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

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

Reducing My Oldies Stash – The Body Shop White Musk Breeze Shower Gel, Body Purée, Body Mist & Eau De Toilette

Hi there! Welcome to the lastest episode of Reducing My Oldies Stash. Today’s guest stars are The Body Shop’s White Musk Breeze limited edition products which have been sitting in my stash for ages. I’ve finally given these products a try, so let me tell you if they’re (still) any good. 🙂

The Body Shop’s White Musk Breeze Shower Gel is alright. It lathers up nicely, but it doesn’t feel drying. I also like the fragrance – it’s white musk and jasmine. The Body Shops’s Body Purée (which I have 2 bottles of) is good too. The fragrance is a little fresher – it’s white musk, jasmine and a mix of refreshing citrus fruits. However, I have to say that I don’t love the purée formula because it feels a little sticky on my skin.
the-body-shop-white-musk-breeze
Now onto the fragrances! The Body Shop’s White Musk Breeze Body Mist is a decent all-over body spray. It’s a little lighter and less dense than the EdT. I like it! I’m sure I’ll be able to finish this bottle at some point. The Body Shop’s White Musk Breeze Eau De Toilette (which I have 2 bottles of) is a true white musk fragrance. It starts out fresh but the citrus aroma evaporates quickly.

Now onto the conclusion… I’m impressed that these products didn’t go off. I really, really love preservatives in cosmetics and toiletries! 🙂 OK, here’s the actual conclusion… whilst I like these White Musk Breeze products, the white musk fragrance isn’t my favourite.

So I started to experiment a little. At first it was trial and error, but after a few days I realised that the White Musk Breeze all-over body spray is a great base for sweet vanilla fragrances. I also found that the White Musk Breeze EdT goes well with Body Fantasies’ Pink Grapefruit Fantasy. 🙂

I’m sure I’ll be able to finish the shower gel, the 2 (!) body purées and the body spray. We’ll have to see whether I’ll finish the 2 (!) EdT bottles. Let’s see if I can make an effort to use the EdT on a regular basis. Fingers crossed!

Mrs Strawberry Blonde