Arbonne Shea Butter Hand and Body Care Duo

RRP: £35
available from: www.arbonneinternational.co.uk

--What does the promo say?--
"Soothes, softens and replenishes dry skin with moisture. Includes Hand Wash (11.5 fl. oz.) and Hand Lotion (11.5 fl. oz.). Available in a contemporary stainless steel caddy for easy use on your sink or counter. Gift boxed."

--Packaging--
The context in which I received these products from Arbonne last month was as part of a limited edition Christmas gift set*, which contained not only the two products mentioned above, but also the now defunct Cuticle Care Pen, Intensive Moisture Balm, and Exfoliating Hand Treatment. In this set, the hand lotion and hand wash were both available in squeezy tubes. For the hand lotion, this was no problem at all. For the hand wash, however, it was - it's very tricky to put the lid back on such a thing when your hands are all wet and covered in soap. Plus, soap would collect in the lid, meaning some product was sadly wasted, and I found myself longing for it to come in a pump-action bottle. Thankfully, as you can see from the picture above, in this combination it does, and I think it's set off very nicely by the matching hand lotion pump and the silver mount.

--Application--
Easy peasy. Pump some soap (just a small amount will do) into your hands, and lather under a running tap. Rinse off, then dry your hands. Application is equally easy with the hand lotion - just slather it on liberally as needed.

--Appearance--
The hand wash is clear, while the hand lotion is a pale white. The lather created by the soap is also white, and no visible traces are left on the skin.

--Scent--
Perfectly natural and tallied with the impression the brand wants to give: natural, classy and realistic. Halfway between vanilla and chocolate, for those of you unfamiliar with the shea butter smell - so perhaps not especially masculine.

--Texture/consistency--
The hand wash lather is silky smooth, and the hand lotion absorbs quickly and effectively. As well as being a hand lotion, it's also a body lotion, meaning that you can use it on your feet, elbows, or anywhere else where you might be having trouble with stubborn dry skin.

--Effects on the skin--
While the hand wash made the skin on the tops of my hands feel soft, on the palms I just found it made it drier (however, my fiancé reported no such drying effects, so it's likely that this just varies from person to person). The hand and body lotion, however, gave me no such problem, although it's less effective on tougher dry skin, such as on the feet. You definitely have to be patient with it and keep on applying it regularly to see long-term results.

--Value for money--
The Limited Edition Hand Care Collection also retailed at £35, so in one sense it seems better value than the duo that's now being sold; however, these sizes are also much bigger, so it probably evens out. You get a high-quality, sophisticated, luxurious and generally effective product duo from a company that's surely a rising star in its field; what more could you ask for?

(* I'd advise you to get hold of this set as quickly as you can from Inspired By My Girls, which is the only place where you can still get the limited edition set apart from ebay. It's great :)
If you live in Australia, lucky you! If you order the Endless Love set or the Touch of Love set, then the Hand Care Collection is included. My favourite product from it is probably the Exfoliating Hand Treatment - it's innovative, smells gorgeous, and gets the job done.)