Review: Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser

The Low Down

I've been using this product since my mid-teens and it's quite a hard product to recommend because I know little people who actually use this.  This may be because it only comes in one 'shade' or that Botanics does not specialise in make-up products.  I wanted to share the Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser with you because I think it's about time I revealed to you my favourite summer product. 

What Do They Claim?

"Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser is a lightweight tinted moisturiser that adds light diffusing particles, giving skin a more even radiant tone whilst helping to maintain skin elasticity" -Boots.com

"Ginkgo: This extract contains a complex of anti-oxidants  shown to stimulates microcirculation and protects skin.  Ginkgo boosts and guards.  Echinacea protects collagen" - Packaging

 

How did it work for Cherry?

This has been a summer staple for a long while now; I enjoy the slightly refreshing herbal scent, it feels like a super light foundation that blends into the skin to light-weight 'nothing-ness'.   It gives my skin a subtle glow and evens out my skin tone well.  
 

Below are two pictures, the first is of my bare face and the second is my face with the tinted moisturiser applied. 

 My bare face

With tinted moisturiser applied

 

How to use this product 

It's perfectly adequate to use your clean fingers for this product but you can treat it as your usual foundation. 

When applying this product, I like to use a primer underneath (i.e. an anti-redness or mattifying one) and sometimes a finishing powder on tops.  Depending on my skin condition I will use a concealer but this isn't always necessary.

You can then go on to continue your make up routine as you please.

 

Cherry's Final Verdict

I would recommend this product to anyone who has similar skin tone to me (see bare faced picture).  In the winter I am an NC20 in MAC and usually the first or second tone of a foundation colour range, however in the summer I will turn to one/two shades darker.  When I am ghostly porcelain in the winter I cannot touch this product because it will not match the rest of my skin.  I would say that this is perfectly suitable for those who are darker than myself as it will add a great glow and even out the skin tone. 

The Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser will last you through two summers (from my experience) and I do favour this over Benefit's You Rebel as it's non-greasy and gives a greater coverage. 

What I find interesting are the claims for boosting Ginkgo and protection from free radicals.  It's hard to measure these claims but I've heard of the benefits of both Ginkgo and Echinacea.  Gingko extracts guard your skin from 'free radicals' which are molecules that destroy tissue and age skin in time.  These are given off through pollution and toxic chemicals which we face often in a busy and urban lifestyle.  If this product really helps to protect the skin then it might be a good investment.  Echinacea has also been known to keep skin tissue strong and protects collagen and while I can't measure this, it sounds good enough for me. 

The one gripe I have about the Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser product is that it doesn't contain any UV filters or SPF therefore I had to apply a moisturiser that uses an SPF before hand.  I don't find this bothersome as such because I have  a habit of using a my SPF moisturiser before everything but I would be happier if this product contained it, therefore if I chose not to use it that day, I wouldn't be worrying about sun damage. 

With the added skincare benefits and cheap price of £4.49 (from Boots), I think this product is worth picking up and trying out.  You can even use this in the winter to bronze around your face or it can be used all over the body when your tan is  starting to fade! 

I award the Botanics Instant Glow Tinted Moisturiser a 4.5/5.  It loses half a point for being restricting in colour shades and containing 0 SPF but otherwise, this is a fantastic product. 

What's your favourite tinted moisturiser?

Peace,

Cherry