Review: Caudalie Beauty Elixir

Caudalie Beauty Elixir | 30ml £10.35, 100ml £28.80

Available from Feel Unique

All of us cave and fall for hyped products at some point or another, it's just one of those things when it seems that everybody is raving about how amazing something is and how they 'can't live without it' then it seems crazy not to get yourself in on the action to see what all the fuss was about, and that's exactly what I did with this product. Sometimes the hype lives up, and sometimes it doesn't. The 'Beauty Elixir' from Caudalie is quite a controversial one, with the blogging community split probably 50:50 on whether or not this is worth the money.

So.. what is it supposed to do?

From Feel Unique: "Inspired by the 'elixir of youth' the Caudalie Beauty Elixir smoothes features, tightens pores, and gives the complexion a burst of radiance". An apparent favourite of Victoria Beckham this solution is intended to be an excellent base for make-up and an anti-dull complexion treatment.  There are a multitude of ways that this can be used: on a clean face for a freshen up, before moisturiser as a spray-on toner, inbetween foundation and powder to perfectly set make-up, or on top of a completed face during any point in the day for a radiance boost.

The main ingredients are: grape, orange blossom, rose, organic balm mint and rosemary to create a smoothed complexion, natural glow and radiance burst on the skin. The mint is the most detectable scent in this and it creates a gentle tingle upon application, but the mint combined with the scents of grape, rose and orange creates something really unique. It's not a scent to everybody's taste, and at first I wasn't sure if it was something I liked or not but as time went on I found it to be incredibly refreshing and calming at the same time and it became quite addictive.

So.. what do I think?

It has taken me quite a while to form an opinion on this, but I think the fact that I did repurchase it almost straight after finishing my first bottle shows that I do feel there is an element of worthiness with it. Spending £10 on 30ml of 'water' is not a decision to be taken lightly!! It's an odd one this because sometimes it feels like it's not actively doing anything to your skin, and there are no instantly visible benefits, it's just a spritz of tingly minty water onto your face.. yes, admit it, by using this that is all that you're really doing. But once you've tried it you'll understand how nice and refreshing it feels and there is no going back! It's strange to enjoy using something so very simple. This is the conclusion that I have come to: Is it worth the money? No, it is overpriced. Is it worth the hype? It's worth a little hype, not a huge hype. Would I repurchase again? If Feel Unique had a sale/discount code and I was feeling flush.. I would treat myself, yes.

I guess it's personal preference how you use this, but for me personally I like to give my face a couple of spritzes in the evening, after I've cleansed my face and before I apply night cream just before I hop into bed. It sits pretty on my bedside table, looking luxurious in it's frosted glass bottle with French writing it all over it, and I've found it to be the perfect night time treat to calm down my skin. Other times that I use this are if I've finished putting on my make-up and something just 'doesn't look right' still with my complexion, especially as I've got quite generally dull skin, I just close my eyes and spray once for that little something extra and I really enjoy using it. 

Is this 'Beauty Elixir' something that is in your life?

Have you ever been curious of the hype surrounding it?

Leave your opinions below!

Redken Smooth Lock Range

Ladies and gentlemen, let me please introduce to you the greatest hair care range that I have ever used ..ever! (Terrible pictures, I know, but I took them in a mad rush to take advantage of a rare moment of sunlight!) The range that I talking about is a relatively new line from Redken, called 'Smooth Lock'. A nourishing hair care range that contains almond oil for a silky smooth shine, interlock protein network for strength, and thermo-active polymers for heat defence and a frizz free finish. The clue is in the name for the finished result that using these will give to your hair: smooth.

Frizz is one of the main problems that I have with my badly behaved hair and this definitely helps to keep it tamed and well and truly under control. The shampoo doesn't feel all that impressive, it just gives the hair a good clean without stripping too much moisturiser away, whereas the conditioner and the deep treatment are the real stars of the show! Smelling beautifully of almonds the rich and creamy formulas nourish the hair all the way to the very tip, leaving it smooth as silk and perfectly manageable.

As it's a pricey handful of products I only tend to use these on an occasion where I know I'll be blasting my hair with some form of heat after I've washed it, especially as it does contain heat activated formulas that will nourish and protect the hair, so the extra added step of heat defence can be skipped. Even without blow drying, after using this my can will happily dry to a smooth, sleek and frizz free style of its own accord which quite literally amazes me. My hair could pass as if a professional had spent a decent amount of time with a brush and a diffuser smoothing down my flyaways and giving my hair some discipline that can last for days!

I bought the shampoo and conditioner as part of a gift set duo around Christmas time and it cost me £17.00 for the pair, but individually these will cost you £10.65 and £11.70 for a 300ml and 250ml bottle. The 'butter silk', or deep treatment, I purchased at a later date after realising how much I loved the shampoo and conditioner and how much good they were doing for my hair. The 250ml tub will set you back a very hefty  £17.65 but I think that it's worth every penny (all available from Feel Unique). Also available from the range is 'Stay Sleek' leave-in cream, and 'Heat Glide' heat defence spray.

Have you ever tried this range from Redken before? Or do you prefer one of their other ranges?

Do you agree that you get what you pay for with professional hair care?

Leave me a comment and let me know!

Collective January Beauty Haul | Feel Unique, ASOS, Topshop and More..

|| Instagram: Hannahripley1

Hi there chums! Happy February! I thought I'd start off this month by showing you the accumulative beauty purchases from January. As a self-professed shopoholic I would say that what I've bought isn't tooo bad for a whole month of shopping as I'm usually a lot less controlled than this. I have also decided that I am going to choose February, the shortest month of the year, to put myself on a month long spending ban because if I can't do it for 28 days then I'll never be able to do it at all. Expect this post to be just one great big sneak peek of a lot of my upcoming posts this month! 

Feel Unique

This online splurge made just before Feel Unique's winter sale ended was probably the priciest order/purchase from this month as it contains a couple of high end products and even though they were in the sale they still cost an arm and a leg. The Caudalie Beauty Elixir (£10.35 £9.90) was a repurchase, the Redken Smooth Lock treatment (£17.65 £14.21) is to go with the shampoo and conditioner from the same range that I use and love, the Redken Radiant-10 treatment spray (£22.10 £9.99) was one that I tried a sample size of months and months ago but just never got round to buying the full size until I saw it in the sale for less than half price, and the Burts Bees mango lip balm (£2.99) is something new for me but I'd heard great things and it was definitely love at first use.

ASOS

Models Own Freak Out - £5.00. I did a post on this glitter topcoat from Models Own Mirrorball collection a couple of days ago and it seemed to go down quite well. The colour that I'm wearing underneath is Models Own 'Feeling Blue' and you can see my full post on this nail varnish here: LINK.

Superdrug

I'm sure most people are aware of Superdrug's offer on their dry shampoo - buy one get two free! It's a great deal and one that I just couldn't turn down, especially when one can is only £1.99! While I was there I also picked up of the St. Ives facial scrubs to try out because these were on offer for half price and also only cost £1.99. The next time I went into Superdrug I got myself a little bargain with their Face Form Palette (£10.00) because I had enough points on my loyalty card to pay for it with points! Woo! This palette contains 3 pressed powders to create the perfect sculpted face (contour, highlighter and blush). I've not had much of a play with this yet but once I have I'll be sure to review it in full.

Boots

Well, this was inevitable! Rimmel's new release of their super pigmented and long lasting lip lacquers, cleverly named 'Apocalips', have taken the beauty world by storm and have only been out for just over a week. These cost £5.99 each and I originally picked up the shades Big Bang, Apocalyptic and Stellar as part of a 3 for 2 offer across all of Rimmel products in Boots, and loved them so much that I ended up going back for a 4th colour and picked up Nova! (I still want Celestial too). I originally intended to review these today but I woke up with a pretty little spot on my top lip - such annoying timing!! No one wants to see a lip swatch that includes a spot do they (haha!) so now I'm going to attack it with lotions and potions and post the review in a few days time when the spot has hopefully cleared off. 

Primark

I picked up these make-up bags because they were cheap and cheerful and will always come in handy. The studded turquoise one was in the sale for only £1.00 and the floral one cost £3.00. These nail pens look extremely similar to ones recently brought out by Topshop that cost £6.50 each, whereas these Primark dupes cost just £2.00 for a pair! I'm not one for creative nail art because my hand isn't very steady, but as a beginner it was worth the £2 just to be able to have a little experiment. One pen is black and the other is white, and both of them have a pen and a brush applicator, plus a little pot of gems too - bargain. This raspberry and papaya candle was only £2.00 and smells amazing!

Topshop

Topshop sale is still going on at the moment but I only managed to bag myself some accessories. Do tights count as accessories? These tights originally cost £10.00 a pair which I think is ridiculous, but they were down to just £2 in the sale, and I get student discount too which made them only £1.80. I found this bracelet/ring in the tangled up sale jewellery and I am pretty fond of it! I've never seen anybody with it before and it was only £2 too. As usual I was drawn over to the rainbow of a make-up stand and the colours I chose definitely reflect that I am pining for summer now! I got a velvet finish peachy pink lipstick 'Macaroon' (£8) and a similar shade nail varnish 'Flamingo Coral' (£5).

Lush

Last but not least, I nipped into Lush yesterday on my way to the train station to get a bath bomb for my weekend pamper and I walked out with Fizz Banger, a toffee apple scented bath ballistic that apparently fizzes and pops as it spins around the bath - I can't wait to use this tonight! (£3.20).

Hair Care Haul | ft. FeelUnique & Boots

I have had two mini splurges this week and treated myself to some new products, not many, just a few. One lot was an order from www.FeelUnique.com and the other from a trip Boots. I've split this weeks haul into two parts; 'skin care and make-up' (posted yesterday, you can see it here: link) and 'hair care' (this one that you're reading right now).

L'Oreal Elvive Full Restore 5 Hair Mask
£5.22 for 300ml, from Boots.
I have never used this mask before but have heard good things about it and I am looking forward to giving it a try and seeing if it lives up to its promises of restoring my hair. 

Lee Stafford 'For Hair That Never Grows Past A Certain Length' Treatment

£7.99 for 200ml, from Boots. CURRENT OFFER: 3 LEE STAFFORD PRODUCTS FOR £12.

I went out and bought myself three new tubs of this treatment because I had finished off my second tub the day before and I am absolutely in love with this product. It was also a bargain being 3 for £12 and I saved myself a massive £11.97 because of the offer they had on. I am going to do a full review of this product in coming week singing its praises and explaining why I love it so much and the changes that it has made to my hair. In a nutshell this mask contains a protein complex that nourishes your hair follicles and scalp, helping hair to anchor to the scalp reducing loss and address the hair at a cellular level. This is quite a unique mask as it is one that focuses on improving hair condition from the very beginning by helping the roots, instead of trying to treat the already dead ends. 

Redken Extreme Anti-Snap Leave In Treatment

£12.55 for 250ml, from Feel Unique.

I absolutely fell in love with a sample Redken product that I received inside my August SheSaid Beauty Box and was browsing to buy the full sized version of it when I came across a whole array of different Redken products that looked absolutely amazing. I opted for the anti-snap treatment because the ends of my hair have been bleached to create the ombre effect and I often worry about their condition, despite smothering them in argon oil after every wash. I'm trying my best to grow my hair and it's obviously growing because I have visible roots, but the length doesn't appear to be increasing at the same rate and this is likely because the ends are snapping off. :(. So if this treatment does as it promises and protects the ends of my hair, whilst the Lee Stafford treatment nourishes my roots, then it should be no time at all before I have hair that would make even Rapunzel jealous.

♥

Skin Care and Make-Up Haul | ft. FeelUnique & Boots

I've had two mini splurges this week and treated myself to some new products, not many, just a few. One lot was an order from www.FeelUnique.com and the other from a trip Boots.  I've split this weeks haul into two parts: 1) 'skin care and make-up' (this one right here that you're reading right now) and 2) 'hair care' (which will be posted tomorrow).

Clean & Clear Morning Energy Shine Control Lotion

Reduced to £2 in the 'clearance' section of Boots. I couldn't find the original price anywhere on the Boots website but on the Superdrug website it says £3.99.
I always have a little nosy at the 'clearance' section in Boots if I'm wandering past just to see if there's any little bargains to be found. I spotted this lotion with a big £2 sticker on it and I thought 'ah, I'm looking for a new toner and I have oily skin too' so thought it would be good to give a try. The bottle says that it's gentle enough to be used daily and can be used either morning or evening, so I first tried it out on the evening that I had bought it. After cleansing I opened the bottle and gave it a sniff and thought that it smelt absolutely gorgeous! So fresh and fruity with a strong hint of apple - lovely. So I tipped some onto my cotton pad, started rubbing around my face and it started burning my eyes and felt like I was rubbing pure vodka around my face! Such a strong alcohol smell that I could almost taste it. I looked on the ingredients list and there it is, second in the list: alcohol denat. It's something that I guess I could get around because it did seem to work and I felt as though it did keep the oil at bay for the whole day, but it is an incredibly drying product at the same time. Explains why it was in the clearance section! I will keep this product, but it will get put in a drawer and used on the odd occasion when I'm feeling super oily - it will definitely not become a part of my every day skin care regime. 

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick - 016 'Heart Breaker'
£4.99 in Boots.

This was my first dip into the realm of Rimmel lipsticks and I felt a little overwhelmed looking at the stand and seeing all of the different ranges that they had; the Kate Moss ones, the new Kate Moss ones, the Lasting Finish ones, the Moisture Renew ones.. it was a bit 'agh what do I want?!' and to not help matters there was a severe lack of testers available. After a lot of deliberation I settled for a Lasting Finish lipstick in the shade 016 'Heart Breaker' - a very deep redish pink, quite a 'vampy' shade I would say as it's so dark, not a colour that I'm used to wearing on my lips. But I've fallen pretty hard for this new lipstick and cannot wait for autumn/winter to come around so I can wear it every day. I love the texture, it feels lovely and smooth, is super pigmented and definitely long lasting. Plus, at less than £5 it's a great price too! Winning.

Caudalie Beauty Elixir 30ml

£9.90 for 30ml / £25.92 for 100ml, from Feel Unique.
I've had this for 3 days now and used it just one time each day so of course I cannot give my full thoughts on it just yet. I do plan on doing a full and in depth review of this in the future as I want to do a little series of reviews on some of the 'Blogger Hypes' featuring the most raved (and ranted) about products, starting with this beauty elixir and including other coveted items such as the Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish, the Bioderma Solutions and the Origins Super Spot Remover. My first impressions of this beauty elixir is that it's very nice and refreshing on the skin, a lovely little 'wake-me-up' in the mornings or as a refresher part way through the day, I'm just not very keen on the scent. It does have a very strong scent and I'm just hoping that it's something I can get past/get used to.

*Free samples included with Feel Unique order:

- Caudalie Vinoperfect Day Perfecting Fluid SPF15

- Caudalie Vinoperfect Radiance Serum Complexion Correction

- Paco Rabanne 'Lady Million' Eau de Toilette
The two Caudalie samples were part of a promotional offer and you received the duo as a complimentary gift with the purchase of any beauty elixir. I've enjoyed using these two samples and they feel extremely luxurious but I doubt they'd be something I would repurchase as their main aim is to target dark spots, something that I do not have. When I saw the tiny 2ml sample I thought that I wouldn't even be able to cover one cheek with it, but I actually managed to cover my entire face 3 times! A little really does go a long way. With just the three uses I did not see any noticeable complexion correction but I'm sure you would do with prolonged use, and the day perfecting fluid made a lovely base for make-up. I felt that it had similar properties to a primer with the way that it smoothed out the skin tone as well as moisturising and creating a radiant glow on the skin. A range that I would be very interested in if I was around 30 years older perhaps!
The EDT sample was just popped in there as a bonus. This is a very loved and raved about perfume and after trying out this sample I can see why - definitely popping this onto my birthday list!

♥