Products of the Blogosphere - Are they worth the hype? - Part 1...
Hi everyone!
Whether you're a blogger yourself or a blog reader and devotee, you'll be aware of the latest blogworthy products. The products that you can't escape. The next 'big thing'. Those products that seem to pop up on every single blog in the land, for weeks and weeks at a time. Yep, you know the ones. It's sometimes pretty hard to resist the temptation to run straight out and buy the latest 'miracle product'. I am massively guilty of this. Im very easily swayed, especially when it comes to beauty products and if a review claims that it will improve my skin seven-fold, give me a body like Rosie Huntington Whitely by the next morning and the face of Alexa Chung it's generally in my online shopping cart even before i've finished reading the blog post. But of these 'It' products, which of them are actually any good, and which are just a bit mediocre? While I don't always jump on the posting bandwagon and throw in my two cents about the latest products, I do generally end up owning them eventually, as I said, i'm a sucker for a 'miracle' and while some have come off well and have ended up becoming a permanent fixture on my dressing table (Bumble and Bumble Surf spray, i'm looking at you, you brilliant little creation!) some i've tried and just thought, what on earth is all the fuss about, I just don't get it (Benefit Fake Up for example...). So my lovely people, here is Part 1 of my run down of the blogosphere products that were hypeworthy and those that were better left on the shelf...
Soap and Glory - Sugar Crush Range
This was absolutely everywhere for a while, and as a massive Soap and Glory devotee (when I say massive, I mean that no other company has graced my shower shelf for about 5 years...) I immediately popped onto the interweb and bought it...it also helped that Boots had a buy one get one half price offer on at the time! Anywho, every review that i'd read went on and on about just how amazing the range smelt, 'sweet lime and brown sugar' seemed to pop up quite often. Now I must admit, when I imagined what that would smell like, I thought lime and I thought tangy refreshing lime (you know the really citrusy Source shower gels? Like that) perfect for feeling refreshed in the sticky summer months. However, when I opened the box and finally got a whiff of it, it was actually more lime cheesecake than tangy lime juice. It's not unpleasant by any means, but I must admit for shower products I much prefer something fresher smelling. As much as I love patisseries and their tasty treats, I don't really want to smell like one every day.The products themselves are fab and exactly what you'd expect from Soap and Glory, the body butter is super moisturising, sinks in quickly and isn't greasy. The shower gel foams really well and leaves you feeling squeaky clean and moisturised all at once and the scrub is exactly the right consistency for getting rid of all of those pesky dry patches without leaving your skin feeling like it's been sandblasted. Literally the only thing that i'm not in love with is the scent. I don't hate it but I don't love it like I love the others... i've got a weird relationship with this one, can you tell?
Bioderma - Sensibio H20 Solution Micellaire
This really was, and still is to a larger extent THE product. Everyones massively into micellar solutions at the moment and this one especially seems to be the go to brand. Being the sheep that I am I had to grab a slice of that beauty pie as it were. Unfortunately as it's a french pharmacy brand and I wasn't prepared to hop aboard the Eurostar to grab myself a bottle or two (as tempting as that is) after a bit of internet trawling I found some on Ebay, the 250ml bottle for about £10...much cheaper than i'd found elsewhere, and with a few monies hanging about in my PayPal balance I snapped some up. So far, i've really liked it. I'm using it more as a make up remover than the cleanser it actually is as I have (as many of you have too i'm sure) been in the make up remover wipe rut for years and years. My skin is a bit funny where make up wipes are concerned and the only ones that don't hurt my face are bog standard Baby Wipes for newborns from Boots. Although these are good for a quick fix, they don't do the job as well as good old cotton wool pads and some liquid make up remover, especially with eye make up removal. Bioderma is just fab, it seems to just melt my make up away, even the ever stubborn Benefit They're Real mascara, leaving my skin make up free, my eyelashes uncoated and my face lovely and clean. I do follow this with my usual Foamingly Clean cleanser...double cleansing can't be a bad thing can it, so by the time bed time rolls around my face is pretty darn clean. I really would recommend this product, it's super gentle on the eyes and it's just brilliant... if anyone you know is going to France any time in the near future, tell them to grab you some!
Benefit- Fake Up Concealer
As you all know, i'm a Benefit girl through and through, always have been, always will be. But this product I was actually a bit disappointed with. Benefit have a big focus on bloggers and do run a lot of blogging events so when this product was launched earlier in the year it did seem to be the one that was popping up a lot amongst the lucky munchkins that were invited to attend the coveted events. I've got to be honest though, while it's an ok product, it's just that, it's JUST ok. One of the assistants applied it when I went in to buy some other bits and she made it look brilliant but now that I think about it, that was when she combined it with a couple of other products. With the innovative concealing centre and moisturising outer ring, I really did think this would be absolutely fab at concealing dark circles under the eyes. It does leave my eyes feeling really moisturised and it does have fairly good staying power but I can't really say that it did any more than an alright job at concealing undereye darkness, there are products, even cheaper products, that for me achieve this much better. This is pretty rare for me because I do love this brand and it's not very often that I don't love their products but this one just didn't quite hit the mark!
Collection - Lasting Perfection Concealer
Now this in my humble opinion is an absolute MIRACLE product. Everyone and their mum seems to be all over this and I can really see why. Collection is a brand that I really wouldn't have even considered but I had to see what all the fuss was about! For a little tube that costs around £4.00 it's just brilliant and may just be the best concealer that i've owned in a very long time. I got the medium shade as I tend to be a medium skin tone with most make up brands, for me it's an absolutely perfect match. It's a brilliant all rounder in terms of use, it conceals dark circles amazingly and blemishes seem to disappear almost instantly once it's all blended in. It blends really well (I tend to use my Real Techniques Expert Face brush) and just looks really natural. I know i'm waxing lyrical about this one, but I quite honestly don't know what i've done for so long without it and for £4 it makes me wonder why i've spent all that money over the years on more expensive concealers that have turned out to be less than brilliant. If you're in Boots at all, i'd snap it up because it's a total bargain and something that certainly for me has become a firm favourite in my make up routine!
Origins - Face Masks
I wrote a review about one of these a couple of months back and I have to say, I still absolutely love love love these products. I have the Out of Trouble, 10 Minute mask and the Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask and both are just absolutely fab. The Out of Trouble was bought as a 'skin miracle' to rescue me from the worst time i've ever had with my skin, and i've got to say, although I didn't wake up with miraculously perfect skin, it certainly did aid it in getting better. It soothed my skin and really helped to clear it up. I now pop it on for 15 minutes, once a week and it really does do the trick to keep problem skin at bay! The Drink Up mask I bought more out of curiosity than anything, on the basis that it's an overnight mask rather than one that you wash off instantly. I was sceptical in the fact that I thought it would make my skin feel laden with product, greasy and just generally not nice, but I was pleasantly surprised. It sinks straight into skin and when you rinse it off in the morning your skin is left feeling soft and glowy... and I don't know about you but thats exactly what i'm after with most skin products! I'd definitely recommend these two!
Are there any raved about Blogosphere products that you've not seen what all the fuss is about?
Hope you're all having a good week,
<3
ReplyDelete<3
DeleteI've been using the L'Oréal Paris Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution for a week or so now, and I love it. I was stuck in the face wipe rut, and after trying Balance Me cleanser & moisturiser and deciding it was too rich for me, started giving this a go. I saw it on Megan's blog (Seek My Scribbles). It's so great at dissolving eye make-up, I was a bit dubious but I've been using it religiously and although at first my skin got worse, it seems to be improving a bit now. I'll keep on with it and see how it goes :) xx
ReplyDeleteOh I haven't tried the L'Oreal one! I might have a look as I imagine it's a bit easier to get hold of than Bioderma! I've found exactly the same thing, my skin got ever so slightly worse at first but after a few weeks it's improved no end! xx
DeleteI was in Boots the other day checking out the Soap & Glory range and I agree with the sugar crush body scrub! If it's a citrus scent, I'd much prefer a fresher scent rather than a sweet, tangy tart smell. It's not horrible it just kind of put me of buying it. Perhaps the breakfast scrub is better? As for the concealer, I love it loads and it's so cheap too x
ReplyDeleteKathryn
effievanity.blogspot.co.uk
I was exactly the same, it's not an unpleasant smell it's just a bit too sweet for me I think! I love loads of their other ones, think I might just steer clear of that particular scent in future as it's taking me forever to get through the bottle! I'll have a look at the Breakfast Scrub i've heard some fab things about it! The concealer is most definitely a can't live without product for me! xx
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