Photo: Keven Cremens

Meet Your Match
Could your winter skin use a little boost right about now? Grab a tube of Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer SPF 30 ($42; nordstrom.com)—it hydrates, subtly evens out your complexion, and gives you excellent sun protection. Finding the right shade should be a breeze: There are nine tints in all, from the palest pale to a deep, warm chocolate.
intensive age refining treatment

Photo: Keven Cremens

Saving Face
Why do we keep recommending vitamin-A-derived retinoids for beautiful skin? Because they've been clinically proven to reduce fine lines and help generate collagen and elastin. The formulators of the new PCA Skin Intensive Age Refining Treatment ($106; pcaskin.com for locations) claim that the pure retinol it contains is significantly more potent than the retinol complexes found in other products. Plus, the lotion contains anti-inflammatory and anti-irritant extracts to calm the skin. If you're a retinoid newbie, this serious lotion is a good way to start.
blotting

Photo: Keven Cremens

Small Wonder
From the department of small-but-delightful improvements: the new Tatcha Evening Aburatorigami Blotting Papers ($15 for 40 sheets; tatcha.com). Like the nearly 4x4 originals, the gold-flecked papers are made with absorbent abaca leaf, but the new ones also contain charcoal for extra de-shining. Our favorite upgrade, though, is their reduced, Post-it-note size—they're now so discreet that whipping one out for a public blot is hardly noticeable.
lipstick

Photo: Keven Cremens

Sheer Fun
I was just 21 when Clinique first introduced Black Honey, the sheer, deep raisin lip shade that, in the 41 years since, has become a cult favorite. It was a miracle to me then that a color so dark in the tube could look so natural on my mouth, as if I had eaten a handful of juicy blackberries. And it seemed every time I asked a friend about the gorgeous lipcolor she was wearing, it was Black Honey: great on everyone. So in spite of the fact that I have now worn—or at least tried—every wildly pigmented and textured lipstick known to woman, I'm thrilled that Clinique has brought out seven new shades of Almost Lipstick ($15 each; clinique.com), in nudes, pinks, violets, and reds, all in that familiar skinny silver tube. Like the original, they're easy to wear no matter your skin tone—exactly what you'd expect from the cute, comfy tennis sneakers of lipcolor.—Val Monroe
bags

Photo: Keven Cremens

Goody Bags
Motivated by our de-cluttering story to organize your beauty stash? One of these pretty Workshop/CoOp makeup bags ($45; theworkshopcoop.com) might come in handy. The bags are made in Guatemala by a 100 percent worker-owned women's weaving association; each bag sold provides half a year of monthly hygiene products to a woman or girl who has been displaced from her home.

Next: 13 mini beauty miracles that do it all