April Favourites

How can April already be over? So much has been going on for me this month and these products have helped me get through this month in their own way.

Cath Kidston Mug // This was a birthday present from my Sister-in-law, who obviously knows me well as I love both Cath Kidston designs and hot drinks. Apart from the beautiful floral design, I really love the size of this mug. It is not so small that I feel like I need another brew immediately after finishing the first, but not so large that I never finish it. Who do I think I am.. Goldilocks?

The *TeaShed Teabags // This also came as a bonus present for me along with my mug. I adore Earl Grey tea. I know a lot of people find the fragrant taste a little overpowering, but I really think it's one of my favourite types of tea. The packaging of this is lovely with, "Probably Definitely The Best Cup Of Tea" emblazoned on the side, which makes me smile every time I look at it. And, you know, I would actually have to agree. It really is perfect, especially when accompanied with a cheeky biscuit (or three).

Sweet Freedom // A few years ago I stopped taking sugar in my tea and changed to a sweetener. I found it helped with my sweet tooth, but helped me decrease my sugar intake. I know that there are many health concerns with regard to a regular usage of sweeteners so I have been looking out for another alternative that could become the new replacement. Well my friends, I think I have found it in the form of Sweet Freedom. In the bottle it looks like golden syrup, but it is actually made 100% from natural fruit extracts. It also has 25% fewer calories than sugar, which is always a good thing. It's in a squirty bottle so it is clean and simple to squirt into your tea, baking or cereal etc.

Papaya Body Butter // I picked this up in one of The Body Shop's many clearance sales. They also do many promotions on their website, so if you are a TBS fan then get yourself on there! I paid £5 for this and it was certainly money well spent. Having quite dry skin, I really benefit from a more nourishing body moisturiser. I have no problems in putting this on after my shower and getting dressed pretty much straight away. There is no stickiness and my skin drinks it up beautifully. It literally smells so summery and fruity that I can't stop smelling my arm on my way to work. Standard.

Hand Dream // I featured this hand cream in my Soap & Glory Haul and I have not been disappointed. I work in a cold environment at work, which makes my hands incredibly dry in between my fingers. This not only smells delicious, but soaks in quickly and doesn't leave my hands feeling greasy. That is my one pet hate. It is actually quite a large bottle so I've been keeping this at the side of my bed to put on when needed.

Palmer's Swivel Stick // This is one of my favourite lip balms ever. It is pretty huge and people do make fun of me at work when I pull it out of my bag. Most people think I'm putting Pritt Stick on my lips, well they probably wish I was with me being a little chatterbox. It is a cocoa butter based lip balm, which feels smooth when applied on the lips and really helps to nourish my lips when they are feeling sore. I do use it under lipsticks sometimes, but it can make things a little slippery if applied straight after. Give it 5 minutes and it will sink in nicely. Because of the size, it can be used for dry skin patches and elbows but mine never makes it past my lips.

Wax Lyrical Colony Candle // I was actually doing a very middle aged thing where myself and Chris went to the supermarket and popped into the adjoining Dobbies store. If you've not heard of Dobbies it is a bit like a garden centre crossed with The Range. I get lost in the homeware sections every time, much to Chris' annoyance. I was on the lookout for a new candle and spotted this amongst the Yankee Candles. I liked that the company is based in Cumbria and their products are made in the UK. I spent ages sniffing them all and finally chose Mandarin & Peach. It really does manage to throw it's scent around the room. It doesn't burn as evenly as more expensive candles, but it isn't terrible by any means. I have it on the table next to me in the living room and love getting the occasional whiff of fruit. Perfect for Spring.

Whiskas Dentabits // No, this is not my mid-afternoon snack after my daily cat nap. (geddit!) These are for Alfie the cat. If he could he would eat cat treats instead of his food. He may need to go to rehab for his addiction. What I've tried to do is meet him in the middle and get him cat treats which have additional benefits. These treats are quite knobbly in shape, which are supposed to help clean Alfie's teeth. Whether it works, I'm not sure, but he enjoys eating them anyway.

Pedometer // Now this is not anything crazy expensive, It was just a cheap bargain from EBay. I actually purchased 3, as myself and my friends at work wanted to see how many steps we were taking at work. I do a 5 hour shift and am averaging around 4000 steps. Not bad eh! It does resemble a plastic toy and has been prone to fly off my trousers when bending down, but for 99p, I'm really not going to complain.

So there we have it, these are my April favourites. What have you been loving this month?

All products featured were purchased by myself or were presents from my family.

Soap & Glory Haul

                         

Oh hi there! I hope you have all had a brilliant week. I know I have. I've had that buzz of excitement that you get when it is a couple of weeks until your birthday. I don't care that I will be turning 29, I absolutely love my birthday. Cake, a nice meal out, presents, spending time with loved ones, did I mention cake? Well, it's now just over a week to go...so... sorry husband, it's only going to get worse!

Anyway I best get onto the haul. So, I may have popped into Boots to do a little "3 for 2" shopping. I did buy some make up too, but I thought I would just focus on the loveliness that is Soap & Glory. I'm not sure I have ever purchased any S & G product that I have not adored. I love the sweet smelling fragrances, not to mention the feminine and retro packaging that all of their products seem to encompass. Righteo, onto the haul...

Clean, Girls Body Wash // This is a 500ml sized bottle that includes a pump dispenser, which is so handy when you are in the shower and have a "wet hands and an awkward opening bottle lid" situation going on. I chose this one as it says it is a creamy, skin softening body wash. I have quite sensitive skin on my arms, which are prone to itchy and dry patches. These types of body washes are what I will typically opt for, so as not to exacerbate the problem. Scent wise, this contains natural vanilla, orchid and fruit extracts. If you are a fan of the Mist You Madly body mist then this has the same fragrance.

Hand Dream Super Cream // I suffer from dry skin in between my fingers and across my knuckles, mainly from working in a cold environment. In the winter they can become really sore and chapped, so I thought I would give this a go. It claims on the bottle to have a fast absorbing formula, which is what everyone wants... who likes greasy hands? Not me! The scent seems similar to Hand Food containing grapeseed, macademia and shea butter, YUM!

Heel Genius // Now I'm not going to go into too much detail, but coming into Spring we all want soft and pretty feet. Confession time... I have maybe neglected them a little bit over the Winter months. Sorry feet. Seeing a foot mask on the shelves seemed to be everything I needed to bring my feet back to normality. YAY! A layer of Heel Genius massaged into the feet in the evening followed by some cotton socks and TA-DAH, wake up to soft feet.. sounds perfect! This contains a host of ingredients such as glycerin, allantoin, macademia, bilberry and fruit acid smoothers. Take it from me, it smells great!

Sugar Crush Body Wash // The only way to describe the sugar crush scent is a mojito in a body wash disguise. It is another 500ml size bottle with the ingenious dispensing pump. Sweet limes and lemons combined with vanilla musk and coconut oil make it so invigorating. For me this is an ideal morning shower scent. Really wakes me up. It isn't as nourishing on my arms as other body washes, but I am in love with this scent.

The Breakfast Scrub // For the past few months I did get out of the habit of using a body scrub. Getting myself back onto the body scrub wagon was easy when I had a sniff of this one. It has a gorgeous maple syrup scent. The scrub contains oats, shea butter and sugar and after having used it a few times on my damp skin, it really works a treat.

So that's my S & G haul. Until the next trip to Boots....

Are there any S & G products you think I should try? Let me know in the comments, as I'm always willing to be enabled!