New Blog Series: Ten To Try In February

18 February 2018

 I'm having an absolute whale of a time getting back into blogging again, so what better way of celebrating that enthusiasm than with a shiny new blog series? Testing products is definitely one of the best parts of my job; purchasing something I've seen other bloggers rave about or being lucky enough to receive it as a PR sample, using it for the first time, falling in love, raving about it myself and then receiving those "the concealer you recommended has changed my life!" comments from viewers - it's just lovely!

My makeup bag, dressing table and bathroom feature a constant rotation of new items however they don't always feature anywhere online (mainly because I've been totally pants on the uploading front, my bad) and I'm really keen to change that. Sharing my love of beauty products was why I started blogging aged fourteen in the first place, so welcome to 'Ten To Try' - I'll be choosing ten new beauty bits to trial at the start of each month, and I'll check back in with you at the end to let you know how I got on.

For me this goes without saying, but it really means a lot to me so I just want to say it again: all reviews are 100% honest and all thoughts are 100% my own. Honesty and transparency are of the highest importance here on Meg Says (my full disclaimer is here if you wanna know more!) and basically, if I love a product then I'll tell you why it's the bees knees and if it didn't work for me then I'll explain why it isn't my cup of tea. Happy days!



1. Glossier Solution Exfoliating Skin Perfector - I'm a total Glossier fangirl so anything they bring out is going to get me excited, especially when it's also a liquid exfoliant! That being said however, my skincare queen Caroline Hirons isn't a fan of this and I really respect her professional opinion so I'm going to make sure I look past the completely adorable pink shimmery packaging and focus on the actual product within - it has bold claims, so let's put it to the test. P.S. you can get 10% off Glossier here!

2. bareMinerals DIRTY DETOX Skin Glowing & Refining Mud Mask - I was gifted this recently whilst at a breakfast meeting with bareMinerals and meant to use it that evening when I got in from London, but I must've been too cosy in bed watching Riverdale to have a pamper as this has sat in my 'must use soon' pile for a couple of weeks. I find mud masks really effective for minimising pores but am yet to find one that isn't drying (I thought the Glossier Mega Greens Galaxy Pack was holy grail material but then it randomly starting making my skin really red, sad face) so we'll see if Dirty Detox can step up to the plate.

3. Trish McEvoy Liquid Face Colour - come through, cute little clicky pen in the prettiest pink I've ever seen! I love a liquid blush as most formulations simply melt into your skin and look completely seamless, and the PR also tells me that this lasts all day on her so I've got high hopes. My only hesitation is that it contains shimmer and sometimes I prefer just straight-up matte colour so I can add sheen exactly where I want it rather than the glow being focused on the apple of my cheeks as they're naturally very round and moon-like!

4. Dior Addict Lip Maximizer - I was about to start typing 'I've had this for AGES' when I realised that I can tell exactly how long I've had it for as I bought it at a World Duty Free event and filmed a haul... that was September 2016, and it's never been opened. How that ever happened I have no idea, but it just goes to show that this whole Ten To Try thing is much-needed! The lady at Dior completely sold me on this as she described it as a lip plumper that nourishes like a balm and gives a shine like a soft gloss, so a year and a half later I'll find out whether I agree or not!

5. Crabtree & Evelyn Goatmilk & Oat Bath Milk - Crabtree & Evelyn is a brand I've recently discovered after knowing about them for yonks but never actually trying anything from their range. So far I've been really impressed, mainly by the scents of their products which are genuinely some of the nicest fragrances I've ever had the pleasure of sniffing! This was specially developed for sensitive and reactive skin types, and come to think of it I actually used to drink goat's milk for a while when I was a child as someone said it'd help my eczema - so it kind of makes sense to me in a funny roundabout way and I can't wait to have a lovely soak using this.

6. This Works Stress Check Face Oil - my lovely friend Hannah gave me this for Christmas and I loved it on first impressions, so I'll be giving it a proper whirl throughout February. I do love most things I've tried from This Works so far, so expectations are high and I won't lie - the words 'Stress Check' are apt right now as I've been putting myself under a lot of pressure physically and mentally over the past year or so and can visibly see the toll its taken on my skin.

7. Soap & Glory Bright + Pearly Radiance Boosting Cocktail - when it comes to sheeny skin I don't mess about - give me ALL of the products that are going to make me look glowing with health, please and thank you very much! The term 'radiance boosting' definitely intrigues me and I'm interested to see how this performs both on top of moisturiser before I start my makeup as well as mixed into my foundation, which is my personal favourite way to use these kinds of shimmery liquid illuminators.

8. Institut Esthederm Lift & Repair Eye Contour Lift Patches - now, these are pricey little things so I promise to bear that in mind when writing my review at the end of the month, but if the Intensive Hyaluronic Serum from the same brand is anything to go by, they there's a chance that they could actually be worth the dosh. I've been trying the serum for a while and it's a total game-changer (let me know if you'd like a blog post) so it'll be really interesting to see how how well £50 eye patches perform!

9. Mary Kay Gel Semi-Shine Lipstick - trying new lipstick formulations is always fun, and even though it's still the middle of winter and I should probably be reaching for a nice berry red, recently I've found myself craving a pink lip (maybe it's seeing Gemma Collins on Celebs Go Dating with her iconic bubblegum pout, who knows?) and this Mary Kay number in 'Love Me Pink' really caught my eye. The word 'gel' in the name is making me feel as though it's going to be super nourishing and like it'll just glide onto the lips!

10. bareMinerals BAREPRO Performance Wear Liquid Foundation - I've been meaning to test this for a while and honestly have no clue why I haven't as I completely adore bareMinerals and this sounds like it could be amazing: it's a full-coverage, long-wearing foundation that's said to actually improve skin's texture over time. Their Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream is my fave barely-there base, so could this be its big sister?

PHEW. There we have it!

I think the main thing we've established is that I could talk for England - who writes 1,200+ words about products that they haven't even tried yet?! I just expressed to Will that I need to be way more concise otherwise the length of the actual review post might rival the Bible, and he suggested doing separate blog posts for each product at the end of the month - rather good idea actually, what do we think? I guess that way if you weren't interested in reading a review of the bath milk but really want to know what the foundation's like, you wouldn't have to scroll through tons of waffle to find what you're after? I say 'good thinking, Wilbur!' but please let me know your thoughts - so excited to start this!

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