Monday, 31 August 2015

Little Butterfly London Dewdrops at Dawn Body Lotion


Hi Everyone!

Today I have a fun beauty/skincare review for you featuring a brand called Little Butterfly London who specialise in dreamy organics for heavenly babies. 

I am going to be sharing my thoughts specifically on the Dewdrops at Dawn Body Lotion* which retails at £25.50 for a huge 200ml bottle on http://littlebutterflyorganic.com/.


First of all can we take a moment to appreciate the packaging. The bottle and box looks fab with a simple white background, lovely butterfly illustrations and pretty typography for the logo. The product came beautifully packaged in a gift bag with tissue paper inside and I also had a little sample sachet of the nappy change cream.

The lotion comes out from the pump in a luxurious creamy texture that is thick but not heavy or greasy on the skin and is deeply moisturising. The scent is really nice and sweet with the infused mandarin and orange essentil oils coming through to give a hint of citrus.

The lotion includes ingredients such as the moisturising cucumber seed oil, nourishing cocoa butter and comforting oat kernel extract. Papaya, peach and apricot kernel oil protect the skin's natural moisture while meadowsweet extract gently soothes. This makes the lotion perfect for sensitive, dry or eczema prone skin and is even suitable for newborn babies. Added to this the product is organic certified by Ecocert, hypoallergenic and dermatologist approved for sensitive skin, not tested on animals and free of mineral oil, paraffin, parabens, silicones, SLS, DEA, TEA, PEGs, colorants or artificial fragrances.

I would definitely recommend the lotion to anyone thinking of purchasing one, the quality is high and the formulation is very effective and I'm sure you will love it.

The Little Butterfly London products can be bought online at http://littlebutterflyorganic.com/

I hope you found this useful and enjoyed the review.

Thanks for reading!

Love Sally X 
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Sunday, 30 August 2015

Weight Watchers Toffee & Honeycomb Sundaes

Hi Everyone!

I hope you're all having a wonderful bank holiday weekend!

Today, in keeping with the recent theme of healthy food options, we are going to be looking at the Weight Watchers dessert range. 

The options I've tried so far are the Toffee & honeycomb sundaes and these come in a pack of two for £2.50 from local supermarkets (I got mine from Sainsburys). 


Each sundae comes in at 154 calories, is made with a low fat recipe and is completely suitable for vegetarians. You absolutely do not have to be on the Weight Watchers plan to enjoy these treats, however if you are they are worth 4 propoints per sundae.


As you can see, the toffee and vanilla flavour dessert is swirled with toffee sauce and topped with yummy honeycomb pieces. I would recommend it as a fantastic switch for the popular Mcdonalds toffee sundae which comes in at 344 calories and doesn't even have the honeycomb.

Tastewise, they most certainly satisfy any sweet tooth cravings, the vanilla and toffee flavour is really nice and creamy with the added crunch from the honeycomb. Perfect as an after meal treat or alternatively as something to reach for when the weather is good and you are relaxing outside.

Also in the range are salted caramel sundaes and mini pot swirls in chocolate honeycomb and toffee fudge, both of which look delicious and I am really keen to try out soon. I'd love to hear what you guys think of them if you've given them a go. Pop me a comment below and if I hear good things I can do follow up reviews! 

I hope you liked this post, thanks for reading my thoughts and I'll speak to you soon.

Love Sally X

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Thursday, 27 August 2015

Fabulous Treats for your Pooch Pals!

Hi Everyone!

I hope you're all well and looking forward to the weekend.

Today is a fun pet themed post for those of you looking to pamper your pooch friends!


The products I will be reviewing are:

Pooch and Mutt Calm and Relaxed Treats for Dogs* 125g , Pack of 3, Currently priced at £7.18

Tastybone Gourmet Edible Chicken*, Currently priced at £4.99

Beco Things Natural Friendly Pet Bone Toy*, 12cm, Blue, Currently priced at £3.99

Stockist details: www.Amazon.co.uk

Prices are correct at time of going to print and apply to purchases from Amazon.co.uk. For latest prices, please visit Amazon.co.uk.

Here is what we thought!

Now Pooch & Mutt are already a favourite in my household, we reviewed their calm & relaxed dry dog food here back in April and it went down so well with our frenchies so I was really excited to try out the treat versions.

Each cannister in the photo above contains approximately 150 mini bones and totals 125g in weight. The calm & relaxed variety include lamb, chamomile and l-tryptophan among their ingredients which help aid relaxation and are perfect to give your pet before stressful situations like a visit to the vet or a car journey. 

As predicted Miley really liked these and I did feel that she behaved better in the car than normal, sitting patiently rather than wanting to get up and run around causing chaos!


Next let's talk about the appropriately named Tastybone, which is one of the fanciest bones I think have ever graced our household! The flavour we received is chicken cordon bleu and from their gourmet range. The bone is completely edible and safe to ingest and has the benefit of satisfying their instinct to chew, making their teeth stronger and gums healthier. 

I love the way that the bone is packaged and positioned as a luxury, gourmet treat and I get a very premium feel for the product. I gave this one to Frank to try out and he has been going at it enthusiastically for a few days now and still looking strong. I looked online and there look to be venison, duck, beef wellington and pheasant varieties which sound great and I will have to try out with my little buddies in the future!


Lastly, we have another bone, but completely different to the one before. The Beco bone is made from natural rubber and rice husk with a tough and bouncy texture. It is a toy designed for your dog to chew on and play with but can also be used to store treats inside as an added bonus. Interestingly the bone is vanilla scented which I thought was really nice and all four of my french bulldogs have played with it and really like it, sniffing and chewing it loads and they go crazy when I put treats inside!

I hope this fab selection gives you some food for thought next time you are browsing for fun things for your doggies. 

Thanks for reading!

Love Sally X
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Monday, 24 August 2015

SEQuaderma Skincare Solutions


Hi Everyone!

I hope you all had an awesome weekend.

Today I am going to be talking all about the SEQuaderma Skin Solution products* and how they can really benefit your skin and achieve great results.

The brand are driven by science and are all about improving the quality of people's lives through using the high technology of nanophysics to create fantastic healthcare products that can help with really tricky conditions such as redness prone skin and acne prone skin.

Today we are looking at the five different solutions they have launched and are available exclusively from Lloyds Pharmacy, both in store and online. There is currently 25% off which the voucher code SEQ25 online so do use that if it is still active at the point of purchase, normally the products are a reasonable £17.99 - £22.99 which I'd say is an accessible price point for specialist skincare.

First is the Ageing Thinning Skin solution.


It can be used to treat choronological ageing, photo ageing and skin thinning and is perfect for reducing wrinkles, firmer skin, smoother skin, plumper skin and healthier skin.

The results give close to a 20% reduction in wrinkle volume and appearance of fine lines and wrinkles after 8 weeks of treatment. 

Next is the Red Irritated Scaly Skin solution.


It can be used to treat seborrhoeic dermatitis and is clinically proven, dermatologically tested, delivers nutrients to the skin to support natural skin function and is suitable for long term use/ use alongside any prescription drugs. 

The results show that over 70% of users experienced a reduction in the severity of their symptoms after just 3 weeks of use and assessors judged that over 85% of people that tested this product improved in general across symptoms such as redness, swelling, flaking, weeping, blistering and skin erosion cause by excess oil. Over 20% of people were "clear" and no longer had any symptoms of the condition and close to 80% felt their own appearance had improved. Sorry for the information overload, but I think these statistics are really encouraging and back up that this product is highly effective.


Next let's talk about the Red Dry Itchy Skin solution.


It can be used to treat atopic and hand eczema and is clinically proven, dermatologically tested, helps to avoid new flare ups, supports the skin's own repair mechanism, delivers nutrients to the skin to improve natural skin function and is suitable for long term use/ use alongside prescription drugs. 

The results show that after 3 weeks of use 75% of users showed a reduction in the severity of their symptoms and over 70% of atopic eczema sufferers felt their own appearance had improved. As an eczema sufferer myself this cream was of particular interest as it is the most frustrating skin condition to treat and is deeply uncomfortable. I can add to the results above by saying that after 4 weeks of use my eczema patches have close to cleared up and feel so much better to what they were when they were flaring up.

Now let's move on to acne prone skin.


This product can be used to treat skin with blackheads, impurities and blemishes and features include targeted and effective anti-microbial action, reduction of further spread of infections, tightening and constricting of pores and sebum clearance and anti-microbial action clears spots and prevents recurrence. 

This product works but reducing excess sebum by up to 55% which means the secretion wont be trapping dirt and bacteria which are the most common causes of spots and acne. I think this cream will be particularly good for teens as a drug-free way to treat acne, each 30g bottle provides up to 15 days treatment if it is applied twice daily and at 2 pumps per application but will last longer for smaller areas.

Lastly we have the Redness Prone Skin solution.


This is a product dear to my heart as a sufferer of facial redness, I should highlight that this cream doesn't in any way claim to cover up rosacea but it does address the symptoms. The cream is made with the intention of actually treating the conditions rather focusing on concealing it which is something I have done for years myself using makeup. 

It can be used to treat background redness, flushing, temporary redness and the incidences of thread veins. This solution is clinically proven, dematologically tested, ideal for adult skin susceptible to facial redness, suitable for long term use and use alongside drugs. Results show that 80% of people reported improvements in a primary or secondary symptom of rosacea after 4 weeks. 

I would say that my skin has calmed down in terms of redness and it has given me confidence in posting selfies on instagram make up free where you can't see barely any redness at all. I'm so excited to see how after more uses my skin further improves.

I hope you found the information on this range useful, I think the technology they use and scientific approach to common skin problems is fantastic and it's amazing to see a brand so customer centric, that want to make our everyday lives that bit better by helping with things like eczema that can be highly irritating (both to the skin and in general!!) and rosacea that can really damage your confidence.

If you would like to check them out head over to the SEQuaderma website to read up more on their products and if you would like to make a purchase pop over to Lloyds Pharmacy website or instore for the full range and don't forget to use the code above online while it lasts.

If you suffer from any of the conditions discussed, leave me a comment, I'd love to hear how you have treated them and results you've achieved.

Thanks for reading. 

Love Sally X 
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Thursday, 20 August 2015

Nakd Fruit & Nut Nibbles


Hey Everyone!

Today I am back with a review of a selection of yummy treats from Nakd.

I have seven different flavours of their Fruit & Nut Nibbles* and will tell you what I thought of each one and which were my favourites. Each variety is made with all-natural ingredients such as dried fruits and nuts with no added sugar. They are also wheat, dairy and gluten free so a great sweet treat for anyone with those intolerances alongside vegans and vegetarians who can also have these.


Now the flavours!

Tooty Fruity

As you would expect they taste really fruity, particularly the pineapple flavour comes through when you bite in with a pleasant tropical vibe.  

Mint Humbug

I thought the mint was an interesting flavour, it works well with the fruit and nuts and isn't overpowering. It definitely adds a little something and is overall very pleasant.

Fruit Salad

These taste really reminiscent of the old school pic and mix fruit salads, deliciously sweet and tropical.

Strawberries & Cream

This one I found really interesting, despite containing no dairy the creamy taste was very convincing and the strawberry flavour was just divine, I really liked this one and would definitely have it again.

Coconut Bliss

Appearance wise these are slightly different to the others as the dessicated coconut gives them a speckled look which at a glance reminds me a lot of my favourite chocolate truffles (though the speckle on those is sugar!). The coconut flavour is really nice and comes through well amongst the other ingredients.

Salted Caramel

I really liked this one, I'm a self confessed owner of a sweet tooth for caramel/chocolate snacks so this was right up my street. The caramel flavour was really tasty and I'm sure much healthier than me munching through my normal helpings!

Toffee Treat

These were gorgeous, a strong toffee flavour but without the ultra tough consistency. I would have these again without a doubt.

I hope you liked this review, I really enjoyed taste testing all the different flavours and think they make great healthy treats! If you want to read up on them more you can visit their website: 
https://www.naturalbalancefoods.co.uk/nakd/ and if you buy online there is free standard UK delivery, freebies in each order and you can access the full range of products with online promotions and discounts as well.

Thanks for reading and let me know in a comment below your favourite flavour if you have tried them before.

Love Sally X


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Wednesday, 12 August 2015

Minion Made Ice Cream Lollies


Hi Guys!

I hope you are all well.

Today is a really fun post alongside the Minion Movie being in the cinema this summer, a review of the yummy Minion ice cream lollies.

The lollies are super cute and totally look an actual minion with the yellow vanilla top and raspberry bottom which resembles their little dungarees. You get 6 lollies in a pack and they are only £2 available from supermarkets like Sainsbury's and Asda.

Calorie wise you are only looking at 71 per lolly which is pretty good and means I can still have them as part of my Slimming World plan which makes me very happy as they are so tasty for a treat every now and then. The ice cream is all nice and fluffy in texture and the flavours for the vanilla and raspberry are really nice and strong but without tasting artificial.


I would recommend these lollies to any Minion fan as the novel design is just so cute and I think children would love them especially.

Let me know in the comments your favourite ice cream treat and also if you have seen the Minion Movie!

Thanks for reading, love Sally X
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Monday, 10 August 2015

OXO Tools You Hold On To

Hey Everyone!

I hope you all had a nice weekend.

Today I am going to be doing a post on a brand I've recently become familiar with and have been really impressed by, Oxo. 

Oxo produce over 800 innovative products that span across every room of the house and are all designed to make everyday living easier. They have three sub-brands which are Oxo Good Grips, Oxo SteeL and Oxo Tot and today I am going to be sharing a review of a Tot product and my wishlist for Grips items.

The item I am reviewing today is the Oxo Tot Toddler Feeding Set suitable for ages 12 months +.


Inside the set you get four items:


1. A plate with a non-slip weighted base and removable curved ring. This helps to keep food on the plate and not on the floor, once the child has master self-feeding they can remove the curved ring meaning the plate can continue to be used.


2.  A 360ml bowl with a non-slip weighted base and high walls to make scooping onto utensils easy. 

3/4. A fork and spoon, both with generous handles and non-slip grips without any sharp edges. They have a flat spot on the handles which prevents the cutlery from rolling off a table or highchair tray and is a nifty little feature. 

The plate and bowl are top-rack dishwasher safe and the utensils are completely dishwasher safe so nice and easy to clean.

The items are all top quality and visually look very modern and different to what you would usually expect. I think for the pretty reasonable price tag of £18 for the four part set you get good value for money and it is definitely a set that you can use time and time again. 

Next, let's move on to the Good Grips range.

As you guys may have seen from my social media updates I am currently on the Slimming World plan which means a lot of preparing food, introducing more fruit and vegetables to my diet etc. This is where food storage is becoming an essential part of my daily routine. 

I have spied the produce keeper products on the Oxo website that I need to get, the containers have a all natural, non toxic activated carbon filter that traps and absorbs ethylene gas which slows down spoilage and keeps food fresher for longer. I think they will be perfect for keeping my fresh veg in when I refrigerate them. The baskets inside can also be used as a colander to rinse vegetables before cooking which is an awesome little feature.  


There is also a range of pantry and countertop canisters that would be really handy for storing things like pasta, pulses or cereal due to the air tight seals which keep everything dry and fresh. 


I can't wait to start building my collection of Oxo items, each and every one of them looks really modern and cool within your kitchen and has added little features. I think it is always worth investing in good quality homeware items that are going to make your food last longer and taste fresher. If you want to check out the full range you can do so on www.oxouk.com.

Let me know any tips and tricks you have for storing food, I'd love to read them in the comments below.

Thanks for reading and speak soon!

Love Sally X

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Thursday, 6 August 2015

New York Bakery Co Mini Bagels


Hi Everyone!

I hope you're all well, today I have another yummy food themed post for you.

We are going to be talking a little about the New York Bakery bagels* and some tasty ideas for serving them.

First of all, today I have the mini bagel version in the plain flavour however there are numerous different flavours and both the regular size and the mini to choose from so do check them out in your local supermarket.

For the mini variety you get 8 bagels per pack and all are a lovely golden colour and nice and soft and springy to the touch. Tastewise they are really fresh and yummy with the typical soft and chewy bagel texture we all know and love. 


In terms of serving suggestions I have a few different ideas, both for breakfast and lunchtime.

Breakfast Fillings:

Bacon, egg and cheese
Bacon and ketchup 
Baked bean, mushroom, cheese and egg 

Lunch Fillings:

Ham and cheese
Cream cheese and chives
Smoked salmon and cream cheese 
Hot salt beef and english mustard 

I hope you liked this post and are inspired to go forth and bagel up, they really are quite tasty!

Let me know any recipe ideas or fillings you would recommend in the comments below.

Thanks for reading, love Sally X 


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Wednesday, 5 August 2015

Sensationail Gel Starter Kit and Nail Shield Review

Hey Everyone!

Today I have a very exciting beauty review for you and one I have been so excited to try out, it is of the Sensationail Gel Starter Kit and Nail Shields*.


Firstly let's talk about the Nail Shield as this product is designed to be used first when doing your manicure.

The Nail Shield is basically a sheet you apply to your nail before adding any gel colours, this will mean that no damage can be done to your actual nail and you can just peel off the shield along with your gel colour once your two weeks or so of wear is up! Each pack comes with 88 shields in 8 different sizes, a nail file to file down the shield to your own nail size and a manicure stick which you can use to smooth out any air bubbles or wrinkles.

After trying the shields out for myself, I can attest that this product is literally amazing, I can't think of taking off my gel polish any other way in the future as it's so quick and easy and just makes perfect sense. My nail underneath was completely untouched, in no way damaged and it's normal healthy self.

Now lets move on to the Starter set.

The kit contains the following pieces:

A gel cleanser
A gel primer
Colour gel polish
Gel base & top coat
Lint-free wipes
Double-sided nail buffer
Manicure stick
and finally a LED lamp


This kit is in the colour Coral Sunset which is a beautiful orangey pink/coral colour perfect for the summer, and they also do a variety of different shades (you can view them all on their website).  

Now let's talk a bit about the process. It's very simple and doesn't take too long at all. 

Instead of writing down the instructions, I have embedded a video below by Sensationail that gives a more visual step by step guide of the full process.


As you can see, it's a great hassle free way of getting salon quality gel nails that you can do at home and save yourself some money as you can get multiple uses from the starter pack and then buy up some additional polishes in different colours to start a full collection.

In terms of lasting power, I was amazed at how the polish doesn't chip or start to wear off or fade for such a long time, I had mine on past the two weeks and in an office job where I'm typing all day I would say that's quite a test on any polish I have. I also really like the shiny and glossy finish that the gel polish gives. 

I would recommend this kit and nail shields to anyone looking to make a saving on salon prices and be able to do their own nails in the comfort of their own home whenever they want, not when the salon can fit you in. If you would like to read more about the products that Sensationail offer you can do so on their website, http://www.sensationail.co.uk/.

Thanks for reading and we'll speak soon!

Love Sally X
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Tuesday, 4 August 2015

Bundaberg Ginger Beer Review and Recipes

Hey Everyone!

Hope you're all well and having a good week.

Today I have a drinks review to share with you guys of the Bundaberg Ginger Beer.

Bundaberg are an Australian family owned business and produce a selection of different drinks, most famously their ginger beer but also root beer and fruity varieties.


Today I am going to be talking about their ginger beer specifically, this comes in two varieties, the normal and a diet option. 


The bottles are 375ml each and are sold in numerous retailers such as Waitrose, Tesco or Sainsburys, you can check out your nearest stockist on their handy product locator. The retail price looks to be £4.49 for 4 375ml bottles and Tesco currently have it on discount at £2.99 for a 4 pack.


The drink itself is cloudy and if you hold it to the light you can see it's full of real ginger pieces. The flavour is lovely, it has the nice bite of ginger but without being overpowering or too fiery. 

Aside from being just a drink, you can also use the ginger beer as an ingredient in recipes such as the below:


Ginger Beer Cake

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cup plain flour

¾ cup caster sugar 1 cup golden syrup

¾ cup Bundaberg Ginger Beer

1/3 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

2 tsp baking powder

1 ½ tsp ground ginger

¾ tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp dark brown sugar, for decoration

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150 C

2. Beat all ingredients except brown sugar with electric mixer

3. Grease a loaf tin with butter and line with baking paper

4. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and sprinkle top with brown sugar

5. Bake in oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Check with skewer. If it comes out dry, remove from oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out and serving


Sweet Potato and Ginger Beer Casserole Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 large carrots, peeled and sliced thickly 1 kg sweet potato, peeled and cut into thick

wedges

3 tbsp olive oil

½ cup dried apricots, chopped

½ cup soft brown sugar

½ cup Bundaberg Ginger Beer

¼ cup sultanas

¼ cup cranberry juice

Juice of ½ lime

5 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

1 tsp cumin seeds

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Chopped mint and coriander for garnish

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200 C

2. In a large baking tray, combine carrots, sweet potato, oil, apricots, sugar, sultanas, cloves, cinnamon, cumin seeds and season with salt and pepper

3. In a bowl, combine all the juices and pour over carrots and potato mixture

4. Cover tray with foil and bake place in oven for 1 hour

5. Remove foil, stir and continue roasting uncovered for another 10-15 minutes or until liquid is slightly reduced and vegetables start to caramelise


Ginger Beer Pulled Chicken Burgers Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 cups Bundaberg Ginger Beer

1 cup tomato sauce

½ cup hoisin sauce

¼ cup orange juice

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp lime juice

2 tbsp honey

½ tsp onion powder

½ tsp 5-spice powder

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

1 roast chicken, skin removed and meat shredded

Method:

1. In a medium sized pot, combine all ingredients, except shredded chicken

2. Bring to the boil stirring frequently, then reduce heat and simmer until sauce has thickened, stirring occasionally

3. Add shredded chicken, season with salt and pepper to taste and stir though. Keep warm to serve

4. Make burgers with bread of your choice and top with any combination of salad, coleslaw, mayonnaise or mustards you care to use

I hope this review helps and the recipes give you some ideas. If you would like to see more recipes or food reviews just let me know in the comments and I will aim to please! If you want to check out Bundaberg and learn more about the brand you can do so on www.bundaberg.com.

Thanks for reading.

Love Sally X
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