A year or so ago my husband bought me a bottle of pure rosehip oil after me going on and on about it for months. I'd read many positive things about the natural product in skincare routines, and given my sensitive skin I was quite curious. I think I've now gotten familiar enough with the product to confidently give some recommendations on how to use it. Without further ado, let's go..

Using rosehip oil as a facial oil offers such incredible results. Within a week or two of adding it to my nighttime skin regime I could both see and feel results. My skin was noticeably softer to the touch, the uneven colouring on my t-zone area became less noticeable, and my skin just looked plumper. It felt hydrated which isn't an easy feat for me in the Winter months. I never felt like the oil made my skin feel or look greasy once it absorbed. I think I first saw Alexandria Morgan use it in it's purest form in her skin routine.

As a treat every now and again (in other words, when I'm not feeling lazy) I add a few splashes to a handful of my usual body lotion and let my skin drink it up with more enthusiasm than normal. I can't rate this enough. I use unscented body lotion so it does leave a semi rosy smell, but my inner Grandma loves that. If I have a dry spot that needs more TLC, I'll rub the oil in by it's lonesome and I usually get instant results. It's rather magical.

Once again, this month I chose a curated Birchbox. If you don't know, since Birchbox revamped their subscription service, you now have a monthly choice of a few curated boxes, a substitution wherein you get your $15 in point form to spend on the site, or now you can swap your entire box for a full-size product of their choosing (this month was a Benefit highlighter). But I'm predictable and chose the skincare focused box for November. I adore getting skincare samples as they tend to last me at least a month, if not longer, so it gives my skin enough time to get used to a new routine and I feel like it's long enough for me to review the product. Without future ado, let's talk about the goodies I got this month.

I'm stepping out of my blogging comfort zone and stepping into the world of beauty! Kind of. Ish. Whenever I write about beauty, I feel like I'm about to be unmasked as someone who doesn't really have a clue when it comes to describing products. I like what I like, but I feel uncomfortable suggesting the items to others as the thought 'Have I tried enough of a variety of this product to wholeheartedly suggest it?'. But you know what, I think its enough to merely say that you enjoyed using a product. Not all of us are high end beauty bloggers, and that's what makes the community special. I'm going to try and urge you to buy Dove Body Wash in a bit, so I mean, high end may not be found here. I get Birchbox monthly so that has enabled me to try things that I would otherwise shy away from due to my lack of knowledge, so hopefully that will aid in my recommendations being more.. worldly.



As mentioned above, Dove Body Wash, $5.99 is my personal favourite when it comes to showering. I have sensitive skin that's drone to dry patches, and my more intimate body areas can be quite choosy when it comes to anything that can inadvertently travel down.. south. Dove is affordable, smells great, and is cruelty-free! The one I recently ran out of was the scent Blue Fig & Orange Blossom but having since purchased the Dry Oil version and found it to be more nourishing, I will stick with that from here on out.


Speaking of nourishing the skin, I go through body lotion like a cat goes through Dreamies. My favourite part of my nightly routine is lathering on some pleasant scented lotion and having my skin feel instantly plumped. Garnier Intensive 7 Days Hydrating Lotion was my favourite drugstore lotion. The smell was comforting, the lotion itself was the perfect balance between thick and wet, and it sunk into the skin within seconds. I'm speaking in past tense as I recently learnt that Garnier Body isn't cruelty-free which has stopped me from buying their products. As an alternative, I would recommend the Dove Cream Oil Intensive Body Lotion, $5.99.


I finished off this Beachwaver Great Barrier Hairspray, $28.00 that I received in a Birchbox. This tiny bottle has lasted me since late last year, and I've used it multiple times a week. Not bad going. It's the first hairspray I've tried that hasn't left my hair feeling like straw, and by some miracle, it actually keeps my curls in place.One major plus for me in repurchasing this, is the very effective way it can be brushed out of hair without leaving an icky dust feeling. I'd recommend!


Having Fibromyalgia (read all about that HERE), baths can be good on bad days. Sure it makes my skin feel sunburned in the aftermath, but for the soaking period, it's rather soothing. I've tried an abundance of bath soaks over the years that are targeted toward muscle soaking. And let's be honest, not many of us are actually loyal to affordable bubble bath. Enter in Dr Teal's Pink Himalayan Foaming Bath, $4.89. I really liked this, it gave my skin a tingle, the smell was pleasant (though I always put in a little rosehip oil which does overpower everything), and it did leave my skin feeling smooth and nourished. Not bad! I have already repurchased.



The only makeup item I finished up was the Eyeko Brow Liner Shape & Define in medium ( I couldn't find a link! The product may be discontinued). Though I've finished it up, I've yet to decide whether I liked this. I wouldn't repurchase, but it was rather fun to use. I think my main problem was the colour, it's almost green tinted which can look a little odd on the brows. The product itself lasted really well though (roughly 4 months without drying out), and I absolutely love the Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner, $22.00 from the same brand. So.. eh. I need the Natalie Imbruglia song Torn to be playing throughout this entire paragraph.


And my favourite product of this.. trash bag? ... err... empties basket. Beauty gurus always have those pretty wire baskets to hold this stuff, right? I'll work on it! Anyhoo, my favourite was definitely the Specific Beauty Advanced Dark Spot Corrector Pads. I 110% expected this product to be a gimmick. Anything pad form, I'm cautious about. But my skin absolutely devoured them. Using after washing/cleansing, and before face lotion, they definitely have a place in my skincare routine. I've never experienced a non-scrub to give me an exfoliating feeling before, and somehow without drying out my skin. A miracle! My problem is justifying the price. It works out roughly 67¢ per pad, which is quite extravagant.


So there have it! My first empties post. If this is something that reads well, let me know. I'm at a learning curve and really do want to step away from my blogging comfort zone. Have you tried any of these products? Do you want to? Send me a tweet at @RootingBranches or comment here with your answer!

I enjoy my monthly Birchbox subscription. Beauty boxes tend to have an 'eh' reputation in the Blogosphere but I think that's partly down to the many sponsored posts/videos we were bombarded with during the early days of bloggers beginning to get paid. I finally took the plunge in trying out Birchbox when I started to get into skincare but didn't really know what brands to try. Since then, I have kept up with my subscription as I found myself actually using and loving a good portion of the products that I receive. At the off chance that you've been debating whether or not to sign up for yourself, I thought it may be interesting to do an insiders look into a box every now and again. Without further ado, this is what was in August's box.

I adore face scrubs. Before I was in the know about skincare and the do's and don'ts (Okay, before I started reading blogs and watching YT), I used to scrub at my skin every night trying to shrink my pores and even out my complexion. Shockingly, it just made my skin a little dry and sensitive. Go figure. I'm still on the hunt for the perfect cleanser but I have a pretty good idea on what products work with my skin. I recently received the Dr Botanicals Coffee Superfood Renewing Facial Exfoliator for review and I'll be honest, I was a tad sceptical. Despite having only heard good things about the brand prior to this, I've never really tried a product that I hadn't openly searched for before. Was there a spot in my routine for a new scrub? The answer is yes.

Tanya Burr recently had a promotional code ("tanyaburr") for a free Rituals Yogi Flow Foaming Shower Gel, you just had to pay the £2.99 p&p. Not too shabby for a product that usually retails for £8.50. But I won't lie, it did take me a few minutes of pondering before putting in the order as I've never really entertained the idea of splurging on a shower gel. I'm usually the kind of girl that just grabs whatever is on offer when I do the weekly grocery shop. But as someone who struggles to relax (and who needs some extra content) I decided to take the plunge and test it out to review.