The beauty empties series continues with a focus on brightening products I’ve recently come to the end of. From vitamin C cleanser to antioxidant serum and chamomile conditioner, many of this month’s empties work to brighten skin or hair. It’s definitely a recurring theme for me, with one of my earlier beauty empties posts highlighting radiance-inducing beauty products.

Buff Kid Hand & Body Butter

I received this tin of hand and body butter in the Natural Beauty Box a while ago yet it’s only recently that I re-discovered it during my house move. Once I’d started dipping back into this ultra-rich butter it didn’t take me long to scrape out every last bit, slathering it all over my dry back, arms and legs. Featuring a delicious blend of essential oils including soothing lavender and calming mandarin, this all-natural butter really worked to keep dryness at bay. Plus the shoe polish style tin is easily recycled with household items. Although this is a bodycare product aimed at children I tend to stick to un-fragranced toiletries where possible for their delicate skin – and frankly this butter’s beautiful scent would be wasted on my 4-year-old. 50ml RRP £7.95

Caudalie nourishing body lotion

Size-wise this is at the opposite end of the spectrum: Caudalie’s 400ml bottle of body lotion lasted me several months of daily applications to arms and legs. There are many benefits to buying a bigger size of your favourite beauty products, from using less packaging (the bottle here is made of plant-based plastic) to benefitting from a better price per ml. This 98% natural lotion not only delivers on value but also on formula: light, easily absorbed, delicately fragranced with orange blossom (one of my favourite scents) and containing hydrating hyaluronic acid, I can’t fault this lotion – another great product from Caudalie. 400ml RRP £27.00

C-Berrica Vitamin C Ultra Glow Face Pads

Well I made short shift of these face pads soaked in AHA acids. Any skincare product featuring vitamin C, AHAs or with ‘glow’ in the name and I’m like a moth to a flame – and this product has all three! And after reading Caroline Hirons’ Skincare book I’m even more hooked on acids – the type you apply to skin for a chemical exfoliation action which works on dead skin cells to reveal a brighter complexion. The pads offer dual texture, one side to cleanse skin and improve texture, the other smoother side to soothe. They leave skin feeling drenched in the same way a sheet mask would which I don’t mind, but as a single use product and a pot which I got through in just under three weeks, I’m keener on the face powder from the same range which leaves my skin feeling fully cleansed and decongested. 20 pads RRP £8.49

Clinique fresh pressed renewing powder cleanser

Speaking of waterless beauty, here’s another vitamin C powder cleanser I trialled during my Clinique days, and along with the complementary Vitamin C 10% Daily Booster and Moisture Surge range it remains one of my favourite discoveries from this brand. Unfortunately as vitamin C can be unstable and degrades when exposed to oxygen, this ultra-fine powder comes in individual mixed material sachets so they’re anything but sustainable, so it’s annoying to admit that they do give my skin a non-drying thorough cleanse and brightening effect. 28 packets x 0.5g RRP £25.00

Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentre

One of my favourite discoveries of last year, I can’t believe it actually took me this long to test this iconic French pharmacy multi-tasker. From gentle makeup remover to hydrating moisturiser and soothing face mask, it’s a desert island staple. I mostly worked my way through the aluminium tube by using the Embryolisse lait-crème concentre as a cleanser. It satisfyingly feels like smearing natural yogurt over my dehydrated skin which went from frazzled to clean, hydrated and plumped. Like Caudalie’s Vinoperfect Serum which I’m regularly drawn back to, I will be re-visiting this cult classic. 75ml RRP £20.00

Greenvines antioxidant serum

Another post-move find from the depths of my under-the-bed beauty stash, this 100% natural antioxidant serum from Taiwan has, since I first reviewed it, been renamed to Know More Luminosity Serum. It feels like it’s a direct translation gone wrong, but I get the gist: it tackles dull skin for a brighter complexion. Containing lots of healthy sounding greens (broccoli sprouts extracts, cucumber, aloe vera), this light easily absorbed serum provides a satisfying boost of hydration.    

Klorane chamomile conditioner

The quest for a brightening effect doesn’t stop at my skin – it’s also pretty high up on my list when it comes to haircare benefits. As a blond-haired child my hair quickly turned to very dark blond in my teens, until I discovered the French equivalent of Sun-In in my twenties. Nowadays I leave my hair colour to professionals, but I’m still partial to brightening shampoos and conditioners, particularly in the summer. Klorane’s chamomile haircare range is a classic French pharmacy offering which feels pretty gentle, although I kept the conditioner to mid lengths and ends as my scalp can be on the sensitive side and my roots prone to oiliness. 200ml RRP £10.00

What are your beauty staples for a brightening result?

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