Friday 29 April 2011

Burt's Bees Radiance Range

I was recently invited by Burt's Bees to trial the entire Radiance range of products for their Facebook page trial team. I have never used all the same products from the one range before (I'm a bit of a skincare tart - I like to spread my love around!), so it was a real treat to trial the Burt’s Bees Radiance range. The hero ingredient of this range is royal jelly, which Burt's Bees claims boosts your natural glow.



The claims According to Burt’s Bees, when used in skincare, Royal Jelly can help enhance skin texture and smoothness, whilst reducing the appearance of fine lines. It has antioxidant properties and is beneficial to overall health and anti-aging programs.

The range The Burt's Bees Radiance range is comprised of 9 different products, outlined below

  •  Burt’s Bees Radiance Facial Cleanser RRP $24.95 (175ml, 99.2% natural) Reveal your skin's radiance. I found this to be a very gentle, non drying cleanser that effectively cleansed my face.  It is of the consistency of custard - it looks creamy but is actually quite foaming. It contained jojoba beads for exfoliation but I found that these melted on contact with my skin so did not really offer much exfoliation. I was quite happy with this cleanser but wasn't overly impressed with the fragrance. It has a fruity fragrance - which was okay - but I think the scent of some of the underlying ingredients overpowered this and made it smell quite strange. Scent aside, I probably would buy this again as it really did do its job.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Toner RRP $24.95 (175ml, 100% natural) Cleanse skin, leaving it feeling fresh and nourished! I loved this toner! I am not really much of a toner user - I don't see the point in them - but this one was lovely. It smelt delightful - both fruity and floral. It was non drying. It whisked the remnants of the cleanser off and removed the cleanser scent which lingered slightly. One evening I was too lazy to cleanse so just used this and found it was very effective as a light cleanser (I wasn't wearing makeup at the time). It was perfect for use just before the serum as it helped the serum spread easily. I can definitely see myself buying this toner again.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Serum RRP $34.95 (13ml, 99.86% natural) Bring out skin's natural radiance by next month. This is another product in the radiance range that I absolutely loved - actually it is my favourite product in the range. This is a gorgeous serum, with next to no fragrance, that absorbs really well into the skin. I used it both morning and night and found that it was not at all greasy. I found that it really seemed to plump out my fine lines and left my skin looking so smooth. I can definitely see myself buying this serum again in the future.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Eye Creme RRP $34.95 (14g, 99% natural) Radiance in the blink of an eye. This was quite a light eye cream that absorbed really well into the skin and left the eye area feeling slightly tightened. I was very impressed with the feel of the cream but I had serious issues with the smell of the eye cream and because of this I really don’t see myself using it again. Other than the smell, it is a fantastic eye cream, but i just couldn’t get passed the scent. It had the same fruity fragrance as the rest of the range but one of the underlying ingredients must have been contributing to the smell that I didn't like - it reminded me of barn yard smells. I have seen reviews of this by other people and they haven't complained about the smell so it is possible that it was a reaction to my skin's chemistry that was causing the smell...whatever it was, I didn't like it.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance SPF 15 Day Lotion RRP $39.95 (55g, 98.22% natural) The royal treatment for your face, plus protection from the sun. I really liked this moisturiser. It was very lightweight, absorbed easily into my skin, was not at all greasy. It has a bit of a fruity fragrance but it is not offensive. It contains SPF15. I would have preferred SPF30, but SPF15 is sufficient for incidental exposure (ie if I am walking to my car, hanging out the washing). If I know there is a chance I will be getting more sun exposure I will always wear sunscreen, anyway, so the SPF15 is sufficient. I can definitely see myself purchasing this again in the future.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Night Creme RRP $39.95 (55g, 99% natural) Wake up to renewed radiance. I really liked the night creme as well. It was lightweight and absorbed quickly and easily which was great as it meant that it didn't end up on the pillow. In the morning my skin looked so hydrated and refreshed, with the fine lines filled out. It had a slight fruity fragrance - almost bubblegum like, but nothing too strong or offensive. I would definitely purchase this again.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Exfoliating Body Wash RRP $19.95 (350ml, 99.2% natural) Wash away dull, reveal radiance. This was a gentle body wash that was non drying. It contained jojoba beads for exfoliation but I found they melted instantly on contact so offered no exfoliation. It also contains fruit acids for exfoliation, and these may have worked but I didn't notice and difference whilst using the body wash. fragranced shower gels. If I ever develop sensitive skin i would definitely consider this again in the future.


  • Burt’s Bees Radiance Body Lotion RRP $24.95 (177ml, 99.02% natural) A healthy radiance fit for a queen. I absolutely loved how my body looked when I used the body lotion, it gave it such a sexy, flattering sheen. The body lotion contains mica, which is what gives the sheen. It absorbed easily and left my skin silky to touch but I didn’t really like the smell. On my skin it smelt a bit like stale perfume or deodorant and this smell lingered for a while. If I can cover the smell with perfume then I would keep using this as it will be worth it due to how gorgeous it makes my skin look. 


  • The range also contains a Day Creme; however, I did not trial this.
    Overall impressions I loved how natural this range is. Each product has listed on its packaging what percentage of natural ingredients it contains, and the percentages range from 98.2-100% natural. I was very impressed with the range and found that all of the products did exactly what they were described to do. The only disappointment with the range has been the smell of some of the products – I am not sure whether it was the product itself, or a reaction to my skin chemistry but some of the products did not smell nice on me at all, which was a shame, because other than that they were so lovely to use.

    So, did the range live up to its claims (Royal Jelly can help enhance skin texture and smoothness, whilst reducing the appearance of fine lines. It has antioxidant properties and is beneficial to overall health and anti-aging programs)? I definitely think that it improved my skins texture and smoothness – it really did seem to soften my skin and give it an overall glowing sheen. I guess it really did look quite radiant. My fine lines definitely seemed reduced – especially on the forehead – they just seemed to be really plumped out. Two weeks of use is too soon to say whether the range has had much effect on anti-ageing, but so far the range really does seem to be improving the appearance of my skin. I really recommend this to anyone who needs a boost to their complexion, who has fine lines that need ironing out, and who prefers to use natural products as this is a nearly completely natural range that lives up to its claims!
    I will be putting up more detailed reviews of each product shorty, so check back here for the links.

    Stockists In Australia, Burt's Bees is available from David Jones, Myer, Priceline, pharmacies and health food stores. Or you can buy the range from Amazon.
    If you would like some more detailed information on royal jelly, you may be interested in my blog article- The use of royal jelly in skincare

    All opinions stated in this blog are my own. I have no affiliation with any company discussed in this blog and received no remuneration for my comments. These products were provided for consideration by Burt's Bees for their Facebook Trial Team.