Anatomicals review
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Tyna and I have been anglophiles for almost as long as we’ve been friends. From the first viewing of Hungry like the Wolf, it was a force that could not be stopped. One look at Simon le Bon and it was all over. We’ve been obsessed with the Brits ever since.
When I came across a blurb about Anatomicals in my recent issue of PRINT (it’s like a inspirationo mag for graphic designers) I knew I needed to get my hands on some. The British line developed by 2 brothers, former ad execs Paul and Gary Marshall, takes my anglophilic tendencies to a whole new level. Because not only do I love all things English, I love smart marketing, great packaging and most of all, products that deliver.
Take one look at their website. Watch and listen to their flash intro and tell me you don’t love them already! (Warning: there’s disco involved, so tread carefully if you’re sneaking a peak while at work.) Funny, edgy, super cheeky; the website mimics the line. And check out their genius unisex products; for example bender mender (their hangover helper) puffy the eye bag slayer or shower to the people. If there’s one thing Anatomicals is, it’s bloody clever. Luckily, they’re way more than just one thing.
When I finally managed to track down Paul, he asked “how on earth did you come across us?!” You see this English import is bit hard to find here in the states. But don’t worry, they’re so affordable that the overseas shipping from the online store still makes them a bargain. And I don’t know about you, but I love tracking down an off the radar brand (plus, they won’t be hard to find in the states for long, trust me).
We got 2 of the most amazingly generous boxes of products from them, packed with 4 of their best selling products. The review team will be weighing in on the following:
stop cracking up lip balm – in a nod to the ridiculous trend, they say “Not everyone wants their lips inflated like a hot air balloon. But everyone wants their lips to be smooth, moisturised and kissable.” This balm includes beeswax, olive oil and zingiber to make your pout just that.
help the paw hand cream – light yet mighty, this cream has sweet almond oil and vitamin E oil. The description is just such a perfect glimpse into the humor of the line, I have to list it in it’s entirety. “Do you never have to lift a finger to do anything? Have your hands never been in a washing up bowl? Do you never shake hands with anyone unless you’re wearing white gloves? In short, are you the queen of England? if you are, we’d just like to remind you that the corgis need a walk and to say that you have no need for this ultra soothing cream. If, however, your blood’s more red than blue, buy tubes of the stuff. After all, look at all those dirty plates in the sink.”
no old bags allowed eye gel – a cool and refreshing gel with arnica and orange flower water that helps sooth eyes and sends the bags packing! “Eyes are the windows to the soul. Don’t allow yours to look like they belong in a derelict building that’s just been vandalized again.”
snog me senseless mints – tiny, powerful mints packaged in a tin that allows them to be dispensed one at a time. And even though they’re super cheap, Anatomicals recognize that “it’s nice to be kissed by the seriously minted.”
So testers, let us know. Did Anatomicals have you at ‘ello?
(and if you’re of the Twitter variety, be sure to follow them)
I hit Anatomicals pay dirt and got all 4 products to try (thanks girls!) And I have to agree, I love England and all things that come from it.
In my order of preference:
Is it weird that a tin of mints made me so happy? The fact that you can dispense them one at a time, the funny little story on them, that both the tin and the mints are tiny; I totally heart Snog me senseless mints! Really powerful too.
Stop cracking up lip balm is wonderful. It’s a real basic lip moisturizer, no real shine and not too much scent. It’s perfect under lipsticks or to wear to bed. I’ve been doing both and am very happy with it. My lips have been way less chapped ever since I got it.
No old bags allowed is different than any of my other eye products. It’s a clear gel and it’s very cooling on your eyes. I love that it has arnica in it (which is also good for bruising, so I think it made my dark circles less noticeable too). It’s not really for moisture, it’s more of like an eye refresher. I think you could totally talk your man into using this!
Help the Paw hand cream is very moisturizing, but light so it doesn’t make your hands greasy. But the scent did do it for me. It has a faint smell of motor oil! At least to me, am I crazy? But, my boyfriend loves it! So he’s very pleased I got it.
Overall, this is a very fun line. And using it made me feel somehow cooler! Love their website too. Thanks for finding this hidden treasure.
What is this? What in carnation could it be? Yep, you guessed it, I was stumped at what I had received.. It drives me batty when something is unfamiliar- no bells are ringing.. But what was ringing, was the laughter after reading this cute blue box. Leave it to the Brit brothers to be so humorous in their advertising. It reads, “No Bags Allowed Eye Gel”. Come on, so silly! I love that! I was dying to see what was in the box! Turns out that the Anatomicals eye gel is out of this world-great stuff!. More importantly, the ingredients are no laughing matter. I love its soothing arnica, with orange flower water-both are wonderful for tired eyes. “No Bags Allowed Eye Gel” will help your tired eyes to be calm, cool and collected! I look at a monitor all day long, and loved applying a dab of this throughout the day.. Ridiculously refreshing! This will bring great relieve while revitalizing your peeps.– Those Brits are by far the wittiest and I like their style. I read that in the UK Anatomicals are a cult favorite by celebs Victoria Beckham and Joss Stone.
What a great website! So funny! A little complicated but fun to navigate. I was shocked to see how reasonably priced the line is especially since the products are top notch. I adore the simple packaging because what’s insides is what matters. I LOVE the simple Helvetica type (yes, i did just watch the documentary on the famous font and highly recommend it) I’ll do what Veronica did and list them in the order i like the most, even though i really like all of them. I didn’t receive the mints but thats ok because my breath is always fantastic! LOL!
1-No Old Bags Allowed-I use this all the time through out the day. it gives my eyes a fresh shiny look that i love. I also love that it has a bit of a cooling effect. Very light and absorbs in seconds!
2-Help the Paw Hand Cream- I thought the scent was great and light. i didn’t smell the motor oil but everyone’s nose is different. When i first put it on and saw how shiny it was i thought it would take forever to absorb but i was wrong. My hands are super soft and shiny. I guess i love products that make your skin shine (but in the good way). I have to say that i’ve been using it on my legs and arms as well.
3-Stop Cracking Up lip balm. Its not that i liked this one the least but i am the Anti-Stef when it comes to putting on gloss and balm. I always forget to reapply blah blah blah. but the good thing with this one is that it actually lasts. When i first opened it i got flashbacks of the MAC Lip Glass that would always catch my hair in. Don’t get me wrong, i would battle through it, but the sticky thing would make me crazy. So of course once i put it on i realized it was nothing like that. it absorbed super quick and stayed. At first i thought it was a little numbing like a lip plumper but that went away in seconds.
All in all i think this is a super line. Hopefully they’ll sell in the states soon. but stef is right that the prices are so reasonable that even with shipping its worth it.
On a side note-Im half English. My father was born in London. In fact i was just given a Queen Elizabeth Silver Royal Jubilee plate from my grandmother! God Save The Queen!!!!!
One more beaut to share with you! The amazing Anatomicals’ Snog Me Senseless Mints- yes, another super fabulous creation from our English brethren. What I want to know is, what does “snog” mean? I am not sure! Does it mean, hit me, smack me or knock me senseless? Someone translate for me please! Regardless, they are powerful and most refreshing! Adorable packaging too. Go ahead and have the shrimp scampi over linguine, and have no worries that you will offend anyone. Come kiss me and see for yourself! HA! CIBER kiss to all of you!
Please post a picture of the other items so people can see the funny advertising we’re laughing about!
OMG ladies, I think we are long lost sisters! I too was obsessed with Simon LeBon and am a HUGE all things British fanatic. In fact, I leave for my 1st trip to London on Sunday and am over the moon!
This product is freakin adorable, I definitely want to check it out. Love the packaging!
I love that Bronwen just called herself the Anti-Stef of lip balms.
On to the products I agree the mints are just so adorable, minty and great! Here is why, they come in a tiny little tin a little bigger then a match book, they have a great little blurb on them that is a hoot every time you read it. The best part though, when you open the tin there is this great little cover plate with a tiny notch to dispense your mint. Now why is this great you ask? Beside the illustrated makeout couple….No mint dust in your purse! Ever had a tin of Altoids pop open in your purse and get chalky mint dust everywhere? Won’t happen with these little bits of goodness.
Next up for me was the stop cracking me up lip balm like Veronica said great for night time after you’ve already scrubbed your face and brushed your teeth. It’s not strong enough for a wintry PA day but may be just perfect for the summer.
Onto the old bag gel, I guess I put this 3rd because I was expecting something that it was’t designed to do. I thought it was going to be a puffy dark circle reducer. It wasn’t and I kind of dismissed it. After reading the other posts as I’m staring at my monitor I wish I had it in my purse to dab it on for the cooling affect. Overall all 3 products are great and the price PERFECT!
I received the No Old Bags Allowed Eye Gel as well and I’m with Susan on this. I thought it was going to make the bags under my eyes disappear and maybe even reduce my dark circles, and I didn’t see much or a result. But after reading the other reviews, I think that it would feel absolutely fabulous here at work after staring at my computer all dang day. Especially after last night, we went out for a little pre bday celebration and today I have that hung over, itchy skin, and dry eye feeling. If only I could have that cool sensation under my eyes right now, I would be in heaven!
I do want to say that when I did apply it in the mornings, I loved how it made my eyes feel refreshed and I could feel a slight tightness when I put it on. My mom stole it from me for a week and she loved what it did for her. She said that she really liked the cool sensation and she could really see a difference in her eye baggage, it was disappearing for her, but I stole it back before she used it all up :)
And I agree with everyone else the packaging is great and I loved reading the descriptions! So funny!
I got the mints and the eye gel to try. Yay, mints! Light and fresh and in a tin that doesn’t spill all over the abyssal bottom of your purse! I would definitely buy these again.
They eye gel certainly was cool and refreshing, but I didnt feel like my eyes looked any different, unfortch….And I’m pretty hooked on my Dior HydraAction EyeCream with SPF20. It’s been keeping my peepers bright for almost a year now!
Pam, snogging is kissing! You were so close to the meaning, if were a snake it would have bit you. Sorry I didn’t get more images in here, I would have put up their whole site if I could have. Everyone will just have to explore it to see.
Kelly, I am so jealous you’re going to London!!! Well, you def. have to look for some Anatomicals while you’re there. Personally I have my eye on the “Not another Bloody shower gel” which is red and makes your shower look like the scene from Psycho!
And I’m going to see refrain for starting to talk Duran with you. Or the girls will tease me! I’ll put that on your profile page…
I was lucky enough to receive the Snog Me Senseless Mints and the Help the Paw Hand Cream to try out. The first thing that caught my attention about these products was the cute, practical packaging complete with witty descriptions of their products! Someone at Anatomicals clearly has a great sense of humor.
I was pretty excited about the Snog Me Senseless Mints – I recently gave up my gum habit and have been searching for the perfect mints. First, I have to say that these mints taste great! They’re not too harsh tasting like so many other mints. I don’t feel like I’m taking a concentrated dose of Listerine! But don’t underestimate the power of these tiny mints! One of these bad boys easily tames my morning coffee breath and most other offensive odors (admittedly, I needed two after an extremely garlic laden pasta dish). Another great thing about these mints is that they contain Xylitol! For those who may not know, Xylitol is a tooth-friendly sugar substitute. My dentist explained Xylitol to me like this: All the bacteria in your mouth think that the Xylitol is just sugar, so they happily gobble it down. Unfortunately for them, they can’t digest Xylitol, so they explode. Or something like that. Basically, it makes the cavity-causing buggers die a well-deserved, painful death.
I also love my Help the Paw Hand Cream. It kept my paws well-moisturized and it was light and not greasy. It also smelled wonderful, I couldn’t place it entirely, but it reminded me of the lemon balm my mom had in her garden when I was growing up. Light and citrus-y.
In conclusion, I’m super excited about these products and I can’t wait to try other Anatomicals products and since they’re so reasonably priced, I’ll be able to try their entire line!
Stef, Sometimes it’s just like going to college knowing you.. Oh, Kissing! Yes, how wonderful! Thanks for the edification!
I love this line! I felt like a jack-pot winner too! I got to try the lip balm, under eye gel, and hand cream.
First off the packaging is adorable and hilarious. I love the clever quotes & I love the products inside even more. The Stop cracking up lip balm is AWESOME! Like some of the other gals, I put this on before bed and wake up with smooth and happy lips. I really like how it feels, and in the dry CA desert let me tell you this is a lip saver. I’m a gloss fan so as a go to for happy shiny lips in the day this is a keeper!
The help the paw hand cream is super moisturizing without that “now I can’t touch anything” feel. It absorbs quick, has a fresh smell and truly leaves your paws nice and soft.
The no old bags allowed eye gel is awesome too. It does have a nice cool sensation when you put it on and I love that it has arnica in it, a known anti-inflammatory and bruise reducer…perfect for de-bagging the eyes. I didn’t notice a 100% change, but I did notice my eyes were less puffy and the ol’ bags looked like I had used concealer & I didn’t :) so 5 happy stars from me.
This line is well thought out, and well put together.
I will definitely be trying more of this line!
I also tried the No Old Bags Allowed Eye Gel. I really liked it because like others have said it instantly gave me a cooling sensation. I did feel like it made my tired puffy eyes a little less puffy. I loved that it was a clear gel and wasn’t heavy or sticky. The gel seems to soak in quickly. The packaging is so original and the product names are so original. I also love that this little tube is so darn cute and can fit inside my purse for touch ups.
Like Veronica, I hit the jackpot and got all four items. I don’t want to repeat what everybody else has already said, but I love the quirky sayings on the packaging of the Anatomicals products. I love that they are unisex. Since I’m married and thus, live with a man, unisex products are revered in my household. Sometimes Mike would like to use some lip balm that doesn’t smell like roses or use hand cream that doesn’t smell like frosting.
The mints were perfect–I love that they didn’t leave any white dust residue in my purse. They’re in a plastic dispenser inside a tin, so they’re packaged very securely. A certain curiously strong mint makes me look like a coke mule because the tin is constantly coming open and dust gets on everything.
The hand cream had a slightly citrus scent to it, took a while to absorb, but made my hands nice and soft. I even put some on my heels before I put on sandals and it kept them looking soft.
The lip balm in the tube wasn’t my preference—I prefer more of a solid balm in a tin. It had a slight hint of something fruity, maybe cherry? It was moisturizing on my lips, but again, I don’t really enjoy tubed gel balm. They creep me out a little. I have no idea why.
The no bags eye gel was cooling and refreshing. I did put it in my refrigerator for some extra cooling power and it really did help me feel refreshed. I didn’t notice that it particularly reduced my dark circles nor was it moisturizing, but it did help de-puff my eyes when I kept it in the fridge.
Overall, I liked that the products are unisex, I like that they work (for the most part), and I like that they aren’t too fussy. I also love the cheeky sayings on the packaging, especially the one about the one on the eye gel box that says “eyes are the windows to the soul, don’t allow yours to look like they belong in a derelict building that’s just been vandalized again…”. Hilarity ensues.
Super suggestion Krista! I forgot to put the eye gel in the fridge! It really makes a huge difference in its cooling power! Also, today I brought in my SNOG me senseless mints to the office.. I want to see how many people know what Snog means! Now that I know, I have to see if I’m the only one out to lunch around here. You know how it is, you always feel better when someone else is as clueless as you are! HA! I will be using the term Snog more often though- like, Snog my arse, and so on! Oh, these are awesome mints!
It’s almost like a mini cooling mask when you put the eye gel in the fridge, Pamela, very refreshing!
I love the word “snog”.
It sounds like something you’d do to punish someone :P
Great idea putting the eye gel in the fridge. I woke up yesterday with the puffiest eyes I’ve had in a long time…way too little sleep for me. This gel almost instantly took the puffiness away. I think I’ll keep mine in the fridge for such occasions.
I too am putting my eye gel in the fridge now! Love this stuff – it is totally refreshing. I also tried the snog me senseless mints – I absolutely love pulling these out of my purse – makes for great conversation!! The oldest, staunchiest lady at work thought it meant sex…that was hilarious. The rest of us figured kissing since that’s what they’re doing on the tin, so thanks for clearing that one up, Stef. They work really well, too. I usually use those Listerine strips – but they are just too strong and somehow gross for me lately – these are perfect for a refreshing feel in the mouth and give me enough confidence to talk to my students without feeling like the “coffee breath” teacher!
I wanted to add that I finally got around to putting my No Old Bags eye gel in the fridge (genius idea, whoever originally said it!) Wow, it’s really great like this. It seems to make it de-puff even quicker and feels utterly fab.
You guys have great ideas. I’m glad I listen!
Recently, I tried Anatomicals What A Complete and Utter Glosser I Never Fake Strawberry Milkshake Fruity Lip Gloss Tube. How absolutely cute it was! It reminded of lip glosses I would have stocked up on in high school and college. It smells delicious but not over powering, and it makes my lips feel gloss-tastic–shiny (without stickiness) and sexy. Two lips up.