I’ve been a beauty editor for over 20 years and one of the skills I’ve acquired along the way is to get a pretty good sense of a product from the blurb, the packaging and a cursory swatch on the back of my hand. My expectations will be set and, usually, when I use the product, my Spidey-senses will be proven right.
With that said, some bitter disappointment in products in the previous two decades has meant I have also become a bit of a sceptic. One too many times during my more naïve years on magazines, I’d get caught up in claims that implied a product was somehow reinventing the wheel, only to try it and realise it was similar to a hundred things I’d tried before - it’s only USP being a clever marketing spin.
All of this is to say that my expectations are usually met, sometimes they are not and other times, albeit rarely, they are exceeded. The latest launch from REOME exceeded my expectations in a way no other product has before. Let me explain why…
The Three Suns Balm Cleanser, £55.00, available at Space NK, might be called a ‘cleanser’ but that actually wildly under-sells what it delivers. It does clean skin, gently dissolving makeup and impurities, but that’s just one string to its impressive bow. It cleanses via a non-foaming texture that feels as soft as a light moisturiser when massaged into skin. There is no sensation of stripping just the feeling of skin being nourished and cocooned but without the oily-residue sensation of other balm formulas.
My preference is to apply it straight onto the skin with no water before adding a few drops to begin to emulsify the formula slightly because anything you can do to extend the experience is a win. It’s my preference to linger in this massage-phase for as long as possible before removing with a damp flannel.
Unlike so many other cleansers that require a swift application of serum or moisturiser immediately afterwards so skin doesn’t feel parched, this manages to ‘lock-in’ a feeling of hydration. It’s not slippery, it’s not ‘on’ the skin, it’s a feeling within the skin that I can only describe as ‘comfortable’. Perhaps the best way I can describe it is a skin-feeling of homeostasis - a feeling of ‘normal’.
This is why I am surprised and delighted. It’s performance is entirely unexpected and redefines what a cleanser can accomplish and contribute to a skincare regime. I can use this and not need to moisturise immediately, which is unheard of for me. It offers me that same skin comfort I’d expect after applying a hyaluronic acid serum or gel moisturiser.
Therefore, there’s an immediate knock-on effect on what skincare I use after it because the Three Suns Balm Cleanser means I don’t have to layer quite so much for my skin to feel hydrated.
The secret is a formula containing biotech active ingredients. These are ingredients that have been tinkered with in a lab to amplify them, if you will, to make them more bio-available to skin, therefore reaping greater benefits. If you’re thinking that you’ve heard ‘biotech’ in the skincare world a lot recently, you’re correct. It’s an exciting space and the development is maximising ingredients, formulas and their benefits.
The price, of course, is perhaps the only thing that would make one pause. I understand this completely as someone who has, for years, been saying that it’s better to save on your cleanser and spend on your serums and active ingredients.
I’m prepared to eat crow here because, based on the skin benefits I’ve seen this deliver for me personally, it’s the first time ever that I’m saying this is the exception. The Three Suns Balm Cleanser is worth the price based on how it performs as a cleanser, how it makes skin feel and the impact is has on your subsequent skincare choices.
Will I use is sparingly? You bet! But, in the short time that I’ve had my sample, it’s the thing I’m excited to reach for most at the end of the day.
Another recent discovery but something that has become a ‘where have you been all my life'?’ product is Ringlight, £10.00, from Sali Hughes’ collaboration with Revolution Skin.
The magic here is light reflecting particles, not brightening pigments, which instantly lift and brighten the under eye area. The combination of glycerin, hyaluronic acid and shea butter make this extremely comfortable on the under-eye area and rather than flattening or dulling, gives the overall impression of refreshing.
Where that delicate skin can sometimes look dull, grey and lifeless, this immediately and continuously offers hydration, plumpness and glow.
Minika Blunder Blunder Cover, £45.00. Available from Space NK.
There was a slew of foundation launches in the second half of 2023, many of which were so exceptional in formula and finish it was hard not to immediately afford them Holy Grail foundation status. It’s testament to the advances in formula that almost every base these days seems to deliver a skin-true result that makes you think you’ve found ‘the one’.
Having a somewhat top-heavy beauty/trophy cabinet is a lovely problem to have, but it also means today’s favourite can be swiftly forgotten. Case in point: Monika Blunder Blunder Cover Foundation/Concealer, £45.00.
I first received this two summers ago and was won over. I’d seen my friend Sam Chapman use it in a video and was so impressed with the finish that I immediately tried it for myself.
The thing to note here is it’s a solid foundation that, when picked up with a brush, can be used as a concealer or a foundation or both.
I am stunned every time I use it at how little I need in order to achieve a finish that looks like my skin but better.
It effortlessly knocks out shadows on the inner corners of my eyes, requires very little product to hide spots or, in my case, little dots of hyperpigmentation left behind by spots and you could be fooled into thinking I wasn’t wearing any makeup at all.
It’s found its way back to the top of my beauty pile and it is, quite simply, an absolute pleasure to use. I’ve also barely made a dent in a pot that has been quite well-used so you get a lot of bang for your buck with this formula.
My preference is to use a brush to apply, but it’s also a dream to work in with fingertips or a sponge.