Given how incredibly saturated the cosmetic industry is, and with hundreds of new products coming to the market every month, I very rarely repurchase the same product twice, but if I do, you know that it is something that I really REALLY love! When I finish using a product up I usually like to try something different just to make sure I’m not missing out on something better. However, there are a few products that I have repurchased over and over, and will continue to do so because they are just so so good!
I randomly like to keep a box where I put the empty containers of products that I loved using. The reason I do this is because sometimes I use a product that I love and then because I move onto something different I tend to forget about any previous products that I really liked. Therefore I like to look back through this ’empties box’ to remind myself of the things that I tried and loved, but also to remind me of ones that I really didn’t like and should avoid in the future. My empties box is almost full to the brim at the minute so I thought it was about time for a clear out. Whilst going through the box there were a few products that featured a number of times so I thought that was a good sign and I should talk through these favourites.
Here is a picture of the empties bin – don’t worry, I won’t be talking about all of these products! lol
The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
Hyaluronic acid was the first product that I ever tried from The Ordinary. In fact it was the first time I had ever tried a Hyaluronic acid at all. If I am completely honest I didn’t even really know what it was when I first bought it but these days I can’t be without it!!
Hyaluronic acid is an extremely hydrating serum that works wonders for dry or dehydrated skin. It can attract up to 1,000 times its weight in water and, depending on the strength, it can penetrate your skin to reach different layers.
There are many different Hyaluronic acids on the market from various brands all at varying prices. In my Liberty advent calendar this year I received one by Dr. Sebagh. It comes in a 20ml bottle and costs an astonishing £69!! The Ordinary version costs £5.90 for a 30ml bottle and I LOVE it so I am very curious to try my Dr. Sebagh one when my next Ordinary one runs out! I highly doubt that it will be almost 12 times as good though! Maybe it will and I will eat my words…. we will see!
The Ordinary’s Hyaluronic Acid (HA) combines low, medium and high molecular weight HA and a HA crosspolymer that produces a combined concentration of 2%, allowing for multi-depth hydration of the skin. The formula also contains B5 which helps to enhance surface hydration. The skin therefore benefits at the surface as well as deep down.
Hyaluronic acid is one of those products that I know I can turn too if my skin is just not feeling itself and on evenings when I don’t really want to use anything too complicated. I apply a thin layer under my moisturiser before bed and in the morning my skin feels good as new. I have gone through several bottles of this now and I can’t see myself ever not using it (apart from when I take a break to try the Dr. Sebagh one of course lol). For £5.90 this really is such an amazing product.
You can read my earlier review of Hyaluronic acid and a few other products from the Ordinary here.
Clarins Instant Smooth Self Tan
Another product that I repurchase over and over is the Clarins Instant Smooth Self Tan for the face. After years of wearing fake tan on my face I have come to absolutely hate it in more recent times. It just makes my skin feel so tight and dry and I hate the smell and the sticky feeling on my face. It also really accentuates my pores and clings to any dry skin which is not a good look! However, I do find that my makeup always looks better when I have tan on my face and I just like the color it gives me, so when I found Clarins Instant Smooth Self Tan I quickly became a fan.
This product is a kind of primer / self tan that you put on in the morning before your makeup and it develops throughout the day. It is a buildable tan so when you wash your face in the evening it doesn’t completely wash away and you can build the colour up for 2 or 3 days (depending on how dark you want it to be of course). It gives a really, really subtle tan to the face but it doesn’t cling to pores and dry skin. It somehow magically smoothes your skin tone and gives a nice blurring effect which provides the perfect base for makeup.
I don’t use this product everyday but my favorite time to use it is on occasions where I will be out or at work during the day and have somewhere to be in the evening. It just helps my makeup to last longer and not fade away throughout the day. When I use this I actually find that my makeup looks better by the end of the day than the start! It’s a really unique product and I haven’t really found anything else quite like it. I love that I can have a tanned face without having to go to bed with a sticky face and a pillow that smells like fake tan lol. I have gone through numerous tubs of this over the past few years and I’m sure that this one won’t be my last either! It’s just a really easy and useful product.
It’s also really handy for times when you get last minute plans to go out in the evening and you hadn’t tanned the night before. You can just pop this on under your makeup and you can look like a golden goddess in a split second :).
Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser
I have been using Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser on and off for as long as I can remember. Foundation and tinted moisturiser is one thing that I regularly change and that’s because there are just soooooo many options to choose from. As soon as I finish one I move on and try a different one. However, no matter what I try, I always find myself coming back to the Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturiser.
I have spoken about this product in a previous blog post here but this really is such a lovely quality tinted moisturiser. I often prefer to use a tinted moisturiser rather than a foundation as it’s a bit lighter on my skin and I don’t always love that full coverage look. Despite not being a foundation however, the Nars tinted moisturiser gives relatively good coverage and it is very buildable so you can have as much or as little coverage as you want.
I love the oil-free formula and it also has an SPF of 30 which is amazing! It gives my skin a really natural dewy and healthy look which is exactly what I want from a product like this. It is lightweight and doesn’t make me feel like I have loads of makeup on my face. It’s a really moisturising formula so it has nice skincare benefits too which is real plus.
There are 11 shades to choose from and I usually go between St. Moritz Medium 1 and Alaska Light 2. If I am ever in doubt as to what foundation I want to buy I always end up going back to this one. I love it!!
Glossier Priming Moisturiser Rich
Glossier’s Priming Moisturiser Rich is a more recent discovery of mine but most definitely one of favourite discoveries of last year. In fact it made it onto my favourite beauty products list of 2018 in my end of year blog post. I have also written about it in detail here in an recent blog post.
Priming Moisturiser Rich has hands down been my favourite moisturiser when I have ever tried. It is so amazing for dry skin and somehow manages to make your skin look dewy and radiant all day long without looking greasy and oily. I have tried so many ‘hydrating’ moisturisers that do a good job of moisturising my skin at the beginning of the day but by the end of day left me looking like I had never used a moisturiser in my life. This one is not one of those!! It honestly keeps me moisturised and hydrated all day long!
It’s called Priming Moisturiser ‘Rich’ because it is a richer version of Glossier’s original priming moisturiser. This one feels like a really luxurious and nourishing product and it is rich in ceramides and fatty acids that protect the skin barrier and lock in moisture over time.
Glossier claim the benefits of the moisturiser to be:
Again, I got a couple of moisturisers in my Liberty advent calendar that I plan to try out but once they are used up I will certainly be re-purchasing my Glossier moisturiser again! It’s amazing and my skin loves it!
That’s it for little round up of the products that I have and will continue to repurchase. I know I can rely on all of these products. They are great! I’d love to know what your all time favourite products are too 🙂
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Aww, that’s such a cute idea to have an empties basket for products you love. I made a spreadsheet and listed what I would and wouldn’t repurchase. I need to give that NARS Tinted Moisturizer a try!!
Awh thank you Jen 🙂 I must admit that a spreadsheet sounds like a much more practical idea! I should probably start doing that instead lol I really love the Nars tinted moisturiser – you should definitely give it a go 🙂 xx