Caring Companies

I feel large companies have many benefits, such as offering discount cards/loyalty cards, coupons and offers as well as reductions however I feel they are not always a good thing, increasing size can make them less personal, recently I have a couple of large companies which have given me outstanding customer service which  has made me rethink this a little because this is a complete contrast to other companies who have never even answered my emails when I have had an issue with a purchase. I have put this down to being so large they do not have the time to go through all the emails they recieve.

                  

The experience I've had this week made me see a whole new side in larger companies customer service.

I wrote an email to Carmex to make them aware of a small air pocket I had in my tube of moisture plus which ran the whole way down, I sent the email because where this is a new product I thought it was the packaging causing a defect. They emailed me back almost instant saying that this shouldn't have happened and they want to replace it for me, after sending my address a few days later they had sent me not only a red replacement but one of each shade. 

I was shocked that they had sent me products worth £15 retail price, I am aware they pay pence for these products to be manufactured but they could sold them full price but instead they didn't just send me one but all three shades.

I have been a customer of carmex for years and really enjoy the cherry flavour and this has shown me that not only their products are excellent quality but so is their customer service.

Have you ever had amazing service from a large company when you've had an issue and not expected the response they gave? I'd love to know

Hannah

How do they do it?

It is a complete mystery to me how Ebay sellers in Hong Kong, China etc. offer products so cheap. I know they ship them straight from the factory but even with shipping these items were 99p each!  (The animal post-its were 4 for 99p). As an online retailer myself it really does amazing me considering how much we pay to ship products in the UK! surely that doesn't cover the costs of the fuel!

Either way why not take advantage of these great deals, particularly when you can collect nectar points too!

I'm not going to tell you everything you buy will be amazing quality but what would you expect really?

I have not yet been brave enough to buy clothes from these sellers but I have brought many stationary and other household items, most of which I've been very pleased with.

Today I wanted to share the post-it notes I purchased for my filofax, after looking for hours in shops I have always thought post it notes were overpriced, I don't like to pay much for paper I write on and throw away, so I gave ebay a shot and this is what I got.

Some of these sticky notes are slightly smaller than I imagined but that is not an issue, the main thing is they stick! I have brought many sticky notes in places such as pound shops and they don't stick to the paper you want them too!

What kind of things do you like to buy on ebay?

Hannah x

Excel centre craft fair

Last week I went to the craft fair in the Excel centre in london, this was a very daunting prospect for me due to suffering anxiety but when my grandparents invited me I could not pass up the opportunity and I had a fantastic day!

I met so many crafters and jewellery makers like myself and I found the whole thing so inspiring, and of course you cannot go to a craft fair without buying some new crafty things!

A few of the stall holders didn't give me a card so I can't tell you where I got them and even worse I can't repurchase any of these items!

I first brought a large collection of items from Art of Crafts. This included two packets of card candi, a flower die set to use with my cuttlebug, these georgeous owl stamps and then I found the bargain bins! And I couldn't resist, I found a couple of embossing folders, one with stars and one with squares. Then I found a Joanna sheen stamp which I forgot to photo before mounting but it features two boys at the seaside and other small seaside based stamps. 

These are actually nail pens, but these cannot just be used on your nails, they are also marketed to be used on glass, wood, ceramics, stone and fabrics (that you aren't washing). A sucker for a gimmick I brought myself a set and they are the best nail pens I've used the nip deposits the polish even and clearly and can create some quite intricate designs 

Then I was sucked in by the ribbon devil and brought six strips of ribbon for £5 these are lovely quality and are from crafty ribbons.com. I think you'd agree some of the designs are quite unique.

The crafty beggars stall was run by Debbie Moore's sister and as a result all the Debbie Moore CD's were half price, I don't tend to use CD's in my crafting but this Christmas set was £4 and included papers, stamps and toppers as well as the CD and for that price I couldn't turn it down! Even if don't use the CD the pack was good value.

Hannah x

Better than Carmex...

Back in 2009 the beauty community all used to rave about Carmex, including me on my old blog,  and it has been a cult product ever since. Don't get me wrong I love Carmex, particularly the new tinted range which allows me wear lip colours even when my lips are ridiculously chapped!

But I have found a new love, Nivea realised some lip butters this time last year and the second I saw them I picked the raspberry one up purely on the fact I love raspberry scented products.

But this lip balm which was left to sit at the back of my lip balm draw (yes that really does exist, shameful I know) until a couple of weeks back I rediscovered it, I used this lip balm after I get out the bath, you do not have to use too much and I let it sink into my lips, once it has sunk in, which doesn't take very long my lips are the softest a lip balm has ever made them!

Pro's of this Product

• It absorbs into the lips quickly ( I do still drink etc whilst it is on and it doesn't affect it)
• It does not feel greasy 
• There is no tingling sensation which you receive from other lip balms/ treatments
• It smells amazing

Con's of this product

• It is in a tin, which means I will only use it after a bath when I know my hands are clean, so isn't very handbag friendly 

Overall I love this lip balm, so much so I have purchased a tin of the original scent to try. I know the tin my bother some of you but this isn't an issue for me because If my lips are dry during the day I like to use tinted balm so it adds some colour to my face, which tent to be in stick form and I only use tin style balms at night after I've washed my hands. 

Why not give one a go and let me know what you think?

Hannah x

My Night Time Skin Care

One of the greatest challenges in life is find a skin care routine that works for you, am I right?

I have used most of the products I am going to share with you for about two years now and I still love them as much as when I first got them. Most of the products are from The Body Shop but about a year ago I also added some items from Lancome to the Mix!

The first thing I always use is a face wipe or some other type of liquid makeup remover you apply with a cotton pad, this is the step that changes up the most, currently I am using The Body Shop Vitamin E cleansing wipes, which can be found here, but I tend to use anything on offer I got these when the Love Your Body club was offering 40% discount instead of the usual 10%, they are a nice face but in my experience a face wipe is a face wipe!

I have also been known to use other cleansers that I have received deluxe samples for, typically Lancome's Eau Micellaire Douceur or even the bi-facil all over my face, I have had no issues with using the eye makeup remover all over my face but the next step is to wash my face and I wouldn't recommend using bi-facil in this way if you are not washing it off.

Next step is to wash my face with The Body Shop vitamin E gentle facial wash I have lost count how many bottles of this product I have used, it is very gentle on the skin and I work it into my face using the exfoliating face sponge from The Body Shop, this product can be used on/round the eyes without stinging. I also have the bar version of this cleanser but I would recommend keeping this well away from your eyes because it stings so bad! I use it when I haven't had makeup on so I'm not too worried about cleansing round my eyes because there is no makeup residue. 

I then use the toner in the same vitamin E range which is alcohol free and just note, a little goes a long way!

After all that I use a moisturiser I switch between the vitamin E one and Lancome's night cream, I find the night cream from the body shop too heavy for my skin so the body shop one is just the regular!

Finishing off with a lip balm, at the moment I have been loving the nivea lip butter, which I've done a review on, but I have a whole draw with different brands so I just work my way through those!

Hannah x