I Try A *Lot* Of Beauty Products, And These Are The 21 That Genuinely Stood Out To Me This Month

This new Pro Filt’r Fluid Flex foundation is Fenty Beauty’s biggest product launch since the brand first burst onto the scene in 2017, and I couldn’t have been more excited to get my hands on it!

As you’d expect from Fenty, inclusivity is at the forefront, with Rihanna basically going back to the drawing board to create 50 new shades that cater to more undertones than ever before.

The colour match alone is incredible, but to make it even better, the formula literally uses colour-true pigments that help resist oxidation, meaning the shade you fall in love with on first application is designed to actually stay that way throughout the day. As somebody who knows the frustration of a perfect foundation match suddenly looking completely different once it settles, this is a huge selling point.

The foundation itself applies so smoothly, with flawless coverage that’s easy to build without feeling heavy or clogged. The natural matte finish makes my skin look smooth and airbrushed, while starfruit extract helps keep excess oil at bay.

It’s also crease- and sweat-resistant, impressively long-lasting, and genuinely feels like I’m not wearing anything on my skin. In short, what more could anybody want from a foundation?!

Milk Makeup is known for its iconic multi-use sticks, and this new blush range makes it easy to see why. The formula is beautifully creamy, blends seamlessly into my skin, and gives my cheeks the prettiest flush of colour, with a wide range of super-flattering shades to choose from.

It’s also really easy to build up if you prefer a bolder look, and the fact that you can swipe the same shade onto your lips makes creating a cohesive, monochromatic makeup look practically effortless.

But what really elevates this from your average cream blush is the skincare-inspired formula. It’s packed with hyaluronic acid to help retain moisture, ceramides to hydrate and smooth, and pomegranate flower and jojoba oil to nourish the skin — so it feels almost as much like skincare as it does makeup.

The result is comfortable, long-lasting colour that looks gorgeous, feels great, and couldn’t be easier to apply!

Speaking of makeup that doubles as skincare, I’ve also been loving Superdrug’s B. Enhance Glow Drops — especially considering they’re super affordable at just £6.

The tinted illuminator gives my skin a really pretty, subtle glow that instantly makes my complexion look brighter and more radiant without being overly shimmery or glittery. It’s perfect for when I want something that gives my skin a quick boost without piling on loads of makeup.

And the formula is genuinely impressive for the price. It contains niacinamide and vitamin C, which help brighten and revive dull-looking skin, alongside hyaluronic acid for an extra dose of hydration.

I love that the end result still looks really natural, leaving my complexion looking fresher, healthier, and more radiant. At £6, this is such a great addition to anyone’s makeup bag!

As somebody who loves all things shimmer and glitter, I couldn’t be more OBSESSED with INGLOT’s Shimmer Glow Eyeshadows, which have quickly become my new go-to.

The pigmentation is seriously attention-grabbing, and what I love most is that you’re not just getting random chunks of glitter with barely any colour underneath. These give proper, impactful coverage, with a smooth, multidimensional shimmer that looks just as good on the lid as it does in the pan. You barely need any product, either — one swipe gives an incredible payoff, although you can easily build it up if you want even more drama.

The silky formula, which contains shea butter esters, glides on easily and feels really comfortable on my eyes, with none of the irritation that I sometimes get from particularly sparkly products. It also lasts incredibly well without leaving rogue pieces of glitter scattered down my face as the day goes on.

You can wear these alone or over another eyeshadow as a topper, and there’s a gorgeous selection of shades to choose from. If you love an unapologetically sparkly eye as much as I do, I seriously can’t recommend these enough.

If you’re a fan of a classic brown-toned nude lip, The Beauty Crop’s collaboration with Anastasia Kingsnorth is definitely one to check out.

Inspired by Anastasia’s go-to lip combo, the kit contains a medium-brown peel-off lip liner stain alongside two plumping lip stains in gorgeous nudey and warm brown shades, giving you everything you need to create a defined, glossy lip with serious staying power.

I was particularly impressed by how well the stains actually work — the colour lasts really well, but the formula still feels comfortable on my lips and doesn’t leave them feeling dry, which can sometimes be the trade-off with longer-lasting lip products.

And I also adore the addition of the exclusive keychain, too. It’s such a cute little touch that makes the whole kit feel that bit more special, and with £35 worth of products included, there’s plenty to play around with to create your perfect nude lip.

Another great find from my favourite affordable French pharmacy brand, Aroma-Zone’s Plum & Oat Make-Up Remover Oil has managed to win me over despite my sometimes complicated relationship with oil-based cleansers.

The silky formula feels really indulgent as I massage it into my skin, effortlessly breaking down makeup — including waterproof formulas — as well as excess oil and everyday grime. But the real selling point for me is what happens when you add water: the oil transforms into a lightweight, milky texture that rinses away easily, without leaving behind the heavy, greasy coating I sometimes get from cleansing oils.

It combines plum, oat, castor, and jojoba oils to cleanse without stripping the skin, and the fragrance-free, minimalist formula is gentle enough for sensitive skin, too.

My skin feels properly clean, soft, and revitalized afterwards, rather than oily or weighed down, which makes this feel like the best of both worlds: all the indulgence and makeup-melting power of an oil cleanser, minus the residue that can sometimes make me reluctant to use one.

I’ll admit that toner is one of those skincare steps where I can sometimes find myself wondering if it’s actually doing anything, but I notice an immediate difference every time I use The Breakout Hack’s new Rebound Skin Milk Activated Cica Toner.

The lightweight, milky formula feels incredibly soothing and smoothing on my skin, giving it an instant hit of hydration that my complexion really seems to appreciate. It’s been formulated specifically with dry, sensitive, and irritated skin in mind, with cica, bisabolol, ginger root extract, and D-panthenol working to calm the skin, tackle visible redness and irritation, and support the skin barrier.

I also love that you simply dispense it into your hands and press it directly into your skin rather than having to faff around with cotton pads — one less step is always a win in my book.

All in all, this product feels gentle and comforting while still having a satisfying immediate impact that I don’t always get from a toner, and my skin is left feeling noticeably smoother, softer, and more hydrated afterwards.

I’m already a huge fan of BYOMA, so I was really excited to try its new Longevit-8 Peptide Serum — and after using it consistently for several weeks, I’m seriously impressed with the results.

The silky serum feels lovely and soothing as soon as I apply it, and over time, I’ve noticed that my skin looks smoother, plumper, and noticeably more hydrated. The super sleek bottle is also a welcome addition to my bathroom shelf.

What’s particularly interesting about this launch is that BYOMA has focused on skin longevity rather than simply correcting existing signs of aging. The formula is designed to help protect the skin against future damage while targeting eight key concerns, including wrinkles, firmness, elasticity, hydration, redness, radiance, and texture.

There’s some seriously impressive science behind it, too. It combines BYOMA’s new GHK-Cu Longevity Matrix with Phyto-PDRN, NMN, and peptides, alongside the brand’s signature Tri-Ceramide Complex to help support the skin barrier and boost natural collagen.

It’s an ambitious formula, but ultimately, the results are what have won me over. My skin feels great when I use it, and the smoother, bouncier appearance I’ve noticed after several weeks has made this an easy addition to my regular skincare routine.

Liz Earle always delivers when it comes to skincare, and I’m a big fan of this new addition to the brand’s Skin Repair range.

The thick, creamy formula feels wonderfully luxe and nourishing on my skin, delivering a kind of deep hydration that leaves my complexion looking instantly smoother and plumper. Despite all that richness, it works brilliantly as a daytime moisturizer, with the huge added benefit of SPF50 broad-spectrum UVA and UVB protection.

And the protection doesn’t stop there. The formula is designed to strengthen the skin’s moisture barrier while helping defend against environmental aggressors like pollution, dehydration, and UV exposure, which can contribute to premature signs of aging, including dark spots and fine lines.

I love anything that makes daily SPF feel like less of an extra step, and combining such high protection with a genuinely lovely, deeply hydrating moisturizer makes this an easy product to reach for every morning.

If you’ve spent any time on BeautyTok lately, you’ll know that K-beauty has well and truly taken over, with Korean skincare becoming increasingly mainstream thanks to its innovative formulas, unusual ingredients, and instantly noticeable results. And COSRX is one of the brands at the forefront of the obsession.

Its PDRN Exosome Skinplaning Glaze Mask is exactly the kind of innovative product that makes K-beauty so exciting. There’s something incredibly satisfying about a peel-off mask anyway, but this clever formula starts as a cream before transforming into a film that you can peel away — and, even better, I can genuinely see a difference once it comes off.

My skin looks noticeably less dull after using it, with a healthy, youthful glazed finish that makes my whole complexion appear fresher and more radiant.

There’s some brilliant skincare technology behind it, too. The formula combines PDRN, derived from salmon DNA and used to help improve the appearance of elasticity, with exosome technology to help brighten, plump, and refine the complexion.

It’s fun and satisfying to use, and even comes with its own applicator brush, but the visible results are what really make it stand out — and it’s easy to see why innovative K-beauty products like this have become such a phenomenon!

If you’re somebody who loves keeping a facial mist close by for an instant pick-me-up, ESW Beauty’s Coconut Dreams and Lychee Breeze mists have been such a treat to use.

First things first: they both smell incredible, and a few spritzes genuinely leave me feeling refreshed, rejuvenated, and a little more awake.

But these do much more than simply smell good. Coconut Dreams is the calming option, combining coconut and cucumber with ceramides, cica, aloe, and niacinamide to hydrate, soothe, and support the skin barrier. It feels wonderfully cooling and refreshing on my skin, particularly when my complexion needs a little extra TLC.

Lychee Breeze, meanwhile, is geared towards dull, tired-looking skin, with lychee and lime alongside vitamin C, caffeine, panthenol, green tea, and niacinamide. I love reaching for this one when I need a midday boost, and the caffeine feels particularly fitting for a mist designed to help perk up a tired-looking complexion.

They’re impressively versatile, too: you can use them after cleansing in place of a toner, before makeup to hydrate and prep your skin, over makeup as a finishing mist, or simply spritz them on whenever you fancy a refresh. Needless to say, they’ve quickly become a product that I find myself reaching for throughout the day.

Another K-beauty brand worth having on your radar is HaruHaru Wonder, and if you’re yet to try it, this £15 Best Glow Trial Kit is a brilliant introduction.

You get mini versions of four products covering an entire skincare routine: the Black Rice Moisture Cleansing Oil, Triple AHA Gentle Cleansing Gel, Hyaluronic Toner, and Probiotics Barrier Essence. I’m already a fan of the brand, and I love that this lets you properly test out a good range before committing to the full-size products.

There are some great formulas packed into the minis, too. The cleansing oil tackles everything from waterproof makeup to SPF, while the AHA cleanser gently exfoliates. The toner combines fermented black rice with hyaluronic acid and red ginseng for hydration and plumpness, while the creamy essence uses ceramides, cholesterol, fatty acids, and ferments to support the skin barrier and leave skin feeling hydrated and smooth.

At just £15, it feels like great value, and the mini sizes are perfect for travel. And — dare I say it in September — if you’ve already started thinking about Christmas, this would make such a cute little stocking filler for any skincare or K-beauty lover.

Sweat arguably isn’t the sexiest thing to talk about, but excessive sweating is something that impacts a whole lot of people, and that alone makes this product worth mentioning.

As somebody who has struggled with excessive sweating in the past, I’ve tried pretty much everything — including Driclor, which I hated because it stung like mad and left my underarms actively hurting. So, I’ll admit, I was slightly apprehensive about trying another maximum-strength antiperspirant.

Thankfully, Sweat Guard has been a completely different experience. I haven’t encountered any stinging or irritation whatsoever — even when I’ve applied it straight after shaving — and it has a really pleasant, fresh Sea Moss scent. It’s versatile, too, as you can use it on other areas of the body where excessive sweating is an issue rather than just your underarms.

There are a couple of things worth knowing: it does feel quite wet when you first roll it on, and this isn’t necessarily an overnight fix. The brand recommends applying it twice a day consistently for 7–14 days, and after sticking with it, I genuinely feel like I’m sweating less than I was before. I do still apply my regular deodorant over the top as an extra precaution, but this feels like it’s actually helping tackle the sweating itself rather than simply masking the effects of it.

For me, finding something that appears to make a noticeable difference without the painful irritation I’ve experienced with similar products is a huge win, and I will definitely be keeping Sweat Guard in my life for the foreseeable. 

If you grew up in the ’90s, then REHAB.’s Retreat Bath Pearls might give you an instant hit of nostalgia. I haven’t thought about bath pearls in years, but these are a very welcome throwback — and thankfully, they deliver on much more than just novelty.

Simply drop three or four under running water and they dissolve into the bath, releasing the most gorgeous jasmine scent that instantly makes the whole experience feel more relaxing and luxurious. 

And while I’d happily use them for the scent alone, each pearl is packed with grapeseed, sweet almond, and jojoba oils, as well as glycerin, to hydrate and nourish your skin while you soak.

My skin feels lovely and soft afterwards, they smell incredible, and there’s something ridiculously satisfying about dropping actual bath pearls into the tub again. This is one ’90s beauty trend I’m very happy to see make a comeback.

If &honey isn’t already on your radar, allow me to introduce you. The Japanese haircare brand is known for its honey-infused formulas that focus on helping hair retain moisture, and after trying a whole bunch of its products, consider me a convert.

I particularly love the Deep Moist Shampoo and Melty Moist Repair Treatment, starting with the fact that the bottles look incredibly luxe sitting in my bathroom. Thankfully, what’s inside more than lives up to the packaging.

The shampoo lathers up beautifully and leaves my hair feeling properly clean without stripping it, while the treatment has it feeling noticeably silky, smooth, and much more manageable. Both formulas harness a blend of different honeys alongside argan oil to help hydrate and soften dry or damaged hair, with the treatment particularly focused on smoothing and taming frizz.

My hair feels soft, shiny, and beautifully conditioned after using the pair together, and they’ve been such a lovely introduction to &honey and Japanese haircare in general.

Tangle Teezer is such an established name in haircare for a reason, and its new Complete Carebrush feels like a clever upgrade on the brushes we already know and love from the brand.

It makes brushing my hair incredibly quick and easy, with flexible, two-tiered teeth designed to glide through with minimal resistance and help reduce breakage as they detangle. The larger brush head is a great touch, too, as it gets through more hair with every stroke.

But my favourite thing is how good the extra-long bristles feel against my scalp — it’s almost like getting a mini scalp massage every time I brush my hair. Those longer teeth are also designed to smooth the hair cuticle for extra shine, while the shorter ones tackle tangles, so there’s quite a lot going on with what initially looks like a simple hairbrush.

You can use it on wet or dry hair, and I love that it makes such an everyday task feel quicker, gentler, and actually pretty enjoyable.

If you regularly reach for heat tools to style your hair, TRESemmé’s Thermo Sculpt Memory Hair Serum is a clever addition to your routine.

I only need one or two pumps through my damp hair before styling, and it leaves my hair looking noticeably smoother and more polished, while doing a great job of keeping frizz at bay.

What sets it apart from your average hair serum, though, is its heat-activated technology. When you style your hair with heat, the formula is designed to help improve its resilience and essentially give it a better “memory” of the style you’ve created, with TRESemmé claiming up to 72 hours of style retention.

I love anything that helps make the effort I put into styling my hair actually last, and the fact that this also leaves it looking smooth, sleek, and frizz-free makes it a non-negotiable extra step in my routine.

Another seriously handy individual-dose treatment from REHAB., these Sleep Serum Hair Oil capsules have solved one of my biggest issues with overnight hair treatments.

I love the idea of nourishing my hair while I sleep, but I don’t love the idea of saturating it in oil and subsequently covering my pillowcase in product. The individual capsules take all the guesswork out of how much to use, dispensing just enough serum to run through my hair without overloading it or leaving it feeling greasy.

There’s an A+ blend of ingredients packed into each little dose, too. Grapeseed oil helps nourish and soften the hair, hyaluronic acid boosts hydration and elasticity, and niacinamide helps support keratin and smooth the appearance of damage. Plant-based proteins are also included to strengthen the hair and help reduce breakage and split ends.

The lavender-scented formula feels particularly fitting for bedtime, and by morning, my hair feels noticeably softer, smoother, and more nourished — without looking like I’ve slept with a load of oil in it, or needing to change my pillowcase. Win/ win!

Finding a genuinely lovely fragrance that doesn’t cost a small fortune can be surprisingly difficult, which is why I’m so impressed by Boots’ new Last Note collection. Each eau de parfum costs just £12.99, with five different scents to choose from depending on your fragrance preferences.

My personal favourite is Echoes of You, a gorgeous, warm scent that smells far more expensive than its price tag would suggest. It opens with pink pepper before developing into iris, cashmere musk, and lily of the valley, with dry amber and musk lingering underneath.

The end result is soft, warm, and musky, with just enough depth to make it interesting without feeling overpowering. I’ve really enjoyed wearing it, and at just £12.99 for a 50ml bottle, it’s the kind of fragrance you can happily spritz without feeling like you need to ration every drop.

The collection has also been designed so that you can experiment with layering the different scents together, which makes the affordable price point even more appealing if you fancy picking up more than one.

It’s been a strong month for beauty tools, and I’m starting with one of the most intriguing: Sensse’s Aura Pro, an at-home LED and laser device designed to support scalp health and hair growth.

Hair thinning as I get older is something I’m genuinely terrified of — and something I’ve already started to notice — so I was particularly interested in this. It combines low-level laser therapy with red and blue LED light, EMS, and vibration, with the 650nm lasers designed to target the follicles and red light focused on supporting hair density and growth. There are also dedicated settings for oil control and general scalp care.

I actually really enjoy using it. The vibrations feel lovely and basically turn the whole thing into a scalp massage, and it’s incredibly easy to work around my head while I’m sitting watching TV. I also love the clever lock function, which stops you accidentally changing the settings mid-treatment — something I managed to do pretty much every single time I forgot to lock it!

There’s even a built-in 10ml dispenser that you can fill with your preferred hair oil or serum, plus three vibration intensities and a handy 10-minute automatic timer.

Obviously, hair growth is a long game, so it’s far too early for me to claim any visible results on that front. But as a device, I’m seriously impressed: it feels good, is genuinely easy to incorporate into my routine, and brings several scalp-care technologies together in one tool. I have high hopes for what consistent, long-term use might do.

Living in London means hard water is basically the bane of my life. I already filter the water I drink and cook with, but I’ve always wondered what all that limescale — and goodness knows what else — might be doing to my hair and skin every time I shower. So, I’m very glad to have discovered Water2Skin.

The filtered showerhead is designed to reduce chlorine, limescale, heavy metals, and other common water contaminants before they reach you, and I’ve genuinely noticed improvements to my skin and hair since I started using it.

It’s also a seriously impressive showerhead in its own right. I have the handheld version in Satin Gold, which looks incredibly chic and was really easy to swap in for my existing showerhead. The water pressure is great, thanks to powerful jet technology, while easy-clean nozzles help tackle limescale build-up — another major plus when you live in a hard-water area.

The filter needs replacing roughly every 40 days, so there is some upkeep involved, but it feels like a small trade-off for knowing that my shower water is being filtered before it hits my skin and hair. There’s also a rainfall version available if that’s more your style, along with several different finishes.