Hawaiian Tropic 'Lime Coolada' After Sun Body Butter

Hawaiian Tropic are known for their coconut scented sun protection lotions & tanning oils (as well as sponsoring bikini pageants), so it makes logical sense that they also make after sun products. For some reason I was still surprised when I spotted a range of after sun body butters on the Hawaiian Tropic stand in Boots. I think it was the term 'body butter' that intrigued me. Most after sun products I've come across have been in lotion form, but as shea/cocoa butter tends to feature quite highly in ingredient lists of these, it shouldn't be too surprising. 

I was also drawn in by the words 'Lime Coolada'. Cocktails & tropical fruit both feature quite highly on lists of things I love, so I had to give this a quick sniff as I walked by. I fell in love, right then & there. It didn't matter the price tag, this uniquely smelling body butter had to be mine. Fortunately Boots were selling it at a 50% discount of £5.24 (I later found out Asda & Home Bargains are offering even better prices: £5.00 & £3.99 respectively).

The formula boasts cocoa butter (to soften, smooth & rejuvinate skin), shea butter (to restore elasticity), mango butter (to seal in moisture & prevent peeling) & avacado oil (containing vitamin A to refine & firm skin).

I'd say the consistency is more of a heavy lotion (similar to that of posset or syllabub, if you've had either of those...can you tell my job involves Food? Haha!!) than a butter, but alot of products with this consistency call themselves butters, so who am I to argue?! The lotion, as I shall now refer to it, sports a pale green tinge. 

I'll be completely honest, until a couple of days ago it hasn't been sunny enough for me to need an after sun product, but I've been using this as a body lotion since its purchase. In fact I've been struggling to be in the same room as the tub without applying to any bare patch of skin I can find! It does take a short while to absorb into skin & can leave a slightly sticky residue, but nothing too unpleasant. It's highly moisturising & leaves skin feeling really soft.

As an after sun lotion it performs well too, I noticed a really nice cooling affect as I applied the lotion to my shoulders after sun exposure (on the single day it's been above 20°C this month!).

The scent is, without a doubt, the selling point of this product for me. It's a very tropical scent, with pineapple being the stand out fragrance, followed closely by lime. There are also hints of mango. It pretty much smells of the most amazing smoothie/juice you could imagine! After sitting on your skin for a while the scent changes a little, loosing some of the sharpness of the lime & pineapple and allowing the slightly more muted, sweeter notes of the cocoa & shea to come through.

This comes in one size, a pretty generous 200ml tub. It would usually take me forever to get through a body butter or lotion this size (I'm the queen of neglecting to apply body products), let alone an after sun lotion, but my current addiction has led me to already be almost a quartre of the way through the tub after a single week!

I know that I will probably continue to purchase this product for a long while to come. I love it just as an every day body lotion, the scent is a massive pick me up, the fact I can also use this as my after sun care is just an added bonus!

Anyone else tried this? Anyone tempted? What do you think of Hawaiian Tropic products in general? Holiday essential or just a gimmicky brand?

Miss Sarah x

GIVENCHY Le Prisme Yeux Quatuor in Pastel Model

My eyeshadow collection has, for quite a while, consisted of almost exclusively neutral & pink based shadows. I've never had a problem with this, until I recently started getting way too into this spring's pastel trend. For the past 6weeks or so I've found myself hunting through my palettes & piles of singles/duals for anything resembling a green, peach or yellow. My luck has been non-existence, so I made the executive decision to end my spending ban & invest in some lovely pastel shades.

I had decided to go with the MUA pretty pastel palette, but after repeatedly finding it out of stock in my local Superdrug, I started keeping a pastel eye out everywhere else I went.

It was during a Debenhams visit I came across this beautiful pastel Givenchy quad. The price massively put me off, £34 for 4 x 1g of eyeshadow! However, the colours were exactly what I'd been looking for & I admit I was pretty instantly sold on the gorgeous packaging! I discovered my Debenhams Beauty Club card had £20 saved up on it, so justified that the discounted price of £14 was an absolute steal.

The presentation of this quad is impeccable with each shadow moulded to resemble a prism.

The shadows are slightly shimmer based pastel colours: grassy green, zesty yellow, icy pink & blue toned grey.

I'm not going to pretend I haven't come across stronger pigmentation, but, for such pale colours, the pigmentation certainly isn't bad, especially if a primer's involved. There is a fair amount of fallout from these shadows, but I've found, depending where the fallout occurs, it can be blended into a lovely cheek highlight (shade dependent). These shadows blend absolutely beautifully & I can't stop playing around with them, creating a host of different looks.

Lastly I want to talk about the packaging. Givenchy packaging is always stunning & this quad is no exception, the design is sleek whilst feeling completely luxurious. Beauty meets brains with the 'Clap & Slide' magnetised mirrored lid & tool draw. The tool draw is, as far as I'm aware, a unique feature to this quad. A fully integrated slide out draw concealing three miniature tools: a standard foam-tipped applicator, a pointed foam-tipped applicator & an angled brush. This adds to the luxury feel of the product, although I'm sure I'm not the only person who wishes the foam applicators were replaced with miniature brushes.

What do you think? A steal at £14? Would you splash the cash?

Miss Sarah x

Cosmetics Crushes (Wish List-Summer 2012)

Last night the thought  'Ooh, I could do a lovely haul post/vlog once these items come' sprung to my mind as my mouse hovered over the 'Checkout' button on Debenhams' website...then the internet cut out. I realised this was the universe's way of telling me two things: 1) Get back to revision, you have an exam in under 36 hours & 2) Stop adding more expenses to your store card. You can't even afford to pay the current balance!

So I closed the tab & got back to revision, but I couldn't get some of the products out of my head (does anyone else have that problem when they've been thinking about buying something?). I figured I'd do a 'Wish List' post, to get the thoughts out of my system & to make me feel too guilty to splurge on any of the items until I have a legitimate way of financing their purchase.

These are the products I'm currently lusting after (don't worry, they weren't all in last night's shopping basket, I'm not that crazy...yet!!). I hope to add a couple to my collection before the summer's out, but for the sake of my bank balance I'm praying I don't give in to too many.

YSL Pure Chromatics in Shell (No.7) £39 - These beauties contain an exclusively developed pigment that, when wetted, transform into a intense, metallic cream.  I love the colours in this Summer 2012 Quad, they're perfect for summer & a bit more exciting than most of my current (mainly nude) collection.

Laura Mercier Sheer Cream Eye Colour  £16.50 - I think Laura Mercier's Belle Nouveau collection is my favourite of all the summer 2012 new releases (bold claim!) & these limited edition eye colours really capture the essence of the soft, candy-toned look of the collection. I'm particularly keen to get my hands on the 'Mauve Pastel' shade.

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Emerveille  £23 - I'm obsessed with finding the perfect cream eye shadow and although this Chanel favourite isn't the champagne colour I have my heart set on finding, I find myself swatching it every time I'm near a Chanel counter & falling in love a little more.

Elizabeth Arden Pure Finish Highlighter  £23 - I almost purchased this 3 times yesterday, I think I'm in love with this Rose Gold highlighter from Elizabeth Arden's Spring 2012 Rose Aurora collection. It seems to have vanished from a lot of stores' sites, so I best take the plunge with this gorgeous powder soon, or else I'll miss out!

Soleil Tan de Chanel in Sable Rose £34 - This beautiful bronzing powder from Chanel's Summer 2012 range seems perfect for subtly warming up my complexion in the coming summer months. The pink tone gives a warm glow and avoids the usual 'dirty face' look I get from bronzing powders.

Laura Mercier Nail Lacquer in Lavender Cloud £12.50 - Another gem from the Belle Nouveau collection, I genuinely can't think of a lovelier nail colour!

Chanel Le Vernis in Island  & Holiday £18 - Two of three nail lacquers featured in Chanel's Summer 2012 range, these both screamed 'hot summer's day' to me. I'm particularly keen to get my hands on 'Island'...or find a pretty good dupe!!

Dior Vernis in St Tropez £18 - This is my pick from Dior's Summer 2012 Croisette Collection & would nicely fill a turquoise coloured gap in my pretty extensive nail lacquer collection.

Estee Lauder Double Wear Maximum Cover £26.50 - I've been tempted by Estee Lauder's original Double Wear for a while now, but as a sucker for anything promising maximum coverage, my attention has shifted to the Maximum Cover make up. Has anyone tried this? I'd be interested to hear thoughts. It didn't seem too scary when I swatched it on my hand, but I'm yet to attempt a face swatch!!

Dolce & Gabbana Creamy Foundation £35 - I came across this whilst searching for 'No7 Intelligent Balance Mousse' dupes (Something I'm keen to try but currently out of stock in Boots). I haven't worn a cream/mousse foundation for a few years, but in my head it'll make my skin look angelic. This seems like an ultimate luxury product & that just makes me want to get my hands on it even more!

Clinique Stay Matte Oil Free Foundation £21.50 - About a year ago I was desperate to get my hands on the Clinique Workout Make up (now discontinued), but it wasn't available in the UK. This appears to have the same ideas behind it, but with new technology. The idea is to stay in place no matter how hot, humid & sweaty you get...for anyone who's ran around London's Tube system in the height of summer during rush hour, you'll realise why this currently appeals to me!

Givenchy Rouge Interdit Satin in No.56 Delicate Rose £21 - I'm always drawn to the Givenchy Counter, the packaging is some of the most beautiful & interesting around. This rose toned lipstick gives a subtle 'just bitten' look to the lips & is my pick from their Été à Fleur de Peau Summer 2012 collection.

Dior Addict Ultra Gloss in Little Red Dress £21 - I know it's not the season for red lips, but I've been in search of the perfect red gloss for so long & I've finally found one that truly fits the bill, in this! This super pigmented cherry red gloss is packed with superfine shimmer, & just screams 'Fabulous Darling'.

Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Colour in Pink Peony £18 - This gorgeous medium toned pink was released back in February as part of Bobbi Brown's Spring 2012 Rose Gold collection, but I swatched it for the first time yesterday & immediately fell in love with the matte appearance & enchanting colour. I don't own any lipsticks quite like this one & I'd be surprised if I last more than a week or two without picking this beauty up, the feel on the back of my hand was incomparable...I can't stop thinking about it.

Have you tried any of these? What are your thoughts? Are you lusting after any make up products at the moment?

Miss Sarah x