Is there anything better than bloggermail on your birthday? Few things bring me as much joy as a well-timed parcel, and I must say that this little gift from ScrubLove was the most well timed. The lovely people there got in touch a little while ago asking if I’d tried coffee scrubs before, and despite seeing a load used on social media (seriously instagram loves them) I hadn’t picked one up yet. So ScrubLove being lovely said they’d send one along for me and I’d see how I get on.

And let me tell you a thing.

Mint Temptation* c/o ScrubLove

First up: the packaging is fab. It’s a resealable sachet, waxed outer, foil inner, and you get a pretty hefty amount of product in each one. (200ml). I am all for resealable sachets, mostly because screw top bottles for this type of product, or cans or other cylindrical alternatives would be so. much. mess. This is much cleaner, easier and less hassle… unless you knock it over, in which case… oopsie.

You can also smell the flavour (scent? type?) through the packaging. I was super stoked that ScrubLove sent me Mint Temptation* – I love mint flavoured anything – and to be able to get a whiff of minty goodness without even opening it was score for me. Once you do open the packaging you get more of the coffee and the almond scents coming through, and the coffee is especially not mild.

Moving onto the ingredients: it’s all natural here. Sweet almond oil, coffee seed powder, water, pink Himalayan rock salt, bitter orange peel, sweet orange oil, vitamin c, lactic acid, and the only thing that may irritate: perfume (mint scent). No hidden nasties, no other chemicals. No microbeads (more on that this month).

So how does it fare?

Going by the instructions: grab a handful of scrub and gently rub into the skin in small circles, leave on if you’ve got time, rinse off. Not too hard, then. Preferable to do it in a bath/shower.

I’ve had a bit of peeling skin recently (damn you Austria, damn you sunburn), you know the sort that after every shower you have just seems never ending, ridiculously frustrating? Yup, Mint Temptation got rid of that problem right there. Shifted it away, leaving my skin pretty darn smooth.

It was also really nice to have a proper pamper sesh in the shower, the small circles rule definitely helps rebalance your mind as you work on your skin, and my legs have definitely seen an improvement in the softness department. I’m prone ingrown issues (yay) and eczema basically everywhere, so tend to skip out on exfoliating after shaving because the chemical concoction in a lot of scrubs and exfoliators has me shying away for fear of something triggering it. However, the natural ingredients in ScrubLove’s products meant that it wasn’t an issue, so bye bye slightly bumpy legs. Coffee, sugar, and salt are also great ways at exfoliating problematic skin areas in general, so I knew that there wasn’t going to be any chance of a reaction.

The only downside is probably the absolute mess it leaves in the tub once you’re done, but a simple rinse after will clear that away no problems. If you’re a regular Lush user, it’s way easier to clean than glitter. 

Oh and if you’re not a fan of the smell of coffee, this probably isn’t the product for you. But coffee is also fab at helping skin ailments so… you might want to learn to love.

For £12.95, I think it’s a pretty damned decent product for the amount you get vs the amount you need in a wash. The packaging suggests using 3-4 times a week, which will help you get through it much faster, but I can see this lasting me over a month as I’m not a daily shower-er. Aight you can stop looking at your screens in disgust now. I’m really intrigued to try Coconut Affair (do love me some coconut) – £13.95 – and Original Lovin’ – £11.95 – might just wend its way into my mum’s birthday present.

(Shhsh don’t tell her.)

Let me know if you’ve tried any coffee scrubs before? Are you a member of the #scrubclub – if you are which is your favourite of ScrubLove’s trio? Let me know what you think!

remember: it’s always a good idea to patch test new products on a small area of skin before slathering it (however natural) over your body just in case!

♥

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