Bia Beauty Lemon Myrtle Hand Cream

If theres something I love, its a product that not only works, but one that you can physically see the results of in just a few days. Its not often you find a product like that, trust me I have a house full of potions and lotions to prove it! When this lovely little heavy 60ml pot of *Bia Beauty cream landed on my door step, I was hesitant to use it. Lemon Myrtle was not my idea of a nice sent, but I was so wrong. Its a lemony and pleasantly sweet fragrance with an all natural ingredients list of 'rich shea butter, soothing calendula and protective beeswax'. I can't begin to tell you how thick and rich this little pot of cream is! Honestly, I was so surprised when I poked a finger in to test it the first time. Of course its all down to the beeswax and the shea butter, but oh my you really have to try it in person to understand how satisfying it is. This hand cream is for all skin types.

Now I have to tell you a dirty little secret. After a few days of going from less then silky hands (hard skin on the sides of my fingers, damaged from bleach, too much time in chlorine filled swimming pools and general abuse) to a noticeably changed softer and more loved little paws it gave me an idea. I used it on my feet. Yup, I used hand cream on my feet! (But like, no need to gossip about it, thanks.) If theres one part of my body that I hate the most and ignore totally its my feet. I have a fear of them and occasionally make myself ill from remembering I own a pair means that foot products are never high on my must have list. And because of that I have sandpaper feet. I mean holy god, I'd jump out of bed in fright if I rubbed up against my feet in bed at night (ughhh, mental image.) So I tried a few different moisturisers in the hopes that they would resemble feet once again with no luck. That was until I decided to slap a bit of Bia Beauty hand cream on them. Seriously, I'm on my 4th day of using it and its worked a treat. Now both sets of the end of my limbs are silky. I tell ya, I'm a fancy girl, me!

Since receiving this over two weeks ago, I've been using it daily and barely made a dent in the pot. I think this is well worth getting, if not for the lack of dent making you will make (what?! Ah you know what I mean) then for the fact that you will have silky bits in a few days, whatever bits of you you choose to cream up! For those of you that are subscribed to Chic Treat Club you will already have gotten your mitts on this pot of wonder in last months box. But for those of you who have yet to try it out you can find it over here. 

Another reason to love Bia Beauty is that its supporting an Irish business all the way from Co. Cork. Tracey started this as a project while in college and sold the products she made locally at farmers markets. The response was so positive that she created more and more products and so Bia Beauty was born. Now theres your little bit of inspiration for the day as well as soft hands. 

*I did not pay for this item, it was a PR gift.  Please see my disclaimer here. 

The New Irish Powder Pocket Beauty Box

Going from a really negative box review to a really positive one is not something that happens often but it seems this week just keeps getting better and better! As you might have read, I unsubscribed from Glossy Box and instead was treated to a new beauty box by the Mr (Isn't he the best?!). This is the Brand spanking new Irish beauty box Powder Pocket and I think its going to be massive round these parts. Already blogs and the aul Twitter is going wild raving about this subscription and I can see why. 

The presentation of the box is a huge part of the whole experience for me. Give me something wrapped up nice, throw a bow round it and but it in a box and I'm sold! And its as if the good people of Powder Pocket read into my little head, down to the sticker with my name on it, eeakkk!! Oh it was all too much. The outer box is gorgeous too, really eye catching. I can't say anymore other then 20 out of 10 for the visual goodness that my eye feasted on. Nom nom nom.

The first thing that caught my eye when I opened the box and got of the beauty of it all was the Pixy Natural Skincare soap. Pixy is a relatively new Irish brand that has been coming up through the beauty world over the past two years and was really delighted to see that it was included this month. I have actually one or two of their products before and reviewed one here. I'm not a big fan of this citrus scent but my granny has her eye on it so I'm sure it wont go to waste! Full size for this is €3.99.

Next I couldn't help but drool over the La Roche-Posay thermal spring water. I love this brand and have been getting to grips with some of their products over the past few months. This was a new one for me and after reading the little leaflet with it I was spraying it all over the place thinking I was just great. Full size of this is €9 for a 150ml bottle.

I'm slowly accumulating a large collection of hand creams, I mean they are coming out my ears at this stage! But I can never say no to them so that might have something to do with it. Lavera basis sensitiv hand cream nabbed my attention and I really can't wait to use this little beaut. Full size €5.24 for 125ml tube.

I was a bit dubious of the Ginvera green tea marvel gel as gel and me don't go together very well. Its just sticky and messy and no no no. But after reading a little about it I'm going to give it a whirl! Full size €27.

Lastly I didn't even notice the gorgeous Benecos natural kajal black eyeliner! I only bought a new eyeliner the other day and now I'm raging I did as this looks so nice. When I read that this is a natural and vegan cosmetic I was thinking it was going to be very pricey but at only €4.66 I think I might have a look at the rest of their range! 

Lastly I wanted to talk about their leaflet that lists all the products in the box, its like a mini poster and took me a bit by surprise when I had to open it up. Its a great novelty but in coming months might turn out to be an annoying thing to have to wrestle with, we will see. There was a page on the inside with the title 'what's trending in 2014' and who did I spot that had added their piece, none other then the lovely GlitterMamaWishes! I might have gotten a little excited seeing her featured!

I'm really delighted with this new box, I can't wait for next months now! Are you going to get this box or do you have another beauty box? As always have a great day :)

December And Limited Edition Christmas Glossy Boxes

I know, I'm so far behind I'm posting about December Glossy boxes. Oh god, please don't hate me! But I thought why the hell not show and tell you all about them, after all I quite enjoyed receiving them and I like sharing little bits of happiness with you all. Especially when they come in gorgeous pretty boxes that just make you melt a little. No, just me? Oh, ok then..

First off we have the regular December Glossy Box and its all pimped out for Christmas, surprise surprise! But I have to say, I really loved that even down to the cute red and green theme, it was well thought out. Would you take a gander at the tree shaped beauty things?! Ugh, so much love! 

I have to admit, this box was by far the worst one I have gotten. My favourite thing has to have been a tie between the gorgeous Beautiful Movements Cosmetics nude lip gloss that is £12 for a full size. I have used this from the word go, its so handy and you can use it with any look for a little extra shine. Then the other, the oh-so-nom Bee Nature bee nature soap that just smells amazing and has a cute little print of a bee on it too. For a 100g its only €5.50.

The next thing was Rituals miracle balm which I was undecided about. I liked that I received a good full sized product and I loved the pinky purple packaging but the cream itself hasn't really made any difference to my hands.. Its £10 for a 75ml tube.

Lastly, the two things that I was really unimpressed about was the Maybelline new york volum' express colossal smokey eyes mascara thats £7.99. Not only is it a mouth full, but its something I have tried before and really hated. The brush is too big and awkward to use and it leaves clumps of mascara all over your lashes.. And cheeks! Nope, this was off loaded to the sister to see if she had better luck.

 And lastly, Yin Yang Skincare rich skin food thats £19.50 for 50ml. Not only was I not too excited about little samples but on closer exception I noticed they were expired. Later Glossy Box emailed customers to ensure that they were not responsible and forwarded on an email from Yin Yang Skincare, in which they apologized for what happened and said that the samples were fine to use, but if customers wanted to email them they would be happy to send in date ones. My thoughts? Not even slightly impressed. Glossy Box is meant to be a luxurious service that, lets be honest here, is pricey enough and I wouldn't like to think of anyone forking out their hard earned dosh for less then amazing things. Much less out of date things. Been hearing more and more negative talk about Glossy Box on the tweets and blogosphere lately and I'm starting to agree. Maybe its time to look at other beauty boxes?

Next is the Limited Edition Glossy Box that I was very surprised to find my postman handing over (Stephen is a total plonker, but I love him very much!) This one is a fancy as can be box - its gold and black, like come on! I've no problem admitting I drooled a little over how pretty it is, like all of the box presentations generally are. It also came perfectly in tacked and none of the products looked like they were given a good shake mid travel, so An Post must have invested in a football since my last box! This has six products in it, unlike the normal five you tend to receive in most boxes. I was much happier with this box in comparison to the last disaster, so well done Glossy Box for covering your arse! If only every box could be this amazing! 

First we have Etre Belle Cosmetics waterproof lash sensation mascara. This one gets the thumbs up, no need to pass onto the waiting hands of the sister this time! This is €17.20 for a 9ml tube.

EnPhidra conditioning lipstick is just so gorgeous. You'll be seeing me smearing it all over my general face area for the next age, it smells as good as it looks. Added bonus of an SPF10. It's €13.90 for a 4.5ml tube.

Glossy Box seems to really favour the aul hand cream, because since subscribing to it I've had to clear a drawer just for the ever growing collections. This one however I wouldn't mind having another drawer full of, the Figs And Rouge coco rose hand cream. I'm not a lover of rose scent in the least, it makes me feel really sick, but this I can about handle for how soft it makes your hands. €4.80 for a 20ml tube.

Next is the Philip B african shea butter gentle and conditioning shampoo. I'm really excited to try this, shampoo isn't something you normally receive and this one smells good from the sniff I gave it when I first opened the box. I hope it works wonders! €12 for a 60ml bottle.

So Susan Cosmetics water based pure luminizer was something I picked out of the box and let out a 'oohhh' noise while reading the side of it. The packaging is so eye catching and the fact that its a luminizer was even better! I can't wait to try this one out, I've never had anything like it before. This one is €25 for a 15g tube.

Lastly is the Sue Devitt silky blush which is a lovely shade that I can see myself using now that I've been given a few blushers for Christmas, I'm getting more adventurous! It's €14.50 for a 3g palette. 

Maire Claire - November Issue

 Let me start by saying that I never normally fork out for magazines. Only if I feel I need a little pick me up, if theres an amazing articular or if, like in this case, there is a freebie thats too good to miss out on!

Go and get your hands on a Maire Claire magazine this month, they have a 30ml L'Occitane hand cream in four different scents - I got the original for dry skin and will of course do a review on it once I've put a bit of a hole in the tube. L'Occitane is a brand I have never gotten myself purely because of the crazy cost, so this is a perfect treat for me! The magazine costs €6.70 in Easons and the hand cream retails for around €10 give or take. Bargain? I think so! 

It also has some interesting articles and a cool interview with my home girl, Zooey Deschanel. And lets not forget the samples and shiny advertisements for watches, clothes and perfumes that I will never buy, but love looking at. Le sigh, a girl can dream.

Are you going to go pick up this gem or have you already got it?

Have you read about my Halloween giveaway yet?  

Have You Heard Of Ultrabalm?

My well loved tin.

Ultrabalm. What can't it do? This is the magic stuff that got Snow White to wake up. Its what inspires Van Persie to score those amazing goals and what makes Four Star pizza taste so darn good! Well ok, it might not do all of that but really its not far off. I recommend it to everyone I talk to. 

This product is from a regular haunt of mine, Lush. They pride themselves on using fair trade and most of their products are vegan and organic. For around €10 you get a 45g tin pot of yellowy, paste-like lovely goodness. This is an all rounder balm, the only thing you need in your bag. Its a very unisex product too, which makes it great for anyone with skin! There is an endless list to what this can do. Use it as a hand cream, to help chaffing, to brighten up tattoos, use as lip balm, on dry skin on your elbows, heels and knees, even in your hair to tame those flyaways. Getting the idea? My all time favourite is treating my hands and feet when they are feeling a bit neglected and maybe dry or sore. Its also amazing on the sensitive flaking skin of a new tattoo.

And if that sounds good to you, then whats in it will seal the deal. It has organic jojoba oil and candelilla wax which is a vegan alternative to bees wax, and rose wax too. As they say, less is more. Its kind of an alternative to petroleum jelly but I think it smells way better, has a nicer texture and well, does more! You only need the tiniest amount, as it melts onto your skin and spreads out. Unlike other balms, this soaks into your skin in no time and doesn't leave a greasy feeling. My skin is quite sensitive and this has never reacted negatively in any way. I've had my now battered pot for over a year and still have a lot left. If I was going out with the bare essentials in my hand bag, then this would be top of the list. Top marks for the delightful people in Lush, making such a fab product! 

Have you ever tried Lush before?