Review: Crabtree and Evelyn Citron Honey and Coriander Body Scrub

ABOUT THE PRODUCT & BRAND
Crabtree & Evelyn was founded in 1972. The first part of the name comes from the Crabapple Tree, which is used in many health and beauty applications, and the second part from 17th-century naturalist John Evelyn. The Citron Honey and Coriander Body Scrub is part of a range of body products with a spicy lemon scent. It contains peach kernel, pumpkin, jojoba, and soybean oils, extracts of citrus, coriander, fig and apricot, and honey. Beads made of sunflower wax provide the exfoliating component. The product is free of artificial colour, phthalates, parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate. Crabtree & Evelyn products are NOT tested on animals.
Source: Brand Homepage..

THE PRODUCT & ME
I bought the Citron Honey and Coriander Body Scrub from a local gift shop that was closing down. I can't remember exactly what I paid for it, but it was about half price. The RRP on the brand website is $30.00. Crabtree & Evelyn products are also available at brand stores and on their website.

PACKAGING
The Scrub came in a cardboard box, which made it seem more special. The design of the box and tube itself has a whimsical, old-fashioned feel with an illustration of a lemon. The tube stands upside down on its lid - I always prefer packaging like this, because the product naturally travels to the bottom and you can squeeze more out.


Straight from the tube.
APPEARANCE & PERFORMANCE
The Scrub is white in colour and has a very thick, creamy texture. I really loved the smell. It's a subtle creamy lemon with just a hint of spice. The smell lasts on my skin for hours, but it's not overpowering. The exfoliating beads are a little hard and people with sensitive skin might find them a bit scratchy, but I thought it was fine. The amount of beads compared to scrub is quite a lot, so there is an effective exfoliating result. My skin felt much smoother afterwards.
I tried this scrub both on dry skin and wet skin with different effects. On dry skin the scrub clings to the skin and there's a harsher scrubbing effect. On wet skin, the scrub disperses and the scrubbing effect is much gentler. I preferred using the scrub on dry skin personally, but you may prefer using it on wet skin if you have sensitive skin.


The exfoliating scrub.
CONCLUSION

Pros:                             Cons:
delicious smell                  a little expensive
made skin feel very smooth       not widely available
pretty packaging

WOULD I GET AGAIN? Yes. Crabtree & Evelyn is a brand I wouldn't really have considered purchasing before, but I'm adding them to my list of "for a treat" brands now!

Mini Review: Pola Kalahari Moisture Lotion

THE PRODUCT: Pola Kalahari Moisture Lotion comes from Japan. It contains makataan (watermelon). I received this sample sachet as a gift.



PROPERTIES & PERFORMANCE: The lotion is clear and very runny - it ran straight out as soon as I tore the sachet open. Some of it spilled on my camera! №❢ (Don't worry, it's OK.) I had to rub it in quickly before it went everywhere. That's why I don't have a 'before-blending' shot. Here it is half-blended into my arm:



The Kalahari Lotion is a very light gel; it absorbs very quickly and isn't greasy at all. It smells very faintly of fruity watermelon. It's a yummy smell, but it doesn't really linger. My arm felt noticeably soft afterwards.

GET AGAIN?: Yes! As long as the full size came in packaging that protected it from spilling.

Review of DHC Make Off Sheets

About The Brand & Product:
DHC (which stands for Daigaku Honyaku Center) is one of the top-selling Japanese skin care brands, and is increasingly being seen in other countries as well. Even Beautypedia (home of the Cosmetic Cop) has reviews of some of its products. I am new to this brand - I bought the Sheets because I needed a new pack, and thought it would be interesting to try a new brand.
In Japan, make-up is often just referred to as 'make', hence the name Make Off Sheets. There are 50 sheets in the box. A refill pack is also available.

The Product & Me:
I bought the Make Off Sheets from YesStyle.com.au. They were on sale for $9, normally $12.
I like to have facial cleansing sheets on hand - I use them when I get home at night to remove makeup and clean my face. I only resolved to clean/moisturise my face at night recently, and having wipes on hand makes this an easy and quick routine to follow.


DHC Make Off Sheets in situ in my bathroom cabinet.
Packaging:
The sheets came in a cute box with a flip-top lid, with the normal soft plastic package inside. This is one of the reasons I was drawn to this brand. Call me picky, but I don't like the way the soft plastic packages look sitting on my bathroom shelf. They just look a bit messy. The box is much neater. I also feel that the box will protect the sheets from drying out, which is a problem I've had before.

Appearance/Smell & Performance:
The sheets are made of cotton and are strong and soft. They're wetter than other brands I've tried. There's plenty of makeup remover fluid on each one. Advertised as being fragrance-free, they have a very faint smell of aloe vera (which they contain). Compared to other brands, I find I need to press/scrub harder to remove mascara using the DHC sheets. Another con is that they're noticeably smaller than other makeup remover sheets I've used recently (namely Simple and 10-06) (I think?)). I don't have to resort to using two, but I feel the size could still have been a bit more generous. The liberal amount of cleansing fluid on the sheets offsets this somewhat, though.
I have not noticed any irritation or other detrimental effects on my skin.


The make off sheet at work. Why did I choose candy pink eyeshadow today??!
Beautypedia Summary:
The fact that the DHC Make Off Sheets are fragrance free is a big plus, and they earn the tick that Paula gives to especially preferred products.
[go to full entry]

Conclusion:
The fact that the sheets are quite small was a bit of a disappointment. However, they work well and don't have any irritating ingredients. They were more expensive than many brands available locally, but about on par with the middle shelf brands. The fact that they contain 50 sheets instead of the more usual 20-25 is a plus - I'll only have to refill half as often! However, on YesStyle.com.au, the refill pack is the same price as the boxed pack. So I'll have to weigh up whether I'll refill it with the DHC brand sheets, or just buy a local brand and put them in the cute DHC box.