Review: June 2024 Glossybox Beauty Box

I'd been subscribed solely to the LookFantastic beauty box for quite a while, but in June 2024, I decided to try something else for a change.  I was curious to see if any other boxes offered something a bit more exciting.  I'd tried the Glossybox box before and found it quite similar to the LookFantastic one, but I decided to give it another shot to see if it had changed and how the two compared.

I signed up for a 3-month Glossybox subscription, which worked out to be a reasonable £13 per month - the same price as LookFantastic's cheapest fee.

If you're not familiar with it, the Glossybox Beauty Box is a monthly subscription box that usually contains 5 beauty products with a claimed value of at least £50 - this matches what LookFantastic offers.  The cost varies depending on which plan you choose, from £11.50 a month with a 12-month upfront payment, or from £12.50 with a 12-month monthly plan.  Some of the contents can vary per subscriber as the monthly boxes have different variations, but you don't get to choose the products or variation yourself.  One thing I find really helpful is that the website shows the contents of the current month's box.  This lets you see the types of products it offers and decide if you're interested before signing up for a new subscription.

My June 2024 Glossybox Beauty Box was "Variation 7" and included the following: 

• Lottie London Ready Set! Go 'Brightening Pink' Mini Setting Powder 5g (£2.65 value - no longer on the Glossybox site, but the 15g full-size is available elsewhere) - I'm currently using another of these minis that I received in a different beauty box.  I mainly apply it under my eyes and find it does give a subtle brightening effect without looking too cakey.  While it's not my favourite powder I've ever tried, it does its job, and I'll use this mini up, too.

• Nivea Refreshingly Soft Moisturising Cream for Face, Body and Hands 25ml (£1.79 value - no longer on the Glossybox site, but the travel-size is available at Boots and Superdrug) - This will be very useful for taking on trips.  I really like the fresh and soapy fragrance that Nivea products tend to have.  While I'm not overly keen on the texture on my hands, I'll definitely use it on my body.

• Avant 'Persian Sunset' Travel EDP 10ml (£20 value - no longer on the Glossybox site, but it is still available on the Avant website) - Unfortunately, when my box arrived, the perfume had lost nearly half of its contents due to the lid not being screwed on fully.  This was such a shame, especially as this perfume smells absolutely divine!  It's described as having top notes of red berries, mandarin and bergamot; heart notes of caramel and everlasting flower; and a base of tonka bean, sandalwood and vanilla.  These notes combine to create such a lovely, fresh, yet sweet and woody fragrance.  Even though I already have enough perfumes to last me a lifetime, this scent is so good that I am seriously considering buying a full-sized bottle!

• Gatineau Paris Collagene Expert Ceramide Smoothing Cream 15ml (£24 value - no longer on the Glossybox site to buy, but it is available from Very) - This is quite a thick cream, but it applies and soaks in nicely.  It also has very little fragrance, which is a plus if you have easily irritated skin.  I'm looking forward to using this up, though I don't expect to see any long-term benefits from a tube this size.

• Anatomicals 'New York, London, Paris and Foam' Fashionably Fruity Body Cleanser 100ml (80p value - no longer available on the Glossybox site, or anywhere else brand new, but I based the value on a different version still available elsewhere) - This body wash smells very fruity - I'm definitely getting strong watermelon notes.  It's a good sized bottle of body wash to receive in a beauty box, too, and will be a great one to take on trips.

• Made by Mitchell Blursh Liquid Blusher 'Melon Sorbet' 6ml (full size / £14 value - no longer on the Glossybox site to buy, but it is available from Beauty Bay) - This was the only full-sized product in the box.  The Made by Mitchell products have been all over social media the past couple of years, so it makes sense why this Blursh was included here.  I'm not disappointed though, as this liquid blush is a very pretty nude-coral shade and seems to blend in well.  I'm excited to try it more and see how well it lasts throughout the day.

The beauty box also included a lovely, summery-looking makeup/wash bag.  It has a waterproof lining and is a great size, so it will be very handy for either storing makeup in at home or taking away with me on trips.  As an additional little treat, there was also a sample card with two of the Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb perfumes, which smelled beautiful!  I won't include these in the box's total value, but they were nice extras to receive.

The June box works out to have a value of £63.24, which is well above the stated £50.  Even with only one full-sized product included in the box, I am overall happy with the contents.  There was a good mixture of skincare, makeup and fragrance from both high street and luxury brands.  I'm looking forward to trying everything from the box a bit more, but especially that Avant perfume!

I do think the Glossybox beauty box is very similar to what you would get from LookFantastic.  It contains similar types of products and brands, and even has a similar subscription pricing strategy (if a little cheaper).  A bit of research revealed they actually have the same parent company, which definitely explains the similarities.  I can't wait to look into the next two months' boxes now, though, and see if I actually prefer Glossybox!

Have you tried the Glossybox beauty box recently?  Are you subscribed to any other kinds of boxes?

June 2024 Empties

My "empties" posts are officially over a year behind, but better late than never, right?  I still enjoy looking back over which products I used up, though.  It's a great way to see what I truly enjoyed using and whether I've repurchased them since.

I managed to reduce my collection of products by 17 in June 2024, which felt like a win!  I was also on my best behaviour that month, and only bought 2 new items: an eyebrow pencil and a new serum.  This process has really helped me realise how long it takes to use products completely, and it's a good reminder that I don't need lots of backups which might expire before I even get to try them.

I wasn't focusing on any particular product type, so there's a bit of everything in this post.  So, let's look at my June empties, and what I would buy again.

Bodycare and Supplements

• Gillette Satin Care Sensitive Aloe Vera Glide Shave Gel - This has been a staple in my routine for years, and I will continue to repurchase it.  It felt nice to use and left my skin feeling noticeably smoother than other shave gels I've tried.  While I know other versions are available (like the shea butter or vanilla scented ones), I'll stick with the aloe vera for now.

• Lola's Organics 'Skull & Hearts' Bubble Bar - I received this as a freebie when I bought some other bath products from this company.  The bubble bar pieces were shaped like a skull and hearts and had quite a strong rose scent.  I'm not the biggest fan of rose, but these smelt quite nice - it actually reminded me of the Molton Brown Rhubarb & Rose fragrance which I do enjoy.  They made the water nice and bubbly with a subtle sparkle.  Unfortunately, the company no longer exists, so I wouldn't be able to buy them again.

• Lynx Attract for Her Rose & Bergamot Scent Bodywash - Another rose-scented product!  This came in a gift set, and while I didn't enjoy the fragrance so much, I still finished it up.  It was a perfectly fine bodywash, but I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it again, even in a different scent.

• VeryWell Beauty Collagen Gummies - I finished another of these bottles of apple & blackcurrant-flavoured collagen gummies I'd bought from Asda.  I'd been taking them for a few months to try and improve the condition of my hair, skin and nails, but I hadn't seen much noticeable improvement.  They tasted really nice, though - it was like a daily treat!  I had decided I would try some stronger collagen tablets after finishing the remainder of the gummies I had.

• Centrum Women Multivitamin Food Supplement - As I've mentioned in previous empties posts, these had been my go-to multivitamins for a very long time.  Although I think they're a decent option, I'd decided to start taking a more targeted selection of vitamins instead after finishing the tubs I had. 

Hand and Nail Care

• Baylis & Harding Midnight Fig & Pomegranate Fragranced Hand Wash - This was a really lovely scented hand wash with a rich fruity scent that lingered on the skin for a short while.  It was a limited edition scent, otherwise I would definitely have repurchased it - hopefully it comes back into the shops near Christmas, and then I'll buy it again!

• Liz Earle Bergamot & Basil Hand Repair - I wasn't overly fond of the scent of this (I think it's the basil!) and it was quite a thick and sticky feeling hand cream, which wasn't my favourite texture.  I used it at nighttime and it did an ok job at moisturising my hands.  I wouldn't buy it again, though.

• Cutex Nourishing Nail Polish Remover - Cutex is my preferred brand for nail polish remover!  The 'nourishing' one wasn't as good at removing glitter, and it took a few more swipes of it to fully remove dark shades, but worked well with everything else.  I have backups of it already, though, and will continue to keep buying it (and the other versions) because they do their job without overly drying out my nails.

• ThisWorks Morning Expert Wake-Up Spray - This had a lovely, zingy scent - I'd use it when I first woke up, and I enjoyed the smell of it more than anything.  I wouldn't repurchase it, though, as a couple spritzes of a nice body mist could have the same effect.

• Balance Me Beauty Sleep Hyaluronic Mist - I enjoyed my little ritual of spraying this on before bed, but the scent wasn't the nicest I've used, so I wouldn't buy it again.

Skincare and Makeup

• Liz Earle Rose & Lavender Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser - I preferred the scent of the original version to this, but it was still a really nice cleanser that helped remove makeup well.

• Liz Earle Rosemary, Chamomile, Cocoa Butter and  Eucalyptus Essential Oil Hot Cloth Cleanser - This was a great mini size to take away on trips, and it was the original scent, which was more fresh and herbal.  I already have a few more larger tubes of this to use, and will continue to buy it because it works well to remove makeup without irritating my skin.

• Liz Earle Bergamot & Basil Instant Boost Skin Tonic - Despite not being a fan of the hand cream in this range, I did enjoy the scent of this toner - it was much fresher and fruitier!  I enjoyed using this, it felt refreshing when I patted it into my skin.  It was limited edition, though, so I can't repurchase it.

• Lumene Nordic Hydra Oxygen Recovery 72h Hydra Gel Mask - I managed to get 3 uses out of this sample.  It smelled lovely and felt nice and cool on my skin, but unfortunately, I didn't really see any benefits from using it, so I wouldn't buy a full-size.

• XX Revolution Quick Fixx Translucent Loose Setting Powder - I'm sad that this powder was discontinued - it was a really good one, especially for the low price.  It applied easily without looking cakey, and worked quite well in both the summer and winter months.  The only negative was that the powder would sometimes leak from the container a bit.  I've used a few different powders since this one, but I still think this was one of the finest milled powders I've used.  Luckily, I managed to buy a couple more on eBay to use!

• BH Cosmetics Translucent Setting Powder - Another very fine setting powder that's also been discontinued, sadly!  While this one could look a bit more chalky at times (so I had to be more light-handed when applying it), it lasted well throughout the day.  It would have been another repurchase if it was still sold.

• Avon Anew Beauty Lip Plumping Lip Conditioner - This had a slight nude tint and was meant for anti-ageing and moisturising the lips.  Although it was called a lip plumper, it wasn't one in the "my lips are burning" sense.  I mainly used it at night, and it felt genuinely moisturising.  My lips very rarely felt dry while I was using it daily, which was a real achievement!  This was another product I would have bought again if it hadn't been discontinued.

• MCoBeauty 'Flamingo Pink' Cheek & Lip Tint - I'd received this in a beauty box a long time ago.  It was very pigmented, though, so a tiny bit went a long way.  I used it as a blush, and it was a lovely coral shade that blended out easily and looked nice on.  As much as I did like it, I probably wouldn't buy it again as I do prefer powder or cream blushes.  I'm glad to see it is still being sold, though.

• e.l.f. Wow Brow 'Deep Brown' Tinted Brow Gel - I really liked this brow gel, and will buy it again after I've worked through others I have.  It wasn't too "wet" like some are, so it applied nicely and looked quite natural.  For such a small tube, it lasted a while, too!

I feel like I was making good, steady progress with my products at this point.  While I know some months after this will have fewer empties and some will have a lot more, keeping track had really started to alter my mindset when it came to shopping and impulse-buying.  It also felt good to see a physical reduction in my stash of backup products.

However, a negative I'd noticed of having a large stockpile is that by the time I'd managed to use a product I really enjoyed, it'd often been discontinued, which was a real shame.

I'm also starting to see a few of my staple products appear in these posts - ones I've bought many times again since June 2024.  I'm looking forward to going through my empties from the rest of last year to see what else shows up over and over again!

Are there any products you keep backups of in case they're discontinued?  What are some good loose setting powders you would recommend?

Review: May 2024 LookFantastic Beauty Box

After years of trying different beauty box subscriptions, LookFantastic - The Box was the last one standing in May 2024.  I had been subscribed to it on and off for several years, and whilst I hadn't been overly impressed with every single box, the overall value and product selection kept me coming back to it.

According to the website, LookFantastic - The Box is a monthly subscription box that costs from £13 a month (with a 12-month plan) and contains at least 6 beauty products with a "minimum value of £50".  A couple of the products may differ between boxes, as there are different variants sent out, but you don't get to choose the items you receive.

My May 2024 LookFantastic - The Box was "Variant 2" and included: 

• Wella Professionals Fusion Intense Repair Hair Mask 75ml (full size / £10 value - though currently on sale for £8.50, and is also available in larger amounts) - I'm always happy to receive hair products like masks in these boxes, especially since I have partially bleached and coloured hair.  This mask is meant to help protect against visible breakage and colour-fading, so I'm interested to see the results, if any.  The nice scent is a bonus, too!

• ESPA Bergamot & Jasmine Body Wash 75ml (£7.50 value / £4 for 40ml) - I've recently been using a different ESPA bath and shower gel, which has a lovely fragrance and rich formula.  This body wash also smells beautiful (I do love bergamot!) and seems just as luxurious, so I'm looking forward to trying it, and I imagine it will last a while as you only need to use a little at a time.

• Lanolips 101 Ointment Multi-Balm "Coconutter" 10g (full size / £8.99 value) - I previously tried the strawberry version of this multi-balm as a lip balm.  Although it smelt nice and looked very glossy on, it made my lips feel a bit tight and dry, so I stopped using it.  I'm not sure if it was potentially expired, or if an ingredient didn't agree with me, but I'll still give this coconut-scented one a go and, hopefully, it works out better.

• Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Bum Bum Cream 25ml (£7 value / £21 for 75ml - though it is currently on sale for £16.80) - I've received quite a few of these mini Bum Bum creams from beauty boxes over the years.  I'm not complaining too much, as it's a nice moisturiser with a lovely fragrance, but it would be nice to receive a different Sol de Janeiro product for a change.  I do like this moisturiser, though; it sinks into the skin easily, and the fragrance lasts for a while.

• Rodial Vit C Papaya Enzyme Scrub 20ml (£15 value - no longer on the LF website, but there is a similar vitamin C cleanser available) - I've tried a few different Rodial products before, and they've been fine, though nothing I would really buy again, mainly due to the price.  I do use physical and chemical face scrubs, so I'm looking forward to seeing how this one performs.

• Hydréa London Luxe Natural Sea Sponge (£6.98 value - no longer on the LF website, but there is a similar double pack of sponges by Hydréa London available at Tesco for £13.95) - I've used sea sponges before, and they've always worked well and lasted a good amount of time.  I like that this is a smaller one and intended for use on your face - it's rated as "gentle", so feels soft enough not to hurt sensitive skin, too.

The May box works out to have a value of £55.47, which is above the claimed £50 value for a change, so I'm happy with that.  There were no makeup products this month, but I do like the mix of skin and haircare that were included.  I will gladly use everything from this box; the only product I'm a bit dubious of is the lip balm, in case it irritates my lips like the strawberry version.

If this had been my very first LookFantastic box, I don't think I'd have been blown away by the contents, but it's a solid enough variety of good-quality products that I think I would have tried another one.

Which beauty boxes are you currently subscribed to?  Are there any other boxes that I need to try out?

May 2024 Declutter

Continuing on with my slow declutter of health and beauty products, these are the ones I let go of in May 2024.

In May, I decided to go through a section of products that I don't use often - tanning products.  I had a feeling some of them would be expired, so I wanted to check if any were salvageable and could be tried out.  I don't like to waste products, but most of the self-tanners and after suns I owned I'd received in beauty boxes over the years, and I hadn't gotten around to trying them.

I also had another quick check through some of my lip products to look for any that had expired, or were old, and I didn't use anymore.

• B. By Superdrug Sunkissed Glow Bronzing Mousse - I don't really use self-tan products except for sometimes on my face, so out of these tanning products, this is the only one I had actually bought myself; the rest were from beauty boxes.  I bought this Superdrug tanning mousse years and years ago to try out, but never got around to it.  I finally tested it, and it seemed to be expired, as it came out green.

• Vita Liberata Fabulous Self Tanning Gradual Lotion - I had tried this before, and the texture of it was still ok, but it didn't smell very nice anymore, so it had also probably expired.

• Bellamianta Self Tanning Tinted Lotion "Medium" for Face/Body - Another expired tanning product that I had never actually tried - it seemed to have separated in the tube, as it came out like a thin liquid rather than a lotion.

• James Read Gradual Tan Sleep Mask Tan Face - The James Read tanning lotions are ones I have used in the past and work out quite well on my face.  This one had become very runny though, so it needed to go.

• Monuspa First Defence Soothing After Sun - I'd not gotten around to trying this after sun, and it didn't smell very nice, so it also had to go.

• MineTan Replenishing Rapid Recovery After Sun Gel (2 x 50ml) - Both of these were meant to have a gel consistency, but they were more like water, so they were decluttered.

• Percy & Reed Big, Bold & Beautiful Dry Instant Volumising Spray - I tried to use this quite a few times, but I didn't like the way it made my hair feel.  It did help to add a bit of volume, but it didn't last very long for me, so I let it go.

• COSRX AHA 7 Whitehead Power Liquid - I'd had this for quite a few years and used it on and off, but I'd never really seen much improvement from using it.  It also irritated my skin a little sometimes.

• Philosophy Purity 3-in-1 Cleanser for Face and Eyes - This had, unfortunately, expired - it smells awful, which was a shame.

• Nip+Fab Fixes No Needle Fix Eye - I tried this for a little while, but I just didn't like the way it felt on my skin.  It was very thick and sticky, and didn't fully soak in, which caused issues when applying concealer near my eyes.

• Bali Balm Lemon & Black Pepper - This still smelled really nice and lemon-y, but the consistency of it didn't seem quite right, so I parted with it.

• W7 Bare All! Uncovered Pressed Pigment Palette - I had all 3 of the W7 Bare All palettes, and this was the medium shades one.  Unfortunately, the colours would pull very warm and orange on me, which isn't my preference.  The shadows themselves performed quite well, but I decided to pass it on.

• BPerfect Stacey Marie Carnival IV The Antidote Liquid Shadow "Brass" and "Honey" - I really wanted to love these liquid eyeshadows, as the colours were really pretty.  Sadly, they would go on quite patchy and didn't last very well on me.  I tried different techniques for applying them, as well as using different eye primers, but I couldn't get them to work well, so I let them both go.

• Huda Beauty Lip Strobe Metallic Lip Gloss "Angelic" - This was a gorgeous gloss, but I don't really wear metallic lip products anymore - it was also quite old.

• Bellápierre Cosmetics Kiss Proof Lip Crème "Antique Pink" - This was a very nice shade of pink, but it didn't smell very good anymore, so it had possibly expired.

• Barry M Matte Me Up Matte Liquid Lip Paint "Signature" - Another metallic lip product that I wouldn't use anymore.

• Barry M Gloss Me Up Lip Gloss "Party Starter" - This was a really lovely, sparkly lip gloss, however, the smell of it had changed so it had probably also expired.

• MUA Luxe Whipped Velvet "Ritzy" - This was quite a nice lip product, it had a powdery, matte finish and used to smell really nice.  However, it was another that seemed to have expired.

• Barry M Take A Brow Shape & Define Brow Gel - I'd used this clear brow gel for a few months, and although it didn't have the best holding power, it worked well enough for me in most situations.  It had started to discolour though from being contaminated with brow pencil residue and foundation, etc. going back into the tube, and in turn, this was leaving a light tint on my eyebrows and was making them look flaky.  I have other brow gels to try still, but this is one I would buy again, but try to get the spoolie clean before putting it back into the tube.

That was everything I parted with in May 2024 - not as much as some previous months, but I feel like I'm in a better position to be able to give products a bit longer to try out before making a decision on whether to let them go than I was earlier in the year.

There are still some categories of products I know I need to go through and check if they've expired - body creams especially - but this is an ongoing thing for me, and I will eventually be able to check through everything.

As ever, anything that can be hygienically passed on will be, and the remainder will be recycled where possible.

Are there any categories of products you know you have too many of and won't be able to use before they expire?

May 2024 Empties

I'm back with another "empties" post - this time from May 2024.  This was another good month for me for finishing products and resisting the temptation to buy more, although I did buy some coloured eyeliner pens.

I managed to reduce my stockpile of items by 25 again this month - pretty decent progress if you ask me - quite a few were samples and mini-sized products that I've received in beauty boxes over the years, but there were a few full-sized products too.

I tried to focus on remembering to use certain types of products this month (primarily face masks and pulse point rollers) to whittle down my collection even more.

Here are the products I used up in May, and whether I'd repurchase them or not.

Haircare

• TRESemmé Rich Moisture Conditioner - I've used the TRESemmé conditioners for years now as they are good value and leave my hair feeling softer and smoother than with others.  This big bottle lasted for months and it smelt really nice.  I already have a replacement and will continue to buy it for the foreseeable future.

• Umberto Giannini Scalp Scrub - I used this a few times a month, and it felt like a nice treat for my scalp.  The scent was quite nice, it wasn't too harsh on my scalp (but you could still feel it scrubbing) and it washed out fine.  I feel like my hair stayed fresher for longer when I'd used it.  I would repurchase it.

• Bleach London Reincarnation Mask - This smelt ok, but I didn't really see or feel any difference in my hair when I had used it, so I wouldn't buy a full size.

• Philip Kingsley Elasti-Styler 5-in-1 Treatment - Although I love the Philip Kingsley Elasticizer mask, I wasn't a fan of the Elasti-Styler.  My hair didn't look or feel very different when I had used it, and it took a bit longer to dry with a hairdryer.  Another I wouldn't re-buy.

• Dr. PawPaw 7-in-1 Hair Treatment Styler - I mainly used this as heat protection when drying my hair.  It had a nice scent, and my hair looked a bit shinier after using it, but it didn't wow me enough to want to repurchase it.

• Batiste Stylist Hold Me Hairspray - I really liked this hairspray, it managed to help my hair hold curls without feeling stiff or sticky.  Unfortunately, it looks to be discontinued, so I can't repurchase it - otherwise I would!

Bodycare, Supplements and Toothpaste

• Imperial Leather 'Let's Flamingle' Pink Lychee & Raspberry Fantasy Icons Shower Gel - This smelt absolutely beautiful - the raspberry came through really well.  It made my skin feel soft and clean when I used it.  It's such a shame it was a limited-edition scent, or I would have repurchased it.

• Rituals... The Ritual of Jing Relaxing Body Scrub with Salt & Magnesium - This was an ok body scrub, but a bit too oily for me.  It had a lovely scent, though - as most Rituals products do!  I prefer the TreacleMoon body scrubs now, so I wouldn't buy this one again.

• Lynx Attract for Her Rose & Bergamot Deodorant Bodyspray - Despite this being classed as a rose scent, it wasn't overpoweringly floral.  I do prefer cream deodorants, but I used this one throughout the day when needing freshening up.  I still prefer the Sure spray deodorants, though, as I think they last longer, so I wouldn't buy this again.

• Weleda Evening Primrose Age Revitalizing Body Oil - I'm sure I've mentioned before, but I don't really like the feeling of body oils on my skin (I don't like the sticky texture).  I did use this one up, though, since it was such a small bottle.  I used it on my legs after a bath, and it soaked in a bit better than others I've used before - however, I still wouldn't buy a full size of it.

• VeryWell Beauty Collagen Gummies - I'd decided to try some collagen supplements to try and improve the condition of my skin, nails and joints.  I went with gummies to start with as I was already taking a few other tablet supplements, and these ones were quite tasty - they were apple and blackcurrant flavour.  I took these for a while, but couldn't really say if they made much of a noticeable difference.  They were on an offer in Asda when I initially bought them, so I had a few bottles to work through.

• Colgate Elixir White Restore Toothpaste - I really enjoyed the Elixir toothpastes, although I think the charcoal one performed better than this whitening one (though it did have a lovely spearmint flavour!).  The only negative with them is that the bottles are quite hard, so it's tricky to get all the product out at the end.  They look to be discontinued now, though, or I would possibly keep repurchasing.

Skincare

• Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Gel Wash - This was an ok face wash.  It did a pretty good job of removing makeup, but it left my skin feeling a bit tight after use, so I wouldn't repurchase it.

• ESPA Clean & Green Detox Mask - This face mask had a nice fresh scent, but it was a bit too drying for me, so I wouldn't re-buy it.

• Korres Greek Yoghurt Probiotic SuperDose Face Mask - I got a few uses from this tube, and the mask made my skin feel a little softer and brighter, so I would like to possibly buy the full size to try out once I've worked through other face masks I have.

• Sand & Sky Australian Emu Apple Super Bounce Mask - I'm not quite sure how I used up so many face masks this month!  This one was another that left my skin feeling a bit tight and dry after using it, so I wouldn't buy this one again either.

• Cetaphil Moisturising Lotion - I used this on my face on days when my skin was feeling a bit drier, and it seemed to do a good job of hydrating my skin.  I would like to buy a full-size of it to try it out for a bit longer.

• Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Air Soft Face SPF30 - I really liked this SPF cream, it smelt really nice, and soaked in well without causing any issues with my other skincare products.  I would definitely re-purchase it once I've used up some other SPFs I have.

• Polaar SPF30 UVA-UVB Velvety Sun Fluid Face & Body - This SPF was ok.  I don't feel it soaked in as easily as the Hawaiian Tropic one, though, so I wouldn't get this one again.

• Olay Serums Vitamin C + AHA 24 Day Serum - This serum made my other skincare products pill if I used slightly too much, so I had to be a bit more mindful when applying it.  I've since tried a couple of other vitamin C serums which I really enjoyed using, so I wouldn't buy this one again.

• Medik8 Hydr8 B5 Intense - This was a decent hyaluronic acid serum, but I've used a couple of other (much cheaper) ones now which I liked more, so I wouldn't buy the full size of the Medik8 one.

• Becca First Light Priming Filter - I didn't really see much difference in my makeup when I used this product.  It gave a slight sheen to the skin when applied, but I don't feel it showed up much after applying foundation/skin tint.  Another pass for me.

Hand and Nail Care

• Cuccio Naturale Lavender & Chamomile Butter - I love the scent of this hand and body butter!  I use it on my hands after I've painted my nails (when they've fully dried) and it's so creamy and hydrating.  I've used it for a long time now, and I'll continue repurchasing it for as long as it's sold.  I do also have it in a different fragrance to try.

• NEOM Organics Pulse Point Great Day Mood Lifting Roller - This had a lovely scent - minty and bright.  I enjoyed using it up, but I wouldn't repurchase it.

• Scentered 'Love' Pulse Point Balm - This also smelt beautiful - slightly floral and woody, but also a little musky.  As much as I enjoyed the scent, I had to consistently remind myself I had this balm to use, so I wouldn't buy it again.

• Leighton Denny Miracle Mist Speed Drying Spray - This seemed to work ok to make my nails touch-dry a bit quicker after painting them.  They still took a similar length of time as usual to fully dry, though, so I wouldn't repurchase this.

• The Body Shop Strawberry Hand Balm - This smelt ok, just a bit more synthetic than I'd have expected.  It still did a good job at moisturising my hands, but I will stick to my favourite - the satsuma hand cream.

• The Body Shop Mango Hand Cream - This smelt nicer than the strawberry hand balm, but it also had quite a soapy scent.  I liked using it, but I wouldn't buy this one again.

• Bubble T Cosmetics 'Berry Christmas' Cleansing Hand Gel - This hand gel didn't smell as fruity as I expected it to - it actually wasn't an overly pleasant fragrance.  It dried quite quickly, and didn't leave any residue on my hands, though, but I wouldn't repurchase it.

Another good mix of products used up this month, but not quite as many that I would go out and buy again.  I am enjoying working through different products, though, and seeing which work for me and which don't.  It's also nice to see my hoard of products become a little smaller each month!

Have you used any of these products too?  Do you have any recommendations for good hydrating and brightening face masks?