Lush Satsumo Santa

 . . .HoHoHo . .Santa hasn't really gone back to the north pole yet, he's decided to hang around, in the form of a bath bomb . . .

 . . Satsumo

As mentioned in a previous blog post, I picked up a few sale items in the Lush boxing day sales including Satsumo. I first got one of these as a gift from my brothers girlfriend a few Christmas's ago, and I absolutely loved it.

This is a fusion of the British tradition of an orange in the bottom of your Christmas stocking, and the Japanese tradition of splitting a yuzu orange and putting it in your bathwater at Winter Solstice. Together they make Satsumo Santa, a fat little fella full of mandarin oil, bergamot oil and orange flower absolute. He’s bursting to the brim with a beautiful orange fragrance which, when unleashed in the water, will fill your bathroom with the sweet smell of summer.

(Lush, 2011)

Dropping this bath bomb into the bath dissolved incredibly quickly, giving off a loud fizzing sound. The red colour of the santa I found stained my hands a little bit, but after a good few washes, the stain had gone. As this is a bath bomb, I got no bubbles, just a bath with red coloured water. https://andrikofarmakeio.com/generic-cialis/

The one thing I love most about this bath bomb is the scent; very zingy with oranges, but not too overpowering. I did find it made my skin feel very smooth and made me feel very summery, due to the colour and the scent. 

The RPP for this bath bomb was £2.46 but as I got it in the sale it only cost £1.47, which I thought wasn't a bad buy. Unfortunately this product is a seasonal item, but I am pretty sure it will make an appearance for Christmas 2012.

*Although this product was purchased with my own money, I am not affiliated to Lush or am I being paid. My review is as always 110% honest, genuine and true

#zomgbloggerbash . .

. . .You've probably all heard by now that the lovely Zoe from 'The LondonLipGloss' launches her very own limited edition 'Zomg' lipstick today (in collaboration with Rockalily).

Rockalily and Zoe have joined forces to create a lipstick that is suitable for all skin tones. It's a lovely chic colour, which just oozes fun, makes a statement with amazing pigmentation. I'm not usually one for bright in your face lipsticks, but I have to say (not because im blogging it) this one really does grab my attention, and may just provoke me to purchase this lipstick.

Zozo describes her lipstick as the perfect fuchsia pink: “It's red toned enough to suit darker skinned girls but also blue toned enough to suit pale girls - like me and ReeRee! It'll make your teeth look whiter, will last all night long and is so pigmented you'll hardly believe your eyes. Trust me, I've tried a lot of lipsticks and Rockalily's are by far the best!”

Today (30th January) is the launch of 'zomg' lipstick, and from the numerous tweets on twitter, I have a feeling it's going to be an absolutely amazing launch day. I unfortunately am not able to make it due to prior engagements but I do hope ReRe and Zoe have a great launch day.  I believe using #zomgbloggerbash, or searching twitter using this hashtag will enable you to keep track of days events; what's happening, how the launch is going and etc.

The lipstick will cost £14.00 (plus P&P) which I think is very reasonable, considering the costs of other lipsticks such as MAC, Chanel and etc.  This lipstick will be available to order after 30th January. 

So what are you waiting for . . . get ordering your 'zomg' lipstick this week :)

*Press release inc. pictures.

I'm still here . . .

Hello Beautiful People

Just thought I would do a quick blog post to let you all know that I am still here, I haven't vanished from planet earth. I've been very busy this past week sorting various things out at home, and trying to get use to a new job I started a few weeks ago. Ok it's not my ideal job and it's not full time, but it pays which is the main thing! I have a good few blog posts to post for you all, but I will try and get my skates on with those as soon as I can.

Hope you're all well (and not too cold).

Take Care

Fancy winning a macbook Air and AppleTV?

 . . .Then look no further. The lovely Sparkling Reviews is holding thee most generous giveaway I have ever seen.

If you fancy entering, then head on over to Sparkling Reviews blog here.

Lush 'Dorothy' Bubble Bar

''Somewhere over the Rainbow . . . . Baths are Blue . . . ''

During the good ol UK Boxing Day sales, my brothers girlfriend who is a Lush fan (a bit like one of my lil twitter friends 'Lucy Writes'), popped into Lush, and grabbed herself a few bits in the sale. During her browse she came across the 'Dorothy' bubble bar, so picked up 2; 1 for herself and she kindly got one for me. When I received it, my first thoughts were ''Awww how cute''; it smelt pretty strong (as do all lush products) but I couldn't wait to use it. 

Ingredients: Sodium Bicarbonate, Cream of Tartar, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Lauryl Betaine, Perfume, Cocamide DEA, Ylang Ylang Oil, Orange Flower Absolute, Gardenia Extract, Benzyl Benzoate, Linalool, Colour 42090, Colour 14700, Colour 15510

Unfortunately I do not have a snap of my bath at the time, but I can tell you if you're looking for a bubble bar that will instantly help you sleep at night, this is the one!!! I entered my bath full of energy, bright as a button, and after 40mins, I got out desperately wanting to go to bed! The bubble bar produced lots of bubbles (thanks to the sodium laureth sulfate and sodium bicarbonate), and it smelt very nice. But the one ingredient which I feel was the culprit for the sudden need for sleep - Ylang Ylang Oil! Now I know absolutely nothing about the in-depths of oils, but I do know ylang ylang is a good oil to help induce sleep, gaining a better nights kip. (Result if you struggling to sleep at night!). Crumbling the bubble bar under running hot water only took a few moments to disslove which I was very impressed by, leaving my bath a subtle bluey colour. The 'Dorothy' bubble bar that I received, I couldn't help but think was a little old? but, it still smelt incredible, leaving my skin soft, smooth and well moisturised.

The 'Dorothy' bubble bar is RRP £2.99/100g, which isn't too badly priced (if you like to cut and use 1/2 or 1/4 per bath). I personally like to use the whole thing! (Yep, I like to drown in bubbles lol).

If you are interested in knowing more about Lush or the 'Dorothy' bubble bar, then click here.

(Lush, 2012)

What do you think? Will you be purchasing 'Dorothy' and following her along the yellow brick road? Or are you going to be Toto and do a 'runner' avoiding this bubble bar at all costs? 

*Although this product was purchased and given to me, I am not affiliated to Lush or am I being paid. My review is as always 110% honest, genuine and true.

Miss Patisserie

{Edit: Following the publishing of this blog post this morning, I have received comments that have kindly informed me that I have got my wires somewhat a little crossed! This bath bomb is meant to fizz, NOT foam, which I thought it did (thanks to the misinformation given by the 'sales boy' at the clothesshow, and my new found talent of 'skim reading', which I learnt at university, and still have not managed to break the habit! I was in two minds whether or not to delete this blog post, but I will leave it up so you're free to have a read and comment at your leisure. This is an error which has left me a little red faced, but I will in future double check information before publishing}

Many of you will remember that I attended Clothesshow Live in Birmingham last December, and of course I made a few sneaky purchases (which you can see here). One of those purchases were the 'Miss Patisserie' bath bombs, which I shall be reviewing today.

Who are Miss Patisserie?

Miss Patisserie are a company based in Wales, UK, with an aim to create bath bombs to de-stress, relax, uplift and refresh the mind. All products are beautifully handmade, filled with fragrances and essential oils, and using natural products, such as dead sea salts and Epsom salts which have great benefits for the body. All products are strictly never tested on animals and always undergo a high quality control process before being sold. 

When I was at the Clothesshow I spotted a little chap stood all on his own in the beauty area, and of course I was very intrigued to see what he was selling. I went over to him to find he was selling Miss Patisserie bath bombs. When I inspected and had a sniff of what they smelt like, they smelt absolutely gorgeous. What also struck me was the packaging, it's adorable; plain white box with the company logo, followed by a polka dot lid, and a ribbon on the corner.

 

 

Of course the beautiful packaging and glorious scents, I got sucked in and purchased a set of 3x small bath bombs. The original price was £9.95, but because I went on the last day of the Clothesshow, I managed to get this little set for £3.50, which was a great bargain. I thought nothing more of it, came home and stored them in a dry place. It was only this week I decided to have a hot bath and use one of these bath bombs. Of course, I was all excited to use these bath bombs which seemed so promising, until earlier this week when in fact turned out to be a disappointment!

I had no preference as to which bath bomb to use, so picked any from the selection of 3. This one (well they all do really) smelled really nice; sweet and full fragrance.  Peeling off the paper casing I dropped the bath bomb into my bath and watched it fizz for about 20seconds!

The bottom part of the bath bomb fizzed fine, however the top part (bulk of the bomb) literally sat on the water surface and did absolutely nothing! I waited and waited and waited for this thing to start fizzing and dissolving, but absolutely nothing! It wasn't until I literally had to hack away at it (break it down into pieces) I got something from it, but even then, all it did was turn my water blue, leaving clumps in my bath tub and turned my hands blue (yes, think smurf style!).  Not only did I have clumps of undissolved bath bomb floating around in my bath, I also had a bath twinkling with glitter, which I somehow thought would dissolve too, but nope that sat on the surface glittering, and winking away at me!

When I have a soak in the bath, I like bubbles and lots of it. This unfortunately produced nothing but a bath tub of blue water, that shouted ''Ta-dahhh'' as the end result. I even added another bath bomb (the pink/purple one) to see if that made a difference, but again same thing happened apart from I was left with pink hands from trying to break down the 'clump', which has gradually faded after 2days! After feeling incredibly deflated and disappointed, I decided to empty the bath tub, re run and use bath bombs from a well known company (I don't need to spell it out!). As if I wasn't disappointed enough, as an end result my bath tub looked liked this . . . .

Overall Thoughts

Miss Patisserie are a lovely company who produce bath bombs to an extremely high standard. Creating luxurious scents in cute cupcake fashion, using natural ingredients. All products undergo extreme precision and are not tested on animals. Price wise these bath bombs start at the £2.99 mark, rising to anywhere in the region of £11.00+ (depending on what you purchase).

When I first saw this company at the clothesshow, I was very excited as I thought they looked so cute and chic, they are bound to be good, but I was wrong. Don't get me wrong the packaging, the detailing on the bath bombs simply is exquisite, but unfortunately they failed to give me that bubble bath that I longed for. Maybe I was unlucky and got a bad batch?  . . .

Would I be repurchasing? No.

If you wish to find out more about Miss Patisserie, then click here.

*Product purchased using my own money. I am not affiliated to or am I being paid by Miss Patisserie.

Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki Brush

Sigma, Sigma, Sigma . . .where do I start? Well many of you will remember last November Sigma took part in the annual US 'Black Friday', which us Brits have all come to know and learn is the day the US have mega-mega sales and discounts, which from what I saw and read were insane. Us Brits all know that ordering from Sigma to the UK has insane postage costs, i.e $11.39 (First Class Mail International Package) or $34.75 (USPS Express Mail International), which of course Sigma recommend the latter option! -,-. But . .as it was Black Friday, Sigma decided to make ALL orders .. yep ALL orders FREE WORLDWIDE DELIVERY! After having my eye on the 'F80 Flat Top Kabuki Brush' for a little while, I quickly made my order, and then sat patiently waiting for my brush to arrive. 2 weeks later hey presto! - the F80 landed on my door step.

This exclusive flat top synthetic kabuki was designed to deliver a flawless makeup application. The Sigma Makeup F80 is a buffer brush that can be used to blend powder or liquid products. The short and dense bristles make it easy to buff your liquid foundation. The long handle adds comfort to your makeup application. The synthetic fibers are ideal to be used with liquid products and can be easily cleaned. Made of Synthetic Sigmax HD filament.

(Sigma, 2012)

My primary reason for purchasing this product was for application of liquid foundation. I came to a stumbling block as and how best to use the liquid foundation, as the idea of using a sponge or fingers really did not appeal to me. I wanted to use a brush, but a good quality brush that I know would do the job well. Having seen review and review after review regarding the Sigma F80 Flat Top Kabuki, I decided to get this particular brush.

First impressions of this brush - I am very pleased. The brush itself is of a reasonable size; not too small or big. The bristles itself are incredibly soft; not itchy, spiky, but just nice, soft and smooth against my skin. I noticed when I was using this brush when applying my foundation, it buffed quickly and smoothly into the skin, giving the skin flawless coverage, which I was incredibly impressed with. No stray bristles, blotchy patches, just a nice clean finish which is great. 

In comparison to a few other brushes I own, this is by far the best. The quality is on par, if not better than MAC, and is a lot more 'purse friendly'. The RRP for the F80 Flat Top Kabuki is $16.00 (approx. £10.35), which to be honest is pretty good value for money. However depending on where you purchase can impact upon the cost of your selected brush.

We all know the international postage for ordering directly from Sigma is astronomical, although the products are set at a reasonable cost. However there are two websites I have come across that sell Sigma products; Cloud10beauty and Love Make Up. Both of these websites sell genuine Sigma products, and from what I gather their postage is pretty reasonable (approximately £2.95?), although some of the products cost a little bit more. Now although the products cost that little bit extra, I'd definitely order from either Cloud10beauty/Love Makeup in a heart beat, especially if it means cutting out the 'middle man' (sigma ''rip off'' delivery cost)!!

Will I be repurchasing? Of course but from Cloud10beauty or Love Make Up (I have a little list that is growing . . . )

If you are interested in knowing more about Sigma and their products, then click here. 
If you're interested in purchasing Sigma products, then I suggest either:
*Cloud10beauty
*Love Make Up

*Cocktail Cosmetics (Thank you Nav for the 'heads up')

*Product purchased using my own money. I am not affiliated to or am I being paid by Sigma.

Good Things 'Blackhead Exfoliator'

I never heard of this brand until I was reading the blog of Holly Arabella, and came across a few of her 'Good Things' posts. I proceeded to reading and then decided to research further into the brand itself. 

Good Things skincare has been developed by award-winning beauty writer Alice Hart-Davis, using her years of experience in the beauty industry. Good Things range uses superfruit beauty boosters in gentle, super-effective formulations and is specially designed to make the most of your skin. 

(Good Things, 2012)

I have to say I was very impressed with the products and what I read about this brand, so I decided to try one of the products. Although I was very tempted to buy absolutely everything, I decided to try and find a product that would tackle a problem I have been battling for ages; blackheads. I have done absolutely everything you can think of in a bid to try and shift these little blighters, but no matter what I do, I still get more. But I spotted in the Good Things range a 'Blackhead Exfoliator', which I thought sounded interested, so I decided to give it a try. 

Regular exfoliation helps to keep your skin fresh and clear. This gentle, everyday polish contains smooth micro-beads that will whisk away dead skin cells that threaten to block pores and create blackheads. Key active ingredients include Phytoderm complex G, skin soothing licorice and willow bark extracts, which both help to keep down bacteria levels, while papaya extract helps to boost skin radiance.

(Good Things, 2011)

First impressions I absolutely love the packaging which is white, followed by the purple and black writing and fancy design; all of which is very chic and funky. I also love the detailing making it clear and to the point what the product is, what it aims to do, its ingredients, and scent (which is very fruity/berry-like). The dispenser is the usual flip top where the product comes out of the reasonably sized hole, in a soft bottle (ensuring no wastage). But what you really want to know is about the actual product, which I am pleased to say is pretty good.

As you can see from the picture the product is in a gel like form, with tiny micro-beads that are the exfoliant for the skin. As with other exfoliators, which have been quite harsh, I was expecting this one to be the same, but actually it is very gentle. In fact it's so gentle I've now and again used it twice in one day, and my face isn't red and sore after use, which is a major tick on my list. One thing that was very hard not to notice was the smell which is divine. The scent was so gorgeous it was travelled around the upstairs part of my home, which even got my mum asking ''What is that lovely smell . . .what are you using?'' Although it is a strong berry, fruity smell, it doesn't leave an overpowering, strong smell on the skin, which again is another thumbs up. 

Of course my main reasoning behind purchasing this product was to eliminate the blackheads, and try and reduce them as much as possible, and scouts honour (and all that jazz), I have noticed an improvement. Ok, it is not a drastic improvement, but I have noticed the blackheads aren't 'cementing' themselves into my skin as much as before, and they are now a lot easier to remove; even the slightest splash with a bit of warm water and little rub with an old (but clean) Liz Earle cleansing cloth is removing them.

The RRP for this product is £4.99 for 150ml, however it is currently 1\3 off in Sainsbury's - so £3.32 (as of 05/02/2012 - til I don't know).

Overall Thoughts

Good Things pride themselves in producing products that are gentle and friendly, but packed with gorgeous fruity scents. All products are free from parabens, sodium laureth sulphate, mineral oils and animal ingredients.The Blackhead Exfoliator I found to be extremely good after only a few days use. Although the results have been minimal, my skin has not become sore or over exfoliated like other products I have used in the past. However, it is suggested that this exfoliator be used twice a day (morning and night), but I can't quite help think that with twice a day usage, 7 days a week, you're more than likely going to get through this product quite quickly, and as a result be restocking? And at RRP £4.99, might be a little pricey? But as the saying goes ''If a product is good and does the job, then why not?'' . . .

Will I be repurchasing? If I continue to see great results, yes

If you are interesting knowing more about Good Things, then please click here.

Good Things are available from:

Superdrug, Boots, Sainsbury's

*Product purchased using my own money. I have not been paid, or am I affiliated to Good Things

Blog posts no longer showing on Blogger dashboard???

Image Source

  Towards the end of last year I decided to change my blog name. Thinking it was only a matter of changing my name and that be the end of it, I thought nothing more of it. However I began to realise my stats dwindling, comments being sporadic, and I couldn't understand why. And then it dawned on me; my NEW blog name wasn't registering my OLD blog, informing the readers of my blog. After much googling and researching, I managed to come across a website that mentioned what I am about to blog to you today. At this point I was so fed up, I was willing to try anything in a bid to get it to correct itself. And hey presto! it worked.

As of late I have noticed a lot bloggers are having the same problem, and I thought I would blog telling you all what I did in order to try and fix the problem. Now before I get started, I am no IT expert, all I know what I did worked for me, and another blogger who used the same method and it worked. So I do hope it works on your blog, and if you have any problems, feel free to leave a comment below and I will try my very best to help but I can't guarantee I will know the answer. 

********************************

Right - what I did was create an old (fake) blog with my old blog name (you can see mine here), and then create a link leading to your new blog. What that has done is redirect anyone who previously knew your old blog name onto your new blog.

You then need to go to your main Google account (My Account - top right), where you can find 'Documents', 'Youtube', and etc. You need to go into 'Feedburner'

Here you'll be asked ''Burn a feed right this instant'' - type your NEW blog into the bar, and then click NEXT. You'll be asked a series of other questions, to which you just agree with, and then it'll say something along the lines of ''check back later while the feed is sorting out'' (something along those lines, not those words exact). Once that has completed, you'll then need to go back to the main 'Feedburner' screen, and click 'EDIT FEED DETAILS'. You'll then have something which looks like this next to 'Original Feed':

http://serenityofbeauty.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default

 . . . .Copy that, and then return back to your OLD (fake, redirecting) blog. You'll then need to go to:

• Settings, then . .
• Site Feed, and scroll down until you see
• Post Feed Redirect URL

The Feed you copied earlier from feedburner, you paste into this bar and save. This address will then redirect OLD blog posts, and should then show previous blog posts to your previous blog followers in the dashboard.

*******************************

This is what I did, and I think it's worked.  I have tried my very best to explain everything as clear as possible.

Sk:n Vitamin Rich Cleanser - oily skin

As an individual who is a regular sufferer of acne and blemishes, I am constantly on the look out for products that are aimed at combating the problem. Of course, I am not the type of person who purchases everything to try and cure the problem, but if I like the sound of something, and its ingredients look friendly to skin, I will give it a try. Sk:n has always been a company I've seen and heard quite a lot about, but I didn't know they also sold products. When I was offered the opportunity of sampling a product from Sk:n, I decided to give it a try.

 Sk:n Vitamin-Rich Cleanser for oily skin is fortified with age fighting vitamins and antioxidants to gently remove make-up and impurities. It contains glycolic acid to remove dead skin cells, clear pores and improve the skin.

(Sk:n, 2011)

Ingredients

I have been using this product for the past 4+weeks, and I have to say I have noticed an improvement in my skin. My skin feels a lot calmer, and the spot attacks are no longer raging. My face doesn't look as 'dull' and appears a lot brighter. It's not an overnight quick fix product, but over several weeks use I have noticed an improvement which I am very pleased with.

The product itself is a clear gel that doesn't have any significant strong scent, but it smells a little bit like men's deodrant; a Lynx scent? But it's not overpowering or lingering. I do find however that washing this product off requires a lot of washing. You can't just do the quick splash method and be done, you actually have to physically wash this product off, ensuring every trace has gone as it's a gel cleanser.

The RRP for this product is £11.00, but it is currently 25% off on the Sk:n website, so £8.75 for 200ml. In comparison to other cleansers on the market, this isn't too badly priced with the 25% off saving. 

Overall Thoughts

I am pretty pleased with this product especially as I have seen an improvement in my skin. The changes haven't been dramatic, as these things take a while to work on the skin, but from the 4+ weeks of sampling, I am quite impressed. My only slight grumble is with the packaging; it's in a white bottle which makes seeing how much actual product is left, difficult. The packaging also incorporates an easy open and close mechanism (screw off top), which makes dispensing the product fairly easy. But overall the packaging is neat, clear and clean and is easy to understand and read.

Would I buy this product: Most probably

If you are interested in knowing more about Sk:n and their products, then please click here.

*My review is 110% honest, genuine and true. Although PR samples were sent for consideration, and I did some research before use, neither have influenced my views in any way shape or form.

Blog Sale

Hello All

So this is my very first blog sale, and I have a fair bit that I wish to shift. Not everything listed will be beauty products, but I hope some of it is of interest to you. Some of it is items that belonged to my parents, who are moving to warmer climbs soon, and at their request have asked me to sell items. So if you don't see anything here today, please do check back from time to time, as I will be updating regularly.

Blog Sale House Rules

1) All items must be paid for within 24hours of agreed sale

2) Paypal payments only

3) First come, first serve basis

4) Please leave your paypal email address so I can forward an invoice to you

5) Sold as seen, no returns

6) International buyers welcome, although the p&p costs may vary depending on your location, and I will get back to you with a cost

7) P&P costs vary due to weight/size of item

 . . .and that's it!

So here goes . . .

Brand new River Island top - size 12. Still has the tag on it.
RRP £21.99 - my price £12.50 inc. free delivery.

If you are interested in anything here, please leave a comment and I will send you an invoice asap.

First come, first serve basis.

Illamasqua Cream Blusher 'Betray'

Many of you will remember that I attended the Clothes Show in the early part of December, and I managed to pick up some ace bargains. One of those bargains being the 3 products for £10 at the Illamasqua counter. I chose a cream blusher, mascara and eyeshadow and as promised I would do a review on them all individually. Todays blog post is the Illamasqua Cream Blusher 'Betray', which I surprisingly like very much.

I have always wanted to try Illamasqua products but never had the opportunity due to not living anywhere near a counter that stocks the brand. I have always been tempted however to order online, but I always feared that whatever I ordered would be the wrong shade, or not to my liking (and could be a waste of money!). So when my beady eyes clapped sight of Ilamasqua at the Clothes Show, with the offer of 3 products for £10 (last day deal), I figured seeing as the deal was pretty cheap and I wanted to sample Illamasqua products, this was my perfect opportunity. As you can imagine the stall was absolutely ram packed (I kid you not), and I had to fight tooth and nail to get anywhere near the products especially the blushers. Taking into consideration my skin tone and looking at the choices of blushers, I decided to choose Cream Blusher 'Betray'.

Deep rose plum, dewy finish

(Illamasqua, 2011)

The whole concept of cream blusher was completely non existent in my 'beauty/makeup' world, and it didn't come to light until I started blogging and I came across a few blog posts that mentioned it. Of course, curiousity killed the cat and got the better of me, and I just had to see what the big hoohaa was about with these products. And the verdict? I am hooked! I am honestly amazed just at how well this (and the rest of illamasqua products I presume?) are so pigmented, and a little goes an incredibly long way! I first made the mistake of using it as if I was a powder blusher, and evidently it was way too much. Having gone back to retry again, only a slight dab/patting of the finger along the cheek bone, and then buffing ensures this product reaches the necessary areas with sufficient product. 

The RRP for cream blushers are £16.50 which I think is pretty good. However I have noticed this particular cream blusher has now been put into sale at the cost of £10.00 which is a great little saving. 

Overall Thoughts

As a first time user of Illamasaqua products, I have to say I am very impressed. Although I only picked up 3 products for a mere £10.00, I feel what I chose was ample enough for me to sample and really familiarise myself with the brand. My only slight grumble is the availability; I have to either travel an hour or so to Birmingham Bullring, or order online which is a bit of annoying as I can't see/sample the products before purchasing.

If you are interested in purchasing 'Betray' cream blusher, or finding out more about Illamasqua, then please click here.

*Product purchased with my own money. My review, thoughts of this product are that of my own, and I have not been compensated or sponsored to write this post.

Ojon Damage Reverse - Shampoo and Conditioner

Morning Lovely People

When I first started blogging my hair at the time was in a state; coming out in clumps, dry, brittle, limp, lifeless or just utter bleugh as a result of being poorly. Now 9/10 months later, my hair has come on leaps and bounds; still a bit hit and miss, but on the whole doing a lot better. Towards the end of summer I was contacted by a lovely PR team offering me the opportunity of trying Ojon products. I'll be honest, I had never heard of Ojon so proceeded to doing some research. After being asked a series of questions and detailing my hair complaints, I was sent the Damage Reverse products which I shall review for you all today. But before that, if you have never heard of this brand (which I'm sure many of you have), I will give you a quick overview below.

Ojon are a haircare brand who are focused on improving damaged hair. As indicated by its brand name 'Ojon' is in a fact a vital ingredient (ojon oil) which is injected into all its products. Ojon claim that the Ojon oil is the key ingredient to revamping and re-injecting the life that has depleted from the masses with damaged hair. Ojon further go onto claim that whenever ojon oil comes into contact with hair, it restores radiance, suppleness, bounce, body, volume and vibrancy, to help repair even the most damaged hair (Ojon, 2011). 

June 2011 was the relaunch of some of its products, and Ojon have now introduced 5 rituals that have products catered for varying hair complaints:

• Damage Reverse - dry, damaged hair
• Dry Recovery - dehydrated, dry hair
• Volume Advance - fine, limp, flat hair
• Full Detox - all hair types
• Colour Sustain- colour treated hair

Now onto the review of the Damage Reverse range

Damage Reverse Restorative Shampoo

Hair is weakest when wet which amplifies any damage you already have. This luxurious golden gel fortified with nature's golden elixir, Wheat Proteins and creamy coconut derived cleansers transforms into a rich lather that actually begins to help repair damaged hair in the shower. Smoothes ruffled cuticles and unwinds tangles to prevent breakage. Hydrates and helps restore health. 

(Ojon, 2011)

As of late, I have become extremely wary of what shampoos I put in my hair, partially due to my hair journey (which I will be blogging about more in the year), and avoiding products that contain mineral oil, petrolatum and etc. My hair is also very 'picky' as its  Afro-Caribbean type, but has been chemically straightened, and not all shampoos/conditioners agree with my hair. Taking those factors into consideration, and reading about the Ojon products, I thought I would give them a try, as previous reviews highly rate these products, and they seem very promising. 

First stop (in the washing process) the shampoo. At first glance, the packaging is neat and tidy, and clearly specifies what it aims to do and the hair complaint its targeted at (damage reverse - dry/damaged hair). The shampoo bottle has a clear top whereas the conditioner has a brown top so you can tell which is shampoo and conditioner (pretty clever I thought).  The smell of the shampoo smells very clean, with a hint of oranges and chocolate?, although there have been reports of it smelling like quite earthy, a bit like soil! The shampoo is quite thick in texture, and looks milky white. Using a generous amount, I got a very generous lather (perhaps too much). Rinsed thoroughly and my hair smelt lovely, didn't feel stripped but it left my hair feeling very very 'mushy', which I was a little disappointed by. My hair also felt very tangled afterwards, which was slightly annoying when it came to trying to distribute the conditioner evenly through my hair.

Damage Reverse Restorative Conditioner

Detangles, moisturises and revitalises damaged hair. This lush, concentrated daily conditioning balm doesn't just sit on the surface. It actually surrounds dry, brittle hair with nourishing lipids including pure Ojon™ oil, nature's golden elixir, antioxidant-rich Brazilian Buriti Oil and Murumuru Butter. Helps seal in vital moisture and create the perfect buffer against daily damage. Instantly detangles. Hair looks healthier, silkier, smoother and shinier.

(Ojon, 2011)

As with the shampoo, the conditioner is the same; brown bottle, with ample information. Only slight difference, as explained above is the brown top which signifies it's conditioner. The conditioner is a lot thicker than the shampoo, has a light hint of yellow (ojon oil) and smells very similar to that of the shampoo, but perhaps a little stronger? Using a generous amount to cover my hair (concentrating on the root), I massaged as directed and then rinsed. My hair afterwards felt amazing; soft, shiny and healthy, and it smelt lovely.

The RRP for the Damage Reverse shampoo and conditioner is £20.00 each.

Overall Thoughts

Ojon are a brand that pride themselves in creating products that target many hair complaints, such as dry, dehydrated, fine hair. Each product has been specifically formulated to correct and improve the hair complaint. With regards to the damage reverse shampoo/conditioner I personally am not so fond of the shampoo but I like the conditioner, and have noticed great improvement in my hair. However at RRP £20.00 for 250ml, I can't help but think this is slightly expensive if used on a daily basis? . .  .

Will I be purchasing?

Shampoo - No, Conditioner - Yes

If you are interested in knowing more about Ojon/Damage Reverse, then please click here.

*My review is 110% honest, genuine and true. Although PR samples were sent for consideration, and I did some research before use, neither have influenced my views in any way shape or form.

Boxing Day Sales

Many of you will know Boxing Day in the UK is the day for sales, literally have priced goods, massive savings and fabulous discounts (US followers - Black Friday is what Boxing Day is very similar to). Anyway of course, it would have been rude for me not to take full advantage of this, so I ventured off into town and online. I didn't have any intention to spend lots and lots but I thought I would see what was available. And this is what I managed to get . . . 

L to R: Body Shop 'Almond' Body Butter, Hotel Chocolat 'Cool Yule', Hotel Chocolat 'Tiddly Reindeer', Hotel Chocolat 'Mini Christmas Wreath', Burts Bees 'Keepsake Trio', Lush Christmas products 'Gingerbread House', 'Melting Snowman', 'Lil Lush Pud', 'Superstar', 'Candy Cane', 'Magic Wand', 'Candy Mountain', 'Satsumo Santa'.

1) Body Shop 'Almond' Body Butter

Body Shop Body Butters as we all know are often retailed at £12.50 for the 200ml tub, and although I do love this particular body butter, I don't think I could justify spending £12.50 on one product. So when I saw this was on sale (with an additional £2.00 off if purchased online), I ordered 8! I decided to give 2 away to my Grandad in Jamaica, who loves this moisturiser (he used mum's during our visit last August, and declared how much he loves it), and I gave 3 to my mum. 

Original Price: £12.50 each

Sale Price: £5.00 each

Additional Saving: £2.00 (Online Discount Code: BUTTER)

Total Spend: £3.00 each (x8 = £24.00)

2) Hotel Chocolat

I hold my hands up - I am a chocoholic addict! I've indulged in so much chocolate this festive period, I honestly do not know how I've survived! Anyway I have become absolutely obsessed with Hotel Chocolat even though it is very expensive. But I thought I would try my luck online, and see what products were. I could have gone crazy but I remained reserved in my spending, and only picked up a few things.

2a) Cool Yule - I picked up this 500g 'Cool Yule' slab as I just thought the lil reindeer on the front was adorable. (I am a sucker for cute things lol). 

 Original Price: £15.00

Sale Price: £7.50

2b) Tiddly Reindeer - I picked these up to give away as a gift to my mum's former work colleague, who kindly helped us set up the venue for mum's retirement party. I received these chocolates last christmas a present from my brother's gf, and they are just adorable.

Original Price: £5.50

Sale Price: £2.75

2c) Mini Chocolate Wreath - I had my eye on this chocolate wreath last christmas, and I didn't get chance to get it as it sold out. So I quickly grabbed 2 of these this year (gave 1 to my mum), and I am looking forward to nibbling my way through this. Filled with cranberries, caramelised hazelnuts and cookie pieces, which all sounds very scrumptious.

Original Price: £6.50

Sale Price: £3.25

3) Burt's Bees 'Keepsake Trio'

I have become addicted to Burt's Bees especially the lip balms, as they really are moisturising and smell great. So when I clapped eyes on this in Debenhams, I thought I'd get it. The set included 3 lip balms; beeswax, acai berry and mango, and a keepsake tin which I think is really cute. The RRP for these lip balms are approximately £3.49 each, so I thought this was quite a good buy.

Original Price: £9.99

Sale Price: £6.99

4) LUSH  Christmas Products

I'll be honest I have never actually shopped in LUSH itself because the scent truly is too overpowering, often leaving me choking, gasping for air. But when I got wind that there would be a LUSH 50% off sale, I thought this would be a great opportunity to pick up some bits online. Many of you will know trying to access the LUSH website on boxing day was absolutely atrocious, but I persevered and managed to order at approximately 4am . . yes 4am christmas night/boxing day morning. The products I got are:

• Superstar Bubble Bar - £1.13 (original price £1.88)
• Candy Cane Soap - £1.37 (original price £2.29)
• The Melting Snowman - £0.98 (original price £1.63)
• Magic Wand Bubble Bar - £2.48 (original price £4.13)
• Candy Mountain Bubble Bar - £1.17 (original price £1.96)
• Gingerbread House Bubble Bar - £1.47 (original price £2.46)
• Lil Lush Pud Bath Bomb - £0.98 (original price £1.63)
• Satsumo Santa Bath Bomb - £1.47 (original price £2.46)

All of these products smell great, and I can't wait to use them up and review them individually for you all to read. 

Whilst shopping I took a little detour into TKMaxx as mum wanted me to try and get some Yankee Candles. Dodging the ever growing crowd hunting around the store for the latest bargains, I eventually managed to get the candle section and get a few yankee candles. One candle in particular that I was drawn to was 'Sweet Pea'.

The big yankee candle tumblers usually retail at the £18.00+ mark, but I managed to get this one for a mere £8.99, which I thought was pretty good.

. . .And that's it! I didn't go crazy as mentioned above, and I didn't bother with any clothes/shoes as what I could see was not my cup of tea. Hope you've enjoyed this blog post.