Burts Bees

I first heard of Burt's Bees products about five years ago - I was, as usual, suffering from terrible dry skin on my hands and Mumma B bought me some Burt's Bees Shea Butter Hand Repair Creme in an attempt to stop my whining. It was great stuff and over the years since this first introduction I have had so many people recommend them to me that I thought it was about time I properly tried them out for myself and it turns out they have a range of sets that make perfect Christmas presents!

One of the recommendees was raving about the wonderful Radiance cream she'd been using so I've been trying out the Burt's Bees Radiant Gift Set to see whether it would be a good last minute Christmas present and I just love it. Even Mr J was to be seen using their body wash and loofah in his bath last night. It's about £15.65 and all products are made with Royal Jelly (made from nectar, pollen, flower parts, vitamins, minerals and rather bizarrely, bee hormones). The kit is designed to restore your skins natural radiance by scrubbing cleansing and moisturising - all the products in the kit are travel size as well so great to have in your washbag.

The kit contains - Burt's Bees Radiance Body Lotion (specially crafted to enhance your skins natural glow), Burt's Bees Radiance Lip Shimmer (now a permanent resident in my car this lip conditioner not only moisturises but gives your lips a sheer, radiant glow), Burt's Bees Radiance Day Creme (really lightweight and moisturising), Burt's Bees Radiance Night Creme (this gives you a deep overnight radiance boost) and Burt's Bees Radiance Exfoliating Body Wash (use with the loofah to cleanse and exfoliate your skin).

I have just loved using these products - they are gentle on your skin, moisturising and contain all natural ingredients so you know that what you are using is going to be kind to your skin. I think next year everyone I know will be getting a Burt's Bees kit of some sort - they do everything from Naturally Ageless to Burt's Bees Baby Bee 'Getting Started' Kit via new mothers and Burt's Bees Men's Grooming Gift Set! Their separate products are great too for a little something for someone that maybe you don't know too well - some of the Burt's Bees Shea Butter Hand Repair Creme is a fantastic thank you present to any woman who's house you are going to over the Christmas season. Burt's Bees - a real god send for the difficult present solution. xx

More MeMeMe

The more MeMeMe products I use the more impressed I am. Ok so they are not Dior or other designer quality (that would be ridiculous for the price they are) but they are reasonably priced, good cosmetics that do what they are supposed to. I reviewed their lip gloss last month and since then I have tried out their eye colour, mascara and lip gloss and I am really impressed with all of them.

Great for stocking fillers or as cheap, token presents for your girlfriends I'd go for either their Colourama long lasting cream eyeshadow or the Drama T'Eyes precision tip eyeliner pen. I tried the Liquid Bronze Colourama eyeshadow - it lasts for ages without creasing (quite unusual for a liquid colour I find) and the colour is so dramatic its perfect for Christmas parties. I tried mine out during the day and it wasn't too OTT so great for day to night make up.

For those of you who love liquid eyeliner the Drama T'Eyes is fantastic for a bit of precision. Nothing can persuade me to give up my old favourite L'Oreal SuperLiner but for precision flicks and end of the day pre-party touch ups I would not be without this amazing pen in my make-up bag. I love these products for credit crunch pressies or a Christmas party treat for you xx

Mon Amie

Our family isn't flooded with teenagers but they do crop up every now and again and they are usually girls. I know I should know what to get them being a girl myself, but I don't. I just don't know what's cool when you are 14 anymore. Help is at hand though. Designed by an ex-Estee Lauder exectuive, Fiona Parkhouse, who was tired of not being able to find suitable, affordable skin care for her daughter Amie products are the perfect solution

Amie products are designed specifically for young skin (teenagers to early twenties) and I've been trying out the Perfect Beauty Christmas Gift Set on my tough old 26 yr old skin for the last couple of weeks and I'm impressed. Winter can leave your skin dull, dry and dehydrated whatever age you are but a lot of products out there can be harsh on skin and those that aren't don't really do anything. Free from harmful chemicals and parabans this luxurious natural skin care range does the job without ruining the skin.

The set comes in a reusable cosmetic bag (always handy) and contains full size - Morning Dew Matte Finish Moisturiser, Bright Eyes Very Gentle Eye Make Up Remover, New Leaf Skin Exfoliating Polish, Morning Clear Purifying Facial Wash and Spring Clean Cooling Clay Mask sachet.

I've tried them all! I was really impressed with the Bright Eyes eye make up remover. I wear a lot of black eyeliner which most removers I've tried fail to get off completely. I was expecting this to be a bit of a failure when faced with the task of removing my eye make up but it worked! It was great and didn't leave the sensitive skin around my eyes feeling dried out and scrubbed. I would definitely use this again (I'm sure 26 counts as early twenties still).

I was intrigued by the Morning Dew matte finish moisturiser. Matte Finish? Really? Yes really. To me matte finish kind of implied drying but not only does it give great moisture the matte finish is great as a base for applying make up meaning you don't need to apply as much foundation or powder which is a win for everyone. It's awful seeing young girls with a mask of make up.

I used the Morning Clear facial wash this morning before going to see the Mumma B (the sternest of critics!) and the first thing she said to me was how great my skin was looking. Again I'm so used to products drying my skin out but this left it feeling smooth and soft and unabused. As does the New Leaf exfoliator - great for making sure your skin is completely clean and clear of any traces of make up.

I could rave about these products all day - I wish they'd be around when I was younger. Nobody seems to question what products you buy when you are a teenager - I'm assuming this is still the case - so to have something not only specifically for young skin but that actually work is wonderful. Available here for only £19.95 I would recommend this as a great Christmas present for the difficult-to-buy for young girl in your life xx

Tallica!!

For a belated birthday present I was given Jemma Kidd's Make Up Schools Metallica Colour Quartet. I have to admit that I've never tried any Jemma Kidd make-up before so not only was I touched that my friend had gone to so much trouble to find the perfect make-up for me (metallic is definitely my kind of make-up) but intrigued to try out the brand.

First off, first impressions and I love the packaging. It's fun without being too OTT. Sometimes I feel companies over emphasise the girliness off products which I don't need - I think I qualify as a woman now so everything does not need to be pink and cartoony! The actual eye creme comes in a lovely matte, rubberish feeling compact which is great!

I'm also not a huge user of cream eyeshadows so that was a pretty new experience too. The colours in this are really versatile - silver, gold, bronze and pewter - suitable for day and night and really easy to apply and build up depending on how subtle you like your eyes to be. I did find that they crease a tiny bit but in a sort of blending way so it wasn't at all noticable unless you are scrutinising your eye lids in a mirror after a night out.

This is a great present idea for the make-up fiend in your life or a treat for yourself as a treat for the pre-Christmas parties. Available online from SpaceNK it is £23.49 but a little goes a long way. For four different colours I think this is a pretty good deal!

Philip Kingsley Elasticizer

I heard a lot about Philip Kingsley Elastisizer before I tried it out and the hype was all true. One of the few conditioning treatments that you use before you wash your hair this adds stretchibility, bounce and shine, making a noticeable difference. In the two weeks that I've been using it my hair has become more manageable, looks in much better condition and I've had comments on how healthy and shiny its looking.

You can use this either as an intensive conditioning treatment or a quick 5 minute pick-me-up. Wet your hair and then before shampooing apply the Elasticizer in sections. If you have thick hair (I'm jealous) you can add all over, for those of us with finer hair apply from the mid lengths and ends. Then either put on the shower cap that's included and go and do something else for 10-20 minutes or just leave on for 5 mins and rinse. Then wash, dry and style your hair as normal.