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I love skincare and make-up and trying new things that might just magically make me look younger and prettier. More recently there has been a surge in much more affordable skincare whilst still having effective ingredients that are backed by science, and so I have been trying to replace some of my more expensive skincare products with some cheaper alternatives. I also really love trying out new foundations and concealers from the high-street, especially if they promise any kind of glow!
Brands such as The Ordinary, and The Inkey List as well as high-street make-up brands, have created so many quality products at really affordable prices, and a lot of the products I use have changed over the last six months or so, so I thought I would share some of the things I am really liking now and that I would repurchase. Some of them are new products and some are just new to me.
I discovered The Inkey List from Nadine Baggott about six months ago and have been using a few of their products ever since. They are all brilliant prices (the Hyaluronic Acid Serum is £4.99), I love the simple and compact black and white packaging (although I have had a couple of problems with leaks when I’ve had products delivered so hopefully they will do something about that) and I just think they are good, uncomplicated products. Their aim is to “break through beauty jargon to deliver a straightforward take on skincare’s most-wanted ingredients (at astoundingly reasonable, ‘give-it-a-go’ prices)”.
I have been using the Hyaluronic Acid Serum, the Vitamin C Serum, Rosehip Oil, and the Caffeine Eye Serum for probably six months now and have repurchased all of them. They have replaced much more expensive products in my skincare routine and work just as well.
Another really well-priced brand is The Ordinary who come under the Deciem umbrella of products, which I have talked about before. They also make really effective skincare at brilliant prices and I have been using a few of their products for well over a year now.
I love The Ordinary’s AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution which is a total bargain at around £6.50 – a blood red ‘mask’ that exfoliates and helps to battle blemishes to improve the appearance of the skin’s texture and reduce the look of fine lines.
I have also been using their serum ‘Buffet‘ for a while now, which is a multi-peptide serum that tackles multiple signs of ageing. It contains Matrixyl 3000 to stimulate collagen synthesis and hyaluronic acid to offer great hydration to ‘plump up’ fine lines and diminish depth of furrows, as well as 11 amino acids, to reveal nourished, youthful-looking skin. I wouldn’t say I have noticed a massive difference since using this serum, but I know that the quality of the product is good and I am happy to keep using it knowing it is doing my skin some good.
I also like the Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion, which is a lightweight, milky-textured serum containing a high concentration of two retinoids – hydroxypinacolone retinoate and pure retinol to target visible signs of ageing, whilst being gentle enough to avoid irritation. It can help with lost elasticity, fine lines, wrinkles, pigmentation and uneven skin tone – all of which I need! Retinols are one of the only skincare ingredients that are proven to work, so I use one multiple times a week and this one is really good under a moisturiser or other evening product.
I had heard quite a bit about these two products from beauty bloggers and seen them recommended in Facebook groups as light, simple products that are great for sensitive skin.
I got them whilst they were on 3 for 2 at Boots, so I have two bottles of the CeraVe Moisturising Lotion and a Cerave Hydrating Cleanser.
I keep one of the lotions upstairs in my bedroom to use on my hands and arms before bed, as well as on my face if my skin is feeling a bit tight or if I am putting a bit more make-up on. Then I keep one downstairs next to where I work to use on my hands. I really like how light it is and it is just nice to use and the pump bottle is great too. I also like that it can be used on the face and body.
I use the CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser for my morning cleanse – the pump makes it really quick to use whilst I am in a rush and feeling sleepy in the mornings and it doesn’t feel drying on my skin at all. It doesn’t feel quite as nice to use as some other light cleansers I use ( I really like the Superfacialist Rose Hydrate Calming Creamy Cleanser, but it isn’t as quick and it doesn’t last me as long), but it’s nice and simple and I think the bottle will last me a really long time.
I saw so many people talking about these new products form No.7 when they first came out a couple of months ago. Anything that mentions something along the lines of ‘luminous’ or ‘glow’ gets me all excited (skincare-wise at least) so I was looking forward to trying these products, especially after seeing lots of positive comments about them.
I have the shade ‘Warm Ivory’ in the No7 Hydraluminous Moisturising Foundation, which is currently perfect for me with a slight (fake) tan, and ‘1.5’ in the No7 Hydraluminous Dark Circle Concealer, recommended to me by the No7 lady, which I thought was slightly dark for under my eyes at first (I like quite a light concealer there) but actually after using a couple of times it seems pretty perfect. They both glide on really nicely and smoothly and the foundation, in particular, does make my skin lovely and luminous. The concealer has a sponge applicator, which I’m not exactly keen on for hygiene reasons, but it doesn’t drag on the skin at all and feels really soft and the liquid doesn’t come out too quickly either.
The foundation is described as giving medium coverage, which I would agree with and it also builds nicely whilst looking fresh and natural. It’s not exactly important, but I also think they both smell really nice and a bit like sun cream. The foundation apparently contains ‘an active blend of anti-oxidants together with grapeseed oil to moisturise’. Over time it is supposed to make your skin look fresher, healthier and more luminous, so it will be interesting to see if it does.
I really like the packaging for the Hydraluminous Foundation — it’s plastic and nice and light so it would be great for taking away with you (not that I’m going away anywhere; woe is me).
I discovered Primark’s bargain stick on nails after my friend Zara told us about them, and I am slightly addicted! Before I had got these I was having occasional Shellac manicures at a local salon, which I loved but couldn’t afford regularly. Plus unless I went back to have them soaked off then I would end up peeling them off which was so bad for my nails.
The Primark nails are about £1-3 depending on whether they are plain or sparkly or all over bejewelled and they are so easy to stick on. Stick-on nails didn’t really appeal to me at all in the past, but I think these look great and they are easy to put on too which I didn’t think they would be. The first time I bought them I put off using them for ages because I thought it would be too much of a faff but it really wasn’t.
I know they’re not everyone’s cup of tea but I really like pointy nails so I was choosing the ‘pointed’ shape for a while, but my god, I am useless at typing with them on, so I go for the ‘almond’ ones now which are a bit shorter and only take a second to file the edges of slightly. The ones in the photo below are the ‘pointed’ ones. Most people don’t realise they are fake at all (perhaps not including the ones below in that!), they last pretty well, and they just make me feel a bit nicer if I have somewhere nice to go or if I’m just sick of my nail varnish peeling off two seconds after I’ve applied it.
Do you have any new beauty buys that you are loving, or have you tried any of these products? Let me know in the comments – I’d love to hear.
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Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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