Chanel Mimosa Dupe? : Leighton Denny Double Up Duo in Bon Bon and Brick Road

This week is definitely the week of the guest post for me, as I have not one but two guest posts up on other beauty blogs. As you'll know from my post on Tuesday, I wrote a post titled 'A Life in Lipstick' for Get Lippie. Today, I have a guest post on the lovely Fei's 'Peonies and Lilies' blog. If you are a lover of Chanel's latest release, Mimosa, then why not check out the post for a more purse-friendly alternative.

A Life in Lippie - Guest post for Get Lippie

I was very excited when Get Lippie put a call out on Twitter looking for bloggers to write guest posts on her blog while she is away on her holidays. I put my name in the hat straight away, and of course then had the usual blogging mental block about what I should blog about. I was even more excited when I submitted it and she said that she liked it and told me when it would be going live. Get Lippie is one of my favourite beauty blogs as you can always rely on her to tell it how it is, with a good dose of humour in the mix too. Check out her blog for my latest guest post: A Life in Lipstick

Roger & Gallet Fleur D'Osmanthus Eau Fraiche

I don’t know about you, but I for one have never heard of the Chinese Osmanthus Blossom. So when Escentual.com gave me a bottle of Roger & Gallet’s  new ‘Fleur d’Osmanthus Eau Fraiche’ to review I was intrigued. Although I had heard of the brand, I didn’t really know much about them, the detail of their 139 year heritage having passed me by! The roots of the company go back to 1695, so it’s fair to say they know more than a little bit about fragrance.

The product immediately grabbed my attention  as a result of its lime green and white packaging which is really fresh, the modern colour of the box is juxtaposed with the Roger & Gallet logo which screams ‘classic brand’.

Here is what the brand has to say about the product:

“Inspired by a Chinese Garden of Eden, Osmanthus Blossom fresh fragrant water reveals a cascade of sweet floral notes, with facets of citrus and wood. Osmanthus Blossom is fresh and joyful, containing a heart of mandarin, grapefruit and benzoin essential oils. It offers an exhilarating sensory experience for the body and mind.”

Although I love fragrance, I am the first to admit that I am a total novice when it comes to discussing fragrances in detail, but it’s always been one of those areas that I would love to know more about but never got around to studying (Perfumes: The A to Z Guide has been on my ‘to read’ list ever since it came out!). So if you are expecting a ‘technical’ review of this fragrance, then I’d click away now if I was you!

So although I might not know all any of the terminology that should probably be used in a fragrance review, I do know what I like. And I like this fragrance a lot! When Spring/Summer comes (and goes and comes and goes again in the UK!) I want something lighter and fresher for my fragrance, in the day at least. I tend to wear slightly ‘heavier’ scents in the evening – but that’s another blog post. This fragrance fits the bill perfectly with its citrusy mandarin and grapefruit notes. However, sometimes I find fragrances with citrus notes too fruity. One of the things I loved about this was the woody notes that gave it a bit of depth, above and beyond (or should that be below and beyond?) the fruity notes.

I couldn’t help but keep spraying this, as each spray seemed to reveal a new aspect of the fragrance. It is a really interesting combination of floral, fruity and woody notes which is perfect for any occasion. And if I wasn’t impressed enough already, once I found out the price I was even more impressed. You can buy the 100ml of this for £30 whilst the 50ml retails for £15 which compares really favourably with other fragrances. If you like to layer your fragrance products then you can also purchase a 200ml body lotion for £11.50; a 250ml shower foam for £11.50, and a 100g soap for £5.25. If you want to bring a spritz of Summer into your world then you can purchase this fragrance from Escentual.com

Have you tried this fragrance? What kind of scents do you like to wear in the Summertime?

Korres Vanilla Plum : Body Butter & Shower Gel

One of my recent discoveries has been Korres.Well when I say I discovered it I mean it in the 'heard about it for ages, always wanted to try it, but never quite got around to buying it but have now' sense.

Korres was set up in 1996 and is a Greek skincare brand that has its roots in Athens’ first ever Homeopathic Pharmacy. The first Korres product was an aromatic syrup with honey and aniseed, a recipe inspired by ‘rakomelo’, a warming spirit-with-honey concoction, which grandfather George Korres used to make in his hometown, on the island of Naxos. From there they have gone on to offer over 400 natural and organic certified products. Korres has a certified organic skin & hair care range, a make-up line as well as suncare products and herbal preparations. The company focuses on using natural ingredients and formulas.

Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin.....

"Once upon a time, there was a young(ish-allow me some artistic licence!) girl who had always wanted to try Korres products but had never realised this ambition. Whilst I realize that winning the Pulitzer Prize or curing all the world's illnesses are more worthy goals, for the purposes of this blog we'll stick with the purchase of Korres products for now! When the new St David's 2 shopping centre opened in Cardiff she was very pleased to see a Korres store amongst the offering, as previously it had been difficult to get hold of. But for some reason even then it took her a while to get around to actually visiting the store. But after reading a few blog posts about Korres in quick succession she finally visited the land of Korres - sadly not Greece, just it's Cardiff outpost. She loved a LOT of the products and found it hard to set her heart on just one range she liked. But eventually she gave her heart to Vanilla Plum.

The young girl was overjoyed to hear that they were running a Buy One Get One Free offer across all of their ranges at the time. She purchased 2 x Body Butter and 2 x Shower Gel which came to £19 instead of £37! At that price she didn't feel too extravagant, as at the usual prices (£11.50 for 150ml of Body Butter and £7.00 for 250ml of shower gel) she probably would have seen these as 'treats' as opposed to everyday products."

The shower gel is moisturising which must be down to the list of ingredients which resembles that of an innocent smoothie (other smoothie brands are available): wheat proteins; aloe and vitamins C & E. It is also claimed that it can reduce the visible signs of skin ageing, but I haven't been using it long enough to comment on that. There'll be a blog post about that sometime in 2012. 

The body butter, which contains plum extract; red grape polyphneols; shea butter; quince extract, and sunflower, almond and avocado oils leaves my skin feeling really smooth and smelling divine. One of the things I love about the products is that the scent lasts and I have had people ask me which fragrance I was wearing, hours after applying. However that doesn't mean that the scent is overpowering, rather that it has some depth and longevity.

As previous readers of my blog will know, I am a sucker for some lovely packaging and that definitely adds to the Korres appeal. The packaging is quite simple and understated with striking typography and imagery of the ingredients in the product.

"Alas the tale of the girl and her new found love does not have a happy ending. For no sooner had she discovered this wonderful range than the Evil Director/Manager/[insert name of whoever was responsible] decided to close down the branch thus denying the girl the chance to stock up on more Korres loveliness on her own doorstep."

If you are tempted to try this or any other products from the Korres range (Guava Body Butter is already on my list) then you can find them at Beauty Expert , but sadly not at my local shopping centre.

Have you used Korres products before? I would love to know whether you have any other recommendations so please comment away!

Polynesia Monoi Miracle Oil

Last year I got myself a The Body Shop 'Love Your Body' card when I went in to buy 'Seaweed Mattifying Day Cream'. I wasn't overly impressed with that so I won't be writing about that. However I thought that the card sounded like a good idea so I signed up. The 'Love Your Body' card costs £5, is valid for a year and entitles you to 10% off every time you make a purchase. Everytime you use the card you get a stamp, and once you've got 4 stamps you get a free gift up to the value of £5. This is great since it means that essentially the card is free. When you get 8 stamps you can choose a gift up to the value of £10. And if that isn't enough then you also get a free birthday gift up to the value of £5.

Image: The Body Shop

Ever since I got my card I have received emails from The Body Shop with various offers but have never got around to making a purchase online. Then, at the end of April, on the day I received an email with a special Royal Wedding discount code, I read about The Body Shop 's Monoi Miracle Oil in Elle magazine's brilliant Beauty supplement. In the feature 'Your Summer Starts Here,' they recommended adding a few drops of this oil to your normal body lotion to amp up your skin's moisture levels in the build up to the holiday season. Apparently French beauty therapists swear by this trick, but not knowing any French beauty therapists, I can't vouch for this! However, I have seen a number of Monoi oils over recent years, Hei Poa perhaps being the most well-known brand, so was keen to give this a try.

When I went on the site I was rather pleased to discover that in addition to the 30% discount code, there was also a 'Buy One Get One Half Price' offer on certain items, and I was eligible for free delivery - all things guaranteed to put a smile on this beauty blogger's face! I decided to stock up on the oil and so bought four, which cost me £21 as opposed to £40 thanks to all of the offers. If ever I meet Prince William & Princess Kate, or should I say the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge, I must remember to thank them for getting married thus leading to a flood of discount codes in my inbox!

Monoi (pronounced mah-noy) oil is made from soaking the petals of Tahitian gardenias (Tiare) in coconut oil, and has been used by Tahitians for thousands of years. It is a multi-purpose oil which can be used on your skin and your hair.

I have been really impressed with this product. A couple of drops in my usual body lotion provides a boosted level of hydration. Sometimes I just use the oil by itself if I want something a bit more luxurious. The oil has a delicate gardenia and coconut fragrance which is just strong enough to provide a lovely scent but not too much to be overpowering. I found that the oil absorbs easily and gives a nice sheen to the skin. I have also taken to adding a couple of drops to my shower gel to hydrate my skin while I shower, which is great for when I'm in a rush and haven't got time to moisturise after a shower. I have yet to try it on my hair but I will do so soon and let you know how it goes.

If you would like to try this then you can get it from The Body Shop here (£10 for 150ml)

The Body Shop regularly has lots of online offers on their products (e.g. until 10am this Friday they're offering a free body scrub when you buy a body butter) and has free delivery when you spend over £20, so it's definitely worth checking out their site. 

Have you tried this or any other Monoi oils, and if so, what did you think?

Butterfly Blog Award

I was delighted when I got a Tweet informing me that the lovely Nic from Strawberry Blonde blog had awarded me the Butterfly Blog Award. As a new blogger it is always great to find out that other bloggers are enjoying reading my blog as much as I enjoy writing it. I love the way that everyone in the blogging world is really supportive of each other, and it’s always interesting to see how different people approach their own blogs.

The idea behind the Butterfly Blog Award is to give it to blogs that you really enjoy. As one of the three recipients of the award (Super Gorgeous & Pretty Diamond Solitaire being the other lucky ladies) I’ve now got to share a random fact with my lovely readers and also nominate three other bloggers whose blogs I enjoy and to let them know. Whilst this sounds easy it has actually proven to be very difficult as there are so many blogs out there that I love. After lots of deliberation, which was almost as hard as choosing what my next Nars accquisition should be, I have finally come up with my list of three. Although a number of my favourite blogs are some of the more well-known ones (and those lovely ladies will definitely know who they are ) I decided to go for ones that I have more recently discovered, which I thought I’d share with you. You might already be following them, in which case I can only congratulate you on your great taste in blogs. If you’re not, then why not check them out and see if they’re your ‘beauty blog cup-of-tea’.

Anyway, back to the Butterfly Blog business in hand. Here’s my random fact:

I can speak English & Welsh and have learned French & Russian (to varying degrees!). I am going to Portofino in September so think it’s time to borrow ‘Teach Yourself Italian’ from the library.

Here are the blogs that I have decided to give the Butterfly Blog award to:

Vodka and Roses - This is a new blog written by Jessica Rose. I really like her writing style and I enjoy seeing a variety of different posts, from things she’s spotted on the High-Street to commenting on the latest fashion & beauty advertising campaigns

Makeup It Girl - This blog is written by the gorgeous Farrah who I have appointed my Official Nail Polish Guru! Her posts are a mix of fashion and beauty. Following the last Blogger meltdown she has started to trial shorter posts that are the length of a tweet, alongside the more usual length posts. It was thanks to Farrah that I came across Orly nail polishes (see my Happy Nails – Part I & Happy Nails – Part II posts) and I also discovered the fabulous Evol Heist jewellery via her blog.

http://www.evolheist.com/

Elsie & Clara - This blog is one of my most recent blog discoveries, although I can’t remember exactly where I came across it. Despite the name of the blog, it is actually written by Rachel, a 21 year old student. The blog is a mix of product reviews, ‘get the makeup look’ posts and Outfit of the Day posts. Rachel’s posts are always accompanied by great photographs too.

Have you checked out these blogs? Have you got any recommendations for other great blogs?