I want to start out this review by stating up front that I have a prejudice about Cake Products. I think they are high quality products but I also tend to think they are over-priced, too thick and heavy and have sweet scents that can become overpowering. Normally, my personal feelings about them are that from 1-5 with 5 being my favorite products, this line in general would rate a 2 or 3 if it was on sale.

I've been a Walmart (aka "cheap body product") gal for a long time and while I love bath and body products, I hate to feel like I've paid an arm and a leg for something. I also hate buying something that just smells and feels heavy.

You need to know this, because when I tell you that I LOVE this product, that helps you understand that I don't say these words lightly. Most Cake products that I review end up being given to my daughter. This product is going straight to my bedroom.

So what is Cake's Glow-rious and what makes it so great?

This is a glistening body lotion that you use all over your body. The back of the bottle states that it is designed to "smooth, nourish, enhance & glow-rify your skin." It does this because it has sheer "goldmica" in it which glistens when the light hits it.

Among the other ingredients, it has shea and mango butters along with aloe vera oil to help moisturize your skin.

The ingredients are: Water (Aqua), Caprylic Capric Trigylcerides, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Aroma, Dimethicone, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG 100 Stearate, Triethanolamine, Mingifera Indica (Mango) Seed Oil, Polyquaternium 7, Polysorbate 60, Carbomer, Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Carthamus Tinctoris (Safflower) Seed Oil, PEG 150 Stearate, Steareth 20, Benzophenone 3, Tetrasodium EDTA, Silica, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Sorbic Acid.

It may also contain: MICA (CI77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI77891), Iron Oxides (CI77491, CI77492, CI77499) D&C Red #6 Lake (CI 15850:2), D&C Red #7 Lake (CI15850:1), D&C Red #27 Lake (CI145410:2), FD & C Blue #1 Lake (:CI142090:2), FD & C Yellow #5 Lake (CI 19140:1), FD & C Yellow #6 Lake (CI15985:1), Bismuth Oxychloride (CI77163), Chromium oxide green (:CI 77288), Chromium hydroxide green (CI 77289), Ferric ferrocyanide (CI 77510), Manganese Violet (CI 77742), Ultramarines (CI 77007), Tin Oxide (CI 77

I have taken the ingredient information off the main product page because it is very hard for me to read the ingredients off the back of the bottle since I accidentally smudged them.

I would like to note that this product has no phthalates, no sulfates, no triclosan and is parabens free.

As with all bath and body products, it is recommended that you do a patch test on a small section of your skin if you are worried about allergies towards any ingredients in the product.

This is labeled and marketed as a lotion but it almost feels like a creme because it is so thick. I will describe the differences between the two types of products in just a bit.

First of all, when you open the push-top cover and pour it out, it comes out very thick and in a ball almost like a creme does. It also isn't quite white but has more of a creme color or a hint of pink to it, but I think that comes from the mica flakes inside that leave a light gold glitter on your skin.

Here is a picture of how it looks when it comes out:



When I turned my hand sideways to see if it would fall off, it stayed there for over a minute before the whole pea size amount started to move together. In other words, it was not runny at all.

So what is the difference between a lotion and a creme?

From my prior research for bath and body products, I learned that there are three types of moisturizers. The thinnest type is a lotion and it is usually in a container where you can pour it out. The second thinnest type is a creme and the souffles, which are a whipped version of the cremes. These are usually thicker due to less water content and are found in jars where you dip your hand or something in to get out a small amount. The thickest products are the body butters which are made from the oils of trees and seeds.

While this pours out like a lotion, when it pours out, it feels thicker like a creme would feel.

Whenever I open the bottle, the scent fills the air and reminds me of pina colada. I know that the product is supposed to have pineapple and vanilla in it for the fragrance, but they smell like pina colada to me and to my husband. There is a bit of a chemical after-smell if you keep your nose over the bottle long enough smelling it. In fact, if I try to smell it too much, I do get a headache.

But if I simply do what you are supposed to do with this product, which is simply to use it as a moisturizer and not sit around inhaling it all day, it does a great job and smells really good on your body.

Although this product smelled good enough to drink, I opted to not taste it and instead dream of having a real pina colada someday and smelling like one until that day comes.

I used this on my skin and found that 12 hours later my skin was still soft, I could not really smell the moisturizer after that long but there was a tiny hint that some fragrance had been there.

Unlike my usual testing, I didn't measure an exact amount to see how far it would go. I did use a pea size amount (roughly) and it did all of one arm and most of one leg.

One thing that was a bit strange to me was that my arm and leg felt soft (I was testing another product on the other side), however, my hand felt dry after applying this. It almost felt like I'd use an alcohol rub/cloth on my hand. I know it is winter and very dry here but it didn't feel like it really absorbed into my hand like it did the rest of my body. Then again, I normally use a different cream for my hands than I do for my body, unless I'm using a body butter.

This comes packaged in a very pretty box and would be great for gift giving.





Here is a picture of the bottle next to a 20 ounce bottle of water to give you an idea of how much you are getting.

I want to explain my personal rating system to you here because you may be surprised to see that sometimes I love the smell and the product works well - but it only gets three stars. It has to do more than smell good - it has to be a good value.

First of all, if a product smells good (no chemical smell or bad after smell) and does what it should - I will automatically give it three stars.

If the product is priced reasonably well to the point that I'd give it as a gift at that price or be willing to ask for it from my husband as a gift - then I will give it four stars. If I wouldn't normally ask for it unless it was on sale or would buy it on sale but not at normal price - I'll give it four stars.

But for a product to be five stars - it better smell good, perform well AND be priced at something my budget can allow without me wanting to grimace every time I use it because of the cost.

I love bath and shower (and body) products and they are one of my major weaknesses. However, I have learned over the years of experimenting that expensive doesn't always equal better quality. Mind you - I'm not someone who is overly worried about parabens so I don't judge quality by whether something is paraben free - I judge it by how it makes me feel.

With the vast array of products that are on the market, there is a wide selection for me to choose from and still be happy without spending an arm and a leg.

So I try to do my reviews from the perspective of someone who is budget-mindful and may have kids and a house payment and is saving points for those one or two things she dreams about but can't quite afford.

I hope this helps you understand how I do my bath and body product reviews.

At the current price of $27.99, this figures to be $3.29 per ounce. When I compare that price to what I can buy at the local discount store or drug stores, it is high. However, when I consider how little of this I need to use to do an effective job of moisturizing, that "cost" drops significantly. One bottle of this would probably do me all winter if the rest of my family did not get their hands on it.

I would not use this in summer for a very specific reason. This product smells delicious and since I'm normally outside more in the summer, this would attract flies and other bugs to me since I smell like something that is good to eat. So I will save this for winter use.