There’s no doubt that our annual Best of Beauty issue is all about the products — there are 345 getting the coveted red seal this year — but I want to take a moment to acknowledge the other big part of Allure’s signature awards: the editors. Perhaps for lack of knowing it’s even an option, becoming a beauty editor isn’t usually on a list of dream accomplishments. That level of ambition is reserved for astronauts, sports heroes, and pop stars. This job is something you’re more likely to glide into. Personally, it was the accessibility of the subject matter (everyone practices beauty in one way or another) and its adjacency to fashion that attracted me. But similar to the aforementioned career choices, I like to believe that beauty editing requires a dose of science proficiency, some physical endurance, and a good dash of glamour.

Every editor that sacrificed skin and strands to test thousands of beauty products for this year’s awards is a hero, in my opinion (I am biased in this, I know). Allure staffers (assisted by the coworkers/friends/ family who test by extension) are devoted to producing a list of products that are seal-worthy. For us, Best of Beauty is a 24/7/365 job. Every day our editors test new innovations and formulations, keeping in mind which ones might be contenders for an award.

The power of Best of Beauty is the diversity of its testers. We have people with blue, green, gray, Afro, and thinning hair critiquing shampoos, curl creams, and blow-dryers. We have people under 25 and over 45 testing skin care. We have an array of skin tones represented in rating foundations and blushes. Being human isn’t even a requirement to be a BoB tester! A few dogs were enlisted for our pet category.