Review: Molton Brown Coastal Cypress & Sea Fennel

Molton Brown Coastal Cypress & Sea Fennel Review - 1

Molton Brown is one of those brands I have a real love/hate relationship with. For everything they get right, they seem to do just as much wrong which can often leave me (and other customers) somewhat upset with their choices. I was a huge fan of their Recharge Black Pepper collection a few years back, it was spicy and subtly masculine, but then they reformulated it and it became way too overpowering and smelt slightly artificial. Their 4-in-1 sports wash was another great product that I found to be a gym bag essential, it was citrus-y, fresh and versatile. However, a few months back they re-released it using their black peppercorn formula and it lost its “fresh” character.

So when they reached out to me to ask if they could gift me their latest collection to review, I was suitably wary of what they had in store for me. Also, having never come across coastal cypress or sea fennel as fragrances before, I wasn’t sure if I’d be a fan of the scent. Nevertheless, I was happy to give it a trial and see how it performed. You can find my thoughts in their usual format below: View Post

Review: The Stoer Skincare Collection

Stoer Skincare

Earlier this year, Stoer Skincare (the brainchild of founder Marianne Morrison) had its soft launch in Harvey Nichols and rapidly became their top selling men’s cosmetics range that month. Since then I, alongside several other male bloggers, was invited to the Corinthia Hotel Spa in London to be introduced to the range, take it away for trial and discuss its creation with Marianne in greater detail. With its background firmly rooted in Scotland and crafted using the expertise of someone who spent years in the beauty industry listening to men complaining about having to buy women’s skincare as men’s was too basic, I was keen to try out this collection and give some top-level thoughts on the collection as a whole.

You can find my notes on the individual products below as well as my thoughts on packaging and pricing. View Post

Bentley Momentum Intense: Fragrance Review & Giveaway

Bentley Momentum Intense - 1

In the past I’ve tried to avoid fragrances created by car companies as, from previous experience, I find they are an example of a company applying its strengths in one area (i.e. cars) and attempting to apply them to fragrance with limited success. However, when I received invitation and early press samples of Bentley Momentum Intense, the latest cologne from the car manufacturer’s fragrance division, I was undeniably curious. So after a rather cold and wet trip through Central London, I headed to The Shard for the launch event in the Shangri-La hotel to see if Bentley could buck the trend of car company fragrances.

Also, there’s an opportunity for you to win a bottle of this fragrance before it hits the stores by following me on Twitter and retweeting the pinned post for this article. Winner’s will be announced in 2 weeks time on Wednesday 22nd March on Twitter.

View Post

A New Grooming Adventure with Mankind

Grooming Adventure

As those who know me/follow me online know, over the past two weeks I’ve been away in Mexico enjoying some time away from social media, my inbox and the London lifestyle, which I will be writing about in the coming weeks. Before I left, Mankind offered to gift me some products that I wouldn’t usually try to help me on my travels and keep my skin healthy in the tropical weather. Traditionally, I tend to have 3 major problems with my skin when I’m in sunny climates, namely dry skin around the eyes, blocked pores (from sun cream, dust and oil) and greasy skin (again thanks to oily sun cream).

With these ailments in mind, I chose 3 well reviewed/recommended products which would help remedy the issues and were relatively easy to travel with:

Having never used peel masks, eye patches or an oil-free sun guard before I was excited to see how they performed. So I packed my bags, jumped on my flight and began putting them through their paces in the Mexican heat. View Post

4 Favourite Empties for Winter Skincare

Winter Skincare

I realise that it’s all well and good for me to recommend products in reviews and guides but today I’ve decided to show you 4 products that I use regularly in my winter skincare routine and for proof, they’re all empty (or almost empty). These cover everything from moisturisers that will keep the skin protected against the winter cold, a face wash that is both fragrant and refreshing, a fiery shower gel for keeping the warmth of your hot shower with you and a gentle daily peel that will keep your skin tone even. No doubt the next restock is going to cost me dearly at this rate… View Post