Empties #6

Hello, remember me? I'm the girl that hasnt blogged since the beginning of August! Anywho, lets not dwell on that too much! To ease myself back in I thought I'd start off with one of my favourite posts to read and to write...my empties!

There's quite a lot here as you can see but I have to say that there were a few things that I just binned by accident over the last couple of months, but here's what I've managed to keep hold of! Some would say this is the mascara edition...

Champneys Spa Indulgence Distance Shores Shower Mousse - The smell of this mousse is ah-mazing! The passion fruit really comes through and makes me think of holidays in exotic places! Its a liquid in the bottle but pumps out as a soft foam mousse. The smell didnt linger too long on my skin which was a shame, but it was a lovely wash to use on a Sunday night during a pamper evening. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

The Body Shop Camomile Eye & Lip Make-up Remover - With lots of good feedback about this from other bloggers I was disappointed when I just didn't feel the same. Being a bi-phase formula it did leave my eyes a little greasy and not as gentle on my eyes as I'd hope. I did have to rub away stubborn eye make up a little more then I do with Liz Earle C&P. Smell was very pleasant though.

Would I repurchase? Unfortunately not

Batiste Blush Dry Shampoo Mini - I think I've a dry shampoo in every empties post so far! Think that speaks volumes...

Would I repurchase? Over and over again

Garnier 5 Second Blur - This is a primer which I used pretty much every day, it has an optical blurring effect which smoothes and provides a good base for foundation. It has a very soft feeling, kind of reminds me of the of Benefits Porefessional but a lot cheaper. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

MAC In Extreme Dimension Lash Mascara - Being my first MAC mascara purchase I wasn't sure what to expect, especially at a price of £18 (now £19!). I was really impressed with the volume, length and definition it gave to my lashes, it was quickly promoted to my favourite going out mascara - does anyone else have mascara that they only use for evening looks?! I would put this on par with Benefit They're Real. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

Clinique Liquid Facial Soap Mild - In the mornings I like something gentle and easy to cleanse my face and little mini did a good job of freshening up my face first thing. Due to finding it a little drying and more expensive then some of my other morning face washes, I wouldnt pick this up again.

Would I repurchase? No

Maybelline Big Eyes Mascara - Once this has dried out a little it was a really good mascara, and I liked that there was two brushes, one for top lashes and the other for bottom. I did prefer the bottom lash wand, I just wish it was sold as separate mascara! It really helped to separate my bottom lashes and add a little colour without packing on loads of product, in turn avoiding the spider look. I'd pick this up again just for the bottom lash side. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

Maybelline Great Lash Mascara - As I've mentioend before I use this as a bottom lash mascara and think as a normal mascara it doesnt really have much effect on my lashes. Since getting the Big Eyes mascara it was demoted to the back of the queue. 

Would I repurchase? Only if I couldn't get hold of Big Eyes

Clinique Lash Power Mascara - My first use of this mascara was pretty disappointing, the formula was far too wet and didnt hold a curl in my lashes at all so I didnt use it for a little while. But then I decided to give it a second go and it was a lot better after it has dried a little, and it did turn out to be a good egg. It really gave a feathered look and was perfect for an every day look. 

Would I repurchase? With boots points yes

Collection Fast Stroke Eyeliner - With a short but steady nib this was really easy to apply - even for an eyeliner noob like me. My only problem was that it was very black, more like a muted black/grey. It lasted well on my eyes during the day, there was no fade but I think that was because it wasn't very dramatic when first applied. For £2.99 though its a bargain if your on a budget. 

Would I repurchase? Yes if it was a tight budget

Now I'm can finally clear under the sink and start a fresh! 

Have you tried any of these products?

Empties #4

This post would have been up hours ago if my sister hadnt forced invitited me to Nandos, well who can resist chicken and halloumi cheese? Definitley not me.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I love reading and writing these posts. Tried and tested products with mini reviews all tied up in one pretty little blog post!

Superdrug Vitamin E Gentle Eye Make Up Remover - I love a good Vitamin E product, nice and gentle non offensive smell and pretty moisturising and that pretty much sums up this one too. It did take a few swipes to wipe off stubborn mascara, so dont be thinking this will take off Benefit They're Real with ease but will tackle most non waterproof make up. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

Bee Good Honey & Wild Water Mint 3-in-1 Cleansing Water - I didn't have high hopes for this, I've gone a bit meh for micellar type waters but this turnt out to be a winner. Didnt dry my eyes out like some waters do, didnt drag or leave a horrible reside behind. The only thing that is putting my off repurchasing is the price, £10 for only 100ml! 

Would I repurchase? If I have some spare pennies

Botanics All Bright Hydrating Night Cream - When my finger tip reached the bottom of this little tub my heart sank a little. I love this stuff teamed with The Body Shop Vitamin E Overnight Serum in Oil, I even dedicated a blog post to the pair here so I wont harp on about it any longer. Well other than, try it! 

Would I repurchase it? Yes

Batiste Dry Shampoo Dark Brown - There's always going to be a dry shampoo that pops up somewhere. This little guy I got for free when I was out shopping in Brighton, score! Like most I love a bit of Batiste and the Dark Brown version is a favourite as there is no white caste, but still does the job like the original. 

Would I repurchase? There's always 1 waiting in the wings

Soap and Glory Flake Away - Need a never ending tub of body scrub? This is the stuff you need. I felt like this was sitting in my shower for so long even though I used it regularly. It was a really good scrub, there was enough abrasion without being drying as it did leave a slight silky residue behind which personally I like. As with most S&G products its very sweet smelling, my sister said it smelt like holiday which is down the Shea Butter, sea salts and almond oils. 

Would I repurchase? Yes

ELF Daily Brush Cleaner - Spot cleaning brushes is important, aint nobody got time to clean a brush each and every day. A couple of squirts of this on a cotton pad, and a quick swirl of all the brushes you've used that day means the brushes are cleaner for longer. This little bottle kept me going for quite some months and the squirty top really helped. I'm using the No7 one at the moment and the pump is AWFUL! For £3.50 you cannot go wrong.

Would I repurchase? In bulk 

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion - There was nothing dramatically different about my skin after using this. I've the little 30ml bottle on the go for about a year now, just using it for travelling as its so diddly but honestly I wont miss it. Maybe my skin just didnt get on with it but it would take ages to soak in as it was quite thick. I've now got a mini of the new version, hopefully the formula has been improved this time round. 

Would I repurchase? Nope 

Burts Bees Pink Grapefruit - If your into your lip balms you'll know that this is a winner in the moisturising stakes. I used this every morning before putting on my make up, it left them feeling nice and smooth whilst the smell really perked me up. Not usually being a fan of pink grapefruit I wasnt sure if it would be my bag but I was wrong. The good thing about the formula is that its not soft like the Baby Lips which means you don't get through it so easily. I'd now love to try more in the Burts Bees range. 

Would I repurchase? When I get through the 100s of lip balms I have on the go at the moment

Out with the old in with the new ;) 

Have you tried any of these bits?

Cheeky Shopping Trip

I just cant help myself. Whenever I'm bored it results in a trip to the local shopping centre and my card gets a bit of a bashing. Luckily this time I had a few Boots points to play with so my bank card was a little happier then normal. 

I'm a bit obsessed with finding the perfect foundation so I'm always picking things up left right and centre and this trip was no different. First in my basket was the Estee Lauder Double Wear, its much talked about due to its heavy coverage and long lasting abilities so I knew it was one I needed to try. Sticking on the base products I also picked up the Maybelline Fit Me Foundation Stick, this one was on a bit of a whim although I'd seen a lot of people mentioning it I haven't really read too much about what its like - expect a review in the future! 

After my recent Mascara Cull I needed to pick up a couple of new mascaras to top the stash back up, after wondering around the aisle for what seemed like forever I decided on Rimmel Lash Accelerator Endless Mascara which promises to lengthen and extend lashed by up to 99%, now I'm not sure about that outrageous claim but only time will tell! If you read my blog regularly you'll know I love Maybelline Great Lash as a bottom lash mascara but decided to see how it compared against Clinique's Bottom Lash Mascara and so far I only have good things to say about it!

In need of a new night cream I decided to stick with Boot Botantics and opted for the Ultra Calm Night Cream offering. I haven't yet tried this but it will soon be in rotation. The last thing I picked up in Boots was a Maybelline Colour Sensational Shine Gloss in Cashmere Rose. I've heard these are very similar to the Clarins Instant Light Perfectors and as I have been lusting after them for some time I decided to pick up the cheaper option before splashing out. 

As always I went for a wonder around Lush, I love the smell more than anything else and although I told myself I didn't need to pick anything up I left with a couple of things, a Shampoo Bar Tin and 9 to 5 Cleansing Lotion. I've got a shampoo bar from Lush but hadn't got round to using it as I wasn't sure what to do with it in between washes so when I saw this it when straight in the basket I shouldn't have picked up as I walked in! Recently Vicky from Describe the Sky had talked about her Lazy Day Skincare Routine and the 9-5 Cleansing Lotion was included, she said it was calming and quick and easy to use so I just knew it would be perfect for the evenings when I want to head to bed pronto! 

Although I love writing these posts almost as much as I love shopping I'll be cutting down now in favour of saving sigh its not my most exciting idea but it is the most practical one :( 

Have you been shopping recently? Leave your links below as I love haul posts! 

K x  

Review | Clinque All About Eyes Rich

Under eyes for me had never seemed to be a problem area  - that was until a couple of months ago. I started to get a dry patch right under my eye which was very red and sore. I thought it had to be the Garnier Micellear Water which I recently swapped into my routine. I'm not sure if that was the cause but needless to say it hasn't made an appearance since. As I'd never suffered with this problem before I had no magic cream in my stash that I thought would help sooth and bring back my skin to its normal healthy state so I popped down to Bentalls (our local department store) and headed to the Clinique stand as I knew that they would definitely be able to find something to suit. After speaking to the lovely lady on the counter she recommended the All About Eyes Rich for its moisturising qualities as well helping with puffiness and dark circles. For £25 for only 15ml I was a little worried that it wouldn't live up to its claims and I'd be stuck with an eye cream that didn't work but I was worrying for nothing. It was just what I needed.

 

It look a couple of days (I used it morning and night) for it to start working it magic but each morning I noticed the dry patch was looking more moisturised and started decreasing in size. I hadn't been concerned with dark circles under my eyes before but as the weeks passed I noticed that it had reduced the small amount of dark circles I did have. I have now been using this for about two months and its totally got rid of the dry patch and become an everyday essential in my skin care routine. When forgetting to take this with me on a weekend away I really noticed the different when not using it - now I'll never be without it!

You can pick this up from your local Clinique stand or here on the Clinique website where at the moment you can pick up a free takeaway trio when you spend over £40 and with free delivery what's not to love!

K x