I bought/got these things over the last month. Pretty things, lovely things, ohmygoodie I love them! 

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I admit: I have the worst dark under-eye circles you’ll have ever seen. Sometimes I wake up & I think that nothing is ever going to be able to mask them. And then every time my three heroes prove me wrong. I’m very happy to introduce them to you, because from now on your dark circle days are over!

MAC’s Studio Finish SPF 30 Concealer has been there for me for years. You could almost take that literally, as I can’t seem to finish this little jar. You need that little to cover up the area! I use it two shades lighter than my foundation. Benefit’s Boi-Ing is something I discovered years ago while browsing Selfridges. Some online orders, some Selfridge orders and then some Carnaby Shop stops later, this product still makes my heart beat louder. The texture is a bit more creamy than MAC’s concealer & the product comes in three shades. I stick to number one and two, depending on which time of the year we’re in. And then last, but certainly not least, is Sampar’s Glamour Shot Eyes. This baby has been with me for two months now. I found it in an ELLE goodiebag I received at a party. This really does everything it says it does. I’ve been amazed looking at my circles diminish. They’re not completely gone (add some light concealing powder on top!) but they turn so much lighter & my skin feels much tighter. Bye bye puffiness, hello gorgeous!

A while ago I’ve already told you about how raving I am about Sampar’s Glamour Shot Eyes. This thing is just amazing: it takes care of my dark circles in just a few minutes. Not only does it diminish dark circles drastically, it also blurs wrinkles and fine lines. It’s so brilliant! The formale contains hyaluronic acid which is an anti-wrinkles ingredient that is great for filling up wrinkles on the spot. You normally shouldn’t put liquid concealer or foundation over this, but for some reason I haven’t experienced any trouble with  adding cream concealers when I pat them on gently without smearing them on. However, don’t shoot me if you find your concealers smudging anyway.

I was really excited when I also got to try out Sampar’s Glamour Shot, which actually goes hand in hand with the Glamour Shot Eyes.  This is a transparent foundation that you have to apply over your moisturizer. You only need a small amount of product (really, don’t use too much as it’ll be too hard to work with), which you need to apply on your face from the inside out. Start around the nose and gently (but quickly, this dries super fast) coat your whole face evenly with the product. Don’t massage or rub it in as this will ruin the texture. You need to coat it on as you would a facial mask. Let the product dry. Your face will tighten up (it feels tighter, although it’s not unpleasant or drying) and will feel super soft after a few moments. It’s like you’ve coated your face with satin! My face looks smoother and more evened out after this, although it does not resemble a “foundationed” look. Big plus for oily skin types: this will mattify your complexion like crazy! Even bigger plus for people with first signs of wrinkles: this will visibly correct your wrinkles! It’s like they’re filled in with the product, which is quite nifty. You can stop the routine here (which is perfect for Sundays where you don’t feel like wearing make-up) or you can go ahead and add some powder foundation on top. Don’t smear it on with a sponge as this will ruin your layer of Glamour Shot; instead you should brush it on lightly with a soft total face brush. And don’t use liquid foundation as it’ll break (quite literally), which is clearly stated in the how-to leaflet. You can add powder blush, bronzer and highlighter as desired to finish your contoured look.

Check out the how the effect on my own hand! You can clearly see the line where I stopped applying Glamour Shot:

These products are perfect for when you want to even out your complexion, diminish wrinkles and mattify your face without using any make-up. If you’re used to wearing full coverage liquid foundation, Glamour Shot might be too light for you. This would be great to wear on really warm days when your skin gets oily quickly & it’s much too hot to wear full coverage foundations or even BB creams. So if you’re looking to sport an evened out natural look and don’t have too much discolored spots to conceal, give it a shot! 

Budget tip: on Sampar’s website you’ll find gift boxes that have super good value! You can find them here. Also browse around to find funny video clips explaining how products work and how you should apply them. Sampar is also to be found in stores exclusively at Planet Parfum in Belgium. Glamour Shot Eyes is sold for €29.00 & Glamour Shot could be yours at €39.00. 

Taking care of your skin at night is super important. Did you know that your skin cell renewal is higher at night? Skin cell regeneration almost doubles then! Next to that, active ingredients in the products you use are absorbed more effectively. This is because most ingredients lose their effectiveness when being exposed to sunlight. Needless to say, it’s very important to let your skin repair itself during the night. And even better: to give it a helping hand. 

Before going to sleep I take good care of my skin. First of all you need to cleanse it properly: don’t just do it quickly and don’t leave any traces of make-up. Keeping on make-up at night is a huge NO-no-no! After having removed all traces of make-up, tone your skin and leave it breathe for five minutes. Then you can apply a nightly repair aid such as Kiehl’s Midnight Discovery or Sampar’s Nocturnal Rescue Mask. Leave it sink in for a few minutes (you’ll feel your skin absorb the product) and apply your nightly moisturizer. 

Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate is a night serum that will help your skin repair itself at night and will hydrate and balance your skin with its ingredients consisting mostly out of natural oils (99.8% natural products). The smell of lavender is quite overpowering, which is of course because of the lavender oil in the ingredient blend. Lavender is a great anti-stress ingredient and is a great aid when it comes to repairing your skin. Squalane and Evening Primrose Oil are two other main ingredients that both hydrate your skin and will restore its moisture balance. The texture of this oil serum is quite runny and spreads well on your face, so you only need two drops of this. The drop dispenser is quite easy to use and will help you get the right dosage. Be sure not to use too much as this still is an oil and should be used in moderation to prevent break-outs. Just rub the oil between the palms of your hands and apply it evenly on your whole face, but leave out the eye area. Let it work its way into your skin and apply moisturizer after. This is not a miracle overnight worker, but it is a great serum to maintain a healthy complexion. Don’t expect any overnight decrease in redness or blemishes: this one is maintaining your skin for you in the long run. I would recommend getting a sample first if you’re uncertain on how your skin will responds to this, as I am not sure what this would do to overall oily skin types. I don’t apply it on my forehead as mine is quite oily, but apply it generously on my cheeks which are super dry. Take your time to massage it in. You can use it nightly if you want, but I like to use it especially when I’ve had a stressy day as the oils (and especially the lavender) help relax me and my skin. This product can be bought online at kiehls.be (or .com or .nl or whichever extension your country has!) or in the Kiehl’s stores in your country & is priced at €39.00. I am guessing that one bottle can last you a year as you’re only using one or two drops a time & I’m not using it every single night.  

Sampar’s Nocturnal Rescue Mask is an anti-blemish nocturnal mask designed especially for combination and oily skin and it truly is right up my alley! Apply this on a freshly washed face. Don’t use too much product and work it in on the areas that can use some help (oily skins can cover the whole face, combination skins can mostly do the T-zone like I tend to do). Use circular motions until you’ve spread the product onto the desired area. Wait for five minutes until the product is fully absorbed; you’ll notice right away as your skin will feel a bit tighter. I add my regular night cream on top to ease the tight feeling. In the morning you can just wash your face as you normally would. This product does not work super quickly (it’s not a peel); you need to use it regularly for good results. Lentil extract will slow down sebum production and unclogs your pores, which is why you’ll find your complexion to be less oily. The horse chestnut extract in the formula also tightens pores and reduces redness. My face has been less oily since using this product almost nightly on my T-zone and my chin area (which is prone to break outs) has cleared up a bit. This is a great product for when you truly need to take extra care of oily skin with redness and bigger pores. Super effective peels which give result after one night are not okay for nightly use, so it’s great that this mask has been totally approved to use every night. You don’t need an awful lot with each use so you’re good to go for a while with just one bottle. Overall I’m happy about this one and would recommend it to anyone with normal, combination or oily skin. This one is priced at just €29.00 and is available online at sampar.com or in Planet Parfum in Belgium. For a funny movie with more info on how to apply the mask, click here. 

I’m sure I don’t need to introduce Sampar anymore. It’s a Parisian brand with a lovely pink packaging, and it’s probably most known for the Glamour Shot line. You can read reviews on some Glamour Shot products here and here. They recently added a new product to their Essentials range: the So Much To Dew Midnight Mask. (I love the name!)

The mask promises to deeply hydrate your skin, restoring it to its ideal moisture levels. The active ingredients are:

• Smart Hydrating Complex: mimics the skin’s hydrolipidic film, locking water with cutaneous cells & restoring skin’s moisturization.
• Hyaluronic Acid Capsules: diffuses hydration, tonifies & replenishes skin.
• Urban Advance Complex: blend of shea butter serum, mint endorphin & probiotic sugar. Acts as an anti-oxidant shield. 

Awesome promises, but does it really work?

The mask is applied with a brush you have to turn from OFF to ON. Gently squeeze to release some product. Don’t forget to lock the brush again before applying the mask onto your face, as I noticed some extra product to come out when brushing it on. And you don’t need a lot of this.. you should only apply a thin layer. The product has a distinct smell (can’t put my finger on it) & applies smoothly. It’s very shiny & gets a bit sticky after a few minutes, which causes some minor itching sometimes. However, that’s really it. It’s not completely comfortable, but it’s not uncomfortable either. After applying, rinse off the brush with luke warm water. You have to leave this mask on overnight to work its wonders. The first time I literally sticked to my pillow. The less product you use (see, I learned it the sticky way), the more comfortable your night’s rest will be. Rinse off whatever’s left the next morning and admire your baby soft skin. I’m amazed by the results, as again this Sampar product does what it promises to do. €39.00 is a mid-range price tag, but doesn’t seem steep for the amount of product you get & the way it actually does work. I recommend applying this one just twice a week (maximum!). 

I noticed an awesome sale on the Sampar webshop! Until February 12, you get 25% off all products (expect for gift sets) with the code SALES13. And no worries if you’re sad about the gift kits, because those have amazing value as well.