Darphin have two brand new additions to their Lumiere Essentielle skincare range and they are absolutely gorgeous. Luxe-feeling, sweet-smelling and perfect for the summer months. There’s a micellar cleanser, light in texture but rich in beautiful essential oils, and a duo of masks that purify and then illuminate the skin in just ten minutes.

I’m already a big fan of the Lumiere Essentielle range; it’s a very clever one, I think, because it champions the gorgeous oil blends that Darphin is so famous for but presents them in lighter, fresher textures. For anyone who has the fear of using oils or balms, thinking that they’ll be heavy or perhaps clogging on their skin, this range provides some (very decadent and fragrant!) reassurance.

Take the Serum, for example; it contains a blend of radiance-enhancing essential oils, but these are suspended in a water base. So it feels weightless and almost sparkly, yet you still have the powerful aromatherapy hit. (And we’re talking full-on sensory overload, here, with an energising, zingy sort of smell that’s balanced with calming, woody notes. It’s optimistic and rather addictive and the same blend is present throughout the whole range.)

Then there’s an Oil Gel-Cream; again, light in texture but rich in the oil blend that Darphin does so well. And the new products continue this lightness theme brilliantly – the Illuminating Micellar Cleanser feels silky to the touch and is luscious to massage in, but it’s fresher than a cleansing balm and splashes off easily. The duo of masks look like traditional clay-based and gel masks, but the clay texture is almost bouncy and doesn’t set hard on your face.

All of the products have the sort of uplifting feel to them that makes your beauty routine a joy to carry out – they feel energising, brightening and deeply hydrating. It helps, I suppose, that the chosen Essential Oil Elixir to compliment the Lumiere Essentielle range is Tangerine; it’s one of my all-time favourites with its zingy, citrussy notes.

I feel sprightly and summery just writing about this range!

So more of an introduction, then, to the brand new products. The Micellar Cleanser first, as I suppose it should be if we were going by order of appearance. This is a fresh gel that transforms to a silky oil when you start to massage it in on dry skin. (Make sure that skin is dry, because water turns it milky and you want to get the full makeup/dirt-dissolving effect before you start to rinse it off.) If you love the idea of Darphin’s Aromatic Cleansing Balm but want something that’s more of a quick everyday cleanser rather than a lengthy, decadent treat, then the Illuminating Micellar Cleanser is a lovely option. It smells gorgeous but is quick and easy to use. It won’t remove makeup as deeply as a thicker balm, but equally it doesn’t require so much effort if you just want to splash-and-go. (Coined a new phrase there?)

The Instant Purifying and Illuminating Mask sounds as though it might be your typical “two in one” but it’s not: it is, as I said earlier, two separate masks. So I suppose two for one, rather than two in one. Although obviously the pot is halved, so it’s two halves in one. Which is one. But let’s move on from the maths, because you know what I’m trying to say here, and I actually think that the masks make an excellent and very well-balanced duo.

It’s a very spa-like concept, using one mask after another and I do like that both products are presented together.  The first de-clogs and helps to refine skin texture and then the second boosts moisture and radiance; so many facials I’ve had follow this sort of trajectory. But the kaolin-based Instant Purifying Mask is such a lovely surprise in that it doesn’t require a chisel to remove it; my skin didn’t feel at all stripped after rinsing it off. I’ve been so caught up in the purifying clay idea that I’ve only just read up about the other benefits of this one: algae extract to help with radiance and botanical root extract to nourish the skin. It certainly does feel more comforting than most clay masks I’ve used…

And the feeling of the very cool, fresh gel mask afterwards is fabulous; the Instant Illuminating Mask feels like a sort of sparkling prosecco jelly. Dynamic and (can’t use the word zingy again, it’s so eighties) fizzy and wonderfully bright. This one has the essential oil blend in and so you get the great aroma as well as some serious skin-plumping – a load of hyaluronic acid, which as we all know by now (repeat after me!) holds in moisture and helps to smooth out fine lines, and Vitamin E to help protect the skin from various damaging influences. (My current damaging influence is Sam from Pixiwoos, who makes me want to buy absolutely everything she wears. But moving on.)

I’ve been layering up the serum, elixir and oil gel-cream after removing the masks, but I should warn you that it creates a serious amount of moisture – better before bed than in the morning, although foundation on top of this lot does look pleasingly dewy and fresh.

You can find all of the Darphin Lumiere Essentielle range here online; you can receive an exclusive set of free samples with any purchase if you use the code LUMIERE at the checkout.

This post contains paid-for advertorial with Darphin.