Product review : Crabtree & Evelyn's Sweet Almond Oil Body lotion

The weather has turned cold and dry. If you have not already started using body lotion, you should. Although you can easily get a cheap moisturizer for less than $10, why not pay a little more and enjoy the luxurious feeling doing it.

I am absolutely excited to share with you my favourite body lotion for the season: Crabtree & Evelyn's Sweet Almond Oil Body Lotion. For those of you who read my earlier post, I got this as part of a very good promotion last weekend @ the MacArthur's Outlet in Vancouver. Buy 2 and get 2 free + an additional 20% discount! There were more than 10 different fragrances to choose from. I went in thinking that I would buy my old favourite - the Classic Rosewater but I ended up buying the Nantucket Briar and the Sweet Almond Oil Bath and shower gels and TWO Sweet Almond Oil Body Lotion! The usual price for the 500ml is usually C$39. I ended up buying 2 X 500 ml bath and shower gels and 2 X 500 ml body lotions. I paid C$15.60 + tax for each. I am sure they will be having similar or better promotions during Black Friday's Sale or Boxing Day Sale.

The Product

According to the website, the Sweet Almond oil body is rich with premium sweet almond oil. The moisturizing body lotion also includes Vitamin A and E and is nourishing and soothing for dry skin.


My experience  

It smells really really really good, so good and yummy that I literally want to taste it. The lotion is light and gives instant relief to any dry spot and last for more than 12 hours! As I mentioned earlier, most cheaper moisturizers will get you moisturized but none will put you in a great mood. Applying the Sweet Almond Oil Body lotion puts a smile on my face because it just feels and smells so good!

Verdict

I LOVE it! I am so glad I bought 2 bottles and I am definitely looking forward to buying it every time there is a good sale. The Crabtree & Evelyn's Sweet Almond Body Lotion is definitely getting a permanent spot in my bathroom! 

Product Review: Crabtree & Evelyn's Nantucket Briar - Bath and Shower Gel

The weather has turned cold and rainy and it is the perfect season for hot bubble bath. It was surprisingly difficult to find fragrant bubble bath these days. Body shop used to have a really nice bubble bath collection but they only carry 2 types of bubble bath now and neither smell very appealing to me.

Crabtree & Evelyn's is another of my favourite store to find bubble bath and it was having a really good promotion last weekend @ the MacArthur's Outlet in Vancouver. Buy 2 and get 2 free + an additional 20% discount! There were more than 10 different fragrances to choose from. I went in thinking that I would buy my old favourite - the Classic Rosewater but I ended up choosing the Nantucket Briar and the Sweet Almond Oil Bath and shower gels instead. The usual price for the 500ml is usually C$39. I ended up buying 2 X 500 ml bath and shower gels and 2 X 500 ml body lotions. I paid C$15.60 + tax for it. I am sure they will be having similar or better promotions during Black Friday's Sale or Boxing Day Sale.

The Product

According to the website, The Nantucket's Briar is a collection of scent. This includes peony, wild rose, ambergris, bergamot, notes of vanilla, patchouli and exotic spices.

The bath and shower gel is enriched with moisturising glycerine (perfect for the cold winter months!)  is PH-balanced for everyday use, conditions with heather and reship extracts and is formulated without parabens, phthalates, propylene glycol or sodium lauryl sulfate (sls).


My experience  

It smells really light and not overpowering like some of the other bubble baths I have tried previously. It bubbles up really well initially but the bubbles started to fade after 10 mins. Maybe it's my technique. A better way is to add the entire amount you want right at the beginning as that is when the bubbles last the longest. It was relaxing and I definitely enjoyed the bath. It also leaves a pleasant scent in the bathroom.

Verdict

I like it as a bath gel. It would be better if there were more bubbles. :) Look out for it during sale season since the deals make the bath and shower gel really worth getting!

Product Review: Etude House Silk Scarf Shampoo

I can't believe that it's been 3 months since I did a product review! I have tried some pretty amazing beauty products for the last few months but I guess I didn't update my blog because my Sony notebook has been "dying" on me.

While I was in Singapore in September, my sister recommended the Etude House Silk Scarf Shampoo as one of her favourite shampoos (and she has at least 10 different kind of shampoos in her bathroom). If you have not heard of Etude House, it is a Korean Cosmetic house with many cool beauty products. You can get it the shampoo in Canada for C$12.32 for a 300 ml bottle at Global Rakuten Store

My experience  

I love it the first time I use it. The smell is sweet and very girly, the shampoo bubbles up really well and my hair feels super clean after just one wash.

Verdict

I love it so much that I brought 2 bottles home from Singapore.  My hair feels very silky and soft the next day. I have been using for almost a month now and I am still loving it! Definitely a must have in your bathroom!

Product Review: Aveeno Shower and Bath Oil

My skin was really dry and itching from mosquito bites. I was looking for a solution when I saw the Aveeno Shower and Bath Oil.

What is it? 

To me, it a leave-in body moisturizer you use in the shower.

According to Aveeno's website, it is a light oil that has a unique skin conditioner designed for use in the shower or bath. Its special formula blends moisture-retaining properties of mineral oil with the skin-soothing benefits of ACTIVE NATURALS Colloidal Oatmeal to relieve itchy, dry skin, leaving it feeling soft and smooth all day.

I was attracted by the promise to relieve itchy skin.


My experience

I love the smell and the entire experience of using the Aveeno Shower and Bath Oil in the shower. It smells heavenly and super yummy. A little oil goes a long way. My skin feels nice and soft after the shower.  I only tried the Aveeno Shower and Bath oil in a long bath once but I did not like it as much. Maybe I did not use enough oil, other than some oil in the bath water, the combination did not make my skin feel any different.

Verdict

I love the Aveeno Shower and Bath Oil in the shower but not as a bath oil. It does leave my skin feeling soft and smooth for the entire night but it was not very effective in relieving the itch from mosquito bites. 

4 reasons Why I bought the Foreo Luna Mini instead of Clarisonic Mia

4 Reasons why I bought the Foreo Luna Mini instead of Clarisonic Mia:

Foreo Luna Mini

Clarisonic Mia

1. Price - For product life time

C$159 for Foreo Luna Mini vs C$139 for the cheapest Clarisonic on Sephora's website (the Clarisonic Mia 2 is C$180).  Even if Luna Mini is $20 more expensive, it was still worth it because C$159 is all you need for the life time use of the product. On the other hand, you should ideally replace the brushes every 3 months. It is C$21 per brush. The actual costs for using the Clarisonic for a year is conservatively C$202. Foreo is a clear winner here. 

2. Charging time

It only takes 1 hour to charge the Luna Mini for 300 uses. Wow! I have not used mine for 300 times yet but it has been one week since my first charge and it is still going strong. According to Clarisonic's website, it takes 18 hours to 24 hours for a full charge and you can use the product 20 to 45 uses. It is not the deal breaker but the convenience of not having to charge the Foreo as often is definitely a plus for me.  

3. Ease of cleaning

You only need to wash the Foreo Luna Mini with soap and water, dry it with a towel and it is good to go (almost instantly). On the other hand, drying the Clarisonic Mia's brush (same material as toothbrush) takes hours. As the brush bristles are porous, you can never really clean it and hence the need to replace the brush every three months. Think about the costs of replacement, the need to purchase extra brushes and more importantly the additional amount of rubbish created every three months in the landfill.


4. Small

The Foreo Luna Mini is really small. It is easy to use for me since I have small hands and face and more important, it takes up very little space in the bathroom, the shower and even my bag if I need to bring it for a trip. The Clarisonic Mia on the other hand is much bigger and takes up more space since it cannot stand on its own.

Product Review - Paul Mitchell Instant Moisture Daily Shampoo and Treatment /Conditioner

Since I have been using my favourite Nexxus Salon Hair Care Therappe Shampoo and Conditioner set almost every day for more than a year, the combination seems to be losing its effectiveness.
 My hair stylist commented that I should change my shampoos once in a while as they tend to loose their effectiveness after prolonged use.

I was recommended the Paul Mitchell Instant Moisture Shampoo and Treatment (a.k.a Conditioner) by the sales person at a hair salon (At Richmond Centre, near Sears) which carried more than 50 different types of shampoo. She was so sure about her recommendation that I thought I would give it a try though I was still a little hesitant since I am not a fan of 1L shampoo/conditioner bottles without pumps. It was a good thing that the store sells the pump. I definitely recommend buying the pumps since it is not the most fun thing to hold a 1L shampoo bottle with soapy hands and have it land your toes during the shower.The shampoo was C$21.99 and the treatment/conditioner was C$22.99, which is still a great price for the 1L combination.

My experience  

I love the smell. Very refreshing, like a cologne. The shampoo bubbles up really well and my hair feels super clean after just one wash. The treatment/conditioner is a lot thicker than the usual moisturizer, smells good and really moisturizes the hair.

Verdict

I love it and my husband raves about it. My hair feels very silky and soft the next day. The Paul Mitchell Instant Moisture Shampoo and treatment is definitely the best shampoo and conditioner set that I have tried so far if only I have discovered them much earlier. Definitely a must have in your bathroom!