Liken caring for skin to caring for yourself when poorly, and think of your night cream as the comfy, cosy blanket under which you sneeze through Homes Under The Hammer

This was meant to be a column on overnight face masks, but it didn’t work out like that. Over two months, I tried 45 examples (costing from under a tenner to 100-odd quid) and found not even three I could bring myself to recommend. A shame, because I love the idea, ease and great promise of a transformative bedtime potion that leaves skin soft, glowing, dramatically smoother and firmer by morning, but in practice I couldn’t see how they brought any more to the party than a decent night cream, and frequently, much less.

So let’s talk about my favourite night moisturisers instead. Controversially, I’m of the opinion that they needn’t be expensive. A night cream’s primary function is to keep skin moist, balanced and supple without breakout. It doesn’t need to underlay makeup or protect from the sun. Liken caring for skin to caring for yourself when poorly, and think of serum as the curative medicine and your night cream as the comfy, cosy blanket under which you sneeze through Homes Under The Hammer. Marks & Spencer’s (vegetarian, mostly vegan) Formula skincare is quite brilliant for the price (they’ve got a big-deal cosmetic scientist at the helm, but are shy about saying so), and arguably the best product is Ultimate Sleep Cream (£22 for 50ml), a scientifically sound moisturiser with a soft, buttery texture that leaves my face still comfortable and bright come the morning. I use it often on my dry skin, though oilier types should swerve it.

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Newer and more versatile is Beauty Pie’s superb Jeju Overnight Moisture Superinfusion (£9.69 for 50ml to Beauty Pie members), a hydrating, Korean-made whipped balm for all skin types, from dry to oily, that contains no mineral oils or animal derivatives. I’m so impressed by the dewy, non-greasy texture, and immediate perkiness of my skin, that I’ve managed to get through an entire jar – pretty rare when I have a pile of luxury creams to test.

Also nailing skincare right now is Superdrug. Every one of its own-brand lines has at least one fantastic product: Naturally Radiant Renewing Night Cream (£5.99 for a bumper 75ml tub) is as great a buy as its stablemate liquid exfoliant. Light and fresh, it contains fruit acids to smooth away dull, rough textured skin without irritation. I’ll let you know if I ever strike gold on the mask front.

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