Vitamin E

I’ve got what polite beauty bloggers would call ‘combination skin’ – an oily T-zone and dry skin everywhere else. Except my nose, which is very dry but laden with blackheads. I don’t really know how that works. Anyway I used to use Soap and Glory’s Daily Youth Moisture Lotion (which is smells freaking incredible but is pretty pricey), and then alternate between Soap andGlory’s Face Soap and Clean and Clear’s Blackhead Clearing Daily Scrub. The former was too harsh while the latter wasn’t harsh enough, and honestly they both smelt pretty clinical which I found quite unappealing. Around a year ago, I started going cruelty-free with my makeup and skincare, so decided it was time to establish a new routine with it all. I also had aims to cut down the amount I was spending in this area, and I have one hundred percent found exactly what I was looking for.

Superdrug’s Vitamin E Skincare Range has been mentioned in passing by friends, family, and bloggers alike, but I’d always had a bit of an aversion to ‘own brand’ products under the assumption that although cheap, they would not be cheerful. As well as combination, I’ve also got pretty sensitive skin which has difficulty getting on with even Lush products, so I was actually taking quite a risk. All of the products I’m about to mention are branded as suitable for normal to dry skin, although they work perfectly for me.

The first product I bought was the Radiance Moisture Cream, and it’s the only moisturiser I’ve ever bought that people have noticed, and decided to mention, on appearance alone. I kid you not when I say words like ‘radiant’ and ‘glowing’ have been used multiple times to describe my face using this stuff. This is because there’s a tonne of light-reflecting pigments in it, which can seem almost sparkly in a certain light. Under makeup however, I find it acts a fresh and healthy-looking backdrop to whatever you place on top of it. It’s got a thick-ish consistency which stands in peaks if I dab it around my face, but a little goes a long way and it only takes a minute or so to sink in. Also, SPF 15 – fab.

The Moisturising Day Cream is great too; quite a bit thicker but again spreads further than you’d think. Despite being branded a day cream, I like to use it before bed (although the range includes a similar-looking night cream which I have yet to try). This moisturiser has the same fruity, floral scent of the Radiance Moisture Cream, but stronger, however both of them do have a slightly suncream-esque background smell which doesn’t bother me – that’ll be the SPF.

And finally the perfect accompaniment to the aforementioned products, the Gentle Oatmeal Exfoliator. If you try to avoid products with too many beads and such in them, this is not for you. It’s jam-packed with oatmeal and walnut shell granules, giving it a very chunky consistency and the most beautiful, organic scent. In fact, it kind of reminds me of the face masks you might make at a sleepover when you were 12. This. Stuff. Is. So. Good. Somehow it exfoliates deep enough around my nose to eliminate my blackheads, while at the same time gently cleansing my cheeks and forehead. My face is left with a smooth and even consistency; there’s no dry patches or tight shiny areas, and there definitely weren’t any rashes as I’d expected there might be. In conjunction with either moisturiser, my skin is flipping excellent, I’m not gonna lie to you.

The best thing? They're £2.99 each. Wooooooooo! 10 out of 10 to all three products. The range also includes an eye cream, body butter, face mask, and hair oil which I cannot wait to try.

Word of advice though, don't moisturise and then put your contact lenses in. Just take my word for it.