Review - L'Occitane repairing shampoo

As you might already know I love L'Occitane. I've tried pretty much every type of product they do: hand cream, foot cream, facial skincare, body lotion, shower gel, make-up and hair care. I had only ever tried their verbena shampoo and conditioner but I got a sample of their repairing shampoo for dry and damaged hair so gave it a try.

"Formulated with a natural origin vegetable complex of five essential oils (angelica, lavender, geranium, patchouli, ylang-ylang) and wheat proteins, this shampoo helps repair dry, damaged, colour-treated or chemically treated hair. Thanks to the strengthening and regenerating properties of this complex, it smoothes and softens capillary fibres. Your hair is left looking and feeling supple, shiny and silky."

So did it do what it was meant to? In a word, yes. Out of this sample I could have got two applications but I used it all in one go, a little goes a long way. It foamed it really well but washed out easily. My hair smelt lovely and it didn't irritate my scalp like some hair products can. Once dried and styled my hair did look shiny and had a smooth texture. My hair was also less greasy and it still looked healthy and shiny the next day.

Would I buy the full sized product? At £13.50 for a 300ml bottle it is pricer than other shampoos but I would without a doubt buy the fill sized bottle. Oh and of course the matching conditioner which is £13.50 for 250ml.

This is available from L'Occitane Boutiques and online. And currently these samples are available online when you purchase another product.

Review - Soap & Glory You Won't Believe Your Eyes

When Garnier introduced their infamous Caffeine Eye Roll-On on to the market in, I believe, 2009, I thought it could possibly be the answer to my prayers for my stubborn dark under eye circles but I held off from purchasing it due to lack of funds. Yes it's only a few pounds but at that time the money could be spent by myself more wisely i.e. food!

Then I saw that Soap & Glory had brought out their own version of the Garnier product, but with some differences. You Won't Believe Your Eyes is a 15ml tube of under eye serum which aims to help combat bags and puffiness.

Another selling point was the fact that this product has three rollerball massagers rather than having one like other similar products.

The serum contains Instant Tight and Puffease-360 technology to help lighten, brighten and uplift the eye area. It has got a slight pearlescent colour to it which when applied too thickly can show up on the skin. I've tried to photo this but it hasn't shown up very well.

To tackle this problem I squeeze out a little of the product, massage it on using the three rollerballs and then smooth it out evenly with my fingers.

I haven't seen a long term improvement to my under eye area but I could have all the sleep in the world and my dark circles won't go, they're there so I just have to live with them. But back to the serum. The rollerballs make my eyes feel really awake and rejuvenated and the serum itself does make my skin look more illuminated. I think for someone who is suffering from a lack of sleep and this is why they have dark circles, it could really work, even though it didn't leave me with a massive improvement to my under eye area I would repurchase.

This is available from Boots for £9.19.

Celebs I ♥

I haven't done a post like this since July so this is well over due. This is just a quick post to show who I'm currently loving in the celeb world.

Stephanie Pratt

Rebecca Ferguson

Kimberly Wyatt

Kim Kardashian

Jennifer Lopez (major hair envy in her video for 'On The Floor')

All images from Google Images

Review - Pantene Aqua Light shampoo & conditioner

I received these samples way back in October and only started using them when I went to Center Parcs in March for my friends hen weekend as they are dinky little travel sizes.

I have to admit I haven't used Pantene products in such a long time and it's not normally a brand I go for but I think everyone wants to be able to "Swwwwiiiiisssshh" their hair like Cat Deeley so I was open to give them a try.

I have really thick hair and sometimes certain products can make my hair feel even thicker as it gets coated in shampoo and conditioner and sometimes it even looks greasy. Not good. So with these claiming to be lightweight, I went into using them with an open mind.

The shampoo is clear in colour and a little goes a long way. It foams up well and left my hair feeling really clean. The conditioner was light in texture and was a creamy milky colour. I tend to use a lot of conditioner as I have really thick hair so this always runs out first.

Once dried my hair looked soft, shiny and it really did feel swish-able! It never felt greasy and what's even better is that as I have eczema on my scalp these didn't irritate it at all. In fact it probably improved! This is always win win in my eyes!

Pantene Aqua Light is available from Superdrug, Boots, supermarkets and other health and beauty retailers.

Have you used this? What did you think?

Review - Cowshed 'lippy cow' lip balm

Cowshed is one of those brands which I think everyone has heard about due to their quirky product names such as horny cow, moody cow and lippy cow which is the name of their lip balm.

I've had the lippy cow lip balm for a while now but have only just started using it. It is the only Cowshed product I've used and chose it as it contains natural ingredients. I wasn't sure if I'd like the scent of it as it contains essential oils and floral fragrances which I don't particularly like.

The consistency is really quite runny. It's more of a lip gloss or a lip shine than a balm but it does sink into the lips quickly so that's the redeeming factor for it being called a balm.

As for the scent, yes it is really floral but I have got used to it. It isn't a synthetic scent which is good but if you love florals I would highly recommend this.

I use this at night before I go to bed to give my lips a good moisturise and it does this well. It has an RRP of £5 for a tube which I don't think is too pricey. I would repurchase but it wouldn't be my first choice to buy. It is available from ASOS, Look Fantastic or..... Direct Cosmetics have it available at a bargain price of 79p! At that price who could say no to trying it?!

Have you used this? What did you think? Which other Cowshed products would you recommend?

The week that was....

Just a super speedy post this week as it's mainly revolved around a certain wedding. No, not Will and Kate's but my friends, Kerry and Chris's. They got married yesterday and I was bridesmaid. A piccy is below for anyone who is interested.

It was a challenge to find a photo where I wasn't pulling a weird face, looked really fat or where my dress looked awful!

Now about my dress. Last week I said about me and Kerry thinking that they ordered the wrong size dress for me and that's why it had to be took in so much, well when I put it on in the morning the label said it was a size 22!!!!! Never in a million years have I been a frigging size 22!

So after 4 people tried to zip me in it including the photographer (the dress wasn't too small, the zip was shite), I checked in the mirror that it was straight and my all in one lycra slimming suite thingy wasn't showing, there was a bulge on the right hand side just under my arm where it hadn't been taken it right and the material was too baggy which made the right hand side fall down. It looked awful and all day I was putting it up and the bone in the dress was too big and has left me with a sore red mark under my armpit.

When I got home, my mum unzipped me before going home because there was know way I could have got it undone on my own, I went to take off my all in one bodysuite, forgot I had body tape on and ripped half my skin off! It bloody hurt.

But apart from all that the day was amazing!

And some more exciting news, if you follow me on Twitter you probably already know, but I have a new job! Yey! It's only temporary for a year but it's full time and in the job sector that I want so all's good!

And I have just literally found out I've won Sherrie's MAC giveaway on her blog! So all in all it's been a fab week! Check out her blog here and make sure you follow because it's one of my favourites!

Review - Witch Cosmetics

I bought the Witch anti-belmish skin clearing primer and anti-blemish tinted moisturiser about a 3 weeks ago when I was suffering from a really bad breakout of spots.

The primer (£6.99) is in a pump top bottle which gives out a measure amount so there's little wastage and it's really hygienic as you're not putting your fingers in a pot when touching your blemished skin so bacteria won't be passed on.

One pump is all you need to cover your face (amount shown in the photo up there ^ ). It has a smooth texture and dries on the skin quickly. I would be happy to just use this alone without make up on the top.

The tinted moisturiser (£5.99) comes in 3 shades, fair, medium and dark, and I got the medium shade. When I opened it I was shocked at how dark it was compared to the coloured circle on the front on the tube. 

I was sure it was going to be far too dark for me but once rubbed and blended in it is a perfect match!

It gives a good coverage and leaves a light natural looking finish.

Both these products are anti-bacterial and they did help to clear up my skin. I stopped using them for a few days and my skin did break out again so they did obviously help to clear my skin.

I would buy both of these products again and I would also love to try the pressed powder (£4.99) in the range. There's also a redness relief moisturiser (£6.99) which would be good for someone who suffers from acne rather than the odd hormonal breakout like me.

These are available from Boots, Superdrug, other leading pharmacies and supermarkets.

Review - Beautifully Delicious

Beautifully Delicious is one of those brands where the products sound good enough to eat! They have  a range of 29 bath and body products all of which have gorgeous fruity fragrances.

I have the coconut & shea body scrub, lip butter, bath cubes, and mint & cocoa foot butter.

Coconut & Shea body scrub - £7.99

I like this product. It leaves your skin feeling really silky smooth and even though the formulation is like a sugar scrub it doesn't leave my skin sticky like others sometimes tend to do.

Coconut & Shea lip butter - £2.49

I didn't like this at all. In fact it is now in the bin. The fragrance is lovely but it tastes horrible. Really synthetic. Apart from this it was a nice texture but it wasn't for me.

Coconut & Shea bath cubes - £3.99

Again I wasn't really impressed by these. They left the bath water milky but there wasn't really any fragrance and each cube is individually wrapped in plastic so it's a right pain having to unwrap them.

Mint & Cocoa foot butter - Can't find a price for this

This has a nice scent, not too overpowering like some mint foot creams can be. I wouldn't call this a butter as the consistency is really quite runny but I did like it. It did moisturise well and sink into the skin quickly.

Overall

Out of these products I would purchase the body scrub and foot butter again but they wouldn't be my first choice.

Have you tried any of these or other product out of the range? What did you think?


Stockists
Boots, Sainsburys & KMI Club.

Review - Toni & Guy firm hold hairspray

Boots often have some great deals on the Toni & Guy range, currently there is a 3 for £10 offer on across all products. I have only ever bought a handful of Toni & Guy products including the firm hold hairspray.

Normally I buy Boots Essentials natural hold unperfumed hairspray but decided to give the Toni & Guy one a go.

This is £5.61 for a 250ml can (it's well worth taking up the 3 for £10 offer) and I had high hopes for it but they were quickly dashed.

I found that it was quite sticky and left my hair rigid, yes I know it's a firm hold hairspray but it left my hair way too firm. The nozzle also got blocked up really easily. I have never used a hairspray where this happened and it is a right pain when I'm rushing around in the morning.

Overall I think if you had short hair this product would be perfect for you but for me who has shoulder length hair it didn't cut it. I wouldn't buy it again but I would recommend it to others who I thought it would be suitable for.

Has anyone else used this? What did you think to it?

The week that was....

Well this post should really be called 'the fortnight that was' as I haven't done this post for a couple of weeks.

I've been on holiday for the last two weeks, haven't been anywhere just haven't been at work. When my 'holiday' began I set myself some goals/jobs which I wanted to do during my time off. These included:

• Finishing my book
• Sorting my garden
• Sorting my craft stuff out
• Setting up my craft shop to sell my cards
• Getting some blog posts written

And out of these I've done them all except setting up my craft shop but I'll get there. I haven't done as much blogging as I had wanted, yes I know I've posted alot, but I wanted to get lots of posts written otherwise I'll never get round to them.

Right so back to general activities. I had my final dress fitting for my bridesmaid dress and it needs to be taken in another inch! This is a total of 5/6 inches in total it's been took in but my friend (the bride) made a good point. Yes I have lost weight since I first got measured but I haven't lost that much weight as I haven't gone down a dress size, I'm still wearing the same clothes I was in August when we went for the dresses. And the other bridesmaid who is a stick has had to have hers took in too which surprised us all, so we all think that they've been made bigger on purpose. But that's just what we think anyway!

I've also been tinkering with my blog and as you might have noticed I have a new header up there ^^^ and there have been a few other subtle changes including a quick find linky thing over there >>> where I've put links to my regular posts, including this one. And I've also included a 'search this blog' box as I've got rid of the labels gadget. I hope you all likey! Oh and also don't forget you can follow my blog using Blog Lovin' too!

And following brings me onto the fact that I now have 200 followers! Yey! A week or two ago I was two off 200 and then I lost some followers so have built them up again. Thank you for following me and I hope you won't find me too boring!

Also I started trialing some products about three weeks ago. These were:

• Lee Stafford Argan Oil
• White Glo toothpaste
• Nip + Fab Bust Fix
• Nip + Fab Tummy Fix

I'm using these for another week and then I'll report back with my findings!

So right now I'm off to church for my friends wedding rehearsal, can't believe the wedding is on Saturday, scary stuff! Only seems like yesterday when it was 2 years until the big day!

And finally some photos from weheartit:

Review - Korres vanilla plum shower gel

I have never used a Korres product before and then in the Boots christmas sale they had a mini giftset half price at £6.50 which contained a shower gel, body lotion and lip butter in the vanilla plum fragrance. So in the need of research I jumped at the chance to buy it!

Korres is a Greek brand which started in Athens in 1996 and it uses pharmaceutical knowledge of over 3,000 homeopathy and herbal remedies to create it's products which are also certified organic and natural e.g. no parabens or SLS.

I have only used the shower gel so far as I have far too many body lotions open which isn't good for my product use up challenge.

First thing I noticed is the colour (you can just about see it above the label on the bottle), it is a strange dark yellowy brown colour but the smell! Simply gorgeous! You get a hit of sweet vanilla but with a juicy plum twist.

The formulation is quite a little thicker than others but not gloopy and it leaves your skin feeling lovely and soft. The only downside of the product is the bottle. When you take the lid off it's completely open so if you dropped it you'd loose most of your product and it would be quite easy to squeeze far too much out causing wastage.

I would buy the full sized product (250ml) which is priced at £7.50 which I don't think is too bad considering how much some other brands charge. For a large range of Korres products check out Look Fantastic and they also offer a slight discount on the range.

Has anyone else used any Korres products? Which ones would you recommend?

Trusted beauty products for under £5

A recent survey, where women over the age of 50 voted for their trusted beauty aids, found that the top ten products voted for all cost under £5 each! So are us young 'uns missing out on some wonder products? Here are the top ten:

1. Vaseline lip balm - £1

2. Neutrogena anti-ageing hand cream - £3.77

3. E45 face wash - £4.50

4. Ponds anti-ageing cream - £4.00

5. Wash & Go shampoo - £2.30

6. Collection 2000 lipstick - £2.99

7. Wella Silvikrin hairspray - £2.00

8. Revlon eye shadow - £3.79

9. Astral all-over body moisturiser - £3.00

10. Neutrogena Cleaner and tone - £4.03

I couldn't find a product which matched this description so no piccy.

Prices were taken from the survey and I've tried to match the product to the description as best I can but they all might not be correct.

Do you swear by any of these? Or have you got another product under a fiver which you couldn't live without? Let me know in the comments below!

GHD limited edition stylers

GHD have brought out three sets of limited edition products to celebrate iconic eras of style.

New Wave

Includes:

GHD gold classic styler

Protective plate guard

Heat resistant New Wave era inspired styler bag

Two GHD sectioning clips

Glamour

Includes:

GHD gold classic styler

Protective plate guard

Heat resistant Glamour era inspired styler bag

Two GHD sectioning clips

Boho Chic

Includes:

GHD gold classic styler

Protective plate guard

Heat resistant Boho Chic era inspired styler bag

Two GHD sectioning clips

These are all priced at £129.99 and available from GHD online and various other stockists. Check on the GHD website for authorised sellers.

Freshen up with Batiste Brit!

With the Royal Wedding coming up what better way to get patriotic by grabbing a can of Batiste Brit dry shampoo. This couldn't have come at a better time for me as my dry shampoo was about to run out!

So what is Batiste Brit all about?

Something old, new, borrowed and blue is all well and good for the bride, but something Batiste is the best choice for the rest of us on the Royal Wedding Day! Make the most of every minute of your extra day off; forget the time consuming hair wash and blowdry routine for a can of Batiste Brit instead.

It's the quickest, easiest and most convenient was to refresh and revitalise greasy, dull, lifeless hair, instantly leaving it feeling clean, full of body and fabulously fragrant. Great for the bride to take on honeymoon too; surely there'll be better things on the agenda than washing her hair....?

So what did I think?

I hadn't used this fragrance before and wasn't sure what I'd make of it but after only using it once I already love it! It smells fresh and very distinctive. The fragrance is also very unisex so good for the guys too! I would buy Brit again and it is £2.13 for a 150ml can, exclusive to Superdrug!

Fancy winning £1,000 in Love to Shop vouchers?

Pop down to your local Superdrug store or visit their website to find out how. These vouchers can be spent at loads of different shops, click here to view where.

Sanctuary Spa at Debenhams

For as long as I can remember Sanctuary Spa has only been available at Boots, and their own website but now it is also available at Debenhams! And what's even better is that the range has been revamped somewhat with the introduction of new products and three new ranges:

 Comforting Night Butter (200ml) - £10.25

Nourishing Bath Soak (400ml) - £10.25

Invigorating Body Rub (200ml) - £8.25

Sleep range: Soothing Bath Float, Dreamtime Sleep-in-a-Box, Daydream Candle, Serenity Eye Pillow and 4 in 1 Restoring Body Elixir.

Relax range: Unwind Candle, Melting Body Fondant, Softening Thermal Sugar Polish, Nourishing Bath Soak, Cocooning Body Butter and Warming Body Oils.

Revive range: Body Boosting Brush, Replenishing Hydra-Tonic and Energy-Zing Shower Drench. 

And currently as an introductory offer at Debenhams there is 20% off the entire range until 18th May and get free delivery when you use this code: SHBC


Stockists:
Debenhams, Boots and Sanctuary

New products from Soap & Glory

Yes, you heard right! Soap & Glory have released some new products! Excited much? Me, no, never! Ok maybe a little! So what are these product I hear you say? Oh and currently they're on offer at Boots with a third off!

Eau de Soap & Glory Original Pink Perfume Spray 50ml

£15.83 (or on offer for £10.55)

Hand Maid Antibacterial Hand Cleansing Gel 50ml

£2.50 (or on offer for £1.67)

Feel Good Factor SPF 25 Facial Moisture Lotion 50ml

£12.00 (or on offer for £8.00)

Make Yourself Youthful Eye Cream 15ml

£11.00 (or on offer for £7.33)

Glad Hair Day Thick Conditioner 250ml

£5.22 (or on offer for £3.48

Dr Spot Invisible Spot Fighting Gel 15ml

£7.00 (or on offer for £4.67)

This has been released before but it's now in a different box and tube so I assume that the formulation has been improved. Don't quote me on that though!

Also new are you're favourite products but in mini form. Why is it mini versions seem cuter? But these include (offer prices in brackets):

• Mini Scrub Em and Leave Em Body Buff - £2.35 (£1.57)
• Mini Glad Hair Day Shampoo - £2.50 (£1.67)
• Mini Glad Hair Day Conditioner - £2.50 (£1.67)
• Mini The Daily Smooth Dry Skin Formulation Body Butter - £2.35 (£1.57)
• Mini Clean Girls Creamy Body Wash - £2.35 (£1.57)
• Mini The Scrub Of Your Life Smoothing Body Buffer - £2.35 (£1.57)
• Mini Glad Hair Day Thick Conditioner - £2.50 (£1.67)

So there we have it. Has anything caught your eye? I for one wouldn't mind trying the Feel Good Factor Facial Moisture Lotion and the Make Yourself Youthful Eye Cream.

Mandara Spa

Mandara Spa wasn't a name I was familiar with until recently when I saw adverts from Sainsbury's introducing this range into their stores.

Mandara Spa began in Bali and they are now in many locations round the world as well as now being available in your home.

Products include:

Pampering Honey Bath (500ml) - £14.50

Exfoliating Sugar Scrub (350g) - £10.50 

 Moisturising Body Lotion (150ml) - £6.50

Conditioning Shower Cream (200ml) - £6.50

Softening Bath Milk (500ml) - £9.00

 Not pictured:

Moisturising Bath Essence, Smoothing Shower Scrub, Softening Body Cream, Nourishing Body Butter, Softening Body Cream, Gentle Hand Wash, Conditioning Hand Lotion, Nourishing Hand Cream, Body Room and Linen Mist, Fragrance Diffuser and Gift Collections.

Most of these products come in five different fragrances including:

Tropical Blooms (red packaging) - "Immerse yourself in the exotic fragrance of jasmine and ylang ylang and be transported to a calming tropical garden where you can escape, relax and wind down."

Honeymilk Dream (brown/orange packaging) - "Immerse yourself int he comforting blend of honey and sweet almond oil and be cocooned in a magical spa where the mind and body will be soothed and pampered."

Amber Heaven (purple packaging) - "Immerse yourself in the sensual fragrance of sandalwood and patchouli and experience an exotic spa paradise where you can enjoy the ultimate pampered experience."

Island Paradise (light blue/aqua packaging) - "Immerse yourself in the revitalising fragrance of grapefruit and lemon and be transported to an exotic island where the stress and tension of daily life will melt away."

Citrus Spice (lime green packaging) - "Immerse yourself int he energising fragrance of bitter orange, ginger and nutmeg and be transported to a tropical island where your mind and body will be revitalised and refreshed."

These are available from Sainsburys or Time to Spa.