Javelina's Full Review: The Body Shop Cranberry Body Butter
After buying some body butter for my husband and guiltily stealing quite a bit of it, I perused the Body Shop after Christmas to see if they had any worthwhile sales. We have the Coconut Body Butter at home already, so I decided I would go with smaller size, since I wanted something convenient that I could travel with or take to work. There are a variety of scents available throughout the year, but I chose a cranberry butter, which is a seasonal scent.
"Spread the joy! Our famous Body Butter comes infused with the seasonally sweet scent of ripe cranberries. Cocoa butter, shea butter, and sesame oil keep skin soft all winter long."
There are two size containers. There is the smaller 1.7 oz container, which normally costs $7.00, but I got mine for $4.00 on sale. The larger 7.7 oz size costs $20.00. The "regular" scents generally come in 6.9 oz containers, so I suppose they issue a larger container since you can get it only once a year!
The containers are a cranberry color plastic (corresponding to the scent), with a gold color plastic lid that screws on. Unlike the other Body Shop body butters, this has a simple label on the top (rather than the typically "fruity" picture labels).
The butter itself is very thick, and does not move even when I have left the container on it's side or upside down. The butter is not soft like a typical pump or squeeze container of lotion, yet it is softer than a salve or lip balm. It warms up with your body temperature and is easy to apply. I have no problem getting any out of the container, and usually just nick my fingernail against the butter to get some on the top of my nail. I don?t know if the butter might run if it is hot out, but I would think it is a bad idea to leave it in a hot car, etc.
My coconut body butter is slighty off-white in color, whereas this is a light pink color, so it seems as if the colors correspond to the appropriate scent.
The scent is a nice tangy cranberry smell. It is tart and sweet, and doesn?t have a very fragranced smell.
"Scoop out with your fingers and massage into your skin, as often as required."
My Thoughts & Experiences
"A creamy moisturizer, scented with festive cranberry..."
After delving into my husband?s Coconut Body Butter that I bought him a few too many times, guilt got the best of me so it was only right that I bought my own! I wanted a scent that was "tasty", so rather than getting sesame or nut or olive scented butter, the cranberry had quite a bit of appeal.
The salesperson at the Body Shop store told me to avoid greasiness, use this body butter sparingly. That was my biggest concern buying this the first time around for my husband, but we were fine. I really like the thick consistency, which is very rich yet not too thick. I generally try not to get any lotion on my fingertips at work (otherwise you get oily fingertips), but it really helps with washing my hands multiple times per day. As I mentioned, my husband would steer clear of this product if it were very greasy, yet he has no problems with it.
As for my skin, the body butter is great. I started using (ok, stealing from my husband) Body Shop butter when I had finished my Burt's Bees Hand Salve, and it makes an excellent choice. I am very diligent with using hand cream at night and often at work. I just got married last year and was particularly obsessive about using body butter every night on my hands, and continue to do so even after the wedding. I have found that my hands are soft and moisturized, and respond well to the body butter. I experience no skin irritation, and my hands are smooth and look great. I have a very active lifestyle, so whether I?m handling paper all day at work or hiking/camping on weekends, the body butter helps maintain my often-abused hands.
Although I use this on my hands on the most often, I also use my Cranberry body butter on other parts of my body. In the winter my skin is very dry, especially on my legs (no wonder, I use my space heater all day long at work!). The body butter makes my legs nice and smooth, and I can even apply it right after shaving without any irritation or burning.
The scent is one that I definitely like. It is fruity yet not very fragranced, and has a tart little kick to it. It seems more unique than most of the scented lotions that I have, which are generally just very sweet (freesia, etc.). There are some products that are too heavily scented to the point of giving me a headache. Sometimes some of my Bath & Body works lotions are just way too overpowering, whereas I can easily use this at work and it is pleasantly mild.
The Body Shop is known for no animal testing. "The Body Shop is against animal testing on cosmetic products and ingredients. We do not test our products or ingredients on animals. Nor do we commission others to do so."
Downsides?
I wish this stuff was not seasonal, but I suppose it adds to the whole allure of the product. Like Cadbury eggs, there's that enticing quality of something you can only get your hands on once a year. Sure, I fell for it.
Another thing I would change with this item is actually the container. I wish the lid had some kind of texture to the sides, because sometimes it can be hard to get a grip on it. The large size of body butter is even harder to grasp, so it just really would make sense if they made it a little easier to unscrew or screw the lid.
Along the line of pots of lip balm, sometimes I wonder about continually dipping my fingers into the butter. Hopefully it doesn't create a major breeding ground for germs. Like I said earlier, I try to limit it to just "nicking" the surface with the outside of my fingernail instead of wiping my paws in it!
Lastly, although the ingredients are ok, they aren't great, and finish out with a Red #4, which I'm not too happy to see. I don't expect most companies to stay away from chemicals, so I'll rely on Burt's Bees when I want something purely natural. Otherwise, it is hard to find something chemical free, so I do appreciate at least an attempt to be more natural, although I think the name of the store tends to be a front for things like stearates that shouldn't really be in things you?re absorbing through your skin.
Overall Thoughts
I absolutely loved the Body Shop's Coconut Body Butter (which I bought for my husband!). It is a really great product, so I could no resist a sale on the cranberry. I really lucked out because I would say that the coconut and cranberry are my favorite scents. I use my body butter religiously and I really love it!
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THE BODY SHOP CRANBERRY BODY BUTTER - NEW SEALED THE BODY SHOP CRANBERRY BODY BUTTER AWESOME SCENT! 200 ML NEW AND SEALED CHECK OUT MY EBAY STORE FOR ...More at eBay
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