REVIEW // Nivea Daily Essentials Double Effect Eye Make-Up Remover

This little bottle of duo-phase loveliness has been popping up all over my blog feed recently and when I ran out of my trusty Clinique Take The Day Off I knew I had to try it if only to see if matches up, I actually have the Charlotte Tilbury version of this and they are incredibly similar but the Nivea ended up being over a tenth of the price...I'm all for splashing the cash on my skincare but if something works as well for £1.85 versus spending £24.99, I'm going to go for the cheaper option.

As it's a duo-phase product, you need to shake the bottle up to mix the two layers into one and very simply apply to a cotton pad and sweep across the eye to remove any eye make-up, I tend to hold it down on my eye for about 10-15 seconds to allow the make-up remover to do it's job then sweep across the eye a few times to make sure everything is off, I use one cotton pad per eye and then an extra one to tidy up and make sure everything is off. I do find the layers settle down quite quickly when you shake it up so you need to shake each time you want to add some to a cotton pad. I've used this with both waterproof and non-waterproof mascaras and it's taken them off with ease, I also used it today with my Tarte Lights, Camera Flashes Mascara which is notoriously a b*tch to take off and it didn't seem to have any problems.

The packaging on the Nivea product isn't as fancy as the Charlotte Tilbury which comes in a pump dispenser bottle but to be honest, that drives me insane because it squirts out bright blue liquid everywhere when you press down, meaning I have to stand out the way of it to make sure it doesn't end up all over my top and mop up my side after using it which is really not ideal. It's also not quite as quick at removing make-up, but there is literally a matter of seconds in it, so I think I'm OK with that. One thing I was worried about was whether this would irritate the skin around my eyes, which has a tendency to be sensitive to some products but it was absolutely fine, it's also safe for Contact Lens wearers which is a bonus.

You can find this in most supermarkets and drugstores and it's normally half price or on some kind of buy one get one free offer.

Have you tried this, what do you think?

Soph xx
















REVIEW // BEA Skincare

So, today, I have quite an exciting new skincare range to show to you today, towards the end of last year, I was sent the 5 step daily regime from BEA skin care, it’s a new range created by Bianca Estelle who is a skincare specialist based out of London,  I’ve given the range a good test run and have really enjoyed using it, It feels like a really complete range and my skin has really been behaving whilst I’ve been testing this, just for background, my skin tends to be dehydrated and I tend to get hormonal breakouts around my chin at that time of the month, but generally it just runs quite dry. There’s 5 steps to the regime which I’ve outlined below:

Step 1 – Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser (£29), this is a clear, gel consistency cleanser, it very lightly foams when you massage it in and water and it’s got a really unique scent I think as well, very fresh and clean which is really nice. The exfoliating element comes from Glycolic Acid along with a natural AHA, which comes from sugar cane, it also includes green tea extract to calm the skin and reduce redness and irritation. It’s a very gentle exfoliator and leaves my skin feeling properly cleansed without feeling dry and super soft, it really is a lovely cleanser and probably one of my favourite

Step 2 – Peptide Mobiliser Eye Serum (£39), the Peptide Eye Serum is again a clear gel consistency which is a little different to what I was expecting, there’s no scent to this and it actually reminds me of the Alpha H Eye Complex, in that it’s that gel formula but I find this is a lot more moisturising. BEA Skincare say that it has “A combination of Vitamin C & Apple Stem cells stimulate blood circulation, improving the skins health and diminishing the negative effects of environmentally induced skin ageing” This eye serum also helps to target dark circles, puffiness and lines around the eyes. As someone who struggles to remember to put eye cream on, I really did enjoy using this as it’s quite a noticeable effect when you use it.

Step 3 Vitamin C 20% and Hyaluronic Acid Serum (£49), I love Hyaluronic Acid, my skin really reacts well to it and it was no different with this, this is my favourite product of the range, again, there’s very little scent to this and it’s in a gel formula again, I normally associate gels with being quite drying but I found this whole range to actually disprove that theory and they all left my skin feeling very moisturised. BEA say on this one “This serum lightens hyperpigmentation, minimises sun damage and decreases subcutaneous inflammation. The addition of antibacterial ingredients and antioxidants sooth and hydrate the skin without leaving it congested” If I had to pick one item to re-purchase from the range, it would be this one, I do love a good serum and this one covers it all for me.

Step 4 Firming Serum (£54) “is a lightweight and silky formula that has been dubbed the instant Wrinkle De-activator”, again this is a gel consistency and is a blend of retinol and vitamins, it blends into skin nicely. I think this is probably less suited to my skin concerns and more to older skins that’s perhaps more wrinkled or damaged but a nice addition to the range none the less.

Step 5 Collagen Complex Cream (£44) – BEA Skin Cares Collagen Complex Cream is an anti-ageing and nutrient rich formula containing peptides, amino acids, botanical stem cells from apples as well as Shea Butter,  Synergistically, these ingredients stimulate collagen production and provide intense moisturisation to dehydrated and environmentally damaged skins. The Collage Cream Complex’s active ingredients penetrate deep beneath the skins Surface, permanently reducing pre-existing fine lines and preventing the future development of wrinkles”, Now, while I did enjoy using this, it was more suited to me in the morning, just because I prefer using an oil in the evening time, it’s a very fluid formula but again as with the other products, my initial thoughts were that the it wouldn’t provide enough moisture but it really does. Also with this one, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the scent, I think it’s un-fragranced so it just smells of the ingredients if that makes sense?! But it fades down very quickly and it is only a minor issue for me.

Using the whole range in conjunction with each other really works well, I think each step plays off each other and benefits the next step, there’s something to be said for having a complete skincare routine in one kit as well, you can buy these products individually but they also come as part of a set for £186, so while it’s not the cheapest range but to be honest, I would liken the prices to most of the ranges that you can pick up in the likes of SpaceNK or Cult Beauty for example, it’s a new british brand. I love the actual branding of the range, as a consumer, I’m definitely drawn to nice bottles and I really like the look of the branding, it’s clean and modern and they look nice lined up in the bathroom. Overall, I really enjoyed using these and I’ll definitiely be keeping elements of them as part of my routine, in particular the Step 1 Cleanser and the Step 3 Vitamin C and Hyaluronic Acid Serum could be re-purchases for me when I run out. I think it’s a lovely little collection and a skincare brand to be on the lookout for! 


Soph xx