Amarya Beauty Box-September

Received my September Amarya box! I was so surprised and so eager to know what is inside when the postman gave me this big Amarya box.

Here's the content of my box:

Dr.Hauschka Daily Face Care Kit (for normal, dry and sensitive skin)

This kit contains the following products:
Cleansing Cream (10g)
Cleansing Milk (10ml)
Facial Toner (10ml)
Moisturizing Day Cream (5ml)
Quince Day Cream (5g)
Rose Day Cream (5g)

Also there is a Dr.Hauschka 's Catalogue included in the box, which provides the detailed information about the brand and its products. I am really happy to receive this kit, which is included from cleanser, tone to moisturise. Can't wait to try them.

Herbfarmacy Lip Conditioner (6g) This lip balm contains herb Marshmallow and specially made vanilla infused oil, which is great for lip softener and conditioner. This brand is new to me and I will put this lip balm in my handbag and see how it works.

A great beauty box! Start looking forward to my next one....

Did you get an Amarya Box this month? What do you think?

Beauty Budget Find: Ramer Bath Sponge

I found this shower sponge from Asda and it only costs £1.50.  The Ramer sponges are manufactured in England since 1945 --- I love the product with history.

This is a very nice sponge, it is very soft.  I tried both shower gel/cream and soap and find it is great to use with soap, it is foaming and gently clean the skin.

It becomes hard when dry,  but place in warm water and you will gain soft sponge again.

Did you try this shower sponge?  Have you found any beauty budgets?

Magazine Freebies - October Issue

Today I picked up two issues of this month's InStyle Magazine and I got Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus (7ml) and Turnaround Overnight Radiance Moisturizer (7ml). The other two freebies are High Impact Mascara (4g) and Long Last Glosswear Spf15 in Air Kiss (2.3ml) respectively.

Normally, InStyle costs £3.80 and Tesco now has an exclusive price of £2.50, so this is a great treat!

I think this sample size is a reasonable one to try, sometimes you might get 1ml or 2ml sachet, but this is not a good trail size especially for the skin care product because it is hard to tell whether the product is good or not. In my opinion, you can only see the results about serum or moisturizer after at least one week try.

Also, next month's InStyle magazine comes with Benefit freebies. You can choose from Sun Beam, Cha Cha Tint and Bene Tint. I used Bene Tint before and really like it. Looking forward to next month's treat.

Have you got this month's magazine?

Beauty Tips: Easy & Effective Eye Mask

Wrinkles under eyes are something we can not avoid as we grow. It seems to happen overnight, but actually the fact is, it happens over a period of time.

There are so many reasons to cause wrinkles: frequently squinting, smoking, over-use computer, sun exposure, ageing process, lifestyle etc. The simple explanation is the skin around eyes is very thin and it loses elasticity easily. As we know, collagen and elastin provide the support structure for skin and help it to keep smooth and resilient. However, the production of elastin and collagen is slowing down as we age. Our skin starts to lose its elasticity and strength. When this happens, wrinkles begin to appear. So it is not hard to find out the ways to solve the eye wrinkles: supply elastin and collagen!

After talking so much about wrinkles, I am going to share with you my easy & effective eye mask:

1. Prepare two things: floral water and cotton pads
2. Fully soaking cotton pads with floral water and then apply them on the eye areas
3. Leave it for 3-5 minutes

Keep doing this, you'll find out the benefits:

• Help eye serum/ cream to absorb
• Refresh tired eyes
• Easy to put on make-up e.g. eye shadow
• Reduce the possibility to develop wrinkles

There are few things that should be paid attention to when doing this mask:

• Carefully choose the floral water, because the skin around eyes is dedicate, especially for the sensitive skin. I suggest to use organic floral water or some toner/lotion designed for eyes. I usually use Melvita Cornflower Floral Water, as cornflower floral water has softening and soothing qualities, which makes it particularly suitable for the eye area.
• The cotton pads must be fully soaking, or it will soak water from the skin.
• Use the eye cream after the mask, this mask only hydrates the skin, which increases the elasticity. However, you should still use eye cream to moisturiser the skin.

Prevention is much better than cure!! When we are young, we think it is too early to think about eye wrinkles. WRONG! The earlier you take the action the better, you can reduce or prevent the wrinkles once they start to appear.

Start trying this eye mask! And tell me how you feel ;)

Review: Vaseline Sheer Infusion Vitamin Burst Body Lotion

Vaseline Sheer Infusion Vitamin Brust Body Lotion has been on my storage cabinet for several months and I decided to give it a try recently.

It contains something called Stratys-3 which claims to moisture all layers of skin, the top, the core and the deep down. There are three versions available: Mineral Renewal, Botanical Blend and Vitamin Burst. I chose the Vitamin Brust mainly because of the smell.

I apply it after shower while my skin is still damp. It takes few minutes to sink in the skin but it really moisturisers my dry skin. It leaves my skin feeling soft and lasts a whole day. I read some reviews saying it is sticky, but I have different opinion (I am used to using body oil plus body lotion/cream due to my dry skin). It does take a little time to absorb but is great to apply it before bedtime.

For me, it is more likely a body cream than a body lotion. And it has the moisture power like body butter.


Have you tried the Vaseline Sheer Infusion Body Lotion? What's your thought?

Review: John Masters Organics Evening Primrose Shampoo

I have used the John Masters Organics Evening Primrose Shampoo up and I think it is a good time for me to review this product.

The JMO Evening Primrose shampoo is designed to hydrated and soften dry or damaged hair. It made with 21 certified-organic ingredients, some key ingredients like:

• Evening Primrose-- adds moisture and strengthens hair
• Wheat amino acids-- help with comb-through and shine
• Hyaluronic acid-- some acid found abundantly in young hair

This Evening Primrose shampoo has a herbal scent which might not be pleasant smell but makes me feel relaxed. It lathers just fine but I found out that I get the best results if washing two times. I usually wet my hair very thoroughly, apply the shampoo and rinse it at the first time. And at the second time I will leave it sitting on my hair for a few seconds and start to massage my scalp and around my head. Unlike the first time, it lathers up well at the second time (I think mainly because I already wash some dust and styling products away at the first time).

Even though this shampoo is for dry and damaged hair, but I still need to use conditioner. On the official website, it also suggests to use conditioner according to different hair types.

The results: it leaves my hair clean and healthy, especially the scalp. And it also reduces my hair loss.

Have you used any John Masters Organics hair products? What is your thoughts?

Amarya Beauty Box-- July

Last week I received my July Amarya Box, it is a quite small one.

Here is what I got:

Inika Mineral Eye Shadow-- Peach Fetish (1.2g)  It is my first mineral eye shadow. The colour at first look is pink, but when you apply it looks like pink blend of orange. I also checked the official website to found out it has two use ways: dry use as shadow and wet use as eyeliner.

REN Photoactive Sun Veil SPF15 (3ml)  Happy to get this sample as I am always looking for the sunscreen products. But this one is quite small and I might use one or two times, it is hard to tell whether a product is good or not if only tried one or two times. I wish I can get bigger size to try.

REN Moroccan Rose Otto Body Cream (50ml) Love the rose scents and this body cream leaves the skin hydrated and lightly rose smells. Really love it!!

Antipodes Rejoice light facial day cream (5ml) Never tried this brand before, but I see there are some great organic ingredients like: manuka flower, sweet almond and avocado oil. The mauka flower oil has antibacterial, healing and protective effects and the avocado oil can boost the collagen and soften the skin.

Overall, this month box is still good even though it looks small, but wish to get the bigger size samples. ;)

Magazine Freebies--August Issue

I got some excellent freebies from magazines like Glamour, Red Magazine, In style this month, and there will be some fabulous magazine freebies next month too.

Red Magazine (£3.90)---on sale July 4th
It comes with REN skincare set, which contains 3 sample sized products: Vetiver v7 Hand and Body Cream (15ml), Hydra-Calm Global Protection Day Cream (15ml) and Active7 Radiant Eye Gel (3ml). Worth £16 total.

I have used REN Jojoba Microbead Purifying Facial Polish and really love it. So I am looking forward to try other REN skin products, also this little skin care set is great for travel bag.

Glamour Magazine (£2.00)--out July 5th
The free Balance Me skin care products are with next month's Glamour magazine, you can choose from Balancing Face Moisturiser (20ml), Wonder Eye Cream (7ml), Pure Skin Face Wash (50ml) and Rose Otto Intensive Lip Slave (10ml). The first three are worth £11 and the last one is £12.

I have never tried Balance Me skin care products, only used body wash (the Rose Otto body wash is really nice!)  With only £2.00, you can get the full size lip slave, and other great sample sized products, also the fabulous magazine, what more can you ask for? I will definitely go for all!

Overall, next month's magazine freebies are fabulous!!

Deal Alert: Frederic Fekkai Winter Glossing Set

Recently I have noticed there is a fantastic Sale item in House of Fraser (Here), that is, Frederic Fekkai Winter Glossing Set!! It was £40, and now is only £20! Half price!!  This set is really a bargain!

I first knew Frederic Fekkai is in Space. NK., the sales highly recommended me their products, but it is too expensive for me to buy a shampoo or condition at £20. So when I see this winter glossing set is in sale, I bought it immediately.

This set contains three products: Brilliant Glossing shampoo (236ml), Conditioner (236ml) and Brilliant Glossing Cream (45g). I haven't used the shampoo and conditioner, but find the glossing cream is amazing! (you can find the review here).

Also, you would get a free gift (59ml shampoo and 59ml conditioner ) if buy any two Frederic Fekkai products. 

Review: Frederic Fekkai Brilliant Glossing Cream

This is my recently favourite hair product. I got this travel size (45g) in Frederic Fekkai winter glossing set.

I use this daily before drying my hair, it not only makes my hair soft and frizz free, but also adds shine and nourishes dry ends. The smell is nice and I would say is kind of fresh and clean. Unlike other hair creams or serums making hair heavy or greasy, this one isn't heavy at all!

I usually put a two 'pea size' amount on my ends (because my hair is thick and long),  normally one 'pea size' is enough. Be Careful, don't use too much or your hair would get too greasy, since this product is made from olive oil.

This one is a little pricy (198g--£25) but a little goes a long way, so I would still recommend it. You can find it in House of Fraser, Space.NK. and Debenhams.

Overall, it is excellent for dry, frizzy and damaged hair.

Have you tried Frederic Fekkai glossing cream or their other hair products?

Review: John Masters Lip Calm

I got this lip balm from March Amarya Beauty Box.

This is the first organic lip balm I have used, and the smell is really really wonderful and it contains tangerine, lemon and lime oil, so it also has some fresh and citrusy smell. Except the oils I mentioned above, it also contains olive oil, sunflower, jojoba, flax seed, borage and rosehip oil.

Unlike other lip balms such as Kiehl's or Vaseline is wax based, this one is oil based, so when applying, you don't feel greasy, but will fell the oils melt into the lips.

Overall I think it is a great lip balm for daily use, but it might not be good for intensive care or overnight treatment.

Have you used this one? what is your favourite lip balm?

Earth Day Haul

Origins A Perfect World (50ml)

This is a limited edition for Earth Day Event, which is also an antioxidant moisturiser with white tea. I got this from John Lewis. There already have been a long queue when I arrived. And sadly the Starting Over was out of stock, only left A Perfect World. Anyway, I am still happy for getting one of them.

Lull Natural Soft Drink (250ml)
This is a lightly sparkling drink, blending of berries and kiwi with a hint of lavender and eleven botanical extracts. I bought this from Planet Organic store (you can also check here), it is on offer with an introductory price £0.99, normally it cost £1.99. I like the package, lovely bottle, isn't it?


Biona Organic Coconut Virgin Oil (400g)
Also got from Planet Organic store. It costs £7.99. I read some articles about coconut oil, and they said it not only good for cooking, but also for skin, hair and body. Another multipurpose oil besides cooking. I will try it first and post the reviews about that.

Red Magazine with Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish (30ml) plus Muslin Cloth
I firstly noticed this offer is from Beauty Balm's blog (Here). But it is so strange that I found there is no gift with Red Magazine in my local stores. I found this one in the WHSmith in Victoria Station. Lucky!
I really love this cleanser! It not only smells great, but also makes my face clean smooth and fresh. The muslin cloth inside is also great quality.


Really a happy Earth Day for me! How about yours? Did you get the free Origins?

Latest in Beauty: Editor's Choice Box

Beauty Box is a popular topic these days, and every company designs its own one. I like the 'beauty box' concept but sometimes the products inside are not the one you might be interested in. Instead of blind subscription, the Latest in Beauty box is the one you'll know the content before ordering. There are three kinds of boxes you can choose. The first one is theme box, which has certain theme such as anti-ageing, glamour, detox and so on. Because this theme box has limited stock every time and is so so so popular, you need to grab it as soon as possible! The second one is little beauty box, which you can choose three different products from a list and get a few sachets to try. The cost is only £1.50 and I think it is great to try something before buying them. And the last one is to design your own beauty box. Sometimes they have some very good samples,  just check it on the website.

Ok, let's see what is inside the box.

Emma Hardie Amazing Face Natural Lift and Sculpt Skin Plumping Serum (10ml)

Obviously, this is an anti-ageing serum. But one thing attracts me, that is, it also provides deep and instant hydration to the skin. I seldom find one anti-ageing serum also is a hydration one. So it will be great to apply it before make up.

Miners Nail Polish (full size- 8ml)

This is my first time to hear the Miners Cosmetics company.  They launched five shades for their Spring Summer Nails Collection: Jezebel (a bright pink), Marshmallow (a baby pink), Sunny Side Up (a pastel yellow, which is the one I got), Mango Tango (a bright orange) and Keepin' It Teal (a deep turquoise blue).

The polish is £2.99 each and I also get a discount code (LATEB15) in the box, which will have 15% online discount. The code will expire on 30th June 2012.

Eve Lom Rescue Mask (15ml)

I love this one! These days I have some breakouts so I decided to give it a try. After using the cleanser I shook the bottle (Remember to shake it well, or the water will come at first), applied it all over my face, waited for 15-20mins and removed it. The instruction in the bottle says 'remove gently with upward movements, then wipe skin clean with a damp muslin cloth', I found it hard to remove that way because my skin felt very dry after 20 minutes, and I just rinsed my muslin cloth in warm water and gently wiped it off.

My skin felt fresher and cleaner, my breakouts seemed calmer. Just as the name 'rescue mask', it really is! I love this mask, even though the scent is not that pleasant, it smells like a mix of different herb. Anyway, this is a great mask if you want to deeply clean your skin.

AD Skin Synergy (5ml)

This is a natural and organic anti-ageing face oil. Personally I am the one who loves oil very much, not matter face oil, body oil, virgin olive oil or coconut oil. Because I believe oil is the best for our skin, body and hair, especially when  massaging. I will post the review after using the oil.

L'Occitane Divine Cream (3ml) 

I haven't used this product before, and this little gold pot is an anti-ageing cream, which has the features of lifting, brightening dark spots, improving skin tone.

Overall, this is a fabulous box and it costs £5.95 plus p&p. I am extremely happy with this box and will definitely follow the Latest in Beauty.


Did you get the box? what do you think the contents of the box? Have you tried the products inside before?

Amarya Beauty Box--April

Yesterday I received my April Amarya Box, here is the details:

Jurlique Moisture Replenishing Day Cream (2ml)   Haven't tried this brand before and would like to use it.

Evolve Protein Build Conditioner for Dry/Damaged Hair (7ml)   I used Evolve Multi protein shampoo and conditioner for dry/ damaged hair before (old version, 200ml-£9.99), the shampoo smells like vanilla combined coconut and the conditioner like vanilla added almond. Anyway, they smell nice and leave that scent in the bath room after using it. Besides the smell, they are also really good for the dry hair. The hair absorbed the conditioner quickly when you apply it into the hair, but you will find your hair clean, shine and feel bouncy after rinsing it. I will definitely put it in my travel bag.

Simply Argan Oil (full size-50ml-£21)   I am so happy to receive this product, because this 100% cold pressed Argan Oil is a multi-purpose oil, which can be used not only on the face, body but also nail and hair. I can't wait to use it. 

As always, the Amarya Beauty Box comes with the simple package but great products inside!