Thursday, 21 February 2008

  • Body Moisturizers: A Review.

    I have an addiction.
    A hunger, a need, a dependency.
    For body butters.

    On a tight budget, funding this addiction is no easy task.

    As if this debilitating condition wasn't enough, I also enjoy incredibly temperamental skin. I have dry skin in patches, and then there's the days when my face resembles a Texas oil rig, and others where it flares up over the lightest of products.

    Walking down Boots skincare aisle is like a 12-pack at an AA meeting; dangerously tempting.With so many different companies and products promising me so many things, I never know who to believe, and whether or not I should be emptying my bank account for a designer miracle creme - will it really deliver?


    1. The Righteous Butter from Soap & Glory. Retails at £9.99 for 300ML.

    What first lured to Soap & Glory, was it's awesome packaging. Pretty, witty with a retro twist. It stood out from the rest of the shelves stocked with "organic" spa miracles, and it all smelt amazing. Soap & Glory's fantastic range was created by Marcia Kilgore,  founder of Bliss Spas and products.

    You get a lot to a tub of The Righteous Butter, and it lasts you ages. Unscrew the lid and be met with a sweet, fruity scent, including shea butter and aloe vera - two ingredients renowned for their soothing and softening properties.

    It glides on smoothly and absorbs quickly, without streaks or that nasty stickiness. Does exactly what it says on the pot, giving you skin so soft you'd swear you're wearing velvet, and the sweet and tantalizing scent will linger for hours.

    5/5


    2. Strawberry Body Butter from The Body Shop. Retails at £12 for 200ML.

    The Body Shop is well known for their moral stance on animal testing, fair trade, human rights and our environment, and their incorporation of all the lovely natural stuff into their products. This body butter boasts moisturizing strawberry seed oil, which is a surprise to me - I had no idea anything as small as a strawberry seed would produce anything, let alone a wonderful moisturizing fluid.

    Unscrew the lid and you'll definitely want to dive in and eat the whole creamy contents. The aroma of strawberries is delicious. You pay more for less compared to Soap & Glory, and to be honest I'm not really sure if it's worth it. The butter goes on smoothly enough, but takes a while to absorb, and often I'm left with an unpleasant residue. The smell, unfortunately, doesn't last too long either.

    3/5


    3. Nivea Creme from Nivea, funnily enough. Retails from £1 for 50ML to £4 for 200ML.

    Nivea's been around for years, offering essential care from hand creams to deodorants for everyone. I've always had a sure staple with Nivea products, though as a bynote, I wouldn't recommend Nivea Young. It's disappointing and doesn't really deliver where it claims to. But anyway, back to the product in hand.

    I was a little weary of this wonder-tub at first, unscrewing to find a thick, overly-rich looking substance in pretty plain packaging. Creme doesn't really have any particular scent; it smells a little medicinal but not in such an unappealing way, but the scent doesn't linger long on skin anyway.

    It goes on quite thick, and does take a bit of rubbing in; I would recommend applying in stages, a little at a time, but once you have the hang of it, and I must be honest: this really is amazing.

    Nivea cuts right down to the basics, and delivers like no other. Works wonder as a lip balm in a 50ML tin, facial moisturizer in 100ML, and also as a body butter in their biggest pot of 200ML. This is almost unheard of from one product! Nivea Creme is a permanent product for me; a 200ML tub in the bathroom, and a couple of 50ML; one for my jeans pocket and one for on the go. I prefer to use this as a facial moisturizer, as it really does clear up anyway dry patches incredibly quickly, but would perhaps advise caution for those with oily or combination skins, and would point you in the direction of the Nivea Visage Oil-Free Moisturizer, an equally good product.

    5/5


    To be honest, my tub of Strawberry Body Butter from The Body Shop is something that's sat on the shelf for a while, and I only really use it in severe moisturiser-shortages, but day to day I use as a facial moisturizer and Nivea Creme from NiveaThe Righteous Butter from Soap & Glory as my all over body butter. So do you really have to pay a fortune for good body butter? Not at all. I get all my skin-slathering products for a total of £15, and they'll last me months.

Saturday, 16 February 2008

  • Currently Watching
    Flight of the Conchords - The Complete First Season
    By Jemaine Clement, Bret McKenzie
    see related

    Ballet, Bulimia, Balls and Books.

    I am rather.. ealted today. Why, I hear you cry? Because I have just arranged my first ever ballet lesson. Disclaimer - I am not counting the two lessons I had when I was three, both of which I left in tears. I'm all set for the 28th of the month, starting in a grade two class. I'm trying to imagine how it will feel to have 6 year olds perform better than me.

    Anyway, that is exactly what this post is about. Ballet. It's simply one of the most beautiful art forms I can think of. No-one else can carry such grace, splendour, elegance and artistry as a ballet dancer.





    Anaheim Ballet

    I'm turning into a bit of a socialite; I'm going to a ball. It's raising awareness for Manic Depression, being held by my aunt and her partner, John Cannon. Read the "back-story", I guess, here.

Monday, 04 February 2008

  • Rain.

    "Rain is a type of precipitation, a product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapour that is deposited on the Earth's surface. It forms when separate drops of water fall to the Earth from clouds."

    Rain, I think, is a lovely thing.
    Cliche, I know, but it just is: there's nothing like curling up under a duvet with rain dotting the window. And a good argument agaisnt mascara that isn't waterproof-Будет пунктом?