Pretty Perfect Delicious Orange Flower Body Wash from The Bath House review

Pretty Perfect Delicious Orange Flower Body Wash 260ml - a body wash picked up at TKMaxx. This satisfyingly thick gel is sulfate-free and scented with orange blossom, sandalwood, lily, neroli, tuberose, amber and vanilla. This fragrance is discontinued, but The Bath House offers several other fragrances.

Here's a list of the ingredients:

Aqua, Sodium Cocamphoacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Lauryl Glucoside, Coco-glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Glycerin, Parfum, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Olea Europaea Leaf Extract, Citrus Medica Limonum Peel Extract, Vitis Videra Leaf Extract, Thymus Vulgaris Leaf Extract, Foeniculum Vulgare Seed Extract, Sodium Hydroxymethylglycinate, Potassium Sorbate, Citric Acid, Asorbic Acid, Limonene, Linalool, Hexyl Cinnamal, Alpha-isomethyl Ionone, Hydroxycitronellal, Citronellol.

L'Occitane Verbena shower gel review

L’Occitane Verbena shower gel 500ml – this massive body wash came as part of a gift set of Verbena products from L’Occitane which also included the shampoo, body lotion, the shea butter and bonne mere soaps and a hand cream. The usual 250ml size offered is £13 and a 500ml eco refill pouch is £19.50. 

I grow lemon verbena plants outside in the garden in pots each year (it's tender so I have to bring the pots in for winter) and I love the authentic fresh fragrance of this body wash, but what I don’t love is the presence of drying sulphates and I would repurchase only if L’Occitane ever decide to reformulate to remove the SLES.

Here's a list of the ingredients:

Aqua, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Coco-Glucoside, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Sodium Chloride, Lippia Citriodora Flower Extract, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Parfum, Magnesium Nitrate, Magnesium Chloride, Methylisothiazolinone, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Propylene Glycol, Tocopherol, Benzyl Benzoate, Citral, Geraniol, Hexyl Cinnamal, Cotronellol, Limonene, Linalool, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Cl 42090/Blue 1, Cl 19140/Yellow 5, Cl 14700/Red 4.

March empties - Neal's Yard Remedies, Renu, i Coloniali, L'Occitane, La Roche-Posay Serozinc, Naked Bodycare, Duchy Collection

  

Duchy Bergamot Lime conditioner – I picked this up at TKMaxx in clearance for £1! I enjoyed using this and the fragrance was stunning. I’d repurchase again but I’m not sure this is still produced or where you’d buy it as I haven’t seen it since. 

I Coloniali shower gel – I wouldn’t purchase again unless it was reformulated, but the signature i Coloniali fragrance they have in their soaps and body products keeps pulling me back. I wish they bottled it and sold it as an EDT, I’d wear nothing else.

Neals Yard Remedies Rose daily moisturiser – I always like to see a bottle cut in two so you can scrape out every last blob. Love Neal's Yard's moisturisers. Would repurchase, but in a different scent.

Neals Yard Remedies Rose facial cleanser 50ml – Product worked well as a cleanser but would not buy again only because prefer cream or oil cleanser.

Neals Yard Remedies eye gel – my favourite eye gel ever.I’ve already repurchased and intend to keep on repurchasing until a better one comes along. Highly recommended.

L’Occitane rose hand cream – I didn’t like this shimmery hand cream at all and this was regulated to night time use only and I burned through it as quickly as I could. Would not repurchase and I must remember to read labels in future!

Naked Bodycare Take Care Orange Blossom body wash 250ml - this sulfate-free body wash is one of my favourites, plenty more left in the stash!

Renu face mask – bought on the cheap from the TKMaxx clearance shelf, around £5 or so. It felt pleasant to use, but I didn't see amazing results and I would not repurchase at full price as this retails for £32!

La Roche Posay Serozinc – a product I suspect was introducted to most people through Caroline Hirons’ wonderful blog This is a definite repurchase and I’d recommend to anyone who suffers with razor burn to at least try this product.

i Coloniali Refreshing Shower Gel of Japanese Yuzu review

i Coloniali Refreshing Shower Gel of Japanese Yuzu – Oh, i Coloniali, you put me in such a quandary. On the one hand, you have some of the most indulgent and exotically fragranced products I’ve ever used, on the other hand, you put glycols, parabens and sometimes a dash of mineral oil in your products and that puts me right off. My favourite products from i Coloniali are the solid soap bars and the mango soft shaving soap. 

This 150ml shower gel was a gift with purchase from Marks & Spencer when I bought some of the soap and I’d ignored it because of the ingredients, but thought I’d use it up this month just to be done with it - by the end of the year I aim to be using more natural products. It has the usual intoxicating i Coloniali fragrance that you’ll recognise immediately if you’ve ever tried anything from their body line, but with an extra kick of menthol to give you a morning jolt in the shower. 

Overall, I ignored the ingredients list and ended up enjoying using this and have to admit that I didn’t totally dry out with the SLES. I wouldn’t purchase again unless it was reformulated, but that signature i Coloniali scent keeps pulling me back. I wish they bottled it and sold it as an EDT, I’d wear nothing else.

Here are the ingredients:

Aqua, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Parfum, Acrylates Copolymer, Glycerin, Sodium PEG-7 Olive Oil Carboxylate, Citric Acid, Limonene, Methylparaben, Sodium Salicylate, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Menthol, Benzyl Salicylate, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citrus Junos Peel Oil, Menthyl Lactate, Sodium Hydroxide, BHT, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, PPG-26-Butheth-26.

Yikes!

February empties - L'Occitane, Weleda, Neal's Yard Remedies, Origins, Naked Bodycare

Take Care Naked Sensitive Skin Bodycare Orange Blossom 250ml body wash – I have a ton of these. This has always been my favourite frangrance of all the Naked body washes, it has not “parfum” or artificial fragrance, just the natural fragrance of neroli essential oil which is one of the most uplifting fragrances and has long been a favourite for both men and women. I guess means that they’ll probably pop up each month in my empties for the rest of the year. And maybe the next…

Weleda Rosemary and Ginger conditioner 250ml– I really liked this, a good silicone free conditioner which I'd buy again but I think Weleda have reformulated and no longer make this.

Phytorelax Lavander Body Lotion 500ml – I picked this up at the TKMaxx clearance shelf for £1. It’s not the most natural product (you can’t see the ingredients on the back label as they’ve been rubbed off with oily hands) but at least it doesn’t have any silicone. I really liked using this at night time as the lavender helps lull me to sleep.

Naked Bodycare Star Flower 250ml body wash – I don’t like it as much as the Orange Blossom, but this is still a good sulphate free body wash which doesn’t dry me out. Plus, I have the body butter to match. I think it’s the patchouli essential oil in here which I’m not a fan of. I have a couple more in the stash as I pick these up whenever they go on offer at Boots and I want to use up my points.

Neal’s Yard Remedies Almond Moisturiser 50ml – this was a good basic day cream, a silicone-free basic moisturiser This is one of NYR’s least expensive creams at £18.75 for 50ml.

Naked Bodycare Star Flower body butter 300ml– found this in one of those bargain beauty shops you can find in shopping centres, it was £1 so I bought three. Not my favourite scent, but satisfyingly thick and just what my dry husk of a body needs in winter.

Origins Checks and Balances face wash – this is a GWP 30ml sample.  Already repurchased as I’ve bought the full size.

Origins Drink Up Intensive overnight mask – another GWP 30ml sample from Origins. Already repurchased. Twice. They had a great GWP offer that week. Don’t judge.

L’Occitane Almond shower oil 2 x 35ml. Love this, but don't love the ingredients. I've purchased the full size 250ml bottle as well as the 500ml refill. I had a voucher. Again, don't judge.

Take Care Naked Bodycare Orange Blossom sensitive skin body wash review

Naked Bodycare Orange Blossom body wash – I have a ton of these. This has always been my favourite frangrance of all the Naked body washes, it has no “parfum” or artificial fragrance, just the natural fragrance of neroli essential oil which is one of the most uplifting fragrances and has long been a favourite for both men and women. 

I wasn’t seeing it stocked at my local Boots, but when I checked if it was still available on the Naked website a few months ago, it was on offer at £1. Since I figured that they had discontinued the fragrance and they offer free delivery when you spend £20, I ended up buying twenty of these. That’s right, twenty! Turns out they were just clearing stock as they had slightly changed the top of plastic bottles and they’re still offering the Orange Blossom through the website so I needn’t have hoarded like a shelf-clearing extreme couponer. 

"This gentle foaming body wash helps sooth sensitive souls with delicate skin. Neroli oil from orange blossom is known to be calming and soothing for dry and irritated skin and this bodywash is great for all the family to use. "


The 250ml plastic bottle usually retails for around £3.99 and has a lid which is seperated in two so you press down one side and the other side pops up to release the gel. Here are the ingredients:

Aqua, Cocamidopropyl betaine, Sodium lauroyl sarcosinate, Sodium cocoamphoacetate, Coco glucoside, Glyceryl oleate, Chamomilla recutita extract, Citrus aurantium amara (Neroli) oil, Aloe barbadensis extract, Sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, Citric acid, Glycerin, Potassium sorbate, Sodium benzoate.

Soft Touch Naked Starflower body wash review

I've been using the Vegetarian and vegan friendly Soft Touch Naked Bodycare Starflower body wash for several years, along with the other fragrances from Naked Bodycare. I get these from Boots whenever they go on offer and use up my Advantage points. These are probably the best value sulphate free body wash available here in the UK.

The 250ml plastic bottle retails for around £3.99 and has a lid which is seperated in two so you press down one side and the other side pops up to release the gel. The scent is very aromatic and herbal with a definite note of patchouli. I prefer the Orange Blossom or Coco de Mer scents, but the Starflower is good for the cooler months. I'm currently going through the body butter as well. 

"Starflower is full of Gamma Linolenic Acid (an essential fatty acid) known to improve the skin's protective barrier and help prevent signs of ageing. This is also why Starflower extract, known as Borage oil, has long been used as a nutritional supplement to help counter "irritability" and general "women's problems"!"

Well, I can't vouch for that, though my colleagues at work might have a thing to say about that.

Here are the ingredients:

Aqua, Sodium cocoamphoacetate, Cocamidopropyl betaine, Sodium lauroyl sarcosinate, Lauryl glucoside, Glycerin, Coco glucoside, Glyceryl oleate, Capryl/capryl glucoside, Borago officinalis (starflower) seed oil, Lavandula hybrida grosso (lavandin) herb oil, Pelargonium graveolens (geranium) leaf oil, Cananga odorata (ylang ylang) flower oil, Pogostemon cablin (patchouli) leaf oil, Linalool, Citronellol, Geraniol, Citric acid.