DIVA DISH: Next Generation Beauty [3 New Products to Check Out]

There is nothing better than something you’ve seen before (and really liked) and it comes back in a superior version. (Love me some reinvention!)

Right now is a great time for innovation in beauty, even when the innovation is simply tweaks to formulas or new delivery systems.

Tons of items pass my desk, but lately I’ve been excited about these three upgrades:

1. The Boscia Konjac Cleansing Sponge

What’s so cool about it? At first, not much. It’s initially stiff and cardboard like. Not luxurious feeling at all. Once wet, though, it becomes super soft and can be used alone to cleanse or in tandem with your favorite cleanser. The sponge itself detoxes, gently exfoliates and rebalances, leaving you with smoother, brighter skin. It can be used twice a day on the most gentle areas and on the most sensitive skin.

The Boscia Konjac Cleansing Sponge is sold exclusively at Sephora and is made with bamboo charcoal and konjac root (used in Japanese beauty rituals for over 1,500 years) from Jeju island that the brand claims “are the purest in the world.”

How does it work? You wet the sponge, as aforementioned, in warm water. If desired, you add cleanser. Then you glide it over your face, neck, décolletage – in circular motions. It cleans as it exfoliates, removing makeup and environmental impurities, and the feeling is like a nice facial massage. The sponge is not gritty so to speak but there’s a little something texturally happening there. A little something you’ll like. When done, you let the sponge hang to dry on the thin attached thread. Replace the sponge every 2-3 months.

2. Soap and Paper Factory Solid Fragrance

What’s so cool about it? With 7 classic perfumes plus two more masculine varieties, the solid fragrances from Soap and Paper Factory are an amazing way to carry your signature scent on you and with you. The packaging is pretty and petite, which I’m always a fan of, and each container makes for a great TSA-friendly travel companion — and also a great gift. Love to toss these in my gym bag too, for a little post-workout refresh. Plus, the product works double-duty as a hair pomade!!! A good-looking multi-tasker?! LOVE that.

How does it work? You just press the fragrance wherever you’d like it. Pulse points are recommended. And layering is ideal as well as mixing and matching the different scents for your own custom fragrance. Make it your own, guys!

3. Kapuluan Coconut Oil Lotion

What’s so cool about it? This is 100% raw virgin organic coconut oil, in a squeezy tube. GENIUS. I’m a coconut oil lover like pretty much everyone else out there, but to get it out from a jar in hardened form is kind of a pain. (Is that the laziest thing ever??!) So I love Kapuluan Coconut Oil first for it’s ease of use. More, sourced from rural, organic farms in the Philippines, the oil lotion is cold pressed with no heat, meeting raw food standards. So it’s actually good enough to eat (although consumption is not advised!). And it has a very subtle coconut scent that is also super yummy. Lastly, it leaves a gorgeous sheen. Skin actually glows and looks beautiful IRL and beyond beautiful in photos!

How does it work? You simply squeeze it out and apply. It initially has a little coconut grit to it that melts away as you rub it in. This product can be used on the body, on the hair, on chapped or dry lips, on damaged or frizzy hair, on unruly cuticles and more. It’s a miracle worker. The brand advises that if the tube is hard to squeeze, warm it under warm water. I have personally found the opposite to occur, that the tube liquifies in heat, and so I pop it in the fridge. Either way, it goes back to it’s soft semi-solid lotion middle-ground easily. And from there you’re good to go.

Let me know what you think of these guys – and I’ll stay on the hunt for some more next generation beauty to share…

xoLC

NOTE: This post is not sponsored. All thoughts are unbiased and my own. Samples were provided for editorial consideration and/or my use as a professional makeup artist. All photos are property of DIVAlicious.

Lauren Cosenza is the creator and editor-in-chief of DIVAlicious, a trusted beauty/fashion expert, an on-camera personality and spokesperson, a leading NYC-based professional makeup artist, a published contributor and writer, a brand consultant, a product junkie and an insatiable style seeker — with a former life at Cosmopolitan and Shape magazines.

Serving up style with a side of attitude, her site DIVAlicious gives women (and men) the confidence and permission to be fabulous. The site is filled with must-have products, pro tips and tricks, how-to DIY tutorials, makeovers, style inspiration and insider access. Topics range from beauty, fashion, culture, career, fitness, wellbeing, men’s and unisex offerings.