100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Marks & Spencer Warm Neroli Eau De Toilette

Hi there! Today’s post is about this Marks & Spencer Warm Neroli Eau De Toilette. I bought this a few months ago when I sampled most of M&S’ new(ish) fragrances. You could say I had a power sniffing session. Whilst I disliked most of the fragrances I sampled that day, I thought this fragrance was nice. It’s been living – unused – in my stash since then. But I finally started to use it. And here’s what I think.

This fragrance contains the following notes: neroli, bergamot and musk. I generally like fragrances with these notes, but this one is an exception. This fragrance is just bad! What did I think I was smelling when I tested it? I guess my nose was confused after sampling so many fragrances…

What is this fragrance like? When you spray it, it’s immediately harsh and unpleasant – and breathing in this fragrance will make you cough. It’s awful. Once the fragrance has settled, it smells like an unrefined and cheap mess. It reminds me very much of those questionable bottom shelf hairsprays from the 90s. I wore this fragrance for one day only, I hated it instantly, and even my husband asked me if I could “forget” this fragrance at the office. Yes, that’s what I’ll do!

If you’re interested, Marks & Spencer Warm Neroli Eau De Toilette is available as 30ml for £6 and 100ml for £10. Also, this fragrance is vegan and certified cruelty-free (it carries THE Leaping Bunny logo).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde 💙💛

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Superdrug Layering Lab Sweetie Body Mist, Superdrug Layering Lab Oriental Body Mist

Hi there! Today’s post is about Superdrug Layering Lab Sweetie Body Mist and Superdrug Layering Lab Oriental Body Mist. Most of Superdrug’s Layering Lab body mists happen to smell like expensive fragrances. Their Blossom body mist smells like Alien, and their Paradise body mist is pretty close to Olympéa! Now let’s see if Sweetie and Oriental are just as nice.

Superdrug Layering Lab Sweetie Body Mist is supposed to smell like Jean Paul Gaultier La Belle. I don’t know this fragrance. And, unfortunately, NONE of the local drugstores or perfumeries stock it, so I couldn’t test it. Having said that, I do like Sweetie!

When you spray it, the first few seconds are difficult as Sweetie is too loud and too sweet, but it settles quickly and turns into a gentle, non-descript floral fragrance. It definitely has a “French” touch to it, but it also has an obvious drugstore aura. The fragrance is nice and office-safe – just don’t spray it immediately before you enter the office as it needs a few moments to calm down.

Superdrug Layering Lab Oriental Body Mist (“spice, berries, floral”) smells sickeningly sweet. Good grief, what is this fragrance? Dupe lists have it as Diesel Loverdose (which I dislike). But I think it actually smells like Diesel Loverdose Tattoo (which I also dislike), with Britney Spears Fantasy (which I strongly dislike) mixed in, all rounded off with a giant load of whatever concoction vanilla-scented dolls are scented with.

Next time I go to the office, I will “forget” the bottle in one of the bathrooms. Someone else will take it with them, no doubt. If you love super sweet fragrances, you might want to give this one a try. But please, do test before you buy!

If you’re interested, Superdrug Layering Lab Sweetie Body Mist and Superdrug Layering Lab Oriental Body Mist are available as 100ml for £3.99. Superdrug runs special offers on the Layering Lab products most of the time which might come in handy if you want to try different products or if you want to stock up on your favourite cheap scent. Also, these body mists are suitable for vegans, and they’re certified cruelty-free (they carry the Leaping Bunny logo).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde 💙💛

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Marks & Spencer Spiced Bergamot Eau De Toilette

Hi there! Today’s post is about this Marks & Spencer Spiced Bergamot Eau De Toilette. This post could be filed under “Revisiting Old Favourites”, but the heading would have been clunky. Regardless, this fragrance is an “old” favourite, and here’s why…

Let’s start with the notes! Spiced Bergamot has the following notes: bergamot, lemon and orange flower (top notes), white flowers and cardamom (heart notes), and cedar, amber and musk (base notes).  Sounds good!

Spiced Bergamot is an amazing fragrance. It’s starts very fresh – with lemon and bergamot. I can’t smell any orange flower or white flowers, but I can smell cedar and musk The fragrance lasts for about 3-4 hours (it’s a skin scent after about 1 hour) and I can sniff out some cardamom as the citrus notes disappear.

This fragrance remind me of Light Blue. It’s definitely NOT the same as Light Blue, but with lemon and cedar being such prominent notes, and with its cool, refreshing and unisex feel, Spiced Bergamot makes you think of Light Blue! Having said this, Spiced Bergamot is definitely “pink”, and it also has a more transparent feel. If you think of Light Blue as lemon and water, you could think of Spiced Bergamot as lemon / bergamot and air.

I cannot recommend this beautiful fragrance enough. If you’re interested, Marks & Spencer Spiced Bergamot Eau De Toilette is available as 30ml for £5 and 100ml for £9.50. I bought a special edition 200ml for £6.25 (half price post-Christmas clearance). Also, this fragrance is vegan and certified cruelty-free (it carries THE Leaping Bunny logo).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde 💙💛

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Marks & Spencer Alphabet Personalised Beauty Gift Set

Hi there! Today’s post is about this Marks & Spencer Personalised Beauty Gift Set. They had a few random letters left on sale (half price = £6.25), and I opted for J over X or Q. This gift set contains 3 items – a fragrance, a hand cream and a lip balm. All of these products are vegan and certified cruelty-free – they carry the Leaping Bunny logo!

Let’s start with the fragrance which contains the following notes: red berries, pomegranate and musk. On paper, this doesn’t sound bad. However, this fragrance is the stuff of nightmares. They forgot to list one major ingredient – cloves! I’ve never smelled such a disgusting mess of cloves and overly ripe fruit.

I sprayed it once, smelled it, then I washed my arm and threw my cardie in the washing machine. The stink lingered for hours despite the window being open. I couldn’t and wouldn’t gift this to anyone. This fragrance is rubbish!

Onto the next product, the hand cream! The hand cream smells like an extremely watered-down version of the fragrance. Fortunately, the scent is very weak and fleeting, so it doesn’t stink up the room. The formula is very rich and nourishing. However, after the fragrance nightmare, I wasn’t too keen on the hand cream. So my husband is using it as a foot cream – and it works well.

And here’s item number 3 – the lip balm. This is the surprise of the month! Wow, what a beautiful lip balm! It’s very similar to Boots No 7 Protect & Perfect Lip Care! This beautiful lip balm has a very subtle vanilla scent, it glides on, it’s very lightweight, and it’s incredibly hydrating. I love it! 😍 One of my favourite products this month!

All in all, whilst the lip balm is the absolute bomb, I had to bin the fragrance and I’m also not using the hand cream. I would hope that M&S will bring back the lip balm next Christmas, or that it will be available to buy on its own!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde 💙💛

100% Vegan & Cruelty- Free – Superdrug Layering Lab Paradise Body Mist

Hi there! Happy Tuesday! Today’s post is about this Superdrug Layering Lab Paradise Body Mist.

The fragrances in the Layering Lab collection are meant to be worn “individually or mixed together for a unique scent.”

Although the biggest selling point is that the fragrances in the Layering Lab collection are meant to smell like designer fragrances. I am happy to confirm that the Blossom Body Mist (but not the EdT) is a perfect dupe for Mugler’s Alien.

What about Paradise? Well, the notes shown on the bottle are tangerine, green tea and vanilla, and according to a bunch of reviewers, Paradise is supposed to smell like Paco Rabanne’s Olympéa.

I’ve given this body mist a try, and I agree that it smells similar to Olympéa. It’s a bit sweeter, but at the same time it’s also airier – which makes sense because it’s a body mist concentration. If Paco Rabanne  did a body mist for their Olympéa fragrance, this is exactly what it would smell like, no doubt!

Based on my experience, I would recommend this body mist for sure!

If you’re interested, Superdrug Layering Lab Paradise Body Mist is available as 100ml for £3.99. There’s always some kind of special offer going on, so you can usually buy multiple bottles and still save a little. This body mist is also suitable for vegans, and it’s certified cruelty-free (it carries the Leaping Bunny logo).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Superdrug Layering Lab Fresh Body Mist, Superdrug Layering Lab Sorbet Body Mist

Hi there! Today’s post is about 2 body mists – Superdrug Layering Lab Fresh Body Mist and Superdrug Layering Lab Sorbet Body Mist. I picked these up after the Blossom body mist from the same collection blew me away. And I’ve now given them a try…

Superdrug Layering Lab Fresh Body Mist is supposed to smell of citrus, apple and peony. I’d describe the scent as a cheap apple hairspray scent. Maybe something a young teen would enjoy. But this stuff is not worth my time. I’ll give it away.

Superdrug Layering Lab Sorbet Body Mist is supposed to smell of peach sorbet, plum and raspberries. According to some of the reviewers at Superdrug, this body mist smells like Viktor & Rolf Bon Bon; someone else likened it to a Britney Spears fragrance. I don’t know either of those fragrance, but I’d be shocked if anything above £5 were to smell like this body mist. What does it smell like? Pretty much like a mix of burnt sugar mixed with burnt berries. It’s not pleasant at all. I can definitely see that some young teens might like this, maybe to cover up BO after PE/gym or exercising? But this stuff is more of a smell than a scent. I will give this stuff away too.

If you’re interested, Superdrug Layering Lab Fresh Body Mist and Superdrug Layering Lab Sorbet Body Mist are available as 100ml for £3.99 each. On top of this, Superdrug often runs promotions on these Layering Lab products. I bought them when they were on special. To end this post on a positive note, these products are vegan and certified cruelty-free (they carry the Leaping Bunny logo).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Body Mist, Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Eau De Toilette

Hi there! Today’s post is about Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Body Mist and Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Eau De Toilette. How did I discover these? Well, I remembered that Mugler Alien (now under L’Oréal) smells super weak compared to Thierry Mugler Alien (back then under Clarins). So I googled to see if other Alien fans would agree, and I found dozens of reviews saying that Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom smells like Alien! Since these Superdrug products were super cheap, I picked these up on my next visit to Superdrug, and I’ve given them a try!

And now I can say that Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Body Mist smells just like Alien. Oh! My! Gawd! It’s “just” a body mist, and I started with 2 sprays on my wrist – so I would be able to take regular sniffs with a “clean” nose. After the initial 30 seconds – when it smells like Alien mixed with hair spray – this body mist turns into “proper” Alien. Just wow! It even has the same slightly dirty drydown. It’s incredible!

Now, please keep in mind, this is just a body mist, so it won’t last all day – but neither does L’Oréal’s Alien. And this body spray is only £3.99 for 100ml (even if there is no special offer, although I bought them for 2 for £6, I believe), so you can afford to spray away! My husband loves this body mist, and he agrees that it smells just like Alien. I’ve been through several bottles of Thierry Mugler’s Alien before the reformulation and through a number of Alien limited editions over the past 15 (or so) years, and you can trust me about this one. But even if you don’t, you can visit Superdrug’s product page where you will find dozens of reviews from women saying the same thing. I love to douse myself in this body mist – and so does my husband – I can’t blame him! Thank you, Superdrug! 11 stars!

Onto Superdrug Layering Lab Blossom Eau De Toilette! Based on the body mist, I had high hopes for the EdT, but the EdT isn’t a carbon copy of Alien. It doesn’t even smell similar to Alien. I do like this fragrance, because it has a sharp jasmine note. But I do recognise it for what it is – a cheap fragrance which would be good for a teenager who’s done with Impulse sprays and wants to “move up” to drustore fragrances. I think this EdT is also nice enough for the office, or if you want a fragrance and either can’t or don’t want to spend a lot of money – the 30ml is £5, and the 100ml (which I have) is £6.99. I actually bought the 100ml for £4.66 on a special offer – so cheap!

Based on my experience I’d recommend the body mist to Alien lovers. If you want to give both products a try, at the moment, Superdrug actually does run a promotion on these (but I have no idea when the promotion ends and what’s next) – the 100ml body mist is £2.65 (go, grab a bottle…), the 30ml EdT is £3.32, and the 100ml EdT is £4.65. Also – these products are vegan and certified cruelty-free – they carry the Leaping Bunny logo! And one more thing… matching body products are also available. I haven’t tried any of them as of now, so I can’t (yet) comment on how good or similar to Alien they are.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

100% Vegan & Cruelty-Free – Pacifica Island Vanilla Perfume

Hi there! Today’s post is about Pacifica’s Island Vanilla Perfume. I’ve already tried quite a few Pacifica products – some were good, some weren’t. So now I’m reviewing their vanilla fragrance!

But before we get to the actual review, let me say a few words about the brand. Pacifica is a company from Oregon, USA. They specialise in vegan and cruelty-free products. They sell body care products, candles, fragrances and cosmetics. If you’re in the UK, you can find Pacifica products at Holland & Barrett’s.

Onto the fragrance! Pacifica’s Island Vanilla is based on Tahitian vanilla – which is said to have fruity and floral nuances – and bourbon vanilla – the ultimate “sweet treat” vanilla.

I think this vanilla fragrance is really nice. It smells sweet and cuddly, and it has a youthful feel to it. It’s not the most sophisticated fragrance, but it’s pleasant and inoffensive. I also think it’s a reasonable (but not perfect) replacement for Yves Rocher’s stellar Bourbon Vanilla fragrance which seems to be out of stock almost all the time.

Pacifica’s Island Vanilla Perfume is available as 29ml spray and 10ml roll-on. Pacifica also offers vanilla-scented candles and body care products!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde