L'Occitane Haul

A year ago I was working for this company and I still can't stop buying their products. I got a flyer through advertising their new Cherry Princess fragrance range, along with a VIP freebie offer if I spent £35, so I wandered down for a sniff and spend.

The freebie was a little make-up bag with cherries printed on it. Inside are two minatures of the new cherry range and a Cherry Blossom hand cream. They actually gave me the wrong pouch, but there was only one product extra, the Cherry Blossom shower gel, which I have LOADS of still.

The two Cherry Princess products smell beautiful. Very similar to a fragrance they produced a few years ago called Wild Cherry Tree only with more citrus notes. It's sweet, light and very feminine.
The shower gel isn't strongly scented but it's pearlescent which gives the skin a lovely sheen in the shower (it doesn't stay, which I also like. Not a fan of sparkles). The body lotion is a little stronger in scent and leaves the skin feeling silky soft. I tried it overnight and woke up so soft.
Onto the fragrance itself then...
It is a light, fruity, floral fragrance with top notes of Cherry and Grapefruit (top notes are the things you smell when you first spray). The middle note is Cherry Blossoms (the scent you get once the top notes have evaporated) and the base notes are soft woods and musk (the deepest scents that stay on your skin the longest).
It is a beautiful fragrance, but I do suggest you spray it on your skin first before you just go ahead and buy it. I found that it went straight to the base notes on my skin so there was no point in purchasing. Spritz then leave it for half an hour, sniffing every so often to see how it reacts to your skin. It's lovely for spring days but not heady enough for an evening.

I also bought a value box. Every so often, L'Occitane make up great value boxes of their ranges. I bought the original Cherry Blossom box. The 100ml fragrance alone costs £36, but the box cost £39 and had a £12 shower gel, £7.50 body lotion and £5 hand cream in there. They currently have boxes for Cherry Princess, Cherry Blossom, Verbena, Immortelle, Shea Butter, Rose and Fleur Cherie.
All come in a beautiful presentation box which would make an amazing gift, especially for Mother's Day.




L'Occitane have a fragrance and a set of products for every nose and every skin type. They are pricey, but the products are fantastic and last for a long time. The company are slowly but surely working parabens, alcohols, synthetics and even alluminum in their deodorants. They use sustainable and organic produce where they can and have some ranges are cetified under Eco-Cert organic.

A Beauty Box Challenge.

My fabulous friend over at Nails and Nonsense posted a challenge to me this evening.
It's to design my own beauty box consisting of 5 products that would fit the whole idea of the beauty box and all actually fit in one. Because I suffer from a few annoying skin complaints, I have decided to tailor this box idea to those with dry/sensitive skin.

So, after a LOT of thought, I have decided....

-L'Occitane 20% Shea Butter Hand cream Travel Size.
An AMAZING product for dry hands and chapped skin. Shea Butter helps to soften skin and soothe soreness, honey for it's antiseptic properties and coconut oil to penetrate the skin.
I've been using this hand cream for well over a year and it has been the best thing ever. I can't find anything else that comes close to it.

-Lee Stafford Argan Oil Deep Nourishing Treatment.
Possibly one of the best hair treatments I've found. I don't want to say too much because there is a more in depth review of this product on its way but, let's just say, my hair has never been in better condition. I constantly dye, blow dry and straighten my tresses and this gets everything fixed up and looking glossy in just a few minutes.

-Lush Ultrabalm
Ok, so this isn't exactly the most luxurious item I could have picked but it's an amazing multi-purpose beauty balm. It can be used as a lip balm (mix in a bit of lipstick and have lovely conditioning colour), a hair serum, an intensive hand balm, to brighten up healed tattoos, to melt in a hot bath....so much!!
It's one of those things that's just handy to keep in a bag. I've also found it's great for cuts and scrapes.

-Hemp & Comfrey soap 100g
Lots of people have gone off the idea of a solid bar of soap, but these gorgeous soaps just NEED to be sampled. There are loads of gorgeous ones listed on the website, but Hemp & Comfrey soap has to be the best for sensitive, dry, sore, irritated skin. It has a creamy consistency, doesn't smell too strong and really helps soothe skin (also smoothes dry knees and elbows).  It contains palm oil (from sustainable sources), coconut oil, olive oil, sunflower oil, cocoa butter, castor oil and cold pressed hemp oil.

-Soap & glory Supercat EyelinerA bloody fantastic eyeliner. If you don't like gels and can't get along with pencils, then this is a great in-between product. It's jet black and in the form of a marker pen for easy control. I find it to be brilliant for every day wear, but not for you if you go for more heavy-duty wear (clubbing etc).

So these are my choices.
Not exactly luxury brands, but they're useful products and lovely to use too!!

I would have put them in a box and taken a picture, but my soap is almost gone as is my hand cream.

February Glossybox

Oh Glossybox, what happened to you?
I think I can safely say that this month's box will be my last. The products included have been the most disappointing to date.

In this month's box I received:
-Duwop Venom Gloss in 'Buttercup'It's basically a plumping lip gloss with a gold shimmer. I like the colour but the tingling effect is too intense for my poor little sensitive lips. It's going to take a lot of Blistex to fix the damage this gloss has managed to make in just a few hours.
Shall be sticking to Soap & Glory's Sexy Mother Pucker

-Dr Bronner Magic Liquid Soap
I got the hemp eucalyptus fragrance which is VERY strong. It would be a good one to use in a hot bath when full of flu. Aside from that I don't have much use for it, although I have read various other Glossyboxers say it's good for cleaning make-up brushes. Maybe I'll give that a try.

-Paul Mitchell Round Trip
Liquid curl definer. I have straight hair. Nuff said.

-BM Beauty Pure Mineral Eyeshadow
This will actually be used because I was lucky enough to get a wearable shade. I was given a dark grey colour called "Storm Cloud" and it'll go well over black eyeliner when doing smoky eyed looks.

-Como Shambhala Invigorate Body Lotion
Another month, another body lotion. Not too keen on the smell of this as it packs a Lavender punch but I'll see what it does for my patchy arms.

Have been looking in to the Carmine box which is getting great reviews. May possibly switch to that.

Leighton Denny Crushed Grape Review

So in my last post I mentioned that Red magazine was giving away a free Leighton Denny polish.
What's strange is that, when I went for another couple of copies for the other colours, NONE of the mags had any hint of a freebie about them. Three different shops and nothing...

Anyone know what's happened there?

Anyway, on to the review...
The colour of this polish, in my opinion, is gorgeous. The picture my phone has taken does it no justice. It's a creamy mauve with a high gloss finish and it claims to be chip resistant.


It has a nice consistency and is very easy to apply. Have also recently learnt that rolling the bottle between the hands is a better way of mixing polish than shaking, which can cause air bubbles (learn something new every day!).
I found that two coats was perfect to get a smooth, even finish and a quality top coat really helps to seal in the shine.
As for the chip resistance....I always find it hard to tell. What is it measured on exactly?
I found that it chipped half way through the day for me, but my job involves opening a lot of boxes and fighting with battery compartments which will always be against flawless nails.

This is my second Leighton Denny polish and I am MUCH happier with this shade than their 'Hanky Panky' bright orange colour which had a very streaky finish. So, the verdict for this polish is that it's great!  A lovely colour for the season (or for if you just like darker colours), however, it's going to take another few polishes before I can rate or slate the brand itself.

FREEBIE ALERT!!!!

March edition of Red magazine is giving away a Leighton Denny polish with an RRP or £11.
There are three colours to collect.

I managed to get it in 'Crushed Grape' and will review at a later date. It's still drying at the mo.

Valentine's Glossybox

This, for anyone who isn't sure, is Glossybox.
www.glossybox.co.uk
The idea behind it is that you pay £12.95 per month (including p+p) and they send you 5 luxury sized samples and sometimes full size products to test out at home. Each month they provide codes for money off or freebies if you decide to purchase a full size of the products.

This pretty pink parcell is their Valentine's themed box. Usually the products are packaged in dusty pink, but this month we got a gorgeous hot pink.

Inside were the following treats:
-Eyeko Skinny Eyeliner in Midnight Blue
-Clarins Extra Firming Night Cream
-Clarins Extra Firming Day Cream
-FAB Body Moisturizer
-Murad Hybrids Skin Perfecting Primer - Dewy Finish

I've so far found that the Clarins creams are a little too thick for my oily face, although they do have a nice texture.
The FAB moisturiser is gorgeous!!! I've been using it on my upper arms as I suffer from mild ezema. The redness has gone down and the itching has stopped. Not only that but it had virtually no scent, so I've been able to wear my perfumes without the fragrance being warped.
I've yet to use the eyeliner properly but the colour is gorgeous. It's very pigmented.
The Murad primer is a strange one and I'm not too sure if I actually like it or not yet. The look and feel of it reminds me a lot of a tinted moisturiser, although this doesn't actually lay on the skin like a foundation. This one is going to take a bit more working with.

This month's box was pretty good.
Not worth the extra wait we all had to get it put together, but a nice variety of products to try out.
Will do a seperate review of the Eyeko liner at a later date.

FREEBIE ALERT!!!!!

In March’s edition of Elle (UK) magazine you can pick up a Soap and Glory mascara (with an RRP of £10) for just £3.90!!!
Blink and you’d miss the mascara in the plastic wrapping on the front of the mag but it’s there and it’s worth a try. Look for the issue with Alexa Chung on the cover.

I have just applied mine and am going to see how it lasts through the day so check back later for a review.

http://www.soapandglory.com/products/cosmetics/eyes/thick-fast-mascara

No Drought dry Shampoo by Lush Cosmetics

I promise this isn’t just a Lush blog (it is looking that way right now).

Anyway, this review is for their take on the magical must-have that is dry shampoo.
I don’t know about anyone else, but dry shampoo is my go to product when I’m in a rush in the morning and can’t wash my hair through.
Most of us are used to the spray or mousse versions that mop up the grease from our tresses but “No Drought” is slightly different…

Firstly, it comes in a bottle you’d be more likey to find shower gel or lotion in. Secondly, it’s a powder.
When flipping the lid on the bottle you are instantly hit with the smell of cirtus. It is scented with Lemon, Grapefruit and lime which makes it fantastically refreshing.
The product itself is a fine powder consisting of cornflour, talc, Magnesium Carbonate and a few other bits.

So the application idea with this is to put it in the palm of your hands and rub it through your hair or sprinkle it directly from the bottle onto your roots. It claims to absorb grease, leave the hair fresh and not leave you with a white, dusty look.

So, the verdict?
Not really worth buying.
It’s sad because Lush usually create great products but this one just missed the mark. It doesn’t absorb grease as well as I’d have hoped, it is VERY hard to apply properly and it actually does leave the hair a dusty shade.
It’s such a shame as a more natural dry shampoo would have been fantastic for people more concerned about the ingredients of their products, but their heart just didn’t seem to be in it (and you can see that when reading their product description on the website).

Still, if you would like to try it out then you can pick it up in Lush stores or on the website.
In the UK it’s £6.50 for 115g
https://www.lush.co.uk/product/5669/No-Drought-Dry-Shampoo

Mask of Magnaminty by Lush Cosmetics

So this is me with my face slathered in green gloop in a vain attempt to clear my skin.
The key to perfect make-up is fresh, clean skin.
So this neon green slop is called Mask of Magnaminty by Lush.
A bit of background on Lush and their masks - Lush use a majority of fresh, natural ingredients in their products with as few chemicals as possible. Their face masks are generally incredibly fresh and must be kept chilled to stop them from going off.
There are loads of different kinds depending on your skin type and the kind of care it needs.
Magnaminty, however, is a rule exception. This doesn’t have to be kept in the fridge therefore meaning it has a longer shelf life (this is due to the addition of Parabens).

It comes in two sizes - 125g and 315g - and is kept in a black plastic pot.
The mask has a thick texture with lots of little exfoliating lumps and bumps. The smell is STRONG and can even be a little overpowering (this is awful but I liken it to peppermint foot cream on an unwashed foot).
It can be a little tricky to apply to the skin as the exfoliants can bunch up and drop off before you’re finished (my t-shirt was covered in green lumps). The idea is to focus on your T-Zone first (that’s the area along the forehead and nose) then stretch it out to cover your cheeks and chin.
Once that’s done, you leave it on for 10 minutes and let the ingredients do their job. There’s antiseptic honey, peppermint oil to stimulate, Marigold oil and chlorophyllin to treat the skin. It all feels a bit cold and tingly.
When it comes to washing off, I think warm water is best. Wet your fingers and massage the scrubby bits to remove dead skin from your face (ground aduki beans and evening primrose seeds).

This is the perfect mask for anyone who is prone to oil, break outs and dull skin.
Kaolin draws out impurities from the skin and the honey acts to soothe.
I’ve found it to be a fantastic mask. My skin felt soft and looked bright after the first application.
It is IMPORTANT to remember to tone and moisturise after using this product. When you remove oil from the skin, it reacts with panic and over-produces sebum to compensate. By putting moisture back into your skin you are stopping that process.
https://www.lush.co.uk/product/287/Mask-of-Magnaminty-Face-Mask-315g