Top Beauty Products to Look Out for in April

Hundreds of products come across our editors’ desks every month, but not all of them deliver on their claims or live up to the hype. (Not everything that goes viral on TikTok is a miracle worker.) This is our exclusive curation of the best-in-class beauty products receiving rave reviews from our team and hitting shelves right now.

MIXIK SKIN Botanical Serum 

“Our favorite part about this serum is the star ingredient: galactomyces ferment filtrate!” says Lena Park, cofounder and brand director of MIXIK SKIN, a new K-beauty brand. “In case you’re not familiar, galactomyces ferment filtrate is a nutrient-dense byproduct of the fermentation of sake, which promotes a strong skin barrier by blocking out pollutants and locking in moisture. The double-layer formula is less oily and heavy than the other serum sprays on the market too. We wanted this to be a beneficial spray for as many types of skin as possible— pregnancy-safe, suitable for acne-prone skin, mature skin, etc.—so we decided to make it fragrance-free and alcohol-free as well.” 

Park says she also loves that she can wear the serum whether she’s using vitamin C or retinol. “I don’t have to worry about whether the serum will deactivate the efficacy of powerful ingredients. It’s light enough to continue layering and spraying on a long haul flight, but packs a punch in hydration and skin tone improvement. For me, it has helped with my redness, which has been an unexpected result.”

The Skinny Confidential Caffeinated Sunscreen

From Lauryn Bosstick’s The Skinny Confidential comes this new SPF 40 mineral sunscreen, which is chock-full of caffeine. The result is skin perfection and skin protection in one lightweight, fragrance-free, tinted cream. It also shields against blue light and gives skin a glowy, summery sheen.

“Formulating caffeinated mineral sunscreen has been a long time coming,” says Bosstick. “When we started the process two years ago, it was going to be a chemical sunscreen. I tried it. I loved it. However, then I had an epiphany. We needed to switch it to mineral. Halfway through development, we knew we could bring our community something better: an SPF product that was cleaner, healthier and more efficient. With that in mind, we pivoted and switched our formula to a physical, mineral-based sunscreen. The process was pricey, but it had to be just right…AND let’s just say, it was worth it.”

Bosstick tells me her new SPF “lifts, tightens, protects, hydrates, and nourishes, but is nongreasy and lightweight with NO white cast. Just a dewy glow that you’re going to love.” The caffeine tightens the skin, so it makes the perfect primer for makeup. I have been wearing it every single day, and I cannot live without it.”

WYN BEAUTY by Serena Williams Featuring You Hydrating Skin Enhancing Tint SPF 30

Skin tints are everywhere right now, but not all of them include the bonus of SPF protection. This one does, while offering builable coverage, a natural finish and up to 72 hours of hydration. It’s available in 36 shades, and we love the gel-cream texture, which feels really good on the skin.

“I’m so excited to introduce WYN BEAUTY to the world,” says founder Serena Williams. “To me, beauty has always been about self-expression and stepping into the best version of myself. Throughout my career, I was always searching for makeup that looked good after hours on the court, mixing products myself and creating my own formulas while traveling the world. As I evolved and remained active both on and off the court, I needed products I could apply at 7 a.m. before a full day of meetings, spending time with my kids, making time for the things I love, and still look good at the end of the day. I needed makeup that could truly move with me. That’s the intention behind WYN BEAUTY—for people to live in it every single day of their lives and enhance the beauty they already have.”

Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional Wow Polish Triple Exfoliating Powder

The latest addition to the brand’s beloved POREfessional collection, this exfoliating powder gives major mermaidcore vibes. Autumn Reid, Benefit’s national beauty authority, says the colors are not only beautiful, but also intentional. “The blue color is perlite, which helps reduce excess oil and smooth the skin. The lavender is lactic acid, which helps refine the pores and brighten. And then we also added polyhydroxy acid to retexturize the skin.”

The polish is a combination of physical exfoliation—in the form of powder—but also chemical exfoliation because of the ingredients inside it. “What’s really unique about this is water-activated powder that it’s not just your usual physical exfoliator,” Reid explains. “You can use it in different ways, too. Add a little bit of water to use it as a polish, or add less water to make a paste, and then apply it as mask. Or, you can add a little bit to your cleanser if you’re in a rush and make your cleanser an exfoliating cleanser.”

philosophy Ultimate Miracle Worker Resurfacing Body Serum

Though I love a good body serum year-round, now is the time of year when I consider it a must-have as the shorts and dresses come out of storage. This one uses a potent combination of peptides and hyaluronic acid to give dry, crepey skin a new lease on life. In fact, the formula is clinically proven to “immediately double skin’s moisture and reduce crepiness.” A proprietary resurfacing complex with pineapple enzymes also helps smooth roughness.

I love that it’s fragrance-free, so I can still wear perfume and not have the two scents compete. In a clinical study, after four weeks, 95 percent of users agreed their skin felt tighter and more lifted. 

Dolce Glow Contour Self-Tanning Sculpt + Glow 

This versatile, DHA-infused contour stick is part makeup, part skin care. Infused with four types of hyaluronic acid and watermelon, apple and lentil extracts, it’s super hydrating and blends into the skin really beautifully. Plus, it’s easy to apply: Drag it or dot it where you want to contour, and then blend in with a brush like you would a makeup contour stick. The tan will develop within 12 hours (no need to rinse it off) for natural-looking definition and a sun-kissed finish.

“As a lover of tanning, I’ve always believed in the transformative power of a bronzed glow,” says CEO and founder Isabel Alysa Vita. “Since the first time I experienced the magic of a spray tan, I knew there was something truly special and important about it. It’s a feeling of confidence and beauty unlike any other. So, when it came to creating this product, it felt like a natural progression in our journey at Dolce Glow. We wanted to capture that essence and infuse it into a versatile, innovative product that not only contours but also illuminates and tans. Some may call it a ‘tantour,’ and I couldn’t agree more. It’s about when makeup meets tanning, elevating your everyday look, enhancing your features and embracing that radiant glow that makes you feel like the best version of yourself. This product truly embodies the spirit of innovation that defines both Dolce Glow as a brand and me as its founder.”

ANATOMY Hair Bond Reconstruction Leave-In Conditioner

This science-backed leave-in formula from new hair-care brand ANATOMY includes the patented molecules Aminalyl-S and Pro-Amino-X. These work to help reverse hair damage and close the hair cuticle for a smoother, healthier look and feel.

“The molecules in our leave-in conditioner mark a significant advancement in hair reconstruction,” says founder Nawaf Arhamah. “Instead of merely repairing disulfide bonds, they construct new, stronger bonds that vastly improve resistance to breakage through a process known as thiol-recombination. This innovation enhances durability and resilience for healthier, stronger hair.”

Monika Blunder Beauty Sweet Talk Lip Oil 

We can’t get enough of this moisturizing, hydrating and nonsticky lip oil. Of the six shades, I love Kastanie the most, which founder Monika Blunder says is her daughter Valentina’s “absolute favorite shade. It’s like a cool-girl, ’90s shade.” It’s a must-try for anyone who loves a nude lip.

“It was really important to me that the formula was not sticky because I hate a sticky lip gloss, especially when your hair gets stuck in it. I wanted it to feel really nourishing, and for that, we used really beautiful fruit oils, including blueberry seed oil, orange peel oil and more. That’s kind of where the inspiration came from to name the shades, but of course I wanted to add some of my Austrian-German background as well, so I did the names in German.”

Neuraé harmonie The Serum 

A new brand built on the foundation of 10 years of clinical neuroscience research at Sisley Group Laboratories, Neuraé is taking a whole new approach to skin care. Meant to act on our neuromediators with the goal of impacting our emotions, the formulas “reframe cosmetics through the lens of neuroscience, for results you can see and feel.” Two hundred people took part in the dermatological clinical skin trials, and a series of measurements and analyses were performed.

The hero in the collection of serums, creams and perfume oils is this serum, which the brand says helps enhance skin’s resilience to emotional stress. We know the significant impact stress has on our skin. According to the skin-care experts at Neuraé, “over time, your features look less rigid and more expressive” when using this serum.

Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour HydraPlay Skin Perfecting Daily Moisturizer 

Whether you’re a fan of the brand’s iconic Eight Hour Cream or not, we think you’ll love this new moisturizer. Like the Cream, it also offers eight benefits in one formula, including hydration, brightening, priming (it has a nice blurring effect), pore refining, and oil control. In a clinical study, the moisturizer instantly boosted skin’s hydration levels by 64 percent.

The lightweight formula is vegan and contains 95-percent naturally derived ingredients, including hyaluronic acid, glycerin and squalane from sugarcane. It’s great for those with oily skin and provides a matte finish, but all skin types can benefit. It does include synthetic fragrance, however, so keep that in mind if that is a sensitivity for you.

GXVE Beauty Dewyplump Collagen Cheek Tint 

We’re big fans of so many Gwen Stefani’s GXVE products, and this new liquid blush is no exception. It’s also a perfect formula for warmer weather. If you’re like me, I prefer to load up on dewy skin care and as little makeup on my skin as possible. With this blush, you only need a dot or two on each cheek to get that naturally flushed look and dewy finish.

Two key ingredients are Seplift DPHP and Collume, which moisturize the skin to make it appear plumper with fewer fine lines. Of the six pretty shades, I love Hibiscus (mauve) and Bouquet, a true pink.