I purchased Vaseline Essential Moisture Cocoa Radiant body lotion as part of my ongoing quest to find a cheaper but just as effective alternative to Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula.
The fact the 200ml bottle was on offer in Tesco for just £1.50, half its usual price of £3, was an incentive.

As this body lotion is made by Vaseline I had high hopes for this product. Vaseline, as it even states on this bottle, has been caring for skin since 1870, and they are a well-recognised and respected name in the beauty industry. You know that you are always going to get a decent product from Vaseline, and at times a really wonderful product - but which category was the Vaseline Essential Moisture Cocoa Radiant body lotion going to fall into?

The Promise
According to the front of the bottle, Vaseline Essential Moisture Cocoa Radiant body lotion is a rich feeling lotion for healthy glowing skin. It continues on the back that it promises to leave skin feeling healthy and glowing and combines the magic combination of pure cocoa butter with multi-layer moisture.


The Product
The body lotion comes in a rectangular bottle which is a light golden brown in colour with a darker brown flip top lid. Brown is not the most appealing colour for a cosmetics bottle but as this is a cocoa-based product the colour is appropriate to illustrate the main ingredient. It is actually also a summery colour. It reminds you of sandy beaches and the resulting tan and even has similarities to bottles of fake tan and sun tan lotion in design. It is clever marketing as it immediately conjures up feel good emotions of a time of year when your skin is generally looking at its best.
On the label on the front of the bottle is the usual blue Vaseline logo at the top. The title of the product in white writing follows underneath, with the words 'cocoa radiant' emphasised in a larger font. In the bottom right hand corner of the label is a simple picture of three cocoa beans alongside the words 'pure cocoa butter' and 'multi-layer moisture'. Also currently, the front label carries a red sticker stating this product is 'new'.
On the back of the bottle is a short blurb about what the product will do to your skin, along with a list of ingredients and telephone numbers and addresses to call with any questions etc.

My Experience
The bottle is easy to open. You simply flip up the lid and tip the bottle upside down in order to squeeze a small amount into the palm of your hand.
When the lotion comes out it is predominantly cream in colour with an ever so slight tinge of brown. It is much thicker and creamer than I expected it to be. The consistency puts it much further up the quality ladder than a Vaseline product in my opinion. Its velvety smooth consistency takes it towards the premium, luxury end of the market.
I found you actually need less product than you would think. A good ten pence piece blob is enough to fully moisturise legs with a little over to rub over arms and torso.
The smell is an unusual one. It is not the chocolaty rich and warm smell you usually find cocoa butter products have. It is quite a synthetic, plastic smell with perhaps a hint of coconut. It reminds me of a number of smells from my childhood, particularly the smell of doll's hair and also Playdoh. It is by no means unpleasant but it would be a disappointment for anyone looking for the usual cocoa scent.
The smell lingers on the skin for around two hours after application I would estimate and then disappears, unless you bring your nose close to your skin and inhale.
The cream is a perfect consistency to rub into the skin. I did try and apply a little too much at first but even then, when I was forced to rub it over my legs quite liberally, it soaked in naturally quite quickly. This also means you do not have to wait too long before being able to put on tights or skinny jeans.
I didn't really notice an extra special glow to my skin though I have to say. My skin did look well moisturised and did have a shimmer to it but not much more than I would usually expect after moisturising my legs with a decent moisturiser.
My skin is however lovely and soft to the touch and feels well nourished. If I touch it, it feels bouncy and full of moisture which is a good sign.
I have had no irritation or allergic reaction to this product. It does not leave skin too greasy or tight and dried out.

Conclusion
I am very impressed with this product. It left my skin feeling lovely and soft and moisturised with a pleasant scent - even if it wasn't the cocoa butter scent I would have expected.
I wouldn't put too much store in it leaving skin glowing on the outside but it certainly boosts the health of skin from the inside.
It still fails to replace Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula but I'm not sure anything ever will, however I will certainly be purchasing another bottle if it's on offer again.