St Ives Apricot Blemish Control Scrub

I was recently reviewing a scrub that contained little apricot kernels. It reminded me of the St. Ives scrub that I used to use in my early twenties. I couldn't remember anything negative about it so I picked up a tube of the Blemish Control Scrub when I was in Superdrug.


I've been using it this week and its as great as I remembered. Why do we stop using products that we never had a problem with?


This particular scrub is perfect for oily, blemish prone skin. It smells very refreshing. It exfoliates my skin beautifully, leaving it lovely and soft. After using this for five days my skin is already looking less dull. I've also been able to use this while wearing fake tan and it doesn't take my tan off completely.


At £3.99 for 150ml I won't be so quick to forget about it this time!


Have any of you used this scrub?
Do you rate it as highly as I do?

Why is it not ok to be single and happy?

This is a rant more than anything else, sorry folks! :-)


I have been single for quite a while now. Circumstances and my situation have partially dictated it but it has also been my choice.


I split from my ex when I was very early on in my pregnancy. It was a dark time for me. I had just got out of an abusive, controlling relationship and I was trying to keep it together for the unborn life inside me.


A few months ago I toyed with the idea of dating again but I chickened out. It probably has a bit to do with confidence but I also believe that I chickened out because its not the right time.


I'm not a woman that needs to be attached to a relationship. A relationship has never validated my worth and nor should it.


Recently people around me seem to be more forthcoming with their wee remarks about getting back on the horse, meeting somebody new, getting on with my life and many more.


Do people really think my life is at a standstill just because I'm not with a man? If I was with a man for the sake of it those same people would probably be saying that I was clingy, dependant, scared to be alone etc.. It seems that I can't win!


The final straw came at a mother and baby group a few weeks ago. I've known these mums since our babies were newborns. I know them all pretty well and some of them will be lifelong friends. One particular mum who I have a love/hate relationship with made a comment which just showed me how narrowed minded and ignorant some people can be. Her husband had been working away for a few days and she was giving out about it. She then said "I tell you, this going it alone is shit, boring even". I pointed out that my life is neither boring or shit.


I'm the happiest that I have ever been. I am enjoying life and living every moment. I'm finally self employed which is what I have wanted for years. I'm focused on being a great mummy but I also get to continue to do what I love for a living. I have bought a home and been working on that too. What part of all that seems like I'm treading water?


I can't believe that in 2014 people still seem to think that I'll only really have it all once I have a man.


Rant over.


Has anyone else experienced a similar attitude?

Reverse Hair Washing

Recently I have been hearing a lot about reverse hair washing. Really? Conditioner before shampoo? It just sounds wrong but I decided that I had to give it a go.

Apparently reverse hair washing gives hair more volume. The reason being that we can never quite rinse out all our conditioner and that residue causes our hair to be weighed down and look limp.

I have a full head of hair that requires conditioner in order to be able to brush it out after washing. For that reason alone I can't use those 2 in 1 shampoo/conditioners or just shampoo on it's own. I just end up fighting with my hair and I'm pretty sure I do plenty of damage. Because of this I was apprehensive about washing my hair in reverse.

I used Tresemme Platinum Strength shampoo and conditioner. I bought it in Superdrug for £4.99 each for 500ml.

I did everything exactly as I normally would, I just did it in reverse! I wet my hair, applied conditioner, wrapped it in a towel and left it for 5 minutes. I then rinsed it out well and applied shampoo.

The first thing I noticed was that my hair lathered up a lot quicker than it normally would, therefore I probably didn't need to use as much shampoo as I did. I then towel dried my hair and began to brush it out using my big GHD paddle brush. As expected, it was a pretty unpleasant experience. Maybe not as bad as when I've used a 2 in 1 shampoo in the past but still bad enough to ensure I would have no desire to reverse wash my hair everytime.

Some positives - my hair dried A LOT quicker. I loved that! It also had more volume. Not that volume has ever been a problem for me, but if it is a problem for you, then it's worth giving this process a wee go.

And,with all that said, I won't be converting any time soon but I think I will start to reverse wash maybe once a week.

Have you tried reverse washing?

What did you think?

Silent Sunday No.12

Pulpe De Vie skincare

A few months ago Funky Skincare sent me one of their new bath teabags to review. 

This week I received a wee package in the mail and was pleasantly surprised to see that Funky Skincare had sent me a few Pulpe De Vie samples to review. I love the products these folks sell as all of them boast that they are chemical free, no SLS and no parabens. Good stuff! :-)


Lucious Glow Body Milk ~ £17.90 for 150ml tube
I have never been a fan of shimmering body milks because I've found in the past that they look too obvious on my pasty pale skin. I was genuinely impressed with this body milk though. It has a very complimentary shimmer that the light catches now and again.
It is made from grapefruit and blackcurrant waters so I expected the fragrance to be stronger than it was. With that said, it did smell lovely, very delicate.


Sweet Frappe Face 2 in 1 Scrub and Mask ~ £19.50 for 75ml tube
I loved this, loved, loved, loved it.

 It contains little apricot kernels which make for a fantastic exfoliator. You basically massage this onto dry skin, leave it for 5 minutes and then massage again as you rinse it off. My skin was so soft afterwards. It didn't feel tight like it normally would after a face mask. It also wasn't difficult to rinse off. The scrub turns into a type of milk as you rinse it away. Lovely!


Cozy Cuddle Moisturising and Anti-Oxidant Face Cream ~ £20 for 30ml pump action bottle
My first concern when trying a new face cream is whether its greasy/oily. I tend to have a shiny T-zone so I don't need an oily/greasy moisturisers encouraging it! :-) I only had the opportunity to apply this once so I can't be 100% sure its not oily/greasy, especially as I didn't get the chance to wear it under my makeup.
I know scents are irrelevant to some people but I'm very much led on what things smell like whether its skincare, candles or perfume to give a few examples. This stuff smells beautifully peachy.


Love Me Tonight Night Cream ~ £21 for 30ml pump action bottle
A fragrant, spicy anti ageing night cream. I loved the almost musky scent this cream offered. It feels quite rich on the skin which I like in a night cream. I like to know that I'm giving my skin plenty of goodness to soak up while I'm getting my beauty sleep. :-)


Have you tried any of the Pulpe De Vie products?
Any favourites?

Silent Sunday No.11

Style on a budget

I recently asked the Twitterverse what they thought of online stores like Just For 5 pounds. Those that got back to me were really positive. 

I'm a mum and a childminder. I love nice clothes as much as the next person but what I don't like is when I get the likes of "washable" paint on my clothes (it's never really washable!) and can't wear that piece of clothing again...not in public anyway! 

Online stores like Just For 5 Pounds solves that problem for me. They have some lovely pieces on their website and if they did happen to get ruined at work...it's ok! It was only a fiver! 

Just For 5 Pounds kindly offered to send me something in the post to review. I had no idea what I was receiving but I was pleasantly surprised! 

They sent me a lovely black soft feel blazer. 

In the photo it needs a quick iron but I wanted to get the photos taken before my wee man woke from his nap. 

It's one of those blazers that you could dress up or dress down. I wore it to lunch a few days ago with a nice white top and jeans. I got a few compliments from friends too which was nice. They're so used to seeing me in boring work clothes. :-) It has padded shoulders (but not Pat Butcher style!) just enough to give me a shape. It also has a cute wee nautical style button that was impossible to take a decent photo of but I tried!

See...cute! :-) 

I'll definitely be having a browse on Just For 5 Pounds in future. They're perfect for those that are shopping on a budget.