Soap & Glory Soaprise! Christmas Crackers

I promised a second Soap & Glory post and here it is. I hope this post will be interesting for a couple of reasons. Firstly in the usual gift guide manner but secondly and perhaps more importantly to highlight what if I were to be melodramatic is the 'giftset scam' as it were.

Christmas Day will be spent at my brothers in laws as he will unfortunately be working and they will already be hosting my sister in law, nieces and nephews as well as other family members so it was more the merrier.

As a gesture to our host and the ladies around the table I thought it would be nice to bring along the Soap & Glory Soaprise Crackers. I know my niece will love it, as will the mums and so on and of course buying this as well as my friends gift I could justify treating myself to the Rodnik giftset as part of the 3 for 2 offer.

It was only when I started writing this post and as one does, talking about price points and value for money it got me thinking...

Priced at £16 that works out approx £2.66 per bottle of body wash you receive. A bargain you may think and ideal for large groups of friends and family when you only want a token gift but one that they'll enjoy but then having purchased many Soap & Glory travel mini's over the years I thought 'aren't they usually £2.50 each'. Hmmmmm, not so much of a bargain then.

Of course I am being particularly picky and even if you do the math you're paying £4 for packaging and these body washes really are packaged well and you'd be hard pushed to find giftbags or similar of this quality for less than 50p per item but something to consider.

You could take advantage of buying the travel mini's in a 3 for 2 offer and pay only £10 for smaller sized bottles but that still leaves you with a packaging issue and limited choice of scents.

This is where the Soap & Glory gifting comes into it's as you can find the full range of body washes in travel size in this bundle. From the famous Sugar Crush to the newer Orangeasm and there's even party hats with words of wisdom to enjoy.

I certainly don't regret my purchase and still technically got 'something for free' in my offer so I am being a little unfair but I do think it's something we should pay attention to when buying gifts for friends. I can't be alone in being the only person that has had piles of body lotions that came with perfumes I never used. So my advice, think about whether that great value giftset is really what it seems.

My biggest problem now is creating something similar for the boys.

What crackers will be on your table Christmas Day?

Soap & Glory Rodnik Collaboration

Rather frustratingly I wrote this post a couple of nights ago when two of the Rodnik Soap & Glory Collaboration giftsets were out of stocks. Last night I saw they had returned and somehow during amending the post I deleted. Frustration at its best and apologies if this post doesn't read at my 'normal standard'. Moans aside today I'm sharing one of two Soap & Glory posts today. 

First lets discuss who is this Rodnik? Pihilip Colbert is the designer and creator or the Rodnik label which is inspired by the Pop Art Movement. They also market 'The Rodnik Band' label like a pop brand rather than a traditional fashion house. Rather quirky don't you think? One look around their website you can see why Soap & Glory chose to collaborate with them, they certainly have the same fun and imaginative brands.

There are three hatboxes designs filled with (the same) six Soap & Glory mini products so your only choice is which design you choose. There's Poptastic, a fun popcorn bucket image, the Soap & Glory Matchbox depicting alternative red lipsticks and matches or Dive In the most 'Soap & Glory' of the three in pink with the familar rubber duckie. Each are priced at £12 and would make a fun present for you or your friends.

My friend in the US gave me a heads up on these and let me know that should one of these fall on Santa's sleigh and make it's way to her she'd be rather pleased. Being the kind friend that I am how could I refuse that not so subtle request! Wanting to make another purchase from Soap & Glory and there being a handy 3 for 2 offer at the time I managed to find one making it's way to me also.

My friend had chose Poptastic which I was rather tempted with myself but instead I went for the Matchbox which I was swaying towards anyway. As a smoker and wear of red lipstick it was a perfect choice really. 

The 'hatboxes' themselves are rather study and well made for 'a cosmetics bag' and would make an interesting choice for travel. Perhaps not the best shape but perfect for larger or a lot of items these would be great. 

What do you make of the Ronik Soap & Glory collaboration?

Faking it for Christmas

I had my first Christmas night out last weekend and rather than splash cash on a new outfit I wore an old faithful and instead jazzed it up with some fun accessories perfect for the holiday season.

I have been itching to try 'stiletto nails' for some time and after dithering between WAH London press ons yet not feeling their designs I finally came home with the House of Holland Glitterbug False Nails by Elegant Touch. I rarely wear glitter nail polish as it's such a beast to remove so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to have some 'the easy way'.

The first thing to note is that you will receive 24 nails of varying designs. Whilst this was obvious from the packaging to a degree and I wasn't too worried about mixing things up you will be unable to have a particularly matching manicure and will find a block nail here and a glitter tip there. The next issue I had was how big these nails are. I considered myself to have fairly big hands/nails and have never found myself struggling to find smaller tips before. Due to these nails being thinner in design than for example imPRESS nails I did have some trouble trying to find a nail that was thinner for the cuticle bed but not too thin for the nail itself. In some instances there was definitely a larger nail than I would need. Not so much something that bothered me for this one night out but others might want to consider this, especially if you've struggled with finding nails to fit in the past.

I'm of the age I remember the glue on nails which would barely last night with them pinging off all over the place, no danger of that with the House of Holland nails. The glue was amazingly strong, to the point I almost got myself in a right mess, glued two fingers together and struggled to get them apart! Fantastic news but do heed caution.

So how was my experience with stiletto nails? My word they are not for the faint hearted. We've all had those moments of having nails done, maybe longer than normal and enjoyed fluttering our hands about. Well that is pretty much a necessity with these nails. They are so long they do hinder your actions so much and let me tell you, pulling up spanx and tights is an endurance. Although again this does show how amazing the glue was as come the next day there was not one missing nail.

As I progressed with my hangover the following day I was less careful of losing one but they did not budge. In the end I had to soak them in acetone to loosen them as I just knew there was no way I'd be able to manage a day in the office as I could barely type a text.

Equally as long lasting were the Gold by Melanie* temporary tattoos currently available for a limited time only from Glimmer. Temporary body art has had something of craze lately and there was few photos of girls on Ibiza's beaches without sporting some. Despite my trip to Ibiza this was my first foray into the world of body art and I'm impressed.

If like me you're not keen for permanent body art and prefer to pick a more temporary then these are for you. For £13.99 you'll receive two sheets of various images from chains, words and hearts. My first tip is you will need a pair of scissors to cut out your chosen design and I'm glad I remember taking mine to the hotel last weekend.

I went for a star on my wrist which you may have seen over on instagram here (two days later might I add!). My friend eyed it up jealously and I was kind enough to share one for her too. I'd forgotten to wear my watch I had left home in such a hurry so it was perfect, without jewellery either to add something to add some bling.

The metallic gold of these tattoos is bright enough to make an impact without being garish or tacky and whilst it's obviously 'fake' it doesn't look like you've been at home with a sharpie nor are you left with an image that starts as a star and ends up resembling a jumbled mess.

As already alluded to these tattoos will last for days (assuming you're not particularly scrubbing at them etc). I've continued to shower, wash hair and the only time it started to rub away was when I put my watch back on. My only complaint is that some of these tattoos would look fabulous on the back but that will rely on some close at hand for application. Otherwise application is so simple and quick.

As I mentioned, cut out your chosen design. Remove the clear film and stick the design, face down in place. Next take a damp cloth or sponge and dab water in place. The ease with which the tattoo appeared and so evenly was mere seconds. We all remember those tattoo transfers as kids right? When you'd life the backing and find Batmans head left behind on the back and his body strategically placed on your arm. No danger of this here.

I always say a little black dress can take you from desk to disco and throwing on one of these tattoos is easily done in your offices toilets without having to carry around chunky jewellery.

The kind people at Glimmer have allowed me to share a discount with my readers if you want to add some temporary body art to your festive wardrobe. Just add discount code FLORENCEMARY when placing your order here and you'll receive 20% off up till 24th December. With over 20 designs to use that works out less than 50p at full price so with the discount what's there to think about.

Are you tempted to treat yourself?

*This post contains press samples

Partylite Christmas Candles

I'm not the biggest fan of the clocks going back but apart for one reason, it's dark so early that candles can be lit. Whilst I'm fully immersed in the festive season, typing this post by the twinkle of my trees fairy lights small Christmas touches had been making an appearance from Partylite way before November was over.

Partylite were kind enough to send me an amazing selection of their Christmas line which would be perfect for gifting, or in my case, gifting myself. My immediate love was for this pair of Reindeer Tealight Holders* which would look perfect in any modern or more sedate living room when you want to add Christmas without all the tinsel. In fact this pair wouldn't look too out of place at any time of the year and I'm still undecided as to whether these will be packed away with the rest of my Christmas decorations. Often tealight holders can be flimsy but this is one sturdy pair of reindeer. What I have particularly enjoyed about this pair is that I can light my tealight candles* when I might only be able to enjoy them for an hour or two without having to worry about creating the pool of wax on larger candles and the like. Another strange hit was the tealights from Partylite. Unlike the usual ones with the metal casings (we all buy that massive bag from IKEA don't we?) these have a clear plastic type casing. This means that if your tealights can be seen through the holder, such as tart burners for example, you're able to enjoy the candle colour or choice without it being marred by the metal casing.

If you may remember my last post on Partylite this trio of candles may look somewhat familar by design if not style. Of course the Reminiscent Trio* is their festive version with scents Iced Snowberries, Crimson Berry and Emerald Balsam to give your home a Christmas scent. The box in itself is wonderful festive and makes gift wrapping so much easier or of course you can split out each candle and gift separately. I like the trios and their size as I'm able to dot the candles about my home if I have guests. Today I had one in the bathroom where I don't typically burn candles but I had my family visiting. 

The Bayberry Jar Candle* is probably one of my favourites outside of the typical festive decor. My mum actually walked in my flat yesterday and asked 'where has this lovely big candle come from' which rather made me chuck. A weighty red glass jar which will be used long after I say goodbye to the candle this looks perfect in my small window. I especially love the two wicks which allow the wax to melt evenly and the scent fills the room

Finally is the Snowflakes Tealight Trio* which is a cute set of three decorative glass holders that look perfect in smaller spaces and can be used with votives or the tealights I mentioned before. They're so effective if like me you enjoy switching all the lights off at this time of year and rely on those decorating the Christmas Tree and flickering from candles. 

My selection of Christmas products from Partylite is certainly not exhaustive and there's all manner of scents and products for you to choose from whether for yourself or as gifts for friends. For me personally what I love about the range of products, particularly in the case of those I have is that I will be able to bring out year after year and continue to enjoy rather them passing them over once the festive season is over.

What are your favourite Christmas Candles?

*This post contains press samples 

Beauty Advent Calendars - Worth the hype?

I am by no means a Grinch and forgive me if this posts makes me sound like one but I just don't get the hype surrounding beauty advent calendars. I love Christmas. I love beauty products, but dropping anything from £25 - £250 on a selection of products I haven't chosen for myself doesn't make sense to me.

It's probably also worth noting I'm not a particular fan of beauty boxes either. I can understand their appeal more as you spend a smaller sum monthly to receive a selection of products and until recently I was working my through another Perfume Society box but as a general rule I prefer to 'choose' what I spend my money on.

On one hand I'd say my age and single status would mean I'd think nothing of dropping a small fortune on a luxurious selection of products to enjoy opening daily and whilst I'm not exactly one for the 'religious' aspect of Christmas aren't we forgetting the point.

I'm old enough to remember Christmas Advent Calendars when there wasn't even any chocolate involved and you simply enjoyed counting down the days till Father Christmas dropped down your chimney. Now all of sudden on 1st December you should be snapping or instagramming the contents of whichever beauty advent calendar you chose. I just wonder how young girls especially and/or their parents are reacting to an expectation of having to spend such a sum on these type of calendars 'to keep up with Joneses'.

Take the Make Up Revolution calendar for example which is £45 and contains 25 full sized products, including a palette on Christmas Day. This is one of the 'better value' options available and it has been available for half price throughout recent weeks. Now I actually went through Superdrugs website whilst a currently 3 for 2 offer was available and 'spent' £52 on a full face of make up from primer to setting spray. I was able to include blush, concealer and eyeshadow palettes among others, picked the shades I wanted and would have received a free canvas tote bag. What would you prefer? If you are interested it's currently £20 at Superdrug which is definitely a bargain.

Then we move on to the real luxe options from Diptyque and Jo Malone which are priced at £250, that's £10 per small sample you open each day throughout December. Whilst I'd be happy if someone dropped either at my door the reality is I know for a fact there would be some scents I'm not a fan of and would I rather spend £40 on a candle I picked and burn that through the month than amass a number of smaller sample sizes - along with £210 change. Of course I'm in the minority as the Jo Malone one has already sold out!

Just last week I treated myself to a new fragrance from Jo Malone which wasn't cheap at £80 (stay tuned for more on that coming up later in the month) but it was a considered purchase to wear throughout the holiday season. Again with change from £250 it was a much better option for me.

I was almost swayed by the Marks and Spencer advent calendar. For £25 once you'd spent £25 on other products it gave me the best of both worlds of choice and 'surprises' and I liked the selection of brands available within the calendar. In the end I took a glance around my bedroom which would rival the M&S Beauty Halls and questioned why on earth I wanted to spend £50 on things that I didn't really need.

Of course if you're a devotee of the likes of Clarins and The Body Shop I can understand the appeal of having some smaller products to use for travel purposes or to try things from the brand you haven't experienced before. I do like the idea and price point of Tanya Burrs 12 Days of Christmas for younger girls and if you're a nail polish junkie some of the advent calendars for nails are beautiful - the Ciate one visually looks amazing.

Last year Ben actually brought me a charm bracelet advent calendar. Day 1 was the bracelet and then every day thereafter I'd open a new charm to add to it which was a great idea and typing this reminds me I must dig that bracelet out and wear it.

So over to you, is it just me being a Scrooge or do you not get the hype either?