REVIEW: Haus of Gloi Hedonic Fragrance

Following on from my previous posts about the Haus of Gloi Autumn collection may I introduce to you:

Hedonic

Hedonic is described as:

'Black fig, golden honey, saffron threads and Indian agar musk'

The saffron in this scent has a beautiful sweetness, which is offset by both a soft smokiness and a sparkling lemonade type note from the fig. This scent is quite unisex and very luxurious, for me this would be a lovely evening scent but there is something lurking that seems to develop into a bitter tang on my skin :( 

That said, I think I will persist with Hedonic,  as everything else about it is so lovely - I've tried layering with Ghost Puffs, and whilst it doesn't *quite* work (the marshmallow becomes a little too vibrant!) , I'm sure I'll find something that will work with it - maybe a simple vanilla scent would do the trick.

Hedonic is available online and is priced at $3.00 for a sample vial.

Love,

Claire x.

REVIEW: Haus of Gloi Ghost Puffs Fragrance

Following from yesterdays post, here is another fragrance from Haus of Gloi's autumn range:

Say hello to... Ghost Puffs!

Haus of Gloi describe Ghost Puffs as:

'Buttery popcorn and marshmallow goo orbs, presented on a wooden stick.'

Yeah, that's right marshmallow goo.

That sold me instantly, I didn't even bother going for a sample, I ordered the full size straight away!

Ghost puffs is super gourmand, it's rich and warm and creamy. On first sniff you really do get the richness of buttery popcorn with the sweetness of marshmallow following soon after. Think caramel or butterscotch and you're on the right track. Once settled on the skin warm sweet vanilla notes come through, and the fragrance eventually settles to a subtle scent - on my skin it smells almost like vanilla candles, there is a waxy (not unpleasant) note there.

Because this scent fades a little and ends up quite subtle on my skin, I'd say this was more a daytime scent for me - in the evening I like something that smacks you in the back of the head and makes you take notice (Vice, I'm looking at you).

Ghost Puffs is available online and is priced at $15 for a 5ml bottle and $3.00 for a sample vial.

Love,

Claire x.

REVIEW: Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Queen Fragrance

Last year I didn't order any of the Haus of Gloi autumn range and I was kicking myself after reading it's reviews.

So, this year I treated myself to a few fragrance samples and one full sized bottle, over the next few days I will be posting my thoughts on these scents.

First up is:

Pumpkin Queen!

Pumpkin Queen is described as:

'Gentle hay pillows, pumpkin, ripe peaches dusted with clove and nutmeg, dried summer herbs, and lastly, a lovely crown of amber'

I'm really not sure what I expected when this arrived, I'm not normally too keen on the scent of peaches so I thought that this wouldn't be something I'd like too much.

Well I was wrong, the peach notes are warm and almost apricot like - imagine peaches simmered in brown sugar then added to a hot toddy. 

The pumpkin is muddled together with the fruit to create a slightly savoury balance - it's never too sweet. 

The amber, clove and nutmeg also help to take the sweet edge off and warm this fragrance up a treat without it feeling masculine. 

The hay? Hmm, I can't really pin-point it other than saying that Pumpkin Queen is outdoorsy. 

And a touch cakey - it's quite gourmand without wandering into the cookie territory that HoG's Vice fragrance is in.

For a warm, autumnal fragrance you really can't go wrong with Pumpkin Queen - definitely one to dab on, snuggle in a woolly jumper by the fire and delve into a good book!

Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Queen is available online and costs $3.00 for a sample vial.

Love,

Claire x.

REVIEW: Naked Rescue Hair Treatment

Hair.

It is the bane of my life, and if you've read one of my posts about it before you'll know that not only have I annihilated mine in the past, I like to have a good old moan about it too.

Generally I use a deep conditioner after every wash, I need extra moisturising oompfh, and while a regular conditioner is ok occasionally, in order to keep my hair from throwing a tantrum I need to break out the big guns.

So I was a happy lady when this turned up in the post:

'Naked Rescue uses Argan Oil (packed full of Vitamin E), Meadowfoam and Sunflower extract to nourish and help protect those tresses in distress.'

Well that sounds pretty good, eh?

I applied the whole sachet to damp, just washed hair and although instructions say to leave on for 3-5mins, I ended up leaving it on for 15 as I got distracted...

The texture of the product itself is creamy but quite light and applying is a doddle, one sachet was more than adequate for my shoulder length hair.

I've used the Naked  Rescue shampoo before and that has a gorgeous scent of almonds, this product isn't as sweet and it's more herby - it reminds me a little of herbal tea, it's pretty and inoffensive.

After I washed it off, I let my hair dry naturally and noticed that the frizzy/fluffyness was drastically decreased and my hair was much shinier.

I will definitely be on the look out for a tub of this!

Naked Rescue Hair Treatment is available in a 20ml sachet and is available here and here 

Love,

Claire x.

Disclaimer: PR Sample

REVIEW: Organic Surge Gentle Meadow Foaming Bath

Sleep is my foe.

I've always been an awful sleeper, I also over think constantly and grind my teeth from stress.

I think I need to chill out.

At least a  bit.

So, when I received a lovely bundle of Organic Surge goodies, I knew exactly what I was going to do.

Light some candles, grab a good book and run myself a bath, with lots and lots of bubbles!

I was sent some of the Gentle Meadow range to try out (Bath Foam, Shower Gel and Body Lotion).

First up is the the bath foam:

Organic Surge describe Gentle Meadow as containing:

'essential oils of calming lavender and uplifting  geranium, which help to re-balance body and mind while natural antioxidant vitamin E soothes the skin. Skin-conditioning glycerine actively attracts moisture to the skin, allowing it to remain smooth, nourished and hydrated.'

Gentle Meadow Bathing Foam contains Lavender which is a fantastic relaxant, and soothing to the skin, Aloe which again soothes the skin and contains amongst other things vitamins A & E, and Rose Geranium oil which is uplifting.

I sploshed a couple of cap fulls under the tap and was met with lovely fluffy bubbles, I grabbed a good book (the latest Karin Slaughter novel) and settled in for a long relaxing soak.

Gentle Meadow has a lovely clean green scent, it is fresh and yet calming - definitely something to use before bed!

My absolute favourite thing about this product is the fact that it didn't dry my skin out, actually it was left soft and without any residue.

Organic Surge also have a foaming bath in their Spiced Lily scent, something I'm definitely going to keep my eyes open for!

Organic Surge Gentle Meadow Foaming Bath is available on the high street and online and is priced at £5.99 for 250ml

Love,

Claire x. 

Disclaimer: PR Sample

REVIEW: Body Shop Chocomania Shower Cream

I've been searching for a good rich chocolatey shower gel, but all I kept coming across were synthetic or overly sweet and gooey concoctions, I wanted something that left my skin smooth, felt luxe and left me sniffing my arm after I got out of the shower, so I took my chances with this little beauty:

The Body Shop describe their product as:

'This pearlescent shower cream contains real cocoa butter and has a decadently chocolatey scent. It is soap-free and will not dry out the skin.
Wear it, love it, but don’t eat it.'

Mmm, yum!

And they're not kidding, one whiff and you really do want to start nibbling on your skin, the scent is rich and has a slight bitterness to it, like good quality chocolate, have you ever been in a Godiva Chocolatier? You know that cocoa scent that hits you as you walk in? Chocomania reminds me a little of that!

The gel itself is opaque with a pretty pearlesque sheen to it, and it creates a fantastic smooth lather.

The big selling point to me was the fact that this shower cream (and it is quite like a cream, more so than a gel), is soap free and contains cocoa butter so after you rinse off you aren't left with that horrid tight feeling on your skin, there's also no residue so no stickiness either!

I'm not a huge chocolate fan, I can take it or leave it (I can almost hear some of you shouting blasphemy!)  but since I started my diet with Slimming World I have gotten the odd sweet craving, ok, so I'm not going to tell you that a drop of this on a loffah is going to make you want to give up a bar of Dairy Milk, but along with a low-cal hot chocolate I got quite the cocoa hit... if it's psychosomatic I don't care, it saves my thighs from taking over the house.

And for that, I officially <3 this product.

Chocomania Shower Cream costs £4.00 for 250ml and can be purchased from The Body Shop

Love,

Claire x.

Long time no see

I am bad beauty blogger.

Bad bad bad.

Ok not so much bad as busy and stressed.

I don't mention it often, but like many other people (maybe even some of you guys reading now?) I have problems with depression, insomnia and anxiety. Things things effect every element of my life, down to if I feel 'safe' leaving the house, to being awake for days on end, to trying not to burn the house down when I cook dinner  as my memory is terrible, to sitting in floods of tears for what feel like the silliest of reasons.

Lately things had been getting a bit on top of me, I was overwhelmed on my course, I study with the Open University (I think I mentioned that before, their courses are correspondence based and it has helped built up my confidence - and my brain, haha!), somehow I managed to sign up for 3 modules that over lapped one after the other... genius Claire... so between assignments, a horrible online group project, and trying to stay ahead of things as much as I could, I had to abandon my blog for a bit.

I've been feeling pretty guilty about it as I had been sent some lovely products to review, and so far, not a stitch had been written about them, I had photos but I was lacking the words. Then the fact I had no words stressed me out more, and I got to the point where I couldn't even log into Blogger or the email account associated with this blog... definitely a burying my head in the sand kinda month... or two.

I just needed some time out.

So, I took a step back and tried to organise myself, I have a box of things to review in front of me, and there's no dread, I'm really looking forward to doing it, I think I just needed a bit of time out! 

If there's one thing I've realised, it's that this blog has definitely boosted my confidence, I love the feedback I receive  it's wonderful to know people are reading, and I want to say thank you for taking the time to click on my posts and read them, as silly as it may seem you've made a big difference. Ok... I'll stop now, as I can see myself getting all sentimental, and no one needs to see that!

Love,

Claire x.