Last month's reviews are also fairly late this time and I know that the new boxes have already arrived, but that's due to the fact that the Valentine's box came extremely late in the month. Anyway, enough babbling and let's see if the products were any good!
1) Eyeko Skinny Eyeliner in Midnight Blue
I wasn't one to rush to try out their new products after Eyeko rebranded and decided it was going to be a high end brand now. The packaging put me off a little, as I was not initially a fan of the pointy handle and that hasn't changed since. Here's what happened the first time I sharpened it:
The pointy bit fell off and dropped into the bin. I didn't particularly feel like fishing it out, so the problem was solved.
Packaging aside, the pencil was buttery soft and very pigmented. There was no tugging or pulling around the eye area to achieve a great sharp line and it didn't need to be warmed up beforehand either.
The shade is fairly pretty and though I would have loved to receive the pale pink version, it's nice to be pushed out of your comfort zone occasionally.
In terms of wear you have to be very careful where you apply this. I found that on the waterline this lasted a good 6-7 hours before sliding off into my lashes. I tried wearing it on my lashline (both top and bottom) and when set with powder it lasted around 3 hours before smudging. That didn't bother me too much, as it was a "pretty" kind of smudging, if you know what I mean. The kind where it slides off into your lashes and into your water line a little, making it look lived in and a bit rock chick.
However, worn around the eye without setting it with eye shadow it was a complete disaster. One hour later I had eye liner everywhere - all over my crease, my nose and in large blobs under my eyes which certainly did miracles to highlight my dark circles. Would I buy another one of these? No, they're good, but not for almost a tenner.
2) Clarins Extra Firming Day and Night Cream
I've put these two samples together, as they were meant to be used in conjunction, so that's what I did! It's just my luck that my favourite product also has to be the most expensive and one of the two that came without discount code. At first I was a little bit apprehensive, as anti-ageing creams tend to be a little too heavy for my skin and generally speaking my face prefers things that are as simple and fuss-free as possible.
I needn't have worried, as the texture of both of these creams was light and silky, but still creamy and nourishing.
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| Top: Clarins Extra Firming Day Cream Bottom: Clarins Extra Firming Night Cream |
Usually I pin all of my hair out of my face before my skincare routine and then run around with a little fauxhawk while my moisturiser sinks in, but with these I didn't have to do that at all, as my skin drank them up immediately. Both moisturisers fared equally well on my dry winter cheeks and on my oily forehead, though if you have very dry skin I don't think these would be nourishing enough. For me however, they felt absolutely amazing and my skin almost literally sighed a bit sigh of relief everytime I put these on.
One thing I did notice, however: Though these creams didn't break me out I had a few blemishes from before I started using them and they took forever and ever to disappear. I'm not sure if it's the cream or the change of climate, but it's worth noting for those who suffer from regular break-outs.
As for the anti-ageing properties I cannot comment or judge at this moment in time.
3) FAB Body Moisturizer
One of my pet hates is thin, runny body lotion - I really hate that stuff with a passion, so I was glad when I saw that this body moisturizer is in fact of the thicker variety. I wasn't so glad when I realised that the sample packaging was designed with a thin runny lotion in mind, so it was almost impossible to squeeze anything out of this tube. Once I was about halfway through nothing would come out anymore, so I tried cutting the plastic bottle open and broke my scissors and cut my hand. So much for that. From what I can see on the Boots website the full size of this comes in identical packaging. Unhygienic as they might be, there's a reason thick body creams and butters always come in pots rather than bottles.
To add insult to injury (quite literally) the actual product is fantastic. I didn't think I'd like it, but I loved it. It was thick and creamy, but once it warmed up on contact with the skin it became runnier which made it very easy to spread. It then sunk in almost instantly.
This body cream is unscented which is great news for those who suffer from sensitive skin or just don't like the scent of body products lingering on their skin. Personally, I prefer to use scented products, but that's just a matter of taste and I did find it was perfect to use after my Lush baths, as they had already left my skin scented enough.
Overall: Amazing product, awful packaging.
4) Murad Skin Perfecting Primer - Dewy Finish
Oh my. After my initial disgust I still had to give this a test run in order to give an honest and objective review.
We shall start with the texture, as this is definitely one of this product's strengths. It feels very light, almost like water and though it initially applies incredibly patchy this can be remedied with a bit of blending and rubbing.
Now let's move on to the obvious point: Why, just WHY did Murad have to tint this product? They claim that it adapts to any skin tone, but it simply doesn't. Now I know that I'm pale being a Mac NC15 and all, but surely I am not alone in this. Just look at the picture, look at it:
Ok, I realise I'm kind of going on about it. Maybe if you're medium or dark skinned your natural skin tone may be strong enough to overpower the obvious orange-ness of this product.
There are two versions of this primer and this is the dewy finish which is absolutely spot on, as it didn't mattify at all. That didn't bother me, as it just meant I had to powder my forehead where I get oily and the rest of my skin was fine. You can wear this either as a tinted moisturiser on its own or underneath foundation.
On its own it looked horrid on me. After about an hour it only seemed to be getting more orange and only stayed put for about four hours in total. Again with the colour you might get away with it if you have medium or dark skin.
When I put foundation over the top the shade problem was less obvious, but as I don't really wear any full coverage foundation it still seemed a bit off. The good news is that it really did prolong the wear of my foundation! It went from around 8 hours to just over 10, which meant that at the end of a normal day my foundation was still firmly in place. However, instead of just kind of melting off my face like it usually does when it can't last any longer, my foundation creased and gathered in all my expression lines at the end of the day when I used this underneath. Then again, maybe I was just frowning a lot because my face was still slightly orange. Ok, enough of that, I'll stop now. Promise.
Would I purchase any of the products that were in the Valentine's Glossybox? No. Definitely no. Though I loved the Clarins skincare samples the full sized products would come to a combined price of almost £100 and I know that I can get something equally good for less money. The FAB moisturiser was great, but the packaging is highly disfunctional and I just prefer my body creams to smell of something nice and fruity. As for the other products they were lacking in either one or several departments and I would consider both a huge waste of money for me.
