Dermaquest ZinClear SPF 30 Review

This year I've been exploring the Dermaquest skincare line and the ZinClear SPF 30 sunscreen is a product I've been using for the past few months. The ZinClear was used on me post treatment at DestinationSkin, and I quite like the feel of these so first purchased the version without the tint.

As the name suggests, these are mineral based and contain 18.6% Zinc Oxide.

The texture of these feel lovely and creamy, quite a moisturising feel to them but still relatively light. I like that these don't feel like sunscreen and even though they are quite creamy, the texture is absorbed well and doesn't leave the skin feeling greasy (but not matte either) - I took the sunkissed version on holiday to Morocco recently and found it perfect in the 41 degrees celsius heat.

Dermaquest ZinClear SPF30 no tint (L),  Sunkissed tinted (R)

Dermaquest ZinClear SPF30 no tint (L),  Sunkissed tinted (R)

Dermaquest ZinClear SPF30 no tint (L),  Sunkissed tinted (R)

The verison with no tint leaves virtually no whitecast and I didn't really notice anything except there is a minuscule purple tone initially when applying. I do prefer the tinted one as it seems to even out the skin a tiny bit as the shade blends well into my skintone.

Ingredients:

Ingredients - untinted version

Ingredients - Sunkissed tinted

The downside to these is the price - they are around £40-something (depending on where purchased), but sometimes DestinationSkin have offers on the products as when I bought the regular version they had an offer where if you buy one product, the 2nd was half price (the tinted I purchased when there was no offer).

Despite this, I have been reaching for this constantly and it has now become one of my favourite products.

REN Hydra-Calm Global Protection Day Cream Review

Ren has long been one of my favourite brands for skincare, and many of their products I have repurchased quite a few times over the years. The Hydra-Calm Global Protection Day Cream is one of them.

When I was first introduced to Ren, I was recommended the line for sensitive skin which this moisturiser is a part of as at the time my acne-prone skin was quite a mess with dehydration, inflammation and just generally quite unbalanced.

The ingredients in the Hydra-Calm cream really help to combat these issues as it contains arctic blackcurrant seed and arctic seabuckthorn berry oil which contain Omega 3 and 7 to help with the inflammation, Bisabolol to help soothe and reduce redness, and also a 'Global protection complex' with anti-oxidants to help protect against UV damage.

The texture of this is lovely, it feels creamy and smooth but without being oily or greasy and it applies very nicely leaving the skin feeling well hydrated and comfortable without any heaviness. It feels very much like a 'proper' moisturiser and pleasant to use.

When I first started using the Hydra-Calm cream, I had issues with flakiness on my forehead, and this completely got rid of it, and I've not had this problem since. It does have a slight calming effect in that it helps a little with redness too.

Ingredients:

Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile) Flower Extract, Camellia Oleifera Seed Oil, Cetearyl Ethyhexanoate, Myristyl Myristate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Cetearyl Glucoside, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Triheptanoin, Oryzanol, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Vaccinium Macrocarpon (Cranberry) Seed Oil, Ribes Nigrum (Black Currant) Seed Oil, Bisabolol, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, Laminaria Ochroleuca Extract, Cassia Alata Leaf Extract, Pueraria Lobata (Kudzu) Symbiozome Extract, Carbomer, Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate, Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Extract, Citrus Nobilis (Mandarin Orange) Peel Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Cinnamomum Camphora Linalloliferum (Ho Wood) Leaf Oil, Anthemis Nobilis (Chamomile) Flower Oil, Limonene, Citronellol, Geraniol, Linalool, Tocopherol.

This is £27 for 50ml which I think is very reasonable for the quality, and I find that this usually lasts me around 4-5 months (I only use in the mornings), as you don't need too much and also the airtight pump dispenser allows for good control and less product wastage.

Latest Manicure Must-Haves: Orly Cutique & Essie Ridge Filling Base Coat

As much as I am obsessed with nail polish, I don't pay much attention to my cuticles and they are often neglected as I think to myself, 'they don't look so bad', so it's a part of the manicure I tend to skip but that was until I came across Orly's Cutique Cuticle & Stain Remover. Now I can't believe I didn't get on to this sooner.

This looks like a some sort of base coat, but basically you apply it on the nail for 30-60 seconds and then use an orange stick (or similar) to push back the cuticle and then rinse with warm water. It removes stuff I didn't even know was on my nail and gets rid of stains from previous polish really well, overall leaving a perfect base to start a new manicure.

After that I apply Essie's ridge filling base coat. I was in the market for a new base coat and spotted this in TK Maxx in a little set with a polish, I had already been thinking of Essie so took this as a sign to purchase (plus it was a bargain!).

It's great for smoothing the finish of nail before applying polish and dries quickly.

What I have noticed the most since using these products is that my polish lasts longer than before, and gives a better level of finish to my manicure.

These have really become staples and I am keen to explore some more Essie and Orly base/treatment products.