Week of Reviews Day 5: Equate Cocoa Butter Conditioning Body Lotion VS Vaseline Cocoa Butter Deep Conditioning Body Lotion

     As I have said before, I have super sensitive skin and cannot use lotions with any sort of fragrance in them. I use lotions with cocoa butter in them because (1) they smell good and don't irritate my skin and (2) cocoa butter helps prevent stretch marks and other skin conditions. The Vaseline lotion was the winner by far. I was very unimpressed with the Equate lotion. A 24.5oz bottle of the Equate lotion retails at $3.42 and a 32oz bottle of the Vaseline lotion retails around $6.64. Although the Vaseline lotion costs nearly twice as much as the Equate lotion, it is much better and definitely worth the money. Plus, the Vaseline bottle is also larger than the Equate lotion, so you are paying for a larger amount of a better quality lotion. I have loved every Vaseline lotion I have tried and I highly recommend them. The Equate version is just a cheaper alternative that simply isn't as good.

Vaniply by Vanicream

I've had a dry patch on my hand since around June (I have had very bad eczema my whole life). It comes and goes, but it's been getting really bad recently. I have tried a total of 3 ointment/steroid prescriptions from my dermatologist, but they would typically make the patch go away for a day at most & then it would come right back, sometimes worse than it was before I used the ointment/steroid. 

Since none of the prescriptions were working, I decided I wanted to try some non-prescription products and see if any of them worked any better than the prescriptions did. I did my research and found that Vanicream had a new product, an ointment called Vaniply. I love Vanicream products (I highly recommend the Lite Lotion), so I was very hopeful about Vaniply. Before I ordered it, I called my grandpa (who is also a huge fan of Vanicream- he literally has a Lite Lotion in every room of his house) to see if he had tried it yet. Turns out he had tried it and he loved it. He even offered to let me borrow his to see if I liked it before I bought it. 

The first thing I noticed about this product was that it feels exactly like Vaseline, which I haven't had much luck with with my eczema (but I love it for my feet), so I looked at the ingredients to see if there was any Petroleum Jelly in it. Turns out it is Dimethicone, not Petroleum Jelly, which I believe is the active ingredient in Dermasil lotions. I love Dermasil, but the results aren't very long lasting for me, so that worried me a bit...

While reading everything on the back label, I noticed that it said it was for lips and skin. Since my lips are always super chapped, I decided to try it on my lips as well....

I LOVE THIS STUFF!! I put it on my lips during the day & put my Revlon Lip Butter right on top. Revlon Lip Butters usually turn into a train wreck when applied on dry lips, but with the ointment on them it glided on like a gem. It stayed on all day and you couldn't even tell how chapped my lips were! It made my lips super soft. As for the dry patch on my hand...I applied it to the patch before bed and when I woke up in the morning the patch was literally gone AND it hasn't come back since (1 week, which is the longer than any prescription ointment I tried). 

This stuff is amazing. I highly recommend it, whether you are using it as a lip treatment or a skin ointment, it's superb. AND it's safe for kids and those with sensitive skin (like myself).
Here is the link to the Vanicream website: http://www.psico.com/products/products.cfm

$6.99 at Walgreens. $5.29 at drugstore.com 

*This is not a sponsored post.*

12 Days of Christmas Gift Ideas: Day 5 {Lotion}

Lotion is probably one of the most cliche gift ideas ever, but that is because everyone uses lotion- especially in the winter! Warm & Cozy from the Pink line at Victoria's Secret is a great holiday scent! Bath and Body Works and Hempz Treats also have AMAZING holiday scents, and they make the perfect gift for anyone! If you've never heard of Hempz Treats, you're missing out! As far as I know, Hempz Treats is no longer an online website, but I have still been able to find their products on websites like Amazon and ebeautycity. I have also seen them in TJMaxx before for around $7 for the full size (8.5oz) and the small size (2.25 oz) for about $3! They're thicker, very moisturizing lotions. They smell exactly like what they say they smell like and they haven't irritated my sensitive skin before. They're amazing & I think it would be awesome to give someone a lotion from Hempz Treats because odds are they've never even heard of them before. 

Here are a few of my favorite holiday-scented lotions: 

$15 each or 2/$25 or 3/$30 at Victoria's Secret

$12.50 at Bath & Body Works

$12.50 at Bath & Body Works

$12.50 at Bath & Body Works

$25 on Amazon

$14.99 on ebeautycity.com

$14.99 on ebeautycity.com

$14.99 on ebeautycity.com

$14.99 on ebeautycity.com

*This is not a sponsored post.*

Vaseline Total Moisture Cocoa Radiant Lotion

About a month ago I picked up this honker at the drugstore-

$6.64 at Walmart

Although I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be, I do like this lotion. 

• Moisture: It moisturizes very well, but it's definitely not the most moisturizing lotion I've tried.
• Good for sensitive skin?: I've had pretty good luck with it, but it does make my legs tingle after I shave. No rash though.
• Long lasting?: Not really. I can go maybe 20 minutes before my skin feels dry again.
• Smell: I think it smells good- it's not very strong, just a subtle cocoa smell.

I do recommend this, but I definitely have others I like better! Ask if you'd like some recommendations, I have lots!

My Favorite Scented Lotions

1. Rome Honeysuckle Amore by Bath & Body Works- I love this stuff! It smells just like honeysuckle, so if you don't like honeysuckle this probably isn't for you. Top: Italian peach, blackberry, green mandarin. Mid: Pink honeysuckle, white raspberry, peony. Dry: Golden amber, soft sandalwood, cypress wood.

   

   Now $5.50 at Bath & Body Works (yes, the full size 8oz!)

2. Be Enchanted by Bath & Body Works- This is a great everyday scent that anyone can pull off. It's perfect for Fall/Winter. Top: Mouthwatering citrus, iced pomegranate, chilled wild berries, chilled passion fruit. Mid: Sheer honeysuckle, floral frosted bouquet, sugared petals, dewfruit, Asian pear. Dry: Whipped vanilla, light mush, sandalwood.

   

   $12.50 at Bath & Body Works

3. Beautiful Day by Bath & Body Works- This lotion reminds me of Summer. It's very fruity and fun, and I don't care that it's Fall & I'm wearing a Summer/Spring scent ;) Top: Sun-kissed apple, dewy pear, sparkling cassis. Mid: Wild daisies, lily of the valley, fresh pink peony. Dry: White peach, blonde woods.

   

   $12.50 at Bath & Body Works

4. Love Sweet Love by Philosophy- I can't get enough of this lotion. It's a very sweet, romantic scent (it reminds me of Valentine's Day!) & it's very long lasting! It moisturizes well, but the fragrance makes it difficult to wear since I have extremely sensitive skin on my hands and legs. I still love it though!

   

   $35.00 at Sephora

5. Any and all lotions by Hempz Treats. These smell good enough to eat. They smell exactly like the dessert they're supposed to smell like- it's crazy how amazing they smell. They're extremely sweet, so some people might not like them. They're nice and thick- super moisturizing! I buy mine at TJ Maxx for about $6, but you can get them on Amazon as well. My favorites are Strawberry Cheesecake and Butter Pecan. I can't wait to try the holiday scents!