little white truths

Koh Gen Doh Aqua Foundation in 213

Full review here. This is one of my two HG foundations and it's my favourite one for day use because it looks so natural on the skin. Apparently they've recently reformulated it, so let's hope it's still as good as it always was. In any event, my husband did buy me one of the old formulas for Christmas so I still have another bottle to look forward to.

What I love about this is that it looks incredibly natural on the skin and it doesn't announce itself as makeup. Indeed, it's the most natural-looking foundation I've ever used. While it doesn't build well so you won't get any more than a light-medium coverage with this, I prefer a natural look anyway so this is right up my street. Plus the dewy finish is to die for. Repurchase? Already have.

Laura Mercier Soft Luminous Candleglow Foundation in Dusk

This foundation didn't work for me at all and I was very close to giving it a disappointing products tag, although I did find a way to work with it in the end so all was not lost. I've reviewed it here.

What I found was that it clung to dry patches something chronic, and when I wore it during winter, it didn't blend or apply well either so it was streaky and unwearable on my skin. Yes it was a little better in summer when my skin wasn't quite so dry, but I still needed to mix it with other products (oil and illuminator) to get it to go on properly - and even then it had a tendency to cling to dry patches and sit in pores. I'm glad it's gone. Repurchase? No.

Intraceuticals Rejuvenate Gentle Cleanser

Full review here. This cleanser was ok but I didn't love it and I found it rather boring to use. Yes it was gentle so it didn't strip my skin, but I've used other gentle cleansers before that I actually enjoyed using so I wouldn't recommend this one.

Yes it worked ok on light makeup (not waterproof eye makeup) but I found it was better to use as my second cleanse because it didn't deal with grease well. And while I agree that it would suit sensitive skin as claimed, I think you can find better gentle cleansers in the chemist that cost less than this one does. Purchase? No.

Soap & Glory Flake Away Spa Body Polish

I included this product in one of my recent samples posts because I'm overloaded with travel-sized items at the moment and I want to get through some before my upcoming makeup and skincare inventories at the end of December.

I've reviewed this scrub here. I liked it well enough because it gave my skin a gentle, effective polish, although I can understand why some people think it doesn't have enough punch because the grains are quite fine and there aren't a tonne of them. I also didn't like the scent (the product was heavy on artificial fragrance) and I found the texture a bit odd, so it's not my favourite. Repurchase? No.

St Tropez Gradual Tan Classic Everyday Face Cream in Light/Medium

Full review here. This product worked and it gave me a natural-looking, credible tan, but it was expensive and I'm glad I bought it at half-price because I don't think it's worth its full price.

Also, while it was a good tanner, it wasn't a good moisturiser and it wasn't hydrating enough for my dry skin. I'm sure it would be fine for normal to oily skin, but I found that I needed to put an oil down underneath it to keep my dry skin feeling comfortable. Yes I liked the product overall, but I wouldn't buy it again because it was too expensive for what it was. Repurchase? No.

The Ordinary High-Adherence Silicone Primer

This product was on my Project Pan list because it wasn't doing much for me so I was keen to get through it. I've reviewed it here.

Sure it wasn't awful and it wasn't as though it upset the look of my makeup, but the problem was that it didn't do anything beneficial for it either - or for my skin. It wasn't hydrating, it didn't give me a smoother makeup application and it didn't help my makeup last longer. Still, it did make my face look a little less greasy from the sunscreen I'd put underneath it, so I was able to use it for something. Repurchase? No.

Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder for Under-Eyes

Full review here. I didn't like this product at all and I gave it a disappointing products tag. Sure, the powder was beautifully finely milled and had a nice, brightening sheen to it - but it also bloody contained noticeable flecks of glitter in it so it was unusable for me personally.

Indeed, I have no idea why Laura Mercier thought it was a good idea to ruin a perfectly good powder by putting glitter in it, and whenever I tried wearing it under the eyes, all I could see were sparkles everywhere - no matter what light I was in. Sparkles all over my under-eyes. It looked ridiculous. Repurchase? No.

BareMinerals Bare Haven Essential Moisturising Soft Cream

This was a really lovely moisturiser and I liked it a lot more than I was expecting to. I even included it in my monthly favourites because I was sad to finish it. I've reviewed it here.

What I liked about this was that it was rich and moisturising while still being lightweight so it didn't clog pores or interfere with my makeup. It was a really excellent day cream and it was one of those rare creams that took my dry skin from cooler to warmer weather and still worked for me the whole time, no matter how dry my skin was. I would absolutely recommend it. Repurchase? Yes.