Yardley London Bath & Body Skincare Collection And Flower Arranging With Jane Packer

I recently spent a most wonderful afternoon with the Yardley London team at the Jane Packer Flower School for a lesson in flower arranging. It was such fun and one of the most therapeutic things I have ever done, I highly recommend it!

We learnt how to create a hat box arrangement from scratch. Having been shown by an expert who made it look so easy, we were then let loose on our own hat boxes and vases of flowers. It was left up to us how we arranged the flowers we were given to work with - We had pink Roses, white Gerbera Daisies, dried Lavender and green foliage. These are some of the flowers used in the Yardley Bath and Body Skincare Collection.

I have to admit when I started arranging the flowers in the hat box I had no vision of how it was going to look at the end, it has to be said I am not the most able when it comes to making things but I was pleasantly surprised at the end result, what I achieved and how much I enjoyed learning and being creative for the afternoon.

The lesson in flower arranging was to introduce the new Yardley London Bath and Body Skincare Collection which will be supported by a stunning advertising campaign this Spring.

The collection consists of five ranges - English Lavender, Lily of the Valley, English Rose, Peony and Royal English Daisy. Each range has a Body Wash - £3.50 for 200ml, a Body Lotion - £5.99 for 250ml and a Hand & Nail Cream.


Each product is infused with the delicate scent of the floral fragrance it represents and contains the ingredient Q10 which is known to strengthen skin and keep it soft and toned.


I have been using the English Rose collection and the scent is not at all overpowering, the hand cream is light but perfectly moisturising. I was also given the Royal English Daisy hand cream which is a stronger sweet floral scent, apparently this scent was inspired by the Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine Middleton and launched around the time of the Royal Wedding.

My finished Hat Box creation 

January 2012 GlossyBox - The Valentine's Edition

Yesterday the postman knocked on the door to deliver the latest Glossybox. This one was delayed a little as it was billed as the Valentine's Edition...

The box this month is a cute hot pink.

As always GlossyBox pays attention to the detail - 

Of course this all means nothing if the content's don't live up to expectation, however I am more than happy with the content's of my box.

A closer look and swatch of the Eye Liner 

What Is Inside -

Clarins - Extra Firming Day Cream - This is a rather generous 15ml sample and is apparently suitable for all skin types. I have already used this cream and it has left my skin feeling super soft. It is nice and rich but be aware it is heavily scented. This didn't have a little seal over the opening.

Clarins - Extra Firming Night Cream - Again, a generous 15ml sample (the type you would get in bonus gift packs when you make multiple purchases). This has a lighter, fresher scent and also leaves the skin feeling beautifully moistured. I think it is great that the day and night cream were in the box, brands often develop products to work in conjunction with each other and you get a good idea of how they would suit your skin with each other. This came sealed.

Clarins is an excellent inclusion in the box, I am going through a little love affair with the brand so was delighted to be able to try these.

Murad - Hybrids Skin Perfecting Primer - Dewy Finish (5ml)

Murad is a brand that I have heard of but never tried any of their products. I am a big fan of using a primer under my foundation so look forward to giving this oil free primer a whirl.

FAB (First Aid Beauty) - Gentle Body Wash

This body wash is fragrance free, has a creamy texture and is free of Parabens and harsh chemicals. 

I haven't tried anything from FAB before so I think it is great that in this GlossyBox there are two brands that I am able to try for the very first time and both are generic enough to be suitable for my skin type.

Eyeko - Skinny Eyeliner in Emerald Green (other shades were sent out)

I have been really impressed with the products that I have tried from Eyeko previously,  although I haven't purchased anything since their relaunch and redesign. This item is full size and worth £9.50. I have green eyes and think this shade will make an excellent addition to my makeup bag. It is a really pretty metallic green shade, brighter than the Stila liner that was included in the October box.

I will use all of these products and as a box I think it is really rather fab,  fulfilling the brief of what it set out to do, the only thing I would say is that I cannot see what the link between Valentine's and this month's GlossyBox is apart from a heart sticker and a heart sweet! :-)

*PR Sample

Skin Wisdom Day Spa Gentle Revive Gingerlily & Orange Wash 'n' Scrub

I was sent another item to review from the Skin Wisdom Spa Range at Tesco after I was so impressed with some of the other products in the range. If you missed the reviews you can read them here.

Skin Wisdom Day Spa Gentle Revive Brightening Wash 'n' Scrub in Gingerlily & Orange

This is described as a 2 in 1 wash and scrub for the body. It comes in a flip top tube and the product comes out really easily in a gel formula. What struck me was how pretty it was when it came out, I don't often say that about bath products but this really was. I tried my hardest to capture in photography but essentially the scrub bits, which are square shaped, are swirled around in the gel forming a pattern.

On contact with water the gel changes to a more creamy consistency which allows you to wash using it.

I am not sure what gingerlily is supposed to smell like and I couldn't really make out any orange scent in it but it smells pleasant, the only way I could describe it would be to say.. a bit like a holiday scent!

I would consider this product to be more of a body polish than a scrub as the particles are larger and less than you would find in a traditional scrub but with that in mind I found it to be effective and for the price (less than £5), great value. The packaging is nice, the product feels expensive and leaves the skin comfortable, soft and smooth. I was particularly impressed with how smooth my upper arms felt, this is exactly what I look for in a scrub. I didn't find it overly harsh and although the scrub bits don't melt, a quick rinse of the shower (if you are using this in the bath) will wash them away.

I am a huge fan of using scrubs, particularly in the Summer when having super smooth skin is important when applying fake tans. I liked this scrub a lot and it would seem I am not the only one, as the gentle revive brightening wash 'n' scrub has been shortlisted by a panel of experts in the body care category of the Tesco Your Beauty Awards.

This is the first year Tesco are running the awards. One lucky voter will win a luxury holiday for two to Antigua and each week (whilst the awards are running) all entrants will be entered into a prize draw to win all 55 shortlisted products in the awards. Hurry though the awards close on 23/08/2011

To vote in the Tesco Your Beauty Awards just click this link - http://www.tescomagazine.com/beauty-campaign.html

*Sponsored Post 

Fab Range Of Bath Products for Babies and Children

Naked Bodycare are a rather fabulous brand of affordable natural products that don't contain nasties like SLS, parabens and petrochemicals, you will remember the toner review I wrote recently. I do try as far as possible to seek out products without those ingredients and especially so when it comes to products that I am going to use on my 3 year old son.

I was delighted to learn that Naked Bodycare were launching a range for babies and children with the same philosophy and was recently sent a couple of the new products to try.

Naked For Kids 2 in 1 Shampoo - Toffee Apple £2.99 for 250ml

Mini Naked Go-Ga-Ga Gentle Body Wash £2.99 for 250ml

Shampoo

From the moment this came in the post my son was excited and impatient to use the shampoo, the packaging really appealed to him. It was bright and fun with a big smiley face on it. 

To dispense you push the lid down and another bit pops up and releases the product. This smelt absolutely gorgeous, a fresh apple scent. It lathered well and rinsed off easily. This isn't a no tear formula, it does mention on the back to avoid getting in eyes, my son did get it in his eyes as he is such a wriggler but there were no tears from him. His (longish) hair was manageable afterwards and was incredibly silky soft and shiny - A great thumbs up from this household. 

Body Wash

Go-ga-ga is aimed at children up to the age of four years old. A gentle body wash that contains Aloe Vera, this has a very delicate scent, perfect for a baby. This is a no tears formula. The wash seemed really gentle and my son did not have any reaction to it afterwards. He was soft and cuddly afterwards. Crucially it passed my son's all important bubble test, daddy blew bubbles with it and it created huge bubbles that floated around the bathroom. Enchanting!

I love the fact that you can get affordable products that contain no nasties for babies and children, I would definitely purchase both products. 

You can find both products on the website as well as other products in the range. I hope that they are soon stocked in the shops!

What I use on my 'baby'

I know I have quite a few 'mummy' and mummy to be readers so today I thought I would share with you what I have used pretty much since Aaron (now almost 3) was born for his bathtimes. For the first few weeks I used nothing but water..as time went on and bath time became more of a routine I was looking for something that smelt nice but cared for my little boy,  I spotted this in my local Waitrose store....

Yes it is quite expensive (around £7.99) compared to other products on the market, but I have always been happy to spend a little extra on my little one. He was such a sicky baby because he had Reflux that I didn't spend the pennies on his outfits!

This is my favourite wash as it smells wonderful with a light scent of sweet orange, lemon and and coconut oil and leaves his hair smelling just gorgeous and his skin super soft. It is a 2 in 1 product so cleans the hair as well as the body. Many times I have got the product in his eyes as he is such a wriggler and not once has he  cried because of it. This wash is not hugely lathering but if you rub it between your hands you can blow bubbles to entertain the little one and make them laugh.

Burt's Bees Baby Bee Shampoo and Wash doesn't have any SLS or Parabens in it and is 98.03% natural - one of the main reasons I picked it up.

I can highly recommended this product.

Have you tried this ? What do you use on your little one(s)?