it would be this.

SHU UEMURA UNLIMITED BLOCK:BOOSTER PROTECTIVE MOISTURE PRIMER
$67 (30ml), available in 2 shades from sephora.sg

This primer has a light, cream texture, and feels fresh and cool on the skin. As its name implies, it is very moisturising and I love that it makes the skin feel extremely comfortable, and soft and smooth to the touch. When worn on its own without any foundation over it, skin appears more “awake”; under foundation, it holds beautifully without pilling. The listed ingredients are very good as well: AHAs and Salicylic Acid (these gently exfoliate skin and help prevent breakouts). There are two “shades” for this new primer — Anzu Beige (evens out skin tones) and Sakura Pink (adds a healthy rosy glow).

CHANEL ULTRA LE TEINT LONGWEAR TOUCH FOUNDATION
$93 (9g) from e-shop.chanel.com

I expected this cushion foundation to be very good and it didn’t disappoint; it’s a “juicy” cushion, so only a little product is needed at one time. The finish is described by the brand as a “flawless, luminous matte finish”, which is about right; just a light layer of tapping this onto skin creates a smooth texture, and skin looks more even, less tired and what I really love — natural. While it makes skin look much better, you can’t see this product on the skin at all.

KATE TOKYO SUPER SHARP LINER PENCIL
$19.90, available in 2 shades from shopee.sg

I’m not a fan of the packaging; it’s a twist-up mechanism that can’t twist back down, so you really have to know how much to twist and release if not you’ll end up wasting product. The first few times I used this pencil, I twisted up what I thought to be a small amount of lead, but the tip kept breaking off and it was frustrating and appeared to be a design flaw. But Kate Tokyo has always excelled in their eyeliners, so I had to figure it out — and I did. You need to release a very short and small amount of the pencil lead and it works perfectly. The shape of the tip is rectangular, so you can draw it thick on its fat end, or thin on its edge. And the formula glides along the waterline smoothly and evenly. It doesn’t flake, have any breaks, and the black comes out really intense. The formula also stays on the longest of any pencil eyeliner I’ve tried, and it’s waterproof and doesn’t smudge. But this also means that it takes some effort to remove it thoroughly; it needs to be removed with a dedicated eye makeup remover or oil cleanser (I recommend any of the ones from shu uemura).