Empties #4 Photo/Review Heavy!

I have really long hair, I dye it all the time and wash it every single day. Man I use a lot of hair related things, I know that. But its not until I looked in my box of empties under my bed that I realised  I go through a feckin' lot of stuff! (And were not going to talk about the wardrobe full of hair stuff either, no sir.) So this is just mainly going to be a quick look at what I've used up in the past few months with links to some of the products and mini reviews of the rest! Sorry for the length of this post, but I think its a nice way to see what I really love and what I'll never buy again, all cut down into one post!

Lets start with the hair considering I have been banging on about it so much. 5 conditioners, 1 shampoo and a thickness booster. Cos' thats just how I roll. I've had loads of other shampoos but I normally throw them out and forget to save them. I think its clear by now how much I love Aussie, have a look at my review of one of my beloved Aussie conditioners here.

The blogger world went mad for L'oreal Elvive's new Fibrology range that came out a month (or two?) ago. Everyone was running to the shops to nab the shiny blue bottles. One of the things that caught my eye was their thickness booster. I read rave reviews and couldn't wait to try it out as I'm always looking for new things to give my hair that va-va-vooom! I was going to write a separate review for this but after using it I was so let down that I didn't bother to. It was hard to use in the shower as the tube was a screw off cap and when your holding a blob of conditioner, your wishing for that third hand to magically grow. The product itself makes your hair more course on the first wash, but after that I couldn't see any difference from using it. This was a big let down and a pricie one at €7.69 a pop. 

I used the LeoBancroft and HeadMasters together as they were on sale in Tesco and I can never say no to sales. I really loved both of them and if I see them on sale again I'll definitely pick them up. They smelt lovely, made my hair super soft and didn't weight it down at all. Big thumbs up here. Plus would you look at the fancy packaging? These are the types of bottles I invite people over to my house to look at. Oh yeah. I also picked up Timotei golden highlights conditioner in Tesco too. Keep an eye out for it if you can get your mitts on one! Have a look at my review of it over here. It leaves your hair silky soft. 

Next is all the necessity bits that you really can't do without. A little travel size Soleil lady shaving gel, I think I picked this up on offer a while ago. Its a really handy size and like this gel but Tesco own brand is way cheaper and you get much more product for your money. Its also easy to use, smells nice and is in a purple bottle. (but mainly cos' of the purpleness.) Two bottles of Batiste that I can't live without, but I have been using way more of the Timotei dry shampoo recently, I think Batiste has major competition there. I also have a billion deodorants as well, no one likes the thoughts of smelling anything but delightful! I love Nievas anti-white marks sprays. I did a review of the battle of  Vaseline .v. Nivea roll ons over here if you fancy a goo.

Way back at Christmas I was excited to try out Lush's new Rudolph face mask but after just one use I knew it really wasn't for me and was a major let down. It had a really odd consistency that was hard to spread across your skin with large chunks falling off. I felt the mixture was poorly thought out and wouldn't recommend it to anyone. I hope Lush don't bring it back next Christmas and work on something else instead. On the other end of the scale then two things that I really loved.
The first is my Marks&Spencers New York perfume that I have a review of over here. The smallest size is about €7 and is perfect for throwing in my handbag. I get so many compliments when I'm wearing this and I have since bought two more. Can't get enough of this stuff!

Moving away from the cheap and cheerfuls for a second to talk about No7. I got this lovely little Cleanse and Clear eye make up remover in a set and used it like it was liquid gold. I can't wait to run to my nearest Boots and pick up another one. Its a tad pricy around €11.50 but I think its too good not to get. It doesn't irriate my skin or my eyes, gets all the make up off in seconds and theres no scrubbing the life out of your eye balls to achieve a clean face. Winning!

 Anatomicals have some really great products and some really crappy ones. I've blogged about both kinds and I'm still on the fence with this anti-stress face mask that I got in a beauty box. Did I think it did much? Not really. I might pick it up just to try out again but I wouldn't go out of my way to look for it. Theres better stuff in their range to try. Look at my review of their throb head here. Another little packet is this argan oil hair mask that I picked up in Penneys for about €2. I loved this, made me feel fancy and my hair silky with added bonus of a lovely smelling head! I'll definitely be picking this up again soon, so should you!

I made my way through all of my Body Shop shea butter body scrub that I have a full review of over here and my oh so gorgeous shea shower cream. I will be running full speed to the Body Shop for more of their shower cream, this was such a lovely treat in the shower! It was easy to apply, didn't leave my skin feeling like theres was a layer of goo on it, left me feeling soft and smelling quite divine, if I do say so myself! Make sure and have a sniff next time your passing by one of their shops, its good stuff!

I managed to polish off a Cocoa butter from Marks&Spencers and a non scented moisturiser from Boots own range over the past few weeks. I liked both of these but doubt I will pick them up again. I didn't feel a massive difference in my skin after using them and felt they were both a little heavy and I had to do the Flappy Cold Dance of Doom in the bathroom to help them dry. Lets just say I feared some of my bits would fall off and not make it. Apart from that, they were those 'meh' products that you have a more or less neutral  approach to.

 Last in this pile is my Lush the olive branch body wash. I am really sad that I came to the end of this bottle and don't know if my will power will hold up until my Lush ban is over in September. This smelt really great but from talking to others its a marmite kind of preference for some. Apart from smell, this left my skin really soft and a tad oily so there was no need to moisturise after. If my hair was really uber dry I sometimes washed my hair with it to give it a mini extra condition and tlc! All rounder this bottle.

I can't even say a bad word about the lot above. My Catrice concealer holy grail has been banged on about so much. One of the reviews is over here with much better photos! Same goes for the Benefit dupe of the year, Seventeens phwoarr paint concealer. I have a rave review of it here. Both of these concealers are so cheap and work so well you would be mad to fork out for high end products that might only work half as well!

Next my two favourite foundations, Rimmels perfect match in ivory with a spf of 18 and Seventeens on the spot foundation that has spot reducing ingredients. I have gone through countless bottles and tubes of these two and if I'm having a really awful skin day, I mix the two together for a fuller coverage that works a treat. Both of these are under €10 each and Boots is doing a lot of 3 for 2 offers at the moment, might be the time to stock up!

Lastly my favourite liquid eyeliner that I have used for easily 5 years now, Essence. Its €3.09, it stays put and the applicator is so easy to use. These should be like hens teeth but you can get them in Penneys and a lot of chemists. Wonderful! Lastly is my Urban Decay eyeshadow base. I don't use eyeshadow bases a lot, but when I do I use this and have no words for the lasting results. I can see why its a cult product!

Big Boots Haul

You would think I spend my youth in Boots and I would like to say your right but sadly its not true at all. Le sigh, oh well! I went this time on a mission to get something to help with my hair as its recently gone like straw and also I wanted to find a few new things to help with my spots and breakouts. That and I needed one or two repurchase of some much loved make up. Whats a girl to do but go shopping!

Ugh I can't say one bad thing about Aussie if you paid me. And at 3 for €13 how could I say no? Almost out of shampoo, another bottle of conditioner to try help my poor hair and if that doesn't work then some extra love with my spray leave in conditioner might just do the trick! And all aimed at coloured hair to top it off, lovely stuff!

I went looking for a Garnier face wash for blemishes and spots after being recommended it on Twitter and reading about it on a blog post but do you think I could find it! So I settled on Neutongena that had an offer of any two for €7, now you couldn't go wrong there! I got a 3 in 1 cleansing lotion to help with spots and a spot treatment gel. I can't wait to see if they work or not, blog post up at some point.

Next I got the essentials of Veet hair removal cream, Nivea deodorant and some Boots own brand razors. Not the most exciting things in the world but we all need them!

I had a No7 voucher for €6.50 and I have had my eye on their rapid spot reduce treatment for ages so I couldn't pass up the offer! Only left me paying €6.45 which was brilliant. I can't wait to break this out and bathe in the stuff to see if it works at all! I'll report back once I have had a good test run of it.

I also was cheeky and got Vaseline spray and go body moisturiser that was reduced from €6.15 down to €4.15. Again, I have read reviews on it and wanted to try it for myself for ages now so this was perfect. 

Lastly I got a natural collection black eyeliner and seventeen pressed powder that I had run out of and really needed as I like my pale panda look. As you do like! 

Thats all from me for now. Any sneaky purchases that you have made in recent times or something that you have had your eye on for ages and want to get soon? As always keep happy and have a fab day!

Things I've Used Up #3

Its been a while since my last things I've used up post, hence the large amount of potion and lotion bottle I have for your lovely viewing. If you fancy taking a peak at my first post here or my second one  here. Some of these things I had half used up and then did the bold thing of bringing out something new and shiny, forgetting to use the other half bottle of goo. 

Shower things first, and its all shower gels and creams. I'm a big fan of taking an extra blob of whatever I'm using and really getting the biggest amount of bubbles on my luffa that will fit. I had two Palmolive Naturals in Delicate Care an Nourishing Delight. I think Palmolive are really under rated and don't get as much good press as they should, being overshadowed by bigger brands. These two were creamy, easy to foam and smelt so so good. A bottle isn't that expensive either so I will be picking another bottle up soon!

I'm not going to rabbit on about my Soap and Glory body wash as I wrote a post on it here, all I'll say is I'm glad its finally gone!

Lastly my Lush Ponche, full of fruity orange and tequila that really wakes you up in the morning without being overpowering. I will be getting the biggest bottle Lush has to offer as its only a limited edition for Christmas and I'm not waiting a whole year to have it back again. Just love it. So. Much. 

  

 I wont go on about Maybelline mega plus mascara as I talked a lot about it over here. 

I went looking for something that would keep my makeup from sliding down my face while making sure I wasn't traffic light shiny. No7 shine free primer was meant to do that but I must say I wasn't hugely impressed with this. It was shine free but a little hard to apply as it dried quickly so spreading it across your face was an operation in itself. Not something I will be getting again at €16.25 a go!

Lastly I have repurchased both Lush tea tree water toner and L'oreal's 3in1 purifying micellar solution. Both wonderful things that I really can't get enough of. 

I have been meaning to use up this Nivea refreshing cleansing lotion for ages now but just haven't got around to it as its not my most loved one. I'm not going to be getting this again as the L'oreal beside it is my main go to now a days.

 My favourite deodorant, Nivea. A bottle of my favourite body spray, Impulse hint of musk (I just repurchased in my last haul post) and lastly the best dry shampoo every, Batiste. 

Hope everyone is keeping happy and well. Have a fab day x 

My Night Time Skin Care Routine

Most nights when I'm not being super lazy using my Soap and Glory Fab Pore Hot Cloth Cleanser that I did a review of  over here, I have my night time routine of taking off all my make up and giving myself a little pamper before I go to bed. I keep all my things in a Lush valentines box that Stephen got me last year, it was too pretty and useful to throw out! 

 First off I cleanse with Nivea's Refreshing Cleansing Lotion for normal and combination skin. Its enriched with lotus extracts and vitamins that makes you feel good about putting on your face and smells nice too. Its thick and takes off make up no problem. It can sting my eye area a little which is off putting but overall it does the job fine. I also just finished Nivea's Pure and Natural Cleansing Lotion from their Pure and Natural range which was a little softer on the skin and around my eyes. I think I'll be picking that up again after I've finished my bottle of refreshing cleansing lotion.

Next I use Boots Vitamin E Toner for all skin types. I picked this up months ago as it was quite cheap and I needed a toner. I'm not a fan of toners in general so I guess I'm biasit when I say I wasn't a fan of it. It has a alcohol sting feeling to it and I don't think I will be getting it again, I'll go looking for a softer to the skin one.

After all my make up is off I use either Germolene Cream or more recently Soap and Glorys Dr Spot. Germolene is an antiseptic cream with local aesthetic that you would normally keep in your first aid kit! But its also great for putting on spots and helps reduce big break outs after one nights use while calming the red areas and making them feel less sore and throbbing. The Dr Spot is a new addition that I picked up a little over a week ago. I'll do a proper review once I have used it more and seen the results.  

Latly I use my little sample of No7 Protect and Perfect Intense Beauty Serum. I've only just started to use this so I have't any major thoughts on it yet. I'll post an updated review once I use it more. For my lips I throw on some of Boots own brand Lipsalve in strawberry and Johnsons Body Care 24Hour Moisture Radiance Hand Cream with shea and cocoa butter. These are both so lovely to use and smell great. My lips feel more moisturised in the morning and my hands feel softer - sometimes I put some hand cream on my elbows too to try soften them a bit, they are really rough and dry most of the time. 

If I'm having a no make up day I'll use Derma V10 Tea Tree Cleaning Wipes that you can pick up in Tesco for €1, bargain of the year! And ICare Eye Make Up Remover Pads from Pennys are also good if I just have a little eyeliner or eye shadow on. (Anyone notice how bad and lazy I can be about taking off my make up? Shocking!)

So that is everything I use right before bed and it all seems to do the trick! I will put up those reviews once I have used the products more to get a proper idea of what they do or don't do. Hope everyone enjoyed this and are as always, having a fab day! I will catch up with you guys tomorrow for my Friday Favourites post :)