Empties #08

As I'm writing this, I already have three products for my next Empties. I could include them here, but that would mean taking the photo again!

I don't like to include every shampoo and conditioner I go through in these posts because it gets incredibly tedious. However, this one's worth mentioning. I even dedicated an entire post to it here! It's the Tresemme Platinum Strength Shampoo. I was skeptical at first, but it really did make my hair feel softer, stronger, and overall healthier. I've already bought more, and would definitely recommend giving it a go.

The Nivea Waterlily and Oil Shower Gel was something I bought ages ago because it was on offer, but only started using it recently. I usually prefer fruity shower gels which pack a punch, but enjoyed using this delicate number. I didn't notice my skin feeling any more moisturised, though. It's nice, but nothing special, so I probably won't repurchase.

I can no longer see The Body Shop's Vineyard Peach Body Mist (review here) on their site, and I'm kicking myself for not stocking up. It smells like a fresh, juicy peach, and it's amazing.

I also finished up another bottle of Superdrug's Colour Effects Conditioning Colour in True Chestnut (review here). I think I've mentioned one of these in nearly every Empties, and I'm starting to sound like a broken record! Just read my review or previous posts to find out why I like them.

I liked the Revlon PhotoReady Perfecting Primer (review here). It left my skin looking and feeling smooth, mattified it slightly, and made my makeup look better. I just wish the packaging was different because I had to pry the lid off and whack the bottle on my palm to get the last little bit out (which was actually more than a little bit).

The Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in Intense Black and Colour Tattoo Gel-Cream Eyeshadow in On & On Bronze are not empty, but they are drying up (after having them for years, may I add). Both are creamy, intensely pigmented, and last all day. They've become part of my daily routine, and I've already repurchased both.

Have you tried any of these products?

Bedside Beauty

I've unintentionally accumulated a small gathering of products beside my bed, and thought I'd talk a little about them today.

Just before bed, I'll sometimes want to moisturise areas such as my elbows, knees, and feet. My body butter of choice at the moment is Soap & Glory's Sugar Crush Body Buttercream (review here), but I'm also a fan of The Body Shop's Raspberry and Vineyard Peach varieties. They all smell incredible, aren't too greasy, and provide my skin with a lot of moisture, leaving it soft and subtle.

I've also been moisturising my hands before bed because they've been needing more TLC since starting work. I'm absolutely loving the Figs & Rouge Hand Cream in Cherry Blossom (review here). It isn't greasy in the slightest, but still leaves your hands feeling hydrated. It also smells amazing!

For facial moisturisers, I have the Organic Surge Blissful Daily Moisturiser (thoughts here) and the Balance Me Moisture Rich Face Cream. I used, loved, and finished my pot of Organic Surge Super Intensive Daily Moisturiser, so am now making my way through the Blissful Daily version. It's obviously not as moisturising, but still sinks in well and leaves my skin feeling soft. The Balance Me one is a generous sample I received in a magazine the other month, and I'm still making my mind up about it. It isn't greasy, and leaves my skin adequately moisturised, but it's heavily fragranced. If you don't like strong rose scents, you'll struggle to use this.

For lips, I have the Blistex Intensive Moisturiser and Nivea Soft Rose Lip Balm. The Blistex Intensive Moisturiser is amazing, and leaves my lips feeling softer than any other product. More often than not, though, I find myself gravitating towards the Nivea Soft Rose Lip Balm because my lips don't need the Blistex one every night. The Nivea one is just like your standard tube of lip balm, but it's one I use a lot.

For blemishes, I use the Nelsons Pure & Clear Blemish Gel. It seems to do the job better than others I've tried, and that includes Lush's Grease Lightning.

Then I just have some products that I haven't been using that often, but are there just in case. I'm still deciding whether The Body Shop's Vitamin E Moisture Serum gives my skin any extra moisture. I'm honestly not sure. Then there's the Superdrug Vitamin E Skin Oil, which I'll use if my skin is feeling particularly dry (which is not that often).

Have you tried any of these? What products do you use in the evenings/just before bed?

Empties #04

Half of the products you see are featured in nearly every empties post, but I have some products that are new to the feature this time!

Imperial Leather Foamburst Luxurious Body Washes in Sweet Vanilla & Cherry Blossom and Bewitching Blackberry & Wild Fig (review here) - I love these. The packaging is beautiful, they're foamy, and they smell amazing. At £3, or £2 when on offer, they're more expensive than my usual shower gels, but I'd still happily repurchase them. Sweet Vanilla & Cherry Blossom isn't a scent I usually gravitate towards (I go for fruity ones), but this is beautiful and delicate. Bewitching Blackberry & Wild Fig is more up my street, and I'm tempted to stock up straight away, even though I have so many other bottles to use.

Naked Brunette Radiance Shampoo* and Conditioner* (review here) - Like I said in my review, the shampoo was okay, but it didn't do anything more than my cheaper ones do. The conditioner, however, was great, and was more like an intensive treatment. I've already purchased two more tubes of Naked's conditioners because my Alberto Balsams do nothing in comparison!

Alberto Balsam Shampoos in Strawberries & Cream and Coconut & Lychee - My go to shampoo brand. They're cheap and they do the job! My all time favourite scent is the Strawberries and Cream one.

Superdrug Colour Effects Wash In, Wash Out Conditioning Colour in Mahogany (review here) - Are you sick of me mentioning these yet? Since I used this one up a month or so ago, I haven't been using them, but will start to again next week. I remember going back to uni after using this a few times and a friend thought I'd dyed my hair red. It wasn't until then that I noticed how much of a difference it makes! As well as this, my sister's friend thought I was actually brunette and had just dyed my hair an auburn shade. I like dyed auburn hair just as much as natural auburn hair, so no complaints from me.

Cutex Nourishing Nail Polish Remover - Another product I've mentioned time and time again. Removes your nail polish and smells better than others. 

Soap & Glory Peaches and Clean Deep Cleansing Milk (review here) - This has since been repackaged, just to let you know. I liked it, but after using for 8 months, I became bored of it! It did its job, though, and that's all that matters. I'll repurchase, but not for a while. I fancy trying something new.

Simple Baby Moisturising Wipes - I use these for a little bit of everything. Taking makeup off if I'm not cleansing in the shower, wiping off swatches, and cleaning off any products that are looking a little grimy. They're £1.99 for 80, but they're often on offer for 99p. Even better, Lloyd's Pharmacy sometimes have them included in their '6 for £5' offer, and then my sister gets 20% staff discount, so I get 6 packs of 80 for just £4!

Nivea Express Hydration Primer (review here) - I believe this took me 14 months to finish. 14 long months. In the beginning, I loved it, but towards the end, I wasn't sure if it was actually doing anything. My concealer would also sometimes go bitty and roll off my skin, if you know what I mean. I thought this was because I was using too much of this primer and that I didn't let it sink in well enough, but then I went back to using my Witch one and didn't have this problem, so who knows? It's great value for money, though, and I think I just became too used to it to notice its benefits.

Have you tried any of these products?

Colours of the Rainbow Tag!

I had seen this tag doing the rounds, and when Laura tagged me, I thought I'd have a go myself! For this tag, you simply pick a product for each colour of the rainbow (plus pink). It can be the packaging that's coloured, or the product - whatever you choose! I actually found this pretty hard. I wanted to stay away from nail polishes because I've already done the Favourite Nail Polishes - Rainbow Edition post. I also wanted to pick a variety of products, not 4 or 5 shower gels.

So, for the colour red, I've chosen one of my eBay brushes (you can see my post on them here). For £1.54 (they're now around £2.55), I'm very pleased. It's soft, dense, doesn't shed, and washes well. I've been using it for my powder blushes.

For orange, I picked The Body Shop's Mango Body Mist. I love fruity scents, especially mango, so this is perfect. 

I've cheated a little with yellow because there's hardly any yellow on it! But it's the best I had, and I wanted to pick products I actually use and love. This is The Body Shop's Mango Hand Cleanse Gel. I love it! It smells just like the other mango products, and lives in my bag (I have the other scents laying around the house). I reviewed this, and the other scents, here.

I just had to pick Original Source's Lime Shower Gel for green. I've used this for years. I told you I love fruity scents!

For blue, I picked Nivea's Express Hydration Primer. I've been using this for... over 8 months now, and I've still got over half left. It's very thin compared to the Witch primer, but it works (I reviewed it here).

Maybelline's Rocket Mascara isn't exactly indigo, but it's the closest product I had. I've only been using this for the last couple of weeks, but really like it. It separates my lashes and defines them. I've also been using the Mega Plush one, which is great, but I think I prefer the Rocket because it's not as feathery, so gives a little more definition. 

I chose Cutex's Nourishing Nail Polish Remover for violet. It's my favourite nail polish remover, and all I use now. It does the job and smells nice for a nail polish remover (like vanilla).

I picked Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey for pink (swatched here). It's my favourite lip product, and one of the few I wear to its full intensity.

I love a good tag! I tag everyone reading this :)

Beauty Changes I've Made in the Last Year

The other day, I realised just how many beauty changes I've made in the last year or so! There are more than what I'm going to mention in this post, but the following are the main ones. I was thinking about writing a post on the changes I've made since blogging, but that post would be ridiculously long! I've probably changed everything about my routine since three and a half years ago.

First of all, I started to use hot cloth cleansers in 2012. I love them. They're so creamy and moisturising, but remove all of your make-up at the same time. The ones above are Superdrug's Naturally Radiant Brightening Hot Cloth Cleanser, Superdrug's Vitamin E Hot Cloth Cleanser, and Liz Earle's Cleanse & Polish. I've also just used up the No7 one. My favourites would have to be the Superdrug ones. They're nearly as good as the Liz Earle one, but they're so much cheaper.

I also started wearing primer last year. How did I manage without it?! I couldn't not use it now. It allows my make-up to go on smoothly and last all day. The ones I use are Witch's Anti-Blemish Skin Clearing Primer and Nivea's Express Hydration Primer.

I started using body oils in the Summer of 2012. The ones pictured above are Palmer's Moisturising Body Oil and The Body Shop's Coconut Beautifying Oil. I've used a third of The Body Shop's one, which is good going seeing as you only need to little bit at a time. I really want to try the mango scented one next.

I also think I started using wax to fill in my eyebrows last year. Before that, I always used powder. The wax I use, and have repurchased, is the one from the ELF Studio Eyebrow Kit in Medium.

I then started to use cream blushes. The ones I use the most are the ones pictured above, and they are the NYX Cream Blushes in Natural and Glow. To apply these, I use the ELF Studio Stipple Brush, which I picked up last month.

I also started to buff my nails. I never realised how many ridges I had until I buffed them. I then couldn't get over how smooth they felt! And my nail polish started to apply much better.

The most recent beauty change I've made is wearing nude eyeliner. The one above is Rimmel's Scandal Eyes Waterproof Eyeliner in Nude. It covers the redness I have on my waterline and brightens my eyes beautifully.



They're some of the changes I've made in the last year. Others include smudging out the eyeliner on my lower lash line, exfoliating my face with exfoliating gloves, and waxing my top lip ;)

Nivea Express Hydration Primer

I don't wear foundation, so up until a few months ago, I didn't feel like I needed to use a primer. However, I wear concealer on my eyelids because they can be quite red, and I started to notice that the concealer would crease throughout the day because of how oily they are. I also found that concealer wouldn't apply smoothly under my eye area, so I would end up being quite rough when applying it. After applying primer around my eyes for a couple of months, I started to apply it to anywhere I would use concealer. A few weeks ago, I saw the new Nivea Express Hydration Primer on Superdrug's website for £3.99, with free delivery, so thought I would give it a go.

Price: It's very affordable! I think it's usually meant to be £4.99, but it's currently £3.99 on Superdrug's website with free delivery until the 4th December. There's two varieties of this primer: One for normal/combination skin (the one I have) and one for dry/sensitive skin. Both are the same price.

Packaging: This primer comes in a box and the actual product is contained in a glass jar. I like it! I know some people prefer pumps because they're more hygienic, but I'm really not fussed.

Consistency: It's a gel/cream hybrid and has a thin consistency. I thought this would affect the results and it wouldn't be as good as the Witch primer I was using, but I was wrong.

Results: The primer moisturises your skin, provides a smooth base for make-up, and keeps your make-up in place all day. You need the tiniest amount, so I can see the jar lasting a while. It also absorbs quickly, which is perfect for when I'm in a rush. Like I said in the first paragraph, my eyes and make-up don't go well together, so they were the ultimate test for this product. With it, my concealer goes on smoothly, meaning I don't have to pull at the skin, and my lids stay crease free all day. I like it just as much as my Witch one. I do think this is more moisturising though.

Would I repurchase? Definitely. 

Superdrug Purchases!

Superdrug have free delivery until the 24th October, so I thought I'd stock up on some essentials. I stock up on so many things, my beauty draws look like a small shop!

The Superdrug Foam Colour Hair Dyes are for my mum. They were buy one (£5.99) get two free, so these were just £2 each! I bought her one Medium Brown 5.0 and two Light Browns 6.0.

I then added the Simple Baby Wipes x80 to my basket, which were £1.99. The normal facial ones are £2.99 for 25, so these are much more cost effective (and they're practically the same things!).

I'm running low on my much loved Witch Skin Clearing Primer and it was half price at just £3.49, so I couldn't resist.

I also wanted to try the new Nivea Express Hydration Primer, which was only £3.99. I love the packaging - It comes in a glass jar! It's lighter in consistency than the Witch one and I'm not sure how I feel about it. I'll test it out tomorrow and see if my concealer creases on my eyelids (I have red, oily eyelids, you see... mmm, sexy).

I added Superdrug's Coconut Oil to my basket because I've been meaning to purchase a pot and it was only £2.29. I already have a coconut oil, but I wanted to try the solid, natural form.

I've tried Liz Earle's and No7's hot cloth cleansers, so wanted to buy Superdrug's Hot Cloth Cleanser to compare. I've been liking hot cloth cleansers because they're gentle and moisturising on my skin. This one was on offer for £4.99 (normally £5.99).

I then bought another bottle of Cutex's Nourishing Nail Polish Remover for £2.15. This is my favourite nail polish remover because I really like the smell and it does a good job at removing my nail polish, funnily enough.

Lastly, I stocked up on Superdrug's Hair Grips (£1.39) and Superdrug's Emery Boards (99p). I go through so many packs of these. I don't know if that's because I use them all the time or because they go missing all the time!

And they're my purchases! Oh, I do love free delivery.

Beauty Buys

Hello! Despite having a beauty blog, I rarely buy a lot of beauty products. I only buy necessities, such as concealer and mascara. Recently, however, I have bought more beauty products than usual. As you can see, I have already been using these products (I couldn't wait!) and will have some reviews up shortly. 

So, where shall we start? The three pots with brown lids, on the near left, are Boots Extracts Fairtrade Brazil Nut 50ml pots. I won all three on eBay for £3.84, including P&P. I already own a small pot of the Brazil Nut body butter (as well as a handful of other scents) and love it. It's similar to the Cocoa Butter scent, but a lot better, in my opinion. 

I had a trusty Boots No7 £5 off voucher, so decided to try the No7 Beautiful Skin Hot Cloth Cleanser. Without the voucher, it is £10, so I only paid £5 for it. You get more product than you do with Liz Earle's variant and it's a lot cheaper. It removes my make-up well and leaves my skin slightly soft, but it doesn't leave it as soft as Liz Earle's. I'm not too bothered though, seeing as it's much more affordable.

Next, I bought the Palmer's Moisturising Body Oil. You can buy this from Superdrug, Boots, Feel Unique, Amazon etc for around £5. Before this, I had never used a body oil because I thought it would leave me oily, like the name suggests. Oh, how very wrong I was! It sinks in to the skin incredibly well and leaves me less oily than a body butter or lotion would. It leaves your skin silky soft, just as it claims to. A more in depth review of this will be up shortly.

Did I need any more shower gel? No, I have bottles and bottles of the stuff. But I just had to buy the Nivea Water Lily & Oil and the Sunny Melon & Oil Shower Gels. These were £1.24 each (half price) from Boots. They smell divine!

I bought the Cutex Nourishing Nail Polish Remover from Superdrug a while ago, so cannot remember the price. It's between £1-2 though. This is my favourite nail polish remover. It removes nail polish well, but it's the scent that keeps me repurchasing. It's slightly more subtle and sweet than your average remover, and doesn't make me feel sick.

As I said, I rarely buy beauty products, especially hyped up make-up items, so it was out of character for me to buy the Revlon PhotoReady Cream Blush in Flushed. I bought this from Superdrug for £5.99 (normally £7.99). You get a lot of product - 12.4g! The shade looks vibrant and slightly scary in the pot, but it's very natural looking, once applied to the skin. It feels... satin-y - A lot different to the NYX cream blushes. I suppose this is because it has a cream-powder finish. 

Whilst in Superdrug, I also picked up the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Lovesick for £5.99 too (normally £7.99). I love fuss free lip products, so stains are my best friends. A lot of people are describing Lovesick as being a hot pink shade. I think it leans far more purple than that. For that reason, I bought the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Sweetheart from eBay. I had to buy this shade from America because the UK doesn't have it. It annoys me that the UK always has limited product shades. Anyway, I paid £7, including P&P from America, from this seller. I think that's a pretty good deal! It took just over a week to arrive. Even though Sweetheart is more pink than Lovesick, it still leans cool toned/purple-y. I wish Revlon brought out more shades - A warm pink would be great.

Lastly from Superdrug, I bought Barry M's Pink Silver Glitter Nail Polish for £2.99. I wrote a post about it here. It's a beautiful shade and has changed my mind about glitters.

So, there you go! I hope you enjoyed this post. If you would like me to review any of the products above, just leave me a comment.

Summer Bargains

Hello, all! I feel like I haven't blogged about my beauty or clothing purchases for a while, so thought I'd show you the things I've bought in recent months. As you can see, I haven't bought much at all. This is because I've been buying books, crafts and items for my room. Also, if I have bought a beauty product, I have shown you it in a post already, so didn't feel the need to include it in a haul. As I was gathering the above items, I realised that all of them are appropriate for the Summer months, and all but one of them was bought with an offer.

Let's start with the Superdrug order I placed over a month ago. Superdrug had an amazing offer on the sun lotions (I know they don't come under the 'beauty' category, but I still wanted to include them). Selected products were half price and then buy one get one free. They also had free delivery, so I just had to order! So, for the Nivea Sun Invisible Protection Spray and the Nivea Sun Spray, I paid £7.15, including delivery. Around £3.50 per bottle is a bargain, considering they're between £12 and £15 each when they're full price. I've tried them a couple of times and like them. I'm really not fussy when it comes to sun lotion though. As well as the sun lotions, I bought the Simple Kind To Skin Sun Kissed Moisture Cream for £4. I've used this a couple times a week for a month and I really like it. It gives me a subtle, natural glow and makes me look healthy.

The next order I placed was with ASOS. I bought Models Own Fluro' Orange nail polish for £3.50 in the sale (I blogged about it here) and a skinny, lilac waist belt for £3, which was also in the sale. I was unsure what size to get, but I bit the bullet and went with a small. The smallest hole on the small belt is perfect, so I'm glad I'm not any slimmer! I also bought some other things, but they're for a birthday present.

The last item I bought, which arrived this morning, are these New Look chino shorts. These were an absolute bargain! They were originally £17.99, but were in the sale for £5.40. Then, I had my student discount and a free delivery code, so altogether, I paid £4.86 for them. They fit perfectly, just like all of my other New Look shorts. I can't wait for the sun to come out now.

So, they are all the beauty and clothing items I have recently bought. It's not much, but I didn't have the patience to wait until I bought more things to blog about them.

I'm off to make cheese straws (The recipe will be up shortly). Thank you for reading!

Those Rare Few...

Hello :)

I rarely finish a product and its even more rare if I purchase it again because I'm always trying out different things. I'll start using the product for a few weeks and then the novelty wears off, but below are products I've finished and re-purchased:

Nivea Lip Care Pearl and Shine £2-£3 depending on the store. I have so many lip balms and this is one of the only ones I've stuck to. Firstly, because its a stick lip balm which means my hands won't get messy. Secondly, it makes your lips smooooooth and thirdly, leaves your lips with a gorgeous pearly shine.

Collection 2000 Volume Sensation £4.99. Although I do use different mascara's, this is the only one I've re-purchased (about 6 times). I love my mascara's to have large bristle brushes and this has exactly that.

Boots Intensive Hair Masks £1.99. I use these everyday as a normal conditioner so no wonder I go through so many! They leave my hair silky soft :) Review for these can be found here.

Body Treatment Cocoa Body Butter (Have only found in Wilkinsons) around £1. I've written a review for this here. Smells gorgeous, leaves skin really soft, same size as a large Bodyshop's body butter and is extremely cheap!

x

A few more things I have my eye on...

Seen in Tesco for £13 something. The handles are made out of bamboo and loads of people rave about the brushes! Also comes with a little brush roll to keep them safe :) 5 brushes and a roll for that price is pretty darn good - just over a few pounds for each brush :)

£5.99. I should start using a moisturiser more often.