My Updated Cleanser Collection - Part One - Makeup Removers

I think we all know by now that I'm a bit of a skincare fanatic so, when it came to going through my cleanser collection, I figured it was going to be a bit of a monster post. I've decided to break down my collection into two separate posts to make it a tiny bit more manageable. Round one? Cleansers that I primarily use for makeup removal.

There's one product in this category that I need not linger on: the Una Brennan Vitamin C Brighten Cleansing Oil. If you haven't heard me hap on about this before it's a beautiful, affordable oil cleanser that removes makeup effectively without stripping the skin of any moisture and the citrus scent is heavenly. My one gripe with this product is the non-pump based packaging but the formula is lovely.

The newest addition to my cleansing wardrobe is Sonya Dakars Eye Wash. I'm fairly certain this is one of the products that came in the Caroline Hirons' Cleansing Box that I picked up from Cult Beauty because it isn't something I'd normally pick out for myself and, if I'm honest with myself, I find this one a bit of a faff to use. I'm a double cleanser anyway and so a separate eye makeup removal stage for me seems unnecessary. The cleanser is good quality and removes makeup effectively, it's just not something I personally reach for all the time.

Recently I've really been enjoying the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm. It's taken me way too long to get around to trying this but it's a really effective makeup remover. If you like your skincare to be a sensory experience you may want to steer clear of this one because it's completely unscented, but for this reason it will be amazing for people with especially sensitive skins. It's not the most exciting cleanser I've ever used but it gets the job done really well.

My favourite cleanser for short term traveling are the Olay Daily Facial in a Box. These are loose, dry cleansing cloths that you add water to and they foam up to remove makeup. I think these are a brilliant alternative to traditional cleansing wipes as they are all the convenience of a wipe but they don't contain any alcohol so they're not harsh on the skin. They come in boxes of 30 and as they are separate, single use cloths they take up no room at all in an overnight bag. They come in a few different textures but I like the ones that are marketed towards sensitive skins. The only thing I would mention is that, with them being a foam cleanser, I don't tend to use them for more than one night as they can get a little drying on the skin, but they don't contain SLS.

For longer traveling trips (2 nights+) I tend to pack MV Organics Pure Jojoba Oil. THis can be used for all kinds of things but I like it for makeup removal and since it's only a small 35ml container it's super convenient for traveling. With it being an oil it removes makeup quickly and isn't at all moisture zapping (are we noticing a trend yet?) and with it being just pure jojoba oil it's not heavily scented so, again, great for sensitive skins.

My least used makeup remover is the Pixi Nourishing Cleansing Balm. I think this is a really nice cleanser, the scent is lovely but not over-powering and it removes makeup quickly. However I don't rech for it too often because I find it a little heavy for my normal/combination skin, it's full of super moisutrising ingredients and I can imagine drier skin types would love this cleanser but I tend to save it for the rare occasions where dry patches show up.

And finally? RMS Beauty Raw Coconut Cream. I'm not sure why I don't use this more often than I do because it's absolutely dreamy. The scent is beautiful and it's feels lovely on the skin (again, another fab makeup remover). My one complaint about this one is that it's so sensitive to temperature that you simply couldn't use it anywhere that's warm. I live in England and we're not known for our hot weather but in summer this cleanser has been known to completely liquidise in the pot in my bathroom.

2016 Beauty Discoveries

So 2016 definitely wasn't my best year for blogging, but I thought this would be a great time to mention a few products I found in 2016 that I loved, that may not have gotten the blogging attention they deserved. I obviously loved more products than just the four I'll be mentioning today but these are the new-comers to my stash that really stood out.

1. Tata Harper's Regenerating Cleanser. So 2016 was the year in which I was introduced to Tata Harpers products, and narrowing down a top pick from her cleansing range wasn't easy, (I also have the Purifying and Oil Cleansers and they're both FAB options too). I decided to go with the Regenerating one for a couple of reasons: firstly, it got me back into manual exfoliation. Second? It's unlike other things I have. While I love the Oil Cleanser, we all know I love a bit of Una Brennan for oil cleansing. Equally, I really enjoy the Purifying Cleanser, but it's not leaps and bounds away from the Oskia Cleansing Gel that I've been using for years. The Regenerating Cleanser is a thin cream cleanser with little sand-like grains (no plastic beads) that provide a light exfoliation during your cleanse. I use this either AM or second cleanse in PM. Bonus points for the scent.

2. Pixi Rose Oil. This is just genius. Now I will never be caught bad mouthing the MV Organics Rose+ Booster, but if there's ever going to be anything that comes close to rivalling that product, for texture, for how it leaves the skin looking and feeling, for scent, it's Pixi Rose Oil. It's mind-boggling how they've managed to make an oil that is so lovely for such a good price. It's £26. just go buy it. Your skin will thank you.

3. Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner. Let me go on record for saying: liquid eyeliner was once the absolute bane of my makeup existence. I found it difficult to apply, and once I did apply it I found that it never really lasted well on me, that it faded or smudged. This eyeliner pen is so user-friendly because of it's flexible felt nib and the ink inside the pen is super black, doesn't fade and it's very water resistant (and I'm a contact lens wearer so trust me I have tested that claim). It's not the cheapest liquid liner out there but it's also not half the price of the Tom Ford one, so I'd say I'm on to a winner.

4. Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in "Ex-Girlfriend". So do we remember the series of posts around this time last year where I went a little loopy for the Gwen Stefani for Urban Decay collection? I did go back, I did buy the lipstick in "Ex-Girlfriend" and I have worn that shade at least once a week since. It's just such a good nude for paler people. It's nicely sheer and a little deeper than my skin-tone and has a lovely, wearably glossy finish. Goes with everything, super comfortable, thank you Urban Decay.

The M&S Beauty Advent Calendar - Round 2

Just a quick post today to remind my readers that the M&S Beauty Advent Calendar launches today!

(Photo included is last years calendar - this year's wont be delivered in time for photos sadly)

I did a range of posts on the contents of last year's calendar and I loved it. This years version is a little more expensive (£35, as opposed to last year's £25) and the same catch applies from last year (you need to spend £35 on other products in the clothing/beauty range to be able to purchase the calendar). Even with the slight price increase I still think that this is an absolute steal when you look at what you get.

If you're wanting this calendar I'd move quickly to avoid disappointment, as I'm confident that last year they'd sold out online by lunchtime. here's a link for you:

http://www.marksandspencer.com/the-ultimate-beauty-advent-calendar/p/P22488891?intid=CORP_Beautyadventcalendar_SubCategory_9129262_LP_hero_static_1_txt

People who like surprises may want to stop reading here as this is just a list of what the calendar contains:


1. Leighton Denny Expert Nails Mini Crystal Nail File

2. Look Good Feel Better Mini Powder Brush

3. Alpha-H Liquid Gold 50ml

4. Eyeko Skinny Mini Liquid Eyeliner Black 1.2g

5. Percy & Reed Perfectly Perfecting Wonder Balm 30ml

6. Philip Kingsley Elasticizer 40ml

7. Shay & Blue Atropa Belladonna Natural Spray Fragrance 10ml
8. Josh Wood Radiant Shine Hair Treatment Oil 28ml

9. Ultrasun Face 30 SPF 25ml

10. Pür Correcting Primer Prep & Perfect 10ml

11. Filorga Time-Filler 15ml

12. Burts Bees Beeswax Lip Balm with Vitamin E Peppermint 4.25g

13. Pixi Brow Tamer 4.5ml

14. Neal's Yard Remedies Be Lovely Hand Cream 50ml

15. Rodial Super Acid X-treme Acid Rush Peel 20ml

16. Nails Inc Gel One Coat Nail Polish - Piccadilly Court 10ml
17. Rosie for Autograph Lip glossy - Supermodel Smile

18. Rituals - The Ritual of Sakura Body Cream 70ml

19. Autograph All-in-one Nail Colour - Cranberry 11ml

20. Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm 15ml

21. REN Evercalm™ Global Protection Day Cream 15ml

22. Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse® 30ml

23. Skyn Iceland Icelandic Relief Eye Cream 5ml/0.169oz

24. Formula Absolute Ultimate Sleep Cream 15ml

25. Studio 10 Miracle Effect Priming Serum 5ml

June Favourites

First of all apologies for the lack of post on Friday - It was a hectic week and I just couldn't find the time or the brain power to crack out a post but I hope I'm forgiven. We're back today with my favourites from June '16 - so lets hop to it.

Let's kick things off with a lip combination that I've reached for most of the month shall we? I've been layering on some Maybelline ColourSensational Shine Gloss in "130 - Fuchsia Flash" over my Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Lipstick in "05" for an everyday lip this month. I love it because it's a mid-tone pink so it's understated and wearable but it's still bright and looks put together. I've thrown this on for work and play and it's such a lovely low-maintenance lip combination.

We've been pretty skincare heavy here recently so I'm going to try not to harp on about these too long but there's been a couple of skincare products that have absolutely brought my skin back to life (and unfortunately, both cost a pretty penny). I've re-discovered my MV Organic Skincare Rose Plus Booster and I have no idea how this fell to the back of the class. It's essentially good skin in a bottle, no matter how lack-lustre my skin is looking I find that a couple of drops of this massaged into the skin before bed has me looking like I've been drinking my water and sleeping a lot (which lets face it - usually I haven't been).

My Tata Harper cleanser obsession continues but this month I've been mad for the Purifying one. This is a lovely, thinner than most, gel cleanser that I've just been loving for my morning cleanse. The light texture makes it quick and easy to use and whenever I use this I feel like all of the grit and grime just follows it down the plug hole when I rinse. Also - the lovely sharp citrusy scent is great for helping you wake up in the morning and for me it just adds to that "super clean" feeling.

Finally a slightly less beauty-oriented product: I recently stumbled across Next's home fragrance selection and their "White Jasmine" range smells incredible. I got the Decorative Owl Reed Diffuser and it's so cute and smells amazing but I can't find it on the website (maybe it's in store only?) so here's the standard one. I'm awful at describing scents but the packaging says that the top notes are violet leaves and plum, the mid notes are jasmine and white lily and it has a white musk and amber base. It's just a nice clean, fresh, floral scent that's not overpowering or overly girly smelling (I tend to go for more gender neutral boarding on somewhat masculine home scents and this is more on the feminine side for me).

Let’s Talk About Sheet Masks.

Specifically, a couple that I've tried recently from the brand TonyMoly. So Asian beauty products have been making the rounds lately and TonyMoly is a brand that popped up on Cult Beauty and Sephora not too long ago and I've been itching to try some bits. As much as I could have ordered pretty much everything that the brand has to offer (it all looks so interesting!) I contained myself to just 2 masks. With the promise that if I liked what I saw I'd go back for more. So what do we think?

TonyMoly Rice Mask (Clear Skin)

This is a 20-30 minute sheet mask that is supposed to make "dull skin look radiant and glowing" which I must admit, when I first unboxed this I was disappointed with as it's called "Clear Skin" and I assumed it would be clarifying in some way. Slightly misleading titles aside this is a nice mask.

It's instantly cooling on the skin and hasn't really got a scent to it so it's pleasant to use, I did notice a slight tingling sensation towards the end of the mask but nothing uncomfortable. When you take it out of the packet it's completely saturated and I didn't notice it drying off quickly at all when I wore it (I left it on for the full 30 minutes and the only bit that dried was the space between my upper lip and my nose).

The only thing I would note about this mask is that while it adheres to the skin nicely (mine didn't fall off with light movement) it is a bit awkwardly shaped and didn't fit my face as comfortably as I'd like. This obviously may not be an issue for you dependant on your face shape but the mask was a soft fabric texture and didn't really have any stretch to it at all.

The effects were actually really nice. This left my skin feel plumped and smooth and the cooling effect stuck around for a long while after removing the mask. When I first removed the mask I was a little confused that a "Clear Skin" mask didn't seem to give me any reduction in blackheads or blemishes but after actually looking at the claims it definitely does what it says on the tin.

Inci hot spots: Glycerin (hydrating), Mineral Oil (acne skins be careful - also super cheap oil and this mask isn't cheap), Glycolic Acid (chemical exfoliant), Sodium Hyaluronate (essentially man-made Hyaluronic Acid - hydrating)

TonyMoly Lemon (Brightening)

This sheet mask claims to make "dull and dark skin look radiant" which is pretty much what I'd expect from a mask labeled "Brightening" so the claims on this one look better. Again it's a 20-30 minute sheet mask and I think I left this one on even beyond the recommended 30 minutes. It has a clean citrusy scent that I personally found really pleasant throughout the masking process and again it was instantly cooling on the skin.

This one didn't give my skin any tingling at all (I left it on for longer because I was anticipating a tingle but it never happened). That said I did get some of the mask on my lips and they felt strange (almost like a slightly numbed feeling) for a little while after I'd removed the mask. There's the same issue with the fit (TonyMoly do a whole range of sheet masks and I'd imagine they just switch up the liquid and keep the actual sheet the same for each different one) and this one stayed wet throughout the whole process.

For results I find that this mask left my skin unbelievably soft and smooth. Again there was no reduction in the redness or amount of blemishes on the skin but this mask did reduce the swelling a little and made the surface of the blemish smooth (so much easier to hide under concealer the next day). Of the two I'd say this is my favourite.

Inci hot spots: Glycerin (hydrating), Glycolic Acid (chemical exfoliant), Fragrance (sensitive skins be careful)

In The Queue - Inside My Backups and "To Be Tested" Drawer (Part 1 - Skincare)

So I, like many other beauty obsessives in this world, have a drawer in my stash dedicated to products that aren't in my rotation at the moment for one reason or another. Some of these are products that are tried and tested and that I just can't be without and others are items I've acquired that haven't made it into the testing arena yet (While I do have options open I try not to have everything open at once). I'm going to be rotating some new things in soon so I figured it would be a good idea to let you all know what's in there so if you're itching to hear about something I can prioritise that.

The Backups.

In the backups drawer I'm sure you'll be surprised to hear that I'm hoarding a few cleansers. I've got a full sized Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel, a gel-to-oil cleanser with a lovely light rose-y scent that I fell in love with from the word go. I've also got a full size of the Tata Harper Purifying Cleanser in here, again it's a gel cleanser but I prefer to emulsify with this one - I'm currently working my way through the last drops of a trial size I had. I've stashed away not one but two mini's of the Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel, which is really similar to the Oskia in texture but maybe a bit heavier, I love these for travel. Finally for cleansers, there's a mini of the Emma Hardie Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm, this was the first skincare product I properly got obsessive with and it's a lovely light, citrus-y scented balm cleanser.

The only other skincare products I have in backup are the Balance Me Congested Skin Serum, and a mini Omorovica Queen of Hungary Mist. I panic purchased the Balance Me serum as I had a trial size that I've been using for ages and I was convinced it was going to run out much quicker than it seems to be doing. With the queen of Hungary it's one of those products that I use and enjoy but I'd never pay for. This particular bottle was a gift with purchase and it's lovely, but it's completely unnecessary and very expensive for a refreshing mist.

To Be Tested

I find it difficult to give things a fair test if I have too much on rotation but I still pick up interesting bits so that when I have time to test things I have products ready. At the moment I'm hoarding a Clarins HydraQuench Cream (normal to dry skin), a Skin Blossom Gentle Face Wash and a Barefoot SOS Repair + Renew Light Moisturising Lotion. Again, I have a tonne of minis that are just waiting for me to break into them: Aurelia Miracle Cleanser, Clarins HydraQuench Intensive Serum Bi-Phase, Vasanti BrightenUp Enzyme Face Rejuvenstor Exfoliating Cleanser, Clinique Take The Day Off Makeup Remover, and the Alpha H Essential Hydration Cream. If there's anything anyone's wanting to see on here soon I can pop that on the to do list. :)

Head To Head - Affordable Cleansing Oils

We seem to be in the midst of a minor skincare takeover at the moment here in the Jodie May Beauty head quarters (sorry to the more makeup obsessed readers) and today will be no exception to that. Us bloggers are always harping on about "dupes" for other products but some times I think we forget to compare things in the same price bracket, so I'm here to rectify that. starting with a couple of oil cleansers:

In the left corner, we have my old faithful: The Superfacialist by Una Brennan Vitamin C Brighten Skin Renew Cleansing Oil, and on the right we have No7's Beautiful Skin Cleansing Oil. Both of these cleansers are around the £10-£11 mark and are available in the UK from Boots. Una Brennan gives you 200ml compared to No7's 150ml so on price-per-ml the UB is slightly more affordable, but how do they perform head to head?

Packaging - for packaging, the winner is definitely No7. My biggest bug-bear with the UB cleansing oil is that it doesn't have a pump, it's a serious design flaw. The lack of a pump can make it a little bit awkward to use as you have to pour the liquid-y cleanser out into your hands and the No7 is much more user friendly.

Formula - This will largely come down to personal preferences, but I can say that the No7 oil feels thinner during use. Both remove makeup with easy and are quick to remove, neither leave the skin feeling dry or stripped at all. One thing I will mention for formula is that the first ingredient on the inci for the No7 is Paffafinnum Liquidum (or as it's usually reffered to: mineral oil). This is a low quality oil that comes from fossil fuels (it's essentially a by-product of petrol) and if you're prone to any kind of acne, it's an ingredient to avoid. The UB oil contains mainly sunflower seed oil and some other more natural oils and so I do feel like you're getting better quality ingredients from the UB.

All in all? For me the Una Brennan remains unbeaten. I will likely just decant it into the bottle for the No7 once I've used that up because the packaging is so much better on the No7. I still use and enjoy the No7 and it's pretty much always on offer so you can generally get a good deal on it but I just feel like the ingredients on the UB are so much better.

My Thoughts On Caroline Hirons' "Cleansing Box"

I must admit, when Caroline Hirons announced that she was releasing another Cult Beauty Box, I may have had a moment. I'm not quite at the point of booking time off work to make sure I'm available to snag my box as soon as it becomes available, but my word that woman knows how to put together a skincare collection. I was gutted that I wasn't in a place financially to commit to her Christmas Box of Dreams back in December (insert sad face emoji here) and hoped this would live up to it.

Then the reveals started, the lineup for this box looked a lot different to previous boxes. It was advertised as a "Cleansing Box" and I looked at my skincare collection (the "cleanser shelf" has become a more of a "whole and very much over-flowing cleansing cabinet") and had a good hard think. "Do I need this?" and the answer was a sound and definite "certainly not". I resisted. For about a week.

Now I don't want to fill this post with a quick look at each product because I'd like to do more in-depth reviews with them (and to be completely honest I haven't actually gotten around to trying them all out just yet), but my thoughts on the actual box are quite mixed. 

Firstly the packaging. I loved the idea of the neon green writing on the plain white background. However this design is just a cover for the box that you have to un-stick to actually open the box, and the box itself is plain white which was a little disappointing. I realise that packaging isn't everything, but it's a definite drop in quality from the last CHCB Box I purchased and when you're investing £175 into something, it's disappointing when the packaging feels cheap.

Repeats: Now I'm really happy that the Oskia Micro Exfoliating Balm made it into this box. It's definitely one of those products that I never would have picked myself but having tried it, it's lovely and I like it. But I, like many others, can't help but notice that it was also in the very first CHCB Box, and while that was around a year ago, original purchasers commented that they either didn't like it the first time around or that they'd simply not managed to use up the first one yet, so potentially a draw back.

That being said, the box is valued at £274 and is selling for £175, so you're saving pretty much £100 (36%). It's also packed full of some of my absolute favourite skincare brands: Oskia, MV Organics and Pixi have been long time loves of mine, I've recently been woo'ed by Tata Harpers range and the May Lindstrom Jasmine Garden Facial Spray that's included in this box has definitely got me itching to try more from her range.

Over all, I feel like this box is a really good investment for 3 very distinct audiences:

1. You're new to skincare, or at least new to a proper cleansing routine. You have maybe 1-3 cleansers in your current arsenal and you're wanting to dip your toe into some new/different formulas of cleanser. - This kit has almost everything. There's an oil, a cream, a balm and an eye make-up remover for cleansing steps, both a chemical and a physical exfoliant to suit your needs/preferences and then a refreshing toner in there too. Everything you need to get yourself started in proper cleansing.

2. You've got cleansing down, but your arsenal is currently heavy on budget-friendly products, and you're wanting to try some more luxury products in a way that's kinder on the purse strings. This box includes some amazing luxury brands - May Lindstrom, Oskia, Tata Harper and MV Organics are all fairly up there in price for skincare and while £175 is definitely an investment, it's a decent saving on a £274 value purchase.

3. You're just like me. I.E you're just obsessed with skincare. You already have 300 cleansers but you don't have some of these products and if you do have any of them you'd like a backup of it. If you're in this category, I'm not sure why you're here, you clearly don't need any further convincing.

So I guess the only question left is: have you given in to the temptation?

Summer Skincare: Facial SPF's

So as the heatwave continues in the UK I've lined up some tips for upping your skincare routine to accommodate the higher temperature - that's right, we're talking about SPF again.

1. Apply a good layer of a high factor SPF to the face. I personally always wear SPF on my face (even in winter) since I'm really fair skinned. I'd normally reach for a factor 10-15 but in the summer months I never go lower than factor 45 on my face and my favourite is the Kiehl's Ultra Light UV Defence. I'm sure I don't have to go on about why I up my SPF in the summer months, but it's especially important for you if your skincare routines involve any products which contain retinols or chemical exfoliants.

2. If you're wearing makeup in the sun (which a lot of us will be - the sun will still be out when you're walking from the car park to the office and so on) find touch up products with SPF in them. If you're not the type to reach for powder products frequently, I'd just top up with another thin layer of SPF tinted moisturiser. For those who like a matte finish, there's actually a good number of SPF face powders on the market these days. For product suggestions I would recommend Benefit's Hello Flawless Powder Foundation SPF 15 and Esteé Lauders Double Wear Light Stay-In-Place Makeup SPF 10.

3. If you're really concerned, just try to keep your face out of the sun. All kinds of hats have come back into fashion recently, from caps to big rimmed sun hats, so it's easier than ever to keep your self out of the sun. It's recommended that you try to avoid being in direct sun between around 11pm-4pm as this is when the sun tends to be strongest.

4. So these last two tips are less about avoiding getting burnt and more to do with how SPF can wreak havoc on your skin if you're not using it properly. Firstly, use an SPF that is designed to be used on the face. In the same way that it's not ideal to use your body lotion as a facial moisturiser, SPF body oils and lotions aren't formulated to be ideal for the more delicate skin on your face. If you want to know everything there is to know about SPF I'd recommend you head on over to this video that Caroline Hirons did with Marko Lens of Zelens.

5. And finally: remove your SPF properly. A lot of people seem to be of the opinion that SPF products break them out, and they will if you don't take the time to properly remove them. I always double cleanse if I've applied any products with SPF in to make sure my skin is completely clean before I start with my evening skincare routine and I only ever have problems if I get lazy with my cleansing routine.

So I've Fallen Out With Suncream...

...But there's some other SPF formulas that I'm loving right now.

The sun has (finally) started to show it's face in Manchester, and it's actually been almost too hot. When I went on my annual trip to stock up on suncream I decided to stray away from my usual traditional suncreams and my P20 options in favour of some newer formats and I'm really impressed.

The format that I've been enjoying the most is one that been around for a while: oil. I like oil-base sun protection because generally they're even more moisturising than the traditional cream/lotion based formulas and they're basically goof-proof when it comes to white-casts and streaky application. The oil I've been enjoying this year is the Golden Protect Protective Oil Enriched with Shea Butter from Garnier's Ambre Solaire range. This is a light, non-greasy formula that is water resistant and moisturising on the skin. It comes in multiple sun protection factors, personally I generally go for a factor 30 across the board. I also like that this formula has a subtle sheeny finish to it that gives the skin that glow that we all want in the summer.

Nivea have a brilliant range of sun protection products and the one that really caught my eye was the Protect and Refresh Cooling Sun Mist. This is a super fine formula that is applied to the skin via an aerosol spray can. At first glance I thought that this product would be the perfect answer to the problem of topping up facial SPF throughout the day without disrupting makeup but I was a bit disappointed to find that the directions specify that you can't spray this directly onto the face. I'll still get enough use out of this since it's nice and refreshing on the skin for reapplication but I'd love to see something along the lines of this that is completely safe for use on the face.

The last sun care product that caught my eye this time around was Nivea's Lip Care Sun Protect SPF30. Again, I love Nivea's sun protection range and they're also known for their lip balms so I figured this was a pretty obvious choice. The formula is light but nicely hydrating and the scent/flavour is nice but not overpowering as well. I even really like the packaging with the pop of summery yellow and it's a great one to slip into your handbag.

May Favourites

So it's time for another favourites post. I've kept it pretty short and sweet this time but I'm absolutely loving everything I've included. So lets have a look:

For makeup I've gone back to an old favourite: the L'Oreal True Match Foundation. I did a post a while back comparing the new formula to the original and I was pleasantly surprised that they had in fact managed to improve the formula. It's still super lightweight on the skin and the coverage is nicely buildable but it has a little more glow that help it to look super natural on the skin. I've always gone back to True Match for the warmer months and I'm super happy that I still love it.

If you haven't already heard me harp on about Sunday Riley's Luna Sleeping Night Oil, I think you're a minority on the blog. When this first launched last year I was very much put-off by the price. I've tried a couple of Sunday Riley's oils in the past and I've not been nearly as impressed with them as I have been with other more affordable (but still pricey) oils (MV Organics Rose Plus Booster, and the Clarins Lotus Oil to name a few great options). While I still don't rate the other oils in the lineup, Luna has earned a permanent spot in my skincare stash. It just makes your skin look better overnight and since I've started properly looking after my skin I'm finding it's not often I find skincare products these days that do that for me. Totally worth the hype.

Another skincare product that I've been obsessed with this month is the Tata Harper Regenerating Cleanser. I got a trial size of this in a set I got for Christmas and had it have not been in that kit I definitely wouldn't have picked this product out of all the things in Tata's range but I absolutely love this cleanser. It has super refined granular particles (think more "grains of sand" than "those horrible plastic bead things") that are held in a thin creamy cleanser that just feels great on the skin. I like to use this as a morning cleanse or a second cleanse in the evening. Since it's a bit exfoliating so it's definitely not one to be removing makeup with. Also, I know I go on about scents all the time, but the scent on Tata Harper skincare products is just amazing, this has a light citrusy scent that's so fresh and relaxing.

And finally this month, something I never thought I'd be including in a favourites post: Stila's Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner Pen. I never thought I'd find a liquid eyeliner that I enjoyed. I generally have loads of trouble applying liquid liner and if I do manage to apply it I end up with panda eyes before long but this is different. The nib is a long thin felt tip nib that just makes applying your liquid liner so easy to do that I've literally been reaching for this everyday since I got it. the formula is nice and long wearing but it isn't completely smudge resistant, if you have especially watery eyes or you rub your eyes a lot this will move a bit.

If My Skincare Stash Disappeared...

When it comes to skincare, I think we can all agree, I'm somewhat obsessed. I have a bathroom cabinet that's practically overflowing with cleansers, a whole drawer dedicated to masks and enough serums, oils and moisturisers to last me a few years at least. I'm starting to cut back a bit on my obssesive collecting and it got me thinking - if I got rid of everything and had to start again, what would be on my shopping list?

Cleansers

In my cutting down I managed to get this down to three. As much as I absolutely love a lot of cleansers - seriously, I may have t dedicate a whole post to my favourites. The absolute have-to-have-it list is just these: the Una Brennan Vitamin C Brighten Cleansing Oil (shock horror), the Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel (surprise surprise) and a more recent love in the Tata Harper Regenerating Cleanser.

I wanted each of the products in this list to serve a specific purpose and I feel like these 3 work different enough to earn a spot in my hall of fame. The Una Brennan is a liquid consistency and is the product I reach for to remove makeup more often than not. I love the Oskia gel for a morning cleanse or a second cleanse post-makeup-removal in the PM. While the Tata Harper is a more recent purchase, I've nearly used up my travel mini and have a backup ready for when it's finished (and when you have as many cleansers as I do, that's a big deal). I'd been shying away from manual exfoliators for such a long time but this is nice and gentle but leaves the skin so soft and smooth, and the scent is so lovely.

Toners

I've pin-pointed two toner-step products that are must haves for me and, again, I don't think they'll be much of a surprise: For an exfoliating toner my pick is the Pixi Glow Tonic, it's effective and affordable. Enough said. I also love the La Roche Posay Serozinc since it's got anti-bacterial properties but also doubles up as a refreshing spritz since the mist is so fine. I think that both of these work equally well in the AM or the PM and they can be used together or separately. I have used lots of more expensive toners but I genuinely think these two are the ones I reach for the most and that they're the ones I'd be repurchasing once I've worked my way through my current beauty stock room.

Serums/Moisturisers/Oils

I've let myself have a few options here since I like to switch things up a bit. For AM, I love the Indeed Labs Hydralyron serum, the Clarins Lotus Facial Oil and the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream. I've spoken about Hydralyron on this blog so many times now but it's still a firm favourite for an affordable hydrating serum. My Clarin's Oil has been another one I've been quite consistent with, it's a good quality oil and it doesn't break the bank as hard as others that I enjoy and the scent is so refreshing in the morning. Then the Charlotte Tilbury cream is just lovely under makeup, I couldn't use it everyday since it's quite a rich cream and my skin isn't dry enough to warrant using this constantly but it's great when I do reach for it.

In the evening, I just love using the Esteé Lauder Advanced Night Repair serum, another product that I've chirped on about before. It's a thin jelly-ish texture and it just fixes your skin, that's all I can say about it. Although the Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil is a very recent addition to my skincare stash, it's such an SOS saviour of a product that I know I'll be going back for more once I'm out. Finally, while the Indeed Labs Fillume moisturiser isn't something I talk about much on the blog, I've been using it for a while now and it's such a good night cream, it's really plumping on the skin and makes you wakeup looking fresh.

Inside My “Womanhood Survival Kit”

Despite the somewhat ridiculous nickname I've given it, the collection of items that I've nicknamed my "Womanhood Survival Kit" has come in handy on many occasions since it's birth and I can't believe I went so long without one. It's basically a little makeup bag that I can move from bag to bag that houses useful things, and here's what's inside mine:

I have my top three most-used medicinal products in there: pain killers, flu capsules and throat lozenges. My job involves a lot of talking so I've found carrying throat lozenges to be a good move, I find myself needing these every now and then and it's nice to have them when you need them. I've also started carrying around flu capsules recently since there seems to be a lot of bugs going around at the moment and these are great since they have paracetamol and caffine in them. I've also got standard painkillers since I'm prone to headaches and get stomach cramps, speaking of stomach cramps...

I don't know many girls who don't carry around supplies for when mother natures monthly gift arrives. Toilets everywhere have them but they're so expensive in the machines and they're never anything good. I always have a few on hand just in case of an emergency.

I've got a small Soap & Glory Hand Maid Hand Sanitiser in there, it's my sanitiser of choice since it has that classic Soap & Glory scent to it that I love. Another hygiene-related item is a deodorant or body spray - the amount of times I've been to the gym and forgot to pack one is ridiculous so I've started carrying one in my handbag to avoid disasters.

For miscellaneous items I have a black biro pen (I like the Bic ones) and a bobble (hair tie for you folks in the States). When I decided that I wanted to get dieting I added in a travel-friendly container of sweeteners - I've been finding this great as it's meant I can cut back on sugar wherever I am. A few weeks back I had a dry-skin issue that was super uncomfortable so I've added a mini tube of the Pommade Divine Nature's Remedy Balm to the bag and that's been working great - after just one day of continuous use it eased off my dry skin almost completely.

I've actually got quite a few beauty products in there: I always keep a mascara in there for emergency teary eyed moments. A pressed powder and a concealer are always nice to keep in there for general touch ups. At the moment I'm carrying the Maybelline Instant Anti-Age The Eraser Eye Perfect and cover Concealer which is nice if a little too dark for me (more shades please Maybelline!) and the Maybelline Fit Me Pressed Powder which I prefer for touch ups since it has a little coverage in there.

I always have at least one lip balm on hand, at the moment I have the Arrow Boost Color Enhancing Lip Balm which isn't the most hydrating lip balm out there but the hint of colour it gives the lips is nice. For actual hydration I've also got the Malin+Goetz Mojoito Lip Balm, can you tell I like my lip balms sweet?

The final thing I have in there is a couple of the Olay Daily Facials Cleansing Cloths. These are so travel friendly since they take up no room at all and you just add water and all you need to wash your face is in there. I have a few friends that live a little further away than I'd like them too and these are useful for times when I'm planning to go for a day visit but end up staying the night.

So there we have it - does anyone else have something like this? I can't be the only one.

Five Reasons To Pick up Anna and Lily’s Cult Beauty Box (If You Haven't Already)

I've been reading and watching content by ViviannaDoesMakeup (also *here*) for a few years now and I more recently started follow LilyPebbles on YouTube and I love these two. Anna's blog is amazing and I love Lily's videos and when the two of them are together it just works. So I'm never surprised when they announce a collaboration. As soon as I heard they'd done a box with Cult Beauty I was pretty sure it would be something I'd be wanting to pick up: and they didn't disappoint. Here's Why:

1. The product lineup. Need I say more? This box is jammed full of products that I either already know I love or products that I'm itching to try. The box includes an Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel and we all know how much I love that cleanser. There's also a Medium Jade Roller, a Classic Wet Brush, the Pixi Hydrating Milky Mist, a Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eye Liner, a travel sized Becca Backlight Priming Filter, and to top it all off:

2. The generously sized bottle of Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Oil. I feel like this needs a point of it's own. I've been wanting to try this since even before it was launched but the price point was too high for me to bite the bullet. I couldn't justify dropping £85 on an oil that I didn't know I loved when I have so many oils and treatments in my collection that I love. Spoiler alert: I've used it once and my skin is already looking better for it.

3. The value. Whilst I can understand that £85 is a lot to invest in something at once, this box contains 7 products, 5 are full sized, 1 is half sized and 1 is what I'd call a travel mini (20% of the full size). With the none-full sized products I've worked out that the half sized Luna Oil is worth £42.50 (full size is £85) and the 6ml sample of the Becca Primer is worth £6.40. Those added up with the full sized items comes to a total value of £149.39 - the box is priced at £85 (a little over half price).

4. Cult Beauty's insanely good shipping. I love shopping with Cult Beauty for a lot of reasons: the website is nicely laid out so it's easy to shop with them, they accept Paypal so there's no faffing with card details, they always do great value sets and gift with purchases. And their shipping is always great. I ordered this box with standard shipping on the Friday afternoon and (despite is being a bank holiday) the box was with me by the Wednesday morning. I always get the standard shipping and regularly receive my items from them the next day or within 2 working days.

5. The box itself. The design of the box is so beautiful - marble effect on the actual box and gold/black writing. I repurpose these boxes as they're a good size for general storage. I have a similar one from Fashercise that now houses my workout leggings, my Caroline Hirons Cult Beauty box is now home to my hair tools. These boxes are so useful and this one is really pretty too.

So there's my thoughts - let me know in the comments section what you thought of the box an whether you'll be picking it up! :)

Empties: Round Five

We're very much about using up things here at JodieMayBeauty HQ so, without further a-due, here's all the products I've used up over the last few months: part five.

Bath & Body

I feel like we need to talk shower gels, because oh my have there been some used up around here lately. I have a full sized Soap & Glory Sugar Crush Body Wash which I'd definitely buy again, I love how massive these are and the pump-style packaging is so handy, whilst they aren't the most lather-y of shower gels the scents make up for it and the Sugar Crush scent is my absolute favourite.

I've got a 50ml mini of the Therapie Boost Hair & Body Wash and a 30ml mini of the L'Occitane Verbena Shower Gel and I feel the same about both: the scents are amazing, and they're not stripping at all, but for the price, the lather just isn't there for me. You end up using so much product on each use because the formula refuses to lather so I on't be picking up more. Finally I've used up a 50ml mini of the Rituals Zensation Organic Rice Milk & Cherry Blossom Foaming Shower Gel Sensation, which I love. I've already bought a full size, the scent is amazing, the lather is lovely, it doesn't strip the skin and bonus: the packaging is lovely.

Another product from Rituals I've used up lately is a 70ml mini of the Fortune Scrub Invigorating Body Scrub. I didn't like this as much, the scent was fine but it wasn't quite scrubby enough for me. I've also finished a packet of the Serenity Dead Sea Bath Salts, I got these in a Birchbox a while back and it was hard to use them up a I don't really think they do anything: much prefer the Neal's Yard ones or the Therapie ones (they also seem to no longer be stocked on Brichbox's website).

For the boring bits I've gone through a Mitchum 48hrs Unscented Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant Stick and a Dove Original Anti-Perspirant Deodorant Spray. I think next time I'm going to go for a Mitchum spray as the Mitchum formulas work really well but I'm moving away from roll-one lately. And my final body product is the Soap & Glory Heel Genius Foot Cream. I think we're all aware by now that it;s my favourite and that I have backup upon backup of the stuff. 

Haircare

Not a whole lot for haircare this time around, but we do have both a full size and a mini of the OGX Renewing Argan Oil of Morocco Conditioner (which means I haven't done an empties since at least November - no wonder it's a mammoth one!). This is just my go-to repurchase-it-pretty-much-every-time conditioner now. I also finished off the L'Oreal EverStrong Reinforcing System Body & Strength Shampoo - same deal here, I'm not too fussed about which shampoo from this line I pick up but it's always from the Ever-Something range. Love that they're SLS free and this one gives nice volume.

A haircare product from L'Oreal that I wasn't so sold on was the PureColour Radiance Enhancing ystem Dazzling Colour Refreshing Mask. I just don't think it did all that much except make the hair a bit shinier than some things - but there's plenty of conditioners that are easier to use that do the same thing.

Makeup

I'm sure no one is surprised that I've managed to polish off two more compacts of Soap & Glory One Heck of a Blot Powder, need I say more on this stuff? It's been the only powder I've used for a solid year now. Love. I've worn an Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Eyeliner Pencil in "Zero" down to a little nub. I prefer the "Perversion" shade that I'm currently using just because it's more of a true black.

The L'Oreal Lumi Magique Highlighting Pen was nice but was very similar to the New Look one, which seems to be a bit cheaper, so I think I'll go for the New Look one again next time. Similarly I've finally used up a bottle of the Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray but I don't think it doesn't anything more than the setting spray L'Oreal brought out recently.

And my last makeup product is the Bourjois Liner Effect Mascara - which did nothing for my lashes and was near impossible to apply without getting it on your eyelid or poking yourself in the eye. The brush had really long stiff bristles on one side and really short little nubs on the other side, such an awkwardly shaped brush.

Skincare

I've got quite a few single-use face masks in my empties this time around, the first one being the H&M Charcoal & Volcanic Soil Single Use Mask (only available in store - sorry!). This range of masks come in little 10ml pods so nice for travel but a bit wasteful in terms of usability - I feel like 10ml is enough for 2 applications but the packaging won't keep the product for enough time once opened to use it again. Other than my packaging gripe I really like these - I find this mask in particular to be a lot like the Origins Clear Improvements Active Charcoal Mask so if you were thinking of picking that up maybe try this first.

I've also tried the Superdrug Superfruits Exfoliating Mask. This one sets down on the face like a clay mask but has scrubby particles so as you rinse it you get a bit of exfoliation, I'd use this again. I've tried two masks from Nspa recently, the Deep Cleansing Mud Mask and the Radiance Boosting Mask, I did a review on these masks *here* and I don't really rate any of them, love a lot of things in the Nspa range but these masks are just so harsh on the skin.

I've managed to use up my Sainsbury's Vitamin E Cleansing Lotion, and while it wasn't anything special, it does the job. It's gentle on the skin and it's fragrance free so good for sensitive skin and it's a decent cleanser - I just have things I prefer so won't be picking up another. The story is pretty much the same for the Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm, I used up a 20g mini of this and it's a decent cleanser, but not something I'll be repurchasing as I prefer other things.

I wasn't sure if my 25g mini of the Neal's Yard Frankincense Nourishing Cream was supposed to be for your body or your face a first but I looked into it and it's definitely a face cream. I feel like this is another one of those "it's nice but not nice enough" reviews, I enjoyed using the cream and the effect on my skin was nice, but I have other things at the moment and I'm not really missing this at all.

I got a 10ml tube of Clarins Extra-Friming Tightening Lift Botanical Serum and that is lovely, I'm trying to get through some other serums that I have in my collection right now but I can see myself picking this up again eventually. I've also worked my way through my La Roche-Pasay Serozinc which I already had a backup of in my collection and this is just one of those have-to-have-it products.

My final product is a bit of a weird one, I had a single-use sachet of the Derm Eyes Makeup Remover Wipe that I got in a Birchbox and I really couldn't make up my mind on just the one use. These are little individually wrapped pre-moistened makeup remover wipes and they sound like a great idea for festivals and things like that but they're £9.50 for 12 wipes so really not an affordable product. I just feel like I didn't have enough to go off with it and have really been enjoying the Olay Daily Facials Cleansing Cloths which are considerably cheaper.

My Experience with LoveLula

We've seen a couple of beauty subscription boxes around here already but I've been really interested in trying some more recently. (For more info click *here* for my post about LoveMeBeauty and *here*, *here* and *here* for my various posts on Birchbox. I've been toying with GlossyBox and I'm definitely going to try it out one day but, for now, I've gone for LoveLula. For two main reasons:

1. It's a smaller box - I don't see a lot of people hyping it in the beauty community, it's something that needs to be tested and talked about.

and 2. Their values are amazing. They pledge to provide a box full of high quality products that are sustainably sourced, that aren't full of chemicals, that aren't tested on animals and they fully support promoting lesser known brands and small companies. It's just ticking a lot of the "yes please" boxes for me.

I signed up with LoveLula with my first box being the March 2016 box. I've received 2 boxes from them now and it's a nice, clear set up. You can pay monthly (which I chose to do) by direct debit, or can buy 3 or 6 boxes at a time (to be dispatched monthly), I should note that unlike some other box subscription services, there is no discount for ordering multiple boxes at a time. The boxes are always dispatched around the 10th of the month and both boxes were on time, packaged nice and securely and all of the products have arrived 100% in tact.

The stand-outs in the March box were the Skin Blossom Gentle Cleansing Milk (a lovely creamy cleanser that leaves skin soft and hydrated) and the Turbliss Bioactive Peat Mask (which seems to just draw all the impurities out of my skin, love). The March box also contained 3 mini Urban Veda products, the Facial Wash, Exfoliating Facial Polish and the Day Cream from the "Turmeric + Botanics - Radiance" range. They also included sample sachets of the John Masters Organics Blood Orange & Vanilla Body Wash and the Madara Sun Flower Golden Beige Tinting Fluid. So the box was made up of a full sized cleanser, a 3 step skincare routine, a face mask and some extras and everything seemed to have a place.

By comparison, the box I received in April didn't seem so well thought out in terms of the range of products included. The April box contained another 3-step minis collection from Urban Veda (again the Facial Wash, Exfoliating Facial Polish, and the Day Cream, just this time from the "Neem + Botanics - Purifying" range. Another good sized Skin Blossom product - this time the Nourishing Face Moisturiser, a (seemingly) full size of the PHB Ethical Beauty Natural & organic Brightening Eye Gel and a Barefoot SOS Repair + Renew Light Moisturising Lotion. So while the products are still nice, I feel like the Urban Veda stuff is nearing on a repeat (and a month later? So soon!) and then an eye cream and 2 big moisturisers? Even if one had been specifically a night cream it might have worked? I'm not sure.

The boxes are £12.50 including shipping (which seems to be the price that most beauty boxes are) and the boxes seem to contain at least one full sized item and one deluxe sample each month in addition to trial sizes. They also include a 20% off coupon for the brands included in that months box. The boxes 3-6 month subscriptions are also available outside the UK with an additional charge of £5 shipping on each box.

All in all I've decided that I'm going to continue my subscription with them for now and will keep you updated on the products I get and how much I like the boxes going forward.

No Money March: The Budget AM Skincare Routine

We're trying something new today. Videos.

Now I must admit, I'm not going to be able to get a video up every week, but I've decided that every now and then I'll drop on into a regularly scheduled post slot. I'm finding that I have a lot of ideas for content that make for lengthy posts and I figured some people might want to see them in video format. :)

No Money March: Olay Daily Facials Cleansing Cloths

I could have titled this post many things referencing the unlikely-hood of what you're about to read, but there were so many choices that it all got a bit overwhelming and so I went for the obvious. Basically, Emily of Beauty Broadcast has been talking about the Olay Daily Facial in a Box on her channel for years now. So despite them being two of my top skincare loathes in one (foaming and face wipes) I just had to try them, and I'm pleasantly surprised.

These aren't your typical face wipe. They come in a box and they're dry cloths that you dampen and then they lather up. I picked up the kind for sensitive skin (in the UK I've only seen the "Sensitive" or "Normal" varieties, but in the Us I believe they carry options for both "Dry" and "Oily/Combination" also) and you get 30 in a box.

The sensitive cloths have holes in the cloth which gives them a slight texture that offers a tiny bit of gentle exfoliation to the skin without them being scratchy or abrasive at all. The actual lather is nice and soft and they cloths remove makeup really well without leaving the skin feeling stripped or dry. I personally use these to remove makeup either as a first cleanse or as a lazy night where I just want to remove the makeup and get to bed, but I can see them working equally well as a morning cleanse.

The only thing that has me a bit torn is the value for money. At full price they're £4.99 but they can be found on offer for £3 in a lot of places, so for face wipes they're a reasonable price but I just think that face wipes are generally not the most cost effective way to wash your face. However that being said, these are really nice and they're a lot cheaper than the Skyn Iceland Glacial Cleansing Cloths (£13 for 30) and they are the only other face wipes I've used that I'd recommend.

Balance Me Congested Skin Serum

Some people like to find a skincare routine that works for them and stick to it. Me? Not so much. I've been trialling a lot of newness (or at least new to my skincare stash-ness) lately and one of the things I've been playing with for a little while is the Balance Me Congested Skin Serum. So I figured I'd let you know how it's been working for me.

So this product is a little confusingly marketed, my first thought was "ooh, a serum for £16, that might be a nice budget product for the blog"! Upon it's arrival I noticed it was only 15ml of product which pushed it more into the mid-range price bracket, and then upon reading the packaging, it doesn't seem to be a serum at all, it's a spot treatment.

So confusion aside, it seems to be reasonably priced compared to higher end spot treatments (Origins Super Spot Remover is £15 for 10ml, Benefit Boo Boo Zap is £14.50 for 7.4ml for comparison). The packaging is also quite nice, it's a hard-plastic tube with a pump on the top. The pump doesn't pump out too much product and it keeps things nice and sanitary which is exactly what you need on a spot treatment.

The actual product is white in colour but goes clear and colourless as you press it into the skin. It has a thin, slightly gel-like texture to it which absorbs into the skin fairly quickly. As I've mentioned this is intended to be a targeted spot treatment which you just dab directly onto blemishes, but the formula isn't at all stripping and I see no reason why you couldn't use it all over the face. I myself have used this as an all-over serum and didn't notice any dryness or dehydration at all, and I find even when used all over the face that it sits well under makeup and won't drink up liquid foundation.

I found the scent on this serum/treatment really pleasant, it's a nice sweet citrus-y scent that will wake you up a bit if used in the morning. I didn't notice the scent lingering on the skin too long after application and it's not at all over-powering for those of you that are sensitive to fragrance. However for those with sensitivities I will mention that the formula does list some ingredients like essential oils so if that's something your skin doesn't like this might be one to skip.

Other than that I think this is a nice product - I personally prefer it as a serum than a spot treatment but if it's a spot treatment you're looking for, this is a nice gentle one that might be worth a try.

My Must-Have Masks

Face masks have always been a really popular product type in the world of skincare and with good reason. They tend to be my go-to product for a quick fix when my skin's misbehaving and I've tried an awful lot of them but here's a run down of my favourites from the ones I've tried:

For the dry or dehydrated out there, there's a lot of moisturising masks on the market and, while some budget options are quite good, my absolute favourite one is the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask (£23 for 100ml). It's essentially a super heavy duty night cream and you apply a thin layer before bed for a boost of hydration. The scent is nice and fruity and it leaves the skin feeling soft and supple. If the Origins is out of your price range my affordable alternative would be the Super Facialist by Una Brennan Rose Hydrate Intense Moisture Mask at £9.99 for 125ml. This is more of a quick fix type mask than an overnight treatment but it works well and the rose scent is lovely.

Clay masks are something you really don't need to spend a lot of money on if you don't want to. My absolute favourite clay mask is the Aroma Actives Deep Cleansing & Purifying Clay Mask. It's around the £10 mark for 100ml and I pick this up from Sainsbury's (although this product isn't available on the Sainsbury's website), I like this one because it's an effective clay mask but it doesn't strip all of the moisture out of the skin like some clay masks do. If Aroma Actives isn't available near you or if you just fancy splurging on a more luxe clay mask, the Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Skin Clay Mask is a nice one. My only problem with it is that, at £45 for 75ml, I think it's quite steeply priced for something that works very similarly to the Aroma Actives one.

The final mask type I'll be talking about today is the exfoliating mask. I have two that work very similarly and they are the Oskia Renaissance Mask and the Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask. They're both an orange-y pink gel texture with a soft rose-y scent. They both go onto the skin with a jelly-ish texture and neither of them will dry or "set' on the face. I personally wouldn't be able to tell the difference between them in a blind trial and they're quite similarly priced with the Oskia being £48.50 for 50ml and the Tata Harper being £45 for 30ml. I'll leave either of these on for 3-10 minutes, rinse off and my skin feels so smooth after use.

A good exfoliating mask for me has some slightly pricier ingredients in the formula and, because of that, I haven't been able to find a more budget friendly option. However if you're strapped for cash and need some exfoliation in your life I'd recommend a more affordable exfoliating toner which you can use 2-3 times a week like the Pixi Glow Tonic (£18 for 250ml) or the First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads (£22 for 60 pads).