Everything I finished in November

And 3 important questions to ask yourself while sale shopping.

I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving! I blessedly did not have to travel this year, and actually hosted Thanksgiving dinner for the first time in my 46 years, which was a success (although I was so exhausted on Friday, I didn’t leave the house until 3pm). Speaking of Friday, while I definitely did a lot of shopping myself—details to come in next week’s newsletter—you’ll notice I did not do a sale roundup. For one, nearly every other content creator on this platform made one, so you probably don’t need my recommendations on top of those. (If you do, however, I found Jess Graves at The Love List had the most comprehensive guide.) But the bigger reason is that I feel like Black Friday has turned into this high-pressure FOMO situation and while there are many great deals to be had, most are not that great and/or you get seduced into buying something you don’t really want or need, and the last thing I want to do is pressure anyone into spending money they shouldn’t. Cheryl Shops exists to help you spend your money more wisely! So read on for my sale-shopping tips, but first, here are mini-reviews of all the products I finished in November.

Left to right:

Iris & Romeo Weekend Skin SPF 50 $50 (on sale for $35) (c/o)

I raved about this stuff in my Honest Review of Iris & Romeo; it provides a very light amount of coverage with a subtle glow. The texture is very smooth and it melts into your skin, and I really like the pump dispenser. That said, $50 for tinted sunscreen is a bit much. HOWEVER it happens to be 25% off at the moment for Black Friday, and that seems like a more reasonable price to me.

L’Occitane Shower Oil $29 (c/o)

I am generally not a huge fan of shower gels because I feel like the plastic bottles are terrible for the environment, however this one is refillable and the oil is the most moisturizing body cleanser I’ve ever used. Highly recommend it for shaving your legs too (it won’t clog your razorblades).

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base $69 (on sale for $51.75) (c/o)

This stuff has been around for ages and is one of the best priming moisturizers out there—it makes your makeup go on super-smoothly, without streaking or creasing. It has a nice light citrus scent and in spite of its thick texture, it’s not at all greasy. If you have super-dry skin like mine, I suggest layering over a super-moisturizing serum this time of year.

Versed Water Rush Intensive Hydrating Serum $14.99 (on sale for $10.49) (c/o)

Speaking of which, this is a super-affordable, super-moisturizing serum that works quickly without irritating your skin. It’s nothing fancy—just good old hyaluronic acid and vitamin B5—but it’s lightweight and fragrance-free, and it does the trick. Great for under your daily moisturizer; I especially like this under a retinol cream at night for a little skin-barrier protection.

Youth to the People Polypeptide-121 Future Cream $68 (c/o)

This moisturizer got a lot of hype when it came out, and like most of Youth to the People’s products, I found it to be…just mid. It did plump my skin, thanks to a nice cocktail of ceramides and peptides, but I couldn’t figure why it made me a little irritated too, and turns out it has niacinamide, which I feel like is the red wine of skincare ingredients—a little can be great, but too much is an absolute disaster. (Full disclosure: there is niacinamide in the Iris & Romeo sunscreen above, and for whatever reason, my skin can handle that.) I still finished this entire jar, although I have no idea why, other than to warn you to tread carefully with this one.

Versed Gentle Hydrating Cleanser $12.99 (on sale for $9.09) (c/o)

As stated in its name, this cleanser is both gentle and hydrating, and I’d like to add non-irritating too—you can get all up in your eye makeup with this one without a problem. I don’t like this as much as Versed’s excellent Day Dissolve Cleansing Balm, but that’s a matter of personal preference only—I tend to like a thicker, balm-like consistency for my reptile skin.

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3 things to ask yourself while sale shopping

So, I’m not going to name names, but I’ve seen several other creators write well-worded but somewhat tone-deaf treatises on not shopping Black Friday sales, because sales benefit retailers and not you. The former is certainly true, but honestly, it’s the holidays and unless you’re one of those super-organized people who shops for gifts year-round, you’ve got stuff to buy, and why wouldn’t you want to save money? That said, it’s easy to get swept up in the psychological tricks of sale season, so here are my tips on how to stay on track.

1. Is this on my list?

   I keep a shopping list in my Notes app with all the things I want to buy, whether they’re on sale or not. This keeps me in line, because it’s pretty simple to follow: if it’s on my list, I’m allowed to buy it. If not, I’m not.

2. Did I want this when it was full price?

   This one is a little more nuanced than “Would I pay full price for this,” because that’s not a realistic question for anyone on a budget (which is most of us). You can still want something when it’s full price but only be able to afford it when it’s on sale (this is true for most of the designer pieces I own). Hence the point of shopping sales!

3. Does this fit into my life now?

   I’m all for leaning into an aspirational lifestyle, but if something is too big/small/dressy/casual/wild/quiet/bright/dark/whatever, needs an ambitious amount of tailoring, requires purchasing something else to wear with it (like shoes or shapewear), or otherwise is just not “you”, then just don’t.

I hope these tips help you. By all means, don’t feel guilty about sale shopping—it should be fun, especially if you ascribe to the “one for you, one for me” mindset (I certainly do). Coming next week: everything I bought!