So you’ve done The Ordinary, you’ve done Glossier – what next? The niche skincare world has been a very dynamic place for the last years and continues to be so, with some of the brands going on to achieve major mainstream success. It is impossible to give a comprehensive and objective overview of what’s hyped in the beauty community right now, but I’ve lined up some brands that seem interesting to me at the moment, in case you want to do some exploring.

I’ve limited myself to lines I have tried at least one product from. There are also some obvious omissions (Verso and Tatcha for example), because I’ve talked about these brands in previous round-ups. I don’t know all the brands on the list well and they are not all favourites, so keep that in mind.

1. Drunk Elephant. If I had to guess, I’d say that this is the most hyped brand among the skinthusiasts at the moment. With good reason: this naturally inclined American line does its thing very well. I love their hydrating and vitamin C serums, the eye cream and the acid facial; the jelly cleanser and marula oil are also nice. The only product I’ve tried and not been that excited about is the TLC Framboos night serum, but it’s certainly not bad. I think B-Hydra epitomises Drunk Elephant’s appeal. Are there other, cheaper hydrating serums that work well? Yes, there are. But is there anything else that has such a nice texture, works beautifully on its own, mixed with other things, under a moisturiser, instead of a moisturiser, is completely non-irritating, truly provides long-lasting hydration and comes in perfect packaging? When I put it like that, there isn’t really much competition.

Drunk Elephant is known for their ‘suspicious six’ (including silicones, fragrance and essential oils) philosophy and while I understand the logic of ‘when in doubt, leave it out’, I’m with Caroline Hirons on wishing they’d tone down the rhetoric. The products are good enough without all this talk of ‘toxic’ ingredients, but their marketing team is excellent and clearly know that this sells (read Caroline’s Tango review to see why I’m not entirely comfortable with their stance). The other problem, if you aren’t in North America or Australia, is that the products are hard to get. It seems pretty certain they’ll come to Britain/Space NK this year, though, so at least Europe can rejoice.

2. Dr Barbara Sturm. This line by the German cosmetic scientist has been all over Instagram, Youtube and magazines recently. As most doctor lines, this is more clinical than green (although it’s paraben and mineral oil free). Looking at the products, it seems to be on the gentle side of clinical – think hyaluronic acid rather than retinoids. I own the discovery set and frankly, my initial impression is that this is way too expensive for what this is. The face cream is lovely, but 155 euro lovely? No. I was not wowed by the cleanser, scrub and eye cream in the set: they are all fine, but for that price, I expect more. Unfortunately, I have not tried the hyaluronic acid ampules – mine broke when travelling, so I cannot give you an opinion on that. What I can say is that 290 euros for a hyaluronic acid serum seems outrageous to me (and I’m a person who would consider paying that price for a skincare product): looking at the ingredient list, I cannot fathom what would warrant that price. If you have tried her products and love them, let me know why. It’s perfectly possible that I’m being too harsh here.

3. Dr. Jart+. I feel that the recent obsession with Korean skincare has calmed down a bit or at least plateaud. Regardless of the hype, there are many great Korean brands worth exploring and I wanted to mention Dr. Jart+. They have a sizable selection and yes, they do those innovative/gimmicky things that Korean brands often do. Rubber masks in milk shake packaging, anyone? The reason I include them here, however (and why I think they have staying power), is that they are great with no-nonsense moisturisers: whatever your skin type, I bet you’ll find something in the Ceramidin or Cicapair range that will work for you. It’s not super affordable, but compared to Barbara Sturm… In Europe, you can find them at Selfridges.

4. Herbivore. If you are looking for something Instagrammable, Herbivore fits the bill. It’s another one from the non-toxic brigade and the packaging is pretty and zeitgeisty. I did not get on with their Moon Fruit night treatment at all, although it sounded exactly like my thing and looked fantastic. That said, I have heard much good about their other products from reliable sources and I have just started using the Lapis oil, which I do like. I also approve that they do mini sizes and again, while it’s not cheap by any means, at least the products aren’t completely out of reach for normal people the way some natural ranges can be (I’m looking at you, May Lindstrom). So if this is your kind of thing, check them out on Space NK.

5. Nuori. Another pretty, modern and Instagrammable brand, Nuori is less known than others on this list. That said, it is carried by many directional retailers (including Oh My Cream! in France, Content Beauty in London and Labelchic in Brussels), so if this is any indication, we are going to hear more from them. Their USP is freshness: guaranteeing that the active ingredients would, in fact, still be active when you use the product. I wasn’t entirely convinced by the two things I tried (moisturiser and hand cream), as I want my products to absorb quicker. But I do like their packaging – not just aesthetically but functionally – and will keep an eye on what they are doing.

6. Dr Roebuck’s. This Australian brand has been one of the biggest beauty surprises of the year for me. I ordered a couple of things from the US (using J as the Sephora mule) on a whim and really liked the collagen serum and the face scrub. Soon after that, Space NK started carrying the line as well, always a sign that a brand is going places. I recently added the collagen treatment for the eyes to my collection and that’s also nice. If you want to give the brand a go, I’m thinking the masks might be a good place to start. Considering the context, they are reasonably priced and at least the Byron I can recommend.

7. DCL. To end on a more sciency note, I wanted to give a shout-out to DCL (products not pictured). Now, this is for people who care about results and not whether the rose oil was harvested at dawn. I have written about the C Scape High Potency Night Booster 30 before and it’s still the most potent vitamin C product I know. I will repurchase when the summer is over. I also use and like the C Scape High Potency Body Lotion: my annoyance with ineffective body products is well known, but this one actually does something. I’m also very interested in the peptide cream and SPF moisturiser in the range. It’s expensive stuff (although much cheaper than another brand mentioned today…), but if you are a person who doesn’t mind spending on skincare, I recommend taking a closer look.

I apologise if this came off too negative: I’ve wanted to do this round-up for a long time and ordered a bunch of things to test, so that I could give you more insight than just a list of fascinating brands. As you can see, not all of it ended up impressing me, but I wanted to share my experiences with you regardless. Feel free to disagree with me in the comments, if I have unfairly dissed your favourites!