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The La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo + M Moisturiser has a fairly strong fresh but artificial fragrance that lingers. If you like skincare products with fragrance, then you should be fine. It has a lotion consistency that is lightly moisturising. You don’t need to apply a lot because it spreads easily. It absorbed well into my skin, though I could still feel the product after application. I like the tube packaging, it is easy to control how much product you dispense, so you won’t waste product. The packaging is clean and simple. It is a 40ml tube that won’t take up too much space. The screw top lid attaches securely, it won’t expose the product to air. My tube has a use by date of over 2 years, May 2026 being the shelf life. Once opened you have 12 months to use it. It’s RRP is $37.95, but I expect it will go on sale at stores such as Chemist Warehouse and Priceline. I applied the product to targeted spots due to my skin sensitivity, to ascertain if my skin could handle it. When I used it at night under moisturiser, I found the fragrance still too intense, however I am very sensitive to fragrance and my skin is extremely sensitive, so I couldn’t handle the fragrance. It has a bunch of good ingredients in it including salicylic acid, niacinamide and La Roche-Posay thermal spring water. If they made a fragrance-free version, I think I’d really like it.

The Avène Hyaluron Activ B3 Concentrated Plumping Serum is a lovely hydrating serum and I found that it was great on my sensitive skin. I found I needed 3 drops to cover my whole face instead of the 1 -2 that it recommends. I like the fact that it is Fragrance-free, which is perfect for people like me who have extremely sensitive skin. The serum is vegan and contains vegan hyaluronic acid, which is an ingredient that I have found can be difficult to find. It contains 6% niacinamide, to help skin barrier function and brighten skin tone and 1.5% hyaluronic acid, to moisturise, smooth and plump the skin. I find the serum sinks in well, quiet quickly and does not leave a super sticky residue. It is conveniently packaged in a 30ml glass bottle with a dropper. The bottle looks clean and pretty sitting on my dressing table. The only down side is that the serum only lasts 6 months once opened. The RRP is $74.99, which I find a bit expensive, but since Avène is sold at lots of places including Chemist Warehouse it should go on sale which I will be looking out for. I really like this serum and I will definitely continue using it.

The Avène Hyaluron Activ B3 Renewal Firming Cream is a lovely scented cream in a sophisticated looking jar. I like the fact that it is vegan but unfortunately the fragrance is a little strong for my reactive skin. I do not personally like having fragrance added in my skincare as I have very sensitive skin that is reactive and I just do not see the need to add fragrance to my skincare. But for people who like fragrance in their skincare and the overall sensory experience it provides, the fragrance of this cream is a pleasant light and fresh smelling scent. It contains 6% niacinamide, to help skin barrier function and brighten skin tone and hyaluronic acid, to moisturise, smooth and plump the skin. It is packaged in a 50ml glass refillable jar with a plastic lid, but I do not know if they sell the refill pods yet. I think it would be good if you can replace the pod the cream is in, as it would save you buying the glass jar again. The plastic pod pops out of the glass jar easily, but the lid does not close properly if the plastic pod is not inside the jar, so the glass jar could not be reused for something else without the plastic pot in it. I find the cream absorbs nicely into the skin, leaving a satin and hydrated, but not greasy feel to the skin. A little amount of the cream spreads a decent way so I think it will last a while and I like the way it makes my skin feel smooth to the touch. The RRP is $72.99, which I find is a bit expensive, but since Avène is sold at lots of different places including Chemist Warehouse it should go on sale.

The Aveeno Fresh Greens Blend Conditioner is a decent conditioner. It is $15.99 for a 354ml bottle. It has a herbal scent which I did not love. I could still smell the herbal scent on my hair after I had rinsed and blow-dried my hair. The conditioner left my hair feeling a little silky. My hair definitely felt smoother when I used the conditioner after using the matching shampoo, than when using the matching shampoo on its own. But my hair has definitely felt smoother and more hydrated after using other conditioners before. The Aveeno Fresh Greens Blend Conditioner was easy to rinse out, it did not weigh down my hair and my hair was easy to brush after using it.

The Aveeno Fresh Greens Blend Shampoo is an ok shampoo. It has a herbal scent which is not my favourite. The herbal scent stayed in my hair after it was rinsed and blow-dried. The shampoo sudsed up well and was easy to rinse out. It did not leave my hair feeling too dry even when I used the shampoo without the matching conditioner. It did not weigh my hair down and my hair was easy to brush after using it. The Aveeno Fresh Greens Blend Shampoo is $15.99 for a 354ml bottle, which I think is a reasonable price, especially if it goes on sale.

I really enjoyed taking part in the Lady Jayne Salon Pro Rechargeable Heated Straightening Brush trial team! The brush is very easy to use, with easy and straightforward controls/buttons. The included instructions are easy to understand and are helpful. The brush has five heat settings, 160° worked well on my fine hair. Doing the wrist flick like it says in the instructions does add volume to my hair. When brushed down on top of my hair it smooths frizz. The brush handles small knots and does not get caught in my hair. The 160° setting does not make the handle or the tips of the brush fins too hot to touch, because of that I am able to brush it down my hair like a normal brush without burning my scalp. One charge lasts enough time for about one or two hairdos. I think this portable heated brush would be good for e.g.: sales representatives, people going out after work, dance mums, any sort of concert or performance. I only found a few possible downsides with this brush. The first few times I turned the brush on it smelt like burning plastic, but it is fine now. When the brush is charging it makes a little bit of a high-pitched whining sound. The charge does not last a super long time (it states that a charge gives you 25 minutes of usage). You might accidentally press the temperature control button while using the brush. The Lady Jayne Salon Pro Rechargeable Heated Straightening Brush has a nice black and copper design that is small/compact and not too heavy. It comes with a charging cable, a storage bag and instructions. And it does not come boxed in a heap of excessive packaging. It costs $84.99, but it will probably go on sale too. Overall, I think his is a great little portable heated straightening brush that I will definitely continue to use.

It was fun getting to try a conditioner bar for the first time for this trial team. The Glow Lab Condition Bar smells like creamy coconut and its scent stayed on my hair after using the conditioner bar and drying my hair. The coconutty scent overpowered the fruity scent from the matching Glow Lab Shampoo Bar. Using the conditioner bar after the coordinating shampoo bar left my hair feeling clean and soft, though the ends of my hair still felt a bit dry. The conditioner made my hair feel smooth and less tangled/easy to brush through. Some of the conditioner bar was stuck to the inside of its box when I opened it, maybe the conditioner bar is more fragile than the shampoo bar. The conditioner and shampoo bars were easier to use then I thought they would be. It was easy to slide the conditioner bar through my hair, though I feel like it is easier to control how much conditioner I am using with liquid conditioner.

It was fun getting to try shampoo and conditioner bars as part of this trial team because I have never tried them before. The Glow Lab Shampoo Bar was easier to use then I thought it would be. It was easy to slide through my wet hair and the bar sudsed up well. The bar has a fruity scent that stayed on my hair after using it and drying my hair. When I used the coordinating Glow Lab Condition Bar after the shampoo bar the coconut scent from the conditioner overpowered the fruity scent from the shampoo. The shampoo and conditioner bars made my hair feel clean and soft, but the ends of my hair still felt a bit dry. It was easy to store the shampoo bar, I put it on a well-draining soap dish inside a bowl. I think both the shampoo and conditioner bars would be convenient for travel with liquid restrictions and limited space.

The DermaVeen Daily Nourish Sun Sensitive SPF50+ with Body Moisturiser is a really good sunscreen, moisturiser combo. The cream comes in a handy 200g squeeze tube, so you can easily dispense the amount that you want. It is free from fragrances, parabens, lanolin, artificial colours and alcohol, which is great. The cream can be used on both the face and body, and it barely has any scent to it. I really like that the DermaVeen Daily Nourish Sun Sensitive SPF50+ with Body Moisturiser is a lighter weight sunscreen combined with a moisturiser. It left my skin feeling moisturised and it did not leave a white cast. The cream did not feel super heavy and gross on my skin like other sunscreens I have tried did. I have very dry skin that is prone to eczema and dermatitis, so a lightweight sunscreen that is also a moisturiser that has calming oatmeal in it is great for me. I will definitely continue to use this cream.

The Nude By Nature Exfoliating Facial Scrub is quite a good and effective scrub. It comes in a clean and simple squeeze tube, packaged in a cardboard box. You do not need much of the scrub to smooth the skin. The scrub leaves a bit of residue on the skin after it is used and rinsed off, which I preferred to wash off with my regular face wash afterwards. I have extremely sensitive skin and I did not react to the ingredients in this scrub. I still had to make sure I was very gentle when I massaged the scrub onto my face because my skin would still react to the physical exfoliation from the olive seed powder. So people with extremely sensitive skin like mine might want to be a bit careful when using this scrub. I have liked and used Nude By Nature’s makeup for years and it is cool that they have started a natural skincare line too. I will definitely continue using the Nude By Nature Exfoliating Facial Scrub.