When I hear the word 'toner', I still have mental flashbacks to my years as a teen. Having decided at the grand old age of 13 to follow the 'cleanse, tone, moisturise' routine I'd read about in Cosmo, I bought a bottle of cheap toner from Superdrug. Not only did this foul stuff reek of sulfur, but it was harsher than paintrstripper acid on my skin, leaving it drier than the Sahara desert.

Liz Earle's Instant Boost Skin Tonic couldn't be a more different experience. It's pleasantly packaged, in the signature turquoise colour of the Earle range and it smells just divine - like a cross between a freshly bathed baby and a floral garden. Containing chamomile, cucumber extract, vitamin E, it really does soothe your skin, and the added rose, geranium and orange essential oils also calm and refresh your spirit! After use, my face felt clean and fresh without being stripped of moisture.

Thumbs up to Liz Earle for not only refusing to test on animals but also refusing to use animal extracts in this product. The only downside, really, is the price - at £10 for 200ml, it's not going to break the bank, but it's not the cheapest product on the market either.