This set of minis is guaranteed a fair trial

From £10, stila.co.uk

There's a lot being said at the moment about the shocking amount of food that gets wasted each day as perfectly good produce gets binned.

The same goes for beauty. I'm certainly not the only one who over the years has abandoned a significant pile of almost-new lotions, potions and unguents because they weren't living up to the hype or just weren't the right fit for me.

If a product is particularly expensive, I might persevere, silently chiding my skin for continuing to flake despite the oodles of goodness I'm lavishing on it, or even leaving posh bottles and tubes in my bathroom cabinet in a vague attempt to get my money's worth by impressing nosey house guests.

The beauty of the new skincare range from Stila – the cosmetics company that was big in the Nineties, went away for a bit and relaunched in 2011 – is that it comes in a choice of two "try-me" sets. So commitment-phobes can road test a basic set of three products (cleanser, face scrub and moisturiser) or plump for serum and toner as well in a five-piece kit.

The products are just the right size to get a fair trial and each will also be available in a full-size version, so those that pass muster can make their way into your beauty regime while those that don't can be abandoned guilt-free.