Honesty is very important to me when reviewing products so I want to mention that Bolt Beauty were incredibly generous in gifting me a Stackable to try with no obligation to post or review. I’m humbled to be able to try these. As you’ll know if you’ve read earlier posts of mine, I’m trying to make more eco conscious swaps throughout all aspects of my life. As I’ve had acne prone skin for 6+ years now skincare is one area I’ve struggled to find more environmentally swaps with formulas that I’d even be willing to try. Bolt’s range of products has been on my radar since last year and I’ve been really excited to give them a go. Whilst using these I used no other products apart from SPF. Read on to discover my experience with the products I tried.
- (Written June 2020) Eco Friendly Beauty Changes I’d Like To Make On A Budget
Reasons I Like Bolt Beauty As A Company
They’re an eco conscious company in many ways. They make zero waste skincare products. The drops are biodegradable and made from seaweed. The products are refillable and the packaging for these is also biodegradable which makes a refreshing change to all the single use plastic typically found in high street beauty products. The company is carbon neutral.
It made me happy to see they’d gifted products to accounts which promoted acne positivity. I absolutely love it when beauty brands promote skin inclusivity. This is something I feel strongly about as representation can have such a positive effect. The fact that Bolt aren’t afraid to be connected to real people with acne and scarring made me want to try their products even more.
First Impressions
The beautifully wrapped package arrived through my letterbox and was labelled as “100% recyclable” – it was a small carboard box with paper information leaflets and branded tissue paper. I was a little surprised that the Stackable was plastic, I thought it would be glass, but it is wonderfully compact and I can easily see myself reusing this regardless of if I fall head over heels in love with Bolt’s products or not.
Price
The Stackable included enough skincare for 3 day’s worth of usage. It retails at £15. 100 capsules of their cleanser and moisturiser retail for £30.00 each in a glass jar or £25 in a biodegradable packet. Their two serums are £42 each for 100 capsules in a glass jar or £38 in a bag. The average price per product is more expensive than the items in my current skincare routine.
My Experience With The 6 Filthy Clean Cleanser Capsules
There were many positives I felt when using this cleanser. These included: my skin felt clean without being stripped, my skin didn’t feel tight or dry after use and there was no stinging. There was no notable fragrance and it was definitely gentle. I personally didn’t love the silicone feeling of the Filthy Clean capsules which didn’t foam, nor were they creamy but this was new to me as I’ve never used a product of this consistency before. Whilst using I straight away thought these might suit someone who likes the texture of a cleansing oil. The cleanser was my least favourite of all the 4 Bolt products I tried but this comes down to personal texture preference.
My Experience With The 6 Mad About Moisture Moisturiser Capsules
This lightweight product which reminded me of a gel moisturiser felt hydrating without leaving my skin feeling sticky or as though I hadn’t used a moisturiser which I’ve experienced before. There was a slight essential oil scent to it. It didn’t pill when I added SPF over the top. It eased some minor dryness I had by my lower lip within 2 or 3 uses.
My Experience With The 3 Glow Don’t Shine Serum Capsules
When I first popped one of these open the almost essential oil type scent did throw me a bit as my usual skincare has no real smell. The texture was thicker than expected but felt wonderfully silky to apply to my skin. I had worried the presence of oils would break me out but didn’t experience this during my short time using them. However; it would take using a product for a longer time period for me to assess this properly. As I hadn’t used my typical oil control products I expected to have a shiny forehead by mid afternoon but 3 days into using these this didn’t happen so for me the “don’t shine” lived up to it’s name during this short trial period. Even after breaking a sweat exercising I still didn’t look shiny in the afternoon.
My Experience With The 3 Vitamin A Game Serum Capsules
Again, a thicker consistency than expected but this serum didn’t have the same essential oil type scent so I preferred this. I’ve used high strength prescription retinoids over my chin and jawline on and off for 12 months. I hadn’t used retinol across my whole face before and had concerns this might irritate or cause dryness. This serum did neither of those things when I used it consecutively 3 nights in a row. I felt like my skin looked particularly plump and glowy the morning after using these. I went to bed one night with a new, sore spot brewing. I expected it to become a white head overnight but instead the pressure behind it dissipated and it never reared its head. I liked these the most.
The Final Word
The capsules were easy to tear open without being messy or too fiddly and had just the right amount of product for 1 use. I didn’t think there would be enough in them as they looked so small. None of the products caused irritation in the 3 days I used them, whilst this may seem a very short space of time to note this, I have previously experienced irritation with products after one or two uses such as exfoliants or retinoids. I did note my skin felt very soft and I really enjoyed having such a simple routine which didn’t involve 5-ish bottles for a change!
Likes: environmentally friendly credentials, the brand’s skin inclusivity, the biodegradable capsules which I composted are fun to use, a simple routine that’s nice to do, these would be perfect for travel – especially flying as they wouldn’t count as part of a liquid allowance, nor would you have to worry about leaking! My skin also felt softer and more velvet-y for using these than with my routine skincare. Entirely irrelevant to performance but I love the pearly look of the capsules!
Dislikes: texture of the cleanser – but then I’m wary of oil textures so this comes down to personal preference, lack of smaller size products to try – it’s either 3 days worth or 50-100 days worth.
Rebuy Yes or No? The cleanser – I don’t think so. I’m finding it tough to say with the other products as whilst I’m incredibly grateful to have been gifted these to try, 3 days is hard to make a judgement. I’m wary of the presence of the oils and the scent of the Glow Don’t Shine serum as my skin is very acne prone and I’m conscious that £38-42 is quite a high price to give this a go. I wish it was possible to try a small amount such as 30 capsules as this would last a month and cost approximately £12.60 for the serums. I normally buy trial size products if I can that last roughly 4-6 weeks to see how I get on with them. If that was possible with Bolt I’d be buying the Vitamin A Game straight away to start with. I’d equally love for these to be stocked in Boots so I could spend my points on them!
These products have definitely given me something to think about, they’re innovative and better for the planet whilst feeling luxurious to use. I think this is important to note as, whilst I’m happy to stick to bar soap as an eco swap, it doesn’t necessarily feel very indulgent! Bolt will remain on my radar for the future as I work through my current skincare stash. I’ve previously reviewed other skincare products I’ve used as “hate” because they’ve totally not worked for me either they haven’t delivered results or I’ve found the formulas unpleasant to use. I feel like I can’t label these products with a definitive “rate or hate” after 3 days of usage but I will say that I wouldn’t want anyone to feel discouraged from trying these products as a result of reading this.
Comments Welcome
Forever Saving For A Rainy Day 
Thank you for such an in-depth review. It’s interesting to hear a first-hand product experience. I have been curious to try these capsules too as they’re so innovative, eco-friendly, and beautiful.
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Thank you so much! I’m really glad you found this an interesting read!
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