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I tried out this Lady Jane Salon Pro Paddle Brush. It is a gorgeous looking brush with the black and gold, it does get tangles out, but I found it turned my bleached fine hair into frizz instead of a smooth finish. I think this is caused by the bristles. I gave this to my niece to try and she also said her hair went a bit frizzy though did get her tangles out. She has thick natural hair. I also found it very flexible and bendy, which doesn't suit me when I'm using it to dry my hair, I need it to hold my hair firmly. So overall wasn't for me.

Unfortunately I was not a fan of the Lady Jayne Salon Pro Rechargeable 2 in 1 Hairstyler. The only Pro for me was the look was very sleek, the black and gold is lovely and the idea of being cordless sounds great. Firstly the charging port is on the bottom so you have to lay it down to charge, it would have made more sense to have the port at the back so it could remain standing while charging. Secondly the heat plates are very small only allowing very small sections to be styled at a time. Thirdly and the deal breaker is that it is just not hot enough even on the highest setting. It takes a really long time to heat up and when it's at it's max (I waited the recommended 3-5mins)it doesn't effectively straighten my hair, I had to go over it with my current hair straightener as it was still frizzy and not fully straight. It was also a recommendation for my hair type to do on a lower heat setting which did nothing that's why I tried the maximum setting. As a result, I would not recommend it to anyone who needs a quick, high heat straightener.

La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5+ Balm Cream is a multi-repairing hydrating cream for dry skin. I do have dry skin so was very excited to try it out. Firstly, for me personally it smells really strong like paint which I did not enjoy applying to my face. The smell disappears quickly and doesn't linger, but I found it quite unpleasant each time I applied it to my face. It's very thick so doesn't spread very easily but it does absorb beautifully and leaves no greasy feeling, in fact my skin still felt a bit dry after sucking it all in. I was excited for the matt finish but unfortunately this actually broke me out on my face, the pimples started popping up in random places, so I had to stop using it. Instead I use it on my body and hands but for me it still not hydrating enough.

I received Elizabeth Arden Advance light capsules as a trial. They retail for around $155 so I decided to replace two hydrating serums and my snail essence with the capsules as it would need to be that good. Normally if I stop any of these serums I get extremely dry because I use Tretinoin at night, I was amazed these capsules maintained a great level of hydration and replaced three products with no issues. Downside is the capsules are a bit fiddly and one capsule was way too much product for me and mostly sat on top of my skin. I changed to using half a capsule morning and night which is not easy but as a bonus makes the capsules better value for money. This amount soaks in beautifully and somehow feels like velvet. No lingering smell, goes fantastic under moisturisers, sunscreens and make up. No break outs or bad reactions. Apart from hydration and soft to touch skin I am yet to see any improvement to wrinkles, pores or texture as yet. Price point is huge so I would want to see more obvious skin improvements than what I've seen so far to justify buying again. Cons - fiddly halving the capsule, expensive, no improvement over current cheaper skin care routine. Pros - Hydrates, soft skin, no breakouts

L’Oreal Professional Metal Detox Concentrated Oil promises to protect the fiber from particle deposits, instantly smooth, soften, nourish and strengthen hair, preserve colour, 2 x shinier, 97% less breakage, 3 x more frizz control & protect from heat up to 230°C. My first impressions were that the oil is more like a serum, it's thicker than an oil. It smells really lovely but I don't think the scent lingers very long on the hair. The oil absorbs straight into hair whether it's dry or wet and it does not leave an oily residue on your hands. The bottle is super cute and the pump bottle is perfect because you can lock it when travelling. I have been using this oil for a couple of weeks so I cannot say if my hair is stronger or there is less breakage, however I can say this makes my hair soooo shiny and soft! I have thin, damaged, bleached blonde hair and it has never looked shiny until now. My hair feels so nice and soft even up to a couple of days after washing my hair. I apply one pump to towel dry hair before blow drying for best results. I have dropped one star as it does not stop the frizzy fly aways after straightening and that is one major issue I'm trying to fight. I do not find my hair 3 x less frizzy unfortunately but the beautiful shine and soft feeling hair is absolutely worth adding this oil into my permanent products!

Sheer Defence Tinted Moisturiser SPF50 is a mineral sunscreen that contains Zinc Oxide as it's single active ingredient. The cream is quite thick but spreads on fairly well. There is no offensive sunscreen smell which is great. I tried the Light shade which is a perfect colour for my skin however it's so sheer it really did nothing to cover my imperfections. I feel that it is not much different to a normal sunscreen and I had to add Make up over the top to feel comfortable. I also added moisturiser underneath as I have dry skin and this was not enough without it. The sunscreen was not oily and didn't leave any shine or feeling that I had applied sunscreen which is great. As Melbourne is in lockdown and the weather is terrible, I cannot comment on the effectiveness of the SPF protection. Overall, this is a lovely sunscreen for your face however the tint was so sheer it seemed pointless to me. If you have a flawless face I think it would be a perfect choice for make up free summer, but for myself I needed to add foundation over the top. Highlight is the no sunscreen feel!

Nude By Nature Exfoliating Facial Scrub comes in simple white packaging which is quite nice having no big gimmicks or promises on the front, it does come across more indulgent or more like a spa product. The product promises to help improve skin texture & skin tone, soften skin and leave the skin looking radiant and healthy. It also claims to use all natural ingredients. The scrub is white, creamy and grainy and goes on so nicely onto the skin. A little goes a long way, so you don't need a huge amount. The scrub does not hurt or feel like it's ripping your skin as you move it along your skin in circular motions before rinsing off with warm water and a face washer. My skin immediately feels squeaky clean and extremely smooth afterwards. I find this lasts a few days and I guess that is why the instructions say use once or twice a week. I have dry skin and this scrub has been perfect on my skin, it did not dry it out any further. Honestly I love how this feels going on and I love how it leaves my skin feeling afterwards. My skin is so much softer, smoother and less bumpy! I have to say this is now my favourite scrub and I will absolutely buy again. I look forward to using it each time.

I am reviewing NIVEA SUN KIDS PROTECT & PLAY CARING ROLL ON. I want to start by saying I use other sunscreen products in the Nivea range and have found them to be fantastic products so I was excited to try the kids roll on. Firstly this is obviously an extremely compact and convenient way to transport sunscreen. Perfect for the handbag or for kids backpacks on camp, school or excursions! The roll on is a very convenient way to apply sunscreen as you don't have to deal with bottles that have a clump on the end or spray bottles that bounce back at you or fall on the bathroom floor! The sunscreen comes out very easily, so the best way is to apply using the roll on but then you do need to rub it in with your hands or it will just keep putting more sunscreen on. So there really is no way to avoid having sunscreen on your hands but it was definitely less messy and the kids really enjoyed applying it with the roll on. The sunscreen spreads and absorbs really well and doesn't leave an oily residue though I would generally avoid using this as a face sunscreen under make up as it could be a little too shiny. I could not test the effectiveness of the SPF as we are currently in winter, but it is SPF 50 offering UVA & UVB filters and is 4 hour water resistant. This sunscreen could be used by adults as well as kids and I will be buying one each for my three boys!

I was very very excited to try out Synergie's Skin Dermiotic pre-serum elixir. It offers to boost the skin’s resistance to physical and chemical aggressors as well as help tackle the underlying causes of acne, ageing, sun damage and sensitivity. It's meant to help with dullness, irritation and redness all of which I have. This elixir is very pricey in my opinion so I had big expectations and hoped it would be so good I might be able to drop one of my serums to make up for the cost of adding this to my routine. As per instructions I applied the elixir after cleansing and before my serums, twice a day. It's a very watery substance I found 3 drops was not enough to cover the entire face as it absorbs so quickly you can't spread it with a small amount. So I would squirt enough on my hands to be able to spread over my entire face and it absorbs so quickly into the skin which is really great. I didn't like the smell at all but once it's absorbs, the smell goes away. I've been using this twice a day for a month and unfortunately have not seen any improvement in hydration or redness and certainly no anti aging benefits. My skin almost feels more dry since using this in place of my hydrating toner, redness is the same and I have had a few pimples pop up in places I never get pimples. On a positive note I had no bad reaction to the elixir, just no noticeable improvement that would warrant adding such an expensive step into my routine. I'm sorry to give such a low rating but it just didn't benefit my combination/dry skin at all.

I received the Olay Niacinamide + Hyaluronic Super Serum to trial and have been using for the last month. On first impressions the serum is thick and milky and has a light scent to it which does not linger once applied on the skin. Because of its thicker creamier texture, I added this into my routine as the last step before my moisturiser. The bottle is a super cute pipette design that draws up the serum when you open it. I don't love that there is no way of knowing how much is left as it's a white bottle though. The serum integrated with my other serums perfectly and it absorbs really fast. I had no bad reactions or break outs and had no problem applying make up over the top. One thing I have noticed since using this serum is that my skin has smoothed out a lot. I had some small bumps on my forehead and temples which have all gone since starting this serum and I have noticed my skin is more hydrated. I have not noticed improvement to my pigmentation as yet. Originally the instructions are to use two pumps but one is more than enough. I am going to continue using this serum as I feel like it is helping my skin.