I recently had a giftcard to spend in the Bodyshop. I am a regular shopper in this store as I appreciate that they do not test their products on animals and also commit to a Fairtrade relationship with famers who supply their stock ingredients. I had no idea what I wanted to buy though as there are so many lovely things available and I wanted to really treat myself. I eventually saw this pot of body butter which was in a basket full of different varieties of body butters. I looked at them all but this one really screamed "buy me!" as I am a huge chocoholic and love the smell of cocoa.

I bought a small tub of this which contians 50ml or 1.69 oz (48g) of product. The tub is made of a strong brown plastic. It has a very secure lid which is easy to screw on and off. If you wanted to you could easily reuse the tub after using up all the butter. The label has a picture of what looks like a hazelnut smothered in melting chocolate. My tub is marked as "exclusive edition" and I've just bought it in the run up to Christmas so I'm not sure if this body butter is available all year. The label on the front also promotes the body butter's 48 hour "feelgood hydration".

There is another label on the bottom of the tub which has a peel back section where you can access a list of full ingredients. This tells you that the body butter contains a blend of rich ingredients including shea butter honey, soybean oil, cocoa seed butter, coconut oil, beeswax, sesame seed oil, oliver fruit oil, aloe leaf juice.

The body butter is a pale fawn colour and it looks very shiny and hard set. Once you get your fingers into it the texture becomes softer and creamier. I find that when applying this butter it doesn't go as far as a more runny lotion or moisturiser. I have therefore tended to use it more often in specific spots like hands and elbows to conserve the product for longer. I have nearly used my pot up though and in a very short amount of time.

The body butter has a lovely sweet smell that is more reminiscent of chocolate fudge or toffee. The fragrance is very strong and I can apply this at bedtime and wake up and my whole bedroom smells like chocolate so the fragrance is long lasting. It does smell good enough to eat and when I smell this on my skin I feel very happy and warm inside!

The body butter softens skin instantly and feels just right on the skin. It's not heavy or sticky. I do find that it it is not ideal for using on certain areas of the body like over my breasts where the skin is more elastic. Due to the density of the body butter you tend to have to rub it in a bit more than you would with a body lotion. I therefore would advise using it in places like knees, feet, elbows, hands and lower arms. It definitely transforms very rough patches of skin into soft skin instantly. The moisturisation lasts a long time too and I don't feel like I have to reapply if I use this once a day unless I shower.

I am very pleased with my purchase but I do feel that this is more of a one of treat purchase than a regular thing. I think it's quite expensive for the amount you get and couldn't afford to pay as much for so little product on a regular basis. It has certainly been something I've enjoyed using in these cold, winter months and the aroma of the product really cheers me up. I think it would make a great gift for a lady.

You can buy this product in store or online. You can buy it in larger tubs of 200ml for £13 too. There is also different products available in the Chocomania range such as lip butter, soap and body scrub.

www.thebodyshop.co.uk