body shop perfumes: vanilla & love etc

I have a thing for the Body Shop. Their scents are beautiful, whether it be in the form of a lotion, perfume, scrub, lip balm or shower gel; a wonderful smell is guaranteed every single time. Something I really appreciate is their ethos, and mission to be environmentally friendly, which over the years has made them famous for being all-natural and against using animals for testing. Now I'm not a particularly animal loving, or one who is enthralled by nature but I really like the idea of conservation and appreciating natural beauty and forms.

Another thing, possibly more typical of a frugal girl like me is that I love their sales. Online is usually the best place to find them, especially once subscribed to their emails. I understand, some shops bombard you with things you find pointless most of the time, however discount codes from TBS are exquisite and have saved me a fair amount of cash in the past. Now, onto the perfumes...

vanilla eau de toilette, £9 for 30ml only

The website describes this scent to be 'deliciously sweet', 'vanilla joined with coconut' and I have to say I agree. Definitely a love or hate, I find this to be incredibly sweet, borderline sickly that I think not everyone will love. Saying this, I personally love it. It's relatively new to me, I got it around four months ago after finding a discount and getting free delivery, meaning I only had to pay £5.30. To think you thought £9 was a bargain. Vanilla is one of TBS' bestsellers, and I completely understand why. The cute bottle, packaging and size makes it perfect for a gift, especially combined with the amazing price. It's cute and tiddly, only available in 30ml bottles. The only thing I dislike about this is the opening, the cap is literally the same size as the physical squirter (have no idea what it's called, but you understand the gist of it), so taking it on and off is simply a bit too much like hard work, and the top often breaks off. Obviously fixable, but unhelpful nonetheless.

love etc eau de parfum, £14 for 30ml, £18 for 50ml, £25 for 100ml
'notes of jasmine, vanilla and sandalwood' is the scent description as off the website, which honestly I can't really comment on as truthfully I am no scent-ist, hehehe. As an eau de parfum it is definitely stronger than the vanilla scent, as the scent is stronger and much longer lasting. It's definitely a deeper smell, without being too masculine or off-putting. I've had this since my birthday last year, so in eighteen months I've used approximately half of it. This may not seem much, but I like to rotate my scent and I have to waste or overuse things. This perfume has more size variations, as usual you receive better value for money the larger bottle you buy, however this doesn't necessarily match with practicality and personal handiness. I have the small 30ml bottle, which is nice and of a good enough price to repurchase again. I also adore the rose gold coloured bottle cap, a very cute edge, linking it to the romance theme after its release for Valentines Day 2010.

Overall I'd definitely recommend perfumes from their range, they have such good value for money! Next on my list will be white musk! I've always loved the smell but never caved in and bought it, and I have no idea why I'm like this. Usually I prefer receiving them as gifts, however everything is personal preference. Ultimately it's all about the smells you like and the price range you find reasonable.

Thalia
xxx