Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser

    

 I have finally finished my exams, I say finally, they only lasted about 4 days but I feel like the whole process has been dragging on forever! However, this now means I'll be able to focus on my blog a bit more (yay!) so if anyone has any suggestions of things you would like to see me review then pop them in the comments below.

Today I'm going to be talking about Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser. This product claims to offer a skin perfecting, natural finish whilst hydrating your skin. It contains an SPF 15 which is ideal for early spring onwards, but you may want to wear something stronger underneath when the weather heats up a bit. 

I first discovered this product when I returned a Super Balance foundation that I had been incorrectly colour matched for. The lady was difficult and quite frankly I wanted to get away without causing a scene so after trying to get me to buy another foundation, she ended up giving me a tester of the tinted moisturiser to try. I thought I might as well give it a shot as I do like a light coverage and this sounded like a good product. She matched me to Shade 01 (which was wrong... won't be going back to her again!) but despite the slightly light colour I really liked the consistency so I decided to buy the full size in Shade 02.

This product is not heavily fragranced, it smells a bit like other Clinique products if you're familiar with those, so if you have sensitive skin like I do this shouldn't cause you any problems.

From a moisturising point of view, I don't think it did very much for my skin. I have dry - normal skin and I honestly would say it offered no form of extra hydration to my skin compared to normal liquid foundations. It did feel good on my skin but I feel it's important to point out it wasn't providing the extra moisturising qualities that I expected. If you have oily skin I think this would product would be fine as it is also oil free. In fact, if you have tried the Moisture Surge cream, it's the same idea (funnily enough, they share the same name!) but I don't find that cream moisturising either so maybe it's just my skin.

It provides a demi-matte finish and evens out the skin tone. I would also say it offers light - medium coverage, from this respect I was actually very impressed; in the past, my experience with tinted moisturiser has been that they are just an orange/flesh toned cream that mearly offers colour rather than coverage. The finish looks very natural, particularly if buffed in to the skin with a brush. It also looks lovely applied with fingers. It does not cling to dry patches and I have not noticed it oxidising. I find I need to use quite a bit of product though, 2 - 3 pea sized amounts, as the formulation is quite thick. I find it lasts well on my skin and I wouldn't tend to use any powder with it. Touch ups required after 6 - 8 hours of wear which is not bad in my books.

The packaging is sleek and handbag friendly, at £21 for 30ml I think it's quite a good deal. If you forget that this product claims to be moisturising, it's actually a really good light coverage 'foundation' that will even out skin tone with a little SPF on the side.

I am now on the hunt to try out a few more tinted moisturisers as I really like them for day-to-day wear. I am unbelievably tempted by the Chantecaille one but at £55 I may need to wait for Christmas to come round again! If anyone has any suggestions please let me know! Also if you've tried the Clinique one, let me know about your experience. 

CLARINS 'Eclat du Jour' - Daily Energiser

I was recently at my local Clarins counter buying my mum some of her Multi Active cream which she has used religiously, along with other Clarins products, since her twenties. I have always loved pinching some of her night cream or cleansing milk as their products are gorgeous! So when the lady offered to throw in a few freebies for me to try I was actually quite excited!

The 'Eclat Du Jour' or Daily Energiser range is designed for young skin that has to battle with late nights, partying and the stresses of work or studying amongst other things! It is supposed to be suitable for all skin types and claims to brighten and hydrate your skin whilst leaving a matte finish. (You can read the blurb-y bit on their website if you click above)

I was given the 'Wake-Up Booster' toning lotion (£15.50) and the Daily Energiser Lotion (£20) which is a moisturiser. 

  

First off I'm going to start by pointing out the products are all fragranced with a lovely fresh apricot scent, which for me is fine, lovely in fact, however if you have super sensitive skin I don't know if this is the best range for you. Anyway, that was the first thing that hit me, so I'll move on.

The toner has a beautiful, velvety texture and is best applied with a cotton pad all over your face, after cleansing. I have to say I'm never sure if there is actually a point to using toner, I can't say I noticed it did anything major for my skin, but it felt a bit moisturising and left my skin smooth and matte. It smells amazing so I would use it for that alone, however for the price, I could skip it.

The moisturiser has a very light, gel-like texture which feels lovely when applied. However as I have dry skin I felt like it absorbed very quickly and didn't quite quench my skin's thirst! I think this would be lovely for anyone with oily skin as it's still very important to moisturise. The range does offer a richer cream moisturiser which I think would be far better for normal-dry skin if their multi active creams are anything to go by.

For young, yet-to-be-damaged skin, that is not too sensitive, I think this range would be a wonderful introduction to the Clarins range as it is not hideously expensive. Although I feel personally, despite my age (19) it's not quite enough for me, I do believe my skin may just be a little haggard from everything I put it through so personally I would go for the Multi Active range, which for anyone over 25, I would highly recommend, even if it is almost double the price.

Any more questions? Pop them in the comments below :)