Cult Beauty advent thread - it's finally time!

[PanicAtTheBigTesco]

Thread for anyone who has the Cult Beauty 2022 advent calendar and would like to discuss contents.

In line with the waifs and strays thread I suggest no earlier than 7am for discussing that days contents?

I'm away for part of the month so might not be terribly active but we were cutting it fine for starting a thread!

One more sleep 🎄

I already use their hyaluronic acid which I really rate so delighted with this..

With the hyaluronic acid, I splash my face with water first (someone on here said it makes it more effective). I wonder should I do the same for this?

Another new brand to me but keen to give this a go. Sounds like the perfect December treat for my skin!

I know I may have moaned about all the skin products but I have to say my skin is feeling so much better than it was.

I’m not that into hair stuff - whatever I try mine will always be thin and flat. But I’m a bit intrigued by todays so will give it a go later.

I love hair products and I’ve been looking forward to this one! Think I’ll try it out today!

Intriguing!

The bottle looks great. I don't use hairspray though. I'll give it a go.

I have a full size of this. You’re supposed to spray liberally over wet hair and then blow dry/straighten. It’s heat activated so the blow drying is essential. I’m really cack handed though so had to go in with straighteners too. If anything it worked too well because my hair was ironed a bit too flat!

Thanks @Jellycats4life

I would have just used it as hair spray.

Update - used the dream coat this morning and my hair is very swishy & shiny. I’d definitely recommend! 😊

Today's looks nice and will definitely get used. Not entirely sure the packaging needed to be so impenetrable though. Took about 10 mins to open and I nearly broke a nail. Had to go on the hunt for a pair of scissors in the end.

I’m a fan of the ordinary but haven’t tried anything from its big sister brand. Happy with today!

Oh I didn't realise it was linked to The Ordinary, that's interesting to know.

Just used the WOW hair stuff and have to admit it feels nice, fewer flyaway bits and nice and shiny. That could be because I used a hairdryer and straighteners rather than my usual wash and go look but even so I am quite impressed.

Yes, NIOD is one of the Deciem brands, along with The Ordinary and Hylamide (although I think they’ve just discontinued the entire Hylamide range? Shame because their primer was a repeat purchase for me). NIOD stands for Non-Invasive Options in Dermal Science, which is pretty wanky 😄

Today’s product is £27

niod.com/en-gb/multi-molecular-hyaluronic-complex-mmhc2-serum-100365.html

Have been impressed by how many products so far have been full sizes. Although this product is so similar to the Inkey list serum, it’s not worth opening both at the same time.

How have people been getting on with the products? I opened the Zelens Vit D serum (smells pretty horrible but I’ll slap it on anyway) and the AB rich cream feels lovely in this cold weather. All of the other face products are being kept unopened until I use up other things.

I've opened everything so far and am using a combination of them all on any given day. I had run out of serum and was using old samples of other bits and bobs in anticipation of my calendar goodies so I'm making the most of them all.

Favourites so far are the Sunday Riley serum, the shampoo and conditioner which has really helped my itchy scalp and the Rich Cream. The only one I'm not fussed about is the Vit D serum but I think my bottle is a bit broken and it's really hard to get any out and when I do it seems really runny.

Just catching up, I'm staying at DP's until Thursday so opened every door up until then on Saturday and didn't think to take a picture of what each day was...

I meant to bring yesterdays hair product with me to try but forgot it! I've got my Xmas do on Friday though so will definitely give it a go on Thursday night.

So far I've used the shampoo and conditioner which I'm liking and the youth to the people moisturiser which I'm loving! My skin feels amazing. I've also tried the Inkey list acid this morning which made my skin feel even better so that is a winner so far (obviously not used it long enough to know if it will cause a breakout or anything). I had just started a new pot of Elemis night cream otherwise I would have been using the AB rich cream too.

I'm so jealous of you opening everything up til Thursday. My calendar is on the shelf above my desk, where I am WFH and I have to stop myself multiple times each day from having a peak. We're away overnight Sat to Sun this week so I'm going to crack open both days on Saturday (plus it's the Xmas extravaganza drawer) - can't bloody wait!

Nah I think the pump action is a bit too forceful! First time I tried it, the oil went everywhere. I now have to scrunch up my left palm in a really exaggerated way, pushing the pump down slowly with my right - it seems to stop the stuff splashing everywhere. It is a thin oil too.

Ha yes mine is also in my office at home it's soooo tempting to go and have a peek throughout the day!

I'm a little bit unsure about today's item. I've never really got on with retinol, always makes my skin dry and red but I wonder if I go all in, too much, too soon. Does anyone have any advice, apart from start slowly?

Definitely start slowly, one day on, 2-3 days off. You can also follow it up with a rich night cream as a buffer. I usually use retinol by itself at night because I once read somewhere you get better results if you don’t buffer it.

Be careful where you apply it also. I find that if I apply it too close to my nose/mouth, that’s where it can get dry and sore.

I am so impressed with this calendar, so many full sizes and some real big ticket items. Today’s is currently £60 from Cult Beauty, usually £75.

Really excited about Saturday’s mega drawer!

@AllTheBlackCoffee i would buffer with a layer of moisturiser before the retinal too ie a moisturiser, retinal, moisturiser sandwich. And only apply the smallest, pea size amount. And as Jellycats said, avoid sensitive areas including around the eyes.

the directions suggest starting with twice a week.

I’m also a bit nervous about today’s product but I know this gets really good reviews. I can have pretty sensitive skin, especially in the winter, so I think I’ll maybe work up to using this when I’m feeling brave sometime…and definitely with a buffer as suggested!!

I too have pretty sensitive skin so never tried anything with retinol in but didn't know about the possibility of using a buffer, I might pop this away until spring and then give a go very slowly then.

for those who haven’t used a retinol / retinal product before, it might be worthwhile starting with a low dose to build up tolerance before trying this. The ordinary have some very affordable, entry level retinol products.