Tag Archives: bargain

Mother’s Day gifts Part 2

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Eloise again! So, as I was saying, we got Vivienne more than one gift this mother’s day (partially because it’s the last one we’ll spend with me living in this house, at least until university falls through and I have to move back in).

The other gift we got was from a lovely online store called T. H. Baker, who do really nice,
more upmarket pieces than I’m used to.

The necklace I chose for Vivienne was a rose gold chain, with a pearl and interlocking rose gold design. In a case of the overly-matching, this is because she recently got the rose gold iPhone 6, and we’re a colour very co-ordinated family. She’d also mentioned wanting more delicate jewellery, and I was happy to oblige.

I really loved this delicate necklace, not just because pearls are my favourite of all the gemstones, but also because I felt like it ticked all the boxes I could want.

T.H.Baker is a lovely store and I highly recommend it for all your gifting needs. Excellent delivery, too!

Body Firming Product Tests

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IMG_0665Over the summer I have been trying out 4 different body products. My aim was to smooth my existing skin and hopefully reduce the fine stretch marks I have – thanks Eloise! Also to prevent further stretch marks and keep my skin smooth as I continue to lose weight. I don’t want to end up thin but with a saggy pouch…

So these are my personal views about the products I tried.

Clarins Contour Body Treatment Oil 100ml £40bodyoilantieau

This was an bit of a splurge for me, bought when there was an offer on the web site.  The product smells absolutely divine. It is all natural, and contains geranium oil , broom, and Marjoram — which the website claims helps to eliminate toxins to streamline skin, plus hazelnut Oil to lock in moisture.

The oil does not sink in immediately, there is enough time to massage the area, but then it is absorbed and my skin felt very silky, not sticky and had a slightly satin sheen, which I liked. The aromatic scent lasted a long time, and had an uplifting feeling. I am not sure how well that would sit with any perfume, so it is perhaps best used in the evening. Like all of Clarins products, you can tell it is a quality item. The glass bottle is heavy and looks good in the bathroom. The oil is sumptuously thick, lovely to touch and wonderfully aromatic.

Clarins provides a little instructional video on how to apply it, which was a useful touch. I was a little disapointed that it did not last longer, I used it up in 2 weeks, but when I see another offer I would buy it again.

See more at Clarins

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Nivea Q10 Plus Firming Body Oil 200ml £6.95nivea-body-firming

I loved this product! It absorbs nice and quickly, made my skin feel as smooth as the Clarins oil for a fraction of the price and has a pleasant, slightly citrusy fragrance. it is quite a thin oil, so a little goes a long way. The only drawback to it is that you are supposed to apply it at least twice a day to get an effect and I kept forgetting. I usually only put oil on my body after my morning shower and sometimes before bed.

You are supposed to see a difference in 2 weeks. I did see a slight difference, but it was not dramatic. This might have been because I did not apply it enough. It certainly made my skin feel soft.

Unlike the Clarins oil this is not a completely natural product, although it contains avocado oil. it also contains Paraffinum, Liquidum, Isopropyl Palamite, Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides, and Benzyl Alcohol amongst other things.

The magic ingredient is Q10 which is the skin’s own coenzyme Not sure that applying this topically would do any good as anything that would penetrate the epidermis has to be prescribed.

See more at Nivea

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Palmers Firming Butter 315ml £4.99palmers

Like a lot of Palmer’s products, this thick, buttery cream is made of Cocoa Butter, which is a rich natural moisturiser. It also contains antioxidant Vitamin E to help improve the appearance of scars, and stretch marks; Collagen & Elastin to improve skin elasticity and firmness; Plus Shea butter for more moisturising and the ubiquitous Q10. Sounded good.

First thing I noticed was the almost overpowering smell of the cocoa butter. At first I didn’t mind it, but by the third day I found it sickly. The product is also quite difficult to use. You need to warm it in your hands for ages before it becomes easy enough to massage over the skin, unlike the oils, which I much preferred.

It is recommended that you use it twice a day, but I gave up due to the smell.

See more at Palmers

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Johnson’s Baby Oil 500ml £2.69JOHNSON & JOHNSON BABY OIL

Yes, good old baby oil. I have had this in the cupboard for years and it is one of my favourite products.

It smells so lovely, the oil is silky smooth, and a little poured into the hands to warm before applying to damp skin goes a very very long way. I massage it in the same way as the other oils, and I do wonder if it is the massage that does the firming more than the oils.

The only drawback is that it takes a little longer to be absorbed, but by the time I have done my face and teeth it is fully absorbed.

This is not a natural product it contains Paraffinum Liquidum, which is a highly refined mineral oil;  Isopropyl Palmitate, an emollient and thickener, and the special Johnson’s perfume

If you have enough money and want a natural product I would recommend the Clarin’s oil out of the 4 products that I tested, but if you are living on a budget then this is a fabulous oil. It also makes a great general massage oil; I put it on my toenails after I take off my nail varnish to stop them drying out; removes waterproof mascara; you can use it to remove plasters easily, and also sticky price tags from plastic – my tip!

See more at Johnsons

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Daresbury Park Hotel & Spa – Warrington

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I went here for a Spa weekend in January. The hotel has had some rough reviews, but I think it depends where you are in the building as some of it needs refurbishing. Our room was in the newer part of the hotel and just a hop and a skip from the “Spa”. I use the term loosely.

Our twin bedded room was reasonably well appointed, with lots of room, 2 easy chairs and a table, plus a reasonable sized bathroom. Mainly the hotel seems to have 2 main sources of clientelle, wedding parties and refugees, neither of which caused us any issues. We also met some other ladies that had taken up the same weekend Spa offer that had enticed us.

The Spa

This is Spindles Health club, which is also open to the public with a membership fee.There is a 15 metre swimming pool, so we chatted to the attendants and found the times when it was likely to be empty. Such luxury! At other times it is over run by rather boisterous hens and/or stags. There is a jacuzzi which is rather odd, as the step into it is so far down you could almost think it is a plunge pool. My friend adores the bubbles, but only attempted it once. Ridiculous shape. Then there is a fabulously designed Turkish bath. It is fairly small but covered in mosaic and the black ceiling has twinkling lights. Incredibly relaxing and I want one… Other than that there is a shower that changes lights and patterns, hmmm.

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We didn’t have any spa treatments included in our stay, but were very  lucky to find an available space, although it had to be straight away.  Otherwise they are booked up with bridal parties, very busy. If you want  to go, booking in advance is a must.

I was impressed with the full body salt scrub that I had, and my friend  enjoyed her massage which we had simultaneously. Fun to chat a little as  we were worked on, and the beauticians were excellent.

Food and Drink

We had breakfast and an evening meals in our package. This is in a large and rather rowdy room rather like a cafeteria. We both found something to eat but I was not very impressed. This is catering en mass for a limited budget, and I felt they were trying to do their best with poor ingredients. On the second morning I asked for a poached egg, and the chef seemed very happy to do this, and she made a good job of it too, bless her.

There is also a bar just outside the restaurant, and we did spend a pleasant evening with a group of like minded people, although the bar prices are a tad on the expensive side.

Summary

If you find a bargain deal on this hotel, take your own beauty treatments and champagne, as we did, ask for something you want for breakfast, and make the most of the limited facilities. It’s not bad, it’s clean, and we had fun!

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