Empties – September 2022

Hi there! Today’s post is about all the products I finished in September. I used a few single-use face masks – as usual. And I didn’t keep the sticky sachets – as usual. So let’s look at the bottles and tubes and what not…

1 Essence XXXL Nude Lipgloss 06 Soft Almond – I love this lipgloss so much! A shame it’s been discontinued.

2 Marks & Spencer Spiced Bergamot Eau De Toilette – one of my favourite summer fragrances. I love fresh, citrusy fragrances which remind me of Light Blue (nope, this is not a dupe for Light Blue), so this one is right up my alley. I already bought 2 backup bottles!

3 Boots Ingredients Niacinamide Serum – this is a basic serum. Too basic for me. I wouldn’t buy it again.

4 Olay Regenerist 3 Point Super Age-Defying Cream – what a wonderful skin treat! I love this moisturiser. I believe I have another one in my stash.

5 Pantene Pro-V Miracles Silky & Glowing Biotin & Hydrolised Silk Protein Shampoo & Conditioner – I didn’t care for this hair mask. I’m glad it’s finished now, and I won’t be buying it again.

6 Astonish Body & Soul Refreshing Golden Glow Bath Soak – this is a lovely bath soak. I’ve already respurchased it.

7 NSPA Grapefruit Shower & Bath Gel – this is such a beautiful shower gel. A shame it’s been discontinued.

8 Palmolive Sauna Retreat Shower Gel – a really lovely shower gel. I would repurchase it.

9 Herbal Essences Moisture Balance Conditioner – HOLY GRAIL stuff. I have plenty of back-up.

10 Classics Nail Polish Remover – my go-to nail polish remover!

And this is already it. September wasn’t the best month for Empties, but I hope I’ll do better for the last 3 months of the year. Thanks for stopping by today! xx

Mrs Strawberry Blonde 💙💛

Empties – September 2017

Hi there! Today’s post is about all the products I finished in September. I’ve used a number of single use face masks. Since I don’t keep track of these, I can’t tell you how many I used, but you can read about my latest face mask find here. Onto the empties!

1 Eva & Davis Berries & Love Fragrance Mist – a beautiful and refreshing red fruit jelly all-over body spray. I would love to buy it again, but, unfortunately, it’s no longer available.

2 Daily Defense Argan Oil Moisturizing Conditioner – this is a fantastic conditioner. I will buy it again, no doubt!

3 Olay Anti-Wrinkle Toner – another awesome Olay product! At the moment I have a number of different toners to finish, but I’ll buy this one again.

4 Laura Biagiotti Laura – I bought this fragrance ages ago, and it’s finally finished. It’s nice (office-nice), but not very special. I won’t buy it again.

5 Boots Botanics Super Serum Triple Age Renewal – this is a great serum that delivers on its promise. Visible results within weeks. Awesome! Yes, I will buy it again.

6 Superdrug Naturally Radiant Brightening Eye Cream – this is a good eye cream that sits well under make-up. I bought it before and I will buy it again.

7 The Sanctuary Spa Pomegranate & Cassis – I’m not sure when I bought this fragrance, but I’ve been using it on and off for a couple of years. I think this one was a limited edition, and it seems to be gone for good. But I wouldn’t buy it again anyway. It was nice enough for the office, but it wasn’t very special.

8 Essence Nail Whitener – a so-so product. It really brightened my nails, but it took ages to dry. This is an old product, so I can’t buy it again (not that I’d want to…). However, I will give Essence’s current nail whitener a try.

9 NSPA Honey Rich Body Butter – this is the best-smelling honey body butter I’ve ever had! Very nourishing, but – unfortunately – sensationally sticky. But I think I will buy this body butter again.

10 NSPA Grapefruit Shower & Bath Gel – this is one of the best shower gels ever. It’s perfect if you want a refreshing shower on a hot summer morning. 11 stars! This shower was a limited edition, and I can’t buy it again. But I have another big 500ml bottle for next summer!

11 L’Oréal Elvive Fibrology Thickening Masque – I’m glad this hair mask is finished. I wouldn’t buy it again. The delayed thickening effect really annoyed me.

12 MUA Top Clear Coat – this is a reasonable top coat. And I have a back-up bottle.

13 Primark PS… 18 Strobe Nail Polish – this is a great white polish! I have a back-up!

14 The Body Shop White Musk Breeze Body Puree – this is an OK body lotion. Nothing special though. This product has been discontinued, but I wouldn’t buy it again if it were still available. Saying this, I have one more bottle…

15 The Body Shop White Musk Breeze Shower Gel – this shower gel was alright. I liked that it didn’t feel drying, but I wouldn’t repurchase it.

16 XNG Nail Polish Remover – another reasonable £1 nail polish remover. I would definitely buy it again.

I think September was a good month for empties. I managed to finish quite a few poducts. I already know of a few products that I will definitely be able to finish this month, so I hope October will be another good month for empties. Any comments? Feel free to get in touch if you want to, and thanks for stopping by! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Empties – March 2017

Hi there! Today’s post is about all the products I emptied in March 2017. I used a few face masks (what else is new…) but I haven’t kept the empty sachets. So let’s get to the (more or less) big empties right away! 🙂

1 L’Oréal Youth Code Luminizer Serum – this serum is very good! It’s been discontinued, so I don’t think I’d be able to repurchase it at a reasonable price. I have, however, started to use a new L’Oréal serum just a few days ago, and I think the new serum (which I’ll review soon) is very good too!

2 B. Confident Hyaluronic Acid Facial Spritz – fantastic stuff! I only discovered this product in December 2016 – but it became a beauty staple and an all-time favourite in a matter of days. I have four back-up bottles! 🙂

3 Superdrug Clearly Youthful Retexturising Glycolic Peel Off Mask – this mask is the most effective spot-fighting product I’ve ever used. Unfortunately this product has been discontinued. But I still have two back-up tubes.

4 Olay Total Effects CC Cream Complexion Corrector Fair To Medium – I liked the rich and nourishing formula, but the shade fair to medium (which is the lightest shade) was way too dark for me. Because of this I won’t purchase this moisturiser again.

5 Pacifica Vanilla Hibiscus Color Quench Lip Tint – this is a really nice tinted lip balm. I might repurchase it again at some point in the future, but for now I have more than enough lip balms and glosses in my stash…

6 Miss Sporty Dr Balm Gossip Kiss SOS Lip Balm – this is a decent lip balm, but I wouldn’t buy it again. I finished one of these before and I must say that the melon flavour has been annoying me for quite some time…

7 Superdrug Naturally Radiant Brightening Radiance Balm – I’m glad this product is finished. It didn’t do anything for my skin, it wasn’t hydrating at all, and the chunky shimmer particles weren’t great either. I wouldn’t buy this product again.

8 Boots Botanics Quenching Body Lotion – another oldie that’s been sitting in my stash for ages. I found this body lotion very hydrating. However, it was also quite sticky. I wouldn’t repurchase it (but it’s been discontinued anyway…).

9 Boots Botanics Skin Brightening Toner – this toner is fantastic. Too bad it’s been discontinued – otherwise I’d buy it again and again and again… However, I do have another small 75ml bottle of this toner in my stash! 🙂

10 Maybelline Color Sensational Luscious Lipgloss 410 Peach Sorbet – a decent lipgloss! It’s never been a true favourite, but I did enjoy using this lipgloss. I have several of these Maybelline lipglosses – another peach-flavoured one, a cherry-flavoured one, and several pink ones (not sure about those flavours though).

11 Rimmel Pro Super Wear Ultra Shine Topcoat – a nice top coat! I think this one’s been discontinued, but if it pops up in some bargain store at some point in the future, I’d repurchase it!

12 Markwins Orange Shimmer Nail Polish – I’ve had this nail polish in my stash for ages but it seemed to have dried out over the years. This polish has never been a favourite of mine, so I didn’t mind letting it go.

13 Possibility Raspberry Pavlova Shower & Bath Gel – I liked this one in the beginning, but the sweet raspberry fragrance started to annoy me half-way through the huge 500ml bottle. I wouldn’t buy this one again.

14 Boots Marshmallow Peppermint Body Butter – I didn’t like the fragrance, so I’m glad this one is gone. I hope Boots won’t repeat this fragrance for this year’s limited Christmas edition.

15 Essence Nail Art White Stampy Polish – the best white stamping polish you can find for £1.50. I have two back-ups, but I’d like to stock up because this one’s sold out online at the moment. I’ll see if I can still find it in store… Fingers crossed!

16 Superdrug Vitamin C Boost Body Scrub Mango & Papaya – a really nice scrub. I will buy it again! This one’s a shared empty. My husband used this scrub a few times too.

17 Superdrug Raspberry Bubblegum Shower Gel – this is a decent shower gel, but it’s not special. I wouldn’t buy it again. This one’s also a shared empty.

18 Classics Nail Polish Remover – this is one of my nail care staples. As long as Poundland, Poundworld and the likes stock this product, I’ll repurchase it.

19 Radox Passionfruit Splash Shower Gel – this one is very nice. I’ll repurchase it, no doubt.

20 Daily Defense Moisturizing Conditioner With Keratin – I think this conditioner is fantastic. I already bought another bottle. 🙂

I think March was surprisingly good for empties. I’m very proud of how many ‘small’ products I finished! Right now I’m thinking I won’t be able to finish anything this month, but I’m sure I’ll have a few empties. For now… feel free to get in touch via the comments. And thanks for stopping by!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Empties – May 2016

Hi there! Last month’s empties post was really fun, so I collected this month’s empty stuff too. Now here’s what I used up in May 2016.

1 (no photo) 3 Superdrug Dead Sea Purifying Clay Masks & 3 Superdrug Fruit Sorbet Antioxidant Peel-Off Masks – I really love these face masks and I’ll repurchase them again. Sorry, there’s no photo but I didn’t want to keep the empty (and sticky) sachets.

2 Herbal Essences Shimmering Colour Conditioner – this stuff is amazing! I rejoiced when Herbal Essences reintroduced two of their Rainforest Flowers shampoo and conditioner combos in 2013. Unfortunately these products were discontinued again. 😦 I don’t know why – the products are excellent! I have a few more back-up bottles and I’ll do a proper review soon. 🙂 In the meantime, check out my post about the Herbal Essences Classics products – if you’ve never tried them, you really should do it now because they’re the best shampoos and conditioners out there!

3 Classics Nail Polish Remover – I’ve been buying this nail polish remover for years. It’s effective. It doesn’t dry out my nails. It’s cheap (£1 for 400ml). It’s simply great! And this product is made by a UK-based company and it’s not tested on animals. Repurchase? Absolutely!

4 Superdrug Cocoa Butter & Vanilla Body Lotion – a really nice body lotion that smells lovely and moisturises my skin nicely. Good quality, good price. Repurchase? Yes!

5 Olay Total Effects Radiance Enhancing Cream Wash – an amazing face wash! It exfoliates gently – but at the same time it’s creamy. It’s brilliant for dry skin! Too bad this product has been dicontinued.

6 L’Oréal Elvive Colour Protect Conditioner – one of the best conditioners out there, second only to Herbal Essences’ Classics conditioners. Repurchase? Yes! (In case you’re wondering what happened to the shampoo – as soon as I’ve used up a conditioner, my husband will finish the matching shampoo.)

7 Palmolive Oriental Beauty Sophisticated – a really nice shower gel, refreshing and not too harsh on dry skin. And it smells like a mix of tea and flowers. Nice! The product has been discontinued, so I can’t repurchase it. If it were still available, I’d buy it again.

8 L’Eau Par Kenzo Ice Pour Femme (50ml) – a fresh summer fragrance (which I’ll review properly in a few days). This one was a limited edition from a few years ago. But I wouldn’t repurchase it if it were still available – because it no longer tickles my fancy.

9 Kirstie Allsopp Lansdowne Rose Shower Gel – a gentle and pleasant rose-scented shower gel. Perfect in combination with Flower Pharm’s Wild Rose body butter. If it weren’t discontinued, I’d probably buy it again.

10 Yung Haircare Deep Conditioner – this one’s a cheap product from a German drugstore. I bought it years ago (!) but left it untouched until a few months ago. It’s an okayish deep conditioner, nothing special. I wouldn’t repurchase it.

11 Black eyeliner pencil – not sure which brand this is, but I liked this eyeliner pencil. Good quality. Comparable to Essence.

12 Superdrug Animal Mad Lip Balm – I used up one of these last month – and I’ve now used up another one. This lip balm was part of a limited edition set from last autumn so I can’t repurchase it.

13 Thierry Mugler Alien EDP sample – I love Thierry Mugler’s Alien. I’ve got a full size Alien EDP, but whenever there’s an Alien sample in a glossy mag, I’ll use it! Awesome stuff!

14 Boots No 7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum – I have no idea how old the bottle was when I finally opened it. I used this serum a few years ago when it was introduced. But I never opened the second bottle – until a few months ago. I’ve now been using this serum on and off – and I actually still like it a lot. I’ll give the current version of the product a try and then I’ll report back. 🙂

15 Naturtint Shampoo & Naturtint Nutrideep Multiplier Protective Cream samples – I didn’t like these products. I’d probably use the shampoo if nothing else was available. But I wouldn’t use the protective cream again if you paid me. My last post explains it all…

16 NSPA Raspberry Body Butter – a rich body butter with the pleasant scent of juicy raspberries. I think this body butter smells a lot more natural than some of the considerably more expensive raspberry-scented body butters out there. And it’s only £3. Repurchase? Most likely – as soon as I crave raspberries again.

So this is what I emptied / used up in May 2016. I really enjoyed writing this post – so I’ll definitely make monthly empties a permanent feature. 🙂 Oh, and I’m really proud of myself for using up an eyeliner pencil before losing it. 🙂

Thanks for stopping by! I hope June 2016 will be an awesome month for all of us.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde