Sample Summary #13

1) Shiseido | Express Soothing Eye Mask and Wrinkle Resist 24 Eye Contour Cream

Full size: £59.00 for the eye mask / £54.00 for the eye cream

Rating: 2.5/5

This was a lovely little set of samples containing one application of a stick-on undereye mask, as well as a sachet of eye cream which lasted me a good week or so. The mask was an absolute pleasure to use and felt very cooling and hydrating while I let it work. Afterwards my eyes seemed a bit perkier and depuffed, but the effect had vanished the following morning. The eye cream was incredibly rich and left a greasy film under my eyes, so I could only use it at night. Otherwise my concealer would literally just slip straight off my skin. While they were both nice products, I don't think that the exorbitant price tag is by any means justified, hence the low rating.

2) Clarins | Moisture Rich Body Lotion

Full size: £30.00

Rating: 3/5

This was really lovely and moisturising without being sticky or greasy at all. While I personally prefer my body lotions to be scented, this might hold a certain appeal to those who don't like their body products to overpower their perfume - or those who simply have a sensitive nose. Just like with the Shiseido sample above, my only problem with this is the price tag. I just wouldn't be able to justify spending £30 on a tube of this when I can get great body lotions or butters for a tenth of the price.

3) Estee Lauder | Advanced Night Repair

Full size: £48.00

Rating: 5/5

Every time I get a sample of this somewhere my eyes immediately light up. This serum is simply magical. It never looks better than when I apply this before my moisturiser every night. It's smoother, softer and skintone is more even. I swear that one day I'll invest in a full size of this, but till then I will relish every last drop of my sample.

4) Neal & Wolf | Super Shine Spray

Full size: £9.50

Rating: 4/5

I wouldn't necessarily call this an essential, but it's a nice little product to have on special occasions. It's shiny without being glittery or sparkly and has an amazing fruity scent that lingers on the hair for a fair bit after application. It doesn't weigh hair down or make it greasy as long as you're not overly generous. I'm not sure I'd purchase the full size, as it's not a product that's missing from my beauty routine, but I'll thoroughly enjoy using up the sample I've got.

5) Redken | Colour Extend Conditioner

Full size: £13.75

Rating: 4.5/5

This was such a joy to use! It instantly restored my damaged, bleached hair and made it incredibly soft. I'd even say my hair felt stronger and a bit thicker after using this, I'm absolutely amazed. I'd say it's probably a touch too intense for daily application, but if used every other wash it works a treat. This is one I want to get my hands on for the full size.

6) Suti | Cleanse Balm, Purity Balm and Foot Balm

Full size: £28 for the Cleanse Balm, £23 for the Purity Balm and £16.50 for the Foot Balm

Rating: 4/5

I didn't expect to be quite as impressed with these little balms as I am, as the samples were quite small. The Cleanse Balm only lasted for four applications, but was coincidentally also my favourite out of the bunch. It dissolved make-up in a flash and left it feeling simultaneously cleansed, soothed and nourished. This is one I'll definitely be looking into purchasing a full size of! The Purity Balm works really great to deeply moisturise the skin. I apply it on my face at night and I'm not going to lie: It turns my face into an oil slick! Come morning, however, everything has been absorbed and my skin is wonderfully plumped and softened, but as it's so rich, one application every 2-3 days is usually enough.

The foot balm is my least favourite, as it takes a little bit of effort to work it in, but it's still a really, really lovely product!

Sample Summary #6

1) Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Make-up

Full size: £27.50 for 30ml

Estee Lauder Double Wear used to be many a blogger’s holy grail foundation (I noticed it made a bit of a disappearance as of late) and I came close to buying it several times, so it was nice to get a little sachet to try it, even if it was only enough for one application and the colour didn’t match my skin at all.

Turns out I hate it. Thick, gloopy and pasty it looked like a mask on my face and felt very heavy while I was wearing it. I think I’ll stick to my light to medium coverage foundations for the time being. Glad I didn’t waste money on a full sized bottle, at least!

2) Dior The New Nude Foundation

Full size: £31.00 for 30ml

As opposed to 95% of foundation samples you get in magazines, this one was actually a fairly good match for my skin tone. I’m not entirely sure why, but I was hesitant to use this sample, expecting not to like it before I’d even given it a go. So upon application I was actually very surprised to find it’s a lovely product. It smoothed on perfectly, melted into my skin and gave a lovely matte, but natural look. Staying power was also quite impressive.

The only thing I’d say is that the name is a bit misleading. You’d expect light coverage from a foundation called “The New Nude”, but it was more of a medium coverage, bordering on heavy. Still, I think there might be a purchase looming!

3) Boss Nuit Pour Femme Body Lotion

Full size: £22.00 for 200ml

Now, I’ve got to be very frank here. I have absolutely nothing against sponsored posts, but when this fragrance launched, pretty much every blog on my reader had a sponsored post up about it and rather than entice me to buy the perfume, it actually put me off trying it. There’s a thing or two to be learnt about over-saturation in my humble opinion.

Now, that aside, I liked the fragrance when I smelled the body lotion, but there was nothing exciting about it, so even after having a whiff I won’t be running out to buy it. Moisturising properties of this sample were pretty much non-existant and it only served as a way to lightly fragrance my body.

4) Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion

Full size: £5.40 for 200ml

This one, along with the Palmer’s cocoa butter, seems to pop up in magazines on a regular basis, yet I’ve never actually purchased a full size of either body lotions.

It doesn’t have the typical fruity scent I usually go for in body lotions and butters, but moisturised my skin well and despite being quite rich, sank in quickly and was easily spreadable. Again, I prefer scented body butters, but that’s just personal preference and I found nothing wrong with this lotion at all.

5) Jil Sander Everose Body Lotion

Full size: 17,95€ for 200ml (currently unavailable in the UK)

Another perfumed body lotion. I honestly don’t know, why cosmetics companies bring them out, because they’re frequently just plain awful. Just like the Boss one, this was runny, sticky, didn’t sink into the skin at all and for moisturisation I would have been better off rubbing myself with a carrot.

The scent was nice, quite summery, but again nothing I’d go wild about. I do find that a lot of Jil Sander fragrances are very samey and hey, if they’re your thing then that’s great, but personally, I think I’ll pass.

6) Annemarie Boerlind Naturoyale Biolifting Day Active

Full size: $229.99 for 50ml (currently unavailable in the UK)

This is a sample I picked up from a German magazine a while ago. The cream was way too rich and greasy for me and turned my face into a sticky, oily mess. To be honest, that’s something I’ve noticed with many German brands - their skincare is just so ridiculously rich that loads of brands I’ve tried have given me instant breakouts and/or a really shiny face.

This one was just horrible, so I’m not overly bothered that I can’t get hold of any of these products over here in England. Not to mention that the astronomical price tag gave me a little heart attack as soon as I found out how much people are expected to pay for this little tub of lard.