Worth The Hype? #1

'Worth the Hype?' is a new series I'm going to start this year where I pick 4 or 5 products I've heard being raved about that month and give my honest opinion on whether or not I think they are worth the hype. 

Personally, I am often left wondering if bloggers really do love the products they rave about when they are often the subject of sponsored posts, PR samples or, more increasingly, a mate of the producer of the product. I will be giving my 100% feedback on whether or not I think the product is worth parting with our hard earned money for! I'll also try and find the products for you at the best prices and link these alongside the review! 

This month I have picked four much hyped up products; The Wet Brush, Healgel Intensive, Anastacia Brow Wizz, Caudalie Beauty Elixir. 

The Wet Brush - £8.90 on Amazon here
The Wet Brush is a hairbrush designed for brushing through your hair after washing, or when its otherwise wet... (no surprises there). The aim is to eliminate the horrible tangly mess than can occur post-shower and I think I am the perfect test subject for this with long, tangly messy hair so I was pretty excited to see how it worked out. 

It works.

I was taken aback with how easy brushing my hair was with this. To be completely honest? It just looks like a standard brush so I wasn't expecting much, but this takes about 80% of the effort out of brushing my hair, which also means less breakages, yay! If you have longer hair which can be a bit of a pain to brush then I would definitely recommend this brush. Obviously it can be used on dry hair too and its great then as well, and it doesn't break the bank! 

The Verdict: Worth the Hype!

Healgel Intensive - £37.50 at LookFantastic here

Now I don't know about you, but parting with £40 for a serum is not something I like to make a habit of, and I better look at least 10x more attractive after using it. Luckily I received this sample in a Birchbox, so didn't need to part with (as much) cash.

If you aren't familiar with the Healgel Intensive, it's basically a concentrated formula to combat skin irritation, dryness, sensitivity etc. So if you don't have problematic skin, then this isn't for you. I don't really have very problematic skin, however since the temperature has dropped I have been suffering from redness, irritation and sensitivity around my nose - the perfect test subject for the Healgel intensive. 

Now, a quick disclaimer: NOT EVERYONE'S SKIN IS THE SAME, so this may work differently for your skin.

I popped this on before bed for a week or so around my nose, and the results? Nothing. This literally did nothing to change my irritated skin, pretty underwhelming huh? 

The Verdict: Not Worth the Hype

Anastasia Brow Wiz - £15.50 on BeautyBay here

This, alongside Hourglass Brow Arch, has to be the most hyped up eyebrow product I have heard about. At £15.50, its pretty pricey for a brow pencil, so it definitely needs to be the bees knees to be worth parting with the cash. 

Firstly, Anastasia do a really wide range of colours, which is great for me as I'm a redhead and often struggle to find shades which suit my skintone and hair. A big thumbs up from me. 

Secondly, the Brow Wiz has a skinny and easy to use spooly on one end with a lid, again another thumbs up from me. 

Now, onto the product... If you have very sparse brows then this would be perfect for you. The pencil itself is super skinny so you really can get these 'hair-like lines' everyone raves about. On the other hand, the formula is still quite creamy and blendable, so you can get whatever effect you like out of it. Personally, I hate a hard eyebrow product, so the formulation of this is perfect for me. I have quite thick brows (woe is me...) so I can only really use this through the front and the ends of the brow, but really that's all I need and it gives me a really well defined shape. All in all, this is a great product. 

The Verdict: Worth the Hype!

Caudalie Beauty Elixir - £10.90 at Escentual here

This has, for a long time, been raved about by bloggers and vloggers alike. It claims to tone, set make up and refresh make up all in one bottle. Sounds too good to be true, eh? 

I'm on the fence with this one. And I don't think that bodes well for it. 

Yeah, it's nice. It's nice to spritz on your face when you're feeling a bit flustered - but I'd imagine a water spray with some equalyptus oil in would do the job just as well. This is a nice product of you want to splurge on something luxurious, but as far as being a toner and a make up setter - there are other things on the market which are just as good.

The Verdict: Not Worth the Hype

I hope you enjoyed this first installment of 'Worth the Hype?'! Let me know if there's anything you'd like to know my thoughts on and I'll do my best to get it into the next months post. 

Have you guys tried any of these products? What were your thoughts?

xxx