We Put the *Most* Viral Beauty Products of 2025 to the #DamnGood Test
Breaking Beauty Podcast
Dear Media, Jill Dunn and Carlene Higgins
4.7 • 954 Ratings
🗓️ 3 December 2025
⏱️ 59 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this #DamnGood review episode, we’re testing the most viral products to hit our feeds this year. From a $6 drugstore cheek stain to celebrity launches and a $400 fragrance, we determine once and for all: are they really #DamnGood – or just hype?
But first, we have a PSA "phone-a-friend" in partnership with the Personal Care Products Council (PCPC) to chat with toxicologist Dr. Kimberly Norman about the potential risks associated with counterfeit beauty products.
We break down:
- Our honest review of the Natasha Denona Hy-Glam Hydrating Serum Foundation – is this actually the best foundation of the year? Plus, our take on the Tarte CC Under Eye Corrector.
- The truth about Mikayla Makeup’s POV Beauty Lip Ampoule & AMP Kit. We test the longevity, texture, and why this launch has been so polarizing on TikTok.
- $6 Dupe vs. Designer: The viral ELF Sheer For It Blush Tint is the affordable dupe for Benefit Benetint – we compare the wear, pigment, and application tips.
- Primer showdown! Reviews of the Maybelline Poreless Jelly Primer and the viral hit Grown Alchemist Primer (millions of views!).
- Primo supremo? Does the Dua Lipa Augustinus Bader Ula line live up to the hype? Plus, our take on the esthetician-beloved Ziip Dot Nano-current Acne Device
- Fragrance fever? Carlene tries out the highly sought-after (and highly priced) white floral scent Parfums de Marly Valaya Exclusif.
Get social with us and let us know what you think of the episode! Find us on Instagram, Tiktok,X, Threads. Join our private Facebook group. Or give us a call and leave us a voicemail at 1-844-227-0302. Sign up for our Substack here
For any products or links mentioned in this episode, check out our website: https://breakingbeautypodcast.com/episode-recaps/
Related episodes like this:
- Meet The TikTok-Famous Makeup Artist Who's Single-Handedly Making Beauty Products Go Viral, Mikayla Nogueira
- Is This $265 “Self-Healing” Face Cream Really The GOAT? An Augustinus Bader Explainer
- TikTok-Viral Fragrances, Are They Worth The Money? Ft. Emma Vernon Host of The Perfume Room Podcast
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Personal Care Products Council
For more information on #BuyNoLie, learn the truth by going to BuyNoLie.com. Spread the word and tell your friends and loved ones!
*Disclaimer: Unless otherwise stated, all products reviewed are gratis media samples submitted for editorial consideration.*
Hosts: Carlene Higgins and Jill Dunn
Theme song, used with permission: Cherry Bomb by Saya
Produced by Dear Media Studio
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Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | The following podcast is a dear media production. |
| 0:08.1 | Welcome to Breaking Beauty, the podcast all about the breakthrough people, products, and moments in beauty. |
| 0:14.0 | We're your host, Jill Dunn and Carleen Higgins. |
| 0:24.2 | Welcome back to Breaking Beauty Podcast, everyone. |
| 0:28.4 | I'm Jill Dunn, one of your co-hosts, and I'm here with Carleen Higgins. |
| 0:29.8 | Hello, that's me. |
| 0:33.5 | Carleen Higgins is here on the scene. |
| 0:35.8 | Well, we're in studio today in L.A. |
| 0:38.9 | And our lovely producer, Olivia, is in the room with us. |
| 0:39.7 | Hey, Olivia. |
| 0:48.4 | I hope that everybody caught our gift guide last week because we had a lot of good gifts that would inspire people for this holiday season. |
| 0:57.3 | Yes. And now I feel like we have this follow-up damn goods episode. We rarely do back-to-back damn goods, but it happened this year. |
| 0:59.8 | This is our gift to you for the holidays. |
| 1:05.2 | Well, I think there's always room to in December, where we're currently in, sort of take a look back and zoom out and assess what people were excited about that for whatever reason we may have |
| 1:10.3 | tried but not had a chance |
| 1:11.5 | to talk about. So the theme of today's episode is we are trying all of the viral products from |
| 1:18.0 | 2025 that we have kind of put on our face ourselves and we're determining if they're hashtag |
| 1:24.1 | damn good or not. That's right. And so there's a lot of very fun things on this |
| 1:28.6 | table. We encourage you to watch on YouTube if you haven't joined us there yet. It's Breaking Beauty |
| 1:33.3 | Podcast. Please come join us, subscribe. It's free. And so today, Carleen, maybe we can give them a little |
| 1:39.7 | Yes. Well, I think what our listeners are really going to love about today is we have a lot of |
| 1:44.7 | affordable beauty products. And, you know, coming off of a gift guide where you're investing money |
... |
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