Elemental Herbology Macadamia & Papaya Radiance Body Scrub ~ Tropical Heaven!

When it comes to luxury skincare, Elemental Herbology are right at the top of their game. If you like your skincare to be more of an experience than a tick on your to do list, then you're gonna wanna try something from this holistic British brand. Not only do they harness natural actives to get the best from your skin, their products are 100% free from synthetic fragrance, artificial colour, mineral oils, sulphates, parabens and preservatives. Case in point, the glorious Macadamia & Papaya Radiance Body Scrub. 

A tropical mix of essential actives and bio-oils, Carlsberg don't do body scrubs but if they did, it probably wouldn't be a patch on this stunner. Papaya, sea salt & sugar provide the scrubbiness with macadamia & Buriti oil, the bio actives providing the unrivaled, nourishing softness.

Elemental Herbology Macadamia & Papaya Radiance Body Scrub: €41.10 HERE

A boon for self tanning prep or post care or if you're simply prepping for shorter sleeves (and hemlines) this Summer. I apply this thick scrub, in upward motions before I step into the shower and continue my ablutions before washing off before I step out. I consider it a full body facial because that's exactly what it is. 

Including this in your skin nourishing efforts means you're looking at at least three days of asking yourself 'Is this new skin?! I'm sure this is new skin'. I absolutely blahhdy love it. If you happen to be in or around a SpaceNK store I do urge you to just take a little sniff of Elemental Herbology. Maybe even nicely ask for a sample and come back to tell me how much you're loving it too. 

Tell us, have you tried anything from this brand before? Put on the spot what would you say is your HG body scrub?

Our Welsh Adventure ~ Wye Valley Butterfly Park

While on our Welsh adventure we allowed the children to choose some of the excursions so that they felt they were in charge of their holidays too. Our girls chose the Wye Valley Butterfly Zoo in Herefordshire, which was one of the most fun family adventures we've had together so far. 

Admission is £4.75 for adults & £2.75 for children 5-15 years old, under 5’s are free. Onsite parking is also free; opening hours are 10am – 6pm.

The Butterfly Zoo is open daily from 10am, there is a lot to see & do in the vicinity of the Zoo such as The Amazing Hedge Puzzle, Miniature Golf & Wye Valley Warfare Laser Ops. Combination tickets can be purchased at a discounted rate. Unfortunately we didn’t have the whole day to spend there so we just visited the Butterfly Zoo.

Our little ones had fun & learned lots about the different species of butterflies from all around the Wold. At the reception desk children are given a card with all the details of each species with photos attached so they can mark them off as they find them on the butterfly trail. As the Zoo is all indoors we didn’t have to worry about the weather, it had started to rain as we arrived.

It was amazing to walk with the butterflies as they flew among the tropical plants. There is a greenhouse in the zoo where we learned all about the different stages of the life cycle of butterflies, my girls were enthralled.  A perfect budget friendly family day out that we all enjoyed.

Less than 10 minutes down the road we found a fabulous 16^th Century coach house for lunch.  The New Inn at St Owens Cross is a hidden gem. The menu is traditional Indian cuisine but they also had some tasty options for children. There is a huge enclosed beer garden to the rear with some oversized games for the children to play with. 

Tell us, have you been to God's country? What would you recommend to see? 

Things That Rustle My Jimmies

You know it's been a good week when you forget that rustled jimmies need to be collated for the following day. As good a week as it's been - THERE ARE JIMMIES RUSTLED: 

1. When the Lift Door Opens & Some GickNah

is Standing w Their Buggy RIGHT AT THE DOOR!

2. Justifying a High End Beauty Splurge 

with the Points You'll Earn 

& the Assistant Not Swiping Your Card!

3. Waiting to Try on a Blouse in a M&S Changing Room When an Octogenarian Comes Out Wearing it ~ LOOKING FABULOUS!

4. When Netflix asks 

'Are you STILL Watching Drag Race?'

5. The Fact that Kate Middleton had to have a Full Face & a Curly Blow Dry when her Undercarriage was, 

Most Likely, About to Fall Out!

Tell me, can you relate? What kind of rustling is going on in your world this week? 

April Faves ft EcoTools, Isa Dora, Clinique, L'occitane, L'oreal, Image, NYX, Origins, Roger & Gallet & TopShop!

Hello, May! It's a seriously exciting month ahead, beauty blog wise with upcoming trips, conferences & campaigns but before we say goodbye to April how's about we chat beauty favourites? Hmmmm?

1. Eco Tools Face & Body Sculpting Brush: $11.99 HERE  ($6.99 with code RLL469)

2. Isa Dora Bronzing Powder: €25.95 HERE

This pair are a match made in sculpting heaven. The Eco Tools Body Sculpting brush is densely packed, staggeringly soft, seriously affordable & one of my ultimate faves. It literally feels like brushing your face (& bod) with the softest fur. Cruelty free and adept at any manner of sculpting you might need, I can't recommend it enough. 

Hand in hand with that bamboo beauty goes Isa Dora's Ha-YOOGE Brozing Powder. That pic doesn't go this Goliath of a product justice. We're talking a pan the size of a roundy face.. or a small hub cap. Finely milled but richly pigmented, this bronzer hasn't been far from reach for the entire month. The ginormous mirror really doesn't hurt either. 

3. Clinique Turnaround Revitalizing Instant Facial: €43.01 HERE

I'm all about instant skincare, especially when it can deliver results. This revitalizing facial cream from Clinique does just that. 100% fragrance free, this pale blue mask is gritty to the touch thanks to the inclusion of "Diatomaceous Earth" (powdered sedimentary rock) for a manual exfoliant effect. 

Applied all over your visage, you leave for 5 minutes (it'll dry to a clay) and let the ingredients do their bizz. Salicylic acid - which provides the chemical exfoliant leads the ingredient list, alongside rice bran, clary, caffeine and chestnut, all designed to rev up skin cell turnover and soothe your new skin surface. It's recommended to use 2-3 times a week, though it's a little spendy for me to use in that way - I am LOVING it for a skin pick me up before a night on the tiles or a big event. 

4. L'Occitane's Amande Velvet Balm: €49 HERE

I simply can't say enough good things about this newest Amande addition to the L'Occitane line. You can see my full review of the Youthful Duo HERE but, even without the silky skin precursor of the serum, this Velvet Balm is an absolute beaut. More powdery & feminine in scent than it's Almond predecessor, this has rightfully toppled Kiehls Creme de Corps from my body skincare HG list. You gotta try it. 

5. L'Oreal Elvive Nutri Gloss Crystal Sparkling Shampoo & Conditioner: €5.09 Pharmacies

We got the press pack for these new Elvive lovelies two weeks ago, you see that line on the bottom of the bottle? That's how much is left. All three of us have taken a literal shine to this affordable tress newbie. It promises 48 hour sealed in shine and boy does it deliver. Aaron is sporting a purple undercut, I'm blonde and Adam is mousey brown, all three mops are in better condition than they've been in the longest time. I had mad love for Elvive's Fibrology, still do, but this salon perfect shine enabler may just have beaten it to the top of my recommended list! 

6. Image Skincare's Iluma Intense Brightening Exfoliating Powder: €38 HERE

This luxurious polishing powder gently cleanses and exfoliates and reminds me more than a little of its Dermalogica counterpart. The difference here is the immediacy with which you see results. I mean IMMEDIATELY. The ultrasoft micro-exfoliating blend removes debris and oil from pores while providing long-term hydration and anti-aging benefits. 

The ingredients contain a new generation of natural botanicals (which smell AMAZE by the by), enzymes and antioxidants to help skin reach a new level of radiance. To up your face mask game you can combine this powder with your mask of choice, following the instructions on the mask. Light aircraft will be drawn to the beacon that is your visage having used this. In the very best possible way. It's LOVE. 

7. NYX Pore Filler: €15.99 HERE

If you're a Porefessional fan but not so much of its pricetag then you're gonna wanna listen up. NYX have pretty much blown it out of the water with their new Pore Filler. Talc free, oil free, and chock full of vitamin E to smoothe & enhance your skin, this makes your kisser the ideal canvas for painting. I've been so impressed with this tinted primer that I've even worn it solo and forgone the slap altogether. It doesn't block pores like the name might suggest but instead gives a beautifully dewy finish to the skin, with or without your full face on. It's a win. 

8. Origins Clean Energy Gentle Cleansing Oil: 

€28 HERE

Even the most cursory of CherrySue searches will reveal my love for high end skincare brand Origins and not without cause. I have yet to be led astray or overpromised on products that didn't deliver. The Clean Energy Gentle Cleansing Oil is no different. 

Bereft at the end of my Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel last month I returned to an old favourite that had been wrongly set aside and my skin has been thanking me profusely for it. Olive Oil, Sunflower, Sesame and Safflower Oils remove every scrap of makeup & the build up of the days grime. Kukui Nut Oil and Macadamia Oil help retain moisture. Vitamin E soothes the skin as the oils do their work and the delicate scents of grapefruit, orange & lemon make this oil an absolute joy to use. If you're considering an oil cleanser (and you really should) I can't recommend this one more. 

9. Roger & Gallet Fleur de Figuier Eau de Parfum: €49.50 M&S & Large Pharmacies Nationwide

If THIS POST last year about the Fleur de Figuier Nourishing Oil wasn't enough to tell you about my fig feelz then the audible squeal when I opened the press pack containing the first R&G EDP of the same scent would be! Dogs cowered for miles around, truly. 

The fig here is more candied than previous edits so your initial hit is sweetness, almost immediately though it dries down. Patchouli, woody notes, fig leaf & musk round out the scent to be one of the most intense, all encompassing fig fragrances that I've ever adored. If fig is your bag, and quite frankly, why wouldn't it be? You need to smell this, yesterday. 

10. TopShop GlowStick in Play Up: £10 HERE 

As soon as I saw this Duracellalike GlowStick peeping out from the edge of the minimalist TopShop beauty stand I knew I'd have to have it. You see I've been loving their Prism highlighting stick for nigh on four years now - REALLY and only now is it coming to an end. Not only is Play Up the ideal replacement but a recent Smashbox event tells me it's the highlighting way to go - bearing an uncanny likeness to their upcoming LA Lights Lip & Cheek multiples SEE HERE. 

So far it's been absolute love, the sturdy packaging means I can chuck Play Up in my mála & add a little highlight to bring me from desk to event with ease of an eve. Just one swipe gives a creamy peachy brightening effect that has garnered more than a few compliments. Oh, TopShop, if you would just lower your comparison prices for Irish lasses & maybe stock our shelves a little more we could be the very best of besties. I know we could! 

Tell us, what was floating your beauty boat in the month of April? #bbloggers do of course pop in a link to your roundups should you have one in the comments. 

Happy May one & all!

#Bbloggers High End Giveaway ~ Worth Over €300!

I'm always the first to try turn a negative into a positive (I AM!) so when I spent yesterday lamenting my rustled jimmies about how many off the cuff 'gimme stuff' emails and PMs I get, I got to thinking. I've been blogging/freelance writing beauty for four years now and every single day I'm asked for 'spare' products. There'll be an email, a pm, a DM, even pointed posts to my Facebook page with peeps on the cadge (though yep, some are genuine). When it comes to new bloggers, I try to help with information as often as I possibly can but providing all with products is neither my place nor my inclination.

I'm a firm believer that if you have a passion for beauty and products that posts about your own prized possessions are the ideal springboard to launch a new blog. Those are the posts that people will be drawn to, regardless of the product on show. Ultimately it's your passion and your voice that will drive engagement and build your audience.

In saying that, it's always nice to have a high end product sprinkled in the mix and to that end I'd like to help with this Giveaway. Above I have €300 worth of not spare but duplicate products that you'll most likely find reviews for on site. For the most part, I donate these duplicates to local charities for raffles or gift them to friends, family and colleagues for special occasions or when I know they'll love 'em.

If you're a #bblogger/beauty addict, looking to review some high end beauty then winning this beauty booty couldn't be easier: just make sure you're a follower on whichever social media platform suits you best (links below) and comment below with how you follow (you'll get an entry for each) and a link to your blog if you'd like some Cherry Link Love!

Do ping me a tweet to chat beauty or blogging at any stage though, I can and have spoken for Ireland on the subject <3

@ItsCherrySue

CherrySue Doin' the Do

@ItsCherrySue

CherrySue, Doin' the Do

Competition is open to UK & ROI and we'll announce a Winner in two weeks time, Friday 14th May. 

Good Luck!!