People say that you gradually start to care more and more about your skincare routine the later you get into your twenties, well, that is so true. Rewind to 18/19 year old me, sleeping with my make-up on, using basic supermarket moisturisers (when I remembered) and putting make-up on over the previous days make-up.
Literally the thought of doing all that now makes my toes curl. I have increasingly become more interested in what I am actually doing to my skin, what products will prevent wrinkles (scary and a little premature, I know) and which moisturiser will make me glow like Miranda Kerr.
I would say I have become really serious about skincare more in the last 5 months. Which is why I am forever trying new products and my bank balance definitely proves this. I am a sucker for reading brilliant reviews and then feeling the need to buy that product RIGHT NOW!
So with that said, here are some of my February favourites and least favourites. Some of these I have been using a little longer but I haven’t had the time to blog as much these days, so please excuse me for that!
Best
Sunday Riley; Good Genes £85
I researched this little bottle of joy solidly for a good few months. I just simply couldn’t warrant spending that much money on one tiny little product. I work right near a Space NK and I would go in a few days a week and rub this into my hand, my head saying “Don’t you dare Leanne!” and my heart saying “Well 5,000 reviews can’t be wrong”. Eventually my heart won and I caved and I am so freakin’ glad I did.
I literally couldn’t live without this now. Within two days of using it I could already notice the difference in my skin, the texture, the colour and my blemishes reduced significantly. I agree that some expensive, high end skincare brands are over-rated and not worth the money, but trust me when I tell you, this is not one of them!
Alpha H; Liquid Gold £31
Another more pricey brand, which seems cheap compared to Sunday Riley now, but definitely worth the money once again. I see this as my little weekly facial in a bottle. This brand are actually known for helping acne sufferers and after continuous breakouts I decided to give this one product out of their range a try.
I use this before I go to sleep and I can visibly see the work it has done overnight. The Glycolic Acid, liquorice and silk proteins help to tighten, reduce pores and brighten the appearance of your skin. Also if you’re thrifty like me you will enjoy the fact that a little goes a long way with this product, it will last you a really long time.
This really is a pot of Liquid Gold!
Nanogen; Root Boost £5
I have unfortunately taken after my Dad when it comes to my hairline. Meaning that I now have to be careful with my parting incase it looks too thin, weep. This has been stressing me out big time the past few weeks and I have loaded up on the hair loving vitamins to try and get it to grow back a little. Whilst looking in Boots the other day I noticed this bottle amongst other “thinning” hair products and thought I would give it a bash.
You can use this on wet or dry hair, whenever you want, so I have used it every day since and have to say I have noticed a massive difference. It just makes my hair look a lot thicker, more bouncy and healthy. Definitely the boost it needed and it’s as cheap as chips for how happy this makes me!
Aussie; Miracle Hair Insurance £8
Having ombre, highlighted hair, I suffer with the curse of the dry ends! I picked this up in Tesco when doing my weekly shop and this has become a MUST HAVE in my beauty routine. This is a leave-in conditioner that I spray on once I have towel dried my hair and before I brush it through, making the whole tangly, post bath hair a whole lot easier. I try not to blow-dry my hair as much these days to prevent further damage and dryness, so going to bed with wet hair + letting this little beauty work it’s magic = lovely soft locks when you wake up!
I’m yet to start splurging in the hair-care department as I feel supermarket hair brands work wonders for me. Don’t fix it if it ain’t broken hey!? Plus I don’t think my purse would appreciate me very much if I did.
Worst
Sanitas; Oil Free Moisturiser £30
After watching Jaclyn Hill rave about this range of skincare, the moisturiser in particular, I decided to give it a try. What a waste of money. I don’t have sensitive skin AT ALL, I will very rarely suffer a rash or breakout due to a product, so when this moisturiser gave me awful bumps all over my chin and jawline I knew this was not the product for me.
This could be a personal experience but I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. I didn’t like the texture, I didn’t notice any benefits to my skin and I generally thought this was a big waste of money. Sorry Sanitas 😦
JorgObe; Peel Off Mask £25
Now this was a present, so I don’t have to feel too guilty about not enjoying this product. I had watched YouTube videos on these chinese black face masks that peel off ALL of your blackheads. I was amazed to say the least. I suffer with the little sods on my nose and chin so I was super excited to order it. I decided to ask for this for christmas and luckily my boyfriend got it for me.
The first time I used it I wanted to love it so much that I think I convinced myself it had worked. In reality, it really hadn’t. I was so disappointed 😦 I decided not to give up at the first hurdle and watched more tutorials on this brand in particular, tried peeling it all different ways and still, no results, blackheads still hanging out on my nose like “Ha, better luck next time”. I can’t say that these masks are a complete waste of time as I’ve only tried this brand, I have heard the really cheap ones from China on Ebay work really well, so it’s worth me giving that a try. After how rubbish this product was though I certainly won’t be rushing to purchase another one.
I hope you enjoyed reading this, please check out my social media pages if you want to have a snoop at my little life. Also do let me know if you recommend any new products as I’m always game to add to my ever growing collection!
Ta ta for now,
Lea xo
VDRW 