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REVIEW: The Body Shop – Drops of Light Eye Cream 15ml, £20

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THE CLAIMS: “This quick fix brightening essential will visibly brighten appearance after first use. With daily use, it helps visibly brighten the appearance of the eye contour. Massage with the cooling applicator to help stimulate blood circulation around eyes and reduce puffiness for a refreshed appearance.”

THE TRUTH:  We tend to find creams too rich for the eye area when it comes to combination complexions, gels usually work much better. However, we went ahead and gave this product a go especially as our skin is a little dryer than usual at the moment.

We’re glad we gave this a go as the formulation was lightweight enough not to clog up our skin, leaving it soft and moisturised. We don’t suffer with dark circles but definitely plenty of puffiness in the mornings. The cold metal tip to the applicator helped with this and felt a little tightened, almost as much as using an eye gel.

We didn’t notice much in the way of brightening benefits – the blurb went on about red algae extract harvested from the North Atlantic but this product didn’t seem particularly natural.

We would recommend this for anyone looking for a good quality, medium weight eye cream with a refreshing application method. The price is on the steep side, but that’s the Body Shop for you.

Pros:  Lightweight cream, moisturises well, refreshing applicator tip
Cons:  Price
Score:  4 out of 5

Full disclosure: We received this as a PR sample

REVIEW: Herbal Essences bio:renew Shampoo & Conditioner 400ml, £4.50 each

Letting Life in in North Carolina with Herbal Essences Bio:Renew
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Image result for herbal essences bio renew“Letting life in – combining the beauty of nature with the power of science, for hair that smells incredible and feels full of life”

Thanks to SuperSavvyMe’s Savvy Circle, we were sent a whole parcel of their new Herbal Essences Bio:Renew Shampoo and Conditioners to test and share. They sent through a pack which had loads of info and 3 sets of shampoos and conditioners:

  • White Grapefruit & Mosa Mint (for volume)
  • Rosemary & Herbs (for moisture)
  • Coconut Milk (for hydration)

We tested these with the help of some of our friends. We were sad to miss out on the other 4 variants (for repair, cleansing, smoothing and shine) as these would probably have suited us more, but we were still eager to see what the new Herbal Essences bio:renew range was all about.

Why were we so excited?
We already highly rated the Nourish Me Butter shampoo and conditioner (followed by the Bee Good line) from the existing Herbal Essences range. It excels for a drugstore product available at a more than reasonable price, especially with frequent promotions.

How is bio:renew different?
The range is silicone, colourant, parabens and gluten free. We were surprised they were not SLS (sodium laurel sulphate) free but welcomed the progressive attitude that the new range embraces. It is pH balances and safe for colour treated hair.

Herbal Essences sent us info on how bio:renews brings us closer to nature. The only way it did that was when we took some of our samples to the US and into the North Carolina woods…at the end of the day, shampoo and conditioner is not a natural thing.

What did we think of it?
Overall – we felt that the new scents were pleasant, the product was pleasant to use but did need to dispense a little more than usual to achieve the same results. With the slightly higher price and increased amount required – this brings it in at a higher price point than the existing range. The results are good, but not any better than the original range. So unless you are looking for a shampoo/conditioner duo that is silicone, colourant or gluten free then we would suggest sticking with the original range purely from a price/performance perspective.

However, this product is better for the environment – so with that in mind or if you suffer with buildup or have coloured hair then it’s worth giving this range a whirl.

Our favourite so far? The rosemary and herb <3
Our least favourite? The white grapefruit and mosa mint smelt somewhat artificial.