I tried the Boots beauty box Martin Lewis’ MSE says is worth over £100

18 August 2023 , 13:08

794     0

The £40 Boots Festival Edit

The last two beauty boxes launched by health and beauty retailer have sold out within days of launching. And their newest edit is sure to be no different as more and more shoppers catch wind of the money-saving hauls, particularly as Christmas approaches.

The latest box - - is the ultimate campers survival kit, but equally perfect for those looking to enjoy a pamper and try new products for a fraction of their retail price. from brands like NARS, Huda and Urban Decay, and was said to be worth £103.27. However, Martin Lewis’ Money Saving Expert team says it’s actually worth more.

Their team of bargain hunters and deals experts did the maths and calculated the box to have a value of around £115, which would save shoppers £75. But upon double checking, there are actually

Posting on the Money Saving Expert website, : “Boots is currently selling this 'Festival Edit'* beauty box for £40 online, while stocks last. It contains 15 items including lipstick, eyeliner, mascara and blush from big brands such as Nars, Urban Decay, Benefit and more – see below for the full list. Boots reckons the contents are worth £103, but we calculated it to be more like £115 if you were to buy all the products individually.”

They also urged shoppers to snap it up if they did want to get their hands on it, adding: “Similar boxes have sold out within a day or two in the past, so if you want this it's best to go quick.”

Martin Lewis issues 8-week warning to phone users ahead of huge price hikes

Here are the Money Saving Expert team’s calculations for the with sizes provided by Boots:

• Fenty Gloss Bomb Cherry Deluxe, 2ml – £4.44 based on full-size 9ml at Boots

• Patchology Serve Chilled on Ice eye gels single pair (full-size) – £3 at Boots

• Boots Glow Banana toner 100ml (full-size) – £2 at Boots

• Arkive The Reset dry shampoo 200ml – £8 at Boots (currently on sale, normally £12)

• Sol de Janeiro Cheirosa 62 mist 30ml – £6.33 based on full-size 90ml at Boots

• Shrine hair colour 20ml (full-size) – £7.79 at Lookfantastic (currently on sale, normally £12.99)

• Urban Decay All Nighter setting spray 15ml – £12 on Amazon

• It Cosmetics Confidence in a Cream 7ml – £4.20 based on full-size 60ml currently on sale at Boots

• Shiseido Controlled Chaos Mascaraink 4ml – £7.06 based on full-size 11.5ml at Lookfantastic

  Martin Lewis urges everyone with a mobile phone to send two texts to cut bills

• Shiseido Waso beauty sleeping mask 15ml – £7.19 based on full-size 50ml at All Beauty

• Grown Alchemist natural hydrating sunscreen 50ml (full-size) – £26.40 on Amazon (currently on sale, normally £33)

• Nars blush in 'behave' 2.5g – £15.88 based on full-size 4.8g at Lookfantastic

• Benefit 24hrs brow setter deluxe 2ml – £7 based on full-size 7ml at Boots

• 17. white liquid liner 0.25g (full-size) – £4.50 at Boots

The value MSE calculated was around £115, which is based on the lowest available price of the product when shopping around at various retailers like Amazon and LookFantastic. However, if you look at the full price of each product, it’s more like £131.59.

That said, it seems that MSE also forgot to include the a full sized product in the box that would usually cost £20. This brings the maximum value of the box to £151.59.

The box contains brands like NARS, Huda and Patchology

I tried the box for myself and for £40, the . I have always wanted to try out one of the Huda liquid lipsticks after every influencer and their bestie was raving about them back in the 2010s. They’ve recently undergone a reformulation to make them even better and the shade is absolutely gorgeous. Not to mention the fact it’s worth half the cost of the entire box.

When it comes to festival essentials, if I could only take it would without a doubt be the , which I’ve been using for some time now. It’s pricey at £12 but I usually stock up when Arkive is on three for two. It’s the GOAT. Then I’d be bringing along the which has to be the TikTok-approved scent of 2023, right?

There’s nothing worse than waking up on the last day of a festival and looking haggard, so the would be my remedy. I can’t resist an eye mask and these ones are both affordable and effective.

Though we’ve not had much sun this year, SPF is still a non-negotiable, and the would definitely be finding a space in my Uniqlo crossbody. I’ve really enjoyed using their gel cleanser recently and the formula of their sunscreen is just as dreamy - and it’s worth £33 usually!

And to keep all that gorgeous glowy festival makeup in place, I’d be reaching for the , because we all know how good it is and the minis are perfect for on the go.

My top five festival essentials

That said, this beauty box is by no means reserved for festival season. Those eye patches are ideal for that night after you spent longer than anticipated in the pub, and the body spray is the best handbag size.

As for the rest of the box, the only thing I won’t use is the for the simple fact that I don’t like banana-scented products. The is already in my cosmetics bag alongside the and

But there are also plenty of other retailers offering their own twist on these money-saving beauty boxes, too. currently has a mega haul of £200 worth of products for just £40, while of skincare saviours for just under £80, which is worth over £400.

However, if you enjoy surprises, premium skincare brand has launched a that contains £122 worth of products. For fans of celeb-approved skincare, it offers a whopping saving of over 80 per cent on the RRP.

Still eyeing up the though? You can and save around £110 on the contents.

Bethan Shufflebotham