Our Editors Confirm—The 10 Most Iconic Beauty Products of the Past Decade
November 2025 marks Who What Wear UK’s 10th birthday. Yes, we’ve been writing about the trends to take note of, the luxury pieces worth investing in, the beauty heroes and hacks we can’t wait to share and the outfits the team have been rotating for a whole decade! We hope you’ve enjoyed reading our stories as much as we’ve loved creating them. To celebrate the occasion, you’ll find a range of special ten-year-anniversary content across the site this month, from retrospective looks at the biggest fashion moments to the couples who defined the decade and the products that have earned true cult status. Keep an eye out for our 10th birthday badge and enjoy the milestone with us! Thank you for being part of our story so far.
If there is one thing we really know here on the Who What Wear UK beauty team, it’s the blueprint of an iconic product. We’re talking conversation-starting blushers, perfumes that behave as status symbols and LED masks that have come to define an era. For the past 10 years, we Who What Wear UK beauty editors have spent every minute of our days scrolling social media, analysing sales data and interviewing the world’s most impressive experts to bring you beauty trends before anyone else. And in doing so, we have become experts ourselves in identifying the beauty products that really matter.
And now that we have been doing this for 10 years, it means we have dedicated 87,600 hours to testing, trialling and reviewing thousands of products so that we can bring you the most balanced and honest reviews going. From contour kits and 20-pan eyeshadow palettes to skin tints and bond-repairing hair masks, we’ve seen it all. And, because we’re feeling nostalgic, we’ve been reminiscing on the best, most iconic beauty products that have come our way over the last 10 years—the beauty products that have defined the past decade. So, without further ado, we present to you the 10 most defining beauty products of our Who What Wear careers…
1. Merit Flush Balm
“Although Merit only launched in the UK in 2023, this cream blusher has dominated our lives ever since. Created by Who What Wear co-founder Katherine Power, I remember being sat at my desk in 2020 when one of my fellow editors passed me a secret sample of Flush Balm to try. I patiently waited three years for it to launch in the UK, and it was worth every minute of the wait. The creamy texture swipes over cheeks with unparalleled ease, and it single-handedly launched the current era of foolproof, natural-looking cream makeup products.”—Shannon Lawlor, beauty director
2. Dyson Airwrap
Dyson
Airwrap Co-Anda 2x™ Multi-Styler and Dryer
“It would be remiss to talk about cult beauty icons without mentioning the Dyson Airwrap. Not only did its Coanda technology introduce a whole new way to dry and style our hair, but it also pioneered a whole new category of hair multistylers. It’s been imitated, but never topped, and its sleek design is unmatched. Each new iteration of the Airwrap gets better and better, and while it’s definitely an investment purchase, there’s no wonder that it’s been on every beauty lover’s wishlist at some point since the original launched in 2018.”—Eleanor Vousden, beauty editor
3. Dr Dennis Gross LED Mask
Dr. Dennis Gross
Drx Spectralite Faceware Pro
“Possibly my favourite LED mask of all time (and yes, I’ve tried the lot), the Dr Dennis Gross LED mask is somewhat of a skincare icon. Not only does it look like one of the chicest beauty devices on the market, but it also utilises a combination of blue and red light to tackle a wide range of skincare concerns, and it has a super short treatment time of just three minutes. The fact that this launched in 2020 puts it way ahead of its time, and I know that it’s going to be a mainstay in my routine for years to come.”—Grace Lindsay, junior beauty editor
4. Victoria Beckham Beauty Satin Kajal Liner
Victoria Beckham Beauty
Satin Kajal Liner
“Potentially the most impactful launch of the past 10 years in the beauty space was Victoria Beckham Beauty. VB’s beauty brand proved, perhaps for the first time, that celebrity-founded beauty brands could, indeed, hold their own. This eyeliner has been one of our most sold products on Who What Wear UK over the past decade. The brown, creamy, blendable Cocoa Satin Kajal Liner is the brown eyeliner to end all brown eyeliners. VB wears it every day, and now, so do we.”—Shannon
5. Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540
Maison Francis Kurkdjian
Baccarat Rouge 540 Eau de Parfum
“In 2015, a certain perfume was launched that changed the fragrance landscape as we knew it. That fragrance was Baccarat Rouge 540 by Maison Francis Kurkdjian. At £245, this is certainly an investment scent, but it’s one that has remained in my perfume wardrobe for almost ten years, and for good reason. The warm, cosy, sweet aroma never fails to earn me compliments, and saving it for special occasions makes spritzing this feel even more decadent.”—Grace
6. OPI Bubble Bath
OPI
Nail Lacquer in Bubble Bath
“Can we talk about the past decade of beauty without discussing the milky manicure? It has dominated social feeds far and wide, and our milky manicure content has no doubt dominated the internet. The product that has led the way? OPI Bubble Bath. This sheer pink has long been adored by manicurists as the perfect French manicure base, but nowadays it’s better known for being worn solo for the perfect minimal mani.”—Shannon
7. Aesop Resurrection Hand Wash
Aesop
Resurrection Aromatique Hand Wash
“What do 5* hotels, Michelin-starred restaurants, private members’ clubs and the chicest of bathroom sinks all have in common? They’re all home to at least one bottle of Aesop Resurrection Hand Wash. This spa-like hand soap might have a world-class scent and lather, but it’s the cool, refined design of the bottle that has granted this one icon status.”—Shannon
8. Hourglass Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm
Hourglass
Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm
“Having tried hundreds of lip products, I can confidently say that there is nothing more sensorial than the Hourglass Phantom Glossy Balms. As you twist the golden tube, the buttery texture melts on contact, gliding on to impart a lacquered glow to the lips with the perfect hint of pigment. The magic lies in the hybrid formula. One swipe delivers a subtle veil, while a second coating creates a glossy, lacquered lip with the pigment of a lipstick but the wearability of a gloss. You don’t need a mirror to apply it, and it works just as well on its own or layered over a lip liner for more impact.”—Eleanor
9. La Roche-Posay Anthelios UVMune
La Roche-Posay
Anthelios UVMune 400 Invisible Fluid SPF50+
“10 years ago, not many of us were wearing SPF on our faces 365 days of the year. I’m a beauty director, and not even I was doing it. Over the past decade, however, the education around the importance of daily sun protection for skin health has skyrocketed, and the notion of not applying a minimum of SPF30 to your face every day would be embarrassing for most people to admit. This facial sunscreen from La Roche-Posay is the product that changed it all. The lighter-than-air texture and second-skin finish made daily SPF application something everyone could get on board with. It might have had various formulation upgrades and name changes, but the usability that sits at the core of Anthelios fluid has always remained the same.”—Shannon
10. Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector
Olaplex
No. 3 Hair Perfector
“Bond repair, who? In 2015, I started hearing about hair bond repair because a new, upcoming brand called Olaplex had just launched. Apparently, its technology meant that broken hair as a result of bleaching and over-processing was about to become a thing of the past. Fast-forward 10 years, and it’s fair to say that Olaplex has totally revolutionised the hair industry. Before Olaplex launched, one-session hair colour transformations were an almost impossible task (intense bleach would burn straight through strands), and the idea of being able to strengthen your hair with an at-home treatment was unbelievably far-fetched. Without Olaplex No.3 Hair Perfector, the hundreds of bond-repair products that line shelves today would simply not exist.”—Shannon
