June Empties

I'm not going to use anything else up this month so here are my June empties. If a product is marked * I very kindly received it complimentary for review.

I fell totally head-over-heels for Butterwhips when I tried them recently. Warmly Relaxing Body Butter with Bergamot, Lavender & Vitamin E is simply exquisite. See my review HERE. This is the brand which will be replenished again and again. I also love the eco-friendly reusable or easily recyclable tins.

Typology Orange Blossom Hydrolate 100ml* which I loved using. See my review HERE. It's on the wishlist for when my stash reduces a bit.

I love Beauty Kitchen and fell in love with their Seahorse Plankton Superglow Active Mist 100ml. Again, on the wishlist when I use up some of my stash.

Dr Hauschka Moor Lavender Calming Body Oil 75ml is an absolute delight. Creamy with a lush lavender aroma. I was sad to use this one up! Check out my review HERE. Will be bought again when I use up more stuff.

I do love a bit of Molton Brown and loved both of these bath and shower gels 100ml - Vetiver & Grapefruit and Geranium Nefertum were both great scents which I enjoyed with a rich foamy lather. I'll definitely buy both again.

I've loved trying Africology products this year. Their Rose Absolute Tonic 25ml* was a joy to use. See my review HERE.

From Heavenly Organics I enjoyed their Lavender Hand Balm 15g* which is presented in a recyclable/re-usable tin. See my review HERE.

As you'll know I'm a huge fan of Sol de Janeiro's Brazilian Bum Bum Cream. I was pleased to try a mini 25ml of their new Bom Dia Bright Cream recently which brightens and smoothes the skin. It gently exfoliates and retexturises with fruit AHA's as well as smelling lush. Full size is firmly on the wishlist.

Rounding up my June empties is my hands-down-favourite bar shampoo - EarthKind's award winning Tea Tree & Eucalyptus Shampoo Bar for Improved Scalp Health 50g*. I use this once or twice a week and this bar has lasted over a year!! See my review HERE. I've just opened a new one and have a couple more in my stash! 

What have you been using up lately?

*The Evolution - Happy Planet Box: AUTUMN 2020: Prepare for Winter

*AD - Gifted Item Founders Aga and Vineet very kindly asked me to review AUTUMN's Happy Planet Box. I was delighted to do so having loved the SUMMER edition - see my musings HERE. Everything is carefully chosen to suit that month's theme, this month Vineet chose what went inside under the heading "Prepare for Winter". The box costs £20 plus £3.50 p&p.

Everything inside the box is eco friendly with boxes easily recycled or composted and the tins and jars reusable or recyclable. As ever all items are Vegan, Cruelty Free and made from natural ingredients. There's also a very informative leaflet explaining why the brands and items were chosen. I think the selection this month, like last is carefully curated and perfect for the season.

From White Rabbit Skincare is their delicious Chocolate Orange Lip Balm (£7 - 15ml) which comes in a cute little tin. It's deeply nourishing and quite lovely. It'll mend and care for chapped and dry autumn and winter lips!  This Scottish brand was founded in 2004 and choose to create high quality products with minimal plastic using planet friendly production techniques. 

From Heavenly Organics is their cute little flower shaped Organic Lavender Hand Balm in a tin (£8.00 - 15g) (I've tried the foot version which was glorious). This deeply nourishing and comforting balm is a delight. It'll hydrate and soothe dry Autumn hands and is the perfect addition to the box.

New to me brand is Pura Cosmetics and inside is their Revitalising Raspberry Lip Scrub (£4.99 - 24g) which comes in a little glass pot and smells fresh and fruity. The scrub is made with sugar, coconut and apricot oils and flavoured with raspberry oil. It's the perfect product for dry flaky lips and the perfect companion to White Rabbit's Lip Balm!

From Friendly Soap there is their Peppermint & Poppy Seed Soap (£2.25 - 95g) which smells incredible - very mint and uplifting. Perfect for dark winter morning. Vineet says "with the mornings getting darker, waking up can be a bit of a challenge. But instead of coffee, this time give peppermint a try". The soap is handmade from natural ingredients and will leave you feeling clean and refreshed. The soap is packaged in a recyclable/compostable box. I'm looking forward to this one!

Rounding up this fantastic AUTUMN Happy Planet Box is Peppersmith's English Peppermint Mints (£1.99) which are free from artificial colours and flavourings, preservatives, sugar and plastic. Delicious!

Again, I think it's a fantastic box which is carefully curated with useful products which will also bring you joy. Pick your box up HERE.

*Happy Planet Box - Summer 2020

*giftedbox I was very pleased to try and review the summer edition of the Happy Planet Box* which costs £20 plus p&p). Inside is an array of useful and gorgeous products scented with fruity and zesty scents - the true essence of summer! The eco friendly and sustainable contents which are carefully curated will make any green beauty lover very happy indeed. I think the contents are just great - useful as well as being in the treat category. Inside the box is a very handy information sheet which contains information about the products and the makers.

So now for a closer look..

From Heavenly Organics is their Organic Orange & Grapefruit Face Oil (£10.50 - 50ml) which is a very summery addition to the box. It's scented with zesty Organic Orange & Grapefruit Oils (this is summer in a bottle!). Formulated with a blend of sunflower and jojoba which provides your skin with natural antioxidant Vitamin A and E. It'll also help with cell regeneration, reduce large pores, firm and hydrate. This is lovely - expect a review soon. Glass bottle packaging is easily recyclable or re-usable (I received their foot balm in my one-off The Natural Beauty Box - see HERE). It's definitely a brand I'd like to explore more.

I'd first tried Cosy Cottage via my June 2018 Skin Organics Clean Beauty Box so it was nice to revisit. The texture of the Mango & Lemon Foot Balm 30ml (£7) seems to have been reformulated since I last used it as I found it smooth and silky. This is a beautiful foot balm which has a lovely fruity and zesty scent (makes a nice change from the usual peppermint!). LOVE! (again easily recyclable/reusable glass jar).

The next two products (which are new to me brands) are designed to be used together - Suma's Alter/Native Handmade Grapefruit & Mandarin Soap (£2.50 - 95g) which has a zesty fragrance which refreshes the skin. The bar is infused with calendula petals which soothe. The soap is 100% natural and palm oil free. The box is easily recyclable. 

Use it with zero-waste friendly Naturally Evergreen's Exfoliating Soap Bag (£4) a really clever invention! Pop your soap in the bag and use in the bath or shower for an exfoliating treat. It's also perfect for holding all the little end pieces of soap (you always seem to be left with - with this bag you'll use up every last drop!)

The final item are 3 x single use plastic free fairtrade Clipper Teas Organic Pure Green Tea which bring a moment of calm to a busy life. 

So there you have it, a great SUMMER box. Sign up HERE (I'll definitely be checking out the AUTUMN Happy Planet Box when it launches as I've really loved the carefully curated contents within SUMMER). Are you a subscriber?

The Natural Beauty Box: March: Almost Good Enough To Eat

March's The Natural Beauty Box is entitled "Almost Good Enough to Eat.." and there is an extra edible treat tucked inside. The box costs £24.95 per month including p&p. There are also discount codes included for most of the brands. Join up for April HERE.

WOW!

The reason I signed up this month was mainly for Skin Alchemist's The Gorgeous Soldier (100ml) which is a nourishing body scrub which quite honestly smells good enough to eat! It's seriously chocolatey! This is a full size product which is worth an eye watering £34! I'm looking forward to testing this out and a review will follow.

Yet another full size product! From Pink & Green we have 100ml of their 'Marzipan' Body Souffle (£16) which has a sweet and edible marzipan nutty scent. It's a blend of Shea Butter and Plum Kernel oil and is a delicious treat for the skin. Again, a full review will follow.

Kokomelt is a new to me brand (exciting) and inside the box this month is a tin of their mini Lavender Sugar Cubes (£3.50). I love the quirky but pretty packaging. Again, looking forward to trying these out.

The final two items are new to me brands too (happy face). First up, is Heavenly Organics Organic Peppermint Foot Balm 15g (£6.99 - you can buy a refill at £3.99). The rich peppermint scented balm is shaped like a flower (it's the little things), melts on contact with warms skin and leaves the feet nourished and sweetly scented. Again, a review will follow.

From Aura Organics we have their Vegan Organic Chocolate & Orange Lip Balm £4 which is made with dark Cacao Butter and other butters and scented with Sweet Orange oil. It has a nice texture and feels moisturising on the lips.

A final edible sweet treat extra is a mini bar of Vegan Coconut Milk Bar from Glasgow based, Raven Chocolate which is worth £1.95 (I tried this yummy brand at last year's Foodies Festival in Edinburgh). As well as being Vegan the chocolate is dairy and gluten free and GMO free.

It's a fabulous box this month. What are your thoughts?