Review: No7 Radiance Boosting Hot Cloth Cleanser

This is one of many hot cloth cleansers and the first I ever used, it is available from Boots at £9 for 200ml, and with the £5 off No7 vouchers it is only £4! It is packaged in a plastic pump bottle which dispenses an adequate amount of cleanser in one pump for the entire face, I occasionally used two pumps if I wanted to use it on my neck too. A cloth is also provided although the quality and longevity isn't too brilliant. The entire bottle lasted me 2 months, using it once a day and sometimes twice. The cloth remained usable throughout the 2 months but became increasingly more difficult to use and less effective as time went on.

The texture of the cleanser is a soft cream, which rubs into the skin well and feels lovely to work with. Once the cleanser has been applied and massaged in slightly, or more so if you'd like, taking the cloth and rinsing it in hot water you slowly rub the cleanser off in circular motions to encourage exfoliation (after placing it on your face to open pores for a while - but this step did nothing for me so I began to leave it out). After about 3-4weeks use I noticed a considerable difference in my skin, it was a lot smoother, fewer breakouts, and despite me assuming that it wouldn't make my skin feel clean, it felt incredibly clean and refreshed after each use (apart from when the cloth seemed to wear down!) I feel that my skin did look more radiant, but as with all skincare products you need to allow time to see a noticeable improvement.

The value of this product works out to be 4.5p per ml at £9 and 2p per ml at £4 so I do think that in terms of value this is a great product. I have already repurchased this but I'm not sure if I would repurchase again because of the competition the hot cloth cleanser has in general. I have two more from different brands waiting to be used so will use those, and compare, then maybe stick to one - or try the last one I seem to have missed as well!

Product: 8.5/10

Effectiveness: 9/10

Texture/Formula: 8.5/10

Value: 9.5/10

Packaging: 4/5
Application: 4/5
Repurchase: Yes

Overall: 8.7/10

This new rating system is to provide a quick snapshot of my experiences with the product. The product itself, effectiveness - the level of truth in comparison to the claims made, the texture and/or formula of the product. Value is the comparison of price per ml, packaging and application are also reviewed. The repurchase line is whether I would repurchase the item again or not. Overall shows the average scoring of the product out of 10.

Cherry Chapstick Goes Pink for Breast Cancer Care

Hi all!

This post is a press release however I'd like to talk about Breast Cancer a bit before I post the press release. It affects so many women in the world - and men. In the UK alone nearly 50,000 cases were diagnosed in 2008 and presumably due to the constant improvement in technology and techniques more so every year onwards. Breast cancer is something that I have experienced, not myself but within my circle and it was a very upsetting ordeal, not only for the sufferer but for everyone around them too.

All cancers are so horrific and unfortunately common in so many different people that I think it's important to take some time out and help in whichever way you feel is appropriate for you. If not cancer, there's heart disease, there's the homeless to take care of, there are many charities and ways in which we can help. I took part in Cancer Research UK's Race4Life a few years ago and I didn't get many sponsors but whatever funds I raise I hope will help. I'd also love to race again, I believe next summer will be fundraising time again!

I am not forcing you to purchase anything, or to give all your money away to any charities or anything like that. The point of this post is to remind you that we can always be of some assistance to someone, and also to remind myself.

I received this press release sometime ago and thought it would be appropriate to post about it now, I did not ask for or receive a sample and will be purchasing the pack wherever available.

CHERRY CHAPSTICK® GOES PINK TO RAISE FUNDS FOR BREAST CANCER CARE

 

This year, ChapStick® is supporting the charity Breast Cancer Care with the introduction of the pink stick, donating 20p from each sale to help people affected by breast cancer.

Breast Cancer Care’s Judy Beard said:

“One person is diagnosed with breast cancer every 10 minutes in the UK.  That’s a shocking statistic and Breast Cancer Care strives to be there for each and every one of them.  But we couldn’t even dream of doing it without the support from companies such as ChapStick and their customers, so thank you.”

Breast Cancer Care ChapStick® twin pack can be bought from supermarkets and pharmacies and is priced at £2.49. Available from September in readiness for October Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Thank you very much for reading.

The Body Shop's GWP

Hi!

I just thought I'd share this offer with you, The Body Shop are offering a free gift with a £19 spend on makeup and skincare in store and £30 spend online. You get a choice of 2 gift collections, the first is a trio of eye based makeup/skincare:

Big and Curvy Waterproof Mascara - worth £10
Chamomile Makeup Remover 60ml - worth £3
Black Carbon Eye Definer - worth £9

This set is worth £22!

Image taken from thebodyshop.co.uk

This is the second set containing the face spritz and radiance mist, if you shop online. However in store I noticed that the mist was replaced by a powder to improve radiance of the skin, the sales assistant didn't really explain very well the purpose of the powder mix so I picked the first gift collection!

Review: Olavie Chardonnay Wine Therapy Antioxidant Body Butter

I received a 30ml sample of this body butter in my Boudoir Privé box for August, and I've now used it up completely! (Meaning it'll be making another appearance in my August Empties this month!) This calls for a review!

The full sized body butter by Olavie retails at £43.55 for 240ml and comes packaged in the standard tub in which most body butters are usually found in. It has a very soft thick luxurious texture and feel to it, and once rubbed in dries quickly too. The 30ml sample lasted me about 5-6 days using it on my legs only and smells gorgeous. I couldn't pinpoint the scent but it is very recognisable and lovely. My legs stayed moisturised and soft for around a whole day each time I used them, I couldn't test it for longer because I had to shower!

I didn't like the sample bottle though because it was very difficult to get the body butter out, I had to tap it several times to get a little bit of the product and when I tried squeezing it this resulted in the complete opposite effect of the butter being taken back into the bottle! I would love to repurchase this when I can afford to spend nearly £50 on a body butter but for the moment I won't be.

Reading up on Olavie and this range I found that the antioxidant effects included in the body butter stem from wine and the Chardonnay grape seed. This is also supposed to aid anti-aging and be considerably more beneficial to your health overall. I didn't find that my skin improved in anyway, it was just very moisturised and looked well taken care of - although I did only have a small sample!

Product: 17/20

Texture/Formula: 9/10

Packaging: 7/10
Application: 9/10
Repurchase: No

Overall: 8.4/10

This new rating system is to provide a quick snapshot of my experiences with the product. The product itself, and the texture and/or formula of the product. Wear is a rating of how long and well the item stays on, packaging and application are also reviewed. The repurchase line is whether I would repurchase the item again or not. Overall shows the average scoring of the product out of 10.

Review: Wet'n'Wild Eyeshadow Trio - 384B On Cloud Nine

My amazing friend Paige sent me a lot of beauty products at the beginning of the year (and during!) but the Wet'n'Wild trios were in the winter package. They are available at drugstores in the US/Canada? and retail at $2.99. I will be reviewing them all individually in the near future.

This is Wet'n'Wild's eyeshadow trio in 384B On Cloud Nine, containing a blue/brown combination of shades.This trio could be used to create many different looks alongside other eyeshadows or palettes and a few different looks by itself. I really like this trio because of the fantastic quality of the eyeshadows.

- The Browbone Shade is a light sky blue frost/shimmer

- The Crease Shade is a deep brown with shimmer

- The Eyelid Shade is darker sky blue frost/shimmer

All shades are highly pigmented and I think even more so than some of the other Wet'n'Wild eyeshadow trios. The shades are easy to work with and blend, I tried 2 different looks with this trio, the browbone shade in the inner third of the eye, the eyelid shade on the rest of the eyelid and the crease shade in the crease. The other was with the eyelid shade and the crease shade in the outer-"v". They both looked nice and wore without primer for 4 hours without creasing, I would recommend a primer with all Wet'n'Wild eyeshadows if you'd like a more long-wearing look.

The packaging is the same as the other trios, a plastic flip-top, this is easy to use and functional, the mandatory sponge applicator and the small brush are also included. The texture of the eyeshadows is very soft and a pleasure to apply with an equally soft brush, I also used my fingers to apply and the eyeshadows blended well and applied nicely. I wouldn't describe this trio as an absolute must-have as it may not be so workable for an everyday look or even a work-appropriate look, however the quality of these eyeshadows is amazing, and for a more adventurous look I'd definitely recommend it!

Product: 8.5/10

Pigmentation: 9/10

Texture/Formula: 8.5/10

Wear: 7/10

Packaging: 4/5
Application: 4/5
Repurchase: No

Overall: 8.2/10

This new rating system is to provide a quick snapshot of my experiences with the product. The product itself, the level of pigmentation in comparison to how pigmented it should be, the texture and/or formula of the product. Wear is a rating of how long and well the item stays on, packaging and application are also reviewed. The repurchase line is whether I would repurchase the item again or not. Overall shows the average scoring of the product out of 10.

Question: Which would be your favourite beauty brand of all time?

I think I would say Urban Decay, I love that they're cruelty free, make brilliant products, I don't love the pricing but the products are of high quality so I suppose I should grin and bear it.

Which is your favourite?

GlossyBox - August 2011

I finally got my GlossyBox when I went to pick it up from the delivery office because the postman decided ringing the doorbell would be too much of a task for him. But I got it, so yay! This month's GlossyBox includes a few things I'm really looking forward to trying and another few which are completely unnecessary and unwanted - but that's what is to be expected as it is a surprise box each month!

So this month's GlossyBox included the following:

Ahava DeadSea Water Mineral Body Lotion (40ml - £3.52)

Murad Time Release Acne Cleanser (30ml - £4.35)

Daniel Sandler Baby Jet Mascara (4.5ml - £12.80)

KMS California Hairstay Style Boost (200ml - £13.70)

Rebel Nails Nail Wraps (£5.99)

The total value of this month's GlossyBox is £40.36 resulting in a saving of £30.36 as it was only £10 for August. I haven't used anything from the box yet seeing as I'm still trying to use up so many products already but I'll let you know of my first impressions now. The Ahava body lotion looks and smells great, I'd never heard of the brand before so I'm glad they included it, I'm also happy about the Murad Cleanser because I'm always on the lookout for magic cleansers that will improve my complexion.

Although the Daniel Sandler mascara is full-sized and probably a great mascara I feel like I already have too many and that a mascara specifically for the edges and smaller lashes isn't a necessity. I'm excited to try the KMS California Hairstay Style Boost because I don't own anything like this and haven't tried anything like it before too, a full-size version of this is a real bonus! Finally the nail wraps, these are of no use to me at all, I think removing and applying nail polish would actually be quicker than using these, especially as I don't even own a hairdryer! - shock, horror, I know (I'm looking for one I assure you!).

My overall thoughts: I think in terms of value for money GlossyBox exceed expectations every month, I love that they include full-sized products but for this month I'm only interested in 3/5 products, but as the value is so great I give this box a 7/10.

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