A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

There was nothing that my teen-self liked better than spending a Saturday afternoon sniffing her way around the carousel of fragrance oils in my local Body Shop.  I used to lose hours in that store, coming away smelling like an odd fuzzy peach/dewberry fruit hybrid.  I can only imagine the Pepé Le Pew-esque trail I must have left in my wake as I wandered up the high street toward Pilot.

This August will see the launch of The Body Shop’s first 100% organic fragrance collection.  The hand-picked, natural extracts have been blended with community fair-trade alcohol under the supervision of fragrance experts and I, for one, am I excited to see if I can relive my youth, turn back the clock, erase some crowsfeet, re-ignite some fond memories when they hit the shelves next month.

The range comprises five new scents, described thus:

Japanese Cherry Blossom: Fruity and floral, with top notes of Fuji apple and Chinese magnolia, alongside real Japanese cherry blossom.

Indian Night Jasmine: Spicy and seductive, notes of sandalwood and violet leaf fuse with orange blossom and jasmine from India.

Atlas Mountain Rose: Amber and musk combine with citrus notes, exotic spices and mountain rose extracts from Morocco.

Madagascan Vanilla Flower: An Oriental gourmand delight with notes of amber, frangipani, and vanilla from Madagascar.

Amazonian Wild Lily: Green and fresh with iris, orchid and papaya alongside white lilies from Brazil.

One of my favourite “lighter” day scents (you know I like the heavy stuff!) is a Body Shop one that was a limited edition release last year, so I’m really hoping that the brand will have conjured up something special with this new range.

The new Scents of the World fragrance collection will be available from August.

EAU DE TOILETTE RRP £15.00 50ML

FRAGRANCE MIST RRP £7.00 100ML

BODY LOTION RRP £9.00 200ML

BODY WASH RRP £8.00 200ML

PERFUME OIL RRP £7.00 15ML

Were you a Dewberry, White Musk or Fuzzy Peach kinda girl?

Bubble & Balm may only be a year old, but their products are already making a splash at one of the UK’s top supermarkets!

The range includes a selection of liquid and clear glycerine bar soaps that are the first natural soaps to carry the FAIRTRADE Mark in the UK.

Available in Citrus or Lavender and made in the UK using traditional methods, each product is naturally formulated with plant and essential oils and enriched with glycerine to soothe and moisturise. The entire range is suitable for vegetarians to use and is free from parabens, sodium lauryl/laureth sulphate and phthalates.

The luxury hand wash retails at £4.95, and the bar soaps – which are packaged in a watertight aluminium tin that doubles up as a soap dish are priced at £4.85 each.

Have you spotted these whilst doing your weekly shop yet?

In March 1976, the late Dame Anita Roddick founded The Body Shop in Littlehampton – a small seaside town on the South coast of England.  Fast forward 34 years to the present day and The Body Shop now boasts the second largest cosmetic franchise in the world.

I went along to The Westbury Hotel in Mayfair last week to hear a presentation on behalf of The Body Shop who are currently celebrating 22 years of community trade across the globe.  From India to Namibia, Guatemala to Samoa the world is their garden and as a company, they want us to know that they’re taking measures to protect it and the lives it supports.

It’s currently Fairtrade Fortnight (22nd Feb – 7th Mar) and The Body Shop were keen to highlight and explain exactly what Community Trade (CT) means and what it involves.

4 of the 6000 women that make up the Eudafano Women’s Cooperative (EWC) in Namibia.  The EWC supplies  The Body Shop wih Marula Oil (used in nearly all their cosmetics).

Community Trade works along the same principles as Fair Trade, but was established back in 1987 before the Fair Trade mark was available or had indeed become fashionable.  From what I understood, the main difference is that the foundations of fair trade are laid much deeper in the CT program and work to support the producer’s whole community, not just the producers themselves.  The Body Shop also made it clear that they never enter CT relationships for the short term and only commit to sustainable trading relationships that help affect real social change.

Click play on the video below to learn more about The Body Shop’s involvement with Community Trade:

Two of The Body Shop’s major CT suppliers were in attendance and it was a rare and interesting opportunity to hear how their involvement with The Body Shop affects the communities and co-operatives they represent.  It became clear very quickly that the democratic relationship between the ‘industries’ was a precious one to both parties.

Whilst I was sitting there, the antagonist in me kept thinking “What do The Body Shop get out of these CT arrangements when it means they have to pay more for their ingredients?”.  Thankfully, Christina from The Body Shop didn’t shy away from that subject and explained that it is simply expected of them to uphold the core values that, as a company, they’ve always claimed to represent.  Community Trade allows them to continue their commitments to trading with a conscience whilst benefiting from the (often ancient) knowledge of real experts and assured quality products.

I’m willing to admit that in the past, I’ve accused The Body Shop products of being overpriced and in comparison to products I can buy in other high street stores, they are.  I still may only be able to afford to treat myself to my Olive Glossing Shampoo & Conditioner when I’m feeling flush, but I will now hand over my money with a degree of contentment.  It’s good to know that every purchase made contributes to making a real and sustained difference to communities.  Communities that without the CT backing by The Body Shop would be powerless to break into global markets or risk plundering by unethical industry.