Late to the Party

Odylique ~ Lemon Butter Hand Smoothie £12.00 for 60ml BUY HERE   Who? Odylique is a British natural skincare and makeup brand. Family-owned and based in Suffolk, their products are handmade in their Suffolk workshop and not out-sourced to a factory. Odylique means 'Power of Nature' and the ingredients used are non-synthetic and are all certified to the strict Soil Association organic standards. What is it? The Lemon Butter Hand Smoothie is an organic hand cream to soothe and moisturise sensitive, dry and cracked hands. Made with hydrating coconut and cocoa butters, organic sea buckthorn and soothing aloe vera and calendula. Full Ingredients: Aqua, Cocos nucifera oil*, Theobroma cacao seed butter*, Persea gratissima oil*, Helianthus annuus seed oil*, Glycerine**, Cetearyl alcohol, Hippophae rhamnoides fruit extract*, Aloe barbadensis leaf juice powder*, Rosmarinus officinalis leaf extract*, Cetearyl glucoside, Citrus limon peel oil*, Cymbopogon cit...

Lime & Lilac Light Facial Oil 5ml £12.50/ 15ml £32/ 30ml £52 BUY HERE Who? Lime and Lilac is a British indie natural and handmade skincare brand - created by Lisa, who I first followed on Instagram for a while before she created the brand. Lime and Lilac Light Facial Oil was her first product and it's hard to believe that it only launched in April 2018. What is it? Lime & Lilac 100% Natural Light Facial Oil is a beautifully light and dry facial oil made from carefully selected seed oils which contain essential fatty acids and vitamins to support and enable skin to increase cell renewal, support collagen production, fight against inflammation and treat scar/blemish tissue. The oil is suitable for all skin types. Full Ingredients Carthamus tinctorius (safflower) seed oil, Citrullus lanatus (watermelon) seed oil, **Opuntia ficus-indica (prickly pear) seed oil, *Passiflora edulis (passion flower) seed oil, *Cannabis sativa (hemp) seed oil,* Argania spinosa...

I'm going to try something new this year - a look at what I DON'T need to be buying! If you've stuck with me so far, you'll know how I'm always whinging about how many products I have hoarded in my stash that took a hot minute to buy but f-o-r-e-v-e-r to use up! I'll be addressing which areas of my stash are most congested with products that I don't need any more of, or may not even use at all. And then the plan is to try and use them up without buying any more!   I'm starting this month with primers and setting sprays. When I first started to really get into buying makeup products (excessively) I just assumed that a primer was a must-have. The reality for me is that I hardly ever use them. Yes, if you find a good one then it can really help with how your foundation wears, but my argument is, isn't it better to find a foundation that doesn't rely on a primer to make it work?   Also, I don't mind a long and involved layered sk...

  Raw Gaia Hemp Glow Cleanser £28.00 50ml BUY HERE     What it is... Hemp Glow Cleanser is a cleanser containing a blend of cold pressed superfood oils and floral waters. Is suitable for removing eye makeup. Suitable for combination, oily and teen skin. Certified by The Soil Association, Cruelty Free International and The Vegan Society.   Ingredients... Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel)   Flower Water*, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Leaf Water*, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Oil*, Glyceryl Oleate Citrate,  Glycerin, Aqua, Sodium Levulinate, Sodium Anisate, Citric Acid, Citrus Limon (Lemon)  Pel Oil*, Tocopherol (Vitamin E),  Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil,  Juniperus Communis (Juniperberry) Fruit  Oil*, Xanthan Gum, Amorphophallus  Konjac Root Powder, Citral**, Limonene**  * Organic ingredients  ** Occurs naturally in essential oil  91% Organic of total ...

I really made an effort this year to not buy as indiscriminately as I had the previous year. My skincare stash was just bulging at the seams - and lots of the products were items that I just wanted to finish up, rather than really enjoyed using. It didn't help that I kept amassing more deluxe samples and minis from Beauty Subscription Boxes which kept the numbers up - so I cancelled all beauty box subscriptions except for the Skin Organics Clean Beauty Box (because I couldn't be without this!) and just the three-product Latest in Beauty Option (because they often have really great selections).   It took far longer than I anticipated to work my way through products (even the minis could last a month or more) and I'm still not at the numbers that I'd like to be. I'll be doing a full inventory in January and next year will continue to get those numbers down and to try and not impulse buy! I've also had a bit of a tidy up and have been pretty militant w...

This has been such a fabulous month for favourites! Starting with the Black Friday sales, my birthday, a couple of giveaway wins, Christmas and the sales - it's been a bumper month of goodies for me and lots of instant favourites.   Nudge Boutique   The beginning of the month saw me meeting up with the incredibly talented Jo Klassen of local (Norfolk) luxury, vegan handmade skincare brand Nudge Boutique . I had a great time chatting with Jo and she very kindly gave me her entire range of products to try out. Her range currently consists of the Saffron Glow Facial Oil Serum, the Saffron Glow Cleansing Clay Mask and the Kokum Body Boost Butter. Every product contains the superstar ingredient Norfolk Saffron. Saffron (the stigma) has amazing anti-oxidant properties and has long been used in traditional Ayurvedic medicine and skincare but Nudge Boutique are the first UK brand to use the Saffron petals (usually discarded) in their products too. The dried petals t...

     The Skin Organics Clean Beauty Box is a monthly subscription service offering a selection of five full/deluxe sample sized natural beauty, skincare and makeup products.   100% natural, organic, non-toxic, eco-friendly, cruelty free, ethically sourced and often from up and coming British Indie Natural Beauty brands, the products chosen are free from Parabens, Petrochemicals, PEGs (petroleum-based compounds), silicones, Sodium Laureth or Lauryl Sulphate, Phthalates, Propylene Glycol , Synthetic Colours and Fragrances, Triclosan,  Formaldehyde, Toulene, Benzophenone/PABA, Petroleum/Mineral oil, Alcohol,  Urea, PEG, PG/BG, Dioxin, Aluminium, DEET, Camphor, Talc and Carmine. A monthly subscription costs £21.00 + £3.95 p+p BUY HERE   I'm particularly excited about this month's box as it's the Christmas edit! I had perhaps thought that I might save this box and pop it under the tree to open it on Christmas Day as an extra trea...