By Aisling Keenan
03rd Mar 2020
03rd Mar 2020
Beauty Bay’s own vegan, cruelty-free skincare line intrigued me, as any new skin-related launch does. I spent two months trialling and testing, and these are the items I’d repurchase…
I legitimately adore the physical website at Beauty Bay. I know that’s an odd statement, but I shop and browse for beauty a LOT, and it helps to have a lovely, user-friendly site to do it on. So when they brought out their own brand of skincare, I was eager to see if they applied the same passion, minimalism and attention to detail to that as they did their online presence.
Thankfully, it appears they did. I’ve given each of these products a minimum two-month trial time, because I really think skincare calls for that to be properly reviewed.
Hydrate me
First to the SkinHit Hydrating Serum which, at just €6.75 (!!!), offers hyaluronic acid and glycogen as its key ingredients. We all know that hyaluronic acid attracts moisture to the skin and holds it there – but what about glycogen?
Beauty Bay SkinHit Hydrating Serum
Glycogen as an ingredient is a polysaccharide and is akin to the glycogen already found in your body. When applied topically, it gives the skin a boost of energy – just like sugar (carbs) do in your body. The texture of this is water-like, it feels like a drink of water for your skin and the quenched feeling really seems to last. I liked that it wasn’t as sticky in texture as some hyaluronics I’ve used.
Beauty Bay Acid Trip Exfoliating Toner
Set the tone
Next to the Exfoliating Toner – I’m actually leaving my favourite product til last by the way…
This was as good as any exfoliating toner I’ve tried, if I’m being honest. It’s got a combination of AHAs and PHAs and it promises to ‘clear pores and accelerate cellular turnover’ which I believe it did. At €7.75, it didn’t impress me as much as my trusty Biologique Recherche P50 lotion, but lord knows P50 is a wallet-emptier. I would rebuy this based on the value alone, and the fact that maybe my skin just responds well to any and all exfoliating toners?
Beauty Bay Super Jelly Cleansing Gel
So fresh, so clean
Ah, this cleanser. It truly is a great beauty find – and again, the value for money is incredible. For €8.25 you get 150mls of refreshing, light and effective cleanser. It’s got prebiotics and avocado packed in to hydrate and protect while it cleanses.
The prebiotic specifically is there to mind your skin’s barrier while you strip the unnecessary oils and dirt from your face. I found it comfortable to use, cooling and refreshing, and has become one of my go-to morning cleansers. I will say, for intense, night-out eye makeup I still use a gentle micellar water first, so I can’t speak with conviction on how well this removes that level of face.
I also accidentally discovered that if you use the cleansing gel neat on your hands with a face cloth, it’s incredibly effective (and yet gentle) at removing icky, three-day-old tan.
Aside from all of that, they’ve got QR codes on their packaging that you can scan and it will tell you how best to recycle their packaging, which is a sustainability effort I’m very into.
Read more: What to eat to clear up your skin
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Read more: These 4 products completely transformed my skin (and my self-confidence)
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