Empties – June 2019

Hi there! It’s the 1st day of a new month, and this means that today’s post is about all the products I said goodbye to last month. I used a number of single-use face masks. Whilst I didn’t keep the empty sachets, you can read about my latest face mask finds if you click here. Now let’s get to the tubs, tubes and bottles I emptied in June.

1 Boots No 7 Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced Day Cream – this is a great moisturiser. I enjoyed using it, and I’m looking forward to using it again in the not too distant future!

2 Boots No 7 Protect & Perfect Intense Advanced Night Cream – this night cream is just as amazing as the day cream, and I’ll be using this one again soon too!

3 J Lo Deseo Eau De Parfum – this is a large 100ml bottle, and it took me almost a decade to finish it. No, the fragrance isn’t bad. Quite the contrary! This is not a standard sugar water celebrity fragrance. Deseo is a gorgeous bamboo and patchouli fragrance. I’ve enjoyed it very much. Unfortunately, it’s been discontinued quite some time ago, otherwise I’d buy it again.

4 Herbal Essences Silk N’ Shine Conditioner – my favourite conditioner ever. It’s been discontinued but I have plenty of back-up (shampoo AND conditioner). 😎

5 Imperial Leather Moisturising Night Blooming Jasmine & Vanilla – a nice shower gel, but nothing special. I might buy it again, but I don’t think it’s likely.

6 Palmolive Welcome to Japanese Garden – this is a gorgeous shower gel that I can see myself picking up again!

7 Superdrug B. Confident Hyaluronic Acid Facial Spritz – this is one of my holy grail products, and I have a few more in my stash.

8 Dove Go Fresh Pear & Aloe Vera Body Wash – this is a nice body wash that I can see myself buying again.

9 L’Oréal Skin Perfection Velvety Soft Toner – this is a great toner. Too bad it was discontinued. But I have 1 more in my stash!

10 Astor Lipliner Pencil 014 Bronze – one of my favourite lipliners. I have a few more of these in my stash and in my rota.

11 Revlon Nail Polish 902 Craving Coral – a nice enough shade. I wouldn’t repurchase it because I have around 20 very similar shades in my nail polish stash.

12 Baylis & Harding Beauticology Pink Grapefruit & Raspberry Body Butter – this is a great body butter. I won’t repurchase it because I’ve grown tired of the fragrance, but I would certainly recommend the product.

13 Superdrug Shea Butter & Bamboo Shower Gel – this is a very nice shower gel. I’ll repurchase it for sure.

14 Superdrug Simply Pure Leave On Water Mask – this is a fantastic product, and I will buy it again as well.

15 Sweet Snuggles Christmas Cookie Body Scrub – this was a cute little body scrub, and I might repurchase it if it pops up again for Christmas this year.

16 Superdrug Vitamin E Skin Care All Over Body Cream With Manuka Honey – one of the best summer moisturisers ever! Too bad it was a limited edition. But I think I have 1 more tub!

17 Classics Nail Polish Remover – this is my go to nail polish remover. £1 for 400ml. Awesome stuff!

I’ve done well again with my empties in June. I’m always happy to finish big bottles as well as small items like lipliners. I hope I’ll be able to say goodbye to 12+ items in July too!

One more thing… HAPPY CANADA DAY to all my Canadian blogging buddies!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Empties – April 2019

Hi there! It’s 1 May, and this means that it’s time for my April Empties post. I used quite a few single-use face masks, but I also finished quite a few big bottles! And here they are…

1 Olay Essentials Complete Care Day Fluid – this is a truly wonderful moisturiser that I would recommend without hesitation.

2 Boots Garden Collection Lavender Body Wash (travel size) – a nice body wash that I would like to buy again.

3 Boots Garden Collection Lavender Body Lotion (travel size) – this is a lovely body lotion. I’d love to repurchase this one too!

4 Dove Go Fresh Nectatine & White Ginger Shower – this is an all-time favourite shower gel. It’s discontinued, but I have 4 more bottles in my stash!

5 Classics Nail Polish Remover – my go-to nail polish remover. 400ml for £1 at Poundland and other bargain stores.

6 Garnier Body Repair Anti-Dryness Restoring Lotion – a lovely moisturiser that I will buy again for sure!

7 Sante Naturkosmetik Instantly Smoothing Night Cream – I’m glad this night cream is gone. It’s one of the worst moisturisers I’ve ever tried. Good riddance!

8 I Love… Chocolate Truffle Refreshing Body Spritzer – this is a lovely body spray that really smells of chocolate truffles! Too bad it was a limited edition, otherwise I’d buy it again!

9 Maybelline Eyeliner Chestnut – I have several more of these in my rota. These eyeliners are really nice.

10 Astor Lipliner Pencil 014 Bronze – I love these lipliners. I have quite a few more of these!

11 Max Factor Pan Stik 25 Fair – my holy grail foundation!

12 Boots No 7 Protect & Perfume Intense Advanced Serum – this is a fantastic serum, and I will repurchase it, no doubt!

13 Hair Repair Rejuvenating Conditioner – a surprisingly nice conditioner. Another product that I’d like to repurchase!

14 Imperial Leather Paradise Island Bath Cream – this stuff smells amazing. I think I have another bottle or 2 of these in my stash.

15 Original Source Orange Shower Gel – another nice shower gel that I can see myself picking up again.

This is everything I emptied in April. I think I’ve done well last month! I hope I can continue to empty many more bottles, tubes and tubs over the next few months!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

September Beauty Awards

Hi there! And welcome to Mrs Strawberry Blonde’s September Beauty Awards – a.k.a. my monthly favourites which I selected from all the products I’ve written about this month. As always, I’ve also thrown in a few honourable mentions. 🙂 Now, let’s get to the actual favourites!

3rd place – Superdrug Naturally Radiant Renewing Night Cream

This night cream is amazing and I will definitely repurchase it. It makes my skin look fresher, it’s very moisturising and it smells great too. If you’re in the UK, you need to swing by Superdrug and buy this cream.

Runner-Up – Superdrug Naturally Radiant Glycolic Overnight Peel

If you want to brighten your skin with the help of glycolic acid and fruit acids, this is the product to try. This glycolic peel feels great on my skin and it makes my skin look considerably more refreshed. I didn’t notice and tingling, burning or redness – just amazing skin. If you buy the night cream, buy the glycolic peel too!

WINNER – Astor Lipliner Pencil 014 Bronze

This is my favourite lipliner. Ever. I usually wear it on its own – yes, instead of a lipstick – because I love the colour and the finish. This lipliner is fantastic and I’m glad I have more than one. 🙂

Now on to the honourable mentions! I really liked Garnier’s Ultimate Blends The Shine Revitaliser Shampoo & Conditioner with lemon and green tea. Garnier’s hair products usually don’t impress me, so these two were a nice surprise. Another hair duo I liked was Harmony Hair Indulgence Herbal Shampoo & Conditioner with ginseng extract.

I also love Yves Rocher’s Apple Star Anise Refreshing Fragrance Mist – which I’ve been using a lot this summer. And I just found my new favourite peel-off face mask – the delicious Montagne Jeunesse Pineapple Peel Off Mask.

What are your favourite products this month? Have you used any of the products that I used? Feel free to get in touch. And thanks for reading!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

100% Awesome – Astor Lipliner Pencil 014 Bronze A.K.A. The Perfect Matte Nude Lippie For 50p

Hi there! Today’s post is about my favourite lipliner, Astor Lipliner Pencil 014 Bronze. I found this fantastic lipliner at Poundworld – where it was part of a duo pack (yes, that’s 2 products for £1). And in fact, I own at least 10 of these lipliners. Why? Well, each duo pack contained 1 lipliner and 1 nail polish. I know I don’t have to say any more, but I’ll do it anyway… of course they had lots of different nail colours, and (unsurprisingly) I had to have all these nail colours. So I ended up with lots of lipliners!

Now why is this lipliner so amazing? Ha, that’s easy! Look at it! The colour is the most amazing nude bronze with the most amazing velvet matt finish I’ve ever seen. I love it! And because of this I usually use this lipliner on its own. Yes, I use it instead of a lipstick. And all I need is a bit of lip balm as a base, and then I can start filling in my lips with this lipliner.

Sure, filling in my lips with lipliner takes a little longer than applying lipstick. But once my lips are filled in, I don’t need to blot, I don’t need to layer, I don’t need to do anything else at all! So I think applying lipliner doesn’t take much longer than applying lipstick. In addition, this lipliner usually lasts all day on me. On the rare occasion that it doesn’t, I can give my lips a quick and easy touch-up. 🙂

I would definitely recommend you buy at least one Astor lipliner and nail polish duo pack the next time you’re at your local discount store. But before you switch to your new lipliner-only-routine, make sure you use lip balm to keep your lips soft at all times. If your lips are dry, the lipliner will settle in the lines which, obviously, isn’t a good look. But if you’re a lip balm addict (I am!), you’ll be fine. 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde