Beauty Favorites of 2019 | Best Beauty Buys in 2019

Hi all,
Some of my followers had messaged me on Insta saying they were waiting for my Favorites of 2019 post. I was really amazed and happy. They knew that I do a beauty favorites post at the end of each year and they were expecting and waiting for that post this year end too. Am really thankful and blessed for my followers who continue to encourage and motivate me to continue blogging and skincare. So here is the much requested and awaited post that my followers asked. I wanted to make it interesting and fun read for you. Hope you enjoy it!

2019 is finally coming to an end! Just one more day to go and we would step into a new year. So I thought of doing a round up of all my beauty favorites and best beauty buys in 2019. Most of these products are suitable for all skin types and these are my recommendations if you are looking to buy new beauty products for the coming new year. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I loved drafting it . For detailed review of each product given below, click on the links of individual products. So here it is! Check out my hand picked recommendations of best Indian products in each category for the year 2019.

 

 

 

Best Cleansing Balm of 2019:

Dot & Key Skin Cleansing Steam Balm with Neroli & Lime
Continuing from my last year, I have been doing double cleansing regularly this year also. This year I have used this Dot & Key Cleansing Balm, Just Herbs Micellar Water and Clinique Makeup Remover and among 3, the best is the Dot & Key Cleansing Balm. It contains macadamia oil as key ingredient and has a refreshing scent of neroli and lime. For detailed review, check this link above.

Best Cleanser of 2019:

Juicy Chemistry Tamanu Kakadu Plum Frankinscence Face Wash:
My favorite face wash of this year has to be Juicy Chemistry Tamanu Kakadu Plum Frankinscence Face Wash. It is 100% natural, organic face wash which helps in brightening skin and works on pigmentation. And also it comes in a eco-friendly luxurious glass bottle.

Best Powder Cleanser of 2019:

Yashavi Organics Berry Scrub:
This is a gentle daily powder cleanser suitable for every skin type. It contains oats, berries, coconuts and rice. Filled with antioxidants, it helps in giving brighter and softer skin. This is my best powder cleanser of 2019.

Best Toner of 2019:

Enn’s Closet Rice + Lentil Elixir Toner:
This is my favorite toner of 2019. It has a unique combination of rice and lentils for refining the pores and giving even-toned complexion.

Best Hydrosol of 2019:

BlendItRawBeauty Turmeric Hydrosol:
I have tried many hydrosols in 2019 – Rose, Hayasan rose, Bulgarian rose, Lavender, Sandalwood, Sweet Lime, Neem Leaves and my favorite has to be this Turmeric Hydrosol from BlendItRawBeauty brand.

Best Serum of 2019:

Rzizhi Goblet of Wine Red Wine Serum:
I have used many serums in 2019. But this red wine serum from Rzizhi has to be my favorite. It whitens and gives fairness to skin. Made up of pulpy grapes.

Best Facial Oil of 2019:

Rzizhi Elixir Dragon Blood Facial Oil:
I have rated this as best facial oil of 2019 as it contains dragon blood oil which is an exotic ingredient. This is excellent for anti-aging, making skin soft and works on wrinkles and fine lines giving a youthful glow.

Best Day Cream of 2019:

Fiducia Botanicals Everlasting Youth Prickly Pear Moisturizer:
My most favorite moisturizer of the year. The consistency is like so perfect – luscious, luscious and luscious. This is an anti-aging cream and slightly on the heavier side. For those with oily-acne prone skin, I will give a gel based option too below.

Best Night Cream of 2019:

Enn’s Closet After 9 Overnight Sleeping Mask:
For night use, I love this sleeping mask from Enn’s Closet. It drenches skin with a burst of hydration and skin looks all plumped up, dewy and glowing in the morning. Talk about fresh face!

Best Gel Moisturizer of 2019:

Greenie Mill Seabuckthorn Green Tea Tulsi Gel Moisturizer:
While the Fiducia one is great for slightly drier and colder weather, during summers there is one gel-based moisturizer that I used extensively. And it is the Greenie Mill Seabuckthorn Green Tea Tulsi Gel Moisturizer. Although a very expensive product, it lasted for me for quite sometime and wow! It was amazing like anything. Clears out skin, prevents acne and breakouts, prevents photo-oxidative damage due to pollution as it is antioxidant rich.

Best Face Scrub of 2019:

Ma Earth Botanicals Lavender Facial Scrub:
This is a very luxurious and gentle powder exfoliant to buff and cleanse all skin types. Prepared using a blend of ground English Lavender Petals, Sweet Almond Nut Shells, oats and milk. Makes skin super soft, whiter and fairer. It is a great anti aging physical scrub/exfoliant. Makes skin look younger. I have reviewed this in detail in my Insta post here.

Best Face Pack of 2019:

Blend It Raw Beauty Butterfly Pea Flower Powder:
This is a standalone powder that I ordered from Aarushi. She has a Bloom Facial Polish using this powder. But I ordered this powder alone separately. I mixed it with curd and used. What a brilliant shade of blue it had! So colorful and felt soft on skin. And I was amazed by the results. Truthfully, I hadn’t expected this much from Butterfly Pea Flower. But it brightens and whitens skin like anything. Removes tan and face feels fresh like flower. Best Face Pack of 2019 definitely!

Best Sheet Mask of 2019:

Organic Harvest Shine & Glow Fig and Gold Dust Sheet Mask:
Fig and Gold Dust is an amazing combination in a sheet mask. And additionally, this is an organic certified sheet mask. It gives shine and glow as claimed. Which is why I rate it as the Best Sheet Mask of 2019.

Best Face Sunscreen of 2019:

Aroma Essentials Green Tea Sunblock SPF 30:
I have already talked a lot about this Aroma Essentials Green Tea sunblock in my blog and Insta. This is my most favorite sunscreen till date. It gives a matte finish, zero oiliness, zero greasiness, no white cast and gives a brightening effect. Excellent for oily and acne prone skin as it doesn’t block pores at all.

Best Body Sunscreen of 2019:

Nivea Protect & Refresh Invisible Cooling Sun Spray SPF 50:
This was a new launch by Nivea this year 2019. As the name says, it is the first invisible sunscreen. It looks like a serum/oil consistency, completely transparent, colorless. It gives good sun protection. Easy to apply in spray format. And zero white cast problem.

Best Lip Balm of 2019:

Juicy Chemistry Lemon Green Tea & Spearmint Lip Butter:
This is the best lip balm of 2019. It helps with pigmented and tanned lips. Feels chill, cooling and refreshing on lips that your soulmate can feel from far off ????. Currently, they changed the name to Tuscany Lemon & Green Tea Organic Lip Balm. The next closest in line to bag the 2019 best lip balm was Fiducia Botanicals Vegan Lip Butter, except that it didn’t taste good.

Best Tinted Lip Balm of 2019:

Maybelline New York Baby Lips Candy Wow in shade Mixed Berry:
I was using this tinted lip balm for most of the year in 2019. It gives a beautiful, fun, flirty pink shade. And the format of a crayon is so nice to use.

Best Under Eye Cream of 2019:

I haven’t used any eye care products this year sadly. Reason being I had an eye gel that I left in my home in Chennai. And I forgot to bring it with me to Bangalore every time. And didn’t want to buy a new eye cream when this was there. Actually didn’t pay much attention to my eyes this year. Thinking of starting again in 2020.

Best Body Oil of 2019:

Mystic Naturals Hexaflowers Bath & Shower Oil 6 Premium Flowers Infused:
This is the best body oil I have used till date. As it contains n number of amazing ingredients. Like kumkumadi oil, babassu oil, argan oil, pomegranate oil, avocado oil, green tea, papaya, licorice, flowers infusion of chamomile, rose, lavender, hibiscus, pomegranate, calendula, etc. Makes skin soft as flowers. With a silky consistency, it targets all skin concerns like nourishment, soothing, healing, anti-aging, shine, healthy, radiance and uneven skin tone.

Best Body Lotion of 2019:

Alma K Dead Sea Minerals Hydrate Moisturizing Body Lotion:
I didn’t use many body lotions this year as I was mainly using shower oils. This is the only lotion that I used in 2019. And it is soft and gentle on skin. Very hydrating and nourishing as well. I mainly got this for the dead sea water/dead sea minerals. Contains dead sea water, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, argan oil, chamomile flower extract, evening primrose oil, olive oil, white tea lead extract, etc. It is a clean body lotion free from parabens, petrolatum and mineral oil.

Best Body Butter of 2019:

Juicy Chemistry Jasmine Lemon & Tea Organic Body Butter:
There is no competition to Juicy Chemistry body butters. The texture and consistency of the JC butters is purely heaven. Melts in your hands and heals and soothes your skin. The butters penetrate deep into your skin and make skin nourished, soft, glowing and healthy. This has a wonderful calming aroma of jasmine combined with a hint of lemon and tea.

Best Hand & Foot Cream of 2019:

Juicy Chemistry Kokum Myrrh Hazelnut Organic Hand & Foot Cream:
Hazelnut in a hand/foot cream! What more can you ask for! Just grab this silently, I tell you! It not just moisturizes dry skin, but actually heals and repairs your hand and foot. It is rich in antioxidants, fatty acids and vitamins and protects your skin from stress, pollution and aging.

Best Soap of 2019:

Soap Stories Romance Lychee & Guava Juice Soap:
This is a beautiful multi-colored layered soap with layers of pink, brown and white. Looks like cassata slice ????. It contains wonderful ingredients like fresh lychee juice, guava juice, shea butter, kokum butter, plant oils, cruelty free raw tussah silk, etc. Feels gentle on the skin and not drying. The juices of lychee and guava feel cooling on the skin. Best soap of 2019 definitely. Madhu, the owner of this brand, puts in a lot of hard work and even the packaging is so good and great for gifting option.

Best Shower Gel of 2019:

Puresense Macadamia Moisture Restore Shower Cleansing Oil:
Wow! What a innovation this! Try this for once. Its absolutely freaking amazing like heaven. You will feel like you are having a heavenly shower in an international airport. The fragrance is warm and nutty. And the consistency is a shower cleansing oil which emulsifies on contact with water. Leaving your skin silky and finely smooth. Shower with this in the night and you will feel all cozy and warm and snuggling into your blankets.

Best Body Scrub of 2019:

Roots & Herbs Panchmeva Skin Polishing Body Scrub:
This is an ayurvedic body scrub filled with exotic ingredients like anjeer powder, almond powder, pomegrante fruit extract, etc. It is an excellent body polisher and helps with pigmentation. It is very aromatic and gives an ayurvedic spa-like royal experience.

Best Hair Oil of 2019:

Rzizhi Speaks Volume 56 Herbs Hair Oil:
This hair oil works excellent in hair strengthening from the roots and giving smooth, silky, strong hair. It contains 56 herbs and some exotic oils like argan oil and walnut oil. I experienced literally zero hairfall after using this. Rzizhi Hair Oil is best hair oil of 2019.

Best Hair Mask of 2019:

Mystic Naturals Kerala Coconut Butter & Moringa Hair Mask:
This creamy hair mask contains a blend of various butters like coconut butter, avocado butter, mowrah butter, sal butter, mango, shea, desi ghee, oils like moringa, kalonji, argan, herbs like hibiscus, amla, bhringraj, green tea, reetha, shikakai and a blend of various of essential oils. You would just love using this hair mask for the texture. Gives a spa-kinda effect. Takes care of all hair issues from nourishment, frizziness, split ends, premature greying, hairfall, dandruff, etc. The ingredients list is very exotic and rare and I would award this hair mask with the Best Hair Mask Award of 2019.

Best Hair Pack of 2019:

Krya Revitalising Hair Pack Damage Repair with Marigold & Moringa:
Coming to powder based hair packs, I tried the Krya one this year 2019. And am so happy with my purchase. I wish to try more from this brand in 2020. The contains organic ingredients of marigold, green tea, basil, hibiscus, rosemary, lemongrass, curry leaf, guava fruit and leaf, fenugreek seed and leaf, chamomile, moringa, rosehips. And forest collected ingredients like gotukola, licorice, gooseberry, yellow eclipta, etc. This hair pack gives volume to hair and makes it bouncy, black and healthy. Also gives softness and conditioning. This is the Best Hair Pack of 2019.

Best Shampoo of 2019:

Petalfresh Rosemary & Mint Volumizing Shampoo:
This is a sulphate-free, paraben-free shampoo. It is very gentle on hair. Made with certified organic ingredients. It restores hydration and adds volume and bounce to hair. It has a very refreshing scent of peppermint that lasts after your hair wash and keeps your scalp feeling fresh throughout. The scent is not artificial and is from essential oils alone.

Best Conditioner of 2019:

Ahe Naturals Wild Banana & Coconut Milk Conditioner:
This is the only conditioner that I used in 2019. It is free from silicones and mineral oils. Contains coconut milk, banana, olive oil and aloe vera to hydrate and nourish hair. It is a medium-weight conditioner, not too light nor too heavy on hair.

Best Leave-In Hair Conditioner of 2019:

Thuyaa Macadamia Nut Pistachio Rose Chamomile Leave-In Conditioner:
I have ordered this twice in 2019. Once I got in rose fragrance and another time in jasmine fragrance. And it was the best leave-in cream ever. With nourishing oils of macadamia, butters of pistachio and infused with rose and chamomile, is the best your hair can ask for. Truely a treat for your hair, right? I would definitely recommend this to anyone. Not only does this help to reduce everyday frizz but also strengthens hair. I would give this the Award of Best Leave-In Hair Conditioner of 2019.

Best Unique Product of 2019:

I have two unique products that I got to try and experience in 2019. Both were sent as part of PR for testing.
Thuyaa Face & Body Radiant Glow Serum:
This is the first body serum ever. 100% natural with cold pressed oils of green apple, cranberry, passionfruit, broccoli and with some essential oils. Thuyaa makes products that are like the best for your skin and hair. The brand understands what your skin and hair exactly needs. There are many face serums in the market but Thuyaa is the first brand to launch a body serum. It helps with skin lightening and pigmentation. Would highly recommend this product. I would award this with the Best Unique Product of 2019.
Bare Elements Skincare Choco Orange Truffle Bath Butter:
Bath butters have started coming in 2019. Many brands are trying it. Bare Elements Skincare brand has a lot of variants in bath butters. It is very moisturizing and nourishing for a shower. The other variants are black raspberry, blackberry magnolia, matcha white tea ginger, crisp apple, rose gold. I would like to try more of these variants in 2020. I would give this the Award of Best Unique Product of 2019.

Best Fragrance of 2019:

Forest Essentials Iced Pomegranate & Fresh Kerala Lime Body Mist:
I placed my first Forest Essentials order in 2019. Wow! A great accomplishment in any skincare blogger’s history. I got this body mist as a sample with my order. And I just loved it so much. Its just so fresh, cool and refreshing. Ice, ice, icy! With a zest of lime! The fragrance is just so perfect for daily use. I would give it the Award of Best Fragrance of 2019.

Best New Brand Explored in 2019:

Tjori:
This brand was in my wishlist and I placed an order on their website in 2019. I tried few of their products and really liked them. It is like a natural, herbal brand but the products are quality, effective and show results. My favorites are Tjori Night Repair Elixir, Coconut Milk Shampoo, Matcha Clove Acne Treatment, Cherry Oil, Clarifying Facial Oil and Hair Strengthening Pack.

Best Brand of 2019:

Mystic Naturals:
I would give this the Award of Best Brand of 2019. Why I will tell you. Look at their products. You will never see any other brand offering such unique products with such unique ingredients. Their body butter contains 8 different butters, their shower oil is infused with 6 premium flowers, their thejus massage oil is infused with kumkumadhi and nalparamdhi, an oil-to-milk cleansing balm with kukumadi, nalparamdhi, bakuchi, a spinach hair oil with 6 different types of spinach, hair mask with unique butters, herbs and essential oils, unique hydrosols like sandalwood, saffron, black african soap and a lip mask with pomegranate flowers and what not! An incredible incredible list! No competition! The Best Brand of 2019. I wish you Mystic Naturals lot of success and growth for the year 2020.

Best Packaging of 2019:

Puresense:
Well, well! Rub my hands! There is one brand that single-handedly defeated every other brand in packaging this year. Puresense! Their shower gels will make your bathroom look like an airport bathroom, seriously! I mean seriously! It has taken my shower to a whole new level. Their face cleansing gels too! Am just wow! Wow! Puresense is the Best Packaging of 2019.

Best Ingredient of 2019:

Dragon Blood Oil from Rzizhi:
Ahem! It felt like Harry Potter has entered the world of beauty and skincare in the year 2019. Dragon Blood Oil! The most exciting ingredient of 2019. From the brand Rzizhi. The world’s most powerful antioxidant is dragon blood oil. And we all felt like we entered Hogwarts with this brand! Dragon blood oil is awarded the best ingredient of 2019. And cheers to Rzizhi for this superb awesome ingredient.

Best Upcoming Brand of 2019:

Blended Botanica:
Blended Botanica brand was born in 2019. With clean and organic products like Magic, Wild, Bloom, Tropics, Heal, Scarlet, Hemp Avo Hair Mud, Ground, etc, Aarushi has done excellent work with this brand. I can see a huge potential for this brand in 2020.

Best Unique Brand of 2019:

Dot & Key:
Dot & Key, when it was launched, was very unique. Right from their packaging to their products, they were very unique. Their packaging is something so fun, cute, fairyland-like and you will love to collect them. I felt like a teddy bear using them 😀 . And their unique products like hand cream with a sanitizer, foot cream with a deodorizer, serum with spf, hair sunscreen, water sleeping mask and eye mask were a huge hit. Dot & Key is the Best Unique Brand of 2019.

Best Skincare Formulator of 2019:

Laxmiprabha of Thuyaa:
Laxmiprabha, Founder of brand, Thuyaa, has done a lot of hard work in sourcing various exotic oils, butters and ingredients from abroad and formulating exotic products. Her formulations in 2019 include Black Currant Blueberry Body Wash, Cherry Apple Broccoli Intense Repair Shampoo, Bacuri PassionFruit Face Butter, Cranberry Coffee Under Eye Serum, Cranberry Charcoal PassionFruit Face Wash, Custard Apple DragronFruit Body Wash, Green Apple Kiwi Watermelon Face Wash, Kiwi Plum Bittergourd Anti-Dandruff Shampoo, PassionFruit Strawberry Cherry Face Wash, Macadamia Nut Pistachio Leave-In Conditioner, Blueberry Body Butter with Watermelon and Tomato oils, Lychee Body Butter, etc. That’s a huge list of exotic products to formulate in a year. Best Skincare Formulator of 2019 Award goes to Laxmiprabha of Thuyaa.

Best Innovative Skincare Founder of 2019:

Aarushi Singhal of Blend It Raw Beauty:
Aarushi has done lot of innovative work in 2019. Starting with launch of a DIY subscription box which was a unique concept and something that everyone loved. Her subscription boxes have a surprise theme every month and the products assortment is great seriously. She makes great effort in choosing the products for every box and coming up with PDF of recipes. She launched a great variety of unique hydrosols this year like Amla hydrosol (amla is the fruit of earth, fruit of immortality and I have never seen any this hydrosol anywhere else in any other brand), Black Pepper Hydrosol, Calendula Hydrosol, Kinnow Peel Hydrosol, Lemon Peel Hydrosol, Eucalyptus Hydrosol, Peppermint Hydrosol, Butterfly Pea Flower Powder, Peach Kernel Oil, Pine Hydrosol, Clove Hydrosol, Fennel Hydrosol, Hibiscus Hydrosol, Tulsi Hydrosol, Lemongrass Hydrosol, Neem Leaves Hydrosol, Sweet Lime Hydrosol, Stinging Nettle Hydrosol and everyone’s favorite Turmeric Hydrosol ????. Aarushi is everyone’s favorite now!

Best New Launches of 2019:

Forest Essentials Sheet Masks, Tender Coconut Turmeric Basil Sun Protecting Fluid & Ojas Glow Replenishing Night Beauty Balm:
I remember there was a lot of excitement and expectations when Forest Essentials were going to launch their sheet masks. When it was launched, it was the talk of the town. There were so much hue and cry around FE sheet masks. And same with their Ojas Night Balm. The night balm was advertised so well on their Insta with coconut milk, etc. Also their tender coconut sunscreen was eye-catching and attracted much attention. Forest Essentials has launched the Best Exciting New Launches of 2019.

Best Beauty Change of 2019:

Veganism by Juicy Chemistry:
The crowd’s favorite brand Juicy Chemistry turning vegan was a huge, massive Beauty Change of 2019. They changed their formulations to include so many interesting vegan ingredients like maple syrup, hazelnut seed oil, fig seed oil, chilli seed oil, plantain dry shampoo, green apple water, coconut milk, etc. This was a big leap in the beauty industry. Looking out for Juicy Chemistry in 2020 to see the new launches they are coming up with! And I will definitely do a big order from JC in 2020 of my wishlisted products.

Best Shopping Site of 2019:

Nykaa:
Though there have been a lot of new entrants in beauty shopping like VanityWagon, Limeroad, BigBasket and Amazon, Flipkart doing a lot of changes in their beauty sector, there is one brand that holds the lion’s share in this space of beauty shopping. Nykaa! Nykaa has bought about a massive revolution in the lives of people. In the way people perceive skincare, haircare and makeup. In the way people shop. Nykaa shopping experience and their freebies is but a enormous shift in the shopping habits of people. Their Youtube Channel has amazing content too. Nykaa also did a lot of new launches this year like Moi By Nykaa fragrances, Masaba Lipsticks, body butters, sheet masks, essential oils, just to name a few.

Best Non Beauty Shopping of 2019:

Churidhar Materials Shopping:
This year 2019, I have ordered many cotton salwar suits from a Whatsapp wholesale dealer. When you subscribe to the dealer, you are sent new catalogues of various brands regularly. You can choose what you like from the catalogue, place order and pay using Google Pay. How cool is that! The prices are lower than buying from shops, the quality of the cotton material is very good, he packs it well and dispatches next day of placing order itself. There are lot of modern, trendy salwar designs in the catalogues. I would recommend subscribing for that. If you need the Whatsapp number, just comment below. I will get back to you personally.

My Best Beauty Orders of 2019:

I have placed lot of beauty orders in 2019. To select the best of them would be a difficult task. 2019 was a different year for me in terms of shopping. ‘Coz I did a lot of beauty/skincare shopping with my friends. Like a collective haul we did most of the time. My Best Orders of 2019 are my birthday order (check out my Insta post on that link here) and Bath and Body Works Order, L’Occitane Order in December. These two orders were collective celebration/party orders that we did as friends for a secret reason, for some achievement we have done this year.

To conclude, 2019 was a big year in the beauty industry. Some brands have been like dinosaurs in the beauty industry this year bringing about huge changes. Brands like Juicy Chemistry for veganism, Puresense which took packaging to a whole new airport level and whose products look like they have fallen from heaven, Rzizhi which looked like they have come out of a magical Harry Potter world with dragon blood stuff, Dot & Key which looked like they descended straight from a Teddy Bear & Fairy Tale world, Soap Stories Icecream Layered Soaps, Krya which came up tons of unique, informative skincare Insta and blog posts, Mystic Naturals innovative products, Aarushi’s sourcing of unique DIY ingredients and DIY subscription boxes and clean skincare products, Thuyaa bringing in a whole lot of super exotic cold pressed oils and butters, Cosmetofood with its organic tasteable skincare range of fruits and edible stuff. The list is endless. 2019 has really been a transformational year in the beauty industry.

There ends my Best Beauty Buys of 2019. Do share your favorites too! And if you have any questions about any of these products, you can mail me at ibeautyspy@gmail.com 🙂

Have a lovely, beautiful, fun-filled New Year 2020!

Also checkout:
* Beauty Favorites of 2018 | Best Beauty Buys in 2018
* My Beauty Wishlist for 2019
* Life Update And New Beginnings in 2018, New Office Location at WeWork – #OfficeLifeSeries
* What’s In My Mail? Christmas Gift Hamper from Fiducia Botanicals – Unboxing
* What’s In My Mail? Christmas Gift Hamper from L’Occitane – Advent Holiday Calendar 2018 – Unboxing
* #SundayPampering – How To Do An Intensive Winter Facial At Home Using Organic Products – Step By Step Guide
* 2018 Product Empties – Part 1
* 2018 Product Empties – Part 2