A Tale of Two Moisturisers

Hello, thank you for dropping in.  Guess what? The sun is shining!  

 

This is the first time I have reviewed any product here but I am desperately feeling the need to share.  I have been using moisturiser on my face for about thirty-five years and for about thirty of those years, it's come from The Body Shop. In the mid-1980s it was difficult to get hold of cosmetic products which met my ethical requirements but then The Body Shop came to town: the products didn't contain animal products and neither they nor their ingredients were tested on animals; you could buy the stuff in very small bottles, so it was affordable and you could try new things easily; when those bottles were empty, you could wash them out and take them back to the store to be refilled rather than throwing them into landfill; their bags were made of paper rather than plastic.  I also liked their campaigning stance - Greenpeace, Fair Trade, local communities.  It was cutting-edge stuff back then and for a would-be eco-warrior like me it was just perfect.  And because loyalty is one of my traits, I have stuck with them ever since, even after Anita Roddick sold out to L'Oreal nine years ago.  (I was very concerned about that but a long chat with the manager of my local store convinced me that it would be OK, that L'Oreal was committed to maintaining the cruelty free stance.  I'm not so sure now.)

 

Of course, I haven't always used the same moisturiser: as I became older and my skin changed there was always a Body Shop product which met my needs.  This is the one I have been using for a long time now -

 

My skin is dry and sensitive and I have rosacea, a relapsing condition which means that I am prone to redness and spots.  My skin often feels hot and my face becomes red very easily - one glass of red wine, spicy food, hot weather.  I am sick and tired of people assuming that I have sunburn in the summer (although not this summer!) when in fact, I always use a high SPF suncream on my face when I am out in the sun -  it's the heat which makes me red, not the sunshine.  This Aloe range is gentle and soothing and I use it daily.  However, at £12 for 50ml it's not at all frugal and even though I only buy it when there is a 40% off sale, it's still £7.20 for a pot and that's too much.  So, when I read about Superdrug's Vitamin E Skin Care range here I thought I would give their moisturiser a try.

 

  

I am so glad I did.  I shan't be going back.  This one is lovely.  I do miss the instant cooling effect of the Body Shop one but the Best Beloved, who has a background in chemistry, says that that's probably due to a higher water content, and who wants to pay extra for added water?  Not me.  The Superdrug cream is not too heavy, makes my skin feel soft and smooth all day long and has a pleasant smell redolent of 1980s suncream which instantly transports me to the Mediterranean holidays of my teens.  I've been using it for four weeks now with no problems.  It's cruelty free and best of all, it costs £1.99 for 100ml, that's less than 9% of the cost of the Body Shop moisturiser (at full price).

 

 

So, if you have dry skin and an almost-empty purse, I recommend you give it a try.  I wish I'd known about it years ago. 

 

See you soon.

 

Love, Mrs Tiggywinkle x