Special Gift feat. Ida Naturals - Crafted to Care

Lip Soother – Mini Dabbi

Natural Skin Glow Pack

Basil Turmeric Milk & Honey - Natural Handmade Soap

Irresistable Chocolate Orange Mousse - Natural Handmade Soap

Carrot Honey Butter - Natural Handmade Soap

Hello beauties!! Summers are here in full swing and so is sun damage, dirt and pollution. During summers, the exposed areas of our body bear the brunt. Since I commute to office and back using public transport my skin is going through a tough time nowadays. Exfoliation comes to my rescue to deeply cleanse the skin from within. I was recently sent Creamy Sugar Scrub for reviewing by Mrs Harini Sivakumar who's the brains behind the Gurugram (Gurgaon) based handmade bath and body treats brand Soapworks. Since I'm a sucker for handmade body scrubs/polishes, I jumped at the opportunity. To know about my experience, keep reading.

About the brand:

Indulge in natural, ethical body care; pure luxury for your skin!

Skin and body care shouldn't be a chore. It should be a moment of indulgence in our otherwise crazy days. And that indulgence shouldn't come with any worries about what you're using. With soapworks soaps, you can be confident that what your putting on your skin is good and safe for your skin.

We use pure, vegan ingredients from nature to create our products. Our ingredients are natural, organic and selected for their skin loving properties. These soaps are free from chemicals and they don't need any harsh preservatives. All this means that you can indulge freely...this stuff is good for you. (Did we say that already? Well, it's true!)

About the product:

Say goodbye to dull and dry skin with this very gentle exfoliating body scrub. It contains sugar to exfoliate while moisturizing with our unique combination of creamy shea butter, olive oil, sweet almond oil and Apricot Kernel oil. We have formulated this scrub to be a creamy consistency without messy excess oil floating to the top. No need to stir or shake prior to use! Simply massage into wet skin after using your usual soap and rinse. Your skin will feel like silk. Follow with our lotion bar of your choice for complete moisturizing.

Scented with strawberry cream and feels really smooth on skin.. this creamy scrub in short is a lotion, soap and a scrub.. 3 in 1 formula.

Price: INR 399 for 120 gm
Shelf Life: n/a
Available: Here
Ingredients: Beeswax, E-wax, Shea butter, Sweet almond oil, Apricot Kernel oil, Olive oil, Organic sugar and Strawberry cream fragrance oil.
Packaging: The scrub comes in a sturdy brown coloured plastic container with a black lid and it looks quite regal and reminds me of packaging of this particular range from The Body Shop. I do wish the jar had an inner disc or a foil to prevent the oils from leaking because when I had received the product the oils had leaked a little bit. Details like price, shelf life and date of mfg are missing from the label.



My Experience:

Soapworks Handmade & Natural Creamy Sugar Scrub is baby pink in colour with sugar granules suspended in a base of skin loving oils. The scrub has a thick gooey paste like consistency and smells absolutely divine of Strawberry Creme. It truly feels like a luxurious product since the quality of the product is very good and it's cruelty free, devoid of harsh chemicals.

I use the scrub once a week and use a clean and dry spatula to scoop out desired product and massage it it gently on damp skin. Since the scrub has slightly large sugar granules, it falls to the floor and you are left with less granules which does provide gentle exfoliation, also it being an emulsified sugar scrub the scrub turns into a creamy lotion upon massage and you need to rinse a couple of times to remove the scrub completely. Upon rinsing, the dead skin cells do get removed effectively but if you prefer your body scrubs to a bit on the abrasive side like me then you might be in for a slight disappointment as this scrub is super gentle on the skin. The scrub is loaded with skin loving oils like sweet almond, olive, apricot kernel hence it causes no dryness and instead moisturises the skin so you may skip moisturisation post bath in summers. The scrub softens the skin and brightens the skin tone as well. The scrub is suitable for all skin types including sensitive types. Surprisingly, the divine strawberry cream fragrance stays put on the skin for an hour or so before completely fading and as remarked earlier, I am in love with it's delicate fragrance which makes one feel like they are using a high end product.

To conclude, Soapworks Handmade & Natural Creamy Sugar Scrub is a decent body scrub to remove dead skin, grime off the skin without stripping it off it's natural oils.



Will I recommend: Of course I will! :) If you are looking for a gentle scrub which would do it's job and is safe to use frequently then go for it.

Pros:

• Handmade, natural and cruelty free.
• Contains a blend of skin loving oils like olive, sweet almond etc.
• Sturdy packaging but not leak proof.
• Smells divine! I love love love it's delicate fragrance. It feels like a high end product.
• Very gentle on the skin.
• Removes dead skin cells and cleanses the skin.
• Can be used frequently by those who love exfoliating more than twice a week (though I don't advocate exfoliation of the body more than twice a week)
• Sensitive skinned beauties are in for a bonanza as this scrub is very very mild.
• Does not strip the skin off it's natural oils.
• Softens the skin and brightens the skin tone. 

• Contains natural ingredients.
• Cruelty free and handmade.
• Removes dead skin cells and cleans out the pores.
• Smells good but it may be a bit strong for people with sensitive noses.
• Very reasonably priced for a handmade product. Will last long if used wisely.
• Doesn't dehydrate the skin.
• Gives a nice glow and reduces sun tan to an extent if used consistently.
• Doesn't stain the skin despite turmeric being one of the ingredient.

Hello lovelies!! It's getting super hot here in North India and one needs something refreshing to making the bathing experience a joyful one. I chanced upon this brand called Amara Organix on Facebook and after my discussion with the brainchild of the brand Mrs Mehar Farhana, I made my first purchase. Mrs Mehar is based at Chennai and she painstakingly handcrafts bath and body goodies in her home kitchen which are made using choicest and pure ingredients. All her products are chemical free and are super gentle on the skin. One of the product that I purchased from the brand is Green Apple Body Wash which I am going to review today. Read on to know more about my experience:

About the brand:

Amara Organix believes in safe skin care and hence strives to deliver natural, organic and handmade concoction of Skin friendly products.

About the product:

n/a

Price: INR 160 for 100 ml (the price has been revised, it costs INR 180 now)
Shelf Life: 6 months from the date of manufacturing.
Available: Here
Ingredients: Potassium hydroxide, jojoba oil, lavender oil, coconut oil, distilled water, green apple extracts.
Packaging: The body wash comes in a transparent plastic bottle with a white coloured flip top cap which allows one control over the quantity of the product to be dispersed. The full ingredients list and other details like price, shelf life and date of mfg are missing from the labels, I hope the brand will take heed of this.


My experience:

AO Green Apple Body Wash is mint green in colour and smells exactly like juicy green apples and has a thin consistency. I use a decent amount of product on a wet loofah and gently massage it across my body. The body wash produces decent lather and cleans and softens the skin gently and effectively without dehydrating it. The addition of coconut oil and jojoba oil make sure the skin doesn't get dry and is nourished thoroughly. The body wash didn't irritate my skin and instead my skin felt fresh post use.

The body wash has a lovely and refreshing aroma of juicy green apples which doesn't bother at all. The aroma is light and fades off as soon as the body wash is rinsed which I don't mind as too much fragrance could irritate the skin.

Overall, it's a good body wash which softens and cleans the skin and doesn't make the skin dry post use! The product is made using natural ingredients however a patch test is still recommended.

Will I recommend: Absolutely!

• Handmade and cruelty free.
• Contains skin loving oils.
• Good and simple packaging.
• Has a lovely aroma of juicy green apples.
• Cleans and nourishes the skin.
• Doesn't cause dryness.
• Rinses off easily.
• Reasonably priced.

 It's getting super hot here and my skin is going through a horrible time. I've developed rough patches due to the sun, dust and pollution that my skin is subjected to on daily basis while commuting and back from office. I am trying to take good care of my skin (would you guys be interested in a current skincare routine post?) and one of the product that I have been using is from the house of Gia Bath and Body Works which is a renowned brand for handcrafting bath and body goodies using choicest and finest natural ingredients. Let's see how the Coffee Facial Cleanser from the brand fared for me.


About the product:

Combat UV damage and improve the strength, resilience, and elasticity of your facial skin.Coffee significantly improves collagen and elastin production, decreases skin roughness and wrinkle formation, and reduces the appearance of crow’s feet. This luxurious facial scrub will help tighten your facial skin and keep it happy.

Price: INR 590 for 150 gm
Shelf Life: 8 months from the date of manufacturing.
Available: Here
Ingredients: (refer to the picture below)


Packaging: The cleanser cum scrub comes in a plastic jar with gold coloured screw cap which shuts tightly. The jar may feel a little bulky to carry so it's best adviced to carry some amount of product in a small, clean and dry jar whilst travelling.

My Experience:

Gia Bath and Body Works Coffee Facial Cleanser is dark brown in colour with grainy texture and smells EXACTLY like coffee. The aroma is so delicious and awesome. It also has a very uplifting aroma which is sure to wake you up which in no way is overpowering. The coffee cleanser is loaded with benefits of coffee grounds which helps in exfoliating and tightening the skin, apart from that the cleanser also contains rose petal powder, kaolin clay, moroccan clay which are known to clean and nourish the skin while pulling out impurities. I use the cleanser cum scrub 3-4 times a week, I use a clean and dry spoon to scoop out desired product, create a thick paste using a couple drops of water (you may also use rose water or raw milk) and massage it gently across my face, the presence of coffee grounds exfoliate the skin but they are very mild so it doesn't hurt the skin. I leave it on for a minute and rinse thoroughly with tepid water. The cleanser gives a squeaky clean feel without drying the skin. My skin feels super soft and smooth post rinse and yes there's a nice glow too on the face which sadly doesn't last long.



The product can be used in three ways, i.e., you may use it as a cleanser, scrub and mask. I've used it in all three ways and it has not disappointed me in either way. The cleanser indeed feels very luxurious upon use and the best part it's handcrafted using natural and pure ingredients which are great for the skin. It keeps your conscious clean too.

To conclude, GBABW coffee cleanser is a great addition to skincare stash! The product claims to decrease skin roughness which is true to a great extent. However I cannot claim on other claims like skin tightening, reduce in appearance of crow's feet as I've not experienced anything of the sort. The product is completely natural but a patch test is still recommended.

Will I recommend: Absolutely!

Pros:

• Very little quantity is required so the product will last long.
• Cleans the skin thoroughly without dehydrating the skin.
• Smells delicious. The aroma is enough to wake one up.
• Imparts a nice and healthy glow.
• Good and simple packaging.
• The skin feels soft and smooth post use.
• The product serves three purposes, i.e., it can be used as a scrub, cleanser and mask.
• True to some of the claims.

Disclosure: This product is my own purchase and the views and opinions expressed hereby are strictly unbiased, based on my personal experience.