Beauty hits and misses

Beauty boxes are a great way to try new products, and I've been delving into the Cult Beauty 10th birthday gift box and and the Marks and Spencer summer beauty box. I'm also still wading through the many beauty products I had for Christmas. So here are my latest hits and misses.

The Cult Beauty gift featuring no fewer than 10 full-size products was free if you spent £170. I stocked up on some favourites, tempted by the very desirable gift items. The M&S box was £15 if you spent a certain amount on other goods and contains mostly trial sizes, which I find brilliant for holidays.

Hits 

I've been extremely impressed by the Skyn Iceland brand since I started using their Nordic Skin Peel pads and trial size of Glacial Face Wash.  I've tried quite a few of the acid based exfoliators which are all the rage - Pixi and Liquid Gold to name but two - and have found them too astringent and drying. But I love the Skyn Iceland Nordic Skin Peel pads. They're fully saturated out of the tub,and you rub one of them over your skin. There's a slight tingling sensation as the alpha-beta acids get to work. I've been using them two or three times a week. My skin is brighter and the brown spots slightly less pronounced.

I often try new facial cleansers.  I like wash-off cleansers to feel like a treat: luxurious and beautifully scented, and leaving the skin smooth and supple - not dry and shiny - afterwards.  The Skyn Iceland Glacial Face Wash is up there with the best - it leaves my skin glowing and soft, and has a fresh distinctive smell. I will be buying a full size version very soon.

I feel bad about my neck 

I have kept meaning to buy Prai Ageless Throat and Decolletage Creme, having heard great things about it. A 15ml sample was included in the M&S beauty box. My neck is older than my face, for sure - there's too much skin going on, since I lost weight very quickly a few years ago, and it's a bit sinewy like the late Deirdre Barlow's. This cream is very good. It gives a big old hyaluronic acid boost and plumps up the skin nicely. I'm hooked. It doesn't break the bank either at £19.99 for 50ml from Boots.

Nails Inc nail polish duo "The Future is Fairy"

I love pale, pearly colours for summer nails and this ticks the box. I might even use the glittery polish for some extra fairy sparkle, even though they're a complete pain to remove.

Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Skin Clay Mask

I've become a bit obsesssed with face masks lately. Don't be put off by the word "clay." It's not like the Mudd mask from days of yore. Apply a thick layer, massage it in, and wait for 10 minutes or more, then tissue off. It doesn't go hard. The mask contains goodies like sweet almond oil to nourish the skin, "BioNymph Peptide Complex" to promotes collagen and elasticity, and Frangipani Flower extracts with antiseptic properties to soothe the skin and leave it soft.

It's great for dry or problem skin.  It makes lines less visible for a few hours and gives a glowy radiant look.

Beauty Misses

Three of the misses are hair products.  I don't see the point of fragrance sprays for hair. I suppose they're intended to camouflage bad smells if you haven't washed your hair. I find that concept a bit....ewwww.....just wash it! So I'll be putting the Percy & Reed Shine and Fragrance Mist in my giveaway box.

My hair is fairly fine so I often try styling products which claim to plump up fine hair. The John Frieda blow out spray made no discernible difference. I didn't notice "the look and feel of more hair," and it didn't serve very well as a styling spray, giving no extra lift or blow dry longevity.

Philip Kingsley's Elasticizer has cult status and I know a lot of you will love it.  This coconut scented variant was included in the M&S box.  You apply it before shampooing and leave for 10-20 minutes. Well, you've more or less lost me already, but I have used this product before and it made my hair too soft and limp. Probably good if you have thick, damaged, crunchy type hair or need an emergency treatment after a holiday.

I had high hopes for the Zoeva Cat Eye Pen Liner in Blackest Black (Cult Beauty). Eyeliner on older women can look harsh so I tend to push it into the eyelashes where it fills gaps and gives some definition without making me look tired. The pen was easy to use and gave a nice straight line. But, a couple of hours later, I was a panda! I was shocked at work to see that the product had transferred to the skin below my eyes - and virtually disappeared from the lashes.  Perhaps it works fine if you just use it above the lashes as a traditional eye liner.

Last up, Lime Crime matte liquid lipstick in red velvet (Cult Beauty). If you want a dense, long-lasting pout, this is for you. 100% vegan and cruelty-free. But it felt very thick and claggy on the lips, and darlings, matte lipstick is hard to pull off for the older woman. 

Please mount a stern defence if I have criticised any of your favourites. And do share which products you loved from the M&S summer box or Cult Beauty 10th birthday free gift. 

Sharing this post with Fake It Until You Make It at Fake Fabulous, Saturday Share at Not Dressed as Lamb, Weekend Blog Hop at Claire Justine and Anything Goes Linky at My Random Musings.

None of the products featured was gifted.

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