Inner-Soul Organics

Inner-Soul Organics is one of those brands that I just love from the very first try and the fact they are British with products made right here in the UK makes me want to champion them ever more. Inner-Soul Organics offers luxurious skincare for face, bath, body, anti-aging and maternity, created with fine quality, organic, botanical extracts but what I love more is that they have a service that allows you the customer to have your own unique skincare range designed and created just for you. Inner Soul Organics skincare products are also suitable for use as part of vegan and vegetarian lifestyles and we are against animal testing and you can find out more about them right here.

I was sent two sample pots to try and test and I absolutely loved both of them, especially the Rose and Lemon Tender Cleanse Balm.  I am a real fan of cleansing balms, there is just something really relaxing and satisfying about using them to melt off the days make up, dirt and grime to leave you with a fresh, clean feeling face, particularly for me living here in London.  

To use the Roses and Lemons Tender Cleanse Balm, you apply in light sweeps all over the face and neck and when doing this, I use one of my muslin cloths as I find they work really well with. With this balm you are advised to concentrate on the sides of the nose, the dip of the chin and forehead and then to remove, simply moisten the cloth and remove excess balm. Now as you can imagine, it smells absolutely divine and is packed full of amazing ingredients such as:

• Mango and Virgin Coconut Butters are at the heart of our cleansing balm to gently cleanse away dirt without stripping skin of its natural oil content
• Extracts of organic Kiwi Seed, Aloe, Calendula and Rose Hip de-stress and soothe skin and also deal with fine lines and wrinkles by encouraging production of new collagen cells and quenching skin with vitamin C
• Red Raspberry seed acts to boost skin's natural immunity, protecting against free radicals and irritations
• Squalane, Evening Primrose and Spilanthes Acmella will hydrate and leave a beautiful glow on the skin
• Sublime Rose de Mai and Rose Absolute calm and tighten, smoothing away fine lines, whilst Lemon and Bergamot deeply cleanse and reduce dark spots

The True Balance Day Time Moisturiser is a cream which feels incredibly luxurious on the skin and you only need a small amount because as soon as it comes into contact with the skin it absorbs itself leaving behind soft, smooth and really hydrated feeling skin.  As with the cleansing balm, this cream is packed full of amazing ingredients such as Ylang Ylang which has a soothing effect and its balancing action sorts out over-dry as well as overly-oily skin by balancing the secretion of sebum and there is also the inclusion of Apricot, Lemon and Thistle which moisturise and mattify the skin.

What I found with this cream is that the scent is really long lasting and you can smell it for a good few hours after application and it leaves behind no greasy residue.

These sample pots are a really generous size and have really impressed me into wanting to try a few more products from the range. The Cleansing Balm was my favourite of the two and it is just an absolute delight to use and anything which leaves your skin feeling squeaky clean definitely deserves the thumbs up.

Have you ever tried anything from Inner Soul Organics?

Lush Cup O'Coffee Face and Body Mask

Almost two years ago now I gave up caffeine, I got to the point where I became too dependant upon it to get me through the day and one day decided enough was enough and cut it out. Now instead of needing coffee or tea, I have it as an occasional treat and have instead found new things to try instead. However, I love the smell of coffee, I love coffee flavoured things and when I saw Cup O'Coffee as a Face and Body Mask in Lush, it was in my basket before I had even had a sniff!

Cup O'Coffee is a Face and Body mask and as the name suggests it smells like freshly brewed coffee and is heaven in a black Lush tub, it is intense, it is great and I love it, even if I didn't like it as a mask, I would still love it for the scent. As for smelling like fresh coffee, well it looks quite like coffee too as you can see, it is a Mocha shade, so not overly exciting bright pink with glitter, but it matches it name especially well and it does do an excellent job.

So Cup O'Coffee is best described as being an exfoliating mask for the face and body and the idea is that you slap it onto your face and body, leave it for 15 minutes and then wash off. It is definitely more of a shower product than one for the bath and it is also one you need to use when you have 15 minutes to stand around in your bathroom, but it is also totally worth it. The pot comes in two sizes, 150g and 325g and the one I have is 150g and it lasted for a few uses. Again, depending on where you use it, how much you use and how often you use it depends on how long it is going to last. The first time I used it was on my arms and legs and I used it sparingly, the second time I used it on my face and the third time I managed to do arms, chest and face before running out. Having applied it to my skin in a massaging motion as I would with any other mask, waiting for 15 minutes in and then getting into a warm shower to massage it off my skin, the scent, once it hits the steam of the shower is just divine, honestly it is like standing next to a Barista as he makes your coffee.

As you might have guessed, the main ingredient of Lush Cup O' Coffee is of course coffee and it is called coffee infusion which you can read more about here. The caffeine within this product is rich, awakening and boosts your blood flow and circulation to literally wake everything up, even you! Also included is Kaolin which helps to cleanser and exfoliate the skin, Coriander Seed Oil which not only warms and soothes tired achey muscles but also uplifts and refreshes where states of tension and fatigue exist plus it is naturally antibacterial and there is also Vanilla Absolute which is fresh and uplifting scent as well as having an antibacterial effect on the skin, it is also naturally rich in vitamins which help your skin to feel more balanced and healthy.

Once you have removed the mask from your face and body, which I always have done (am on my third tub) using a muslin cloth, my skin felt just incredible. Wearing thick tights most days, can leave my legs feeling really dry and scaly, even though I moisturise every morning and evening. So to use this mask once a week, literally removes all the dead and dry skin and leaves behind soft, smooth, moisturised and glowing (on the face) skin which smells so amazing. I think this is honestly the best face and body mask I have ever used, well it must be, I am now on my third tub and still love it as much now as I did when I first got one.

This Lush Cup O' Coffee Face and Body Mask costs £6.75/150g and £13.25/325g and can be found online and in stores.

New Nail Care Range - Barry M

Barry M is one of those brands which is a total Highstreet Gem and one I find myself liking more and more.  I have always been a fan of the nail polish range and launching into Boots and Superdrug stores on 20th January 2016 is the new nail care range**.

The range has four products, all of which are housed inside cute little bottles and each one costs just £3.99.  There is a Super Mani 7-in-1 Treatment, Iron Mani Ultimate Nail Hardener and two Mani Mask Camouflage Colour and Condition products in two amazing shades.

The Super Mani 7-in-1 Treatment is a super hero twice weekly basecoat and treatment product which offers 7 benefits; hydrating and protecting enamel for healthy nourished nails:

• Encourages Growth
• Strengthens with Keratin
• Nourished with Argan Oil
• Promotes Shine
• Hydrates with Vitamin E
• Smoothes the nail surface
• Protects from breakage

A nice purple shade inside the bottle, it actually goes onto the nails clear.

Iron Mani Ultimate Nail Hardener is designed to help toughen up your nail and help prevent breakages and this treatment works to strengthen, toughen and smooth your nail.

Again, this Mani is a stunning shade of blue in the bottle, but applies clear onto the nails.

Mani Mask Camouflage Colour and Condition comes in two shades - Birthday Suit which is a really lovely creamy nude shade and Bashful which is a cute baby pink shade. 

I love both shades and they are both semi matte and are a perfect finish for your nails once you have added your Super Mani and Iron Mani to your nails.  

If you are looking for a pocket friendly nail care kit, then Barry M has the answer you are looking for. Having used them for the last month, they are just as good as rival and more expensive brands.

Christmas presents you should definitely buy your cat!

With three cats in the house, I might often be referred to as the 'Mad Cat Lady' but they are my boys, my furkids and I don't think they should be left out at Christmas.  A quick Google search gave me an endless list of things I could purchase.  

The first item I absolutely love and it could not be more perfect is Kitty Street - Terrace Cat Houses with Scratchy Roofs.  This is a cat bed terrace, perfect because I have three cats and rather than fighting over the one cat bed we have, they could have one each. Inside there are fur cushions and the roofs are scratching mats.  What I love about this is that you can also add more cubes should you need them.

One thing Hector loves is laying on the laptop when you are trying to use it and no matter what it is we are doing, the save button is constantly over-used because out of nowhere comes this crazy kitty jumping all over you. So this could be the answer to all of my problems - Cat Playhouse Cardboard Laptop. Designed to look like a laptop with screen and keyboard with a rather humorous mouse.  With this, I feel Hector could have a fantastic time sat next to me as I type and if you have a similar laptop obsessed kitty, you can find the laptop.

Having cats means providing stimulating play time or they get bored and can become quite destructive. Hector is now 4 months old and loves to climb, much to my horror. He loves to be as high as he can possibly get, which is normal for a cat. However, in an attempt to stop him from climbing on top of my wardrobes and bouncing off, we have bought the SmartCat Door Climber in the hope it will satisfy his climbing urge

If you have friends, who like me are mad cat ladies and you cannot think of anything to buy them, or they have everything, then forget them and buy something for the cats.  There are two cat hampers which really have caught my attention from Purrfectbox and Cat Hampurr.

My boys are huge fan of the Purrfectbox and we have reviewed a few of the boxes right here on Beautyqueenuk. The team over at Purrfecrbox have an amazing Special Edition Christmas Box is a box of 6 specially chosen products, perfect for those wanting to treat the pets of their friends and family. It costs just £19.90.

The lovely people over at Cat Hampurr have also come up with their very own Christmas Cat Hamper and which will be a hand picked a box full of goodies that will keep them entertained well into the new year. Again the box costs just £19.90 and you can get it  but be quick because they are limited.

Staying with the theme of food and hampers, my boys were very kindly sent family-owned US brand of natural pet food, Wellness, which has just launched at Pets at Home. Wellness offers wholesome, healthy nutrition for cats and contains no wheat, corn, soya, artificial colours, flavours or preservatives. The recipes use delicious, real-foods like deboned meats, healthy fruits and vegetables and easily-digestible carbohydrates to provide the perfect balance of protein, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in the healthiest way possible. The range my boys have been trying is the CORE Divine Duos, an indulgent savoury pâté topped with protein-rich cuts in gravy. Dishes include hearty cuts of beef, chicken liver, tuna and salmon – balanced with nutrient-rich broccoli and carrots and it has been absolutely lapped up and loved.

Anyone who has any experience with kittens and cats will know that they love to scratch everything including you, your furniture, your carpet and anything you can do to encourage them not to do this will be in your favour and will also lower your stress levels. So a perfect gift for any cat is a scratching post, mine absolutely love them and they are the most used and loved item we have. The good news is that they also come in all shapes and sizes and are widely available and range in price from around £10 right up to £50+!

Anyone with cats will also know about catnip.  Catnip is part of the mint family but it has an essential oil in it called nepetalactone which has a powerful effect on cats who are sensitive to it, though not all are, and it turns them totally crazy and has them running around like a big fun-filled bag ecstasy, dribbling everywhere and generally just attacking the toy it is in or on.  Again, they are readily available and come in all different shapes and sizes but are really budget friendly and your cat will absolutely love it and you.

One final item that is synonymous with Christmas is stockings and yes there are stockings and stocking fillers for cats which all contain cat treats and are perfect for spoiling your little fur ball and again they range in price from £2 right up to £8 so they won't break the bank.

So here you have just a few ideas as to what you can buy your kitten, cat or your friends, family or neighbours cat as a gift.  There is naturally a whole host of other items I could have included within the toy section, the ideas are endless.

Do you have a cat or indeed any animal? If so, do you buy them a Christmas present?