
The benefits of honey on the skin has been known for centuries and you are seriously missing out if you don’t have some honey skincare products in your routine. An ingredient that’s very much related to honey, but lesser known, is propolis; and it is also one of my most favourite skincare ingredients. If you would like to add some more honey or propolis into your skincare stash, here are some products to get you started.Farmacy Honey Potion Renewing Antioxidant Hydration Mask – £53 from Boots
This is a mask that was on my must-try list for so long before I got it. Everyone raves about it on Instagram, so I had very high hopes. They were dashed slightly as I was expecting it to wow me and it didn’t. It’s effective and it’s pleasant to use, but it doesn’t quite live up to the hype. It warms slightly when you apply it, which I like and find soothing, and it’s very easy to remove unlike some other honey face masks. It’s a real rejuventing rescue mask for the skin as it not only soothes, hydrates heals and nourishes, but it stimulates blood circulation too, that ‘awakens’ the skin.
Read my review of the Honey-Infused Gisou Lip Oil!
It’s a great antioxidant to combat oxidative stress from the environment, and it also contains that magical ingredient propolis. Propolis is essentially bee ‘spit’ – it’s the by-product found in the hive from their honey-making. It’s a powerful antiseptic and it really soothes and calms damaged or stressed skin. This is a really nice mask, but it wasn’t quite as amazing as I was expecting. Definitely one to add to your honey skincare list.SJO Skin Happy Honey Mask – £44 from SJO Skin
The SJO Skin Happy Honey Mask is reviewed here by me. It’s a mask that is so hyped amongst the Skinfluencer community on Instagram and there’s a lot of genuine love for it. However, the downsides outweigh the positives for me with this; but so many of the skincare creators I love and whose opinions I value love it, so this one is down to personal preference I think. For me it is just too sticky a mask for me to want to use it with any regularity. It is very effective in nourishing, conditioning and brighteniing the skin. It is calming too, but it could be much more so if they removed the abrasive coix seeds physical exfoliants. It’s a messy mask to use and remove, but this might not bother you. You do get great results from it!COSRX Propolis Light Ampoule – £20.50 from SKINSIDER
Back to the wonders of propolis, this is such a dreamy ampoule. An ampoule is like a serum but is a lot more concentrated so is more of a treatment than a daily serum. This one is incredibly hydrating with powerful Hyaluronic Acid, and soothing with it’s propolis. It’s light but also rich, and is non-sticky, so your skin will literally drink it in. It’s 83% Black Bee Propolis Extract, so if you’ve gone overboard on the acids and compromised your skin barrier, you’ll want to lather this on regularly. Fantastically affordable too. Lots of the best propolis products are K-beauty ones.Wishful Honey Balm Jelly Moisturiser – £37 from Boots
This is a really intensive moisturiser that I only used at night as it’s like a thick balm. It’s a rich moisturiser with a relaxing lavender scent. I wouldn’t say it has a jelly texture as that suggests something light and bouncy. It’s definitely more of a heavy balm. It’s such an effective moisturiser though, and your skin will be plump, hydrated and glowing by morning. It’s main ingredients are honey and niacinamide, another hero ingredient of mine that really minimises pores and improves skin texture. This mask hydrates, comforts, strengthens and clarifies the skin. Another great ingredient is turmeric, which is another great anti-inflammatory that also helps brighten dark spots. Finally, lavender-toned pearls give an illuminating sheen to the skin. It really works overnight at doing so many great things for your skin.Peach Slices Citrus-Honey Aqua Glow – £11.99 (plus huge import taxes) from Peach & Lily
This is a very strong contender for being my most favourite moisturiser OF ALL TIME. You can’t get it in the UK without hefty customs charges, so i’m awaiting my return to the US this year to re-stock so that I never run out again. If you like a hydrating gel-based moisturiser, this will blow you away. It has an awakening citrus scent and instantly plumps and hydrates your skin. It leaves it with a real dewy glow too. It’s honey formulation means it’s soothing, hydrating, nourishing, plumping and fortifying. Citrus extracts also brighten the skin. The way this leaves your skin is just incredible – the best dewy glow I get from anything! I’d happily use this every day for the rest of my life.Tosowoong Propolis Sparkle Ampoule – £17.21 from YesStyle
Another propolis K-beauty skincare gem is this one from Tosowoong. It’s so light and thin it could be an essence. I have used this for many years and it never fails to instantly soothe my skin, hydrate it to make it comfortable and minimise redness when I have a skin emergency. It’s a natural anti-inflammatory. This one is non-sticky and easily absorbed. It’s made with 80% propolis and also boosts glow with citrus oils and eucalyptus oil (another good antibacterial).
You can see more of what i’m loving over on my Instagram.