Saving Face With Molton Brown Skincare

Through the course of my beauty journey I've used lots and lots of different brands, that through no fault of their own have just fell by the wayside - I love trying new things so brands and products I once loved are relegated to my distant beauty past. One such brand was Molton Brown, partially down to QVC I used to be addicted to their products, their Vitalising Vitamin A B+C, Warming Eucalyptus, and Relaxing Yuan Zhi shower and bath gels were permanent fixtures in my bathroom, and I swore by one of their face washes and skin toners for a couple of years. The brand unfortunately left QVC, and after that I never really bought much from them bar the Warming Eucalyptus products during the winter months. Quite a few months ago now I received a press release about their new revamped skin range and I was kindly sent a few products from the range to try. I've been using these products for a few months now, pretty much essential in my eyes for a skincare review, and now that at least one of the products is nearly finished ;) I've eventually managed to get myself sorted enough to do a proper review for you.

Molton Brown Creole Grass Anti-Ageing Hydra-Crème For Dry Skin

I'm going to be upfront with you guys straight away - I did feel a bit panicky when I received this product because as you know if your a regular reader, I don't have dry skin - my skin is oily to combination 98% of the time, and whilst I'm in my mid 30's now I still don't feel ready to go completely down the anti-ageing route.However because I'm always willing to try out new things I decided to give it a go whilst at the same time allowing the drier skinned, more mature ahem Mummy Lou to try it out for a little while too :)

Molton Brown are a British company born, and bred but they seek their influences and inspirations from their travels around the world, always looking for new ingredients and new innovations. This product is simply described as "London Via Brazil" Designed to combat the visible signs of ageing, and keep your skin soft and hydrated, this cream uses ingredients from the subtropical regions of Brazil, such as Creole Grass to firm the skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, the fascinatingly names Miracle Tree Seed (you might know it better as Moringa) to protect the skin from pollutants alongside other ingredients such as scarily named Tetrapeptides (amino acids) which are said to reduce the appearance of fine lines.

First up I love the packaging - I love airtight pump action dispensers like this they keep the product fresh and they reduce wastage because they dispense exactly the right amount. The packaging just screams luxury just look at the metal embossing on the lid.

The product itself is white in colour and has a creamy smooth texture somewhere between a cream and a lotion. It has a fresh smell, which both me and Mummy Lou found difficult to describe, it smell a bit floral, a bit but mainly just clean iykwim.

I used between one and two pumps for my entire face and nice, it was easy to massage in and it only took a few minutes to absorb completely. It left the skin feeling velvety soft and smooth. Unlike some creams that are for drier skins I found that cream had a matte finish on the skin and it certainly didn't leave my oil prone skin greasy or shiny, and it didn't break my out, in fact whether it was down to the Fushi supplements or this I don't know but my skin has generally been a lot clearer. I also found that it made a great make up base for both powder and liquid foundations.

Mummy Lou normally a fan of greasier feeling creams also liked this, she found that it left her drier, more mature skin feeling soft, and looking smooth, velvety and even, she also felt that the cream helped to protect her skin when she was out and about (she doesn't generally wear make up during the day).

As when I received this I was a bit Meh but it shows that sometimes you just have to give things a go.  Despite having differing skin types both me and Mummy Lou were pretty impressed with this cream. It did the job for both of us, it moisturised my skin without breaking me out, and it as moisturising and protecting on Mummy Lou's skin- we also liked the fact that you use this product day and night, which probably makes the price at little less scary - 50ml of this product retails at £65 which is pretty steep so I would definitely advise that you either try it in store or see if you can get a sample first especially if your skin is really, really dry and this possibly wouldn't be moisturising enough for you. Molton Brown Creole Grass Anti-Ageing Hydra Creme For Dry Skin retails at £65 for 50ml.

Pep-Rich Lip Booster 

Alongside their main skincare line - Molton Brown also produce a range of Targeted Skincare focusing on specific skincare wants and needs. One of the products from this line is the Pep-Rich Lip Booster.

Again described as London Via Brazil this product contains ingredients such as African Mango Butter to soften and protect the lips, papaya extract to exfoliate and smooth, and the rather scary sounding palmitoyl-oligopeptide, a peptide which can boost collagen, skin repair and renewal, and can help the lips look fuller, more defined, and more hydrated.

Basically this is a lip balm by another name, it comes packaged in the popular twist up pen dispenser that we're all used.

Give it about 10 twists to release the product and what you see is a transparent off white balm filled with lots of barely visible sparkle, which little to no smell or taste.

The balm gives the lips a lovely glossy appearance, with no evident sparkle. Unlike some balms which just sit on your lips this one does actually seem to absorb into lips, and it does leave them feeling super soft. It probably isn't the based product to use as a lip base but it looks nice enough on the lips to leave them the way they are. You can also use this balm on the outside of your lips especially at night to prevent lines around the mouth

I actually really enjoyed using this product too - the silver packaging is super stylish and this is a really nice lip balm to use - it left the lips feeling super soft and smooth and my dry bits have definitely been reduced. Again the only draw back to this product is the price, I'm not really ready for an anti-ageing lip product at the moment but if I needed one in the future I would definitely consider this one. Molton Brown Pep-Rich Lip Booster retails at £30 for 3.5ml

Vita B3 Eye Concentrate

From the exotic rainforest's of Brazil to the beautiful city of Prague, this product also from the Targeted Skincare collection is described as London Via Prague. This eye treatment contains a mixture of Vitamin B5 and Ash Bark extract to combat dark circles and puffiness, and Tetra-Peptide complex to reduce the appearance of fine lines around the eyes.

I don't really have too many problems with my eyes but I am starting to see a few fine lines around them which saddens me a bit #shallow -Never mind for that reason I'm definitely going to start using eye products in my daily skincare routine and I started with this product.

This product like everything else in the skincare line comes boxed. It packaged in a white squeezy tube with a silver lid, it has a long thing nozzle which helps you dispense just the right amount of product.

The product itself  has a gel texture and a slightly cloudy appearance - again it has no discernible smell. You just need a tiny bit of product applied to you ring fingers which you then pat around the eye area. The gel has a cool, soothing feeling and it absorbs quickly with no stickiness.

I have to say apart from leaving my eyes feeling and cool and refreshed I didn't really see a lot of difference after using this product, I didn't expect miracles though and I will keep using this product till the end of the tube because it was nice product to use and it felt soothing on my eye area, I probably wouldn't repurchase though and you can probably guess why. Molton Brown Vita B3 Eye Concentrate retails at £45 for 15ml.

I have to say I really enjoyed using all of these items, despite the fact that they were all classed as anti ageing products. Unfortunately these products are a little bit out of my price range for everyday use but I was seeing a few more lines and wrinkles in the mirror I might be tempted to have a splurge. Molton Brown products are available from their stand alone stores, department store concessions and from their website. If you have any questions please leave me a comment xx

(All Of The Products In This Post Were Provided For Review Purposes)