I Finally Tried the Viral Beauty Product from TikTok That Blake Lively Swears by, and It Made My Skin Glow
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Although there is not yet an official outline of the many stages of quarantine and lockdown that we all went through, I feel with the utmost confidence that nearly all of us went through a Euphoria makeup phase. For the last sixteen months, I would randomly feel an impulse, often in the middle of the day, to get up and glue diamond stickers onto my eyelids, only to go absolutely nowhere.
This phase was promptly followed by a sheet mask and chill phase that felt more appropriate for the constant "doing nothing, going nowhere" vibe of lockdown. It was an intense shift that feels about right with all of the ups and downs that came with 2020 and 2021, although it wasn't my wallet's favorite phase because I decided to invest in some celeb-approved skincare like Caudalie's Beauty Elixir, a favorite of Blake Lively's and definitely pricier than my gem eye stickers.
When it comes to skincare idols, Blake Lively will always be my North Star. Gossip Girl is my comfort show, and I rewatched it all throughout 2020. It reminded me of my childhood fixation of early Y2K prep school style and my intense high school obsession with Serena van der Woodsen. Somehow Lively has managed to look exactly like her character for the past 14 years, so naturally I've spent a lot of time refining my skincare routine in hopes of replicating her success. A big piece of that puzzle was finally ordering the Caudalie elixir, which Lively shared as one of her go-tos on her Instagram story two years ago.
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A while back, I got a trial-size bottle of the elixir at Sephora and loved it, but never committed to buying a full bottle. While I knew it was a staple in Lively's routine back then, the product came back on my radar when it blew up on TikTok earlier this year - back when everyone and their mother was trying out Madison Beer's famous Vogue Makeup tutorial. In the video, Beer called the best-selling elixir her "favorite facial spray in the entire world" before spritzing it all over her face, anddays after it was released, almost all of the products she used sold out briefly at Nordstrom.
The Elixir doesn't only count Lively and Beer - and TikTok - as fans, either. When I used to interview makeup artists behind the scenes at fashion shows, the product was a constant. I'd see it everywhere, and some supermodels even brought the travel-sized version with them to set.
If you're not familiar with the Caudalie Beauty Elixir, its name makes it sound like a mystical potion - not wrong, but it's also a toning mist that tightens pores, sets makeup, and makes your skin look generally radiant. The formula was inspired by Queen Isabella of Hungary's famous elixir of youth. Clearly it worked, because in all of her painted portraits, her skin definitely glows like Lively's. With ingredients like clarifying grape extracts, toning rosemary, astringent mint, and soothing rose oil, it's not shocking that the formula still holds up in 2021.
The bottle is pricey, but it lasts for months on end. Since investing in a bottle for myself, it has transformed my skincare routine, and it might even be my new favorite step. A small spritz before applying serums at night or makeup during the day goes a long way. I can't help but notice that my makeup stays on longer when I use it, and it prevents smudging as well.
I've been getting a lot of compliments lately on how glowy my skin looks, and I know without a doubt it's because of this spray. It's the only change I've recently made in my routine, and it's already paying off. Basically, I finally feel like my skin could potentially be cast in the 2021 Gossip Girl remake. Serena van der Woodsen who?
Shop the beloved Caudalie Beauty Elixir at Nordstrom before it sells out.
