Beauty Empties | March 2015

A somewhat earlier empties post for March solely which seems appropriate because if I left it any longer I don't know how many more empties would feature in this post! Lets get straight into my beauty trash.

John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Shampoo 

The John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Shampoo is a favourite of mine and one you would have seen repurchased here. I will definitely repurchase this again once I've said goodbye to the other six or seven bottles of shampoo sitting in my bathroom.

L'Oreal Skin Perfection Micellar Solution 

I like to use Micellar Waters to remove my make up before going in for cleansing of an evening although my preference is for the Garnier one which has been repurchased. You can see the battle of these two micellar waters here

Electric Volume Liquid Mist* 

I just reviewed here the  Electric Volume Liquid Mist and it's a great product which unlike many sprays  I apply to wet hair before blow drying. For my casual day to day look it's perfect and fuss free which is ideal for the mornings when I'm getting ready for work. I would consider repurchasing if visiting the salon although with more affordable options available it would have to be for a splurge or treating myself.

Lotil Foot Cream* 

There is nothing I like better than a foot rub, sadly I have to provide my own but it's made somewhat better by the delicious scent of Lotil's foot cream. If you're a fan of marzipan you will love this. You can see my earlier review here

Trilogy Rosehip Oil Antioxident* 

Another product you may remember I reviewed here. I enjoyed using this oil and would definitely repurchase when a need comes. For now I have an overflowing basket of skincare to work through.

Yes to Grapefruit Brightening Facewipes
I have little to say about the Brightening Facewipes from Yes to. In fact I must stop buying face wipes as I find they make me lazy knowing they're in the drawer. I picked these up in the US when the brand was on my radar popping up on other sites.

Goya Black Rose* link
Sadly despite loving it's vintage origins the Black Rose fragrance from Goya isn't for me. You can read more about this 50s revival here

nspa Nourishing Eye and Lip Treatment link
I have had this tube of eye and lip cream floating around in my skincare basket for years. It's handy tube size has accompanied me on many a flight and I finally decided to use up so it could move on - I'm slightly dubious the length of time I've had it whether it was even serving it's purpose.

Eye of Horus Goddess Mascara* link
I enjoyed this mascara from a 'new to me' brand Eye of Horus who really do live their brand using Moringa Oil, a rare and precious oil found in King Tutankhamum's tomb. No paragons but plenty of Vitamins and antioxidants this is one mascara that wants to take care of your lashes.
Whist it didn't give the va va voom I'd like for evenings on first coat it was certainly perfect for day when you might find yourself heading for after work drinks another layer builds up nicely. I have some photos of me wearing which I'll pop on Instagram.

YSL Volume Enhancing Mascara link
Another product that has been in my collection for some time and no surprises has dried out as I sample other mascara's. This mascara was my holy grail 'back in the day' and was repurchased often. I don't really need to replace although I may treat myself at Duty Free in May!

MAC Wonder Woman Blusher in Amazon Princess  link
This blush has been in my collection since 2011 when the Wonder Woman collection was released by Mac. I actually had quite a lot from the line when it was released although all that remains were this blush and two lipsticks. Unfortunately despite only rediscovering the blush in my collection early last year I subsequently dropped and shattered the blush to pieces. Gutted isn't the word. Now I'm in two minds as to whether to keep the compact for memories sake. I believe I have some photos of the blush in it's pink glory which again I'll post on Instagram. Do you remember this collection?

Maybelline Baby Lips, Peach Kiss link
I want to do a celebratory dance that I have finished a lip balm - I think this might be one of the few times this has happened! I originally posted on my Baby Lips purchase in this post and whilst I wasn't wowed it held a worthy place in my lip balm collection (which is massive might I add and there is a post forthcoming)

What have you been using up this month?

Whats in my beach bag

As I get ready to jet off to San Francisco for 2 nights tonight I thought I'd post what I have packed in my beach bag for the Hawaiian leg of our trip when I hope to spend far too much time laying around the pool in bright sunshine.

Eau Thermal Avene Water Spray* link

Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Face Protective Sun Lotion* link

Lotil Lip Balm* link

My Anya Hindmarch beach bag which I brought last year and finally have an opportunity to use are the famous Eau Thermal Avene Water Spray*. Last week I went for breakfast with Avene team and learned all about the famous thermal spring water from Avene and was lucky enough to come home with the water spray. Whilst it is a hard life sitting out in scorching sun for hours on end it can get a bit too much and I think a spritz from this water spray will be just thing. It's also a handy holiday addition as it can provide relief to sunburn and razor burn and the link so will certainly come in handy.

When the Hawaiian Tropic team heard I was heading for the beaches of Hawaiian they kindly sent some items from the range, first up the Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration Face Lotion*. I adore Hawaiian Tropic and the smell of their products is amazing but I've never used the products for the face before so I can't wait to try this.

I've covered products from Lotil on the blog before and Lotil Original Cream which I reviewed here will definitely be packed for any requirements and I can't wait to use the new Lotil Lip Balm*. Originally I had in mind that I would treat myself to my favourite Elizabeth Arden Lip Protectant in duty free for my trip but when I received the Lotil Lip Balm I was impressed with their similarities and knew that I would happily use this far cheaper alternative during my holiday especially thanks to it's added SPF 30. When I was in the market for a new lip balm a few months ago I couldn't believe some of the prices but at £1.18 for Lotil's version I think it's a winner.

I'll be back with reviews of all the beauty products when I return from holiday and have put them all through their paces.

No holiday is complete without a book to read from your sun lounger and when I saw that About the Girl by Lindsey Kelk was 'about a girl' running off to Hawaii I couldn't resist (notice a theme following!). I love Lindsey's I Heart series so I'm sure this will be just as enjoyable. 

Finally I have some more delicious smelling products from Hawaiian Tropic, a new bikini from good old Marks and Spencer and my new orange Haviana Slim flip-flops. I think I'm set for the beach now don't you?

Let me know what your beach essentials are and if you think I'm missing anything.

Top Three Foot Creams for Spring

2013 was the year I made hand cream a part of my everyday routine.
2014 will be the year the same is said for foot cream.

Whilst I love a pedicure and always ensure there's a splash of red across my toes due to the mutterings of some guy friends many years ago where they judged women who didn't take care of their feet I'm somewhat lax in applying foot creams.

There's no reason for its exclusion from my beauty regimes other than laziness and it's time to take care of my feet after their ability to keep me in heels on a daily basis. I now have three foot creams floating around the house, all different textures depending on my needs.

Elemis 'treat your feet' Foot Cream 
This is what I'd call the 'traditional' type of foot cream and was a gift from mum when I told her about my 2014 foot resolutions. Out of the three products I'm going to talk about today this is the pampering one, the one that sits alongside my hand cream in my lounge ready to pop on when the mood takes me as I'm sitting watching the latest episode of The Khardashians. My feet are left moisturised thanks to shea butter ingredients and a beautiful scent of eucalyptus and lemon oils perfect for this time of year.

Lotil Footcream*
Thanks to the familiar marzipan scent of Lotil cream (read my review here) their foot cream offering has helped with daily application. This whooping 114ml tub sits in my bedside drawer and is popped on when I climb into bed. I've become quite taken with a soothing foot massage at the end of a hard day. Thicker than the Elemis cream but yet light weight enough that it massages into the hard skinned areas nicely my feet feel soft and pleasantly scented.

Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Foot Magic
The final product on my list is by Palmer's and this is my heavy duty offering containing natural emollients such as cocoa and mango butters to help even the roughest skin. We've all had those major shopping sessions which we return to and our feet have paid the price. Rest assured slather this, this is the tricky bit because the only texture I can liken it too is a very thick petroleum jelly type substance, so slather that all over you feet and then pop on some cotton socks and let it work it's 'foot magic' overnight. I adore the scent of peppermint and in the morning your feet won't even show the signs of a major hiking session.

So they are my current three picks to get my feet tip top for Summer. Don't forget to leave your recommendations and any tips you have for keeping the spring in your step.

*this post contains press samples

Lotil Original Cream Review

I was most intrigued when given the opportunity to try multi-purpose cream Lotil Original* as it was a brand I'd never heard of but with it's claims of working for many ailments such as dry skin, shaving rashes and even recommended for eczema and psoriasis sufferers it sounded like it was worth trying.

I first used this to tackle some small psoriasis patches I have on my elbows. I'm lucky that this patches are small but they do need some additional attention beyond my usual everyday moisturisers so I put Lotil Original to work. 

The first thing I must mention about this product is the smell which reminds me of marzipan which I know is a bit of a love it or hate scent for many, for me I enjoy it. The cream itself is of a thick yet smooth texture which applies easily to the skin. Lotil Original absorbs into the skin quickly and the area immediately felt moisturised and rehydrated. After a day or two of use I found my dry patches on the elbows were significantly clearer than before.

Encouraged by this initial testing I have also used Lotil on a dry patch of skin on one of my legs from where I sit with them crossed at work (does anyone else get this is or is it just me?) and between my toes which I can find get particularly dry. 

I've expanded my test to a recent burn from a curling tong and using as a hand cream the latter of which was the least successful only due to it leaving the skin a little tacky initial although this does disappear quickly.

Naturally if you have any severe dry skin complaints I would take the necessary precautions when testing a new product but there are many positive reviews from people with chapped hands and the like that have had similar positive results from Lotil.

Overall this is a great product to have in your beauty kit, particularly at this cold time of year and would be ideal for travelling due to it's multi-purpose use all at the great price of £3.59 for a 50ml tube available from Boots here as well as many pharmacies.

Is this a cream you're familiar with?

*PR Sample