Can you tell I wrote that headline while a sleeping tablet was kicking in?

A bunch of body lotions have crossed my desk, the first being Kiehl’s Creme du Corps Soy Milk & Honey whipped body butter (R685, selected Edgars stores) in ultra-bright limited edition packaging that’s just in time for Christmas.

A creamy, dreamy mix of Shea and jojoba butter, beta carotene (a vitamin A-derived antioxidant) plus natural plant oils like avo and almond, Kiehl’s butter boasts an air-whipped texture and a yummy vanilla-honey scent. Despite really bringing it in the hydration department, it aforementioned moussey texture sees it absorbing rather fast.

As I don’t really have a dry skin type I plan to hide this boy away and then break him out in the middle of winter. It’s the kind of thing that’d be a real treat to use on a cold winter’s day after a hot bath. If you’ve got a drier skin type, however, this dude’s an every day gem.

Next up, Optiphi have created another variant of their popular Body Curve body lotion called Evergreen (R365, selected salons and Yemaya online). I can’t find a plant extract called ‘Evergreen’ so I’m assuming it’s just the name of the scent that, to my nose, just smells very ‘clean’ and ‘green’.

Formulation-wise, this light, creamy lotion is also a fast-absorber that makes use of Shea butter, soothing allantoin, a teensy dash of exfoliating lactic acid and a smidge of ‘true cinnamon’ extract, a good circulation-booster with antibacterial properties that can slow down glycation (the stiffening of collagen).

Oh! And here’s a special alert for you – if you buy any Optiphi products to the value of R2000 in the months of November or December, you’ll score a free Evergreen body lotion, mini gym towel and canvas shopper bag.

Lastly, Clere have extended their body lotion (R15,99) and body creme (R22,99) lines to include three new variants – Soothing Aloe & Moringa (green and fresh for summer), Pampering Powder Fresh (pure baby powder – leave it to your gran) and Luscious Tropical Cocoa Butter (a mix of citrus, coconut and musk – sooo not your typical cocoa butter).

Clere is a good example of how you don’t have to shell out a fortune for something as simple as a decent body lotion. From a formulation point of view, it’s made using glycerine with a dash of vitamin A and E – ingredients that are much the same as a zillion other higher end body lotions that you’ll pay more for simply because they target a higher LSM. (An LSM, for those of you who didn’t go to a fancy pants advertising school like I did, is an acronym for ‘Living Standard Measure’. When you flick your pen around in a meeting and say ‘Well yes, James, we have jacked up the price of that bog standard washing powder but we’re targeting a higher LSM. Didn’t you see the golden plastic scoop?’

So, like I said, Clere, despite the fact that it costs less than a KFC Crunch burger, is a nicely formulated body lotion that’s good at it’s job. While I dislike most Cocoa Butter scents I was impressed by theirs. It’s really more of a warm, creamy vanilla-type scent that dare I say it, reminds me a bit of Kiehl’s.

Now tell me, are you a product snob or do you only care that your beauty products work like a boss? Please feel free to share any of your bargain basement beauty finds in the comments section below. I’d looove to hear about them. Off the top of my head I can already think of three – Innoxa Spot Drops, Chinese store ‘mood lipstick’ that works with the pH of your skin and Mediscalp conditioner. I have no clue whether the latter is still around – it used to come in a revolting-looking yellow plastic tub – but I’ll always be grateful for how it managed to bring my bleach bath-damaged hair back from the brink of death when I was a poor student who can’t afford to buy a Kit Kat, let alone Kerastase.

Love, love

Leigh