SBC Collagen Collection

SBC or Simply Beautiful Collection had until recently been a brand I had only seen on my social media and had only read really good reviews about the products, so when a box arrived for me try, I couldn't wait to give them a try. Founded in 1988, SBC describes themselves as being fuss-free, practical, effective, affordable pampering, which includes skincare gels, moisturisers, serums, polishes, cleansers, bath & body essentials to create a dynamic range that delivers pure, natural vitality to the skin.

I was sent some products from the Collagen Collection which describes itself as being an advanced smoothing, hydrating and moisturising skincare which provides intensive therapy for the face and body. 

The Collagen 3-in-1 Cleanser is a lightweight triple action cleanser and it does an incredible job of removing all the dirt, grime and detritus from my face. One of the issues of living in London is the pollution, there are days when you can just feel it all sticking to your skin and it isn't the nicest of feelings. So when it comes to cleansers, I want something that will remove that feeling and everything that accompanies it.

Packaged inside a pump action bottle, this cleanser is not only incredible at removing makeup, dirt and grime but it is so gentle on the skin and gives a gentle exfoliating whilst cleansing. It is full of amazing ingredients which include:

• Cocoa Butter
• Soluble Collagen 
• Shea Butter
• Passion Flower Oil
• Kukui Seed Oil
• Papaya Seed Oil
• Vitamin E

To use, I simply apply just a few pumps onto dry skin and then massage it across my face, eyes and neck using a simple massaging action and then using the Shammy that I was also kindly sent with warm water. The Shammy is a hygienic PVA cloth which is incredibly soft and smooth on the skin when used. It is priced at just £12 and is available right here and the Shammy costs just £5.

The second product that I have been using is the Collagen Body Polish. I absolutely love the texture of this body polish, it is more like a sorbet than anything else and it glides onto the skin effortlessly. Ideal for use on either dry skin before bathing and showering using circular motions concentrating on problem areas such as elbows, knees and feet.

It is enriched with anti-ageing marine collagen and kukui seed oil, which is rich in essential fatty acids to hydrate and smooth the skin whilst passionflower seed oil and vitamin E both nourishes and protects. When it comes to the exfoliation aspect of the body polish, it is non-abrasive and made of Pumice which provides the very effective, yet gentle exfoliation. We all know that exfoliation rids the body of dead and dull skin cells, as well as helping to boost blood circulation which in turn helps you to achieve healthy and glowing skin.

This body polish is rich but non-greasy and is gentle enough to be used 2-3 times a week to keep the skin feeling soft and smooth.  This 450g tub retails at £30 and can be found here.

This was my first time using products from SBC and it has been an absolute treat. Having had no adverse reactions to any of the products I have been using and really enjoying the effects, I can't wait to try out some more products from the range.

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page here

Tri-Balm by Frances Prescott

I love my cleansers, ive tried quite a lot of them and more recently stick cleansers have become something that has found their way into my routine. I first mentioned one of these (here) on my blog not too long ago and today it is the turn of Tri-Balm from Frances Prescott.

After years working in the fashion and film industry, Frances Prescott is said to have realised that women faced a common challenge: how to simplify their daily skincare routine and achieve healthy skin without compromising on quality and results. Well, this is perhaps something we all do think about from time to time, especially as more and more ingredients go from being 'good' to suddenly being 'bad'. Tri-Balm is described as being 

'a luxurious facial cleansing balm that also exfoliates and moisturises in one simple step. This pioneering multi-purpose skincare balm is paraben-free and contains no harmful chemicals, silicones or synthetics'.

What I love about Cleansing Balms in a stick form is the ease of use, whether you are using it at home or on your holidays, it is suitable for all skin types, has a non-spill formulation and can be used on all skin types.  As a 3-in-1 Cleanser which is designed to Cleanse, Exfoliate and Moisturise, I was really excited to give it a try.

Using a twist up motion, the balm, which is cruelty-free and made without harmful chemicals, silicones or synthetics, is enriched with some incredible ingredients such as blackcurrant, starflower, echium and oat extract. One of the main ingredients is Pumpkin Enzyme and it is used as an exfoliant and it has been extracted from pumpkin seeds which are packed with proteolytic enzymes which help to break down dead skin cells and speed up cell renewal and it is worth noting that Pumpkin is also rich in exfoliating AHAs that we have all come to know about as well as being rich in Vitamins A and C. There is no physical exfoliator so the balm feels smooth. Tri-Balm also contains quite a few moisturising ingredients to and the first is something called sodium hyaluronate, which after a bit of a Google read tells me that it is a water-soluble salt form of hyaluronic acid.  Again there is also rich plant oils such as sweet almond and mandarin peel oils and they work together to boost hydration and leave your complexion with a gorgeous glow.  

To use the Balm Stick is really easy, my first piece of advice is to ensure your face is wet and then apply to your face and throat using the stick to gently massage the skin in upward circular movements. Tri-Balm emulsifies with water but I always use a cloth to ensure everything has been removed after use. After using, my skin is left so soft and smooth it is just a dream to use. So as you can see, what you have here is a balm that does Cleanse, Exfoliate and Moisturise all in one. It is an oil based product so it should be kept in a cool place, away from direct sunlight or other heat sources.

Priced at £46 it can be found here from Cult Beauty

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page here

I Love Cosmetics...

I love Cosmetics is a cute kitsch brand which has some amazing scented products that every bathroom just needs. I was kindly sent a huge box of products to try and I have been working my way through the box and there are some amazing scents that I came across. 

I Love describe themselves as being a bath, body and beauty brand that lovingly creates the most gorgeous, deliciously scented products in the World. Designed to cleanse, nourish, refresh and pamper your skin, all our products are bursting full of fragrance and skin loving ingredients.

The Lemon Sorbet Bath and Shower Creme is one of those scents which just takes you back to your childhood, the sweet scent of sherbet lemons in a paper bag (yes I am old). Described as being a product which cleanses and conditions your skin, it is filled with energising natural fruit extracts and caring Pro-vitamin B5, which together work to leave your skin feeling silky soft and deliciously scented. 

I love that you can use this to relax in the bath with or use in the shower, either way, you can create copious amounts of bubbles! If Lemon Sorbet isn't your cup of tea, then this Cherry Bath and Shower Creme could very well be an alternative.  It smells just as you might expect and as well as being enriched with energising natural fruit extracts and caring Pro-vitamin B5, it leaves your skin lightly scented.

I go through tubes of hand cream and always ensure I have a tube at home, in my handbag and on my desk at work.  The Raspberry and Blackberry Hand Lotion not only smells absolutely incredible but it is enriched with coconut oil and shea butter which leaves your skin feeling moisturised, nourished and incredibly smooth.

Not in the slightest bit tacky or greasy on the skin and it absorbs much quicker than I was expecting to find.

I admit I am a tad lazy when it comes to body moisturisers, but give me something that smells as incredible as this Raspberry and Blackberry Body Butter, I will happily use it.  Enriched with nourishing Shea Butter and anti-oxidant rich Coconut Oil, together they work to leave your skin feeling soft and beautifully hydrated. 

On the skin, it melts almost instantly, isn't sticky or tacky to the touch and the scent is just incredible too.

Body Spritzers seem to be making a bit of a comeback, every brand seems to have one and unsurprisingly, I Love Cosmetics have them too.

I have both the Mango & Papaya as well as Pink Marshmellow versions, though there are more options to choose from. Mango and Papaya smells as the name suggests and when spritzed it isn't sticky or tacky when it hits the skin and it does offer quite the fruity burst. Admittedly the Pink Marshmallow scent isn't my favourite, it is a little too sweet for my tastes but again, when spritzed it is neither sticky or tacky.  Both bottles are perfect handbag sizes and great for travelling with.

Soap isn't the sexiest of products is it? But just sometimes there is a product which makes a stand and makes you notice it. Called Chocolate Fudge Cake Smash Bar Soap did catch my attention, it smells like something I want to eat rather than something I want to wash with.

The description, which is equally fun, goes like this "Break off from the world and lather up with a little piece of happiness! I love...'s new Smashable Soap Bar is a soap with a delectable difference. Each fruity bar is ready to crack into 4 delicious soaps. Made from natural, kind to skin ingredients, the Smash Bar is cleansing with a gorgeous burst of goodness". What you get is a lathery soap, which when in contact with water has an intensified scent and it actually leaves you skin feeling soft and moisturised, not something I usually find with soap.

Show me a bath bomb and I am usually content. From I Love... comes a Raspberry Ripple Bath Fizzer and it, as its name suggests smells just like a Raspberry Ripple.

It comes already split into two so you can enjoy two fruity baths from this one product. What I love about it is not only the scent but the copious amount of bubbles it creates. A fun product which leaves your skin smooth to the touch.

Last and by no means least is another product for the bath lovers out there or even the shower lovers. 

In this collection, there are no less than 6 different choices and right now, my absolute favourite is the Lemon & Lime because of how sharp and tangy the scent is.  Quite a few of these are available in full size options too.

Most of these products range in price from £1 up to £6 so they are purse friendly and won't break the bank. 

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page here

New Online Cosmeceutical Retailer Beauty Mailbox launches In The UK

Beauty Mailbox is a new, online cosmeceutical retailer that offers carefully selected products for a range of specific skin care conditions and it launched a few months ago. I was kindly sent a box to try for myself and over the last few months, that is exactly what I have been doing.  

Founded by Helen Allen, and owner of an aesthetics clinic, she has used her experience and knowledge to hand-selected the best cosmeceutical brands available, sourcing them from official stockists with genuine product guarantees.

Like most people, I do love a good beauty box, the evidence itself clear to see on my blog if you are a regular reader, so when something new comes along that intrigues me, I am always ready to give it a try. Beauty Mailbox offer their customers products that can provide improvement to ageing skins, treatment for rosacea, acne, sun damage and hyperpigmentation to name just a few and instead of becoming bamboozled by what does which for your skin, all of their staff are trained on every product range that we stock and are here to offer you advice on which products will work best for your skin type or concern. What's more is that the website allows you to shop by brand, which is perfect if you know which product it is that you want, or by condition or body part that you want to treat.  From there you can browse through a range of products designed to treat that area.

With a range of brands available, you might very well have used products from the line up already or have heard of the brand, there might also be a few you will never have heard of.  Brands included with Beauty Mailbox includes:

• Healgel, which targets everyday skin problems, was created by a team of leading British plastic and cosmetic surgeons with the help of a renowned award-winning dermatological biochemist. 
• is Clinical range comprises long-term ‘results-oriented’ anti-ageing and clinically proven formulations using the most advanced research technology and pharmaceutical-grade botanical ingredients.
• Medik8 provides science-based professional strength products which are hand-engineered in small batches with a focus on being eco-friendly.
• Obagi Medical, a global speciality pharmaceutical company founded by leading skin care experts in 1988, is designed to help minimise the appearance of premature skin ageing, skin damage, hyperpigmentation, acne, and sun damage. 
• Revitalash is a specialist cosmetics company that focuses on improving the health and appearance of eyelashes, eyebrows and hair. 
• Teoxane, which was developed in Switzerland, are experts in the development and manufacturing of hyaluronic acid-based dermal fillers.
• Wunderbrow offer water-proof, smudge-proof and transfer-proof brow perfection which lasts for days. 
• Zo Skin Care provides products that bridge the gap between therapeutic treatments and daily care, allowing customers to experience continuously healthy skin regardless of age or unique skin condition.

Once you have looked through the sections that you feel appeal to you and your skin the most and have selected the products you wish to try, you simply add them to your basket and pay at the checkout and your order should be with you in a few days time.

For me, what really appeals about this service is that it differs from any other form of beauty box I might have bought or been subscribed too and it is one that gives me a chance to pick and choose the products I need for my skin.  If I need a bit of help getting those selections right, then there is some online advice waiting for me from someone who will know the brand and its products inside out, rather than going to a high street store or department store and asking someone who might not necessarily have the answers I need.

Two of the products I was sent to try comes from iS Clinical, a brand I had never come across until now and Medik8, a brand I had heard of but hadn't yet tried. The iS Clinical Cleansing Complex is described as being a clear, lightweight cleansing gel which is powerful – yet gentle enough for hypersensitive skin. It uses a balance of bionutrients, antioxidants, and mild resurfacing ingredients that thoroughly cleanse without stripping essential natural oils.  

What I love about this product is that it literally does everything it says it is going to do.  Living in London, there are days when you have been out and about in public and your skin just feels manky, almost to the point where I want to scratch everything off with my nails, it feels clogged, dirty and just grim.  With this cleansing complex, the ingredients of Glycolic and salicylic acids work to remove dead skin cells and debris to unclog pores as well as absolutely anything sitting on the surface of the skin. Then this formula also contains chamomile extract to soothe redness and irritation, as well as antioxidants such as vitamin E, prevent free radicals from damaging cells and causing signs of ageing.  

From Medik8 is the Full Lash & Brow Duo, a product which is described as being a targeted, clear serum that helps to grow and strengthen lacklustre eyelashes and eyebrows, thanks to a complex of hair-enhancing peptides.  Now if my eyebrow hair grew as fast as the hair on my legs, I would have the perfect bushy brow by now, but until barely not there brow comes back into fashion and I ace it, I am stuck with filling my brows in and using an array of products to fake having big brows.  

Did you know that your eyelashes and eyebrows grow in cycles lasting a few months? Neither did I until I attended a salon for an eyelash lift treatment. During the cycle, hairs go through 3 different stages of life. The first phase is known as anagen or to put it simply, the growth phase and this is where the hair grows to a specific length and then stops. Then comes what is referred to the catagen phase and this is where the hair follicle will shrink down to hold onto the hair before finally entering the telogen phase which is where the hair rests until it is ready to fall out and let a new hair grow through thus repeating that process.  Now for me, my brows obviously need a bit of a kick start to grow and to look fuller than they are and it is said that using this product should help and by using the following ingredients, my brows and lashes should look fuller and healthier:

• Eyelash-Enhancing Peptides – Peptide technology supports the growth cycle of the eyelashes and brows, while strengthening them to prevent breakage.
• Hair-Anchoring Plant Extracts – Soybean and wheat germ extract support hair growth and act as antioxidants to protect from free radical damage.
• Vitamin B5 – Also known as panthenol, vitamin B5 helps the hair’s keratin to retain moisture for nourished lashes and brows.
• Hyaluronic Acid – Able to hold up to 1,000 times its own weight in water, hyaluronic acid draws hydration to itself, leaving the lashes and brows flexible and shiny.

As you can see the Full Lash & Brow Duo is a double ended product. The eyelash side featuring a small fine brush which makes it easy to apply the serum directly to the lash roots. For the eyebrows, there is a short spoolie which you use to apply the serum directly onto the eyebrows. To use both of the products, it is said that you need to have makeup-free lashes and brows and also to apply it twice daily for the best results.  I have only been using this for around 6 weeks, so as yet, I haven't seen much of a difference that is worthy of being shown, but I will continue to use it because it is easy to use, causes no irritation or leaves redness.

I would love to know what you think to Beauty Mailbox, as you can see it is your traditional type of beauty box where you part with your cash and 5/6 products arrive that are of no use to you.  Instead, you are choosing the products that work best for you, with or without some advice and they arrive ready for use.

*this post contains PR samples and/or Affiliate Links unless indicated otherwise - you can learn more on my Disclaimer page here