Category Archives: Product Reviews

Radox Men’s Range

Posted on by
Reply

I don’t know about you, but when it comes to shower and bath products, I’m not one for the ‘girlie’. Give me lemon and lime with a shot of ginger over lavender and peony any day. I hate the powdery, overtly sweet scent selection that is all too often applied to women’s deodorants and bath soaks. So when I was asked if I’d like to review the new Radox Men’s range, I quite happily agreed.

Covering all bases, Radox have produced a line of mostly two-in-one multi-purpose shower gels, shampoos, and scrubs aimed at men on the go. However, labels have never bothered me, so I gave them a whirl.

First up we have the Invigorate Mint & Tea Tree shower gel and shampoo. Great mix of scents, not over powering on the tea tree, and rather well balanced so as not to cause offence early in the morning. I’ve sampled it both as a shower gel and as a shampoo, and on the latter was pleasantly surprised that it does what it says on the tin! Hurrah!

Next is the Lime & Ginger Deep Cleansing Scrub. I don’t necessarily detect the ginger, but the zesty lime ticks all the boxes and would be great post work out.

Priced very reasonably at £2.05 [Boots are currently running a 3 for 2 on selected men's products!]. They can be found at all major chemists and supermarkets and online here.

L’Occitane De Grasse Fragrance Collection

Posted on by
Reply

Vert & Bigarade

L’Occitane herald a new era in their fragrances this Summer, by introducing the De Grasse Collection. A sumptuous accord of the sweetest vanilla to the most crisp green tea, the De Grasse eau de toilette range has something for everyone.

I got the opportunity to pick out a fragrance from the line, and being that anything remotely citrus gets my seal of approval, I chose The Vert & Bigarade – Green tea and bitter orange.

Here’s the official description: A classic fragrance, this eau de toilette includes green tea extract from Japan and the essential oil of bitter orange from the Mediterranean. Energizing upon first contact, the fragrance evolves with sparkling citrus notes in an accord of sweet and bitter orange, with an aromatic base includes notes of green tea.

Vert & Bigarade

Touted as being entirely unisex, I was intrigued at how it would wear. The green tea notes are very strong, yet mix perfectly and seamlessly with the lush full scent of bitter orange. Definitely something that even the most dyed in the wool ‘man’s man’ would approve of.

Being that it is an eau de toilette, it’s longevity is rather surprising. The dry down is very clean, no lingering musk or sweetness, and the heart notes are a nice union of freshness and zingy citrus.

The De Grasse collection is available now, priced at £49 for 75ml – here.

L’Oreal Purifying Micellar Solution

Posted on by
Reply

L’Oreal‘s Purifying Micellar Solution is the current golden child of drugstore/chemist skin care. Hailed as the far more affordable alternative to the almost mythic Bioderma, L’Oreal’s micellar solution ticks a lot of boxes.

Having never tried Bioderma‘s offering, I was eager to give this product a run for it’s money. Popping into Superdrug I eyed it immediately with it’s more than appreciated £2.48 price tag. I wasn’t sure what to expect. A makeup remover with a twist? A miracle to all one’s makeup erasing woes?

I’ve heard and read a great many opinions and reviews on this product, and I agree on many aspects, but disagree on one. The positive points are that it does remove makeup totally, without dragging the eye area to get off the last dregs of mascara and eyeliner. It makes your skin feel hydrated, no sticky residue or overly stripped feeling is present after use. However, I’ve found it does sometimes sting my eyes. A negative point I haven’t seen too much of in the reviews I’ve read. This could be due to a makeup product of mine not agreeing too well with my eyes and the solution, or it could just be the solution itself. I do wear a lot of eye makeup, so I appreciate that this may have contributed to the discomfort. I’m quite a tough cookie though, and have perservered with using this because I love how quick and easy it is and the way it leaves my skin feeling. I would suggest using this solution with cotton pads rather than cotton wool, as the pads seem to distribute the liquid more thoroughly.

Give it a go if you’re after a quick makeup removing fix, but do bear in mind it isn’t the only step in night time cleansing, and that it may cause discomfort to those with sensitive eyes!

Vaseline Cocoa Radiant Range

Posted on by
Reply

The Vaseline Cocoa Butter Radiant body care range isn’t new, but it has been improved and now contains a very clever multi layer stratys moisture technology, which locks moisture fully into all levels of the skin.

The full range contains four products, three body lotions, all with varying degrees of skin smoothing goodness, and one lip therapy in a tin.

The Cocoa Radiant Rich Feeling Lotion is a creamy but quick drying formula, smells yummy and doesn’t leave a sticky residue. Out of the three, I would say this is a good bet if you have normal skin.

The Vitalizing Body Gel Oil I’ve tried many moons ago, and wasn’t bowled over by. The reason being that the texture didn’t dry, and instead of leaving a silky glow to the skin, it made it look slick and feel sticky. This time around I was very pleasantly surprised to see that it has been updated and therefore, lost it’s oiliness! Instead it imparts a lovely sheen, and soaks into the skin brilliantly. Hurrah!

The Rich Body Butter is one for those who suffer from very, very dry skin, even in Spring months. The texture is thick and very luxurious, and as a result is perfect for popping on before bedtime!

Finally, the Cocoa Lip Therapy is sweet smelling and very nourishing for the lips. I have the rosy lips therapy, too, and this is just as nice.

The Vaseline range is half price in Superdrug right now!

Estee Lauder Invisible Powder & DayWear UV Base

Posted on by
Reply

Two very exciting new releases from Estee Lauder that I have been loving using, recently!

Firstly, the DayWear UV Base which is touted as having advanced multi-protection and anti-oxidant UV defense. I’ve been using this every day underneath my makeup in place of a primer, and it works perfectly at keeping my foundation in tact throughout the day.

Infused with a mouthwatering cucumber scent, it’s a brilliant addition to my skin care routine, especially with the Summer just around the corner. With a SPF of 50, the DayWear UV Base should be in everyone’s Spring and Summer beauty arsenal. Priced at £33 for 30ml, available here.

When I popped this out of the very lux packaging I imagined it to be a powder foundation, as the name and the description are rather misleading. It’s actually a powder to wear over your foundation/bb cream/tinted moisturiser, rather than something that can be worn in place of it. I did originally apply this on bare skin and can say that it has minimal coverage by itself. However, when applied as the finishing touch to the rest of your makeup, something magical happens.

The unique gelee formula makes it not a powder as powders are traditionally known, but rather a gel/liquid/powder hybrid. The texture once applied is almost creamy, and blends absolutely flawlessly. It doesn’t cling to dry patches, nor change the appearance of the foundation underneath. It imparts the healthiest glow I’ve ever gotten from a powder, keeps shine at bay without being matte, and almost seems to airbrush the foundation it sits upon.

I would highly recommend the Invisible Powder Makeup, especially for anyone who feels most powders make them look too, well, powdery! This is an absolute dream of a product. It also comes with a dual sided applicator, the velvet side creates a sheer coverage and the sponge side a fuller coverage. My shade is 2WN1 Rattan. Priced at £29 for 7g available here.