© Hair Tools

Have you seen the adverts for the vibe vibrating hair straighteners from Hair Tools? You will have done, it’s on all the time, while they are trying to sell them for the Christmas present market. I’ve been looking into them and I think they could be a real alternative to the GHD straighteners that girls go wild for.

I know it’s ironic, me talking about hair straighteners when I haven’t got the fullest head of hair, but I find that writing for this shopping blog gives me a good overview of what works and what doesn’t.

They’ve got the ceramic plates and variable heat you expect in even bog standard straighteners now, but the vibration totally eliminates any pulling or snagging, with the hair gliding through the plates without any tugging.

My wife is always on about GHD straighteners but I can’t see how they’re different from any others – except for the price which is way too steep. I’ve had a poke about with the Vibe ones at my local electrical shop too and they seem the business.

From what I’ve seen, and from having a chat with a few people in the know, I’m pretty sure the Vibe straighteners will beat GHDs in a straight hair playoff, and this is exactly the sort of thing I’ll be getting my wife for a Christmas present. She doesn’t read this shopping blog, so I can tell you and she’ll never know.

Do you like GHD hair straighteners? Am I right, or do you think they’re as good as people claim? Let me know.

Peter

Rated: from 2250 votes

© Remington

One of the problems about being a man is that daily shave - unless of course you’re young and handsome enough to look good in designer stubble. And since I qualify on neither count, I need to shave every day!

Long gone though are the days of the shaving foam, razor and hot water, and I wouldn’t be without my rechargeable electric shaver.

I’ve tried both kinds – the standard kind where the blades move backwards and forwards against each other, and the rotary as pioneered by Philishave. And while both do the job just as well, I must say I find rotary shavers both quieter to use and more comfortable. They’re certainly quieter as the little blades just whiz round, and my current model, the Remington R9100 is whisper quiet.

Shopping for an electric shaver, I always look for quietness so I don’t wake the whole house first thing in the morning, a close comfortable shave and washability. It’s vital to be able to run your shaver under very hot water to clean away all the hair as well as the oils that it picks up from your skin.

Product reviews for the Remington rate it just as highly as the Philishave models and my own experience confirms it. The R9100 charges in under an hour from empty, is fully washable and gives a great shave. Take the advice of the shopping blog and give it a try.

Rob

Rated: from 1573 votes

stock.xchng © egahen

Hi, Sarah here.

Rob’s asked me to call in and let you all know what I’ve been finding out about cleansing body care for us ladies. Rob’s strictly a soap and water type, whatever he says, but as the girls among you will know there’s nothing so essential to looking your best as a top class cleansing body care routine.

I’ve tried them all, believe me, and as a personal shopper in one of Manchester’s major stores, I’ve got the behind the scenes gen on every brand of cosmetics and cleansing body care products you can think of.

These days, every cleansing body care system has its own special extras that differentiate it from all the others. So it’s very much a matter of personal taste which one you feel suits your own skin type and your own beauty routines the best.

It’s important to remember that there’s no right and wrong in this, and while “amazing factor x additive from the rainforests of Brazil” might be just what your friend’s skin benefits from, it could be totally the wrong thing for you.

What I’ve found is that they all do a decent job as regards cleansing body care, but different people like different ones. So find one within your budget that you’ll feel comfortable with and enjoy using day after day, and that’s the right one for you.

It’s not what you pay, it’s how it feels on you that matters.

Xxxx
Sarah

Rated: from 1643 votes

© Decleor

You already know that I use hand cream to stop my hands getting dry and chapped after working in the garden or going fishing – well I’ve just been using my wife’s cleansing body care gel.

Now this isn’t the start of me wearing makeup and perfume - I’d never buy it myself, but I found a bottle in the shower and put a bit on. The bottle was there and it would have been rude not to – all in the interest of research of course.
It’s called Decleor’s smoothing and cleansing body care, and the bottle says there’s a “clever 2-in-1 action” with gentle cleaning and hydrating agents. I’m not sure what that means, but it’s grainy and scrubs away dead skin to make your skin smoother. I’ve tried a few of my wife’s cleansing body care products, and this was definitely the best, making my skin feel clean, refreshed and really smooth to touch.
Whether it’s a good thing for a bloke to be all smooth is another matter, but at least there’s no strong perfume in it so I won’t get ribbed by my mates for smelling like a girl.
I don’t think I’ll be using cleansing body care every day because I’ve got to keep a bit of ruggedness, but maybe a bit of smoothness isn’t too bad either.
Rob

Rated: from 1851 votes

© Neutrogena

With the winter weather fast approaching (some may say it’s never gone away this summer!), now is a good time for ladies (and outdoor men) to make sure their hand care regimes are in order.

The hand cream we always swear by is Neutrogena hand care cream. It comes from Norway, where they know a thing or two about protecting their skin from the elements. Neutrogena hand care cream is not cheap, but is far and away the most effective hand care regime I know.

It protects your skin from the effects of the weather, washing up and other things that can damage the skin on your hands and leave you feeling sore and chapped.

And it’s so concentrated that you only need the tiniest amount for each application. Within a few seconds of applying Neutrogena hand care cream, you will notice your hands are softer, gentler and feeling soothed.

The ladies of the house use it daily, and I must admit that after a hard day in the garden or working on my latest DIY project, a quick squeeze of Neutrogena hand care cream instantly repairs the damage to my hands. I hide my bottle in the shed though!

Rob

Rated: from 1433 votes