I Wore A Full Face Of Merit Beauty — & These Are The 6 Products Worth Buying

If your algorithm is anything like mine, you can't fire up Instagram without being served an ad for an impeccably designed clean beauty brand — or five, for that matter. Such was how I was first introduced to Merit, but lest you believe this is just another greenwashed makeup moment, think again. The luxury brand is all about a curated wardrobe of clean makeup essentials — a less-is-more directive I myself have been trying to adopt in my own life.

Merit's formulation M.O. focuses on safe ingredients that are free of hormone or endocrine disrupters. Every product is formulated in accordance with the EU's safety standards and is also Clean at Sephora certified. (The brand is also vegan and certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny.)

To test the brand out for myself, I was generously gifted a selection of Merit's bestsellers to see if they were worth the rave reviews. Ahead, keep reading for the six products that I’ll definitely keep in my rotation.

The Minimalist, $38

Eager to do a full Merit face beat, I started off with The Minimalist – Merit's hero base product with buildable coverage. (You may recognize it as a winner from last year's Beauty Innovator Awards.) The texture is insanely smooth and buttery, and truly glides on like a crayon. I opted for the shade Linen, which was a little lighter than my natural skin tone but still worked to brighten my overall complexion. (My face is naturally more tan than the rest of my body, so I tend to go a shade lighter to balance things out.)

Since the tip of the product is designed to be used for both precise application and allover coverage, I appreciated that it was on the smaller side. I tend to avoid cream-based foundations and concealers because they can sometimes feel heavy on my oily skin, but this one was surprisingly lightweight and comfortable. At $38, the stuff isn't cheap for the amount of product you get. However, if you already tend to splurge on luxury foundations compared to other steps, this is a product you'll definitely love.