Dove Purely Pampering Almond Cream With Hibiscus, Pistachio Cream with Magnolia and Shea Butter with Warm Vanilla

Hi there! Now that it’s cold and my skin is really dry, I thought I’d treat myself to a few new shower creams. Meet Dove Purely Pampering Almond Cream with Hibiscus, Pistachio Cream with Magnolia and Shea Butter with Warm Vanilla.

Let me start with the Almond and Hibiscus shower cream which also happens to be my favourite of the three. This shower cream smells absolutely delicious – like hot chocolate with a touch of almond milk. I’ll definitely buy it again – soon!

I don’t care much for the Pistachio and Magnolia shower cream. The fragrance isn’t bad. It just doesn’t tickle my fancy. Well, and it started to annoy me a bit half-way through the bottle. I won’t repurchase this one.

The Shea Butter and Vanilla shower cream smells wonderful. The fragrance is sweet, warm, comforting and cuddly. It’s almost as lovely as the almond and hibiscus fragrance. I will definitely buy this one again!

I think these shower cream really work for dry skin. They can’t replace a moisturiser, but they do leave my skin feeling soft for hours. Dove Shower Creams are available as 250 ml for about £2.50 each and 500 ml for around £4 to £4.40. The big 500 ml bottles are currently half price at Tesco’s! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Cute Necklaces – Strawberry’s Multi-Owl Necklace

Hi there! I’m sorry I’ve been absent all week. I was too busy with work. I’m so glad I’m not working tomorrow, so I’ll be having some quality time this weekend. 🙂 And to celebrate the happy 48 hours that await, I’ll show you my cute multi-owl necklace. It’s really cute, eh? It’s another Claire’s necklace. I don’t remember how much I paid for it, but I’m pretty sure I bought it for half price.

What I really like about this necklace is that’s got six cute little owls (they’re about 3cm tall). I can’t wear this necklace to work because, well, look at it! 😀 But I love to wear it in my own time and I think it looks great with with random black or navy tops because the owls really stand out.

Any random cuteness you want to share? Let me know, because I love cute things!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

L’Oréal Nail Polish Haul – Confettis, Tweed & Carat Top Coats

Hi there! Today’s post is not a review. But I wanted to show off my new L’Oréal top coats. 🙂 The first four toppers (from left to right) are 926 Independence Day (red, blue and white hex glitter), 927 Splash Peach (pastel yellow and peach hex glitter), 929 Graffiti D’Amour (red, pink and white hex glittr), and 925 Mini Camouflage (black and light green hex glitter). These beauties are from L’Oréal’s Confettis top coat collection.

And (from left to right) these are the remaining four pretty toppers: 919 Grace Tweed (turquoise and white feather-style bar glitter) and 917 Jackie Tweed (pale yellow, orange and light blue feather-style bar glitter) from L’Oréal’s Tweed range. And 910 Gold Carat (gold topper) and 909 Saphyr Carat (shimmery blue glitter) from L’Oréal’s Carat collection.

I can’t wait to try them all! L’Oréal’s Color Riche nail polishes and top coat are £4.99 for 5 ml. But you can find quite a lot of them in discount stores. I paid 99p per topper only. 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Calcot Manor Orange Blossom With Orchid De-Stress Body Buff

Hi there! Today I’m reviewing Calcot Manor’s De-Stress Body Buff. A while ago the luxurious Calcot Manor Spa teamed up with Tesco to come up with a spa-themed product range.

Some of these products have now hit the discount stores, so I bought quite a few of them. The first product I wanted to try was this body buff. So I tried it!

The first thing I noticed was the product’s fragrance. I’d describe it as a beautiful old-fashioned floral fragrance. My husband is not impressed. But I think the scent is gorgeous!

I also love the formula – because it’s fun! When you squeeze the product out of the tube, it comes out like a worm. 😀

But to me the big selling point is that the product is easy to distribute all over my body – almost like a shower gel. I think sugar scrubs can be quite a pain to use – but exfoliating my skin with this body buff is quick and easy.

I think this product is really good and I can definitely recommend it! The scent isn’t for everyone, and I would have expected it to be fresher and more youthful. But I actually like the strong vintage floral fragrance because it fits the traditional English spa theme.

Calcot Manot De-Stress Body Buff is available as 200ml for £4.99 at Tesco. However, I paid 99p at a discount store!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

L’Oréal Elvive Triple Resist Reinforcing Shampoo & Conditioner

Hi there! I just started to use L’Oréal’s Triple Resist Reinforcing Shampoo & Conditioner again. I haven’t had these ones in ages – because whenever there’s a half price or BOGOF offer, one of the two products is always out of stock. But I was lucky the other day – so I bought a few L’Oréal shampoos and conditioners for half price.

Now let’s get to these products. The reinforcing shampoo is one of my favourites. It cleanses my scalp and my hair without irritating my skin. I love the shampoo and I’ll buy it again. The conditioner is quite good too. I remember it being thinner and easier to use. But it’s still a very decent product that conditions and detangles my hair well.

I think this shampoo and conditioner combo really helps with certain hair loss issues. It won’t sort out hair loss caused by medical conditions or hormones and the likes. But whenever I use these two products, I notice a huge difference in how much hair I’m losing – from day one. I don’t know how L’Oréal did it, but they’ve done a great job with these products.

I would definitely recommend this shampoo/conditioner combo – regardless of whether your hair needs strengthening or not. L’Oréal’s Triple Resist Reinforcing Shampoo & Conditioner are available as 250ml for £2.99 each, and 400ml for £3.99 each.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Essence Soft Touch Mousse Make-Up 04 Matt Ivory

Hi there! Today’s post is about Essence’s Soft Touch Mousse Make-Up. I chose the lightest shade – 04 Matt Ivory. Let me tell you right away that I didn’t like this foundation. That’s not because the product is horrendous (it’s not) – but because it doesn’t agree with my skin.

And many apologies for what the sticker on the lid looks like. I’ve had the foundation in my make-up bag for a while and it looks like it got beaten up by the other products in there. 😉

Now let me explain why this foundation didn’t work for me. I have dry skin and I suffer from eczema. My holy grail of make-up – Max Factor’s Pan Stik – often makes me forget that I have difficult skin.

Unfortunately Essence’s mousse foundation did the opposite. As soon as I had applied the foundation, I knew I’d have to redo my make-up. The mousse foundation highlighted a few dry patches which I hadn’t even noticed before. 😦

I also didn’t like that the lightest shade – Matt Ivory – was too dark for me. If you’d like a comparison: Essence’s Matt Ivory is a tad darker than Maybelline’s Ivory (mousse foundation). So if you look for a mousse foundation that’s lighter than Maybelline’s Light Porcelain, keep looking!

I can see that Essence’s Soft Touch Mousse Make-Up could work for women with oily skin. But if you have dry skin, I doubt this foundation will bring you any joy. If you’d like to try this foundation, it’s available for £3.80 at Wilko’s.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

I Love… Cherry Almond Sparkle Refreshing Body Spritzer

Hi there! If you read my blog, you know I’ve been buying all things I Love… lately. I bought quite a few body mists (and other products) – for £1 each from Poundland! Here’s the haul post.

I thought I was very lucky that I Love…’s 2015 Christmas collection hit the bargain stores. I already had the shower gel and the body butter. So I was happy to try the I Love… Cherry Almond Sparkle Refreshing Body Spritzer as well.

However, after trying the body mist, I have to say it’s not for me. Whilst the shower gel and body butter do smell like cherry bakewell tarts, the body mist smells like a mix of almonds and baked bread – without the tiniest hint of cherries.

And when the fragrance dries down, it leaves behind a bread-like scent on my skin and my clothes. I may be too critical, but I don’t like the smell or the taste of bread, so I won’t be using this body mist again. But the product won’t be wasted. It’s going in my beauty box for the women’s shelter. Hopefully someone else will like this body mist a lot more.

If you would like to try I Love… Cherry Almond Sparkle Refreshing Body Spritzer, it’s £2.99 at Superdrug’s or onlline. Or swing by your local Poundland where you might find it for £1.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Kirstie Allsopp Lansdowne Rose Shower Gel, Hand Soap & Hand Lotion

Hi there! My local Home Bargains store is now stocking Kirstie Allsopp products for only £1.99 each (they’re about £8 each at Waitrose). So I got myself three 400ml rose-scented products. Meet Kirstie Allsopp Lansdowne Rose Shower Gel, Hand Soap and Hand Lotion.

I like that the shower gel and the hand soap aren’t drying at all. And the hand lotion is non-sticky and fast-absorbing – and it makes my hands feel moisturised and soft. I like!

Now let’s get to the fragrance! I think this Lansdowne Rose fragrance is very nice. Most of the time I find rosey scents a bit annoying. I think they’re usually not very well done – or they smell a bit sweaty. But this rose fragrance is absolutely perfect. It’s clean, clear, feminine and it’s very ‘Turkish delight’. Very nice!

I also love the cute bottle designs. And I think these products would look great in a home-made gift box or hamper. If you’d like to try Kirstie Allsopp products for less than their RRP, you should swing by your local bargain stores. Good luck!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Olay Total Effects Radiance Enhancing Cream Wash

Hi there! If you read my blog, you know I’m an Olay girl who’s on a long-term quest to try all the Olay products out there. 🙂

And I wanted to try Olay’s Total Effects Radiance Enhancing Cream Wash for ages – but the product seemed to disappear from the shelves. But the last time I swung by my local Family Bargains store, I found this face wash for £1.99 only!

Now that I’ve used the face wash for about two weeks, I wish I’d tried it sooner. I’m not sure if this face wash makes my skin more radiant, but it feels absolutely great on the skin, and it exfoliates very gently. I love it!

If you always wanted to try this face wash, pop by your local discount stores to check if they have it. Priced at £1.99 (Family Bargains) this face wash is a total steal!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

My Holy Grail Of Hair Care – Herbal Essences Classics Silk N’ Shine & Moisture Balance Shampoo and Conditioner

Hi there! Today’s post is about my all-time favourite shampoos and conditioners: Herbal Essences Silk N’ Shine and Herbal Essences Moisture Balance. I think Herbal Essences’ Classics collection is the holy grail of hair care.

But before I review the products, let me tell you what my hair is like. I’ve got long and curly hair which I wash, condition and blow-dry every day. I don’t use any styling products or tools and I gave up brushing my hair ages ago. Yeah, I’m one of those! But what’s most important is that I don’t have any split ends, and my hair is soft, bouncy and shiny.

OK, let me start with the shampoos: They’re excellent at cleansing and restoring shine. Honestly, nothing else cleanses my hair the way these shampoos do. They get rid of grease and grime, but at the same time they’re incredibly gentle. And I’m saying this as someone who has not only sensitive skin but also eczema.

My husband also loves the original Herbal Essences shampoos, especially after the gym, because they cleanse his hair and scalp like nothing else does.

The conditioners are the best ones I’ve ever used. Nothing else could compete with them. Even if it were my mission in life to think up the perfect conditioner, I couldn’t even imagine anything that could be better than these.

That’s because these Herbal Essences conditioners detangle my curly hair easily, they provide tons of moisture without weighing my hair down or making it greasy, they smell absolutely divine, and they make my hair silky, soft and shiny.

Herbal Essences Silk N’ Shine and Herbal Essences Moisture Balance shampoos and conditioners are available as 400 ml bottles for £3.79 each – but there’s always a half price or BOGOF offer somewhere. Seriously, try this collection!

No matter if you pick the pink or the yellow bottles – the products work for all hair types. And they will give you clean, shiny and gorgeous smelling hair. What’s not to love? Feel free to let me know what you think about this collection. 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde