September Empties

I know this is a little late for a September post but I had a computer meltdown recently that meant a lot of my prepared blog photos were held hostage on a hard drive that my laptop was failing to recognise. I was surprisingly devastated about the loss of these pictures as September was a particularly prolific month for empties. Thanks to my local Apple Genius and a new hard drive cable, I've been re-united with my precious photos of empty bottles (don't say a word)!

Melvita Berry Body Wash* // Neal & Wolf Daily Cleansing Shampoo* // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Odette // Apivita Baby & Kids Mild Body Was in Lavender and Honey* // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Samhain // Lise Watier Foaming Face Wash // Tresemme Naturals Conditioner

I won't write about all the items in detail as there are too many to talk about in one post, instead I will focus on the most notable mentions. The Melvita Berry Body Wash* was a delight to use. I love berry scents and this has a slightly tart edge which prevents it from smelling too synthetic or sickly. It didn't leave my skin dry either which is essential for a good shower gel.

I set myself on a mission to use up all of my stray pots of Haus of Gloi with the promise of a new full size pot of Samhain once I was done. Of the two pumpkin butters pictured above, Samhain is my favourite. I can't claim to be any good at describing it so I will point you in the direction of London MakeUp Girl as she is infinitely better at these things and always spot on. Odette was described as a clean linen smell on the HoG website and I think this is pretty accurate. I liked the scent best when first applied as one of the notes seemed to develop on my skin after a while and become a little over-powering, losing that initial clean fragrance.

I have been meaning to talk about the Apivita range for children for ages and now that the range is more accessible in the UK, I feel less guilty raving about it. My children absolutely loved having their own shampoo and shower gel to test for me. Fortunately, they weren't terrified by the strange looking girl's head with saucer eyes and the body of a bee either (just me then!). I loved the gentle scent of this Lavender and Honey body wash* and it made them smell positively angelic just before bed.

Rouge Bunny Rouge Sketches on Water Tinted Moisturiser // Botanics Soothing Eye Make Up Remover // Organic Surge Peach Passion Shower Gel // Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer Sample

I was very sad to finish my RBR Tinted Moisturiser as it's been one of favourite bases for a long time. I purchased it in the shade Adansonia which at times I felt might be a little too light, however it always blended in extremely well. I have tried samples of the RBR foundation (you can request samples from Zuneta) with a view to purchasing a foundation as replacement but I actually prefer the coverage of their tinted moisturiser. I suspect I will re-purchase in the future but I need to finish up a few more of my foundations and tinted moisturisers before I can justify any more purchases.

Both the Botanics Soothing Make Up Remover and Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer are worthy of mention as products I didn't really get on with. I'm still a bit 'meh' about the Hourglass Primer as I expected to love it and I believe it's one of their bestsellers. It didn't seem to do anything for my skin or the lasting power of my makeup, I have a suspicion it was the cause of a small breakout on my forehead too. I didn't get on with the Botanics remover at all. It's a bi-phase remover and I should realise from past experience that I find these way too greasy on my skin.

Avenoo Hand Cream // Haus of Gloi Spring Tonic #1 Whipped Soap // Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter in Hearth // Lady Mitchum Roll-On Anti-Perspirant

The Avenoo Hand Cream and Lady Mitchum Anti-Perspirant are both staples in my life. My hands turns painfully dry soon as we hit mid-September and the Avenoo is the only cream that really repairs and protects them. I've already re-purchased a tube as I can't be without. I realise that anti-perspirant is not the most glamourous beauty item but an essential nonetheless. I've been using Mitchum for years and it's failed me on very few occasions.

I loved using the Haus of Gloi Spring Tonic #1 Whipped Soap as I mentioned in my recent Shower Favourites post. It was gone all too quickly and I'm tempted to try more of the whipped soaps when I place my next HoG order. One item I won't be rushing back for is the Hearth Pumpkin Butter (Christmas release). The fragrance didn't suit me at all and Mr MB would always know when I'd applied my 'cake cream' as it scented our whole house. Of course, I martyred myself finishing it up rather than putting it in the bin like a normal sane person.

Thanks for reading if you managed to make it this far. You'll be relieved to hear that October's Empties won't be anywhere near as product heavy!

* PR samples are indicated with an asterisk

Today's (very minimal) Makeup

I went for very minimal makeup today. I didn't really feel in the mood for a full face plus I knew that I was likely to be spending the day reading between chores and child things. I might not have been successful with all of my resolutions but catching up on my reading and getting the house in order has gone very well so far.

My apologies for the lack of face, the light had completely gone by the time I took the pictures and minimal makeup never seems to show up very well with flash photography.

The products I wore today were:
W3LL People Narcissist Foundation & Concealer shade #1
W3LL People Universalist #2 Highlighter*
Ilia Lip Conditioner in Blossom Lady*
YSL Long Lasting Waterproof Liner in #5 (Shimmering Burgundy) 
Illamasqua Masquara

The W3LL People Narcissist stick is a newish purchase and I used this as a concealer under my eyes and on areas of redness around my nose and chin. I've always been nervous of stick foundations but I really like the texture and it's great if you just need coverage on specific areas. The Ilia Lip Conditioner was the perfect choice for today as my lips were feeling a bit chapped and in need of TLC. It looks more polished than must a balm but feels just as good. Both W3LL People and Ilia Beauty are available from www.beingcontent.com and www.misebeauty.com.

I've re-ignited my passion for purple these last couple of weeks and I've been picking out this YSL liner quite a bit. Yesterday I paired it with RBR Delicate Hummingbird but today I didn't have time to add any eyeshadow. My favourite thing about this liner is how fast it is to apply (it's very creamy) for such a long wearing eyeliner.

I bought the Illamasqua Masquara a while ago but only recently started to use it. Whilst the Smashbox Bionic mascara that I wrote about yesterday gave me quite a natural look, the Masquara is probably a little too dramatic for me. It can make my lashes look a bit spidery but I thought it was a good choice today with such minimal eye makeup.

Because I was going mostly bare-faced, I thought it would be a good moment to try the Dr. Lewinn's Instant Beauty Radiance Booster*. It made my skin look a little more polished and seemed to tone down the redness in my face. The combination of this and the W3LL People highlighter gave my skin a glow that it certainly didn't have naturally at 6 o'clock this morning!

I have been using my Aveeno Hand Cream constantly for the last week or so. The downside to being the perfect housekeeper is that it leaves my hands in a terrible mess. The drop in temperature has to take some of the blame too. The Aveeno remains my favourite cream for soothing as well as repairing chapped hands.

My scent choice today was Lancôme Trésor and I've been wearing it more and more lately. It has always been a fragrance that I liked on other people but I found it too overpowering on me. I'm not sure what has changed, whether it's me or the perfume I can't tell but I can wear this now without fear of it causing a headache.

What have you been wearing today? Do you ever have days when you don't wear much makeup?


* PR Samples

Winter Series: Hand Creams

 

It's around this time of year that my hands start to take a turn for the worse. I seem to be washing my hands constantly and I'm terrible at remembering to pop gloves on before doing the washing up, that combined with the cold and windy weather is a recipe for drying my hands out. I'm already nursing a patch of very dry skin between my little finger and ring finger on both hands. Over the past few years I've been on the hunt for the best hand cream to keep the chapped hands at bay. This is an overview of some of the ones I have at the moment and what I think of them.

Aveeno Hand Cream
This is my absolute favourite hand cream and I have re-purchased this several times. My current tube is just about finished and I'm not sure whether to buy another or try something different. I particularly like this one as stays on your hands through several washings. The washing is the biggest culprit for drying my hands out so this really stops them getting worse. It's also one of the few hand creams that will tackle the extra dry patches round my knuckles. It's also been a success for my husband who suffers with work related dermatitis on his hands. It's sinks in easily and doesn't leave my hands feeling greasy which is a big thumbs up for me.

Eve Lom Hand Cream
I have a trial size tube of this hand cream. It's useful for popping in my bag but I will that say that I don't love this one. It's ok but I find it doesn't hydrate as much as I'd like. It has a slightly odd smell to it too. At £20 for a full size tube I'm unlikely to re-purchase. It's been useful to have the trial size to try as I'm surprised by the fact that I didn't like it.

L'Occitane Fleur Cherie
I got this as a free gift with In Style Magazine. This is a new scent for L'Occitane and I have to say it is lovely. It is quite a strong scent but I don't find that the effectiveness of the cream has suffered for the scent. This spreads and sinks in nicely and leaves my hands feeling nice and soft. However, it's not rich enough to tackle the really dry patches on my knuckles. This is better for maintenance for my hands. After learning how much I like the scent, I will be investigating the rest of the range which I discovered from A Model Recommends also includes a range of cosmetics. I'm still interested to try the L'Occitane Shea Butter hand cream which receives rave reviews.

Dove Beauty Hand Cream
This is another hand cream that I've had more than once. I find it quite pleasant to use, it has a nice fragrance and it's often on offer. It's another that is good for maintenance but not repair. It can actually go a bit watery as you rub it in which is an odd sensation. It's nice but not my favourite.

Neutrogena Concentrate Norwegian Formula
I cannot get my head around why this is so popular. For me this is a barrier cream with no hydrating properties. I accept that this would protect your hands from getting chapped whilst out in harsh conditions but I need cure rather than protection most of the time. I just find this sits on my hands and never penetrates the skin.


Some of the other hand creams I'm keen to try are: The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector, Aveda Hand Relief (possibly because the name raises a wry smile!), L'Occitane Shea Butter hand cream and Olivina Hand Cream. The Olivina Cream come recommended by Beauty Mouth and Beauty Maze so I know it must be good! Do you have any recommendations? Which is your favourite hand cream?