September empties:
Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Balm - Nice, smooth, does the job. Good value for money. But offers no thrills or joy in using it. This will most likely be repurchased, but I much prefer Emma Hardie cleansing balm. That one smells like heaven.
Studio 10 Primer - not an empty, I just didn't use this up within a year so it's time for it to go. This is very silicone heavy.
Bourjois Healthy Mix Serum foundation in 52 Vanilla - my favourite high street foundation for dry to normal skin. Moisturising, light, leaves the skin glowy. Light coverage and natural looking. Doesn't stay on for the whole day but that's fine with me.
Kiehl's Amino Acid Shampoo - SLS free, smells lightly of coconuts, my hair seems to love it. Repurchased already.
Tata Harper Restorative Eye Creme - lovely. Light, creamy texture, botanical/ herbal smell reminds me of Dr Hauschka skincare. Lasted me for about 4 months, used twice a day. Expensive, but repurchase worthy.
Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Univeral Daily Peel - This is the strongest acid treatment I have used so far. It's actually a blend of five AHA and BHA acids.You will definitely feel a strong tingling which subsides once you apply the second pad. Ah-mazing. Again, expensive, but was using this as a treat once in a blue moon and not daily. Repurchase worthy, but not yet because I have a gazillion of other acids to go through.
Hydraluron - oldie but goodie. Hydrating serum with hialuronic acid. I like that's in the tube, I like that it's more goopy than other almost liquidy serums.
October empties:
Korres Basil and Lemon shower gel - didn't like the smell. Others smell soo much nicer, especiall Japanese Rose one.
Tresseme heat protection styling spray - great value for money. Repurchased already.
Vichy water-proof makeup remover - didn't like it very much. Too oily and stung my eyes.
Ren Evercalm Global Protection Day Cream - like most of Ren moisturisers, I really liked it.
Emma Hardie vit C intense daily serum - this only has got 2% of vit C in it so it's hardly intense. Second ingredient on it's list is niacinamide so together with vit C it has a brightening effect. This has a tendency to ball up so one has to wait until it's fully sunk in (which it does quite quickly) and then apply a moisturiser. I quite liked it, but I don't think it's worth it's full price (£49) I myself got it last boxing day in M&S. I believe it was less than £20 for a gift set which also had a full size of vit C cream, mini moringa and mini facial oil. So watch out for those deals.
Emma Hardie Moringa cleansing balm - I like the small 50ml pots, so I always repurchase the trio of these. This is my holy grail, favourite balm cleanser EVER. I will always come back to it as long as they make it. Takes the makeup off well. I can also do a second cleanse with it. I leave it on my skin for longer as a softening nourishing mask. Smells great. Yeah. Love it. My husband loves using it too!
Nip + Fab glycolic fix pads - These were sent to me by Glamour Beauty Club. I've tried the extreme night time ones before. They're both okay. Nice convenient packaging.
aaand I tried some eye cream samples. Samples are great for eye creams, you only need a tiny bit, so they last for a good week. Both Kiehl's Midnight Recovery and Dr Barbara Sturm were nice and creamy but not too heavy. I don't think I will purchase the full sizes. I'm on the lookout for something really great. Zelens perhaps?
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So. Much. Stuff. In the beginning of the month I thought I wasn't going to finish anything. Surprised myself quite a bit.
Let's jump right in...
CoLab Dry Shampoo Active - probably my favourite spray dry shampoo. Invisible, smells fresh and not overpowering. I go through a can very quickly, that's probably the only negative.
Toni&Guy Intense Softness Shampoo for normal hair - I should have known better. This was a random purchase. I just grabbed this in a supermarket without thinking, and really, I should have. Contains SLS and something else that has made my hair dry and coarse. My scalp became irritated. Yikes. Never again.
Korres Japanese Rose Shower Gel - if you like rose smell, you will love this. Beautiful fragrance. Otherwise, nothing special.
TRESemme Extra Hold Hairspray - I had this small can for years and finally finished it. It's good. I've been curling my hair more often so it was useful.
Philip Kingsley Daily Damage Defense - favourite, will be repurchased. Makes my hair soft, doesn't weigh it down, smells nice, protects from the heat.
January Labs Balancing Moisture Lotion - it was lovely during the heatwave and if I felt like I needed something a bit more nourishing, I would just add a couple of drops of oil (Zelens Power D, I love thee). Husband liked this too.
Ren Flash Hydra-Boost Emulsion - this has lasted me for a really long time! I think I got bored of it for a while, forgot about it and then rediscovered it. Lovely when used in the morning as it hydrates and plumps up the skin but also feels light. This would feel lovely on mature skin.
Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel - still got 3 packs left. This is a nice treat. The skin feels smoother and brighter straight away.
Alpha H Absolute Eye Complex - I like the ingredients in this a lot (niacinamide, sodium hialuronate, matryxil 6) and it works at hydrating but I don't really like the texture, it's a tad sticky (possibly because of the niacinamide). A little goes a long way.
Clinique Pep-Start Exfoliating Cleanser - I got a sample of this with purchase. I assumed it was an acid or enzyme cleanser and was disappointed to find that it had bits in it. I still have no idea whats in it because ingredients are not listed on my sample and I can't find them on clinique website. It says that it's gentle enough to use twice a day. Uhm, no. It's got bits in and it lathers. Worked a treat on my legs though.
And finally, makeup that got old: Nars creamy concealer (good), Bourjois blush (it's alright) and MUA cream bronzer (too orange, too dark, can't remember where I got this from, I certainly did not purchase this?).
Let's jump right in...
CoLab Dry Shampoo Active - probably my favourite spray dry shampoo. Invisible, smells fresh and not overpowering. I go through a can very quickly, that's probably the only negative.
Toni&Guy Intense Softness Shampoo for normal hair - I should have known better. This was a random purchase. I just grabbed this in a supermarket without thinking, and really, I should have. Contains SLS and something else that has made my hair dry and coarse. My scalp became irritated. Yikes. Never again.
Korres Japanese Rose Shower Gel - if you like rose smell, you will love this. Beautiful fragrance. Otherwise, nothing special.
TRESemme Extra Hold Hairspray - I had this small can for years and finally finished it. It's good. I've been curling my hair more often so it was useful.
Philip Kingsley Daily Damage Defense - favourite, will be repurchased. Makes my hair soft, doesn't weigh it down, smells nice, protects from the heat.
January Labs Balancing Moisture Lotion - it was lovely during the heatwave and if I felt like I needed something a bit more nourishing, I would just add a couple of drops of oil (Zelens Power D, I love thee). Husband liked this too.
Ren Flash Hydra-Boost Emulsion - this has lasted me for a really long time! I think I got bored of it for a while, forgot about it and then rediscovered it. Lovely when used in the morning as it hydrates and plumps up the skin but also feels light. This would feel lovely on mature skin.
Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel - still got 3 packs left. This is a nice treat. The skin feels smoother and brighter straight away.
Alpha H Absolute Eye Complex - I like the ingredients in this a lot (niacinamide, sodium hialuronate, matryxil 6) and it works at hydrating but I don't really like the texture, it's a tad sticky (possibly because of the niacinamide). A little goes a long way.
Clinique Pep-Start Exfoliating Cleanser - I got a sample of this with purchase. I assumed it was an acid or enzyme cleanser and was disappointed to find that it had bits in it. I still have no idea whats in it because ingredients are not listed on my sample and I can't find them on clinique website. It says that it's gentle enough to use twice a day. Uhm, no. It's got bits in and it lathers. Worked a treat on my legs though.
And finally, makeup that got old: Nars creamy concealer (good), Bourjois blush (it's alright) and MUA cream bronzer (too orange, too dark, can't remember where I got this from, I certainly did not purchase this?).
Quite a lot of beauty empties this month and a little bit of everything.
BODY
The Body Shop Body Butter in Jolly Orange - like all of the Body Shop butters it has a nice texture, sinks in quickly, is nourishing and moisturising. Took me AGES to finish it and in that time I went through a love/hate relationship with the smell. It's citrusy and spicy but in a rather artificial way. I will repurchase but not in this smell. It was limited edition anyway.
Chanel Coco Mademoiselle Eau de Parfum - my signature scent. Will definitely repurchase, probably the 100ml because I just have to have it in my collection. I don't care how uncool it is to love something that everyone likes. Everyone likes it for a reason.
HAIR
Co Lab Dry Shampoo in Fresh - good basic dry shampoo. I prefer the smell of Active.
Josh Wood Radiant Shine Hair Treatment Oil - I liked using this as a pre-shampoo treatment. Gorgeous smell. Amazing.
FACE. SKINCARE
Pixi + Caroline Hirons Double Cleanse - nice as always. Full review here.
Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel - this is one of the stronger acids I have tried. Proper tingling action. Visible results after one application, the skin felt much smoother but I broke out a bit too. I'm going to stick to gentler acids during summer, I think. Smells lovely.
Indie Lee CoQ 10 Toner - I miss it. Definitely worth repurchasing if one can afford it. I can't at the moment. I did some damage in the clothing sales. Full review here.
Clinique Moisture Surge Hydrating Supercharged Concentrate sample - Nice. Hydrating. Not sticky. Wouldn't mind a full size.
UltraSun Face SPF30 - oh it's alright. I don't miss it. Comparison with other sunscreens here.
FACE. MAKEUP
Charlotte Tilbury Full Fat Lashes - I grew to really like this but it's not repurchase worthy. Do get the sample size if you're ordering from CT website!
No favourites this month. I will probably do summer favourites in a month or so.
Next post if all goes well should be all about The Ordinary advanced 2% retinoid! This week I will be using it EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Wish me luck. I will report back.
Overall, I am very happy with this box. I knew I wanted to get it because I was particularly interested in Zelens Power D oil and Tata Harper Regenerating eye cream and I would have probably bought them at some point this year. Just these two items cost £195. The box also includes Indie Lee toner, Dr Dennis Gross peel pads (both brands I have heard of a lot and haven't tried). And Pixi + CH double cleanse, of course, which is a favourite of mine.
The only product that I had my doubts about was the January Labs lotion, purely because they call it a lotion. I, as an owner of a dry-ish and dehydrated skin, don't typically go for lotions. However, I LOVE the consistency and feel of January Labs Moisture Balancing Lotion. It is light, yet really hydrating and will be perfect for warmer summer days.
Another product I know I will love until the end is Tata Harper Regenerating Eye Cream. It's not only a texture that I like (creamy but not too heavy. sinks in fast and moisturises well) or the smell (reminds me of Dr Hauschka eye cream) but also the effect on my skin. I don't know how to describe it, but it just looks and feels better. Instantly. The pump is a bit annoying because it deposits way too much product, I only need like a third of a pump because a little goes a long way (thank God, because this is one pricey eye cream!).
Zelens Power D is a lightweight oil which sinks in fast and leaves the skin comfortable and nourished. Indie Lee CoQ10 Toner also has some calming and soothing properties. Can't say much about anti-ageing but my skin liked it. And it smells good!
The only thing I haven't tried is the Dr Dennis Gross acid pads because I currently have three different forms of acids on rotation (liquid, serum and mask. and not all at the same time!) and I need to finish some of them up.
I wish the box had included some kind of fancy SPF but that's just me being super picky. All in all, money well spent. I am probably sorted for most things skincare until autumn. Except SPF.
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