Empties – September 2018

Hi there! September is over, so it’s time for my September Empties post. Read on if you’d like to know which products I said goodbye to last month. 🙂

1 Nivea Powerfruit Fresh Shower Gel – I didn’t love this shower gel, and I won’t buy it again.

2 Classics Nail Polish Remover – I love this nail polish remover. It does its job, it doesn’t smell too bad, and it’s £1 for 400ml. I have a few back-up bottles.

3 Gliss Hair Repair Supreme Length Conditioner – this is a great conditioner. I will buy it (+ the matching shampoo) again.

4 Essence Black Eyeliner Pencil (x2) – I love Essence’s eyeliner pencils. They’re £1 each, and they’re great. I have no complaints about them. I have several more in my stash (and rota).

5 Superdrug Naturally Radiant Renewing Night Cream – this is a great night cream. I will buy it again.

6 Superdrug Flutter Lip Balm – I loved this balm. I think I have 1 or 2 more of these in my stash.

7 Anna Sui Eau De Toilette – this is a very enjoyable floral fragrance. It’s all about iris, rose, lilac and powder. It’s very nice!

8 Olay Gentle Hydrating Rich Creamy Cleansing Milk – this is a great make-up remover. I will buy it again, no doubt.

9 Imperial Leather Indulgence Irresistible Body Wash – this is a sensational shower gel. I have a back-up bottle!

10 Patisserie De Bain Cranberries & Cream Bath & Shower Crème – I didn’t love the sweet fragrance, and I won’t buy it again.

11 Boots Essentials Cucumber 3-Minute Clay Mask – this is a great face mask. Very effective! I like to leave it on for about 15 minutes, and I love the deep cleanse it gives my skin. By the way, when I cut up the “empty” tube, there was enough product left for 2 more uses for me and my husband! Yes, I will buy it again.

12 Beautifully Scrumptious Aloe Vera Body Butter – this is a nice body butter. I would like to buy it again.

13 Yves Rocher Organic Raspberry Exfoliating Shower Gel – this was an awesome shower scrub. Too bad it’s been discontinued, otherwise I’d love to buy it again.

14 The Body Shop White Musk Breeze Body Purée – now that I’ve finished the 2nd bottle, I’m thinking this was actually a very nice little body moisturiser… but it was a limited edition from a few years ago, so this one’s definitely gone for good!

15 Superdrug Gentle Foaming Facial Wash For Dry Skin – another great product from Superdrug. Too bad it’s been discontinued.

I also used a few single-use face masks. I’m not counting them because I don’t keep the empty sachets. If you’d like to read about my latest face mask finds, click here.

This is everything I emptied in September. I think I’ve done well this month! What have you emptied recently? Feel free to comment. And thanks for reading! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Weekly Recap 15 – 21 Jan 2018

Hi there! Welcome to my weekly blog recap. Here’s what I’ve been up to on my blog this week.

Monday 15 Jan – Nail Of The Day
Tuesday 16 Jan – Olay Hydration + Cleansing 2 In 1 Cleanser + Moisturiser Duo

Monday’s post was a Nail Of The Day post. Click here to read the post.
And on Tuesday I reviewed an Olay cleanser. Click here to read the post.

Wednesday 17 Jan – Boots Extracts Zingy Satsuma Body Wash & Body Lotion

Wednesday’s post was about Boots’ Satsuma Body Care products. Click here to read the post.

Thursday 18 Jan – Nail Of The Day
Friday 19 Jan – Montagne Jeunesse Vanilla Sundae Scrub Mask

On Thursday I showed you another mani. Click here to read the post.
And on Friday I reviewed a face mask. Click here to read the post.

This is it for this week. I hope you enjoy the rest of the weekend. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Olay Hydration & Cleansing 2 In 1 Cleanser & Moisturiser Duo

Hi there! Today’s product is about Olay’s Hydration & Cleansing 2 In 1 Cleanser & Moisturiser Duo with aloe vera and cucumber extracts.

This product promises effective cleansing by removing make-up and impurities. In addition, it claims to hydrate the skin.

How does it work? You can use the cleanser with a cotton wool pad, or you can massage it into your skin and then “polish it off” with a damp muslin cloth.

Apparently you can also use it as a moisturiser (it says so on the back).

So how’s the product? I like it. It dissolves and removes my make-up with ease. Whilst I’m not using this product as a moisturiser, I can feel that it’s hydrating, and I believe it has helped me stay on top of my dry patches this winter.

In summary, I think this cleanser is really nice. I would recommend it to everyone with normal to dry and / or sensitive skin.

Olay’s Hydration & Cleansing 2 In 1 Cleanser & Moisturiser Duo is exclusive to Superdrug. The 200ml bottle is £2.99. I paid £1.48 (better than half price offer).

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Empties – November 2017

Hi there! Today’s post is the penultimate beauty empties post of the year 2017. So let me tell you which products I managed to finish in November. Before we get to the big bottles and tubs, I need to mention that I’ve also used a few single-use face masks. If you’d like to read about my latest face mask finds, click here. Now… onto the big empties! 🙂

1 Montagne Jeunesse Goji Berry Body Smoothie – I really liked this moisturiser. However, I wouldn’t buy it again because I’ll always prefer Montagne Jeunesse’s Buriti Fruit Body Smoothie (same formula, cooler fragrance).

2 Pâtisserie De Bain Crème Pâtissière Body Souffle – a nice enough moisturiser. Not special. I wouldn’t buy it again.

3 Pâtisserie De Bain Crème Pâtissière Shower Gel – this shower gel was alright, but it’s another product I wouldn’t repurchase.

4 L’Oréal Elvive Triple Resist Reinforcing Conditioner – this is one of my favourite conditioners. I’ll buy it (+ the matching shampoo) again.

5 Sukin Moisture Restoring Night Cream – I think this night cream is very good. I’ll buy it again, no doubt!

6 I Love… Raspberry & Blackberry Nourishing Body Butter – we (my husband and I) used this one as a foot butter because this one’s been in my stash for far too long. I have one more super old tub of this body butter which we’ll have to use as a foot butter as well.

7 L’Oréal Skin Perfection Soothing Gel-Cream Wash – this is a great face wash! I believe it’s been discontinued (I haven’t seen it in a little while) which is a shame because I would have liked to repurchase it.

8 Boots Botanics Radiant Youth Microdermabrasion Polish – another awesome Boots Botanics product! I would definitely buy it again. Saying this, I have a few comparable products to go through first.

9 Beauty Formulas Rejuvenating Glorious Mud Facial Mask – I really liked this face mask. I can definitely see myself picking it up again in the future! Oh, and I’m sorry the tube looks so unfortunate in the picture. I just couldn’t be bothered. And I knew that, once the photo would be taken, I’d be cutting up the tube (to get to the last bits of product) anyway…

10 NYC In A Minute 202 Grand Central Station – this is one of my favourite clear polishes. I have a few back-ups (I’ve already been using one of my half-empty back-ups for a few weeks now, and I’m confident that this one will be featured in my December empties), but I’ll continue to buy this polish for as long as I can find it.

11 OM SHE Aromatherapy Skin Lift Hydrating Face Serum – I think this serum was OK. It smelled lovely, but I won’t buy it again because I would expect a hydrating serum to be more hydrating…

12 Boots Botanics Skin Brightening Toner – this product was discontinued years ago and this was the last bottle I had. This toner was packed with AHA, BHA, glycolic acid, lactic acid… it was super effective, yet gentle enough not to cause any issues at all around the eyes. I will miss this toner dearly!

13 Manhattan Pro Care Nail Repair – this base coat was alright. For 99p or £1 I’d pick it up again.

14 Olay Essentials Cleansing Milk – I love this cleansing milk. It’s been repackaged and the formula has been changed, but the ‘new’ version of this product seems to be just as good. I’m happy to continue to buy and use Olay products!

15 Boots Extracts – Cocoa Butter Bath Cream – this is a lovely bath product. It’s been discontinued, otherwise I’d buy it again.

16 NSPA Pineapple Shower & Bath Gel – this is a nice pineapple shower gel. I might buy it again.

This is everything I emptied in November. I’m pleased that I finished lots of skin care products. Have you tried any of these products? Or would you like to try any of these products? What have you emptied last month? Feel free to comment. And thanks for reading! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Empties – June 2017

Hi there! Today’s post is about all the products I emptied in June. I used several face masks (What else is new?!), but I don’t keep empty face mask sachets, so I can’t show you which masks I used recently. However, if you’re interested, click here to read about my latest face mask finds. Alright! Now onto the bulky empties = the ‘real’ empties. 🙂

1 Wonder Woman Shampoo & Conditioner (100ml travel size) – this is a surprisingly nice shampoo. However, it doesn’t replace a conditioner. I used this shampoo once a week, followed by a deep conditioner (this one or that one). I think I got 8 uses out of this bottle. I have another Wonder Woman shampoo bottle.

2 I Love… Yummy Caramel Body Butter – a great body butter. Smells as yummy as it sounds. I started to use this body butter in April, and I finished it in early June. Unfortunately I cannot repurchase this product because Yummy Caramel was a limited edition.

3 L’Oréal Skin Perfection Serum – this was a nice serum. I started to use it in early April, and I really enjoyed using it. I believe L’Oréal discontinued their entire Skin Perfection collection, so I cannot repurchase this product.

4 Gliss Satin Relax Conditioner – a decent conditioner. I started to use it in May, and I finished it in early June. I got 14+ uses out of this bottle which is actually quite good. I have passed the matching leftover shampoo on to my husband – I am now using a different shampoo and conditioner combo. I am fairly certain that I will repurchase Gliss’ Satin Relax products!

5 Sudocrem Skin Healing Cream – this is great skin healing cream. Helps with cuts and grazes, helps with spots and all sorts of skin impurities. It took me over a year to finish this tube. I will repurchase this cream, no doubt!

6 The Red Forest Moonlight Raspberry Shower Gel (60ml travel size) – this was an OK shower gel to use for a few times. Nothing special. Random fragrance. This was from an old bargain-store gift set, so I doubt I’d ever come across it again. In any event, I wouldn’t buy it again. Saying this… I have a few more random products from this line!

7 Boots Botanics Firming Body Gel (40ml travel size) – this product had no effect at all. However, I just got a few uses out of this small tube, so I don’t think I can actually judge the product. This product has been discontinued, but I don’t think I’d have repurchased it anyway.

8 I Love… Yummy Caramel Bath & Shower Crème – I really liked this shower cream, and so did my husband! So this one is a shared empty. I started to use this shower cream in April, and I finished it in early June, just a few days after I’d finished the matching body butter. Unfortunately I cannot repurchase this product because Yummy Caramel was a limited edition.

9 Baylis & Harding Vanilla Sugar Donut Body Butter – this is a decent body butter. I started to use it in May, and now it’s finished. I don’t think I’d repurchase it because the fragrance is quite faint. In addition, I prefer Boots’ and Superdrug’s own brand vanilla body butters.

10 Moschino Cheap & Chic Toujours Glamour Bath & Shower Gel (50ml travel size) – I liked this shower gel. However, I don’t love the Toujours Glamour fragrance, so I won’t be repurchasing this shower gel.

11 Moschino Cheap & Chic Toujours Glamour Body Lotion (50ml travel size) – this is a decent body lotion. But I wouldn’t buy it again.

12 Wood & Forest Body Lotion (60ml travel size) – this body lotion was alright. I think it lasted for 5 or 6 days. I wouldn’t repurchase it.

13 Ciaté Sugar Plum – a decent polish. But it was never a favourite. Took me ages to finish it. I wouldn’t have bought this polish if it hadn’t been in Ciaté’s advent calendar…

14 NYC Expert Last 138 Classy Glassy – this is a great clear polish. Perfect base + top coat. Dries reasonably quickly, doesn’t shrink colour polish. I have several back-up bottles.

15 The Red Forest Body Lotion (50ml travel size) – this is the exact same product as the Wood & Forest body lotion. This one lasted me for about 5 or 6 days as well.

16 Boots Extracts Luxurious Coconut Body Scrub (75ml travel size)  – this is an okayish scrub. I prefer grittier scrubs, so I wouldn’t purchase this one on its own. However, if this scrub is part of the big 2017 Boots Extracts Christmas gift set (which I intend to buy on Boxing Day), I really won’t mind using this scrub again.

17 The Sanctuary Spa Classic Eau De Toilette – I love this fragrance. I have several bottles in various states of empty. 🙂

18 Treacle Moon That Vanilla Moment Bath And Shower Gel – this shower gel is fantastic. My husband loves it too. And yes, I will repurchase this shower gel, no doubt! Oh, this one is a shared empty.

19 Olay Anti-Wrinkle Cleansing Milk – this is a fantastic cleansing milk. I’ve been using it since November or December last year. I cannot repurchase this product because, unfortunately, it has been discontinued.

I’m quite happy with what I emptied this month. I’m glad I was able to get rid of so many travel-sized products, and I feel a sense of achievement because I finished 2 big 500ml shower gels! I hope I can keep up the good work over the next few months! Feel free to comment if you want to. And thanks for stopping by! 🙂

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Olay Anti-Wrinkle Facial Cleansing Products – Cleansing Milk, Face Wash & Toner

Hi there! A few weeks ago I bought a few new Olay products – they were on a better than half price offer (£2.95 each instead of £5.99 each), so I had to have them. Now meet Olay Anti-Wrinkle Cleansing Milk, Olay Anti-Wrinkle Face Wash and Olay Anti-Wrinkle Toner.

Olay’s Ani-Wrinkle cleansing products promise…
– to help reduce the appearance of fine lines,
– to improve dull skin,
– to make skin look and feel smoother,
– to maintain skin suppleness,
– to promote the renewal of skin cells,
– and to “fight signs of ageing as you cleanse” (that’s what it says on the back of these three products).

I’ve now used these products for three weeks. And if you read on, I’ll tell you what I think of Olay’s Anti-Wrinkle cleansing products.

I think the cleansing milk is quite effective. It removes my make-up very well, and it doesn’t cause any problems when I use it to remove my eye make-up. I think this cleansing milk makes my skin feel and look smooth and supple. Nice!

I really like the face wash. It reminds me very much of Olay’s Total Effects Face Wash – the texture and the fragrance are the same! I think this face wash makes my skin feel great. It’s creamy and it exfoliates my skin gently. It’s perfect for dry skin and for everyday use.

The toner is very nice too. It removes make-up and cleanser residue without problems, and it makes my skin feel clean and refreshed. Whilst I prefer the fragrance of Olay’s blue toner, I can’t find any issue with this toner.

I don’t think that any of these products have made a difference to my fine lines. But I really enjoy using these cleansing products because they make my skin feel great. In addition, I’m 35, so I can accept that the fine lines aren’t going away. 🙂

Olay’s Anti-Wrinkle cleansing products are available for £5.99 each. The toner and the cleansing milk are 200ml, the face wash is 150ml.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde

Olay Essentials Facial Cleansing Products

My first post is about my favourite face cleansing products – Olay Essentials. From left to right: Olay Essentials Smoothing Face Scrub, Olay Essentials Refreshing Toner, Olay Essentials Refreshing Face Wash and Olay Essentials Cleansing Milk.

What I like about these products is that…
*they’re excellent value for money,
*they’re perfect for daily use,
*they’re suitable for dry and sensitive skin and
*they smell nice and clean.
So let’s get started, shall we?

Olay Essentials Smoothing Face Scrub is one of my favourites. This face scrub is a gentle exfoliator, so it can be used daily. I have dry and sensitive skin and I’m really pleased with this product because it does not sting or burn and it doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight or dry. I use it 2 to 3 times a week in the shower and I really enjoy how soft and clean my skin feels after each use.

When I don’t use the face scrub, I cleanse my face with Olay Essentials Refreshing Face Wash in the shower. A pea-sized amount is enough to get rid of grease and grime – even around the nose. The face wash is really powerful, yet it feels gentle, refreshing and doesn’t cause redness or dry skin. This is my favourite face wash. Thumbs up!

Olay Essentials Cleansing Milk is my go-to make-up remover when my skin needs a little extra care and attention. I massage the milky cleanser into my skin to dissolve make-up before washing it off. This cleansing milk moisturises the skin whilst it’s being applied, thus preventing redness or irritation. A real super star product that doesn’t aggrevate dry or sensitive skin.

Whatever cleanser I use, I usually give my face a quick wipe with Olay Essentials Refreshing Toner before I apply my moisturiser. This toner is powerful in removing excess oils and all kinds of residue from make-up or cleansing products. However, this toner is also alcohol-free. This means that it’s rather gentle and, again, most suitable for dry or sensitive skin.

If you have normal, dry or sensitive skin, Olay Essentials is the product range for you. In the past my skin has reacted pretty severely to a few other products, but I haven’t had any problems with these affordable cleansers at all.

The face scrub and the face wash are available as 150ml, while the cleansing milk and the toner come in 200ml bottles. All these products are usually around £3, but there’s always some kind of special offer somewhere.

Mrs Strawberry Blonde