Empties #13

I seem to have managed to use a different font in the above photo to the last few empties photos... odd...  Anyway, here we are again - 5 items plus a wee sample included too.

Christmas is so soon now, it's scary!  I'm dreading it this year though as it's the first (and hopefully last!) Christmas I'll have spent working full time in retail.  Retail + Christmas = Hell.  Sadly I will be working Boxing Day, I'm so gutted, however I've managed to avoid it for the past few years so it's probably my turn anyway!

St Ives Apricot Scrub

Thoughts: I've literally had this for years so I finally decided to get rid of it.  I've had heard some things said about the particles being too rough for your skin and also Caroline Hirons saying never to use a scrub on your face anyway, use an exfoliating toner instead!  Good riddance!

Cruelty-free?: Unknown, doubtfully.

Repurchase?: No.

Lush Eau Roma Toner Water

Thoughts: I love this stuff, it's so refreshing and because it doesn't contain any alcohol or chemicals it doesn't dry out my skin or make it feel tight.  I use it after an exfoliating toner (REN Clarifying Lotion) to rehydrate my face.  This is my 3rd bottle of Lush's toner water and I've already bought myself a big bottle of Breath of Fresh Air.  £3.95/100g here. Vegan.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: Yes.

Neal's Yard Remedies White Tea Enriching Facial Mask

Thoughts: I got this free sample when I bought NYR eye make up remover a few months ago.  I managed to get two uses of of the tiny wee tube which is pretty good, however it really didn't 'wow' me at all.  £25.75/50g here.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: No.

ELF Translucent Matte Powder

Thoughts:  I've been trying to finish this for ages actually!  I decided that as it's nearly finished I would use it until the end of the week and then get rid of it.  It was an okay powder but not very translucent - it definitely had some colour to it which is unfortunate.  £3.73 here.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: No.

John Frieda Luxurious Volume Dry Shampoo

Thoughts:  I received this as a PR sample along with some other items from the Luxurious Volume collection.  It worked okay but definitely not as good as Batiste and it had a quite a strong aerosol smell to it.  It was as if there wasn't enough powder coming out the the spray as I had to use quite a lot to see any effect.  I don't even know how much this is because I can't find it on the Boots or Superdrug websites...

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: No.

Dove Beauty Care Body Wash Cream Oil

Thoughts:  I've been trying to use up my large collection of non-CF shower gels and moisturisers that I've collected over the years and I've definitely made a good dent in it!  This came in a set of two where the other one was Silk Glow and it was lovely however this one was nowhere near as nice.

Cruelty-free?: No.

Repurchase?: No.

<3

The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil

I discovered The Body Shop Camomile Silky Cleansing Oil on Katie's blog and really wanted to try it as she said it was approved by Caroline Hirons - excellent! - and she was using it as a pre-cleanse, or first step in a double cleanse, to remove make up which is just what I had been looking for.  Shortly after I went onto The Body Shop's website and as usual, they were having a sale so I picked up the cleansing oil for £6.50 instead of the full price of £10 which is for 200ml.

I've been using this almost every night to remove my make up, it even works brilliantly on eye make up.  I have been looking for my 'Holy Grail' eye make up remover for a while now and I think I've found it, even better that it's a normal cleanser so you don't need a separate product!

It has a handy pump on the top which makes it easy to dispense.  I use one pump and rub it over my entire face and eyes - particularly into eyelashes to remove mascara.  If I am feeling a bit lazy and not going to cleanse again afterwards then I will rinse with water - it emulsifies with water unlike a plain oil - and remove the excess with a damp flannel, then finish with toner and moisturiser.  I've had this for about a month now using it most days and I've still got loads left, I would definitely buy this again.

My only real complaint with this product is that the pump is a bit strong and if I don't cup my hand around it it will end up halfway across the bathroom!

<3

NOTD: All Hail The Queen

If you remember back to my recent wishlist post I said I would like another Butter London nail varnish to add to my lonely little Disco Biscuit, so the next time I was in Boots I picked up All Hail The Queen!  After quickly swatching it on my finger I was quite disappointed, it was so sheer and streaky, so it put me off trying it properly for a while.  However when I finally did I was quite pleased with how it turned out, after 3 coats that is!  You could probably get away with 2 coats if you are very careful to get them even.  All Hail The Queen is a neutral brown with a slight scattered holo through it which is really pretty.  It is quite similar to China Glaze Fast Track which you can see here which is lighter with gold shimmer instead.

<3

The Vegan Kind Box #1

[via with permission]

As soon as I heard about The Vegan Kind box being launched, I knew I had to sign up!  Even though I am not vegan - more a fussy pescatarian - but the idea of getting a box full of 100% cruelty free items really appealed to me.  I always said, if someone made a cruelty free beauty box I would sign up in a heartbeat so although this is more a lifestyle box, it's good to know if any beauty items are included they will be vegan and cruelty free.  Other than the fact it sounded great, I also found out it was started by one of my Scottish blogger friends Karris, so I wanted to support her in her amazing venture.

My box arrived on Monday which was a pretty quick delivery but I live relatively close to her in comparison to the rest of the UK so that could have been a factor.  Luckily my dad was in to get it off the postman - this bad boy would definitely not fit through your letter box!  The box is enormous compared to any other monthly boxed I've seen!

Inside, at the top there were a few sheets of paper including a lovely little welcome newsletter introducing themselves, a list of all the samples and a recipe card.  Every month there will be a recipe card in the box and on month 3 you get a binder to store them in - so cute!!  Also, since the box is based around helping animals, each month 10p from every box will be donated to a different animal charity which I think is such a lovely gesture.  Then underneath are all the goodies:

1. Crystal Spring 50g Salt of the Earth Travel Deodorant (unisex) This is applied to damp skin and leaves a thin layer of natural mineral salts on the skin which prevent the formation of body odour.  Personally I prefer antiperspirant rather than deodorant but I am intrigued to try this, perhaps keep it for less busy days though! link
2. Clearspring Organic Miso Bouillion Paste - Concentrated Vegetable Stock You probably would associate miso with Japanese food but this can be used in the place of any other stock in soups and stews.  I've been making a lot of soups recently so I'm looking forward to trying this out instead of my usual Knorr cubes! link
3. Living Naturally Soapnut Sample Bag This is probably one of my favourite items from the box simply because of how bizarre they sound!  Soapnut shells can be used instead of detergent in your washing machine even though they are a fruit, what?!  They can be used a few times before being composted and they are 100% natural with no chemicals in them at all.  They are also naturally conditioning so you don't need to use fabric softener either.  I am quite excited to try them actually - how sad am I?? link
4. Goody Good Stuff Fizzy Sweets 25g One thing I did miss when I stopped eating gelatine (in sweets, not raw... gross) was jelly sweeties!  I can get some from Tesco but I'm quite far away from one and there's only a couple of flavours I like, they're also only suitable vegetarians not vegans.  Needless to say, these did not last long!  They are very sour, and very fizzy!  I didn't love the flavour but only cos I'm not a massive fan of cherry but other than that they were comparable to Haribo!  I'll definitely be looking out for these and hopefully try different flavours, as they're available in places I have nearby like Asda and Waitrose. link
5. The Vegg 1.56oz This is more for the actual vegans as it's an egg yolk replacer, however I do plan on trying the french toast recipe on the front - I'll need to buy soya milk to make it with first haha!  It's great to know these products are out there. link
6. QI Tea Samples Unfortunately I don't drink tea so I've passed these onto my parents to try! link
7. Koolbadges This was added in as a little bonus which is really cute!  Koolbadges is ran by a vegan married couple who are based in England.  They hand make all their badges and source everything from the UK to keep environmental impact to a minimum, and recycle everything where possible.  They supply badges worldwide with 6000 designs to choose from! link

So there you have it!  I won't be doing this for every single month as I know myself how tedious the beauty box type posts can be after a while... but I wanted to share The Vegan Kind's first box with you.  If you're interested in signing up the link to their website is here, and it costs £10 plus £2.99 P&P.

<3

WoodWick Trilogy Candle

[via with permission]

I first saw these mentioned in one of Fleur De Force's monthly favourites videos and loved the sound of them so one was immediately added to my birthday list!  

Woodwick, as the name suggests, are different from other candles in that they have a wooden wick rather than the normal stringy ones.  Also when lit the wick gives off a pleasant crackling noise which  I love!  It's so soothing and sounds just like you've got a lovely wood fire burning away in the fireplace.  I've also noticed that when you blow it out it doesn't have that acrid burning smell that you often get - Yankee, I'm looking at you!

The candle I got is a 10oz Trilogy in Winter Forest which combines Enchanted Evergreen, Velvet Woods and Frasier Fir fragrances.  I wanted some sort of Christmassy scent but as I really dislike cinnamon I went for this one which smells just like a real tree which is what we always get!  The morning after burning it I can come into the living room and still smell it subtly lingering in the air, lovely!

Unfortunately I was so excited to burn it when I first got it I didn't take a photo - hence the stock photo - but below are some photos of it in action.  I think another great feature of the candle which isn't shown in the top photo, is that it comes with a smart wooden lid which then doubles as a mat to protect the surface you're burning it on - such a good idea!

In order to get an even burn you need to have it lit for at least 3 hours to let the wax pool reach the side of the jar to stop it from burrowing down unevenly.  Also you must break off the burnt section of the wick before relighting.

The candles are available here: the 10oz ones are £15.99, and you can also get a bigger 22oz one for £22.99.  They also do lots of other home fragrance products including candles called Ribbonwick which I am very intrigued by!

I would definitely buy another one of of these, I just wish I had somewhere local which stocked them so I could smell before buying as they aren't cheap and it would suck to buy one only to find out you don't like it!

<3 

The Q Collection for Women: Balance & Radiance

Q are a fine fragrance body spray specialising in high-end, high-quality products at a fantastic high street prices.  The idea behind it is to allow women to change their fragrance regularly without breaking the bank.  They come in at a bargainous £2.29 and are available at Tesco, Sainsbury's and Boots nationwide.

There are currently 3 fragrances for women available which are Awe, Balance and Radiance.  I was kindly offered the chance to try 2 of these and I picked Balance and Radiance.

Balance is described as being for those looking for a more fruity fragrance which is bright and flirtatious, opening with radiant bergamot and pear blossom, the romantic heart is conveyed with pink peony, stargazer rose, luminous orchid, on a sensual base of forbidden woods and creme de musk.

Whereas Radiance is a modern and sophisticated floral fragrance with top notes of champaka flower, mandarin and ivy, which leads into a heart of rose, violet and exotic orchid.  The base consists of wild plum and blackberry musk.

I think these are great idea as more grown up alternative to body sprays.  They would be perfect for keeping in your handbag for a quick freshen up on the go.  I know a lot of people carry their perfumes around with them but personally would never do that, I am far too clumsy and could see myself smashing the bottle somehow!  They - body sprays in general - definitely don't last as long as perfume but probably because you're not applying directly the skin, it's just more of a mist but when you can shove it in your bag I don't think this is too much of an issue.  I don't think they would ever replace perfume but they are handy for on the go and days when you don't want to wear a more expensive fragrance.

My favourite of the two is Radiance and to give you an idea of what sort of scents I like, the fragrances I have on the go at the moment are: The Body Shop White Musk, LGNS London Diamonds and Roses, Victoria's Secret Aqua Kiss and Jil Sander Sport. 

The third one which I haven't tried as I'm not a huge citrus fan is Awe, with its fresh aroma and top notes of bergamot and Sicilian lemon, followed by a green tea accord.  This light spray boasts freesia bouquet and a rich smooth background of cedarwood, amber and musk.

Do you ever use body sprays?

<3

NOTD: Peach Sherbet

Say hello to Peach Sherbet from Models Own.  It's probably not one I would have bought myself -  this one of the colours I won but I just picked it as I don't have many nudes and they are handy to have.  At first I wasn't too sure about it as it's a bit orangey against my skin tone to be a nice nude but if you set that thought aside and just look at it for the colour itself it is quite pretty and unusual.  It also has a nice coverage and finish, this is 2 coats without top coat as I had left it at my friend's!  I think Models Own are definitely my favourite brand of nail varnish, I don't think I've found one yet which has disappointed!

<3

Empties #12

I haven't done an empties post in a good few weeks actually, but here we are again!  I kind of stopped blogging for a while as I was so tired after work or just too busy - I actually lost my memory card which must be somewhere in my house but luckily I found a wee 1GB one lying around so that'll keep me going! 

Avon Solutions Plus Pure Pore-Fection

Thoughts: This dried my skin out so badly.  I was trying to finish it so I was just using it but in the end I had to stop when I realised how badly it was drying out my face.  It's full of SLS, one of the highest ingredients, horrible stuff!

Cruelty-free?: No.

Repurchase?: No.

Virgin Vie Pretty Calm Shower Gel

Thoughts: I got this in a set with the body lotion as a Christmas presents.  It smells quite nice, kinda manly in a way haha.

Cruelty-free?: No.

Repurchase?: No.

The Body Shop Camomile Gentle Eye Make-Up Remover

Thoughts: This works pretty well actually, it's a thin water-like liquid, I found that if you use too much it can sting the eyes.  They seem to have rebranded it so I'm not sure if it's exactly the same or not, maybe less stingy now!  £8/250ml here.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: Possibly, but still on a quest for the bestest one!! ;)

Bourjois Volume Glamour

Thoughts: I bought this as I couldn't find my favourite spinny one!  It is a very average mascara to be honest, and I had to buy another different one this time as spinny one still wasn't shelved :( £7.99 here.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: No.

Lush Honey I Washed The Kids Soap (not pictured)

Thoughts: I got this ages ago and had kind of put off using it as I'm not a huge fan of honey but it's actually not too strong and is just more of a generally warm, sweet scent which was generally quite pleasant.  £3.40/100g here.

Cruelty-free?: Yes.

Repurchase?: Probably but there are so many others I want to try first!!

<3