Review: L'Oreal Skin Perfection Nourishing Cleansing Wipes

Yes, I know. Face wipes are a bit of a naughty beauty purchase. We all know we shouldn't really be using them, but still most of us use them at least from time to time. The way I see it, they're the lesser of two evils: When I'm so tired that I really just want to collapse into bed, I can still just about manage to give my face a quick wipe, which is obviously much better than going to sleep in a full face of make-up.

My go to face wipes are by Simple, but recently I've been experimenting with a few different brands and as I've been getting good results from a lot of other Skin Perfection products I thought I'd give these a little shot.

The first thing I noticed was that these weren't quite as moist as my usual Simple wipes, but they were by no means dry and still did a good job of removing almost all of my make-up in one go. Where these perform better is that they're a lot more gentle and don't leave my skin feeling tight afterwards, but that does come at the cost of not being quite as thorough.

I'd probably recommend these more for people with sensitive skin and I might go back to them on days where my skin is feeling a bit dry.

These retail at £3.49 a pack, but are often on offer, so you should be able to get them a little cheaper!

Review: Murad Balance and Protect Travel Kit

It's that time of year now where a lot of you are jetting off somewhere rather lovely on your summer breaks (Lucky you! No holiday for me till September!) and are faced with the dilemma of having to squeeze your entire skincare regime into small plastic containers of no more than 100ml total.
To make things a little easier Murad are launching three different travel kits depending on skincare needs which all come ready in a little plastic pouch (which you can then fill with a few more essentials if you want to). The one I've got to show you today is the Balance and Protect Travel Kit aimed at oily and combination skin.

First up you get five of the Clarifying Wipes for blemish-prone skin. The great thing about these is that as they're individually wrapped they won't dry out and are perfectly moist every time you open one. They also won't eat away at your liquid allowance if you want to take them in your hand luggage. While face wipes might not be the greatest way of cleansing your skin, they won't hurt for a long weekend or so, and I found these to be really, really effective. They did sting a little on my sensitive eyes, so if your eyes get a little dry from time to time I'd recommend packing a separate eye make-up remover.

Next up is this little 10ml tube of Oil-Control Mattifier, the hero product in this kit if you ask me. Where was this when I was going through puberty?? It's the first mattifying moisturiser I've tried that really does what it promises and keeps shine completely at bay for several hours. While my skin doesn't really get that oily anymore these days, hot summer weather always brings out shiny sweat-face (mmmmh, attractive), and this does an amazing job at keeping heat damage to a minimum while still providing enough moisture. I can actually feel my skin tighten a little bit after applying this, but it's by no means an unpleasant sensation. I've been using my sample for just over a week now and I've still got plenty left, so this should be enough even for longer holidays.

The final product is this 5ml container of the Skin Perfecting Primer in Dewy Finish. The funny thing is that I once got a sample of this in a beauty box and I absolutely hated it, but this second time around I'm really fond of it. I remember it turning my face bright orange at first, but it doesn't really do that anymore at all. Maybe I had a dodgy sample or maybe they've changed the formulation? Or maybe my skin changed? Either way, while I wouldn't rely on this for tint alone, it works really well layered over the moisturiser to give my foundation enough slip to apply easier but still have something to grip to. My make-up also seems to hang around for 2-3 hours more than usual.

This is really a rather lovely little kit and I actually think it would be absolutely perfect if you're going to any outdoor festivals, where having access to running water can be a tad tricky and you don't have anywhere to reapply make-up or powder your face all day.

There will also be a Smooth and Soften Travel Kit to tackle fine lines and wrinkles and a Youthful You Travel Kit for firming and brightening skin. They will all be £10 each, which I think is great value for the quality of skincare that you get.

They launch on Sunday, June 15th exclusively in Marks & Spencer stores.

Review: Simple Kind To Skin Exfoliating Facial Wipes

So far all of my reviews of Simple products have been overwhelmingly positive, but today I want to talk about a product I just didn't get on with. It didn't start well, seeing as I only bought this accidentally. I was stocking up on my beloved Simple face wipes and it was only when I got home that I realised I picked up the wrong ones. Instead of being smooth all over, these exfoliating wipes have one smooth side and one rough side which is meant to exfoliate while it cleanses.

Now, I don't know about you, but I buy face wipes for those days when I just cannot be bothered with my regular skincare routine. I use them when I come home tired or erm, slightly intoxicated and I can only just manage to remember to take my make-up off with a wipe before I collapse into bed. The problem with this scenario is that when it's dark and you're tired/drunk you have no way of telling which side is the smooth one and which side is the exfoliating one - until it's too late and you've already rubbed what feels like sandpaper over your eyes.

Now, don't get me wrong, because these wipes will certainly get your skin clean. Very clean. But I feel that rubbing my face with something that literally feels sharp just defeats the whole purpose and I'd rather not actually take my make-up off at all.

So, while the regular Simple wipes are still among my favourite beauty products ever, this exfoliating variety is not something I'll be repurchasing.

Simple Kind To Skin Exfoliating Facial Wipes retail at £3.55 a pack.

Monthly Favourites: January 13

I haven't been very good with posting monthly favourites so far - mainly because I just don't get through enough products to think of any month after month! But I will try to be better about it this year, as I've found loads of fantastic products just from reading these posts on other people's blogs and I hope I can do the same for you!

1) Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette

I have to admit I was a bit weary about the hype surrounding both the Naked Palettes. In all honesty, how good can a bunch of brown eye shadows be? However, I found myself talking about it so much, that eventually I got it as a present (wooooo!) and even though it was no revelation of awesomeness at first, I realised that I've put pretty much all of my other eye shadows aside and now I'm only using this! It's just a really great selection of colours which will allow you to create a multitude of looks, the shadows are soft, very pigmented and last all day with a good primer. What's not to love?

2) Aussie 3 Minute Miracle

My hair has now been through a grand total of three bleaching sessions and unfortunately they have all taken their toll on my tresses. Trust Aussie to bring my hair back from almost certain death. It moisturises, repairs and just seems to undo all the damage I have caused through dying and heat styling. I cannot recommend this enough for anybody who has dry, brittle and/or damaged hair. I've already repurchased it twice and once this bottle is empty I'm getting another one. I'll write a full review on it soon.

3) Makebelieve Enhance Sunbeam Bronzer*

I've been reaching for this loads in the past few weeks, as my winter complexion is even ghostlier than usual. This bronzer gives a beautiful flush of colour and as it's not too shimmery it's the perfect contouring powder - I swear it makes my cheekbones as sharp as razorblades. What I love the most, however, is that it just settles to such a marvellously natural finish on my skin - no obvious bronzer or contour marks there at all. You can read a full review on this one here.

4) Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Wipes

I can't believe I never wrote a blog post on these wipes. I think I may have mentioned them once in a Youtube video (haha, yeah....), but that's about it. Truth be told, I don't even remember how many times I've repurchased these. Let's be honest, sometimes you just haven't got the time or the energy (or you're just really, really drunk) to do a full skincare routine before bed, but the least you can do is take off your make-up. Nobody likes messy pillows and crusty eye lashes. I've tried a few other wipes from time to time, but none come close to these. They stay soft and moist forever, get all the crap off my face without being drying and most of all make sure I don't get breakouts caused by my laziness.

*PR Sample

What are your favourites for the month?