Get ahead of skin trends with these community favorites- at a discount! Soko Glam’s giving you something beyond a three-day weekend to celebrate today: a summer sale! The beauty retailer is making picking up refreshing and protective skin, body, and hair care even more affordable than they usually do with 20% off products picks with the code SOKOSUMMER– starting today.

For many beauty brands, landing a spot on a Sephora shelf is the ultimate proof of achievement. It can take years to get there, but for Golde, a wellness-meets-skincare brand launched in 2017, it just took two. Even more astonishing, Golde’s co-founder Trinity Mouzon Wofford was just 25 when it all went down, making her the youngest Black woman ever to achieve such a feat. Golde launched with a focus on ingestibles—powdered good-for-yous meant to be blended into smoothies or stirred into drinks—and this year the brand has taken on skincare with even more powdered good-for-yous, although this time designed to mix with water and sit on your skin as a mask. Trinity is the architect behind them all, running the startup out of her apartment in Brooklyn. She’s got 10 SKUs to shepherd, with a lot more coming down the pipeline—truly, she's just getting started. The key to making it all work is that Trinity lives by what she sells. Wellness seeps into nearly every part of the entrepreneur’s life, every day. Let Trinity walk you through three days in her life to show you exactly how.FridayI’m up around 6AM as usual. I’m an early riser by nature, which is not really that impressive when you factor in my inability to stay awake past 10PM on any given night. My exact wakeup time varies between 5:30 and 6:30AM—I don’t use an alarm because that disrupts your natural sleep pattern. Since Fridays are a little lighter than the rest of the workweek, I squeeze in a circuit training workout at SESSION in Williamsburg. I’m in at 8 and depart around 9, high on endorphins and damp with crotch sweat.

Beauty supplements are having a moment right now and one ingredient that’s especially popular is collagen. We asked dermatologists and dietitians to share their thoughts on the supplement variety so you can make an informed decision on whether or not ingestible collagen is worth your money and a spot in your daily routine.Earlier this summer, CEW Beauty Insider named collagen, in both skin care formula and supplement form, as one of the strongest trends to emerge from the beauty trade show Cosmoprof North America. “It’s an ingredient trend retailers see as relevant, especially as beauty and nutrition merge closer together,” said the publication. The hype around collagen supplements does not come as a surprise to skin care experts like Dr. Adarsh Vijay Mudgil, medical director of Mudgil Dermatology in New York City. “Everyone wants healthy, radiant skin and wants to find that ‘X-factor’ secret supplement. Collagen supplements are the secret du jour,” he says. But do they actually work? Read on for the scoop.

“Astrology is a reflection of you and your life. The whole thing can be seen through the lens of what makes you beautiful and what makes this life of yours beautiful. There's one way to look at your [birth] chart where it's just you and your psyche. And the other way to look at the chart is to see how your life is set up: to see what's challenging, what's going to be easy for you, what are your gifts. What I've learned from being with my chart and living it out and giving myself some decades to really understand what it's about, is that the really challenging parts of my chart have demanded that I develop myself the most. They've demanded that I not be lazy, to not stay in places that are easy for me. What I thought was really ugly or what I was ashamed of astrologically when I first started learning, has actually been the thing carrying me thus far. [In astrology] there's the rising sign and the first house. The rising sign and the first house is ‘the self,’ so it's how we're seen by the world and what our style, in a sense, will be. And then there's Venus and the moon, and the moon is our body; it's our emotional life and our connection to the person who birthed us. There is a physicality to the moon that it is home to our spirit. Then there's the sun, which is part of our identity and life's purpose and how we shine, and that's also a part of our beauty. Each planet, in relationship to one of those things, Venus or the first house, possibly the sun and the moon, will help to curate the type of beauty that a person walks around with. I've had a contentious relationship with beauty my entire life. I really resented being harassed in my teens and 20s and 30s. It made me so angry that I wanted to rebel against beauty. It’s a complicated thing, living in patriarchy, because of course beauty is essential, beauty is connective, beauty is to be celebrated, beauty is in so many things, but patriarchy wants to own beauty, and sell it to you. It tells you to devour beauty, and it throws you away the moment you don't hit those standards. Street harassment is one thing, but then there’s also the covert, structural power that diminishes you at every turn in micro ways that are less obvious, but just as threatening. It's a setup, it's a pyramid scheme! And I think we all know that.Living within the patriarchy, Saturn return is a time for folks who maybe have been able to rely on their youth and the beauty that comes with it, to have a reckoning with the fact that they're not going to be young forever.I've been really into skin routines lately—toner has been this thing that I'm kind of obsessed with. I use ESPA’s balancing toner. The experience of a good toner is one of the most refreshing things—I feel so clean! It tightens you in the right ways, it cleans in a way that's not too harsh. I'm super into the Chantecaille Vital Essence; it's like water meets a face mask on your skin. Then I use their Lifting Cream very sparingly—it makes you a little sticky in good way. I put it right on my skin so it doesn't get wasted on my hands. It's like makeup for me now. Although I do like some makeup; I'm obsessed with Brow Flick.

If a product is all over Instagram or in all of your friends’ medicine cabinets should you be using it too?Essences are one of the most commonly misunderstood steps in the K-Beauty routine. Unlike toners and serums, they are less well known outside of Korea and their purpose is less cut and dried. To make things a little more clear, we’re breaking down what essences do, the ways they can benefit your skin, and finally, how to determine whether or not they deserve a place in your routine.What is an essence and where does it go in your routine?If cleanser is like detergent, think of an essence as a fabric softener. After cleansing, you use a toner to balance your skin, and then an essence to inject a first round of moisture into freshly-cleansed skin. Notably, they also help your skin better absorb the products that follow it, rendering products like serum more effective.After your toner has absorbed, gently apply the essence with the palm of your hand and follow it with your serum.What’s the difference between an essence and products like toner and serum?Essences are like the middle ground between toners and serums. They usually aren’t as light and watery as toners, but they aren’t as ultra-concentrated as serums. Since a main goal of an essence is to nourish skin, they are usually formulated with ingredients that are safe for regular, everyday use, unlike some, more targeted toner and serum formulas.What skin concerns and skin types can benefit most from an essence?Since an essence provides an extra layer of hydration, those with dry skin can obviously benefit. If aging is a major concern, this added boost of moisture can also help to alleviate fine lines and prevent wrinkles. And for sensitive skin types, it can aid in strengthening the skin barrier.However even if you’re not in the groups mentioned above, there are many different essence formulations to choose from, so it’s easy to find one that addresses your specific skin concerns. For example, if you struggle with dullness, it can be great to use an essence like the The Klog’s Snail Mucin Energy Essence, which has natural 90% snail mucin to nourish, plump and hydrate skin.So do you really need an essence?

Is your moisturizer making your skin break out or feel even more dry? It might be time to ditch it. Follow the tips below to find a formula that’s better suited for your skin.Maybe you bought a moisturizer on a whim with the hope that it was the one that’d finally work for you. Or perhaps you purchased a moisturizer that all your friends — heck, even the entire internet — seem to swear by and you were so sure it’d be your next HG hero. The thing is, not all products (even the really popular ones) work for every single person out there. Sometimes, a moisturizer just doesn’t cut it when it comes to your specific skin care needs. To help you determine whether it’s time to retire your jar, we asked a dermatologist and esthetician to weigh in on the subject. Below, they’ve outlined four signs that your moisturizer is either doing nothing for your skin, or worse, working against you. The Sign: Your Skin Feels Tight

Struggling to keep your skin clean and hydrated? Micellar water is a skincare game-changer known for its ability to gently remove impurities without drying out your complexion. Our guide dives into the best micellar waters on the market, tailored for various skin types and needs. Stay fresh-faced with our top picks!

Choosing the perfect nail polish can feel overwhelming with so many options available. This article will guide you through finding the best nail polishes that enhance both your style and nail health. Stay tuned for top picks and tips!