The French Beauty Capsule: 15 Items Every Beauty Lover Has to Try in Their Life

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(Image credit: @annelauremais)

Sorry to be such an inevitable cliché, but French beauty products have a certain je ne sais quoi that simply can't be ignored. Beautiful ingredients, clean formulations, gorgeous packaging, try as we might, our obsession runs deep. And it doesn't help that our favourite celebrities, makeup artists and all-around beauty icons encourage said obsession by consistently favouring beloved brands like Bioderma, Caudalie, Leonor Greyl, Talika, Darphin, By Terry and so many more. 

What with it being the season of gifting and showing our love, we decided to compile the ultimate French beauty capsule chock full of the best French brands—and the top-selling formulas from each—we know you'll try and instantly fall head over heels for. Oh, and just in case you're working on those Christmas shopping lists, they also make amazing gifts. Keep scrolling for 15 cult-loved French hair, skin and makeup staples every beauty lover should try in their lifetime...

The Soothing Cleansing Oil

The Holy-Grail Micellar Water

The Complexion-Enhancing Toner

The Radiance-Boosting Serum

The Pre-Party Mask

The Affordable Face Cream That Should Be £200

The Botox-in-a-Bottle Eye Cream:

The Only Hand Cream Worth Having

The Award-Winning Mineral Sunscreen

The Straw-to-Silk Hair Oil Treatment

The Shampoo that's a Parisian Legend

And the Best Mask to Go With It

The Dry Shampoo that Won't Suck-Dry Your Hair

The Serum for Lush Lashes

The Serum-CC Cream Hybrid That Makes Your Skin Glow

Beauty Director

Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over four years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor. She considers her day-to-day beauty aesthetic very low-maintenance and relies on staples like clear brow serum (from Kimiko!), Lawless's Lip Plumping Mask in Cherry Vanilla, and an eyelash curler. For special occasions or days when she's taking more meetings or has an event, she'll wear anything and everything from Charlotte Tilbury (the foundations are game-changing), some shimmer on her lids (Stila and Róen do it best), and a few coats of the best mascara-type product on earth, Surratt's Noir Lash Tint.