Work it baby... Work it...

I really miss my Tangle Teezer, I had for it years, back when they first came out and now I cannot find it and it is driving me insane, I am convinced I left it at a hotel I was staying at a few weeks ago.

Anyway, I haven't got around to ordering another one just yet, it is one of those things which is on my list to do.  However, whilst in Asda, I came across a product by 'Spa Gallery London', not someone I have ever heard of, or used the products of. However, this product is called 'Shower Brush' and it is sold in a really nice ice blue packaging which catches your eyes as it sits on the shelf amongst the other hair brushes.

The Shower Brush claims that it 'works through tangles' which is written in bold lettering which again is eye-catching in black lettering on the side of the packaging.

Similarly to the Tangle Teezer, this brush has flexible pins which glide through the hair without pulling or ripping it out, as you work it through your hair, it detangles as it goes.  The cushion part of this brush is soft and smooth and when it comes into contact with your head it helps the pins glide through your hair.

The pins on this brush are really quite soft.  The very reason I use a product like this is because I like how they help to distribute shampoo, conditioner, hair and scalp treatments evenly throughout your hair and on your scalp.

I always find my hair feels much better when brushed in the shower.  You can of course also use these brushes to distribute oils, gels, wax, conditioning lotions and anything else you might put onto your hair - even dry shampoo, which this particular brush is very good at brushing out.

The design of this brush is something I really like, the short little handle on the back of the brush makes it easy to grasp on to when using, especially with wet hair, as you can see in the photo's shown below, the handle is fairly long and and there is enough room for your index finger to go underneath the handle and then your thumb rests flat on the outside of the handle.

Finally - this shower brush retails for just £3.50 and in my opinion it is as good as the Tangle Teezer and I am glad I decided to impulse purchase it.

Have you got a Tangle Teezer?  What do you think of it? Would you buy this Shower Brush?

Is it really a Miracle Oil?

When Bio Oil first hit the UK market back in 2002 I remember quite a few of my friends buying it and using it and over the year a lot of my friends who have had children have used it to keep their stretch marks at bay.  I have never had children, but I naturally have a few marks on my body, some of which I more than want to hide from view.

The Bio Oil bottle is encased in a cardboard box which is both white in colour and detailed with a bright orange, almost luminous writing.  You are told on the box that it is for specialist skincare and that helps scars, stretch marks and so on.  Everything you need to know about this product can be found written on the box - everything from what it is, how to use it, what it does and its ingredients are all detailed.  

Opening the box there is a further information leaflet inside which re-iterates what you will have read on the box.  Then comes the Bio Oil bottle -  a clear see through plastic bottle with a white screw on and off lid, your eyes are immediately drawn to the Oil inside the bottle which you can clearly see, a first description of it, I would say it is a slightly orange colour.

One of Bio Oils key ingredients is called 'PurCellin Oil' which is easily absorbed into the skin and this particular ingredient is said to help with : 

Dehydrated Skin: Helps replenish the skin’s natural oils, stripped away by factors such as extreme weather, water with high chemical content, frequent bathing and the drying effects of central heating and air-conditioning



Weight Related Stretch Marks:  Helps prevent formation of stretch marks during periods of rapid weight gain or loss and helps to improve the appearance of existing stretch marks



Uneven Skin Tone: Helps improve appearance of uneven skin tone caused by hormonal fluctuations, skin lighteners or excessive sun exposure



Ageing Skin: Helps smooth and tone ageing, sagging and wrinkled skin on both the face and body, including skin over exposed to UV light. Plus ideal for age spots and softening cuticles



Daily Moisturiser: Helps moisturise the skin and can be used in conjunction with other skincare products as part of your everyday skincare routine. Built into a daily skin care routine, Bio-Oil can be applied all over the body, including the face, on its own or underneath a daily moisturizer, or as a night treatment. Great for dry patches such as dry elbows, heels and anywhere else that needs some TLC
• Scars:  Improves appearance of new and old scars whether from surgery, accidents, burns, insect bites, scratches and chickenpox.

You can see more information on Bio-Oil and all of its claims here - http://www.bio-oilprofessional.co.uk/

Bio oil is designed to help improve the appearance of scars and stretch marks, help with uneven skin tone and hydrate aging skin, whilst combating fine lines and wrinkles. Bio oil is made without harming animals and contains an ingredient called PurCellin Oil, it is toxicological safe and can be used by pregnant women. Other ingredients within this product include:

Vitamin A – helps improve the skin’s elasticity, texture and tone
• Vitamin E – helps increases the moisture content of the epidermis, thereby making the skin softer, smoother and more supple. Vitamin E also assists in the maintenance of healthy-looking skin
• Calendula Oil – has the ability to clarify and stimulates the growth of new skin cells
• Lavender Oil – known for calming and soothing benefits
• Rosemary Oil – helps to invigorate and it has a mild antiseptic capabilities and thus eases congestion, puffiness and swelling of the skin
• Chamomile Oil – has a calming and soothing effect and is particularly beneficial for sensitive skin

Further details on the rest of the ingredients can be found on the Bio Oil homepage which you can find HERE

As this oil has quite a thin consistency, you might need to be careful when dispensing it, though the bottle has its own inbuilt dispenser to help with applying it, but I tend to use it by pouring some into the palm of my hands and then rubbing my palms together before applying to the skin.  When you apply this oil to the skin, it wont come as a surprise to find that it is greasy, but only for those few seconds it remains on your skin without being massaged in, the second you begin to massage your skin it disappears immediately and all it leaves behind is a lovely rose and lavender scent on your skin.

I have a few scars on my body from injuries, one which really makes me feel self conscious was on my foot.  When I was 10 years old I managed to put a gardening fork through my foot (yes I did) and then pulled it out again.  I am sure you can imagine the damage it caused and over the years this scar has been something I have been embarrassed by, so this was my main ‘attack’ area with Bio Oil, the other being a scar on my wrist from an iron.  So since the beginning of February, I have used Bio Oil, as instructed on many scars across my body, but mainly on these two and I am amazed by what I have found.  Below is a photo of my ironing injury, as you can see there is a slight outline of what was once there, usually I have my watch covering the majority of the scar, so there are no other photos of it, but the difference for me is amazing.  The scar on my foot is much older than the one on my wrist and again there has been a noticeable improvement in how the scar looks, it has faded a lot and again for me this is brilliant.  

Bio Oil does advise that you should use this oil for a minimum of 3 months and whilst for me we are almost at the 6 week stage, half way there, the changes are really significant. I am beginning to feel much more at ease and I know that it cannot remove these permanent scars, but it has made living with them much easier.

For me, this has been a brilliant oil  and with its many uses, it is something I think everyone should try, if they haven’t done so already and probably something someone should have in their home somewhere for when they need that little extra bit of TLC or want to try it for themselves.  It is available in three different sizes:

• 60ml rsp £8.95
• 125ml rsp £14.95
• 200ml rsp £19.95

And you will find it in a whole host of stores, such as -  Boots, Superdrug, Tesco, Asda, Lloyds Pharmacy, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Waitrose, Savers, Wilkinsons, and many independent pharmacies nationwide.   Bio Oil also have a Facebook page which you can find here -https://www.facebook.com/biooiluk

Finally Bio-Oil is preservative-free and is not tested on animals. 

Have you ever used Bio-Oil?  What did you think to it?

A holiday in your shower

If it has coconut in it, I am likely to buy it.  I love the smell, the taste and the feel of coconut.  So whilst in Asda I came across a new range of Radox Shower Gels and the one which caught my eye in its bright white packaging was ‘Coconut Kiss’ a shower cream which contains exotic coconut and milk.  On the shelves where you find shower gels, there is always a plethora of colours all trying to catch your eye and because this was bright white, I was immediately drawn to it and as it was on offer for £1, I bought two.  On the front of the packaging you will find the word Coconut in an orange colour with the word Kiss underneath in white and again, the colouring catches your eye along with the sticker that shouts ‘New’ to you as you move close to inspect it.  This shower gel is a 250ml bottle in the new design which is much easier to grasp onto with wet hands whilst in the shower.

I am quite a fan of Radox Shower gels and there is always a few in the bathroom, I buy the Mister some masculine smelling shower gels and I tend to opt for the more flowery or fruited scented ones.  This one fits in neither category, once you open the black flip top lid you can immediately smell the coconut, it is like having a Bounty chocolate bar and a bit of Malibu in a tube,  not an artificial smell at all, it just smells that wonderful.

What they say - Coconut Kiss

"For girls who like to chill and un-wind why not try Coconut Kiss: Why stop dreaming when you get out of bed in the morning? This blissful shower gel containing coconut and milk has a deliciously Caribbean scent that will allow you to calmly daydream into your very own world of paradise with super soft skin.

Radox Coconut Kiss Shower Cream is inspired by nature. This delicious blend of natural ingredients, like creamy milk and exotic coconut, evokes an uplifting burst of paradise to every shower. With fabulously fruity fragrances your Coconut Kiss shower cream will leave you smelling gorgeous all day“.

Upon squeezing the tube, you release a bright white cream which is fairly thick in texture and again that coconut aroma becomes more fragrant and unlike anything else I have used from Radox in the past, I simply loved it.  The cream itself produces a lot of lather, as soon as it comes into contact with your sponge, flannel, Loofah or whatever it is you use to wash yourself, the warm water fluffs the cream up and you are suddenly covered in coconut smelling lather, lots of it.  As you stand immersed in your coconut lather and wash yourself you could be on your tropical island with your cocktail, the smell is that fresh.

After showering I was delighted that the coconut smell was so strong on my skin and again it isn’t an artificial smell, it is a fresh coconut smell, almost as if you have covered yourself in coconut cream, Malibu and eaten a Bounty, it is delicious and it stays put for hours after using.  My skin, well soft and smooth to the touch as well, absolutely no complaints from me and as soon as the bathroom door is opened and the steam is allowed to escape throughout the house, with it goes that coconut scent into every room.

This is a delightful smelling shower cream, one of the best I have ever used from the range and one that is likely to remain in my bathroom for a long time to come, well worth the £1 I spent on it as an offer and I would happily pay the full price of £2.15 for it.  You can find these products in Boots, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Savers.

Did you know...

·         ‘Super’ power showers are costing the average family £928 a year and an individual person over £18,000 in their lifetime- the same as the average deposit for a terraced house in the UK.

·         Brits could save almost £10,000 in a lifetime, and over one million litres of water (1,514,240 litres) by halving their showers

For the Love of Shea Butter

Shea Butter is quite possibly one of my favourite scents in a cream or lotion (aside form coconut) it reminds me of Caramac bars, a childhood love I shared with my late Grandfather.  I first came across Shea Butter back in my teens when I was looking for something to soothe and cure my dry shins, a skin problem I have had for many years now and it drives me insane.

I was recently sent a lovely tin of Pure Health Shea Butter Skin Food to try and as soon as the package arrived, it was ripped open.  Inside the package was this 100g tin:

Pure Health Shea Butter Skin Food is sold in quite a funky retro tin and is available for £9.19 whereupon which 10% of the profits are donated to development projects in Africa.    The tin itself tells you that this product is 100% pure, meaning it contains no parabens, sulphates or paraffin to irritate the skin. Instead what will you find is something that is rich in Vitamins A, E and F and being so it is not the only kind to your skin but will also be both nourishing and rejuvenating and it has shown to be effective in treating certain skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis add to that it is also said to be effective in reducing the appearance of stretch marks and wrinkles - now where exactly can you get some of this miracle butter?

Right here -  Pure Health’s Shea Butter Skin Food (£9.19 for a 100g). 

What they say

“From the seeds of the shea tree comes the gift of shea butter. A wonderful natural balm and skin moisturiser appreciated by many with dry, irritated skin. Unlike the white, odourless, refined shea butter that goes into so many cosmetic products today, our shea butter is pure, unrefined shea butter sourced from women's cooperatives in West Africa. In addition, refined Shea Butter has usually been extracted from the shea kernels using hexane or other petroleum solvents, traces of which are often present in the finished product, which also lacks many of the soothing, nutritive properties of unrefined, virgin shea butter.

Like all premium unrefined shea butter, it has a characteristic nutty scent, which disappears after a few minutes when rubbed on the skin. Unrefined shea butter is a very versatile active ingredient for skin and hair care products and has excellent anti-aging, soothing and moisturising properties.”

Shea Butter has been around for many years and it does appear in quite a lot of products, particularly those which are moisturising, hydrating and it even appears in make-up products such as lip balms and lipsticks.  I really like Shea Butter as an ingredient for those reasons and it has a lot of uses:

• Helps heal scars, burns, and stretch marks.
• Prevents ashy skin, chapping, and skin rashes.
• An ideal hairdressing that protects the scalp from sores and rashes and prevents dandruff.
• Helps prevent weak hair from breaking, fading, or thinning out.
• Fortifies cuticles and nails.
• Helps bruises to heal.
• Helps drain toxins from sore muscles: perfect for sports participants.
• Helps prevent skin irritation for babies: used for generations to help babies sleep better.
• Use after shaving to prevent irritation and restore skin's natural lustre.
• Ideal for dry skin, dermatitis, eczema, sunburn and athletes foot.
• Rejuvenates skin pores and adds elasticity to skin.
• Firms up ageing skin and helps clear wrinkles.
• Massage Shea butter into areas affected by arthritis, joint pains, or other muscular aches.
• Naturally, contains vitamins A and E.

Upon opening the tin, using a simple twisting action, the first thing I noticed was the creamy look of the Shea Butter, as you wipe your hand across the Shea Butter, which is packed tightly into the tin, it is almost a solid, until the heat from your body touches it and it simply glides onto your finger, then onto you skin and it is so smooth to the touch.  As it glides onto your skin, it disappears almost immediately and leaves behind no hint that it was there in the first place, there is no greasiness to the skin, so snail-like trail it was once there, instead all you are left with is soft, smooth skin which is purely delightful.  

As for the scent, well it came as a surprise to me that there was no sweet smell, instead there is this soft aroma that had a slightly nutty scent to it, nothing too overpowering, in fact it is so delicate you would almost not notice it, if you weren’t looking for it and it is quite nice.

This Shea Butter is Fair Trade and suitable for Vegans.  It also doesn't contain:

• Parabens or other preservatives
• Parafin or other petrochemicals
• Solvents or Perfumes

After using it for a few weeks, concentrating on one area of my body, my shins, there is already a notable difference to the dry skin on my shins, it hasn’t disappeared entirely but I no longer resemble a reptile about to shed its skin. Instead, my shins are soft and smooth to the touch and I am now not as embarrassed by my legs and I will continue to use this product until it runs out because I can see how beneficial it has been and will be. 

In the last week, I have been using it on my nail cuticles, which is looking quite haggard in the hope it will soften and soothe them and too.