Lakme Lip Love Lip Care Review: Cherry Variant

Winters for me mean endless cups of coffee, eating home made ‘gajar halwa’, enjoying the shivering cold and yes, cursing it at the same time for making my skin even worse  I have this habit of buying lip balms, but I really don’t know why, I don’t apply them as often as I should. Whenever something new hits the stores, I love to buy it, and add it to my bag, and it is used really well for 2 days. Then, it mixes up with the rest of the stash and we are back to square one. But I guess a lot of girls go through the same! So my new addition to the stash was Lakme Lip Love Lip Care (that’s a lot of ‘L’s!).

I was really excited for this particular product launch as Shraddha Kapoor has been roped in for its promotion. It comes in 4 variants, Cherry, Strawberry, Peach and Vanilla. I really wanted to buy Vanilla as I go bonkers for anything with chocolate or vanilla flavour. But since these are claimed to be tinted balms, hence I saw no point in buying a variant which was creamy yellow in color. So I chose cherry, the deepest shade among all 4.

Ingredients: “NOT MENTIONED!!!” I mean, which age is this? How come things can easily be sold without the mention of even the basic ingredients that went in? I really request all companies to give a thorough list of ingredients, if not on the pack, then at least on their website!

Claims: Tinted Sticks with Balmy Cores’, SPF 15

Packaging: This cute product is winning hearts ‘coz of its absolutely lovable packing. Girls who have used Elle 18 lipsticks are already very familiar with this type of product. Both, Elle 18 lipsticks and Lakme Lip Love Lip Care look completely similar. The twist up packing is the same size as Elle 18. Even the bullet looks an identical sister of Elle 18! The only difference with Lakme is that the Cute Quotient has been kept higher with a transparent cap with Lakme Lip Love written in a flowery font! The plastic body seems sturdy. The cap is tight enough to not open up inside the bag. All this came housed in a paper and plastic blister pack. The bullet is a bright colored one, with a visibly different core, which is said to be the moisturizing portion.

My Experience: I had tremendous expectations from this one. Lakme had advertised it really well, especially on their FaceBook page. I went around malls asking when this is hitting the shelves, and returned home empty handed all the times, as none of them had a clue when this would be coming. I ultimately ordered it online from Amazon. My luck was just not favouring me, as this was the festive season and all deliveries were being delayed. I finally got it on 27^th, after 7 anxious days of waiting. So how did it fare? Let’s see

Color Payoff: It has quite a low color payoff. The deep red shade of the bullet made me hope for a darker color on my lips. Well of course it ain’t lipstick. But what’s a tinted lip balm if it doesn’t give you a slightly obvious tint? I should have bought vanilla 

Scent: It has the slightest ever scent only, that too of a typical lipstick. It doesn’t really feel like a cherry scent to me, but I kind of like this synthetic scent too! It won’t be there for long, and just lingers for a minute or two.

Moisturization: Well, the most important thing for a lip balm for me is the hydration power, and on that front, this seems to be jussst fine. 2-3 swipes would easily hydrate your lips for about 1-2 hours. It isn’t sticky, and neither is too waxy. I would have preferred if it was just a tad bit heavier in texture, so it would have lasted longer. Again, I believe this won’t heal your chapped lips, but just provide a hint of healthy sheen and moisture. Only if the color payoff was as good as the color of the lip balm, I would have bought some other flavour too!

Price: Rs 200 for 3.8 grams of product

Shelf Life: 2 years

Pros and Cons:

PROs

1. Attractive packing. All companies seem to now understand that cuteness quotient is a great buying factor for a girl!
2. A good moisturizer for lips. The balmy core does seem to work
3. Has SPF 15, so that’s an added bonus
4. 4 flavors! (I really should have got Vanilla….)
5. Travel friendly

CONs:

1. Not as good a color payoff as I expected
2. NO INGREDIENTS?? What are you doing with the huge cardboard packing, people? Use it to put the ingredients list, not claims alone!!
3. A bit expensive for the deal (Rs 150 would have been OK for it…come on Elle 18 lipsticks sell for 110)
4. Scent not the most pleasant..seemed a bit artificial, so I guess not everyone may like it
5. Availability might be an issue right now, but I guess it will be easily available across stores soon

Rating: 3.5/5 (score on basis of adorable packing and decent moisturization)

Final Verdict: This is a new product so you should try it. I would insist that you buy one variant (Buy one only though  ) It would cover you in terms of moisture in these winters. Don’t have reaaalllly high expectations though.

Did you try this Lip Care product from Lakme? Did you like it? Share!

Beauty Cute fashion India Lakme lifestyle LIP BALM Make-up Makeup Red Skin Care Skincare

List of Baby Products Which YOU Should Be Using Too!

Childhood is the most beautiful time of one’s life. When all you have to worry about is the next day’s homework submission, the upcoming unit tests and winning in the street cricket. No worry about job promotion, increments and all the jazz that adulthood brings with it. I wish I could go back in time and re-live those days… Well, we can re-live them in a way! By using Baby Products!!  Hehe..that won’t be childhood exactly, but can give you a mild reminiscent feeling of those days  Using a Johnson’s baby product just gives me a sense of deep happiness..probably because the scent has remained the same for so many years! It is like a legacy of sorts..We used it, and before that our parents used it, and these are still very much around. So I never stop myself from buying these lovely goodies from the baby section in the mall 

Here, I am listing down all these cute Baby Products, and how you beautiful girls can incorporate these in your beauty regimen. Don’t even once think that these products are meant only for babies and kids. These are amazing for all us well grown adults. One more winning factor is that, these products have been designed keeping a baby in mind, hence extremely safe and well tested. These would work like a charm for girls (and even boys!) who have sensitive skin and who have difficulty finding suitable products.

Here is the magic list:

1. Baby Oil: I always have a bottle of this at home. I use it for removing makeup. It can be used to remove foundation from the face, without leaving the skin dry. I especially use this, as I have pathetically dry skin, as after using this and then washing the face with a regular face wash leaves the skin a lot less dry. I also use it as an emergency eye/lip makeup remover, when I run out of my regular bi-phase makeup remover. It works amazingly well as nail and cuticle oil, so you need a couple of drops only to massage your fingers 
2. Baby shampoo: I recently started using this. No, not on my hair, but on my face! When I use any face wash on my eyes, it burns my eyes like hell. So I invested in a bottle of the cute yellow baby shampoo, and use this after removing eye makeup with a makeup remover to get rid of residues. And its ‘No More Tears’ formula ensures that I don’t cry  Of course, this shampoo can also be used for its original purpose, ie washing hair. I recommend it for those who need a very frequent hair wash, as it is quite mild and won’t leave your hair excessively dry.
3. Baby cream: For the longest possible time, I have been a fan of Baby Creams. Johnson’s Baby Cream comes in 2 variants, one a normal cream and the other is milk cream..:D I like both of them. I love using them from time to time, and the consistency, formula, moisturization power, everything is great. They come in tube form, so quite hygienic, and I am considering keeping this in my travel vanity.
4. Baby wipes: These come enriched with baby lotion, so I believe these can be used to remove makeup. I haven’t tried these this way but totally considering this!
5. Baby Lotion: I love the baby pink color of this lotion! Again, a number of variants come for the baby lotion, just buy anyone that you like. I love to use this on my face, as it is neither too thick nor too runny. It has just enough moisture and is not too oily. In winters, I use it immediately after washing my face, and then use another heavier cream on top, which locks in the moisture for the whole day. One major advantage with these products is the huge variety of sizes in which they are available. So you can buy a small one to try the product and then a larger one if you like it. During summers, only this lotion would be sufficient for the face. The baby sized bottle can be used as a hand lotion too!
6. Baby Powder: I highly recommend the use of this powder instead of your regular dusting powder in summers. This is extra smooth, and not at all rough like some other talcum powders in the market. The pleasant scent is a major plus! You can even use it on your face in summers, before applying makeup, as it would reduce sweating on the face and make it last longer.

 FOR THE BOYS: Yeah, I know some boys are reading this too, so I totally recommend these products for you. These Baby Lotions and Creams are perfect to follow up after your shave. These formulations are not very heavy, so won’t cause your skin to break out. And yes, since you have to wash your hair more often than us girls, I suggest that you try this shampoo, as it won’t strip your hair of moisture.

So go ahead and use these amazing products. I am quite sure you will be hooked, just like me! And they might just remind you of your lovely childhood 

Do you also love using Baby Products? How do you use them?

Baby Product Beauty fashion Health India lifestyle Make-up Makeup Skin Care Skincare

Britannia Nutri Choice Heavens Cookies Review: ‘Banana and Almonds’ and ‘Cranberry’ Variants

It is Christmas today! A very Happy Christmas to you all  Christmas is my most favourite festival of the year, with the chill in the air and festivities all around, beautiful Christmas tree decorations everywhere, Santa Claus roaming in streets and malls! The cheer and happiness is so tangible!

Britannia came up with this really cute advertisement for their new range of luxury cookies called Heavens! And I feel they have been launched with the correct tone in their ad..the background vocals feels so wintry, and heavenly. The promo shows all the great ingredients of the cookie, such as cranberries, bananas and almonds flying up to heaven. The jingle goes like, “Good things go to..Heaven!!” I loved this promo, and everything about it felt so right for me to go and pick up this box of cookies ASAP!

They have been launched in two variants: One with ‘Almonds, Bananas and Oats’ and the other with ‘Cranberries and Oats’.

So did the cookie live up to the high expectations I had set? Read on..

Ingredients and Nutritional Count:

Packing: The cookies come packed in this cardboard box, with a huge cookie drawn on it. They have pictures of all the cookie ingredients on it. They have written how good these cookies are, on the box side.

Within, all the cookies are individually packed. Think on the lines of Sunfeast Dark Fantasy and Sunfeast Delishus cookies, which also come individually packed. These types of cookies are great to carry around, as you can drop one in your handbag, or a couple in your laptop bag for on-the-way munching. Plus, you don’t have to worry about half-eaten packs becoming soggy.

Quantity and Price: Rs 50 for 100 grams. The huge carton made me think there would be a number of biscuits inside, but to my dismay, it had only 6 cookies. Seriously? One cookie for more than Rs 8?? What were you thinking Britannia?

Taste: Have you tried Sunfeast Delishus? These cookies have been launched in competition with those most definitely. I have tried both of these, and found these quite similar in appearance and texture.

Almond and Banana Variant: I was really excited to try this as I totally love the flavour of banana. I adore banana and walnut muffins and even banana ice cream! But where was banana in this? I only found a mild scent of banana in the cookie. I was thinking more in terms of this cookie having real, dried banana chunks. But on reading the ingredients closely, this has only 1.4% ‘Banana Powder’!!! I mean WHATTT?? I have been let down severely. It does have almonds, and yeah you can feel them and even see them. But I wasn’t particularly overwhelmed by the taste of this variant. It was quite OKish. You can see real big oat chunks too. So if you want a cookie with the goodness of oats and just almonds, then go for this. But yeah, at Rs 8 per cookie, this is quite pricey.

Cranberry Variant: After tasting the banana variant, I had low expectations from this one. But I was pleasantly surprised! This one really contains big, actual dry cranberries. And no, this one didn’t let me down, as it had at least 3-4 good sized cranberries in each cookie. This also contains visibly big chunks of oats. I really liked the taste of this one, atleast 10 times better than the banana one. At least I’m consoled by the fact that some good (and expensive!) fruit went into making this one. So I feel this one is more value for money (check the prices of dried cranberries in any store, and you would know what I mean!). Plus, I like the chewiness that a cranberry brings to the biscuit, making it more versatile in terms of texture.

The overall cookie texture is quite nice, and you don’t feel that you’re eating a flour laden biscuit (like Marie or Nice..). I feel these are great to have in your evening coffee break in the office, or when you want to eat something while commuting.

Rating:

Banana Variant: 2.5/5

Cranberry Variant: 4/5

Repurchase: I would spend my buck on the cranberry variant only. It is one good biscuit to try!

Overall Verdict: Only the cranberry variant met the high expectations that I had after the really cute advertisement. They are a bit expensive too. The banana one could have been made so much better. But this cookie is a fresh change from the usual biscuits on the market. And it is, to a certain degree, ‘Heaven’ly! 

Have you tried this cookie? Do you love banana walnut muffins? Do share your experience!

Banana Biscuit Britannia Cookie Cranberry food Food Review Fruit Health India lifestyle Nutrition Review Soul

Pond’s Pure White Deep Cleansing Facial Foam with Activated Carbon + Vitamin B3 Review

Activated carbon reminds me of my chemistry lab in college, where we used this stuff to remove (adsorb-to be chemically correct!) impurities out of the products that we synthesized. Never did I imagine that the amazing property of activated carbon to adsorb impurities would be utilized in skincare products!! Pond’s even shows this in the product’s advertisement, when a sphere of activated carbon is dropped into a glass with dirty water and it goes clean in a while.

Well, to enhance your knowledge, activated carbon is carbon (imagine the black soot that you see against a wall when you light a candle too close-that is carbon) which has been treated chemically so that it acquires this supreme power to suck out impurities and dirt. The same principle which makes it so useful in a chemistry lab has been the funda behind this great facial foam! 

Ingredients:

Appears to be free of SLS!

Claims:

Packaging: It comes in a sturdy black colored plastic tube with a flip-cap. I have used this product while travelling and the tube never leaked, so the packing seems to be travel friendly. But on the contrary, the cap of the tube broke while using at home once! It might have been a one-off defective pack, but always carry your liquid and foamy stuff in a polybag while travelling, is my suggestion. The tube looks classy to me amongst all the facial products that I use, due to the luxe-black color 

My Experience: I have been using this product for about a couple of years now, and it has remained in my bathroom shelf consistently. The product is steel grey in color, obviously as it contains carbon. It has a pearly sheen to it. The scent is mild and nice, floral sort of, but nothing that lingers behind. You need very little amount of it to achieve effective cleansing. I usually take a dime sized amount, put dots on my face and lather away for about a minute. Being foam, it lathers really well. The foam it gives is whitish.

I still remember, when me and my sisters used it for the first time, we could actually note a real difference in the skin color, with our skin appearing brighter and cleaner. Hence, you might also notice a real difference with first time usage, as it really does a thorough job of cleaning out your pores. And it might make your skin feel whiter (come on, the product name is ‘Pure White’!). But I feel that this is something which happens only upon first time usage as, subsequently, with regular usage, the amount of accumulated dirt in your pores is also lesser. Whichever the case may be, but yeah, it made my face look brighter!

Since I have quite dry skin, I tend to use a lotttt of heavy face creams and a BB cream on top, and this face wash removes its greasiness and the accompanying dirt effectively. I know this because it really leaves behind skin squeaky clean. So I know that it really does its job well. Since I use it every day, I don’t notice a very significant ‘whiteness’ or ‘glow’ everytime, but yes, I feel clean after using it.

In summers, I don’t face the problem of dryness post usage, but now that the weather is a colder, my skin tends to feel a little pulled and dry upon using this. I definitely follow it up with a heavy cold cream or a night cream, but yes, it may leave the skin a bit too dry for dry skinned girls. For the oily skinned beauties though, this would work perfectly. Just remember to follow it up with your choice of face moisturizer!

Rating: 4/5

Price: Rs. 160 for 100 grams of product. Smaller packs are also available.

Shelf Life: 2 years

Where to buy: Easily available across all general stores, pharmacies and supermarkets. You can also buy it online!

Pros and Cons:

Pros:

1. Cheap, easily available across stores and online
2. Very effective in removing facial grime and oil
3. The ‘Pure White’ claim does appear to be true to an extent, as you will feel your skin appearing brighter, as it really clears dirt from your pores
4. It contains Vitamin B3, which is great for the skin
5. Sturdy, travel friendly, luxe packing
6. Washes away easily, without leaving a slimy film behind (which I personally hate, makes me feel unclean)

Cons:

1. Leaves the skin dry, especially in winter
2. The flip-cap broke once, so be gentle with it!

Value for money: Yep. It’s a great product from Pond’s, and actually uses a great scientific phenomenon to achieve clean skin. Kudos!! Plus, it is really inexpensive.

Repurchase: Definitely. Despite my dry skin, I still love to use this product because it really makes my skin feel very clean, removes make-up and grime. Overall, it’s a super-effective product. Recommended!!

Beauty Face wash fashion India lifestyle Make-up Makeup Pond’s Skin Care Skincare Vanity

Delhi Street Shopper Diaries: Want to Buy Real Leather Jacket? Head to Yashwant Place: The Leather Hub of Delhi!

I had been on a hunt for the perfect leather jacket for months! No store in any mall had been left unexplored; no online portal had been left unchecked. The regular, faux leather ones in the malls just didn’t seem to entice me, despite some of them having great designs. I just didn’t want to spend a bomb on something that would last me only 1-2 seasons, as I feel that these pieces are a wardrobe investment. My hunt continued…

I finally did some online research and found one name, Yashwant Place, which had been named as THE place for leather goodies in Delhi. I found solace. I knew I had a place to visit, and that my hunt was not as yet unfruitful 

I dragged myself out of bed on one bright winter day to head to this place, and find my dream leather jacket.

I boarded the Metro, and deboarded at Race Course metro station, which is the closest one to this market. From there, it was a 5 min ride in an auto rickshaw to a very discreet looking complex of the Yashwant Place market. I started exploring the place after confirming with a couple of passers-by as to whether this was the right place or not! The market was a shopping complex, and most of the shops were underground.

It took me only a couple of minutes in the underground market to locate the first shop with leather goodies. I was looking for a very specific color and style, which I couldn’t find in the first few shops so I just continued. But I was really happy and surprised at the same time to know the prices for regular leather jackets, which were almost half of the ones for jackets in High-end stores such as Mango and Zara. These shops were offering genuine leather jackets at the price of faux leather jackets by the brands!

I searched every shop, and finally came to buy this! I got this one for Rs. 5000 (~US$ 85)!!

This wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, as I was looking for something in tan color, but this was also too good to pass!

I tell you, these jackets were amazing, really stylish. And these shops also had the classic designs as well. They had jackets in every imaginable color, size and design. There were the classic plain leather jackets, there were Biker jackets, there were embellished leather jackets, there were leather trench coats, there were real fur coats in every imaginable length! It was a shoppers’ paradise! And yeah, there were a lot of leather bags too: totes, satchels, laptop bags, cross-body bags, you name it!

Dos and Don’ts:

Do:

1. Bargain. They will bring down the price they quoted first
2. Check out a lot of shops before finalizing. There are a LOT of designs, so you don’t want to buy something really fast
3. Get the phone number of the shop from where you buy the jacket. You might need to get some repairs done if you accidentally tear your dear jacket. Plus, they also offer guarantee on the zips and buttons!

Don’t:

1. Don’t buy a jacket if you feel the leather is not genuine. I’m telling you, some of these shops where I went, I just couldn’t feel the leather to be real. It almost looked and felt like polyurethane to me. So do get a feeling of the stuff
2. Don’t buy any leather goods without thoroughly checking the piece. Some of the pieces look very good at first, but then you may see some dirt or odd spots on them.

Apart from leather, there are a lot of fine jewellery shops also. I didn’t manage to check these out, but I clicked some photos of the cabinets and shops.

Jewellery stores are many in Yashwant Place market..

This is a very different market. There were so many tourists and foreigners here, and I believe most of these were from nearby Embassies, as this market is quite close to the Embassy area in Chanakyapuri.

Lovely fine jewellery in a store..Will check these out next time 

Most of the shopkeepers here were speaking very fluent Russian and Arabic!! Another interesting thing was that even some banners were written in Russian! Ha! Seems the Russians in Delhi come here a lot 

See the shop name written in Russian!

If you want to have a quick bite after shopping, there are tons of Chinese and Tibetan eateries here, which were offering momos, Thukpa and what not! I, however, went to the Bikanervala close by to kill my hunger post shopping. I wasn’t feeling adventurous enough for the momos that day 

I found these cuuutteee pups playing in the market sitting area  Aren’t they adorable?

It was a good enough experience for me..I will be checking out this place whenever I want a new jacket 

Nearest Metro Station: Race Course on the Metro Yellow Line

Then? Take an auto, he will charge some Rs 40-50

What to Buy: All sorts of Leather goods, fine silver jewellery

Don’t forget: to bargain and check the leather quality

Hunger Pangs: Chinese shops are many, check out their menu first!

And don’t worry, there is a Bank of Baroda ATM in the area, just in case you are short of cash 

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Nivea Creme Review

Hi all my dear readers! You know, I have never in my life experienced a proper snowfall. Living in a hot metro city like Delhi in a tropical country like India, what I have mostly experienced till date is unlimited rain, endless bouts of summer and very small but quite cold winters, for which I am always thankful  I only saw a few specks of snow in Nainital, a small hilly town, once.. But looking at the classic blue tin of Nivea Creme, somehow always makes me imagine snow. And you know what, the literal meaning of Nivea in Latin is ‘Snow’! Aptly named, must say..The stark bright white crème makes me feel really good..Makes me think of a warm cozy blanket, a mug of hot chocolate and makes me long for a snowfall in my city.

This tin used to be a staple in every household for years, but then softer and lighter creams entered the market, and this was lost somewhere. But this has remained one of my most favourite formulations ever.

Ingredients: Aqua, Paraffinum Liquidum, Cera Microcristallina, Glycerin, Lanolin Alcohol, Paraffin, Panthenol, Decyl Oleate, Octyldodecanol, Aluminum Stearate, Citric Acid, Magnesium Sulfate, Magnesium Stearate , Parfum ,Limonene , Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal , Linalool , Citronellol , Benzyl Benzoate, Cinnamyl Alcohol

Claims:

Packaging: I don’t need to tell you, everyone knows the tin! The cute bright blue tin comes in various sizes, with a foil sealing the contents. It has never given me any trouble while travelling, and you’ll always find a small version in my vanity.

My Experience: It was a couple of years back that, having run out of my usual face cream, I used this after ages. And I was hooked! It treated my dry, flaky skin like no other cream ever could! This cream has been compared in efficacy and formulation to Crème de la Mer, one of the most expensive skin creams around, so there must be something striking about this formula.

It contains Eucerit, or lanolin oil, which is basically an animal derived fat, but don’t go eeeugh, it is processed well  And it is a godsend for people with dry skin (read: me  )

Color, Texture and Feel: This cream is really a pure snow white in color, and that is the reason I associate it with snow. My Mom tells me that there was a similar cream in the market some 20 years back, known as ‘Afghan Snow’! The cream looks like heavy whipped cream in the tin, but much heavier in texture. It is a bit sticky, but I don’t mind, it is an elixir for my parchy skin.

Efficacy: I can write a few chapters on how good this cream has been to me. I use it throughout the year, only skipping it when humidity gets too high in our Indian Monsoons. It is my go-to cream at night for my face. If used in a larger quantity, it might leave a whitish cast on the skin, and also make it sticky, so oily skinned people, use it sparingly. I use it as a hand cream when nothing premium is available, and it works great. I use it on my feet and it works like a dream. Some people even use it on their lips. I love its scent, it seems quite soothing to me at the end of the day. I have also used it for facial massages, and it is gorgeous in that setting too. And yes, during travels, I always keep it handy. This is my all-purpose solution to dryness! And yes, it never breaks me out, so non-comedogenic too.

Rating: 10/5, I love it too much!

Price: 30 ml – Rs.40, 60 ml – Rs. 70, 100ml – Rs. 115, 200 ml – Rs. 190

Shelf Life: 30 months

Value for Money: Totally worth it

Pros and Cons:

PROs:

1. Very cheap, easily available throughout the globe
2. A gift of Nivea to dry skinned Homo sapiens like me
3. Cute scent
4. Travel friendly packs
5. An all-purpose cream, available in so many sizes, so you can keep one according to your needs in every setting
6. Great for massages and to get rid of dry patches on the skin

CONs:

1. Not very suitable for oily-skinned people
2. Contains preservatives like parabens, but I told you, I don’t mind them one bit, there is too much pollution and cigarette smoke that I already tolerate!
3. The pack is not very hygienic, but I can’t imagine a cream this thick being sold in tubes

Repurchase: Forever and ever! I always keep the biggest sized container of this at home, so I never run out 

Final Verdict: I really feel this is a complete winter essential for everyone. For the men, I think keeping one of these in your bags can be a lifesaver in winters, as it can be your all-purpose cream. For me, it is my most beloved cream ever.

Do you love this cream as much as I do? Do drop in the comments!

Beauty Essential fashion India lifestyle Make-up Makeup Nivea Skin Care Skincare Vanity Winter Winters

Bobbi Brown Saket, New Delhi: Store Coverage and “Secret to Perfect Skin” Makeup Lesson

Bobbi Brown Saket

“I love the way people look, and I love making women look beautiful”, says one of the most inspirational women in International Makeup and Beauty sphere, Bobbi Brown. I admire her, and really find her advice very meaningful, be it regarding the empowerment of women or about finding the right lipstick shade. Her stores across the world have taken the responsibility to teach women how to do perfect makeup. And I lined up for one such session at her store in Select Citywalk, Saket on a sunny winter afternoon. And boy, I loved every minute of it!

The Bobbi Brown Makeup Lessons cover everything, from doing smokey eye, finding the perfect lipstick and blush shade to doing perfect skin regimen and so on. Different sessions have a different duration, for instance, a smokey eye tutorial is a 5 minute class, learning how to do long wearing eye makeup is a 20 minute class etc. I scheduled their ‘Secret to Perfect Skin’ session, a 20 minute class that helps the woman achieve perfect looking skin everyday.

I arrived at the scheduled time, and the makeup artists welcomed me very warmly! To be very frank, I had gone there with very low expectations and with the impression that things will be a rush-rush affair. But I was totally in for a surprise as the lesson was anything but rushed.

Products used on my face during the lesson

Makeup Artist Abhay took charge and first asked me my skin type, which is quite dry. Then, he helped me remove the makeup that I wore that day and advised the use of an oil based makeup remover. He gave me Bobbi Brown’s Balm Rinse, an orange based cleanser to remove any traces of makeup that remained, and then gave me a damp paper towel to clean my face.

My face is prone to extreme flakiness in this weather, and he totally understood the extreme dryness my skin suffers from, so he started applying products on my face according to my skin type. He started with Hydrating Face Cream, and Hydrating Eye Cream. Then, he recommended that I should start using an Anti-age serum or something that nourishes my skin, so he applied Bobbi Brown’s  Intensive Skin Supplement. He finally treated the extremely dry spots on my face with their facial oil.

After layering these skin moisturizers, he started doing my makeup, only when my skin was hydrated enough. Being a dry-skinned girl, he recommended Bobbi’s Moisture Rich Foundation SPF 15 in Natural Tan. Only very little product was used, and he emphasized that I should ‘Blend, blend, blend, ‘coz blend is your friend!’ Then, me being the inquisitive me, also asked him a lot of questions about general skincare, which he answered very patiently, and with awesome and practical advice! Followed by the foundation, I wanted to try their Concealer kit, so he applied the concealer from the kit in Natural Tan to my under eye area, which is quite dark compared to the rest of my face, and taught me the right way to blend it. After setting the concealer with compact from the same kit, he applied some Bobbi Brown Blush in a cool toned pink to my cheeks. He also put some lipstick in an everyday pink color to my lips. I also wanted to see the much talked about Bobbi’s Shimmer Brick, which he applied to my cheeks to highlight my face. And voila! I was done!

The concealer under my eyes was really making a difference to my overall appearance, as my eyes looked brighter and well rested, in contrast to me regular self, when my eyes appear dull.

So, the take home lessons for me were:

1. Layering moisturizers is very important, especially in this harsh winter season. Applying a good face cream, under eye cream and then some booster serum followed by some oil on the extremely dry patches would be fine
2. Choose the foundation which is an ‘EXACT MATCH’ to your skin shade. Hear hear, all the Indian ladies, who have been told that the foundation shade should be one shade lighter to your skin shade. That should never be so, as one should never ever be able to tell whether you are wearing foundation or a base at all
3. Blend your foundation, concealer and blush really well
4. Smile when you put your blush
5. Don’t ever make a habit of wearing foundation everyday. Only wear tinted moisturizers for everyday use

I learned so much in this 20 minute session (which he very generously extended by 10-15 minutes to accommodate my questions etc). I’m definitely going back for more! A million thanks to Bobbi Brown and yes, to MUA Abhay, for his kickass knowledge and advice!

I also took a lot of store photos, to entice all my girlfriends! The store is beautiful, although I felt it was a little small.

Makeup…

..some more makeup..

..and some more!…

Bobbi Brown Makeup Lesson Catalog..just make sure you dial up for an appointment before dropping in!

Overall, I give their makeup lessons a big, huge thumbs up! And I recommend all my gal pals to give this a try, it would make a huge, tremendous difference to the way you use makeup. Seriously. I’m definitely going back for some more!

Until next time readers, take good care, and don’t forget to layer your moisturizers! 

Beauty Blush Bobbi Brown Bobbi Brown Makeup fashion Foundation India Learn Lipstick Make-up Makeup Skin Skin Care Skincare

EOS Lip Balm Sphere in Pomegranate Raspberry Review

I know I’m quite a late entrant to the blogging scene..  well, blame the nature of my job, and well yes, blame me as well. I’m an inherently lethargic soul, who thinks too much before actually starting something, as something or the other stops me.

Note to Self, and the Beautiful Reader: Don’t let anything stop you. Let the stumbling blocks be just that, stumbling blocks. Don’t let them stop you. Keep working and make your dreams translate into reality. Only you, yes, ONLY YOU, are responsible for making your dreams come true.

EOS lip balms have been around for quite a while now, and I ask you, would you not fall for the cutttteeeee packing? This is one of the most adorable lip balms in the universe. I had picked this one from the US last year, and I am reviewing it after using it for a year, on and off. I had heard about these and now I know, everyone from Kim Kardashian to Miley Cyrus to Nicole Scherzinger has been spotted using these. These are quite popular in the US, but not in India, due to the availability issues. So let’s start the review-

Packaging: I can’t even imagine who came up with such a weird concept of a lip balm in an egg-shell! But thanks to that guy, we have these cute little dinosaur eggs in our jacket pockets fulfilling our lip balm needs  The lip balm is in the shape of a golf ball housed within this colourful plastic sphere. You unscrew the top half of this egg, dab on your balm, and screw it back on. A tremendously cute packing, but not the most jeans-pocket friendly. You have to have a big pocket to keep this egg close-by.Ingredients: Well, I threw away the outer packing long back, so I am giving the ingredients list from the EOS website Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil*, Beeswax/Cera Alba (Cire D’abeille)*, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil*, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil*, Natural Flavor (Aroma), Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter)*, Stevia Rebaudiana Leaf/Stem Extract*, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil*, Tocopherol, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Leaf Extract*, Linalool**. *Organic. **Component of Natural Flavor. Certified Organic by Oregon Tilth.

Claims: eos lip balm in Pomegranate Raspberry is 95% organic, 100% natural, and paraben and petrolatum free. Packed with antioxidant-rich vitamin E, soothing shea butter and jojoba oil, eos keeps your lips moist, soft and sensationally smooth. Long-lasting moisture, Shea butter & vitamin E, Smoothes on clear, Precisely glides on lips, Twist-off top, Gluten-free, Paraben-free, Petrolatum-free, Phthalate-free

My Experience: This is a great lip balm. It might be a bit awkward to use for first time users, but I really do love it. It is an awesome everyday moisturizer for lips. I don’t expect this to heal thoroughly chapped lips, as only rich waxy balms are fit for use in that condition. But this is absolutely lovely for everyday. When I pop it out in the metro or on the road, I do like the strange look the people give to me because this is an uncommon product in India. Some girls have that , “what is this in her hands!?!” type of look…hehehe. I like the little spotlight 

Color and Fragrance: It goes completely clear. And the fragrance is really sweet. It has a slight hint of pomegranate which gives it a fruity punch. Like the fragrance, the taste is sweet as well. The fragrance is not my favourite, but I like it.Texture and Efficacy: The texture is really smooth. It is adequately hydrating too. Not extremely moisturizing, but just adequately hydrating. One more factor that comes into play is that this does not contain any synthetic waxes, which make other lip balms more moisturizing. It does not impart any sort of shine to the lips. It is not at all heavy, so would be the perfect base for matte lipsticks. One tiny problem is that the golf ball does not remain round forever, and now it is flat-topped  Not as good looking as the freshly opened lip balm. But it is still fine to use. Being totally organic and natural, it is one really good lip balm, as some of the other natural balms have not been this effective for me (read The Body Shop Lip Butters). I prefer to use heavier waxy balms at night, and used this one only a couple of times at night, and this was not very effective. Overall, I would say that this is suitable for day-time use, in the office or college, and as lipstick base.

Price: $4 in the US. In India, these are available online at variable prices ranging from Rs 450 and above

Product Life: 36 months after opening

Pros and Cons:

PROs:

1. A-D-O-R-A-B-L-E packing
2. 100% Natural, 95% Organic, treat for people who like to use natural products
3. Quite effective on lips which are in need of just a hint of moisture
4. Great as matte lipstick base
5. Golf ball sort of balm is fun to apply!
6. No parabens, no chemicals
7. Long shelf life even after opening the product, despite being all natural

CONs:

1. Not the best and most moisturizing lip balm I have used
2. Availability issue in India
3. You can’t insert it into your jeans pocket easily

Rating: 3.5/5

Repurchase: I’m buying this in India only if I get a good online deal. Otherwise I will definitely ask someone to get these for me from abroad  I really wanna try vanilla and strawberry flavours.

Have you tried this lip balm? Which variant do you like?

Beauty EOS fashion India lifestyle LIP BALM Lipbalm Make-up Makeup Red Skin Care Skincare Smooth Vanity

The Golden Treasure: Benefits of Sweet Almond Oil

Almonds and me..there is a very complicated relationship between us. While I love them in chocolates and desserts, I hardly eat them on their own. But there is a completely different love that I have for sweet almond oil. This treasure was first given to me by my Mom when I was really young. A bottle of this bright yellow golden liquid was always there in my home, irrespective of season or time.

We treated this almost like liquid gold, and used in minute quantities, as this is quite expensive. But using this is not only a luxurious pampering, it really leaves you feeling beautiful.

Our family has, for the last 30 years (or even more) got this oil extracted from a mill near our ancestral home in Old Delhi. Though we have moved on from there and live in a different part of the city now, we still get this extracted from the same people! I would like to share the ways we use this oil, and its various benefits:

1. All-over Body Oil: It is an excellent moisturizer for the whole body, we sometimes use it as an all-over body oil post-bath
2. Dark Circles: Can be used as an under-eye dark circle treatment at night before going to bed
3. Face Massage: In very minute quantities, massaging the face with this oil on damp skin leaves it velvety smooth. Being rich in Vitamin E, it can also reduce wrinkles
4. Hand and Cuticle Food: I use it as hand oil especially in winters. My extremities remain ice-cold despite wearing tons of woollens, so rubbing this oil on my palms and feet makes me feel warm. Using this on my cuticles helps relieve their dryness and keeps them supple
5. Foot Treatment: I use this on my cracked feet at night, and wake up to softer feet
6. Stretch Marks: This wonderful source of vitamin E, on its own, helps lighten stretch marks upon massaging the affected areas regularly everyday
7. Eyelash Growth: This hastens the growth of eyelashes. The other day, I ended up using my eyelash curler in a stupid way, and some of my eyelashes got trimmed  I lost a lot of eyelashes. I started applying this oil regularly, and saw some improvement in their growth.
8. On Hair and Scalp: I use it for head massage (get it done by my Mom when she is in a good mood  ). Post wash, it leaves my hair as smooth as no hair-spa or any other hair product ever can. Oh, and it cures dandruff and all forms of scalp dryness.

A couple of other uses, which I have read and heard, but not used myself are:

1. Consumption with Milk: Consuming a teaspoonful mixed with a cup of warm milk can help boost memory, improve skin and overall health
2. Lip Scrub: Can be used on lips as a scrub, mixing with sugar, would leave lips smooth and free of dryness. I believe it can help reduce lip pigmentation too

DO remember that sweet almond oil is different from bitter almond oil. Sweet almond oil has a beautiful, mild scent, whereas bitter almond oil has a bitter, pungent smell.

Do give this beautiful and useful thing a chance. You will love it too!

Almond Almond Oil Beauty bitter almond oil Eyes food Health Home Home Remedies India lifestyle Skin Skin Care Skincare sweet almond oil

Nails of the Day: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear in Golden-I, Mini Review

I never liked gold in my teenage years. I had not even one golden accessory at that time. But now, gold has taken the world by storm! And I have been hit hard by this storm, as I’m lusting after everything with gold embellishments, gold accessories, watches and what not. SO how could I not sport golden nails too? That too, in the festive season!

So here is my NOTD, Sally Hansen in Golden-I. I love the name, reminds me of the James Bond movie!!

Brand: Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear

Shade: Golden-I (No. 485)

Price: Rs 250

Where to buy: Available at Sally Hansen counters in Shoppers Stop and Dabur NewU. In USA, available across CVS, Walmart, Target etc

Sally Hansen Golden-I with Flash

Mini Review: This is a beautiful sparkly gold, perfect for sporting on Christmas! It is subtle enough for everyday wear too, as the gold is not very ‘in-your-face’, or too yellow. In natural light, it is a dull gold, which I love. In bright lights, it would be brighter and a deeper gold. I love that this shade is so versatile! Also, this doesn’t chip for at least 4 days, and becomes dull only after about 5 days of wear, so it has a great wearing time. Love, love, love!! 

Sally Hansen Golden-I in Natural Light

Until next time guys, soak up in the festive spirit! It is my most favourite time of the year 

PS: The ring belongs to my sister, and the jumbo gold bangle is from street-shopping 

Do you love golden nails? How about dropping in a line?

Beauty Christmas fashion Gold gold accessories Golden lifestyle Make-up Makeup Nail Polish Nails NOTD Sally Hansen Vanity

Burt’s Bees Coconut Foot Creme Review

Namaste to all my readers! I am back with another review, and today, I will be telling you about the Coconut Foot Creme from Burt’s Bees. Burt’s Bees is an American brand, and all their products are natural. My mom calls it the American Ayurvedic company  To all my non-Indian friends reading this, Ayurveda is an Indian herbal science of treatment. Burt’s Bees doesn’t use parabens, SLS, chemical sunscreens, PEG or any such synthetic agents which are a common ingredient of beauty and skin care products. This company started out in 1984, and began by manufacturing a simple lip balm using beeswax. The company’s philosophy lies in using ingredients for products for the skin to be as good as the ingredients that we put inside our body. Hence, the funda of going all natural.

Till some time back, Burt’s Bees products were only available outside India, but Sephora outlets in India stock up on these. Though a drug-store brand in the US, the prices for the entire range of this brand in India are quite high. Being available at a store as high-end as Sephora, the prices have been kept in line with almost, say The Body Shop 

I picked up some of these products from the US some months back, and paid a lot lesser for them there. It cost me ~11 dollars (Rs. 600-650) from CVS, I think it can be bought cheaper from Walmart or Target.

Coming to this product, it is a coconut based foot crème that I had picked up for my mom, as she has really dry feet prone to cracked heels. But I ended up using it a lot myself too, as I have inherited dry skin from my mom 

Ingredients:

Claims:

Packaging: It comes in a tall, sturdy yellow plastic tube, with a white screw cap. The tube contents were sealed with aluminium foil on the tube opening.

My Experience: I would not really call this a crème, it is more of the consistency of a very thick oil. It smells distinctly of coconuts. In fact, when anyone in the room applies it, the whole rooms begins to smell like ‘Koka Naka’ toffees which we used to eat in our childhood (I wonder if those are still around  ) I personally don’t mind the smell at all, but those with sensitive noses may find it a bit annoying. The smell doesn’t linger very long though.

Texture: It is deep yellow colored thick oily product.. And I don’t find it very hydrating. Being totally oil and wax based, I sometimes feel it doesn’t hydrate my dryyyy feet. I also have a habit of putting foot creams not only on my soles but on my entire feet, so I end up putting more than I intend to, which is not a good thing!

Effectiveness: I and my mom only use it at night before going to bed. This sort of thing can never really be used in the day-time, apart from when you are gonna wear socks and sports shoes/boots the whole day long, during winters. I have not tried it this way, just a weird suggestion  I concentrate it around my cracked heels, but I also feel that being so oily, the skin doesn’t absorb it readily, and a lot of it gets wiped away on the sheets and blankets   I couldn’t wear socks after applying it, just because I can’t wear socks in our tropical weather! It did eventually soften my feet to an extent. With a few days’ regular use, at least the cracks don’t appear as pronounced as they used to. This is just sort of OK for a product worth 1100 only for the feet. I really expected a lot more out of you Burt’s Bees. It has done nothing truly remarkable for my feet. No real improvement in the overall softness level of my feet, no great change in the skin appearance (I have feet which even look dry). I don’t really expect any product to ever make a very long-lasting improvement, as the effects of every product last only as long as you use it continuously (being a pharmacist, I can vouch for the fact). But yes, it didn’t meet my expectations. It may be effective for persons who don’t have feet as dry as mine. But my verdict is that it was a flop for me 

Rating: 2.5/5

Price: ~$11 in the US. Rs 1100 at Sephora in India. It is available on Amazon India as well for the same price.

Value for money: Low. I don’t even find it worth the Rs 650 that I actually spent on it in the US.

Pros and Cons:

PROs:

1. All natural, no preservatives or chemicals at all.
2. It’s a tall tube, would last a while for those who use it sparingly.

CONs:

1. Availability in India may be an issue, (only at Sephora)
2. Not very hydrating or moisturizing
3. Expensive!!

Repurchase: Never! No other words.

I’ll be back soon with something, so keep coming back my beautiful readers!

Have you tried this foot crème? Did it work for you? Let me know!

Beauty Burt’s Bees Coconut fashion Foot Cream Health India Make-up Makeup Nature Sephora Skin Skin Care skin care products Skincare

Maybelline Baby Lips Electro Pop in Fierce N Tangy Review

Who doesn’t love the color yellow? For me, it is the color of the sun, of glorious sunflowers, of the warm fire, of my favourite butterscotch ice cream, the brand colors of Forever 21, of my mom’s special ‘kadhi’ (an Indian main-course dish)!! And also of lemons!  Precisely the scent of the new Baby Lips Electro Pops in Fierce N Tangy. How glad I am that Maybelline finally brought these babies to India. These pretty neon colored tubes would really add a dash of color of our lives these winters! These were around in International markets for about a year, and finally came to India. Yippi!

So people, let’s get to the review.

Ingredients:

Claims:

Packaging: It was love at first sight for me..a luxe black tube with ‘Baby Lips’ written in bold neon yellow, and the transparent cap, giving a peekaboo of the bright yellow bullet of the cutest lip balm to have ever been launched in India. The balm is a regular twist-up packing, more like the Nivea Fruity Shine lip balms, and quite different from the regular Baby Lips that is sold in India. I love the packing!! 

My Experience: I love Baby Lips Color range. And then I heard the news about the launch of the Electro Pops range. I can’t keep myself away from neon, so buying this was an absolute necessity  I have been using this one for a couple of days only.

Color and Scent: Don’t let the bright tweety yellow mislead you to believe it will leave your lips a garish tint of Neon Yellow. As stated on the packing, it really has almost no color on the lips. At most, it will just leave a soft pale tint, hardly noticeable. The scent is a citrusy lemon, which lingers only for about a minute. I like it as it is quite a unique lip balm flavour in India. However, it is not my favourite scent. I’m more a vanilla and caramel scent favouring person.

Effectiveness, Moisturization: Baby Lips Electro Pop is enriched with Shea Butter, an awesome moisturising agent and Vitamin E. I personally felt that this particular variant requires about 3 swipes to completely cover my lips; just one or two swipes don’t seem effective. I personally found it to be a bit low on moisturizing power, compared to the regular Baby Lips Color. It, however, seems a good lip balm for general use. It keeps lips soft and hydrated. The 8 hour claim is totally wrong, as this works only for about 2 hours, especially in the cold weather. It will not work on extremely chapped lips though, so you can use this one only when your lips are already in good condition, but need some protection. Overall, I love it for its unique color, scent and amazingly cute packing. Just looking at this makes me feel so good!

Price: Rs 135 for the Fierce N Tangy variant, rest of the range is priced at 165 each, probably as the yellow variant has no color payoff. The quantity of this range is lesser than that of regular Baby Lips (3.5 grams compared to 4.5 grams)

Shelf Life: 3 years

Pros and Cons:

PROs:

1. Unique packing, cute color, NEON, what’s not to love?
2. Sturdy packing
3. Good moisturization for healthy lips

CONs:

1. Not as effective as Baby Lips Color in moisturization
2. The lemon scent might not be the favourite for all

Rating: 3.5/5

Repurchase: Yep!! I’m getting the Pink Shock next. Hope it gives better moisturization!

Have you tried these lovely colourful lip balms from Maybelline? Which color do you like most?

Baby Lips Beauty fashion India LIP BALM Makeup Maybelline Neon Skin Care Vanity Yellow

My Love-Affair with Hazelnuts

I’m a major foodie. It is a very difficult task for me to control my obsession with delicious things  I have a love-hate relationship with nuts and dry-fruits though. Being an Indian, it is almost customary for every home to have a bowl full of almonds soaked in water kept overnight, to be peeled and had in the morning. And I never ate these, as the almond loses its crunch. I love raisins and cashewnuts though. Peanuts are another matter…Ah, well. I discovered the magic of Hazelnut when I ate my first Ferrero Rocher when I was a kid. And it left me asking for more. And I never even knew what this nut was called back then!

It was quite later that I learnt that this gorgeously crunchy nut was called a Hazelnut. Though I found it quite similar in texture to almond, but there is something about things that are not easily available, that make them so enchanting. Hazelnuts were never easily found in our grocery shops, as these are not native to India, nor are they grown here. I was always on the look out, nevertheless! Maybe, some day, they might appear magically on a local shop’s shelf. But they didn’t come. I had to quench this thirst with an occasional Ferrero Rocher, or a Hazelnut Galaxy chocolate. Nutella served it’s purpose too, but since it only had Hazelnut flavor and no real Hazelnut, it didn’t satisfy me.

Then, I had an opportunity to go abroad. And it was there, in ICA supermarket store, that I ran to a store assistant, and asked, “Do you have Hazelnuts?”  And I heard the thrilling answer, “Yes Miss.” And I bought my first bagful of Hazelnuts!

The round cute nuts, sometimes a creamy white or a nutty yellow, when completely peeled, or a decadent lovely striated bown, with the skin on, are a beautiful thing to even look at! The nut, sometimes whole, or at times when the nut falls apart into two, is so delicious. Their scent is heavenly, I sometimes feel like having a perfume of this sort.

Since then, my beloved Hazelnut has also hit my local market, although steeply priced, but I don’t mind buying it, I’m just glad that I can go and buy it whenever I run out 

I can gorge on them at any time of the day, without any regret, as it is healthy with a lot of good fats and vitamins. It can be added to muffins, cakes or cookies for their beautiful flavour and texture. Hazelnut coffee is something that I just sort of like, but not love, as the flavours seem artificial to me somewhat. I toss them into salads and with pancakes too, as they make evrything seem a lot crunchier and tastier.

My love for the Hazelnut is eternal.

Do you like them as much as I do? Share your crunchy memories with me!

fashion Ferrero Rocher food Fruit Hazelnut Hazelnut coffee Health Life lifestyle Love Soul Vanity

Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream Review

Gosh guys! I’m loving the feeling of blogging! No wonder it is so addictive. All I can do throughout the day is think of what to write next  Writing is something that I enjoyed since my childhood. But this got lost somewhere in the extremely cumbersome course of my Pharmacy studies. And then, I immediately started working, never really taking out time to do this venting out, which comes so naturally to me when I sit down with a pen and paper, or with an open blank word doc. And now that I have started, I can’t stop! With so many products lying around me, this is what I thought of covering today, as I have used it for a long time, not very regularly, but yes, it does remain in my handbag. Well, to tell the truth, I carry a lot of products with me all the time, but I’m mostly too occupied with work or thoughts that I don’t use these as often as I intend to.

Note to Self, and to the Reader: Start taking care of yourself more!! Life is too short to have dry hands and chapped lips on top of everything 

Now let’s get to the review.

This product has been around for years now, and is available easily throughout the world. In India, we only have the regular version, but in other countries, they also offer a ‘fragrance-free’ version of the same cream. They also apparently have a fast-absorbing formula, which I feel will not be launched in India.

Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Sodium Cetearyl Sulfate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Dilauryl Thiodipropionate, Sodium Sulfate, Fragrance

Packaging: This tube came housed in a cardboard case, which I don’t have now, hence no photos. The tube is a sturdy plastic one, which has retained its shape over time. It mostly remains in my handbag or laptop bag, and never once it has leaked, so very travel friendly. I really like that Neutrogena mentions ‘Norwegian Formula’ on their packs, with a Norway flag to go with it, I find it kinda cute. In our case, where this cream is actually imported from Korea, and sold in India, they have a sticker on the back of the tube mentioning the ingredients, date of manufacturing and expiry, the price and a Johnson & Johnson Tollfree number for India. I find this a very handy reference, as the outer carton with these details are mostly thrown away. I’m not too sure about the presence of these stickers in International versions of the cream.

Shelf Life: 3 years (a good enough time for someone like me, who uses too little of too many products  )

Claims:

My Experience: I have this product for about a year now, and use it on and off. I however, remember the first time when I had applied it on my hands, they actually, really feel so super smooth. This is a ‘Concentrated’ formula, as they mention it on the tube, so we need very little product to sufficiently cover the hands. I’ll give a point wise analysis of the product on the basis of attributes:

Appearance: It is a clear cream, and on appearance may seem like a gel but it actually is a cream. (Studying pharmacy makes you so keen to analyze every aspect of the texture of a product, I must say!)

Texture and Feel: It is not runny or watery, it is quite firm even in hot weather months. This formula, being glycerin based, makes the feel of this product very smooth, smoothest of smooth. On slight touching, it may seem a bit sticky, but when you rub it in properly, there is absolutely no stickiness or greasiness at all, which makes it a wonderful hand cream, as you don’t have to worry about greasy hands spoiling your laptop or phones. It has no oils in it, so no oily marks and no oily sheen on the skin.

Usage and Effectiveness: I use this product mostly when my hands feel parched after a lot of harsh hand-washing or use of alcohol based sanitizer. You need just about the length of 2 cm of this cream on each hand. I have tried using it on slighty moist hands, and it seems even more effective when I use it this way. It leaves the skin velvety smooth. I can’t stop feeling my hands after using this! A word of caution against using too much of this product, as it can leave your hands really white, and the cream will not absorb properly. The feeling of smoothness remains even after washing my hands a couple of times, but not beyond that, and you will need to re-apply.

Ah! There comes the somewhat sad part.. while being a delight for my dry, frequently washed hands, this cream alone is not quite sufficient throughout the day. I mean, this product, while being great for daytime use, cannot substitute a regular greasy hand cream at night. One more thing is that it does not seem to effectively soften the skin around my nails, which is quite a problem area for me. So this, for me, makes it a successful office-use hand cream, but not my Holy Grail product for all-time use. I still have to turn to Nivea Creme or Body Shop Body Butters as night-time hand food.

But we are not over yet!! The tube also mentions that it can be used on any dry skin patch like lips, cheeks etc. I have used it on both these parts when I was travelling once, and it really relieves the skin. Glycerin, being a humectant, immediately soothes dryness, so this is a great all-purpose cream to have in your stash while travelling.

Rating: 3.8/5

Price: Rs 300 for 56g of product.

Value for money: I feel it is a good value for money, as this tube will last you really long, you really need just a dab per hand

Pros and Cons:

PROs:

1. Leaves hands really smooth, and I mean REALLY SMOOTH, trust me
2. It is a unisex product, so all the men out there, do keep this with you, it would come handy
3. No greasiness, so perfect for office-time use and on-the-go, when you don’t want oily, sticky creams irking you
4. Can be used on any area of the body when dryness bothers, and it is quite effective in this, so perfect as a travel companion like long flights and journeys
5. You need very little product, so one tube would last forever

CONs:

1. Not fit for night-time use, as it is not moisturizing enough, so not my ultimate product
2. Contains parabens (I personally don’t mind them, we are surrounded by worse level of chemicals, think smog, cigarette smoke…)

Repurchase: Yes, I love it  despite all, it does work.

So guys, until next time, take care of yourself!

And do keep reading fashionfoodsoul  

Have you tried Neutrogena Hand Cream? How did you use it? Do drop me a line or two.

Beauty fashion food Hand Cream lifestyle Make-up Makeup Neutrogena Review Skincare Soul Vanity

The Body Shop Honeymania Body Butter Review

Hello everyone!

After a lot of pondering and hesitating and waiting and more waiting, I took the plunge and started my blog. This thing was in the pipeline for sooo long, that I don’t even remember when I opened a wordpress account. But life has taken a big turn for me, and given me time to think, decide and do. Just do. So here I am, with my first ever beauty product review. I’m excited as hell 

The Body Shop is my most loved brand when it comes to skin care, so starting the review section from a TBS product became pretty obvious for me! Let’s start…

So finally the winters have arrived in Delhi! Well, we Indians have a hard wait for this season, after almost 7 loooong hot humid months, the time comes when we can bring out our pretty sweaters and cardigans, and my favorite jackets and long coats which sit behind in the almirah…yayyy I’m really happy. But sadly, I can’t say so for my skin, which suffers terribly especially in these weather changing weeks. Thankfully, I discovered the body butters a couple of years ago, and since then, some of my problems regarding my Sahara desert sort of dry skin have ebbed away…

When you call a product ‘body butter’, the first name that comes to my mind is ‘The Body Shop’, well, there are a lot of other companies with body butters too, but the concept was introduced by Anita Roddick, the founder of TBS. Enough trivia for today  Let’s get to the review.

I am reviewing the Honeymania body butter today. This is a permanent line of products which have replaced the Sweet Lemon permanent range. Personally, I hated the sweet lemon scent, and as much as I hated sweet lemon, I equally adore, love, worship the honeymania range. Read on for why.

Ingredients:

My experience:I love TBS body butters. Period. I am a body butter fanatic, totally obsessed with them. I buy them in bulk when in sale, and always have some 3-4 jars being well used at any time of the year. My mom loves them too, it soothes her itchy dry skin, and she loves the sheen that these leave behind on the skin. And don’t even get me started on the scents. I L.O.V.E. their scents!! (Not all of them.. but yes honeymania is one of my most favorite TBS scents now) This line was launched in the US sometime last year in October, and launched in India in February this year. I tried this butter in the US in December 2013, and frankly, I didn’t like the scent that much then. I ended up buying the Vanilla Bliss at that time. But then, when it launched in India, I ventured into the store leisurely, and tried it again, and man, I was in love. As soon as it went on sale, I grabbed myself a jar (~INR 800 at that time), and have been using it. This is my tub no. 2! And well, this will always remain in my home now, I love it so much.

Texture:  The texture is similar to the other body butters meant for dry skins (Hemp, Vanilla Bliss). It does not have the whipped cream texture like that of the fruity body butters (Strawberry, Satsuma), it is hard, but I have read that the harder body butters are better for dry skin, so I’m not complaining!

Effectiveness, Moisturization: It glides on my skin like a dream. I use it immediately after a shower on damp skin to retain moisture. It leaves my skin soft and smooth for a good 24 hours. No lying. I can tell you from my experience of using body lotions and body creams and what not, after 12-15 hours, if I scratch the skin on my arm or leg, it leaves behind a white mark of dryness. But this has never happened since I started using body butters; it suits my skin that well. It actually keeps my skin nourished for about 24 hours, so the company isn’t making a tall claim when they write ’24 hour hydration’ on their tubs. The experience is the same with the honeymania butter. It contains cocoa butter, shea butter and sesame oil, all of which are great sources of vitamin E for the skin. And being ‘honey’mania, it contains an exotic Ethiopian honey, known as Sheka honey, which contains nectar of wildflowers. I read it up and came to know that it is one ridiculously expensive honey  The best part about this body butter is, yes, the fragrance. Though it is a personal choice, but I feel the Indian noses would find it appealing (both men and women-women on themselves, and men, well, on their women..hehehe). I didn’t find it very strong in the tub, but when it melts on the skin, I feel drenched in something heavenly…divine..and exotic J It is quite a sweet fragrance, but has floral notes to it, not cloying or nothing too strong to give a headache, just a beautiful, pleasant scent. And boy, it lingers long. When I initially opened the tub, and started using the product, I could smell it ALL. DAY. LONG. Oh yes. BUT, and this is the most frustrating part, is that after a few months of opening my first tub (~2-3 months? Don’t remember, but yes, I used this one sparingly, saving it up for the cooler months and finishing up the fruity butters first), the fragrance has DROPPED, immensely. Neither did it last all day, and I needed more butter to smell as good as what a little bit gave me earlier. Humph. Yes I’m angry. So So for my tub number 2, I’m using it well, before the fragrance ebbs away. It is too good of a fragrance to be given up just because of this reason.

Rating: 4/5

Price: 1195 for 200 ml (I got it in a sale at 20% off for Rs. 900). Well, don’t even get me started on these prices. I don’t know why, but I feel that everytime I venture into a shop to buy some stuff, priceshave risen. Someone please help us achieve a hike in salary just as fast…pleassse!!!! One more thing, rest of the body butters are for 1095, this one is 1195, and is almost treated like a premium range in the Indian stores, with everything from this range slightly more expensive than the rest of the ranges.

Value for money: I, however, feel it is a high value for money: you get a perfumed body moisturizer that makes you smell heavenly. The moisturization power is great too. I even feel that if there might be a heaven on earth, it would smell just like this, at least for me  I am planning on buying its EDT in sale, would be good for layering. I have also bought the shower gel from the same line (to be reviewed shortly!)

Pros and Cons:

PROS:

• Loooove the fragrance
• Provides upto 24 hour hydration, really keeps the skin soft and prevents dryness and flakiness
• Makes the skin healthier (I personally feel my skin getting soft, and I have really dry skin)
• The tub would last quite long
• It is mostly a natural product (all the natural butters, honey..I feel like eating honey right now!)
• No animal testing, and TBS is engaged in fair trade practices, so every time you buy something from them, you are helping some farmers and beekeepers.

CONS:

• The fragrance can diminish with time, I don’t know, probably due to oxidization or what. That’s the biggest shortcoming for me.
• A bit expensive, but TBS does have offers, and I prefer to buy them during sale period only.

Repurchase: Most definitely yes. This is going to remain on my bed-stand, dressing table and cupboard forever. Just hope they don’t discontinue this line! I will really cry if they do.

Thanks for reading! You will be seeing a lot of me in the blogosphere, I promise!

Have you tried anything from this range? Did you like it, or would miss it? Do drop in a line!

Beauty Body Butter fashion food Honeymania lifestyle Make-up Makeup Skincare Soul TBS The Body Shop Vanity