'No7 HydraLuminous' Range Review

Hey,

So Boots slid into my emails the other week, and low and behold they have (yet another) skincare range! As I used to work for No7 back in the day, I don't have much to do with the brand nowadays, and this brand launch completely passed me by. But I was pleased to see they now had a range for beautiful, hydrated skin as I do feel it was something they were lacking:

"Formulated with No7's HydraDrench complex, powered by naturally derived plant hydrators, to instantly infuse skin with fresh hydration.

- The lightweight gel feels weightless on skin, instantly absorbing to leave skin feeling intensively quenched. - Hydrates for 72 hours. - The weightless pollution shield provides an invisible barrier against pollution particles, that can damage skin and dull skins natural glow. - Visibly fresh looking and glowing skin in 1 week".

I'm sold! I bought the Water Surge Gel for the day, the Overnight Recovery Cream, and the Water Concentrate.

Starting off with the day cream! When gels are done right they're brilliant, so I was hopeful about this apparently super duper hydrating gel. I (wistfully) wanted something similar to the gel cream Visionnaire by Lancome, though a much more affordable version - Lancome's cream retails at about £63, whereas No7's is £14 (though it's only a tenner at the moment!)

The texture is exactly what you'd expect - lightweight, wet and - unfortunately - a teensy bit sticky upon application. Smell-wise, it is again quite predictable - light and fresh, though I must say this is a tiny bit more fragranced than I'm used to.

Upon application, it did leave my skin feeling nicely hydrated, though I was expecting a bit more of a punch than this provided. Probably not heavy enough for my winter skincare, however this is definitely lightweight enough to be ideal for hydrating my skin through the warmer months. While I don't feel this moisturiser is really hydrating for me, it definitely manages to balance my skin effectively.

It doesn't come with SPF, so make sure you layer one over the top to protect skin.

I bought the cream version rather than the gel for the night cream as I don't mind going to bed a wet-looking mess. I liked how this sank into the skin without leaving my skin feeling thirsty for more product. It felt lightweight yet hydrating - perfect! It smelt exactly the same as the day cream, so if you want to avoid overly fragranced products I'd steer clear.

Last but not least, the Water Concentrate. This is designed to be used as a serum underneath your moisturisers. Boots says:

"A fresh waterlight concentrate, designed to provide a burst of supercharged liquid hydration when your skin needs it most, powered by pure hyaluronic acid. +100% skin hydration boost

- A lightweight, Water Concentrate powered by pure hyaluronic acid + No7s HydraDrench Complex , for an instant +100% skin hydration boost.

- The fresh, water light texture instantly drenches skin with liquid hydration, leaving skin feeling smooth and silky soft.

- Use for supercharged hydration when your skin needs it most.

- Contains Pollution Shield TechnologyTM- Visibly fresh and glowing skin in 1 week".

Upon application, this felt exactly how you'd expect - wet, lightweight, and hydrating. As it's packed with hyaluronic acid, you know this will do wonders for your skin - though the website says "use when your skin needs it most", I popped this under my moisturisers both day and night to keep my skin hydrated and plump.

Overall, it's exactly what I expected from No7 - affordable, reliable, and great for those on a budget. The only cream I was slightly disappointed in was the day gel, initially, as I was expecting something a bit more luxurious and the stickiness put me off. Having said that, as time went on I came to really like this moisturiser during the day as it's really comfortable and left my skin feeling "normal" - an amazing feat for my mixed oily/dry skin! It also sits under makeup nicely and it did make my skin "glow".

Would I buy it again? Probably not. But I would recommend it to those starting out on their skincare journey if they didn't have any major skin issues or concerns, and wanted something that would protect and hydrate their delicate upper dermis barrier (the one we often ruin with sunshine, overzealous scrubbing etc!)

The HydraLuminous range by No7 is out now and has been expanded into their make-up. They all appear to be under the Black Friday deals, too!

Melissa x