October's farewelled products

Yes I'm late again and I'm mildly freaking out because as I write my October empties post my bag's already filling up with NOVEMBER empties! No more time to waste then - let's get into it!

 

 

Skin care

 

107) Olay Fresh Effects Refreshing Make-up Removal Cloths (20 cloths) - I think these were my only skin care purchase overseas, because makeup wipes were the only thing I ran out of!  I liked the fresh scent and they did a reasonable job of removing light makeup at the end of a long day.  I've no need to either rant or rave about them and I'll stop right here because the Fresh Effects wipes aren't available in Australia.

 

108) Maybelline Makeup Remover Eye & Lip (70ml/2.4 fl. oz.) - I bought this again for travel because it's the smallest bottle out there.  It does a good enough job for a drugstore makeup remover (gentle but effective on waterproof makeup, blah, blah, blah...) so I'm sure I'll buy some more in future.



 

 

109) La Clinica White Brilliant Intensive Correction Hydrating Night Cream (10ml/0.35 fl.oz)* - I found a sample tube in my drawer to finish up.  See last month's post for my thoughts on this.

 

110) La Clinica Gly C Refine Microdermabrasion Facial Scrub (100ml/3.52 fl.oz)* -  I'm a fan of this facial exfoliant and I'm onto a second tube because it smoothes my skin without any irritation.  See my full review here.

 

111) Hourglass No. 28 Lip Treatment Oil - A luxury indulgence I spent my birthday $$$ on last year and I made it stretch for months because I used it as an occasional overnight lip treatment.  It was superbly effective as a lip moisturiser although I don't know whether it is quite as effective an anti-aging product as it claims (perhaps because I didn't use it night after night).  Still, I'd probably buy this again as a luxury treat because I'm not over my love affair with all things Hourglass!

 

 

Hand and body care

 

112) Palmer's Cocoa Butter Moisturizing Body Wash (400ml/13.5 fl.oz)* - For those of you who are chocolate freaks like me you might appreciate the fact this smells like you're washing yourself in hot chocolate - if you're not then, well, you get what I'm saying.  This was fabulously creamy and foamy and I loved using it particularly in the depths of winter.

 

113) ECO. Body Women's Personal Body Wash (100ml)* -  I used this fresh herbal scented, antibacterial body wash as a post workout pick me up.  See here for my full review.


 

 

114) Dirty Works Supreme Cream Body Butter (300ml)* -  If I didn't have the massive stash of body butters that currently lurk in my bathroom cupboard I'd buy another tub of this tomorrow because I was hooked on the salty sea air scent and the tub lasted for ages - of course it did a decent job of moisturising too.  This is a summer holiday in a tub of body butter I tell you!  Read my full review here.

 

115) Natio AUM Purifying Body Scrub (150ml/5.1 fl.oz) - Usually I love everything from Natio but this product was equal parts enjoyable and frustrating.  The creamy formula was one of the most moisturising body exfoliants I've tried but the irregular shaped granules were impossible to squeeze out of the tube.  I had to twist off the base just about every time - that 'convenient' flip top lid was just for show! It was too annoying for me and I'll probably stay away for that reason alone.

116) Nivea Rich Nourishing Body Lotion (75ml travel size) -  I'm pretty sure this is the last of my travel empties! I enjoy that age old Nivea scent but this lotion took a lot of rubbing in before the milky film disappeared into the skin.  Maybe I'm just getting too impatient but I want that happy balance of a rich moisturiser that absorbs quickly and this one wasn't quite quick enough for me.


 

 

117) Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners Hand Therapy (25g/0.9.oz) - This is yet another wonderfully rich hand cream from my C & E stash.  Silky and easily absorbed.

 

118) OPI Expert Touch Lacquer Remover (30ml/1 fl.oz) - I bought this mini bottle when I couldn't find the full sized version at the store.  At the risk of repeating myself like a sound loop, this formula is my favourite from the OPI range.

 

119) L'Occitane Pivoine Flora Hand Cream (30ml/1oz) - This hand cream was heavier on fragrance but lighter on moisture, with a more watery texture than I've come to expect from L'Occitane.  I found it okay - and it would be perfectly fine for normal skin - but my dry hands need a richer formula for more lasting hydration.

Okay...Now I'm ready to take on that Sephora haul post!

 

 

 (Products marked * were provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)

 





June's farewelled products (and beauty diet update)

And I thought June was going to be a slow month for empties. I'd better get this out before August rolls around...

 

Skin care

 

 

56) Kirkland Daily Facial Cleansing Towelettes (15 towelettes) - I bought a boxful of these from Costco a few months ago so expect to get bored by the repetition when it comes to cleansing towelettes. Click here for my initial thoughts on these. 

 

57) La Clinica White Brilliant Intensive Correction Serum Stage 1 (50ml/1.76 fl.oz)* - I've been using this serum morning and night as part of my current skincare routine.  It claims to promote more radiant looking skin and contains "Tyrosinase inhibitors" to counteract excess production of melanin and reduce pigmentation and "Biomimetic Peptides" to accelerate the removal of dead skin cells and promote new skin growth.  I still have pigmentation from previous years of sun damage but it's not getting any worse and my skin is definitely on the radiant side - I've been reaching for the bronzer lately! I find this serum leaves my skin feeling firmer too which isn't a bad thing at my age. 

 

58) La Clinica Rebalancing Vitamin A Facial Mask (100ml/3.52 fl.oz) - Ling gave this tube to me and I've been grateful for the introduction.  This gel-like mask really did rebalance my combination skin - and my son's too! I've used this for the occasional hormonal breakout on my chin and the next morning those potentially mountainous eruptions have - wait for the inevitable cliché - reduced to little molehills.  Love this stuff cos it works!

 

 

59) Face of Australia Gentle Make-Up Remover (125ml/4.23 fl.oz) - Great value for money at around $9AUD per bottle and as I've mentioned before it's oil free and paraben free too.

 

60) Lucas' Papaw Ointment (25g) - It wasn't that long ago this was bandied about as a cult beauty favourite but it's a little out of favour these days - plus there are a load of dupe products out there now.  I must admit I was surprised to discover last year that my precious papaw ointment contains a much higher percentage of petroleum jelly than actual fermented papaya fruit but I still have to say it works for all kinds of minor skin ailments - I use it for grazes and cuts as well as dry lips and cuticles. I'm sure I'll repurchase it again as a multipurpose product.

 

 

Hand and body care

 

61) OPI Expert Touch Lacquer Remover (120ml/4 fl.oz) - My fifth bottle this year.  A bit expensive but definitely effective. 

 

62) Butter London Powder Room Baby Powder Scent Acetone-free Lacquer Remover (59ml/2 fl.oz) - OMG! Baby powder scented polish remover?! I got this as a complimentary extra when buying two bottles of Butter London polish last year. It actually does smell very pleasant for a polish remover and it has a very gentle formula.  Unfortunately a little too gentle for me - I needed to use twice as much product to remove polish and I wouldn't even go near a glitter polish with it.  Also the bottle was decidedly leaky as I found out when I discovered it lying on its side in a powdery scented puddle in our bathroom cupboard - yes the lid was screwed on tightly.

 

63) Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Top Coat - My current favourite fast drying top coat.  Doesn't dissolve the colour underneath, doesn't smell too toxic, doesn't shrink, dries my manicure quickly and makes my manicure last. 



 

 

64) Natio Meditate Body Butter (Yoga Scent Pink Lotus Attar) - I loved this little tub of creamy, beautifully calming scented body butter but damn it's been discontinued.  At least I have two more tubs in other scents to console me I suppose.  I heading back to the Natio warehouse sale in a few weeks so I'll snap more up if I see them!

 

65) Dirty Works Glow Girl! Buttery Salt Scrub (300ml/10.1 fl.oz)* - I really enjoyed this beachy, salty scented scrub and my only criticism is the runny formula.  Click here for my full review.

 

 



Cosmetics

 

Now for this month's beauty diet update. Sophie has now joined  Anissa, Norlin and myself on this exercise in moderation!

 

66) Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion - A very good colourless eye base for preventing creased eye shadow.  I don't know if I'd give it HG status though.

 

67) MAC Powerpoint Eye Pencil (Bordeauxline) - My favourite MAC liner because it's purple! I'd normally run to the MAC counter for an immediate backup but I've decided to show my restraint by using the other two purple liners I found in my collection. So far the Physician's Formula twist up liner for green eyes isn't too bad at all either!

 

 

Culled...

 

Chanel Eye Colour Collection Quad (24 Interferentiels) - I'm sure this has been discontinued for over a decade! Anyway it lingered in my collection as my prized first ever Chanel quad and it's at least half empty as I'd finished the gold and pink duochrome shades years ago through daily use.  It was well loved but served its purpose. Farewell to my first Chanel...

 

 

Fragrance

 

68) Labdanum 18 Le Labo (samples) - Damn I thought I'd found my perfect resiny amber fragrance at Mecca Cosmetica but it was out of stock and then they rang to further disappoint me it was out of stock in the whole country! If you're curious the notes are:  french labdanum, castoreum, civetta, musk, vanilla, birch, resins, cinnamon, patchouli, gurjan balsam and tonka bean.

 

 

Until next month - actually now just a fortnight away!



 

(Products marked * were provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)

REVIEW: Dirty Works Glow Girl! Buttery Salt Scrub & Supreme Cream Body Butter

If you follow my empties posts at all you'll know I'm a fan of exfoliating scrubs and body butters - if you didn't well you do know now! Of course when I was offered the opportunity to review Dirty Works' Glow Girl! Buttery Salt Scrub, partnered with their Supreme Cream Body Butter I jumped onto it as my first taste of this UK brand now available in Australia. 

Glow Girl! Buttery Salt Scrub (300ml tub)

Ingredients list:
Aqua, Pumice, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Glycine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceril Stearate, Parfum, Isopropyl Myristate, Sodium Polyacrylate, Prunus Persica (Peach) Kernal Shell, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Xanthan Gum, Maris Sal (Sea Salt), 2-Bromo-2-Nitropropane-1, 3-Diol, Hexyl Cinnnamal, Limonene. 

My impressions:
Dutifully following the instructions on the tub I scooped out a handful of the scrub, promptly losing some of it onto the shower floor! My first piece of advice is to be just a little bit careful with scooping out this scrub because it is a little runnier than some.  In my enthusiasm, and being overly generous (greedy?) I learned that the hard way.  You can get an idea of the consistency in the picture below on my fingertip:

Consistency aside I've enjoyed using the scrub so far. The exfoliation is done with a combination of Pumice, Sea Salt and ground Peach Kernels - I was expecting the salt to sting my eczema-afflicted hands when I rubbed my skin with it but I had no problems at all.  Because of the non-dissolving exfoliants included the scrub can be applied on quite wet skin and it will still do the job of exfoliating for as long as you care to gently rub it onto your skin - the grains are the right size to exfoliate without any scratching or reddening.  Of course because the grains don't dissolve you should follow the advice on the side of the jar to make sure to rinse the shower (or bath) thoroughly afterwards to avoid any gritty feeling under your feet.

After rinsing off and patting dry my skin definitely felt smoother, was lightly moisturised without any filminess at all and lightly scented.  As a matter of fact the shower and bathroom had a distinctly 'beachy' salty scent afterward too which I absolutely loved.  Just the antidote to any cold weather blues!

Because of the slightly runny consistency (my one criticism), and me being prone to grabbing big handfuls of this stuff to scrub down my arms and legs in the shower I have a feeling I will power through my Buttery Salt Scrub fairly quickly but at $9.95 I think it's an affordable indulgence.  Most importantly it does the job it's supposed to by gently and effectively exfoliating the skin - and I love the summery beachy scent.


Supreme Cream Body Butter (300ml tub)

Ingredients list:
Aqua, Glycerine Soja (Soybean) Oil, Glyceryl Stearate, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Isopropyl Myristate, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Parfum, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Butter, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Cymbopogon Schoenanthus (Lemongrass) Extract, Coffea Arabica (Coffee) Seed Extract, Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Citronellol, Eugenol, Geraniol, Citral.

 My impressions:
As you can see in the above pictures Supreme Cream Body Butter is as rich and thick in consistency as you'd expect.  It contains Soybean Oil, Shea Butter and Cocoa Seed Butter as key moisturising ingredients and I found only a small amount - say twice of that shown above on my fingertip - was easily enough to moisturise my arms, paying special attention to my elbows.  This body butter has enough slip that it literally glided onto my skin like - well - butter, absorbing very quickly and easily into my skin.  Best of all my skin felt soft and silky with no greasiness or tackiness, making it easy to get dressed immediately afterward - I've gotta love a body butter like that for when I'm in a morning rush!

Supreme Cream Body Butter has the same subtly beachy scent as Glow Girl! Buttery Salt Scrub so it partners perfectly with it.  Because I only need a small amount I can see this tub will last me a long time and is a great quality budget buy at $9.95.  I can definitely see myself throwing this into my supermarket trolley in future. 

The Dirty Works range is available at Coles stores nationally.

(Both products were provided for my consideration.  All comments and opinions are my own.)