…to be giving! But what makes me equally joyous, is to be on the receiving end too!

A month or so ago, I blogged about how you can get your hands on free products, either through social media, or joining marketing campaigns. Since then, I have been sent many goodies that I didn’t have to pay for, and amassed quite a growing collection. It’s almost like Christmas come early!

There are basically enough items here to fill the average subscription box, except most of these did not cost me a penny. However, there were a couple of occasions when I had to pay a quid or two for postage. I always suspect the amount does cover the cost of production, and the reason brands give them away for so little money is because they need to get rid of overstock. Still, majority of products are in launch phase so all you may be asked to do is review the samples you receive. Personally, I think it’s a fair bargain.

A new range of freebies that I am particularly excited to try out is from Your Good Skin by Boots. The full-sized beauty products (see top pic) were delivered entirely for free, and in return I have to commit myself to the 28-Day Challenge, plus share my results on social media. There is one catch – in order to be selected for this campaign, you do need to have over 1000 followers on Instagram.

The Balancing Skin Concentrate is the focal point of this challenge, but included in the package was the Pore Minimizing Tonic, Oil-Lifting Make-Up Remover Wipes, and the Instant Dryness Rescue balm.

I don’t wear make-up frequently, so would have preferred to receive a cleanser instead of the wipes. However, as luck would have it, my Boots card has loads of points because I haven’t spent any of them in ages. So, to treat myself, I used them to order the highly-recommended Nourishing Hot Cloth Cleanser (to counteract the toner) and ProVitamin Overnight Cream. Since I didn’t technically hand over any money, I guess I kind of got these for free too!

Your Good Skin also has a day moisturiser with high SPF, but I decided against buying that as I’ve already found my HG (Holy Grail) sunscreen and don’t want to replace it with anything else. I reviewed Bioré UV Perfect Milk for Face and Body not long ago, and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for decent protection from photoaging. I figured that if the Balancing Skin Concentrate isn’t hydrating enough, I’d just apply a little of the ProVitamin Overnight Cream under the Perfect Milk sunscreen.

While my freebies were on their way to me, the support team from Your Good Skin emailed to suggest I post a ‘before’ picture of myself so I can share the progress of my transformation. I made up my mind to start the challenge after a late night out to a Christmas party. It’s one of the few occasions I would wear make-up, so I knew my skin would not be at its best the next day.

And I was right…In the first photo, you can see some light foundation just about hiding a spot on my chin, but I swear it actually ballooned overnight because the next pic of me in the morning shows a definite flare-up. Two new tiny spots were also beginning to form under my nose. Boo!

Well, Your Good Skin aims to improve your skin so it becomes visibly healthier, or your money back. I don’t think I would qualify for the latter, but Boots skincare products are generally effective so I’ve got nothing to lose. Hopefully, at the end of four weeks, I will emerge with more “good skin days” as advertised.

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INITIAL IMPRESSIONS

Here I am again, on day one of the challenge, face sans make-up, freshly washed (hence a little pink and blotchy), and with Your Good Skin products duly applied.

If you’re wondering why I have one eyebrow slightly raised, it is not a response to this new beauty routine. This expression is normal for me…I constantly go through life in a mildly bemused state. 😀

Where the new lotions and potions courtesy of Boots are concerned, everything’s so-far-so-good. It’s of course too early to tell if they are benefiting me in any way, but I don’t seem to be allergic to any of the ingredients and my skin is sensitive enough to react quite quickly. There is hardly any fragrance to all the products (though the toner smells a bit weird, almost sickly), and some of them don’t glide on my face as well as I’d hoped. The moisturiser in particular feels quite tacky and takes quite awhile to absorb. That said, it does appear matt after application, so I suppose it’s the end result that matters. Also, the spot on my chin does seem a little less red and angry, so perhaps the new stuff is doing something after all!

I’ll blog about this again at the end of the challenge, and in the meantime, I shall keep all my fingers (and toes!) crossed that this will be (as touted) a “journey to better skin for life”!