The Body Shop Lip Exfoliator

 

I guess I've kinda been keeping you guys up to date with my lip story, wow that sounds strange. Anyway a while back my lips simply just became really dry and no normal lip balm was helping the situation. I took to Boots and purchased new, slightly upper market lip balms which have helped but the one product I wanted to try was a lip exfoliator/scrub. I know Lush do a great lip scrub, which I do love, but I wanted to see what else was on the market.

I stumbled across this one from The Body Shop, when I wasn't really looking for it, at one of my friends Body Shop parties. It was a reasonable price, I'm sorry I cannot remember exactly, but I instantly jumped at the chance of buying it. It arrived in my hands a few days later and I can say that I've really been enjoying using it ever since. It has a fresh, minty scent to it which is nice on application and doesn't hang around. The packaging also is great and simple, just like your standard lip stick packaging.

The product itself is really nice to apply and it's really down to you how much your want to exfoliate your lips. You can simply just sweep it across your lips lightly or you can go slightly hard core, pressing more firmly. After application I use my finger in circular motions to blend this product into my lips and this is when you can really feel the product working. It really does scrub your lips and you can feel the exfoliating particles doing their job. After doing this my lips feel really smooth and I then apply some lip balm, ready for the day. I also love using this before a night out and I find it really preps my lips ready for any kind of lip product!

Overall this was a great find from The Body Shop and I have really been enjoying using it. I try to use it daily to keep the dryness at bay and then continue applying lip balm throughout the day too. Let me know if you've tried any other lip scrubs/exfoliators that you think I should know about :-)

Christmas Beauty Gift Sets

Body cleanser
boots.com

Charlotte Tilbury gift sets kit
harrods.com

Haircare
boots.com

The Body Shop gift sets kit
£13 - thebodyshop.ca

Clarins gift sets kit
boots.com

Yankee Candle candles candleholder
£17 - yankeecandle.com

 

Thought it was about time that I jumped on the Christmas gift guide band wagon! I feel particularly on top of my Christmas shopping this year with only three presents left to buy. I know two of the three presents I have left to buy but the third however, I have absolutely no idea what to get! And it's for a man - typical.

 

 

This gift guide is full of gift sets and a Yankee candle for good measure. I feel like a Yankee candle is just one of those gifts that you cannot go wrong with, hence why I included it. There are so many different scents which means you can so easily find one which fits the person you're buying for perfectly.

 

 

There are just as many high end gift sets as there are more affordable ones and I find the affordable ones are just as good as the most expensive. Obviously baring in mind what brand you're after, for example the Charlotte Tilbury set I've included is pretty top, top end and comes in at around £150. I mean you've gotta really love someone to buy them this for Christmas and I'm pretty sure anyone would love to receive this on Christmas morning.

 

 

The Body Shop do some amazing gifts, again in a range of scents so you can find the perfect one to suit whoever you're buying for. This is just one example but honestly they have so many to choose from. I really like the Argan Oil and the Glazed Apple scents! I personally always find Soap & Glory such a winner when it comes to beauty sets. You get such a variety of products again in a range of different sets to suit the person you're buying for.

 

 

I hope you're all as excited for Christmas as I am and writing this post has actually made me that little bit more excited! Let me know you're favourite beauty gift sets and whether I've mentioned them in this post :-)

The Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum-In-Oil

Another item which I purchased along side my Cleansing Oil is this over night serum from The Body Shop. As I've mentioned I do really like The Body Shop's products and they always have offers on which is another bonus when buying from them, whether it's online or in store. Something else I've been mentioning recently is that my skin has decided to turn really dry in areas. So I wanted something other than a moisturiser for dry skin to help it out.

I'd heard a few good things about this product and I liked the easiness of this product. You simply apply it before you sleep and it then works it's magic. At first I was slightly sceptical about putting an oil on my face, as I still do have oily patches. When I wake up in the morning my face is no different to any other morning which is great. This product clearly sinks in really well to my skin over night, it also does it pretty quickly on application too. It is an oil so can take slightly longer, I do tend to apply this about 5 minutes before my head actually hits the pillow. But once it's on my skin it doesn't feel heavy just obviously slightly oily but that soon goes.

When I do wake up in the morning I can see a difference in my skin. Some of my dry areas can become really quite red and tight but it definitely feels much better after using this product. Although this product does not aim at the redness the flakiness and tight feeling has been released. The dryness is relieved and it makes it much better for the day ahead. Although the dryness is relived it doesn't stay relieved for the whole day unfortunately. It does say 8 hour moisture which I think is slightly over exaggerated and unfortunately I wouldn't say it lasts quite that long. But I do really enjoy using this product and know that my skin will be replenished for a period of time. I must just mention the packaging as it feels really high end. The bottle is a baby pink glass and the little pipette makes it easy to know how much product you are getting out so you don't waste any.

Overall I'm pleased with this product and the results it has had on my skin. I will definitely continue to use this product to help relieve my dry patches as it doesn't phase my oily patches at all which is great. You can buy this product here from The Body Shop for £13 which is slightly on the higher price side but as I said, search for those discount codes to get the price down.

The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

I will start this post by saying this purchase was influenced by Amelia Liana and for that I am grateful. I have always loved The Body Shop's stuff previously and this product is no exception. The Body Shop are also great for always having offers on, I actually got 40% off of this product which is an amazing discount.

After using the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish religiously I wasn't really looking for anything new. But after hearing this product being raved about, and with the discount, I just had to buy it. I was sceptical at first as I have an oily t zone and didn't think that putting oil on top of that would even work. But again due to the rave reviews I thought I would give it a go plus the product actually states that it's for all skin types. The packaging is simple, pretty and includes a pump which is always a bonus. This cleansing oil does have a scent to it as the camomile name suggests, it's a lovely fresh scent. It's nothing too overpowering for the evening and is subtle which is perfect.

I can say I am in love with this cleansing oil and it works really well with my skin. I simply just use one pump of this on my dry face and it covers my whole face, therefore this product is going to last me forever. It really easily glides over my face and I massage it in working around my skin. I do this for a couple of minutes before running a muslin cloth under hot water and then wring it out and use it to remove all my make up. This leaves my face feeling super clean and honestly removes all of the dirt and oil from my face. I can't believe how easy this product is to use and how easy it lifts off all my make up from the day.

Overall I'm such a fan of this cleansing oil from The Body Shop and it's definitely on par with my Liz Earle cleanser. For £10 I think it's affordable and as I said there's always a discount code on offer so it's worth checking them out before buying. I would definitely recommend this product no matter what skin type you have as I agree it's perfect for all, especially my dry/oily skin. You can buy the product here from The Body Shop. Let me know if you've tried this product or what you're favourite The Body Shop product is? I hope you're all having a lovely Easter weekend :-)

The Body Shop Chocolate Deluxe Edition Gift Set

I have always been a lover of The Body Shop gift sets which come out around Christmas time so when I opened this beauty on Christmas day I was super duper excited. Not only because it was a gift set from The Body Shop but because the scent of everything included is CHOCOLATE. Yes, you read that correctly.

This set includes a lip butter, body butter, body scrub and shower gel all in the same chocolate scent. Honestly this chocolate scent smells bloody amazing and I cannot get enough of it. I'm more than likely to just be seen sniffing one of these four products every so often. Every product in this gift set is amazing, I've always loved everything from The Body Shop. The lip butter is amazing and leave your lips feeling super smooth. The body butter leaves your skin feeling silky and smooth and makes the scent linger even longer. The body scrub isn't too invasive on the skin and is perfect for everyday use if needed. And finally the shower gel makes every shower worth it.

I'm unsure if this whole gift set is a special edition or whether just certain products included. So if you can, pop into your local Body Shop and just give this chocolate scent a sniff because it honestly will blow you away! It's nothing too overpowering just the perfect chocolatey scent.

Overall you can tell I absolutely love this gift set I received on Christmas from my mum, she knows me too well. If I can get my hands on more when these beauties have run out then I definitely will be doing so! You can browse The Body Shop website here :-)

The Body Shop Rainforest Balance Conditioner for Oily Hair

I don't think I've actually tried any of The Body Shop's hair care items before this one and I was really excited to try this. I tend to get oily hair pretty quickly and have to wash it every other day in aid to stop this. So I was after a conditioner that may help prolong this process. I spotted this one in The Body Shop and thought I would give it a go to see what results it would give me.

The first thing I noticed about this conditioner is that it has a rather thick consistency but once rubbed in your hands and applied to your hair it turns into a soft cream. It smells really fresh, like a rainforest I guess, which I really like. I love that this range of hair care contains no silicones, parabens or sulphates which is clearly great for your hair. After using this product it leaves my hair feeling relatively smooth and smelling great. I do find however that I have to use quite a lot of product to achieve this. It doesn't come that easily out of the bottle but I find myself really covering my hair in order to get it to cover and treat my hair. I have really knotty hair so like to apply more conditioner in the areas I get more knots to aid pulling my hair when brushing it out after washing. However when using a lot of product I do get the smooth results I am looking for, it just means using more product than I would wish too.

I have found whilst using this that it hasn't actually made much difference to the oiliness of my hair. I am still washing it every other day. I don't know whether this is because there is also a shampoo in the same range and whether using them both would see a change in my hair. I may try purchasing the shampoo to see but at the moment the conditioner isn't doing much for my hair. It's not the cheapest of conditioners priced at £4.50 but I do find that The Body Shop do offer a lot of deals and offers regularly.

Overall the conditioner alone hasn't done much for my hair in particular but I would love to try both the shampoo and conditioner together and see the results from that. You can buy this conditioner from The Body Shop here. I'd love to know if you've tried anything from this hair range :-)

The Body Shop Flawless Finish Collection: Instablur & All-in-one BB Cream

I'm never normally one to shop in The Body Shop but when I do venture in I always find something new and exciting. This was a new collection which includes the instablur primer and bb cream. I'd heard a lot about these items before purchasing and couldn't resist when I had a voucher code for 40% off. The Body Shop are great for having voucher codes so if you're heading into store then I would definitely check out codes to get yourself some money off! This set was £20 for the two products but with money off it was a bargain considering the primer is £14 alone and the bb cream is £12.

First the all-in-one instablur primer which claims to be a 5 action perfector. These are:

Shine Controlling 12h

Reduces appearance of pores

Blemish Hiding

Complexion Unifying

Make-up Extending

This is a hell of a lot to claim and unfortunately I do not agree with all of them. The texture of this product is slightly strange but I rather like it. It feels super smooth applying it onto the face but being someone who suffers from blemishes I don't agree that it hides them. It does however stop shine and I am a matte girl but 12 hours is a long time and I know my shine doesn't stay away for that long when using this product. Make up goes on like a dream over the top of this primer as it really smooths skin and my complexion. This is a great product although I don't agree with all of the claims; the ones it lives up too work really well.

Next the bb cream which also has 5 claims similar to the primer. These are:

• Adapts to your skin tone
• Light to medium coverage
• Even finish
• 24-hour hydration
• Non-clogging 

This product comes out white in colour from the tube and it's a pretty easy product to just slap on and go. The product adapts to your skin tone which I think is a great concept and actually works really well. The coverage is definitely light and something I would chose on good skin days and those 'no make up' make up days. I do find this product really does make me look shiny so if I am going to use this product I definitely have to really powder and set this bb cream into place. I have oily skin anyway but recently have developed some dry patches; this product just seems to illuminate the oily patches but work a dream on the dry patches. But working this with a great powder does work but not for a really lengthy period of time.








Overall both of these products are great but do have their flaws. I'm enjoying occasionally using them at the moment but not sure if I would repurchase when empty. You can buy the primer here and the bb cream here (I can't find the set online for some reason). I'd love to know your thoughts if you've tried either? And also your favourite Body Shop product :-)

The Body Shop seaweed clarifying toner

As most other make up bloggers, I'm a sucker for a travel sized mini product and here's one. I'll admit I'm not normally one to frequently shop at The Body Shop but am always interested in their products. If you've seen my previous haul from The Body Shop here then you'll see one of the reasons why I couldn't resist picking this product up and also I can now tell you that I wish I picked up more.

The Body Shop says:

'This alcohol-free, refreshing and purifying toner helps to rebalance combination skin.

• Removes traces of cleanser, make-up and impurities
• Purifies
• Refreshes
• Prepares skin for moisturiser'

I always use a toner in my everyday skin care routine as I love how they still manage to find a way to get rid of impurities and make up from your face. And this one also does exactly that, I tend to use this after cleansing and washing my face. It simply just freshens up your face and does not leave it feeling stripped of anything. I have combination skin with an oily t zone and this toner leaves my skin refreshed, matte and either ready for the day or for sleep. It's perfect for use in both the morning and the evening. The smell is also super fresh, light and doesn't linger for long once applied to the face. My skin can react to certain products but this toner is really gentle on the skin leaving it feeling super soft. I picked this sample size up for 75p which is an absolute bargain and if you can still find them at that price then buy them all!

Overall I'm really impressed with this toner and considering the price I paid I definitely wish I had picked up some more! The full size price is slightly more than a drug store price but The Body Shop always have a voucher code lurking so check those out too! You can buy this toner here for £8.50. I'd love to know if you've tried this product or any other from the Seaweed range :-)

The Body Shop haul

So a couple of weeks back now me and my mum headed to Bury St. Edmunds to meet up with my god mum and do a little bit of shopping. It was a horrible rainy day weather wise but in general I had such a lovely day after not seeing my god mum for many years. Shopping was always going to happen when 3 girls are close to shops but I did restrain myself and basically only purchased these bits from The Body Shop. I don't normally shop in The Body Shop although some of their products are firm old time favourites of mine. But this time there were a couple of new bits that I wanted to get my hands on and try.

First a story.. whilst in The Body Shop I was looking on my phone for a voucher code as I know they normally have one on their, which they did for 40% off which was amazing. So I went to the till with my items and discount, the lady said she wasn't sure if discount would come off the flawless finish set due to it already being on offer but she would try. In the end she said the total was around £7... I was like really? you're joking? And she said no that's the only way she could see to take it off. Sooooo yeah I got all the above for £7 which is absolutely crazy but great for me I guess!

So  anyway firstly I picked up the set called 'Flawless finish collection' which includes their Instablur primer and bb cream. I got this in the shade 02 and the colour actually adapts to the colour of your skin tone. I'd seen a few people talk about both of these products (mainly gabby from velvetgh0st) and I was persuaded. I was actually in need of a new primer so this was a great way to get a new one and try both new products out together. As these came in a pack together they were slightly cheaper and came out at £20 for both but due to my discount I obviously got them cheaper.

Next I got the Rainforest Balance conditioner for oily hair. I already have a shampoo for oily hair so wanted to also grab a conditioner and see how the two worked together (although from different brands). This conditioner doesn't include anything nasty and is just aimed to keep your hair free from oil for longer. My hair can get quite oily at the roots quite quickly so any products that help keep the oil at bay are a winner for me. So I'm excited to try this to see if it helps at all. I believe this retails for around £4.50 normally.

Finally I picked up a cute travel Seaweed Clarifying toner. This is for combination/oily skin which is what I have and I actually found this in the sale section and only for 75p!! Bargain, so I obviously couldn't leave it, I actually wish I had picked up more and saved them for holidays etc. This simply aims to help remove dirt, impurities and excess oil from your face. It's got a lovely fresh scent to it which is really nice when applying and so far I've really been enjoying using it.

And that wraps it up, everything I purchased from The Body Shop. They have some amazing products in store at the moment which are definitely worth checking out! And download a voucher code app onto your phone as I'm pretty sure they always have some kind of offer on which is brilliant for us beauty shoppers. I hope you enjoyed this haul and I'd love to know if you've tried any of the products I purchased :-)