Beauty lovers, listen up. I’ve found a way to get a premium anti-ageing eye cream cheaper than one from Boots own brand without the need for discount codes, deal stacking or signing up for those annoying marketing emails.
The Medik8 Crystal Retinal Ceramide Eye 6 is usually £55, however, shoppers can get it for £4 as part of a ‘best ever’ beauty box deal. The coveted eye cream is featured in the Glossybox Summer Beauty Bag for 2024, which costs £40 - less than purchasing the eye cream individually.
It’s joined by a further four full sized products and five deluxe samples, racking up a value of over £150 . At £40, each product inside works out at £4 each, and since the lowest-value item featured is £4.72, it’s offering up some seriously impressive savings.
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First things first, the bag itself is gorgeous. The Glossybox branding is super subtle, with a coral-coloured body paired with pink straps. It’s generously sized and slightly padded, making it ideal for taking to the beach to carry all your summer essentials, and when summer is over, I’m going to use it to store my laptop and charging cables in.
Naturally, I was most excited about the Medik8 eye cream, since it’s the highest value item in the haul. I’d actually been eyeing it up for some time, and for the price of the limited edition Glossybox, I knew I’d never find it cheaper.
This nighttime eye cream contains ‘next-generation’ retinal, which is said to work ‘11 times faster’ and ‘deliver remarkable visible results in one use’. The potent formula offers powerful results without causing irritation to the delicate eye area so users can wake up to a more youthful-looking eye area with ‘fewer crow's feet, reduced puffiness and visibly brightened dark circles’. I’ve never applied anything quicker, and will absolutely be sharing my thoughts once I’ve used it long enough to see some results.
Another viral product that’s been on my wishlist was the Clarins Lip Oil, but I’d been reluctant to buy it at its full price of £25 in case I didn’t like it. However, this purse-friendly version inside the Glossybox bag has given me the chance to try it before committing to full size - and I absolutely will be committing to a full size. I got the honey version of the oil and it’s such a dreamy formula, hydrating the lips while delivering high shine - I’ve no doubt this is going to be a staple in my summer beauty routine.
Other products I’m really looking forward to using include the Natasha Denona Mini Bronze Palette , worth £26. It contains five golden hour summer-ready shades that can create a diverse range of looks, making it ideal for taking on holiday when you don’t want to pack big eye shadow palettes. And let me tell you, the Weleda Regenerating Body Butter ? I’ve never smelled anything so delicious in my life. It’s pomegranate scented, so smells really luxurious and is reminiscent of high-end perfumes.
That’s not even the half of it, with a Hawaiian Tropic body mist, Schwarzkopf Professional Bonacure Hair Treatment,e.l.f. Suntouchable! Invisible Sunscreen SPF 30 and Brushworks Heatless Curler also featured in every single bag. But here’s where you can be a bit savvy.
There are two variations of the Glossybox Summer Beauty Bag you can choose from. One contains a Matrix shampoo and conditioner duo, while the other stars a Redken leave-in shampoo, and Maria Nila dry shampoo. Ultimately, you should choose whichever appeals to you, but one set is worth more than the other.
The Matrix products are worth £6.47 each, while the Maria Nila dry shampoo is worth £17.81 alone. So if you’re looking to maximise your savings, I’d suggest selecting the ‘cleanse and nourish’ option .
Here’s everything inside the Glossybox Summer Beauty Bag:
Clarins Lip Oil / deluxe size / worth £5
Hawaiian Tropic (Sunset Serenity Cooling Edition) / full-size / worth £12
Schwarzkopf Professional Bonacure Hair Treatment / deluxe size / worth £4.99
Medik8 Crystal Retinal Ceramide Eye 6 / deluxe size / worth £54
e.l.f. Suntouchable! Invisible Sunscreen SPF 30 / deluxe size / worth £5
Brushworks Heatless Curlers, x2 Scrunchies & Clip / full-size / worth £14.99
Weleda Regenerating Body Butter / full-size / worth £21.95
Natasha Denona Mini Bronze Palette / full-size / worth £26
Cleanse & Nourish Selection (Option 1)
Redken Spray One United Multi Benefit Leave in Shampoo / deluxe size / worth £4.72
Maria Nila Dry Shampoo / deluxe size / worth £17.81
Style & Perfect Selection (Option 2)
Matrix Food for Soft Shampoo / deluxe size / £6.47
Matrix Food for Soft Conditioner / deluxe size / £6.47
The edit has received a rating of 4.63 stars from dozens of reviews, with one commenting: “My bag arrived today and I was really surprised at the quality of the items that I received. I absolutely loved the Hawaiian Tropic fragrance mist it smells amazing and the other items were equally as good.”
Another described it as the ‘best box ever’, adding: “Loved loved all the products and the bag is a lovely colour, well done Glossybox.” With another thrilled with the contents, writing: “Loved this limited edition. The bag is lovely and all the items are great and exactly as I expected, with a few additional treats like someone else mentioned, some tic tacs, a strawberry hydration sachet and a can of peach and orange prebiotic drink.
“This is the best limited edition box that glossybox has done for a while. You had to choose if you wanted dry shampoo and the redken spray or the shampoo and conditioner. I choose the dry shampoo and redken spray and received both.”
One shopper seemed disappointed to have not received the dry shampoo in their box, though it's unclear which option they selected to receive. They left a four-star review, commenting: “I was surprised at how quickly I received my order! Fabulous summer holiday edition, Im pleasantly surprised that I love all the items and the bag is fab. I'm a little disappointed that the dry shampoo is missing. I do however love all the little extra treats I received. All in all it's a brilliant box!”
Elsewhere, Boots has released a Limited Edition Buyers Picks Beauty Box, which saves shoppers over £100 on the contents. The £45 haul features a selection of products picked by shopping experts at Boots, including some seriously impressive brands like Fenty Beauty, Sol De Janeiro, Liz Earle, r.e.m beauty and more. The retailer suggests the box is worth £156.95, meaning shoppers save around £110 on the RRP .
For something a little more luxurious, there’s the limited edition Sun Set Glow beauty kit from Liberty. Worth more than £377, beauty fans can snap it up for less than a third of the price at £115 , with a number of the products inside being worth between £30-45 each. Housed in a Liberty print wash bag, inside there are 11 products from the Liberty Beauty Hall - eight of which are full-sized - including brands like Ultra Violette, Sunday Riley and Dermalogica.
For me though, the Glossybox is such a great mix of products, with a good split between full sized and miniature products. It’s given me the chance to try out a number of products I’d been reluctant to shop at full price, and introduced me to new products, too. If previous years are anything to go by, this Glossybox Summer Beauty bag will soon be selling out, so if you’re considering getting it, you can take a look here.