A beauty junkie in London: October 2009

Sleek Make-Up Storm Palette

Before I launch into the full review, I have to say how increasingly impressed I am with the make-up selection on offer at Superdrug. Even in the smaller stores, the make-up aisle is huge and packed with a range of brands - many of which I wouldn't know anywhere else to get them - including GOSH, Sleek, Make-Up UK, Bloom... the list goes on and on, and all on top of the 'usual' brands of Maybelline, Rimmell, Collection 2000, L'Oreal.

It is impressive stuff, but one of the things I do notice about Superdrug is that there does tend to be a distinct difference between them and Boots in the way that the counters are maintained. All too often, I have visited Superdrug to find the shelves sparsely stocked and grubby. Totally understand that having make-up out to test can lead to some mess but nothing the occasional wet wipe wouldn't solve. My other bug bear in Superdrug (at least my local one) is that they sellotape up all the products to prevent clumsy fingers from poking around and ruining products for sale - fair enough - but as a consumer this is a little annoying as then my brand new foundation/powder/mascara is covered in sticky gloop. Not pleasant.

Anyway, rant over and onto the review of one of my new favorite brands- Sleek Make-Up. I have had a look at their palettes before and never bought, but then I saw the 'Storm (578)' palette and it was love at first sight. I love the mixture of golden, pink, bronze, and rich blue shades. All of which I would happily use on a regular basis. The design of the palette's packaging also defies it's less than £5 price point, although it doesn't feel 'high-end', it certainly doesn't feel flimsy.

Onto the colours, all the shades in the palette are mineral based and surprisingly, highly pigmented. There is some fall-out when applied, especially the darker colours but once on they last really well, with minimal creasing (I did use a primer though).

In the picture, the paler shades aren't really a true reflection as the flash makes them too pale. But I would describe the colours as follows:

Left line, top to bottom:

Bronze, shimmering grey-blue, deep shimmering green, shimmering dark blue with a hint of purple, matte brown, matte black.

Right line, top to bottom:

Shimmer pale gold, shimmer light 'champagne' gold, matte pale brown, shimmer dirty gold, shimmer pink, shimmer 'cranberry'.

My personal favorites are (in my names): shimmer pink, shimmer pale gold, shimmer light 'champagne' gold, bronze and shimmer 'cranberry'. I also like the shimmering dark blue with a hint of purple as a lash line color for definition.

I don't really like the matter colours as I find the colour pay-off isn't as good and they are hard to blend, so these haven't had much use.

For a bargain price of around £4.80, this palette is mightily impressive. I have also picked up the new limited edition 'Graphite' palette and plan to get more, although I will probably skip the 'Acid' one, neon's are not really my thing...

Quick post: ASOS Beauty and the Blogger Event

I have just got back from the ASOS Beauty and the Blogger event, held at ASOS HQ. It was a really great event, filled with purple cupcakes, champers, pampering and, of course, beauty bits (see picture above).

The event was held as a special online/blogger Christmas preview, with all of the special products ASOS have on the site on display to drool over and play with. I am a big fan of ASOS, but have never really bought much beauty-wise, other than one Ciate ASOS Paint Pot (in Sienna, a dusky purple shade) that I love and will do a post on shortly.

Speaking of ASOS Paint Pots, at the event I also had my nails done by Ciate creator and celebrity manicurist Charlotte Straughan. I chose ASOS Paint Pot in shade 'Alexa', a deep midnight/navy blue and it looks gorgeous, this picture doesn't really do it justice, but hopefully you get the idea. Also, very impressed by the Ciate Speed Dry Top Coat, it really does as it says on the bottle- dries super fast, leaving nails glossy but dry enough for me to grab my oyster card without smudging.

From the new Christmas products coming to ASOS, the one I have my eye on is the Too Faced 'Natural Eye' palette, see pics below, it looks so pretty!

L'Oreal Studio Secrets Resurfacing Primer: Review

When the L'Oreal Studio Secrets range was launched recently in the UK I immediately had my eye on the Resurfacing Primer. This is mainly due to the fact that my number one beauty issue (on a fairly substantial list) is that I have some fine lines already appearing under my eyes, despite the fact that I am only in my mid-twenties, personally I think this is a little unfair and will do anything in my power to treat/tone down/hide the dreaded lines.

So, right on cue - in rolls this wonder product from L'Oreal Studio Secrets - that promises to deliver a smooth, perfected skin, primed for foundation application. Sounds good right? But does it do as it says on the tin?

Pretty much, yep. It smooths skin and makes the lines SLIGHTLY less noticeable immediately which is great, but the lines don't vanish as I hoped. Despite this, my favorite thing about it is that it prevents foundation or concealer from settling in the under-eye lines throughout the day. I have been using this every day, with either foundation, tinted moisturiser or just concealer on lazy make-up days.

What's not to like? Well, the packaging is pretty non-descript and doesn't seem to me like the most practical design. The texture is quite thick and covering a whole face takes some work, so I tend to concentrate it on the T-zone and under the eyes.

I cant help but feel the price, which was on offer at £9.99 when I bought it, is a bit too high, it is a very small pot and in the month or so since I bought it I have already used about a third already - so I am undecided if I will re-purchase this one or not.

Revlon Double Twist Review

Some of you may have already spotted this review on the rather fabulous British Beauty Blogger site, but in case you haven't then read on!

When British Beauty Blogger put a call out for someone to guest review a new launch mascara on her behalf, I couldn’t have jumped faster. Mascara is kind-of my ‘thing’ and is easily the one make-up item that I couldn’t live without. I’m constantly on the hunt for the latest, greatest inventions that promise to give me long, fluttery, lashes in the sweep of a cleverly-designed wand.

The latest launch in the eye-fluttering department is the Double Twist Mascara from Revlon. Fronted by the gorgeous Jessica Alba, the Double Twist promises to ‘create massive volume and definition’ thanks to ‘intense pigments’ and ‘swelling spheres’ that provide ‘plump, luscious volume and rich colour like never before’.

But enough of the marketing blurb, the most notable thing about this mascara is the wand – which is a unique combination of both the brush and comb designs – so in theory, you get the best of both worlds when applied. The comb will add definition, whilst the brush will add length and prevent clumping.

So, is the wand really all that magic? Not really, as the brush fibres are shorter than the comb ones it can be a bit awkward to get the applicator close enough to the eye to get the full impact of both, without actually making impact, and poking yourself in the eye. It took a couple of uses for to get the hang of this, without injuring myself or getting mascara all over the lid or upper water line, but when I did I found that the mascara does deliver really intense volume and length.

This mascara is not for the faint hearted, or those that want the ‘natural, but slightly better’ look. This delivers dramatic thick, dark, lashes in single swoop. My only other issue with the Double Twist is that there is some clumping. I think this is actually made worse by the design of the brush as the lumps that are stuck to the shorter brush sections, are prevented by being wiped off by the longer comb bits when you pull the wand out of the packaging – so the duo wand design isn’t as effective as I would have hoped for.

Despite this, having used this mascara all weekend the overall impression is positive. The mascara creates lashes that are dark, dramatic and perfect for night time. Yes, using the brush takes a little bit of practice to avoid poking, but once you get the hang of it, the results are intense with just a single coat.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

With October soon drawing to a close, so does this years Brest Cancer Awareness month. With such an important issue I think this is the perfect time to recognise that 'Breast Cancer Awareness is for life, not just for October'. I know that's a bit of a cliched way of putting it, but it is important that we all think pink year-round rather than just when it is a hot news topic.

On the lighter side, there are also a huge number of very stylish BCA goodies that you can buy this month and make a donation to the worthy cause. Case in point, the Limited Edition Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturiser, available in Selfridges is a classic skin care item, that is worth stocking up on before the end of the month as Clinique will donate £1 and Selfridges will donate £1 for each bottle bought to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Guilt-free beauty buys, what's not to love?

The Wonders of Wahanda: Part 2

I discovered the awesome beauty website wahanda a few months ago and have been loving the weekly newsletters arriving in my inbox. There are some seriously amazing deals to be found on the site so it's well worth keeping an eye on.

One of the best things about wahanda is that, like the blogging community, it totally feeds of interaction and feedback. Users can create profiles and upload reviews of treatments they have tried out, so other users can

Scarily enough, Christmas is creeping up on us yet again Wahanda have come up with a great idea for a gift that will suit pretty much anyone. Wahanda have launched wahanda gift vouchers that are the most widely accepted beauty, fitness and spa vouchers in the UK. Valid at 400 spas/salons/health farms/hotel spas/gyms and yoga studios nationwide, the voucher is perfect for the person that you don't have a clue what to get them- a little bit more luxurious than a book voucher...

The lucky recipient can spend the voucher on anything they like, so if they are more of a fitness freak than a pampered princess then they could use it for personal training or yoga classes... personally a nice pampering massage would be more my cup of tea, but each to their own!

Find out more about the vouchers HERE

Bourjois 1 Seconde Nail Varnish: Review

I first used the Bourjois Nail Polish in shade '24' back in the Summer when I went to the Illamasqua Dystopia event. The dark shade with a hint of green shimmer was perfect for the dark theme of the event. At the time I also made a mental not that the colour would be perfect for halloween so wanted to save the post till now.

The brush design of the Bourjois 1 Seconde nail polishes is really ingenious and makes me wonder why more companies dont design thier brushes like that as it makes application really fast, smoothe and straightforward.

The colour is so perfect for this time of year, on first glance it looks like a simple dark grey/black shade but when you look closely it is packed with multi-shimmer particles in rich emerald green, with a hint of purple to keep the colour warm. The formula is highly pigmented enough that only one coat looks good, without ending up too thick. But for such a dark colour I found that two coats were better, to make sure the colour was really intense.

I reckon if I was a witch I would wear this colour all year round.

Beauty loves: repeat purchases

Being a beauty junkie, I am constantly on the hunt for my next beauty 'fix'. Whilst there is some satisfaction in the ongoing hunt, the best buzz is when I find something that really works and when this happens I will buy the same product over and over again.

Having said that, this doesn't happen very often, so when it does it is well worth shouting about so I thought I would share a few of my favorites.

No7 Eye Make-Up Remover

Simply, this does the job. Removes all traces of eye make-up easily, with no need for vicious rubbing. Doesn't leave eyes feeling greasy either. I re-purchased this one at the weekend after the last bottle I had ran out.

I got this for a bargain £2.50 thanks to the £5 No7 vouchers they are giving out when you spend over £5 in Boots stores.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil

This was the first time I had ever used an oil as a cleanser and it was love at first cleanse. I first used this way back months ago when I was sent one to review. I am amazed by the value of this as despite using it almost daily (give or take a few) this STILL hasn't run out. I am 100% going to buy another of these when it runs out.

Dove Deodorant (original)

Not the most glamorous of the beauty world, but a necessity, I can't get enough of this fresh smelling basic. Currently using the anti-white-mark version, which doesn't have quite the same fresh powdery smell as the original, but it good all the same.

I'm going to keep adding to this post over time with the products I love and can't get enough of. What are yours? Is there any product you love so much that you have back-ups? Or just re-purchase over and over... let me know what they are in the comments below!

Beauty News: HQhair.com sacks Royal Mail

Following in the wake of Amazon, who this week suspended thier use of Royal Mail for deliveries, HQhair.com has also withdrawn use of the UK's unreliable postal service.

The loss of the HQhair.com account means that Royal Mail are set to lose another £1million in revenue, HQhair.com chose to use an alternative delivery service so that customers are not left waiting for thier purchases.

Other online retailers, including ASOS.com are following suit but I imagine the postal strikes are having a pretty serious impact on small businesses across the country and at a time when small businesses are having a hard enough time as it is- it just seems a bit ridiculous to little old me. PLUS it took nearly a week for a highly important beauty delivery to arrive on my doorstep, simply not acceptable...!!!

Teenage Beauty Blunders

I was inspired by the wonderful world of Twitter yesterday to do a blog post on 'teenage beauty blunder'. God knows, I had more than my fair share of them! After seeing a couple of 'tweets' about them I thought I would do a post to 'confess' a few of mine.... just for laughs.

My first foray into coloured eye shadow using a raspberry-pink Rimmel shade resulted in being asked if I had been crying.
Once I wasn't allowed to go into the canteen for lunch at high school till I removed my lilac eye liner. I think the lunch lady had the right idea.
After reading in a magazine that you could curl your hair with dish cloths, I went out and bought a packet, preceded to rip them up into small strips and wrap my hair REALLY tightly in them. When removed I looked like I had been the victim of a strong electric shock.
Along the same lines, at about age 13 I had my hair crimped and then decided to brush out my fringe- leaving me with a afro/frizz puff on my forehead.

I wont even get started on how my first attempts at fake tanning went...or how I only discovered hair straighteners at 19...

SO, now that I have shared (some) of mine, it's your turn! What are your 'teenage beauty blunders'... comment below :)

Slendertone Review: Part two

I did a brief post about my Slendertone experience a couple of months ago (time flies) and always promised to do a full review post, so here goes.

Slendertone is a pretty well known brand so many will know what it does, but for those that don't: Slendertone machines are basically toning machines for people (like me) who are essentially too lazy to hit the gym and do a million sit ups a day. They work by sending electrical impulses to the muscles, causing them to contract and relax- in the same way as they would when you do a sit up. So basically it does the hard work for you.

I know, I probably shouldn't be so lazy and just get off my fat a**e and do the exercise, but I have never been a gym bunny and it would be a good week if I managed to fit in a jog- let alone sit ups. So, as a busy bee- I prioritise doing a bit of cardio to keep me healthy and opt to use the Slendertone to attempt to tone my mid-section.

So, what is it like?

Wrapping the abs band around is slightly unpleasant as the pads are a bit cold and slimy feeling, but once they warm up (which they do very quickly). When the machine is turned on it starts as a very subtle tingly feeling, that becomes more and more intense as you increase the setting. As it increases it gradually gets strong enough to engage the muscles and get them to contract and relax.

Is it painful?

Not at all, if anything it feels quite funny and makes me giggle. The more intense the level it is on, the harder the muscle contracts- if I put it on too high a level it was uncomfortable, but not painful. But I guess it would be a huge cop-out to have no form of sensation at all- and at least you can feel it working. If it just tingles, it wont be engaging the muscles and therefore- wont be doing anything.

Does it do anything?

I truly think it does. It definitely works the muscles and you can feel that 'ache' the day after. When I first got the machine I used it like an obsessed woman and by the end of the week my stomach felt a bit more taut.

I think it must have done something, as the boyfriend noticed enough of a difference to buy his own Slendertone machine after I had used mine for two weeks. At around £100, this isn't a cheap investment so I doubt he would have done so if he didn't think it was worth it.

Also, I am planning to buy myself the arm kit to tackle my bingo wings, my other 'problem area'. Once you have the Slendertone System Controller, you can add the bits for specific body parts, the arm kit is around £30.

What are the downsides?

You have to use it really regularly and consistently. When I was using it really regularly I could really feel the difference, but since coming back from holiday and moving I'm a bit embarrassed to say I haven't used it at all and can feel how 'I have let myself go'- just like when you stop exercising, it doesn't take long for the good work to disappear.

This is totally my fault for not finding time to use it and as I sit here, after one too many ginger-nuts I am determined to get back on the Slendertone wagon. I think this time I may even brave the 'before' and 'after' photographs to show the effects (so shield your eyes when the time comes if you are easily shocked...)

*** The Slendertone Abs Belt was sent as a sample for review, not bought but this review is 100% honest!***

Get glowing: Highlighter review

Highlighting products are one of my current obsessions in beauty-land. If a product promises to provide radiance and a glow, then I want it. So much so that I have already grown my budding MAC collection (which I only started investing in recently- read the blog here) by buying not one Mineralise Skin Finish (MSF) but three.

In addition to the three MAC MSF's I bought from TalluluhBella's blog sale, I also have two other highlighting/glow-giving products that I have been sent to test out- so I thought it would be good to do a bit of a round-up review.

Prestige Skin Loving Minerals Sunbaked Mineral Bronzing Powder in 'Pure Shimmer'

This product is the Prestige brand's version of the MSF and not a bad version it is too. This is the paler of the three shades available in the range (other colours are a bronze and a gold). This looks gorgeous and feels gorgeous. The powder is really silky and fine - with not a hint of the glitter-ball affect. This is a lovely product for paler skins to give a glowing highlight to cheek bones, or used as a highlighting eye shadow.

I found this to have the nicest texture of all five products, the pale champagne shimmer colour is warmed with a nude-pink shade so it doesn't look too pale, but this is definitely better suited to paler complexions as the silver-based shimmer would look to cool on olive or dark skin.

MAC MSF in 'New Vegas'

This MSF (apparently) came from the 'Alexander McQueen collection', which was before my time as a fan of MAC. But I have read a few reviews of this and it seems to really split opinions. Some think it is too glittery or better suited to darker skin tones and others love it.

Personally, I have a mixed opinion too. Partly I am still in the 'honeymoon period' with the MSF's, where they can do no wrong in my eyes... but on the other hand, I can see how the colour isn't the most flattering for me and there is a too much glitter for daytime use. But I have found this one is good as a highlighting eyeshadow on the brow bone. I'm not a big fan of the glitter, but with a name like 'New Vegas', it needs a bit of glitz....

New Vegas and the Prestige Pure Shimmer are quite similar golden shimmer shades, New Vegas looks slightly more golden/pale orange on the skin whilst Pure Shimmer is more of a 'champagne' shade.

The Body Shop Blush Trio in 'Warm Sunset'

I know this one has been reviewed and mentioned all over the blog world, following the blogger event The Body Shop held a couple of months ago. I didn't go to the event, but was a very luck girl and still got sent a few of the bits to review. I will do a full Body Shop review shortly as really think all the bits I was sent are worth writing about, but in the mean time I'll just cover the blush trio.

I'm not usually one for using much blush, as with pale skin with pink undertones I tend to have more than enough natural blush that I don't need any extra. But, despite this I took this one away on holiday with me and found it was really perfect for highlighting my 'tanned' (read: even pinker)skin.

The powder is really smooth and silky on this one too, and really easy to blend- much like the prestige product. This is a mixture of very deep, warm shades of pink- so probably better for warmer skin tones to highlight. I like this as there isn't a hint of glitter in sight- just a glow that is delivered courtesy of a shimmering pink, so much warmer than the usual gold or silver.

MAC Mineralise Skin Finish in 'Northern Light'

Of the three MAC MSFs I bought I think this is my least favorite. The texture is rougher than all the other products and feels almost gritty. This might be due to the contrasting veining, but whatever the reason is- this is the least pleasant to apply and blend.

The colour is pretty, I would describe it as a base of peachy pink when swatched. Although this will vary- if you swatch across the darker veining you will obviously get a darker colour, or alternatively if swatched from nearer the outer rim, there will be a paler shimmer. The 'glow' comes from a mixture of gold/champagne and pink shimmer plus a few chunks of glitter. As mentioned with New Vegas, I'm not a fan of the glitter so this is probably another reason this isn't a favorite.

MAC Mineralise Skin Finish in 'Glissade'

Last, but not least- the final MSF I bought from TalluluhBella's blog sale (for a bargainous price, might I add). Glissade is my favorite of the three MSF's the colour is a pretty pink, quite similar in base tones to Northern Lights. I find I prefer this one though as there isn't as much glitter and the powder feels smoother so much easier to blend. There is some of the dreaded glitter present, but this is fairly easy to buff away with a kabuki brush and the particles aren't too chunky. The shimmer in Glissade is a little warmer than Northern Lights, so I find this more flattering for my pale complexion.

To round up:

My favorite products of these five would have to be the MAC MSF in Glissade and the Prestige Skin Loving Minerals in Pure Shimmer- The MAC one because I love the colour and the Prestige one because the texture is fantastic and it is so nice and easy to use.

On the MAC front, I am so pleased with my first MSF purchases that I have already bought another through (another) sale on beautyjunky86's blog- Perfect Topping, which I have wanted to get my hands on for a while, so will blog again when I have had chance to test this one out.

To see swatches of all five products (in order of review, left to right) click HERE or HERE slightly different lighting in the two pictures- apologies for the poor quality, I'm no Mario Testino...

L'Oreal Elvive Nourish and Shimmer Highlights Shampoo and Conditioner

I'm a bit ashamed to admit this, but I am a total sucker for advertising. Beauty advertising in particular and to be very specific: L'Oreal advertising. I have no idea what it is about it (perhaps the promise that I'm 'worth it'...) but I just cant help but become overwhelmed by the urge to buy every time they come on the telly box.

A perfect example of this is L'Oreal Nourish and Shimmer Highlights Shampoo and Conditioner. As a blonde, wanting nourished and shimmery highlights...so I just had to get it.

Having used it for a couple of weeks I am pretty underwhelmed. Partly, I don't like the smell of royal jelly all that much, so that does take a bit of the enjoyment out of using the products. Other than that- the results just aren't anything to write home about- hair is no more shimmery or particularly nourished than before.

I do have a bit of an issue with a sensitive scalp, that means I cant really use anything other than specialist shampoos for too long or risk a break out of the dreaded flakey scalp, not pleasant I know- but it is something I have to bear in mind when testing hair products in general.

I have tried other Elvive products and usually really like them- the colour one was great for last years holiday and of course I will be popping into Boots at the weekend to pick up the latest offering, fronted by Cheryl Cole, 'Full Restore 5' - I can't resist the promises of solving 'weak, limp, lifeless hair'... will report back my findings- with any luck I will look like the blonde version of Ms Cole...

John Frieda: Win an A List Weekend

John Frieda are running a REALLY fabulous competition to win an A Lister Weekend. Having looked at the breakdown of what the weekend involves I can honestly say it sounds like my PERFECT weekend, starting with a haircut, followed by champagne, a stay in a 5 star hotel, more champagne, meal in a Michelin star restaurant (nom, nom). oh, and did I mention the £1000 shopping spree?

I am actually salivating a little at the prospect of this prize, so had to share it with you all (although, saying that- perhaps I shouldn't and then I might have a better chance of winning...)
There are also twenty runner-up prizes of tailored John Frieda hair care prescription for a year and another thirty will receive a Frizz-Ease Overnight Serum, for hair that dazzles after just one night's sleep. (I haven't tested the overnight serum, but it is on my list!)

Entering is really easy, I just did it and it only took about 3mins. Simply go to http://www.johnfriedacompetition.co.uk/ and fill in the form. Good luck!

Closing date for the competition is 16th October.

Little bit of luxury: Elemis and NEOM

It has been a bit of a hectic time lately for this beauty junkie. In the past five weeks I have viewed, bought and moved into my first flat with the boyfriend- and had a fortnight's holiday in the middle of it all. Of course, a holiday doesn't exactly sound all that stressful, but when you are trying to buy a house it is a pretty inconvenient time to be out of the country...

Anyway, I digress- back to beauty. In all the chaos of moving my usual beauty routines have somewhat fallen by the wayside, but now, having done the main hard work part I can now re-group and get myself back on track. To start the ball rolling I have been using a couple of gorgeous pampering treats in the wonderful surroundings of my brand new bathroom- which has the fabulous addition of a full-sized bath (something lacking in the previous flat).

Amongst the (embarrassingly large) box of beauty bits that I shifted from the old to new flat were the following:

Elemis Lime and Ginger Body Wash

I was sent this, along with a few other samples of Elemis products, by the PR people, who had spotted I hadn't covered Elemis on my blog (guilty as charged). I have tried a couple of Elemis products in the past and never been overly enamoured with them, but since trying out the Lime and Ginger body wash I am in love. It feels so fresh and luxurious that I actually look forward to getting up in the mornings and using it. It also means that I am hiding it from the boyfriend as I don't want him to use it all up. The main reason I love this is that I love, love, love the scent of lime (I also love the taste, but don't suggest eating the body wash).

I was sent this a while ago but held of using it till I was moved as it came in a really pretty package of body wash and hand and body lotion with a wooden stand for the two bottles. This is now in pride of place in the shiny new bathroom (just out of reach of the showed for the b/f...). Have to say though, whilst I love the body wash, I don't really find the lotion that moisturising.

With the body wash priced £18 for a bottle it is pretty expensive for a posh shower-gel, so I cant promise this is one I will re-purchase when the sample runs out. It may have to be on the list for Santa!

The other product I have been using is the rather swanky Neom Body Oil, which I was also sent as a sample after being approached on Twitter. This really feels like a decadent pampering treat, hot shower followed by slathering damp skin with oil that smells good enough to eat (again, don't eat it).

I think oils are really under-rated as a beauty tool, I am addicted to my DHC Oil Cleanser (I reviewed this a while ago, to read it click HERE) and love the occasional hot oil for a pampering hair treat. Body oil, on the other hand, is not something I use regularly for the simple reason- that it is quite messy. This is an unavoidable side affect of using a body oil, but it is well worth it for the results- skin as soft as a babies bum.

Neom really is the ultimate in luxury oils, I also have a Boots Botanics Body Oil that I really don't like as it feels like it just sits on the skin, but the NEOM one soaks straight in and leaves skin glowing. I have found this oil a God-send since coming back from holiday, as my skin was really dry post-sunbathing.

At £28 for 100ml the NEOM Body Oil is another expensive, luxury product - but, unlike the Elemis body wash, the NEOM Body Oil is likely to last a really long time- I have used some of my 100ml bottle about once a week for the month or so and it is barely noticeable that I have used it at all- there is so much left- a little really does go a long way when it comes to body oil, and the less you use- the less messy.