clinique

With a name like Sparkle Skin, you'd be expecting a shimmer-laden body lotion, but this classic Clinque product is a fabulous body exfoliator.

While the scent might not be to everyone's liking (I find it inoffensive but not particularly pleasant), there's no doubt that using this scrub is a very refreshing experience, due to the menthol content. Not only does it smell sharp and menthol-y, it also feels very cool on the skin - not in a cold way, but in an invigorating, wake-up kind of way.

The exfoliating beads in this are fairly large and effective, but not so rough that they scratch the skin. After use, my skin always feels soft and smooth, but never over-exfoliated. The formula is gel-based, and this stops the product from running/falling off your hands or melting away in the shower too quickly. A surprisingly small amount goes a long way too; I've been using mine about once a month for a year, and there's still about a third left.

If you'd like to try it for yourself, you can buy it from Clinique.co.uk for £15 for 200ml. It's also usually available with the Deep Comfort body cream at Christmas, in a cute little set which includes travel sizes - sold out online, but probably available in store.

Disclosure:  This was a PR sample.


Ah, summer.  Hot weather.  Ice creams.  Pimms.  And for me, sweating, hay fever, and wanting to sit naked in front of an air conditioner all day.  Safe to say that I hate summer; I'm too pale, too plump, and too sweaty for it.

So, while Clinique's Moisture Surge Face Spray isn't normally something I'd actually buy, the sample I received has wormed its way into my heart.  A quick spritz on my face, neck and decolletage is enough to cool me down a bit.  It also adds a bit of much needed moisture, which is nice, particularly as I've found that lots of Tube travel in the summer means that a good portion of my base and moisturiser gets sweated off quite quickly (yes, sexy I know!).  I've also found that a quick spray on top of freshly applied makeup prevents a powdery looking finish.

Yes, I know you can get the same cooling, refreshing effect with water in a plant mister.  But who's going to carry a plant mister around town with them?  And who's going to want to wash out and replace the water in the plant mister to ensure they're not spraying bacteria at their face every day?  Not me (but then, I am quite lazy).

At £18 for 125ml, this is a fairly expensive product for something made mostly of water, despite the fact that each spritz uses up so little that I imagine one bottle will last out the entire summer.  Even so, I'll be repurchasing it.  While not an absolute, can't-live-without essential, if you have trouble with summer the way I do, this might take the edge off a little bit - and for me, that edge makes the price worth paying.

Get it direct from Clinique's website, or at Boots stores, department stores, or any of the many places Clinique is sold.