serum

UNBOXING: You Beauty Box July 2017 – Come fly with me!

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The selection this month was so so, with only one stand out item. The Skin Chemists serum was an easy choice and we chose to augment this with the facial oil. Could the serum possibly be good enough to justify the skyhigh price?  The freebie sachet is pretty tiny so a bit of a meh inclusion but it’s just an extra.

SKIN CHEMISTS: Aqua Repair Facial Serum, 30ml
Value: £64 (although available for £39)

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“Our SkinChemist 24 Hour Aqua Repair Facial Serum has been formulated to sooth and hydrate the skin for all day moisturisation. This serum would be the perfect product to use on the go for a quick zap of hydration. The main active ingredients include: Rose Water to calm and sooth the skin, Allantoin to moisturise and soothe and Aloe Vera to stimulate the healing process of the skin.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: We love good skincare that’s compatible with combination skin, so love the trend towards serums and layering.  We couldn’t resist trying the serum right away. It sinks right in and isn’t sticky at all. Would recommend it being used before a moisturiser as we needed that extra hydration. Will report back on how much our skin likes it and whether it’s worth the splurge.

THE BODY SHOP:  Oils of life, 7ml
Value: £7.00

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“A lightweight daily facial oil to intensely revitalise skin, instantly replenish moisture and revive radiance.  Made from 99% oils of natural origin, this lightweight, quickly-absorbed formula effortlessly melts onto skin leaving a non-sticky, velvety-soft finish.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – We weren’t totally happy to see this in the shortlist as it’s available as a sample easily from Body Shop stores. However we did want to try it out as from cleansing to night treatments, we do love a good oil…they tend work so well with combination skin so much better and contrary to what you’d expect. Oil cleansers actually reduce how oily our skin is. This is a particularly lightweight oil that does absorb pretty fast. Hoping it will also nourish as well. We’ll see if it can compete with the likes of Kiehl’s Midnight Concentrate.

EXTRA TREATS:

OMS (OhMySkin) : Sublime Enzyme – Exfoliate & Surface Mask, 3ml
Value: £1.74

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“OMS’ natural formulation of Cacti & Wheat enzymes separate the old from the new, revealing an instantly brightened complexion.  OMS refines and perfects with each treatment, using no harsh acids, abrasive or microbeads. Concentrated vitamins and plant extracts leave the skin nourished, supple, firmed and uplighted.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – Look forward to trying this out, but think we’ll need more than one sample to see if it really makes a difference.

OTHER OPTIONS:

The shortlist this month was:

  • Acqua Cacteen Hydrasoothe Cooling Spray
  • Physicool Cooling Mist
  • Vita Liberata Self Tanning Night Moisture Mask
  • Years Rich Shea Butter Soap, Jasmine or Vintage Rose
  • Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Air Soft Face SPF30
  • Aromatherapy Associates Support Breathe Bath & Shower Oil
  • Skin Chemists Aqua Repair Facial Serum
  • The Body Shop Oils of Life Intensely Revitalising Facial Oil
  • Simple Kind to Skin Micellar Cleansing Water
  • Green People Age Defy+ 24Hr Brightening
  • Invisibobble Traceless Hair Ring, True Black
  • Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure, Jolly Jade
  • Bohemian Chic Minerals Pretty in Pink Eyeshadow

OVERALL VERDICT:

The Skin Chemists serum saved this box! The rest of the list was pretty uninspirational. It’s always nice to try a luxury product without paying to premium to see if it’s really worth the hype. Another worthwhile item in the list, or another freebie would have raised the bar. Still amazing value for the price and this remains our favourite subscription box where you get to pick the items you receive.

Box price: £6.95 inc shipping
Total value: £72.74

Note: We paid for this You Beauty Discovery Box with our own hard-earnt pennies

Like the look of You Beauty Discovery? Sign up here http://www.youbeautydiscovery.co.uk

REVIEW: Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum Gel foundation 30ml, £10.99

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We found this foundation when we trialled Chantecaille’s Future Skin gel foundation, but the price made us want to cry. We started looking for other oil-free gel formulas and the one that everyone was raving about was Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum. It’s almost a dupe for the Future Skin.

It was hard to work out which shade we were as there were never the right testers in store, but we’re glad we persisted. This has become our drugstore foundation of choice. It basically does everything you’d want a foundation to do – provides good medium coverage that lasts well. It didn’t produce a ‘luminous’ or ‘dewy’ finish and can’t say we noticed the ‘anti-fatigue’ claims but it did look natural and didn’t separate or go patchy as foundations often can with combination skin.

Best of all, whilst it’s not weightless (but it is fairly lightweight), it feels pretty good and lasts relatively well even in the T-Zone on combination skin (would need a touch up during a full day). Best of all, Bourjois cater relatively well for yellow-toned shades.

This went straight in as our Holy Grail drugstore foundation.

PROS: Inexpensive, breathable, lightweight, well suited to combination skin

CONS: No added radiance

4.5 out of 5

UNBOXING: Birchbox September 2014 – Happy Days…the one with the Benefit Eye Cream

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This month’s theme was Happy Days – the booklet inside was missing and the theme tenuous at best. But we hoped for something better that last month’s poor summer-themed offering.

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KORRES: Citrus Showergel, 50ml
Value: £1.60

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“This get-up-and-go citrus body wash helps ensure skin stays hydrated all day long.”

BT INITIAL OPINION: Fresh and modern-smelling. This will get used and Korres is a reliably good brand, but the inclusion of this hardly sets the world alight…reasonable at best.

AGAVE: Healing Oil Treatment, 4ml
Value: £1.07

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“A lightweight oil to smooth hair, build resiliency and boost shine and colour.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – Look forward to trying this as hair oils really suit oriental hair. We could do with a much, much larger sample though!

 

BENEFIT: It’s Potent! Eye Cream, 3g
Value: £2.03

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“Banish dark circles, smooth fine lines and protect against free radicals with this light peptide-packed formula.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – We get along better with eye gels and serums for our combination skin, but always happy to get to sample Benefit.

SKIN & CO: Truffle Therapy Serum, 5ml
Value: £7.00

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“A natural shade-adjusting CC cream with SPF to smooth fine lines and even out skin tones.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – This is interesting! Luxe price, but non-luxe packaging. Will see whether the serum has luxe results or not. Probably the most interesting thing in the box this month..

MODELCO: Lip Lacquer in “Morocco”, volume unknown
Value: estimated £5.00

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“A sumptuous lip gloss that provides long-lasting colour and hydration – plus, plenty of shine.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – Nice. We will use. That is all.

LIFESTYLE EXTRAS:

URBAN FRUIT: Magnificent Mango 35g
Value: £0.80

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“A yummy 100% fruit snack to add to your work lunch and keep you feeling virtuous.”

BT INITIAL OPINION – Love Urban fruit and have yet to try the mango. Great lifestyle extra!

BIRCHBOX: Happy Days Photo Clip
Value: N/A

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“Brighten up your desk or bedroom with this colourful photo holder!”

BT INITIAL OPINION – as a second lifestyle extra, receiving something not-too-obviously-Birchbox-branded is not too bad.

 

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OVERALL VERDICT:

All in all, this was a very mediocre box. It suffered hugely from the the samples being weeny, the value of the box on the low side and (surprisingly for Birchbox) they didn’t curate a very exciting or creative box, nor was there a ‘star product’. However, they have still chosen a variety of items combining higher-end luxe brands as well as new brands to discover.  This is just about passable – I know other versions of this month’s box have been better..If we hadn’t got this on the LivingSocial deal, then we would have been pretty miffed.

Box price: £10.00 plus £2.95 shipping (rolling month by month subscription) – although we got this on a discount offer
Total value: £17.50

Note: We paid for this Birchbox with our own hard-earnt pennies

Like the look of Birchbox? Subscribe at www.birchbox.co.uk and you’ll get £5 worth of points! You’re welcome 😉

UNBOXING: MeMeBox Superbox #47 IOPE Box 2

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What’s this? A MeMeBox Superbox dedicated purely to Korean IOPE skincare products! What is a Superbox? Superboxes contain full size products only. We usually don’t like the idea of having a lot of full size products that might go to waste if we don’t like them, so usually buy the usual MeMeboxes that offer a mix of samples and full size products.

Having not heard of IOPE before, but we googled for reviews and saw that it was generally well-regarded, somewhere between highstreet and high-end. MeMeBox released two IOPE Boxes and gave you a picture of each of the contents – the only difference between the two boxes seems to be this one also had an Air Cushion and therefore cost a bit more. We were keen to try an air cushion as well as some better quality Korean skin care than you typically get in MeMeBoxes so we went ahead and ordered a box!

This is an unboxing, we’ll list the items and come back and review them later 🙂

   

 

IOPE: Essential Skin Boosting Serum, 40ml
Value: $84 (full size product)


“This boosting serum instantly hydrates the skin when used as the first step of skincare routine, preventing any possible dehydration after cleansing. It also works to maintain just the right balance on your skin by strengthening the natural healing power and moisture lock-in capability.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: Serum’s usually work well with our combination skin – moisturizing without causing oiliness or dryness so we look forward to this.

 

IOPE: Essential Tone & Wrinkle Care Eye Cream, 25ml
Value: $86 (full size product)


“Enriched with shea butter and jojoba oil, this moisturizing eye cream will fill in between the fine lines and wrinkles around the eyes and create a protective moisture layer on top to prevent further sagging and wrinkle formation.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: This might not be a great match as we tend to get along better with eye gels than eye creams. We’ll try it and report back!

 

IOPE: Lip & Cheek 01 Rose Pink, 4g
Value: $42 (full size product)


“A dual item for both lip and cheeks, this rosy lip & cheek stain comes in a neat, compact packaging with a mirror as well. Blend it into your lips and cheeks to add more colour and radiance to your overall complexion.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: We don’t usually go for items as pinky as this, but will definitely try it. The build and look of the compact was not ugly, but not very sexy either!

 

IOPE: Essential Face Oil, 30ml
Value $90 (full size product)

“This thickly spreading yet quickly absorbed facial oil creates a thin, protective layer over the skin for a softer, smoother skin tecture. Organic argan oil and macadamia oil contained also deliver deep nourishment and hydration to the skin.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: We have yet to try a regular facial oil (just rescue treatments) and have been wanting to try one for a while. We look forward to this one!

 

IOPE: Air Cushion CP SPF50+/PA+++ N.21 30g: 15g x 2
Value: $48 (full size product)


“Packed with highly concentrated mineral water and skin beneficial nutrition such as Vitamin B5, Vitamin E and Vitamin P, the latest edition of IOPE’s famous Air Cushion works to cool and moisturize reddened, stimulated skin and it’s a quick, easy-to-pat-on item for in-between fix-ups. Experience a nturally glowing skin with IOPE’s all time bestseller!”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: One of the main reasons why we bought this box…the compact is a bit bulky and comes with a replacement cushion. We don’t get along that well with foundation in general, so will be interesting to see how this performs.

 

IOPE: Essential Moisture Relief Cream, 50ml
Value: $87 (full size product)

“A light-textured moisturizing cream especially suitable for the summer time, the Essential Moisture Relief Cream soothes, moisturizes and tightens up the dried, worn-out skin overnight for a refreshing revitalized condition the next morning.”

BT INITIAL THOUGHTS: This sounds good, looks like we’ll be doing lots of skincare layering. We find lightweight lotions good for carrying the richer products into the skin.

 

OVERALL VERDICT: This seems like a well-rounded colleciton of skincare products. We think the inclusion of the lip/cheek colour is a bit random though and would have preferred a moisturising toner/lotion for the full layering effect. The truth with this collection will be told in the performance though so watch this space! As with all skincare, it will depend on whether the range is a good match for us, but the products seems on-target so we are optimisic 🙂

Are IOPE products really worth the stated prices? If two of these products perform well, the box will have more than earnt its money back. As a final point, the packaging isn’t ugly, but didn’t feel at all luxe…think IOPE would do well to work on this.

Box price: $78.99 + $6.99 shipping
Total value: $437.00

Note: We paid for this MeMeBox with our own hard-earnt pennies

Interested in trying out MeMeBox? Use the link below to get $5 off all orders over $100 or check the referrals & deals page for other offers on specific boxes.