Beautylishious April Beauty Bag

I received my April Beautylishious Beauty Bag yesterday.  I was really looking forward to receiving Lola's Apothecary mini bath oils which came in Rose & Geranium and Eucalyptus & Mint and a mini pot of Conscious Skincare Sweet Orange & Frangipani Body Polish (mine had leaked a bit and seems to be more oil than scrub) but nonetheless I'll enjoying trying it out - as it smells gorgeous.

The other items in the bag are Neutrogena Multi-Defence Moisturiser 50ml - this is full size and suitable for normal/combination skin.  This retails at £7.99 and two sachets of Australian Bush Flower Essence both 3ml - Intensive Hand Cream and Face Wash.

The bags themselves have changed from hot pink organza and leopard print tissue to floral tissue and cellophane wrapped with a bit of pink raffia and the little hand made with love heart - which is a nice touch.

Harriette is doing two more bags in June & July before she has a break to spend time with her new baby.  You can see the shop here.

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Did you get the bag?  What are your thoughts?

Spending Ban - Update 11

Uh-oh my spending ban went completely off the rails in week 11 and I think it's now time to end it.  Ahhh...  I lasted 70 odd days with a few splurges - a lot less than I'd normally be treating myself to though.

I've been enjoying shopping my stash every week - so I'm going to keep doing this.  Here is what I bought during the spending ban period -

In Style Magazine for the beauty supplement in Week 3.

Sweet Cecily's Rose Body Butter and Mojito Lip Balm.  See my review here.  I bought these in Week 4.

In Week 6 I bought the Caudalie Set from Latest in Beauty and two Remedy..for organic body butter bars and an April Beautylishious bag (which I've still to receive).

See my review of the Remedy...for Organic Body Butters here.

In Week 7 I bought Good Housekeeping magazine which were giving away a free Balance Me Hand Cream and Marie Claire magazine which were giving away a Neal's Yard Bee Lovely Hand Cream.  These are both worth £10.

In Week 8 I bought a copy of Psychologies magazine.

Week 9 saw me really caving when I bought Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm and the LIB Organic & Natural Box.  You can see my reviews here and here.

In Week 10 I bought Botanicals Anti-Age Hand & Nail Serum and two try-me size pots of cleanser and foot balm (you can get the try me sizes for free just paying p&p).  Reviews to follow.  I also bought a April SoukSouk little green beauty box.

Finally Week 11, I bought Beaute Chinoise Beauty Tea - a Oolong infused with organic rose.  It sounds simply delicious.  Still to receive this.  I'll be doing a mini review on it and of course my M&S and Boots haul.  

I'm quite relieved to have ended my Spending Ban.  It was an interesting experiment and I know I buy too many beauty products.  I'll do a post later this week listing my "Wants" from the 11 weeks - and letting you know which ones I'm going to buy at some point. 

How is your Spending Ban coming along?

Splurge while on Spending Ban

I mentioned in my recent Spending Ban Update I'd had a little online shop - you can see the post here.  Two of the purchases arrived this week.

I couldn't resist Latest in Beauty's Caudalie offer of a 15ml size of Premier Cru The Cream and 7ml of The Eye Cream.  They cost £14.95 plus P&P and are worth £50!  They are presented in a cute wee cardboard box - so would make a great present.  A review will follow.

My second item(s) came from Remedy..for - a small company which I came across in The Simple Things magazine.  Homeopath Fiona Wray makes beautiful skin and body care products and you can see the full range here.  The products are natural and organic and are formulated and handmade by Fiona.

I picked up two gorgeous heart shaped Organic Body Butter bars - Rose Garden and Winter Therapy - both packed full of cocoa butter, organic oils, beeswax and essential oils.  Again, a full review to follow.  I was also sent a complimentary sample of mint edition soap which smells fab!

My third item was April's Beautylishious's bag as it is featuring two brands I am really keen to try - you can see the spoiler here.  Have you had any splurges during your spending ban?

Beautylishious February 2013 Review

The last time I bought a Beautylishious bag was in September.  I managed to purchase a February bag before my Spending Ban kicked in!  

Wrapped in leopard print tissue, in a bright pink organza bag with some sparkly sequins and tied with a ribbon with a little "handmade with love" heart.

Onto the contents - the first spoiler I saw was for Murad Firming Body Cream 100ml worth £19.50.  I'm a huge fan of Murad products and was keen to try this.  A rich body cream with an orange scent - it's lovely.

A sample slice of Lush Angel Delight Soap - a nice fruity soap which is scented with Tangerine oil.

Garnier Rose Comforting Cleansing Lotion 200ml which retails at round about £2.00 - this smells amazing.  Suitable for dry/sensitive skin.  I can use this at the moment as my skin is quite dry in winter but is usually normal/combination.  Update - a lovely cleanser which removes all mascara/eyeliner with ease and leaves skin clean and fresh.

Four x sachets STEAMCREAM - these featured in a previous bag.  Not a huge STEAMCREAM fan but these will do for weekends away.

The bag retails at £12.75 including P&P.  

Beautylishious - September

I've only had a Beautylishious bag once before in April and you can read my review here.  I'd seen a spoiler on Facebook for an item in the September box - Wella SP Balance Scalp Serum which retails at £14.95 on the Salon Skincare Website.

The goodies now come in a bright pink organza bag with leopard print tissue paper and the little "handmade with love" heart - very pretty.

Onto the contents:

Wella SP Balance Scalp Serum 100ml - full size product.  An intensive strengthening serum for fuller and stronger hair.  To use - massage into the scalp and do not rinse out, use up to three times a week.  I'm just a bit worried this  will make my hair greasy - I'll try at on a day I'm not going into work.

Murad Exfoliating Blemish Treatment Gel 30ml - for healing and clearing blemishes and preventing new ones from forming.  I sometimes get spots on my chin so looking forward to trying this out.  To use - apply a thin layer over face and neck - I'll just use this on the area affected.

St Ives Apricot Invigorating Scrub 30ml - I used to use this scrub years ago.  Full size at Superdrug 150ml currently retails at £1.99. A handy size for weekends away/try me size.

Valentino Valentina EDP  1.5ml sample vial - this smells quite nice.  With notes of bergamot, white alba truffle, orange blossom, wild strawberry, cedar and amber.  30ml retails at £33.99.  I love trying new scents.

Bags cost £12 per month. There is no subscription and you can come and go as you please month by month.  Did you get one?  What are your thoughts?

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Beautylishious - April

Harriette, from Beautylishious put a message on Beauty Box Swaps on Facebook asking for a blogger to review her beauty bag (free of charge).  I was the very lucky blogger she chose to review the April bag.

The beauty samples are presented in a beautiful pink cotton bag tied with pink ribbon.  A little "made with love" silver heart is attached to the front.  The beauty samples are tucked inside wrapped in leopard print tissue which is also tied with ribbon - a really nice touch.

You receive 4-5 samples for £12 including postage.  Expect homemade, boutique, organic and branded products.  From May you can find out what will be included in the bag if you fill in the contact form found here or message Beautylishious on Facebook.  I like the surprise element!

The beauty of the Beautylishious bag is that you are not tied to a subscription, you can come as you go as you please month by month.  Harriette makes 20 bags so its on a first come, first served basis.

Payment (by Paypal) for the May box opened on 6th April for despatch on 2nd May, for the June box payment opens on the 7th May for dispatch on 1st June.  You can see all payment and dispatch dates here.

Onto the contents:


A mini pot and 2g sachet (and information leaflet) of STEAMCREAM. This cream is the latest "must have" as it can be used all over the body making it a great product for holidays/gym.  I received this in my Carmine box previously.  This little pot is going in my desk drawer.


A mini pot of Crush Chocolate Body Buff - a natural sugar scrub which smells delicious.  The grains are quite scrubby which I like and the product is very moisturising due to the oils it contains. Definitely one I'd purchase full size.


A trial size of Lancome L'Absolu Rouge lipstick in shade 65, a brownish toned lipstick.  Feels really moisturising on the lips.


Umberto Giannini Dazzling Shine...to Perfection Gloss Cloth - single use.  Gives dry hair a glossy shine and can also be used between washes.


Finally, three plastic pouches containing mineral eyeshadow/bronzer in brown tones from Willow Tree Minerals.  Shades include Autumn Leaves shadow, Sahara Shadow/Bronzer and Mulberry Cider Shadow.  I'm looking forward to try these out as they are lovely shades and from a company I've never heard of before.


My verdict?  A nice selection of product samples.  I especially love trying products from brands I haven't heard of before.  I will be re-using the cute bag for presents or to store cosmetics.


For more info:
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