Lacura // Tropical Essence Booty Balm Review

Lacura // Tropical Essence Booty Balm
RRP £4.99 for 250ml

I bought this from Aldi some time in September 2025.

First Impressions:
I have a feeling this will be a love or hate scent for people. It looks like a Bum Bum cream dupe, but it's not. The scent is unique and nothing like Cheirosa '62 (the signature Sol de Janiero scent). This is more musky and tropical. Incredibly sweet, more like a dessert. The guarana is very strong. I love it. The consistency of the product is buttery and smooth. It spreads and absorbs well without being greasy. It even leaves the scent behind on my bedding which I really enjoy. it's kind of like wearing perfume to bed. The weird part is the sparkles. It's very glittery, you can't visibly see it in the product but I wondered why my skin was shimmering in the light the next morning.

Usage
First use - Beginning November 2025
Last use - 30.12.2025

Would I buy it: If I see it in an Aldi store again, yes.

Overall Impressions:
I saw this discounted to £2.99 as they were clearing out the last of their summer stock and I impulse bought it. I'm glad I did. Sometimes I poo-poo the Aldi beauty products but this one is actually solid. It's a shame my local Aldi doesn't actually have a body moisturiser in stock all year round because this did a standup job. I can usually tell if a body moisturiser is rubbish because the skin on my hips and knees go flaky and itchy but with this everything stayed nice and moisturised. Hopefully this range comes back next year (I also saw this range for summer 2023).

The Body Shop // Warm Vanilla Body Butter Review

The Body Shop // Warm Vanilla Body Butter
RRP - (No longer sold, Christmas 2019 special)

This is a 200ml tub that I bought from a Body Shop outlet store in June 2020 for £7.50.

First Impressions:

This smells heavenly. I can see why it was a Christmas special. It has this warm, buttery smell that makes me want to curl up by a fire and toast marshmallows. I've not used a Body Shop body butter in over a year now due to having to use up various creams and it's so nice to be using one again. My skin feels amazing and I love the slight greasy feeling it leaves behind. I always shower at night and I love lathering my skin in something that smells nice before going to bed. It's just relaxing to me.

Usage
First use - 18th June 2020
Last use - 12th July 2020

Would I buy it: Yes.

Overall Impressions:

I forgot how quickly I go through Body Shop body butters. This lasted about 25 days which is about right as I used to go through a tub every month. It's been a long time though since I last used a Body Shop body butter and I can honestly say I've missed them. I only ever buy them when I can get them for 50% off as I don't think they're worth £15. Fortunately there is an outlet store near me so I tend to pick up 4/5 in one go of whatever is going super cheap. The pumpkin Spice ones are the only scent I truly hate (I've never been a cinnamon fan).

Even though you do end up going through it ridiculously fast, this is still one of my favourite moisturisers; my skin just feels so soft and I don't have to battle with dry patches anymore. My knees and elbows felt like sandpaper after a month of that Stone Street Soaphouse body cream. I also love the texture; they truly are the best body butters.

Stone Street Soaphouse // Hay Ho! Wholesome Body Cream Review

Stone Street Soaphouse // Hay Ho! Wholesome Body Cream
RRP £24 for 250ml

This is a full size 250ml tub that I bought in the FabFitFun Spring edit sale in April 2020 for $10.80 (including tax).

First Impressions:

This does not smell great...it's like grass. I'm one of the few people in the world it feels like who does not like the smell of grass. It also leaked in the box and the lid is covered in crusty product. It has this weird lip at the top due to the tub design and it makes it a little difficult to scoop product out as it's not really a butter or cream...it has a much thinner consistency; like a lotion. 

Usage

First use - 1st June 2020

Last use - 17th June 2020

8th June 2020 - It's been 7 days and I'm halfway through the tub. 250ml body butters usually last me a month but I've been having to use more than usual because this doesn't leave my skin feeling moisturised. It leaves it feeling kind of dry and crusty. It's not great. I've noticed that my skin drinks up my body oil that I apply afterwards and I've been having to use more of the body oil to keep my skin moisturised.

Would I buy it: No.

Overall Impressions:

I can't believe a 250ml tub of this stuff only lasted me 17 uses. I'm pretty sure I don't normally go through body moisturisers that fast. I'm glad this is finished though as the scent wasn't great. On the side of the tub it says it's inspired by straw...I don't know why anyone would want to smell like straw...strawberries yes. Up next for me is The Body Shop in Warm Vanilla and I'm looking forward to smelling like a dessert after my shower again.

Also, I didn't realise that this is product made in the UK by a British brand; I've never heard of them before the FFF sale. I find it funny that it was exported to LA only to be imported back over.

Overall, I didn't feel like this product did an adequate enough job of keeping my skin moisturised and it's not even that dry right now. The past month has been wet, warm and humid.

The Botanica Lab // Collagen & Hemp Oil Body Lotion Review

The Botanica Lab // Collagen & Hemp Oil Body Lotion
RRP £4.99 for 739ml

This is 739ml bottle that I bought from TK Maxx for £4.99.

First Impressions:

The scent is not what I was expecting; it's way more lavender than vanilla and quite bitter. I was hoping it would be smooth and sweet. As a lotion it's cheap and cheerful. It takes a while to absorb and your skin kind of feels a bit dry after application.

Usage
First use - October 2019
Last use - January 2020

Would I buy it: No.

Overall Impressions:

After some research it appears that this is probably one of TK Maxx's "in-house" brands as I can't find it anywhere on the internet. There is a Botanical Lab sold in superdrug and a cuisine website called Botanica Lab but nothing on google about this product. It's clearly something you can only buy in stores.

I ended up buying this one because at the time I was in a bit of a bind and I needed a body lotion that would last me a good 3/4 months that didn't cost over a fiver. For that price point I wasn't expecting miracles and ended up purchasing this one due to it's hefty 739ml size. I managed to completely finish it as I don't like wasting products anymore but I wouldn't buy it again (or anything else from this 'range'). It left my skin feeling dry even though it wasn't really all that dry. I think crunchy might be a better word to use. Like when you're hair is crunchy and you need to scrunch the product to get it feeling soft again...only I can't scrunch my skin.

I was deliberately using more than I needed as well so I would go through it faster. I'm always wary of buying TK Maxx brands because of the cheap ingredients and whereas this didn't cause any negative effects it didn't wow me. It was adequate is the best thing I can say about it.

Being by Sanctuary Spa // Salted Caramel & Macadamia Body Butter Review

Being by Sanctuary Spa // Salted Caramel & Macadamia Body Butter
Discontinued

This is a 300ml tub that I bought from TK Maxx in August 2019 for £3.99.

First Impressions

The smell....oh my lord the smell. It's just like the Muller Corner Toffee yogurts. It's amazing and thick and buttery. I just love it.

Usage

A 300ml tub usually lasts me just over a month of daily use.

Would I Buy It: Yes. Whenever I see it in TK Maxx I buy it. I was already on my third tub when I took this photo. On top of that, I've just finished my 2nd tub of the Mango & Chilli one and now I'm using up two of the 300ml body lotion versions on the Mango & Chilli...I really loved this range.

Overall Impressions

I never used to like Sanctuary Spa products; they smell like chemicals to me. There is absolutely no sweetness; Then they brought out the Being range a couple of years ago and the Salted Caramel & Macadamia is amazing; not SDJ Bum Bum amazing...what is? But still close. Then in true fashion they discontinued the entire Being range and I've been hoarding whatever I see in TK Maxx. It's a shame really because the Salted Caramel body spray was also like spraying heaven on yourself.

So this review is late but I guess thats what happens when you only review when the product has been used. I'm so annoyed; I really loved that Being range, it was so much more exciting than everything else they do.

They remind me of the Body Shop Body butter formula which has been my go to body moisturiser for years. It just leaves my skin moisturised for 24 hours with no dry patches. The body shop ones I only buy when I can get them on offer for £7 per tub or less so it now looks like I'm going to have to go back to stalking the body shop for deals or find another moisturiser in the £5-£7 range that's just as good.

Greenfrog Botanic // Natural Body Lotion Sweet Argan Review

Greenfrog Botanic // Natural Body Lotion Sweet Argan 
RRP £13.95 for 500ml

This is a 50ml sample I received in the January 2020 Birchbox.

First Impressions

Wonderful scent with a light silky texture.

Usage

This lasted me 4 uses. It honestly really annoys me when Birchbox gives out 50ml samples of body lotions, especially when the full size is less than £15. I get that the 500ml wouldn't have fit in the box but this sample is worth about a £1 in the grand scheme of things.

Would I Buy It: Yes.

Overall Impressions

Even though the ingredients are quite cheap, I still really liked the product. I didn't want to either, I wanted to hate it because it was such a tiny sample but I can't. I have a few body moisturisers to get through but if I see this on offer I'll definitely buy one as 500ml should last me about 2 months and I tend to spend £7ish a month on body moisturiser so it works out.

After 20 hours my skin wasn't peeling or dry and it did surprisingly well with the elbows and knees; I just wish the scent lingered as it's easily the best part about the whole product. It's got a light, fresh, sweet almond scent that I wish I could bottle for a perfume.

Whenever I go in TK Maxx, I'm on the lookout for this product now (if we can ever go back in TK Maxx...)

Baija // French Pompon Body Cream in Rose Lychee Review

This was a 25ml sample that I received in my October 2019 Birchbox. 

First Impressions

Very cute packaging, I'm already conjuring up a nail art blog post with this design. I have used one Baija product once before; a salted caramel body scrub from about a year ago. I never used it up entirely and ended up throwing it away as it flew past it's expiry date.

Usage

This is a thick, slightly pink tinted body cream that smells like sickly sweet powdery roses. It's not the best rose smell but it doesn't linger on the body for a long time. As a tiny 25ml sample I didn't get much use out of it. It managed to get one and half uses out of it when moisturising my entire body. 

It was not greasy or sticky but I did not feel that it adequately moisturised my body and after several hours, my skin felt dry. Notably my knees and elbows were definitely drier after using this.

Would I Buy This Product: No. 

Overall Impressions

The full size is £15.90 for only 75ml which is unacceptable for a body cream. For that price it should be a minimum of 200ml to ensure at least a months use. If found heavily discounted this would make a nice hand cream though.