Weekend Mode: So Subtle

A scream to a whisper

Nov 14, 2025

Hello, Gorgeous!

I recently ran into an old friend who told me I looked the exact same…except without the ‘90s club energy eye shadow.

I cannot tell a lie. I spent a lot of my misbegotten youth clubbing. And I’m pretty sure that I danced my way through much of the ‘90s wearing dubious outfits and enough eye makeup to paint a Mini Cooper. These days I’m a lot more mellow. Or maybe I just figured out that subtle takes a lot more confidence.

Color me obsessed

I don’t wear a lot of makeup on my face, but I’m endlessly intrigued with makeup products that do the work without being obvious about it. While Kulfi is a brand ostensibly created for South Asian skin, the textures are so well made and the colors so beautifully pigmented, that they work well on nearly every skin type or skin tone. Two of my current favorites are:

Lassi Lips Staining Lip Oil. Wait. A lip oil that’s also a stain that adds buildable color without dry dark patches? Yes, please! It’s hard to explain the way this one adds a healthy does of shine along with the proverbial pop of color. It’s subtle, but also wow. I’m loving this one right now!
Double Life Serum Primer. What beauty alchemy is this? This product is so sheer you’d be forgiven for not thinking that it does much. But, wait. Where’s that glow coming from? How did that patchy spot get so evened-out? I couldn’t tell you exactly how this one works, but it does. Think of it as pressed powder for your nose only it’s for your face and dewy and sheer but also covers stuff up. I told you I don’t know how it works! ($24, and $34, respectively, both products are available on kulfibeauty.com).

Nails that last

Subtlety comes in may forms. And when your face looks fresh and bare, you can add a bit o’drama to your nails in the form of a perfect mani. Dazzle Dry’s Mulled Wine is a deeply blackish burgundy full coverage cream polish that isn’t exactly demure, but rather a perfect fall neutral. If deep moody colors are your thing but you’re in a low key mood, this is a nice way to accent your look without much effort ($22, dazzledry.com).

Fresh water everywhere

Too tired to lug around a trailer-sized water bottle with you this weekend? LifeStraw has extended their offerings to include this Water Filter Straw that removes bacteria, microplastics, and parasites from your drinking water (but not from your inbox). These also make incredible stocking stuffers ($25, lifestraw.com).

Ease of boots

I have been reading about Kizik forever, but somehow never got around to trying them until recently. Whether it’s rainy or snowy or you’re too lazy to find a comfy pair of socks, you need to try a pair of Juno 2 low boots from Kizik. Yes. They’re snow boots. But they’re also warm (so no base layer needed) and hand’s free so you don’t have to twist yourself in a knot to slip on your snow boots ($140, kizik.com).

So are you planning on being all dolled up this weekend or incredibly lowkey? Let’s meet in the comments to discuss!

Rachel, Your beauty concierge 💋