As expected from last month’s post, I have finished quite a lot of products this month.. So I’m going to try and keep this post short and sweet 🙂 Continue reading “Empties – May 2015”
Category: la roche-posay
Having spent the first half of the month back home, I haven’t used up many products this month, however I have a lot of almost-empty bottles and make-up stuff so the month of May will definitely be an interesting one! Continue reading “Empties – April 2015”
Yes, I’m back! It’s been a while since I’ve last blogged, I’ve been incredibly busy writing assignment these past few months that I haven’t had any free time to write here! In this blog post I’m going to talk about all of the products I’ve emptied in January and February, and as there are quite a lot of products, I’ll try to keep the reviews pretty short 🙂 
Eau Precieuse – I’ve already written about this product here. It was good when I was 15 and very lazy with my skincare, but it’s not a product I would buy now.
Le Petit Marseillais in Mandarine et Citron Vert – What I love about these shower gels is that they have a very particular scent, so you recognise them immediately. And oh they smell gorgeous! They also lather very well so this 250ml lasts for a while. If only it was readily available in the UK.
Rimmel Lasting Finish Nail Polish in 058 Lemon Drop – OK, I cheated, this is not actually empty.. I just don’t like the colour anymore! Actually, I’ve never really like it and it doesn’t look nice on my pale skin… I wonder what 15-year-old me was thinking when buying this. However, after 5 years, this nail polish still looks brand new and the quality is just the same! Definitely great value for your money.
Batiste Dry Shampoo in Tropical – Ah Batiste… Everyone loves it but me. My hair might not look greasy after I’ve applied the dry shampoo, but it still fells dirty and it makes my head so itchy! Maybe it just isn’t for me.
Elemis Hydra-Boost Day Cream – I got this in a magazine a while ago and it didn’t impress me at all, which is good considering how much the full size costs! I’m not saying it’s bad, but I’ve used much nicer moisturisers that cost half the price. Also the scent is too overpowering for me.
Benefit They’re Real! Push-Up Liner – Another sample I got with a magazine, and I’m so glad I didn’t spend any money for this. I don’t know about the full size, but I found it quite hard to apply the product nicely and easily with this sample. And this isn’t the only problem: it was so hard to remove when I applied on my hands that I didn’t even dare applying it on my super sensitive eyes.
Rimmel Glam’Eyes Liquid Eye Liner – I loved this eyeliner so much that I had to include it in my 2014 favourites. It’s so easy to apply, you can easily draw a very precise and thin line, the colour looks really black (unlike those eyeliners that are meant to be black but actually look like a very bad dark grey) and most importantly it lasts all day! There are so many other products I would like to try but I might repurchase this in the future.
Rimmel ScandalEyes Precision Micro Eye Liner – Well, this clearly proves that not all Rimmel eyeliners are great. This one certainly isn’t. Maybe I got a faulty one, but this product was already half-dry when I first used it. The felt tip is so soft that it was hard to draw a nice line on the eye, and it definitely didn’t look black.
Bourjois Liner Feutre – another disappointment in the eyeliner category. It’s not as bad as the Rimmel eyeliner, but I still found it incredibly difficult to draw a nice line on my eyes. Maybe it’s because I can’t use felt-tip liners… I think I’ll stick to the liquid ones.
Kiko Eyeshadow in 128 – By far the most pigmented eyeshadow I’ve ever owned. It was a really nice, pinky-glittley-white (if this makes any sense) everyday eyeshadow. It’s super cheap and it lasted me over a year!
Bioderma Hydrabio Light – another well-loved product that I included in my 2014 favourites. It’s aimed at dehydrated skin, but I would say that you can use it whatever your skin type. It sinks in very quickly, it’s great as a make-up base and it’s quite good with dry patches… although I will probably try the rich version next winter, as I felt that the light one wasn’t enough for my dry skin.
Avene Skin Recovery Cream – This is a very tiny sample Avene sent me when I registered on their site. It’s aimed at sensitive skin, it’s relatively light and sinks in very quickly. I might buy the full size in the future.
Burt’s Bees Milk and Honey Body Lotion – My housemate gave it to me because she didn’t like the smell at all. I have to admit I didn’t love the smell myself but I’ve definitely smelt worse. As I don’t use body moisturisers I can’t compare it with anything else, but it sinks in fairly quickly so I guess it’s a good product.
Vichy Idealia Eyes Cream – Although this is a small sample it did last me a while as you only need a tiny bit. Again, I can’t really say much about it as I’ve never used eye creams before and probably never will, as I haven’t seen any difference with this cream.
Colgate Deep Clean Whitening with Baking Soda – A very average toothpaste, like most are to be fair. It does the job and it doesn’t taste horrible, and that’s all I want from my toothpaste really. Not my favourite one though. 
Sanex Dermo Sensitive Anti-Perspirant Deodorant – I really thought I would like this deodorant. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate it, far from it, but why isn’t there a 48h version? 24h just isn’t enough and I notice the difference. I will certainly buy it again when they make a 48h protection version, though.
La Roche-Posay Physiological Eye Make-Up Remover – This is simply the best eye make-up remover I’ve tried so far, and I like is so much that I’ve quickly repurchased it as soon as I run out of it. Water-based make-up removers are by far my favourites and this removes everything effortlessly.
Eucerin DermatoCLEAN Cleansing Gel – I already miss this so much! I used to swear by foaming cleansers, but now I’m converted! The creamy gel texture feels so nice on the skin, it removes every make-up residue and my sensitive skin doesn’t feel all tight!
Seventeen Miracle Matte Pressed Powder in Porcelain – I didn’t really like this, it looks a bit too cakey and it felt heavy on my skin.
Schwarzkopf Taft Hairspray – I don’t use hairspray everyday, so this lasted me over a year and a half. It’s a good product, it did the job, and I might repurchase it in the future (if I go to Germany again, hair products are way cheaper there!).
Bioderma Atoderm Gentle Shower Gel – It’s a great product if you have sensitive skin, as it’s very gentle and the scent is not overpowering at all. As my body is not sensitive I don’t really need a sensitive shower gel, but if yours is then you should definitely give this a try.
That’s it for now! What have you used up recently? Have you tried any of the products I mentioned? If so, what did you think of them?
Lorraine x
Hello everyone! I know I’m really late with this kind of posts since it’s almost the end of January, however as I mentioned in my previous post I am currently not at home and I have had very little time to blog.. so hopefully you will forgive me! Also apologises for the lack of pictures and quality.. I had to take the cover picture with my phone and I don’t have most of the products mentioned here with me.
This has definitely been a very interesting year: as I started blogging last summer I started trying a lot new products and as a consequence I’ve had the opportunity to discover some great products.. as well as some really bad ones!
Skincare
Bioderma Hydrabio Light is by far the best moisturiser I’ve used in 2014. It was the first Bioderma product I had tried and it certainly didn’t disappoint me. I started using it during the autumn as the weather got colder and I had some dry patches whilst using another moisturiser, and I haven’t had one dry patch since. It might not be the cheapest moisturiser, as well as not being the easiest brand to find in the UK, but if you can find it on offer then it’s great value for money.
Talking about dry patches, my beloved Avène Cicalfate Repair Cream has been my saviour. I haven’t discovered this product last year, but I haven’t loved it any less in 2014, and I will definitely keep using this cream in the future as it is one of the few products I love so much that I am not interested in finding anything better. At only £7.50 this cream is super affordable and if you only use it when you need it it can easily last you for up to two years!
I didn’t think I would ever find a great cleanser as I’ve only ever tried average ones, but Eucerin DermatoCLEAN Refreshing Cleansing Gel proved me wrong.. so wrong that I dedicated an entire blog post on this product! It’s so refreshing on the skin, it cleanses really well and removes make-up perfectly… what more could you ask for?
I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with make-up removers as most of them are way too aggressive on my sensitive eyes, and this year has been no exception. Last year I’ve only found one good make-up remover, which is the La Roche-Posay Physiological eye make-up remover: it is water based and removes make-up effortlessly without irritating my eyes. One thing I’ve recently realised is that it’s very difficult to find products that don’t contain fragrance, which is a problem as perfume seems to be one of the components that irritate my eyes the most. Therefore I should learn to read the labels before buying anything! As you can imagine, I’ve also tried some very bad make-up removers, but the worst one has to be the Avène Micrellar Lotion. I manly use micellar waters to remove make-up, and as you may have noticed all of my favourite products are from pharmacy brands. Which is probably why this product is even more disappointing compared to other bad drugstore micellar waters. Despite this micellar water being targeted for sensitive skin, my eyes can’t stand the fragrance in it and I always end up crying whenever I remove my make-up.
Bodycare
I only have one product to mention in this category: The Body Shop Strawberry Shower Gel. Isn’t this one of the nicest smelling products in the world? Also, a little goes a long way, which is good considering this product is far from being the cheapest shower gel for the amount of product you get. However, I will definitely buy some more when they are on sale!
Haircare
I haven’t been impressed by any shampoo or conditioner last year, but I haven’t hated any either. However, I have found one great and one not-so great dry shampoo. Do you hate that white powder you get with Batiste dry shampoos? Or these powdery residues which make you want to wash your hair as soon as possible? If like me you answered yes, then you will love the Klorane Gentle Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk. No more white powder, how good is that? It leaves you hair feeling really clean and it absorbs all excess oil. The smell is very fresh and natural, probably not something that everyone would like, however it is not overpowering at all and fades really quickly. Again, not the cheapest product for the amount of shampoo you get, but it is an excellent product and you can easily find it on sale online. I’ve already mentioned this product a couple of times, and I keep reading negative reviews about it, so this has to be the worst dry shampoo of 2014. If you have tried it, you probably guessed I am talking about the Aussie Miracle Dry Shampoo Mega Instant. I am so disappointed because this dry shampoo could have been a cheaper alternative to Klorane, as it does not leave any white residues. However I have only been able to use this shampoo three times before the can stopped working. I know these things happen, but half of the reviews I have read are negative because most people have had the same problem!
Make-up
Although I haven’t tried many foundations last year, L’Oreal True Match foundation is the one that impressed me the most. The shade Rose Ivory matches my skin tone perfectly, it feels very light on the skin and the formula is not thick at all.
I’ve only used one eyeliner throughout 2014 and it is the Rimmel Glam Eyes eyeliner. It is such a great product if you want a very precise and black line, plus it lasts a very long time! Rimmel ScandalEyes Precision Micro Eyeliner, on the other hand, didn’t impress me at all, and I haven’t been able to use it properly. It is incredibly dry, not easy at all to use and more grey than black.
Rimmel Stay Matte powder has probably been many people’s favourite powder: it is incredibly light, it keeps my face shine-free for a decent amount of time, and most importantly it does not look cakey at all, as opposed to other compressed powders I’ve tried.
I am going to end this long post with nail polishes. My favourite one is a recent buy and it’s a Dior nail polish in the shade Carré Bleu. The formula is amazing, it stays on for 4-5 days without chipping (which doesn’t sound a lot but it actually is a really long time for me) and the brush is large which makes the application effortless. I love wearing this with my new favourite glitter top coat, Essie’s Summit of Style. I used to wear glitter nail polishes when I was 13/14, but this is so beautiful that I haven’t stop wearing it since I’ve bought it.
That’s it for my 2014 favourites! Again, sorry if this post is late but I haven’t had the time to write this before. What did you love (or hate) the most in 2014? I am really looking forward to trying even more products in 2015!
Lorraine x
Ahh, Boots.. It’s really hard not to go inside and have a look when you walk past it! Since I’ve been watching and reading a lot of beauty related videos/posts recently, I decided to try some of the products mentioned myself. First up, powder. Now, I’ve never owned a powder before.. and I have oily skin. Weird, I know. Undecided between the Maybelline and the Rimmel powder, I opted for the second one because it’s Rimmel, and despite wanting to try some different make up brands, I always end up buying even more Rimmel make up: it’s just so good, the quality is great and all of their stuff is budget friendly. Very excited about it, I decided to try it as soon as I got back home. This stuff is great, definitely worth the hype. Although I do read a lot of reviews about products, I never end up taking them into consideration but this, this is excellent and I really regret not having bought it earlier in the month when the weather was hotter and my make-up was literally running down my face because of how oily my skin was! I’ve only used it once so my opinion might change, but I’m going on holiday in a few weeks and this will be a good opportunity to test how good this product is, especially when the weather is hot. Overall, I can say that I have very high expectations for this powder and I’m pretty sure it won’t disappoint me. (Rimmel Stay Matte Pressed Power, I have the shade 001 Transparent)
Next, I bought the L’Oréal Paris Studio Line #TXT Volume Supersizing Spray. Again, I’ve never used a Volume Spray before but I’ve always felt like I needed one. The day I wash my hair I do have quite a lot of volume which I like, but after a few days my hair looks all flat and with no shape. Despite using dry shampoo, which gives me some volume, it isn’t enough, therefore I decided to buy this product. As I have washed my hair today I haven’t had the chance to try this product yet, but I will give you a review of this as soon as I can 🙂
Finally, I decided to look for a good eye make-up remover. At the moment I am using the Garnier Fresh Cleansing Lotion Start Afresh, which claims to ‘effectively clean and remove make-up from your face and eyes, even waterproof mascara’. Not going to lie, I hate this product. It smells nice and fresh, it has a nice creamy/milky texture, but that’s it. I can’t remove eye make-up with this product: it irritates my eyes so much and I end up crying if I use this! I also noticed that it doesn’t even remove all of my make-up so in my opinion this was just a waste of money. Because I don’t like wasting products I’m using it to remove my foundation, but you can be sure I’m never going to repurchase this product. I’ve been using my miscellar water as an eye make-up remover (despite not being made to be used as a make-up remover) so today I was mainly looking for a product especially made for this. It took me a while to decide but I finally opted for the La Roche Posay Physiological Eye-Make Up Remover. I’ve just tried it and.. wow. The texture is very liquid and a bit oily, but my skin absorbed the oil really quickly and now feels very clean, maybe a bit dry but I always apply a moisturiser after so it’s not too bad. Oh and most importantly, my eyes were not all watery! It is not the cheapest make-up remover (£9.50 – Boots) but I think it’s worth it and since you only need a tiny bit of product this is going to last me a long time.
I am so pleased with what I’ve bought today! Have you bought anything exciting recently? Have you tried any of the products I’ve mentioned? What do you think of them?
Lorraine x
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