AD/PR Product (This post contains products which have been sent to me for consideration as a PR sample only, all thoughts are my own).
In a perfect world, I would have had this post up in December, just as we headed into January as for me, that’s the ideal time for this post. However the world isn’t perfect, far from it at the moment and things are still up and down as they were for the most part of 2020. I have decided to relax a little, and not put so much pressure on myself so that I can, as I say, relax and also find enjoyment in blogging once more. There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes, and I am trying to find a balance for all things.
That being said, it is now the right time to post this and I am quite excited as like always, this post is the ultimate round up. What made the cut for the final yearly favourite?. I have to say, I didn’t find it easy this year. I haven’t tried that much new stuff in truth, particularly when it comes to makeup. I picked up about 5/6 things if that, so my makeup generally stayed the same throughout 2020 as it had been in 2019. I did try new skincare though, as to be expected, so a few new products have made it into the final yearly favourites along with, a repeat or two in general.
Normally I pick a product from each category, although in truth I just wasn’t feeling it this year. During 2020 we obviously had the pandemic, I was furloughed for almost three months and I just found that I didn’t reach for new things, I stuck to what I knew. Therefore, I decided not to pick out each category this year, I just went with the stand out favourites for me which is why everything is condensed into one post. You can read my Skincare Favourites for 2019 and Makeup Favourites for 2019 if you so wish, I still wholeheartedly recommend the products featured within those.
So firstly, in no particular order, I finished up a mini of the Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Face Cream and I absolutely loved it. I had forgot that I had a full size of this hiding in my stash so I am beyond pleased to know that I have a spare. This will last me a while as it is a big tub and I only seem to need a bit of this to cover my whole face, especially after my serums etc and obviously SPF on top. I found the texture of this product to be utterly beautiful, it is so smooth and it has almost a gel/cream consistency. Yes it is rose scented, although it isn’t strong. You may or may not like it if you’re particular about rose, everyone is different so I think it is one you would have to try beforehand. I highly recommend getting a mini to test out. I also found this so hydrating on my skin and soothing, it is just beautiful and I can’t imagine not re-buying this in the future. The only thing I would say, is, why didn’t I try this sooner?
A second new product to me was the Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant which I picked up after somewhat despairing at my pores. I think this stuff is magical, it really is although I find that it is a product which you have to use regularly in order to notice a difference. By regularly, I don’t mean daily as I personally find that a bit too much for my skin, however, I do like to incorporate it into my routine 3/4 times a week. My top tip would be to buy a 30ml size, it lasts ages so it saves you buying the full size if you only want to test it. I have noticed a notable difference in my pores and in general, just congestion around my T-Zone. It is a great product and I will, for now, continue to repurchase although I do have 2 more of these 30mls to use up so I have a while to go yet before I need to make another order.
Another discovery for me was the SkinCeuticals Ultra Facial Defense SPF 50* which was sent to me to trial in the summer. I absolutely loved this and still do, I switch in between several SPF’s as I had a few open in order to review several for a feature on here. This was one of my favourites that I discovered, it is so lightweight, hydrating, not greasy and it works well under makeup. It is SPF50 which is what I normally aim for and it just works so well. I would definitely repurchase this in the future, despite the price tag. SPF is so important, please don’t look for it in your makeup or moisturiser, it just isn’t sufficient. You need a separate SPF.
On the topic of SkinCeuticals, I would also give a shout out to their Glycolic Renewal Cleanser* which I am still testing out. This gives a good tingle on the skin from the 8% Glycolic Acid and it instantly brightens my skin, leaving my it glowing. I love it, and would again recommend this. The only thing I would say is that if you have sensitive skin, I would lean on the side of caution as I get the tingle and my skin is quite used to acids/retinols etc. Your best bet would be to contact the team at SkinCeuticals who are very helpful and are laden with information to help you decide what is best for you.
From Soaper Duper we have the Passionfruit Bodywash which I can’t seem to find online. If I find out that this is discontinued I will personally start a petition to re-instate it, this scent is glorious. I love all the scents in general that I have tried, everyone I have used has been lovely. There is just something about this brand that keeps me coming back for more when it comes to body washes. I haven’t yet tried their body butter’s as I have enough body lotions to keep a small army moisturised. For now, I’ll stick with the body washes only. They’re lush!
Speaking of lush, the Beauty Pie Soul Providers Re-Energizing Dry Oil Body Scrub was an absolute gem that I discovered this year. I purchased this during the first lockdown and my oh my, what a discovery it was. I featured this in my Beauty Pie haul post back in May so I won’t harp on about it too much, other than it is safe to say that I think I would stay as a paying member of Beauty Pie solely for this product. It is incredible in every sense of the word and is hands down, my favourite body scrub in a long, long time.
Speaking of acids, this year I also discovered the Dr Dennis Gross Skincare Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel Pads which I picked up in the Sali Hughes Cult Beauty Box and in the Spring Kit from Caroline Hirons. I opened up my smaller pack from the Sali Hughes box and have recently just finished them. It’s pricey, I won’t lie but for me, it is a product which I wouldn’t use every single day. You can get a pack of 5 pads for around £18, maybe less if they are on offer. Top tip, if you can, cut them in half and wrap the half you don’t use back in the pack, fold it over and seal it with a bobby pin. I do this and it works a treat! These are great for an instant glow treatment for your skin and they come in different strengths. It is a two-step treatment, you use one side first, wait a few minutes or so and then use the second side. Step 1 of the treatment uses gentle exfoliating acids to resurface the skin, leaving it smooth and radiant, while Step 2 restores hydration to the skin. I wasn’t aware that step 2 actually contained retinol and I had been using them in the day, oops! Luckily, I spotted this fairly early on and now I only use them of an evening.
My last skincare favourite would have to be the Emma Hardie Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm. Gosh, I really liked this, I truly did. I am surprised that it took me so long to try this out because I have known about it, and have wanted it for easily five years. I got there in the end, right? As I said, I loved it and would 100% repurchase it. You can use this as a makeup remover if you want, I personally would not as it is just too nice for that. I did of course test it out for that and it works a treat, just don’t waste it on that; it needs to go onto makeup-free skin. Firstly, the scent is just heavenly. You get a real calming experience with this and I honestly looked forward to using it so much. A little goes a long whilst so it should last, having said that, it is one of the more pricey cleansing balms when you compare it against others. I do want to pick up another (I have one left) but I will definitely be looking for a way to bring the cost down via discount codes.
Onto makeup, a repeat of last year is the It Cosmetics CC Cream which I still love. As you can see, in comparison to last year the writing has all but rubbed off my tube now, call it being overused. This is still the same tube as last year, it lasts a long time and you don’t need much, especially when in lockdown and furloughed for what is almost three months…Aside from that, this is a great foundation that I would definitely repurchase. I like the coverage of this product, it isn’t full coverage but it isn’t sheer either, I would say it is a medium coverage base which provides a glowy/dewy finish. Once this is used up, I will be moving onto the Illumination version (pink tube) to see how I get on with it. The only downside I have to the original CC cream is that the shade range is incredibly poor. For those with a fair/medium skin tone, it is great, but anybody outside of that is left with some really poor options. It would be great to see this shade range expanded this year because the formula is brilliant, everyone deserves to have a bit of this.
Another repeat is the Glossier Stretch Concealer. This is lasting me ages, I use it all the time and I will be going back to make a new order in the coming months (depending on how much more I can scrape out). It is such a good, lightweight concealer that doesn’t cake up under my eyes or make y skin look funny. It doesn’t offer full coverage, it just looks natural and that is what I like about it.
Finally, rounding it off, I have a super affordable eyeshadow palette from Elf Cosmetics. I picked up two of the Elf Bite-Sized Eyeshadow Mini Palettes in Superdrug a good few months ago. I first discovered these whilst watching Allie Glines Youtube channel and I thought they looked great. I picked up two shades, those being Cream and Sugar and Rose Water. Out of the two, it is Rose Water that has won my heart. I use this quite a bit and do you know what is best, it is only £3.00. An absolute bargain I have to say and the quality is so good! I use a bit of primer and find that this is all I need to make it last throughout the day. Rose Water, in particular, is a great little palette, I’m not too keen on Cream and Sugar due to one of the shades being a little off for me, that being said I still use it, I simply just don’t reach for the one shade in particular. Overall, these are great for the price and I really do recommend giving them a try, especially if you want to experiment with different colours this year.
So there we have it, my favourites of 2020 in a nut shell. I would absolutely love to hear what your favourite products were so please do let me know below in the comments.
*This post contains PR samples from SkinCeuticals, for more please read my disclaimer.
