The Body Shop: Oils of Life (review!)

07:08:00

Being a massive fan of The Body Shop and a skincare junkie, I was so excited to finally buy these products a few months ago! 
Despite getting my hands on the range just a few days after it was released, I felt it was only fair to judge both the short and long term effects on my skin over a period of time. 

The Body Shop on the Oils of Life, in their own words: 
"Give new life to your skin with our new collection infused with black cumin seed oil, rosehip seed oil and camellia seed oil, known for their supreme revitalising and repairing properties on skin. This daily routine has been created to intensely revitalise skin, revive radiance and leave your skin feeling nourished."
"NEW LIFE FOR YOUR SKIN" - THE BODY SHOP, OILS OF LIFE


OILS OF LIFE™ INTENSELY REVITALISING BI-PHASE ESSENCE LOTION


Product description:
"By infusing 3 precious seed oils from around the world, known for their revitalising and repairing properties on skin – Black Cumin seed oil from Egypt, Camellia seed oil from China and Rosehip seed oil from Chile – in to a unique bi-phase [oil + water] formula, we created the essential 1st step after cleansing: a daily lotion that provides instant visible results while preparing and activating skin for the next steps of your routine. Skin feels instantly replenished with moisture and appears softened. With its bi-phase formula this Intensely Revitalising Essence Lotion supremely combines the freshness of water and the nourishing feel of oil."

  • Price: £15.00
  • Size: 160ml

The first thing that really impressed me about this product was the packaging. Not just for the essence lotion but for the whole range. It's something you wouldn't be embarrassed to have on the shelf at home and really accentuates the 'luxury' feel that this product has. The packaging is made out of a hard plastic with a lid, so if you're clumsy and accident prone like me, you wont end up with product all over the floor. 

For this product alone the price isn't too crazy. I feel like you get a good amount of product for the price you pay. It is quite easy to forget that the product is oil based, but this means that you're getting loads for your money and it's going to last a really long time if applied properly. 

Now moving on to how it actually works and applies to the skin. 
As this product is described as the 'essential first step' I felt that it was important for this product to be unique and different to anything I'd ever used before. 

At first I assumed this product was a toner, but after using it for the first time it made sense that it was described as a lotion due to its consistency and the way it works on the skin. 

The essence lotion is intended to 'activate', meaning it will prepare your skin for the rest of the regime or anything else you are putting on your skin to treat it. The bi-phase (water to oil) formula is a key aspect of this product. From what I understand, the water holds the nutrients and the oil works to lock it into the skin. 

Personally, my skin type is very dry and dull. I feel this product helps hydrate, but doesn't really help achieve the luminosity or glow that I want my skin to have. 
Overall, the product isn't too thick or oily and sets into the skin really nicely. It leaves my skin feeling hydrated and soft as promised. The smell is a great bonus! It's quite rich with undertones of rose and citrus, different to anything I've seen/smelt in The Body Shop before. Whatever it is, I pray that one day a similar scent is released in the form of a perfume spray or mist! 
However, I feel like this product alone wouldn't treat your skin the way that buying the whole range would. 

OILS OF LIFE™ INTENSELY REVITALISING FACIAL OIL




Product description:
"By infusing 3 precious seed oils from around the world, known for their revitalising and repairing properties on skin – Black Cumin seed oil from Egypt, Camellia seed oil from China and Rosehip seed oil from Chile – with a powerful blend of essential oils, we created a lightweight daily facial oil to intensely revitalise skin, instantly replenish moisture and revive radiance. Signs of ageing appear visibly reduced. Made from 99% oils of natural origin, this lightweight, quickly-absorbed formula effortlessly melts onto skin leaving a non-sticky, velvety-soft finish."
  • Price: £28.00
  • Size: 30ml 

I feel the facial oil has been one of the most talked about so far in this range, and quite rightly so. For the tiny amount that your using of this product, the change in the feel of my skin is phenomenal. On the box it says that this product is made up of 99% oils of natural origin, which in this day and age is amazing. I hate feeling like I'm putting chemicals or anything nasty on my skin, so knowing that this product is so natural and intense makes it a must have for me. 

The bottle is made of thick glass and comes with a pipe pump for application, which is really handy when you literally only need a few drops of the product. It is recommended that you use 1-2 drops per 'treatment', but even this is a lot. I feel like if you have really oily or combination skin this may be too much. As I have dry skin this is a really intensive and beautiful treatment for me.

Of course, the price may seem a lot for one product. But compared to other products on the market, it isn't extortionate considering that it's going to last you a long time and the product is truly luxurious. 

Despite being thick, the product is not sticky or tacky. It sinks in to the skin in order to penetrate the lower layers rather than just sitting on top of the skin and clogging pores. Because it absorbs into the skin so effectively, it doesn't leave the skin feeling greasy and is definitely a superb treatment for the skin, and is perfect to follow with a moisturiser of your choice. 







OILS OF LIFE INTENSELY REVITALISING CREAM

Product description:

"By infusing 3 precious seed oils from around the world, known for their revitalising and repairing properties on skin – Black Cumin seed oil from Egypt, Camellia seed oil from China and Rosehip seed oil from Chile – in to a silky cream with perfecting micro-pearls, we created a daily cream that intensely revitalises skin, replenishes moisture and revives radiance. Signs of ageing appear visibly reduced. From the moment it touches the skin, this Intensely Revitalising Cream effortlessly melts onto the face, leaving a light and comfortable finish without a greasy feel."
  • Price: £25 
  • Size: 50ml


This is one of two day creams that are apart of the Oils of Life range.


This one, the intensely revitalising cream, is recommended for dry to normal skin and is very moisturising.


As someone with very dry skin who adores anything moisturising, this is my favourite of the whole range! My skin loves this!


The effect is practically instant when I apply this and the smell is gorgeous!


The silky soft texture means that it doesn't feel heavy or uncomfortable. It is perfect for adding radiance to otherwise dull or tired skin which, if you know me, is something I always look for in skincare products. Again, the packaging is gorgeous. It's quite compacts but definitely looks high end as well as being sturdy.
OILS OF LIFE INTENSELY REVITALISING GEL CREAM

Product description:
"By infusing 3 precious seed oils from around the world, known for their revitalising and repairing properties on skin – Black Cumin seed oil from Egypt, Camellia seed oil from China and Rosehip seed oil from Chile – in to a dewy-fresh gel cream with illuminating micro-pearls, we created a lighter alternative to the cream that intensely revitalises skin. Skin feels instantly freshly hydrated and suppler. From the moment it touches the skin, this Intensely Revitalising Gel Cream delicately melts onto the face, leaving a fresh light finish without a greasy feel."

  • Price: £25 
  • Size: 50ml

The revitalising gel cream is the recommended alternative for combination/oily skin.
Having only tried this as a sample on very dry skin, my first impressions may be a bit different and I feel this didn't benefit me as much as it would on the recommended skin type. It definitely left a very illuminating finish and was very light on the skin. As the name suggests, it was a gel/jelly consistency and is definitely a lighter form of the cream moisturiser.


OILS OF LIFE SLEEPING CREAM
Product description:
"A night time cream to deeply nourish, visibly revitalize and intensely firm while you sleep. We searched the world and selected 3 Precious Seed Oils known for their revitalizing and repairing properties. By infusing them with 7 Powerful Essential Oils, into a refreshing yet cushiony cream, we've created an Intensely Revitalizing Sleeping Cream that replenishes like a dream (almost)."

  • Price: £28
  • Size: 80ml


The sleeping cream is a more recent addition to the Oils of Life range. Although I haven't been using it for as long as the other products, I love it just as much.
It comes in a similar packaging to the creams only is bigger. The reason for this, according to many product pages and reviews I have seen, was that it can also be used on the areas above the cleavage and the neck.

I normally try to stay away from reviews of products before they come out, unless I'm making a huge investment on one product, however this time I was keen to read up on other peoples opinions on this cream before I tried it on my skin. The reason for this was that I was so happy with the results from the rest of the range that I didn't want to mess up the 'balance' or add too much to the regime. This sounds ridiculous now, but at the time it made sense in my head!

I heard such good things about it that I immediately grabbed it to test it out for myself.
One of the product ingredients is lavender, which is not only amazing on the skin, but I find it helps me sleep that little bit easier! It has a truly unique scent, but still sticks to that iconic rich undertone that the range follows. (Again, I need a perfume spray of these smells. They're so gorgeous!)

This product is used at night (as the name suggests), and works to replenish and hydrate at night, when you're face isn't getting the moisture it needs to replenish and nourish.

As someone who currently uses their Oils of Life products in the evening, I felt that this cream might be too much for my skin to handle, even though my skin does take to intensive treatments like a dream (no pun intended), I didn't want to over do it.

However, I found that I left it a few hours between treatments and put on the sleeping cream directly before going to sleep, it worked wonders.
Unlike most night creams, the sleeping cream is surprisingly light and jelly in texture. It sinks in smoothly and doesn't leave any oily residue. It barely feels like you have anything on your face, which is a must as you're sleeping with this on and need to be comfortable.

The price, like all of the Oils of Life products, is a bit higher than some, but worth it. This is NOT a low quality product. If you're looking for value, this is it!




Despite that classic skincare myth that oil-based equals greasy skin, with this range, that most certainly isn't the case. I would probably recommend this treatment for the evenings as it does take a while to sink into the skin. 
The price for the whole range - Essence lotion, Facial oil, either the Gel cream or the Moisturising cream and the Sleeping cream (without deals or discounts, etc) would be £96. 
If you're looking to spend a substantial amount of money for a high end, good quality product that will do it's job plus so much more, this is the one to go for. 
These products are rich, moisturising and illuminating without being greasy or heavy. You're getting so much for your money and they look fantastic. They're wonderfully natural and live up to The Body Shops high standard of product. Definitely a skin care must have and I will be purchasing again... in the distant future, as these products are going to last me an age! 



You can purchase the Oils of Life range at The Body Shop UK online store.





DISCLAIMERS
I have not been paid to review/talk about these products, everything was paid for by me.
Everything written is my honest opinion!  










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