As a lover of all things beauty without quite the bank balance to keep up, I was very excited to see a piece in thelondonpaper about a new site which allows you to try out brand spanking new beauty products for as little as £1. Sound to good to be true?

It's not. LatestInBeauty.com have realised that we're not all convinced by shiny glossy adverts who tell us 'you will have clearer skin, with no wrinkles, just by using this cream!', particularly when they're airbrushed to the point that it's a little insulting and haven't had a wrinkle in their life because they're 20 years old and already using Botox.

So Latest in Beauty have created a fantastic service, teaming up with plenty of beauty brands to keep anyone happy, to offer samples f beauty products. Yes, you can sometimes get samples in the bigger department stores - but not always, and not without listening to the hard sell first. Simply register on the site, then take a look through the categories - Skin care, Make up and fragrances, and Hair and body. Choose one product from each, and for a £1 text you will get your three samples delivered to your door. You can do this once a month, so choose wisely!

So for my first month, I tried:

• Estee Lauder Idealist Pore Minimising Skin Refinisher
• Christina Aguilera fragrance
• Elemis Vitamin Rich Body Lotion

When I say samples, I mean samples. The Estee Lauder product came in seven sachets - one a day for a week. The Elemis tube was the tiniest thing I've ever seen, but very cute and would be great for travelling! The fragrance was like the small sample tubes you get in department stores, which is actually pretty handy for carrying around in my handbag.

I wasn't keen on the fragrance (too strong, and I adore Vera Wang's Princess too much) and I've tried Elemis products before and knew they were good, so the cream is nearly finished. My favourite was the Estee Lauder Idealist - a gorgeously light, citrus-scented gel like substance which sank into my skin beautifully and felt amazing. The sachets were very generous, so one would be enough for face and neck; my skin has never felt softer and I didn't want to put moisturiser over the top for fear of losing the lovely silkiness. I felt brighter and fresher and after putting the first application on in the evening, I woke up the next day still feeling soft and smooth. A definite must-buy!

Looking forward to next month when I can try another three beauty freebies...