Empty Products

An empty product is a rare sight when you have a lot of products on rotation. It means it's become part of your routine, which is high praise indeed. I've tried to limit the amount of hair products I show in these types of posts because we'd be here for a long time if I didn't. I've also omitted most of the products I've spoken about far too often. So, what's left?

Aussie Miracle Hair Insurance Leave In Conditioner | I must have spoken about this an incredible amount of times over the years, but I'm including it now because I haven't mentioned it for ages, and my opinion has changed slightly. I've been through bottles of this stuff. It smells beautiful, and used to leave my hair noticeably soft. I don't notice this as much now, though, and use it to wet my hair more than anything. My hair's become accustomed to it, and I've since found products which condition to a greater extent. The mist isn't that fine either. I've found TRESemme's Oleo Radiance Conditioning Mist leaves my hair smoother, and while it doesn't smell as good, it has a really fine mist to it.

Lush Ultrabland Facial Cleanser | This is the other product I'm forever mentioning, but it really is great. It melts away all your makeup without stinging your eyes when you open them to find the face cloth, and leaves your skin seriously moisturised. Other cleansers, even oil ones, feel drying in comparison now. It sounds like it'd be a nightmare for those with oily skin, but that's my t-zone skin type, and I have no problems with it.

Garnier Ultimate Blends Strength Restorer Balm | Smells great and leaves my hair much more conditioned than other intensive conditioners do. I've also finished the shampoo and normal conditioner in this range, as well as the Sleek Restorer ones, and they're all great. The shampoos feel like they're doing more to your hair than just cleaning, and the conditioners noticeably condition, unlike a lot of others which just prevent your hair from feeling too dry.

Original Source Vanilla Milk & Raspberry Shower Gel | Original Source can be overlooked for more expensive, luxurious alternatives, but it's a brand I always return to. I absolutely love this scent, as well as the lime and mango ones, and they're always on offer for £1 somewhere.

L'Occitane Zesty Lime Hand Cream with Shea Butter | This was a magazine freebie, and I so wish I'd stocked up. It smells incredible, and the L'Occitane hand creams are some of the best I've used. I just don't love it enough to pay £8 for 30ml. The hand creams are no strangers to a magazine, so I'm just going to keep my eye out for them.

EOS Sweet Mint Lip Balm | It's always an amazing moment when I finish a lip balm, because it happens so rarely. This one isn't even one of the most moistursing ones I've used. It's pretty average, actually. However, it's smooth and smells lovely, and it was something I ended up applying every night before bed. I have nearly all of the scents, and Sweet Mint is one of the better ones. Honeysuckle isn't as smooth, and Lemon Drop definitely isn't. Strawberry Sorbet is, but I grew accustomed to the scent of Sweet Mint.

Soap & Glory One Heck Of A Blot Primer | One of the best primers I've used. It doesn't interfere with any of my foundations and create a rolling mess, and it makes everything last well. It's more difficult to tell with my face makeup, but when applied around my eyes, my gel eyeliner doesn't smudge as much. I already bought another tube before this one ran out, so that's saying something.

If you have any of these products, let me know your thoughts, and if you know where I can get the L'Occitane hand cream from for a bargainous price, that'd be even better!

Empties #12

Okay, enough procrastinating, I can write this...

Offers and the scents of the Aussie shampoo and conditioners lead me to buy many a bottle. I liked both the Mega and Miracle Moist ranges. They didn't leave my hair the softest, but they didn't leave it feeling dry either, and I experienced no build up with them. I still have plenty left in my hair drawer, and I would happily buy more.

The Aussie Miracle Hair Insurance Leave In Conditioner is one I've been through countless bottles of. I use it after I shower, it smells incredible, leaves my hair a little softer than it normally is, and you can put as much in as you please without any greasiness. I'm already on to my next bottle.

I dedicated an entire post to the Tresemme Platinum Strength Shampoo a while ago, I was that impressed with it. I still love it as it makes my hair insanely soft, but I've found that it weighs my hair down and makes it greasy looking after a couple weeks. Because of this, I switch to another shampoo is remove any build up, and go back to this after a short break. I'd definitely repurchase, and I've just bought the Deep Conditioning Treatment and Leave In Treatment from the same range. They have high ratings and positive reviews, so I'm looking forward to using them.

Lush Ultrabland is my number one cleanser at the moment, and I'm on to my third tub. It removes my makeup better than any cleanser I've tried, leaves it super moisturised, and doesn't sting my eyes in any way. Love.

I still have a fair bit of Lush's Lemony Flutter left, but it's started to smell funny because I've had it a while. I'm going to make more of an effort to apply it to places other than my cuticles if I buy it again, because the pot is too big for just that use. It was heavy and greasy, but that's kind of to be expected from a cuticle butter. It did improve the appearance of them, though, and before it got old and funky, it smelt beautiful.

The battered Lush pot you see there is Ro's Argan. I used to think the price of this was insane, then I bought a tub with my Mystery Shopper store credit, then I asked for a tub for Christmas, and then I bought my own. And will do so again. I don't mind the price now because there's nothing which compares to it. It leaves your skin so moisturised, so soft, and so deliciously scented.

Original Source has been a favourite shower gel brand of mine for years. Their lime one is one of my all time favourites. So I was pretty pleased when they came out with a mango one. It smells just like the fruit, and I've already stocked up.

I've been through more of the Superdrug Colour Effects Conditioning Colours. More than the one bottle featured. They just transform my hair from so-so auburn to bam auburn. I get a lot of compliments on my hair colour, and these are part of the reason for that. I like all the shades, but mostly use True Chestnut and Mahogany.

I've been through another The Body Shop All In One Face Base in 02. It never looks cakey or powdery; only natural and silky.

There's still product in the ELF Studio Eyebrow Kit in Light, but it was getting a bit gross, so decided to start a new one. It's still one of my favourite eyebrow products after all these years, so I'm sad that I now have to resort to eBay to buy it. Hopefully, they'll launch another UK site.

The Maybelline Gel Eyeliner is everything. If I could only wear one product, it'd be this. It's pigmented, like black black, and it's creamy enough to be easy to work with, but not so creamy that it takes away from the pigment. It also stays put all day, even on my lash line. My favourite brush to use with it is the one it comes with, so that's another bonus, and it's affordable. I don't think there's anything more to say!

The Blistex Intensive Moisturiser is the best lip balm I've ever used, and I'll continue to use it for a very long time. I'd like a heads up if they plan on discontinuing this, because I'll be clearing the shelves.

Do you like any of these products?

Huge Boots Haul!

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31/32/33/34/35

Boots staff double discount happened, and this isn't even all of it! I've removed some presents and doubles from the photo, and I forgot to include the No7 mirror and foundations (which I paid pennies for thanks to clearance and vouchers). In my defence, a number of items above are Christmas presents for various people. I'm just going to talk through a handful of things because we'll be here for a long time else!

I'm not one for false lashes, but I had a few styes and started pulling mine out (I know), so needed something to fill the gaps while they grow back! The individual lashes have been great, and while they don't last for days and days, they look natural. I remove them every night like I do with any cosmetic. This would be time consuming if I applied a full set every morning, but I only apply a couple. The Naturalites (10) also look promising!

I well and truly stocked up on the Tresemme Platinum Strength shampoo and conditioner because they ended up being just £1.87 a bottle. It's definitely a range I'd recommend trying!

Original Source have brought out some body moisturisers, and I couldn't resist buying the peach and apricot lotion. It smells like a peach and apricot yoghurt! There's also a watermelon one, which I wouldn't mind smelling at some point.

29, 34, and 35 were on clearance in my store, so I ended up paying just 39p and 87p for them! Another exciting lip product purchase is L'Oreal's Colour Riche Exclusive Red Lipstick in Julianne. It's beautiful!

The Babyliss straighteners and Soap & Glory gift sets are for my mum for Christmas. She's only ever had mine and my sister's old straighteners, and her favourite colour is purple, so I thought the Elegance Pro would be perfect. She's not familiar with Soap & Glory, but after telling her a bit about the products and showing her reviews/swatches, she's excited to start using them!

Other points to mention: I'm excited to use the No7 makeup products (7 and 25-28) because they all have great reviews, I love the Laura Ashley kitchen accessories, and I don't know why I included the anti-blister stick and spray plaster. It must have been a long day!

Have you splurged recently?

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 :)

Shopping!

This is my 6th haul this month! You can see why I'm going on a spending ban in February. To be fair, there's been a lot of sales this month, and it was my birthday. So, here's my most recent purchases! I'll start with the duvet set. I bought a similar one at the end of December and love it so much. Like that one, this was also in the sale, and then I had a 25% off code on top of that. I ended up paying £27 instead of £45. £27 is still more than I normally spend on a duvet set, but I loveee it. The squares on this one are all different sizes, and the patterns are different. The reverse is equally as beautiful.

Next is the purple, pink and orange floral fleece throw from Primark, which was only £6. It's so pretty! I can have up to 5 cats and a dog on my bed, so need a throw to keep my duvet covers clean.

I then bought a couple pairs of Super Cosy tights for £3.50 each. I love Primark tights, but I've never tried their Super Cosy ones, which are always raved about. They feel so nice, so I can't wait to wear them. I also bought some pig socks for £2. I love my novelty socks! In terms of animals on your toes, I now have pigs, cows, sheep, foxes and bumble bees.

I then bought a bra from New Look for £11.99. I fell in love with it straight away. The camera doesn't pick it up, but it's blue with purple lace, so it looks almost duo chrome. I also have this style of bra in green and yellow, and really like them.

When cleansing my face, I either use my fingers or a pair of exfoliating gloves. I didn't have anything in between. So, I bought the Botanics Facial Brush from Boots for £6. It feels soft for a facial brush, which is just what I wanted. I used to have a small one from The Body Shop, but it was far too rough for everyday use.

Finally, I bought a bottle of Original Source Spearmint shower gel for £1 from Savers. Original Source has gone up in price in a lot of shops, so I'm glad it's still a pound in Savers. I have about 10 bottles of shower gel stocked up in my drawer, so I shouldn't have bought this, but it smells so nice! I love the scent of spearmint. Some mint scents can be overwhelming, but this is perfect.

That's it. No more shopping for me for a month! I do have an MUA order on its way though which I placed last week, so look out for that. I also have a birthday present post coming up and a few reviews!

Lots of lovely things - Beauty, clothes, The Hunger Games and more

I didn't realise how much I've bought in the last few weeks until I gathered it all together - Oops! 

Bourjois So Delicate lip creams in Rose Poudre and Fuchsia Delicate £3.95 each from CheapSmells.com, Lush Magic Mushroom bubble bar £2.45, Lush Magic Wand bubble bar £2.50 from eBay, Models Own nail art pen in White £6 from ASOS.com, Yankee Candle Fluffy Towels Car Jar £1.69 from eBay, Yankee Candle Vanilla Cupcake 12 Tea Lights £6.45 from eBay, Yankee Candle Fluffy Towels and Country Lemonade Samplers £1something from Clinton Cards, Collection 2000 Extreme 24 Hour Felt Tip Liner £2.99 from Superdrug, Collection 2000 Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Cream in Cotton Candy £2.99 from Superdrug, Collection 2000 Cream Puff Moisturising Lip Cream in Fairy Cake £1.35 from eBay and My Blue Nose Friend - Runner the Ostrich £5 from Clinton Cards

That list is huge! Sorry about that. Where shall I start...

I LOVE the Collection 2000 lip creams. I'm not a lip product person, but I've been wearing these every day. I don't like the packaging of the Bourjois lip creams - it looks cheap and tacky in my opinion.

On Tuesday, there was a £5 off eBay code going around the internet (one per PayPal account). I made the most of this and used mine, my sister's and my dad's accounts. With my account, I bought the Lush Magic Wand bubble bar, which I've wanted for a while. I only paid £2.50, including P&P, for it! With my sister's account, I bought the Collection 2000 lip cream in Fairy Cake for just £1.35, and on my dad's account, I bought a Lush Each Peach massage bar for just 75p! It hasn't arrived yet though. I tried using the code for a second time on my account and bought the Yankee Candle Car Jar and tea lights. Unfortunately though, the code didn't work, so I had to pay full price for them. I'm not allowed to burn candles, but can't help myself sometimes! I just like to smell them :)

Superdrug - TRESemme Naturals Vibrantly Smooth shampoo & conditioner £2.70 each (half price), Original Source Lime shower gel 99p, Eyelash Curlers £1.99, Pencil Sharpener £1.89 and Emery Boards 99p each

I already have enough shampoo to last me about 4 months, but I couldn't resist the half price offer. ELF's eyelash curlers and pencil sharpener are still out of stock, so I bought the boring, yet practical, products from Superdrug instead.

New Look - Navy plimsolls £6.99, socks 3 pairs for £4

I love the white stripes at the bottom of these plimsolls. 

Of course, I had to buy more socks!

Primark long shorts £10

I love these! I had a very similar Primark pair and wore them all the time. After about four years of wear though, the button popped off and was unfixable. The detail on these is beautiful. They have a floral lining, floral buttons and cute floral studs near the pockets. The labels are also pretty.

Card Factory gift tubes £1.29 each

I'm going to use these for my bath bombs and bubble bars :)

The Hunger Games book £4.48 from Amazon

I finished this book last night, after constantly reading for five hours. I shed a tear, couldn't put it down and was sad when I reached the end - All signs of a great book. The only bad thing about a good book though is that you deprive your body of food and sleep, and put it through an emotional roller coaster!

I've just ordered the next two books in the trilogy; Catching Fire and Mockingjay. I'll be happy to be reunited with the characters, but I know they're going to be put through hell again :/ I know it's all fictional, but you can't help forming an emotional connection with them!

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Products I'm currently using in my shower

I rarely change my routine, so the following products are products I have been using for a while, and I will probably continue to use them for months to come.

Hair

Aussie Aussome Volume shampoo, Aussie Take the Heat 3 Minute Miracle Deep Treatment and TRESemme Salon Silk shampoo & conditioner.

My hair loves Aussie and TRESemme. Come to think about it, 90% of the hair products I use are by them. I'm probably going to stick to these brands because I don't want to risk trying another brand and it not working for me. Herbal Essences and Head & Shoulders, I'm looking at you!

 I won the Aussie Aussome Volume shampoo. I usually go for moisture ranges, but this is working well.

I want to try the TRESemme Naturals range next, but I won't have to buy any shampoo or conditioner for a while because the 900ml bottles last agesss!

Body

Lush soap (top to bottom: Angel's Delight, Ice Blue and Snow Globe), Wilkinson shower puff and Original Source shower gel in Lime and Lemon & Tea Tree.

I'm showing you some of my unused Lush soap because the chunks in my shower are small and manky, to be quite honest. 

The Wilkinson shower puff was about 40p and it has a sucker on it, which is very useful. 

I love Original Source shower gel. After these, I will be using the Golden Pineapple and Vanilla Milk & Raspberry varieties (Have already gone through a few bottles of Vanilla Milk & Raspberry - It's delicious!)

Face

The Body Shop Vitamin E Facial Cleansing Bar, Lush Ocean Salt (review to come), Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser and Liz Earle Gentle Face Exfoliator.

I don't have much of a facial routine. I use these products in the shower and moisturise my face before applying make-up. 

I use The Body Shop Vitamin E Facial Cleansing Bar and Lush Ocean Salt together, and when I want something more gentle, I use the Liz Earle products. The Vitamin E bar and Ocean Salt together is cheaper than one of the Liz Earle products, so I'm more likely to repurchase these (I've repurchased the Vitamin E bar three times because it's highly effective and only £3). 

Before starting my third Vitamin E bar, I was using The Body Shop's Tea Tree Foaming Cleanser, but the scent was so strong, I went back to my trusty soap!

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September Favourites

I really should just call these posts 'New products I've tried and liked in *insert month here*' because if I did show you my favourites, you would be reading the same post each month! I rarely change my routine.

I would just like to say that I am sorry for the photo below. My camera is getting worse (or my expectations for quality are getting higher). I wasn't going to write this post, but I really wanted to blog, so I'm putting up with the photo.

Also, I haven't included a swatch of the blush or lipstick because of how rubbish the photos were, but I will be reviewing each of them soon, where I will include some :)

Remington Pearl curling wand- £25.49 from Boots (review coming soon)

This should actually be in my 'Favourite products of 2011' post. It's amazing. I curled my hair with it about a week ago (without hairspray. I never use it) and two days later, the curls were still in. The packaging is also very pretty.

Original Source Vanilla Milk and Raspberry shower gel- £1 when on offer (which is regularly), £2ish when not, from Superdrug, Boots and most supermarkets.

I love Original Source shower gels. I always use their Lime one and it's super duper yummy (very informative, I know). This one is just as delicious and smells of Strawberries & Cream sweets. I picked this up in Asda a couple weeks ago but when I was there last night, I couldn't find it. I really, really hope it hasn't been discontinued.

Accessorize With-Love Merged Blush in Starlet- £5-6 from Accessorize or Superdrug.

I added this to my virtual basket when Accessorize had an online (and in-store) sale. The main reason I bought it was because it was £2.50. I didn't actually think I'd get much use out of it. However, I have! The pigmentation is average, which can be built up, and it gives you a nice glow.

Maybelline The One by One Volum' Express mascara- £8.49 from Boots (review coming soon)

I won this from a Womans Own magazine competition and my first thought was 'Ahh a plastic brush'. I am not (well, wasn't) a fan of plastic brushes because years ago, I tried one that was awful. Plastic brushes have developed since then and this mascara has converted me. The one rule I have with mascara is that it must not clump. At all. I've seen some mascara reviews where girls say 'it doesn't clump' and when I look at the photo, I think their lashes look clumpy. This mascara coats your lashes One by One (shocker!). I love Maybelline's Colossal and Falsies mascaras, and this one joins the list.

17 Mirror Shine lipstick in Belle- £4.89 from Boots (review coming soon)

I'm not a lipstick wearer. In fact, I don't wear any kind of lip product regularly. A bit of lip balm here, some lip stain there, but that's all. So the fact that I've wore this out of the house a few times is amazing. It's a natural, 'my lips but better' shade and feels like a balm on. Sorry I don't have any swatches to show you today, but I will try and write the review as soon as possible.

My favourite shop of the month is... New Look!

This month, I've bought two pairs of jeans, four vests, a pair of heels (and soon to be a pair of boots) from them. All basics, but that's all I wear. I do think some of their jumpers and cardigans are over priced, but their shoes are reasonable (and loved by many), as well as their other basic items.

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Shop!

Good evening! I have some goodies to show you :) I'm building up my little wardrobe, so I should have a few shops coming up in the next couple of months. I still have to get dresses, tops, cardigans, hoodies, heels and more!

Sorry that the photos aren't of great quality. My camera is rubbish for taking distant photos, especially of clothes. Also, I couldn't find anywhere to photograph, so used my bed which is currently sporting my childhood bedding!

ASDA:

Parka coat £25.

The photo isn't doing it justice, which is a shame. I needed a light jacket/coat because I don't want to be carrying around my heavy Winter coat all the time!

Original Source shower gels £1 each.

Original Source shower gels are my favourite. I only buy them when they're on offer though (which is a lot of the time). I've been waiting for somewhere to put them on offer for ages, so when I saw them in ASDA, I picked up 4!

Primark:

Navy knitted cardigan/throw over with pockets £12.

This photo is terrible *sigh*. I was a little apprehensive about buying it because I tend to buy things for practical reasons, and as you can see, the sleeves aren't long enough to cover my arms and keep me warm. I decided to get it though because I will wear it a lot. It's bat winged, which is very flattering.

Pajama bottoms £5 each.

I love love love Primark pajamas! They offer a range of designs and the quality is good. I'm going to pick up a few more of these in different colours and patterns.

Hair ties £1 each.

I stocked up on my usual hair ties!

New Look:

Skinny jeans £19.99 each.

Again, the photo does not do them justice. I love New Look jeans. I don't like my jeans to be one colour all over, but a little faded in the middle (like above).

I walked past the Wide Fit shoes section and saw some suede court heels. On the shelf, they looked 'meh', but on, they looked gorgeous. I tried on a 7 and to my surprise, they were too big. The 6s fit perfectly. With heels, it's better for them to be tight than loose, because if they're loose, you can't walk in them! Anyway, I didn't know whether to get the black or teal pair, but decided that the black would go with more and if I liked them, I could then get the teal pair. They didn't have any black size 6s left though, so I'm going to order them online. Don't be put off by the words 'Wide Fit'. These were not wide fit at all!

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