March empties

Can you believe it's time for empties again? What ever happens to the days I wonder, and I'm convinced that the bad economy and inflation these past few years even has impacted time - an hour is somehow shorter than it used to be. Again I have tried my hardest this month to finish up as many products as possible and in the end I'm quite pleased with the results - 8 products that can go in the bin, which equals the right to buy 8 new products, that's the rule isn't it?

Let's start with some skin care products. Ever since I finished my beloved Gatineau Floracil (£29.50), a strong contender for the world champion title of eye makeup removers, I've been using the L'Oréal Skin Perfection 3 in 1 Purifying Micellar Solution (£4.99), the well known dupe for the original micellar solution - Bioderma. It's a great, effective and gentle all-in-one product, removing both face and eye makeup without stinging your eyes, and it also acts as a toner. The only thing I seriously dislike about it is the packaging, or more specifically the fact that there is no effective dispenser at the top of the bottle - just a big hole. This means that if you drop the bottle, or you're not careful with closing the top, the solution goes everywhere. That should be easy enough to fix and hopefully L'Oréal will do something about it eventually. Even though I prefer to use micellar solutions from other brands as part of my morning routine, I still like to use the L'Oréal 3 in 1 solution as an eye makeup remover, and at such an affordable price it's super value for money.

On to the St. Grape Aqua Bliss Natural Face and Body Scrub (£12) which is an amazing luxurious bath scrub containing natural mineral sea salt, essential oils and vitamin e. The formula is light, fluffy and creamy and the salt grains are so fine that they start to melt immediately when you scoop it out of the jar. The scrub is so delicate and gentle on the skin, leaving it smooth and supple with a gorgeous and quite strong scent of delicate jasmine. You can use this both on your body and face, but since I'm cautious of using strongly perfumed products on my face I stick to using it as a body scrub. It's a fantastic indulgent product, perfect for a pampering evening and I will get another one as soon as I've finished some of my other body scrubs.

We've come to the section of hair products for this month starting with the Avon Naturals Apricot and Shea Leave-in Treatment (£2.50). It's a lovely light cream, almost of the same consistency as a conditioner, that you apply to towel dried hair and it makes your hair very silky and so much easier to detangle. But the best thing about it is the incredible scent of sun-kissed juicy apricots and luxurious shea butter that stays on your hair and if you apply it in the evening, you'll still smell it in the morning when you wake up. This is one of the few Avon hair products that really works on my hair, and the smell of  a creamy fresh apricot smoothie is just irresistible.

Of course we have a dry shampoo as well - the TRESemme Instant Refresh Radiance Dry Shampoo Translucent Formula (£5.25). It's a slightly revamped version of the original TRESemme dry shampoo that doesn't leave that white powdery residue on your hair that some dry shampoos can do which is great, and it has that lovely recognizable fresh TRESemme scent that lingers on your hair. It's a decent dry shampoo however personally I don't find it quite as effective at oil control as some of the others I've used from Batiste or Dove, and I can't say that I've noticed that it adds any radiance as it promises either. Since it is a bit more expensive than other brands, but it doesn't have the same effect on my hair I won't be repurchasing this.

If you've followed my posts on Operation Rapunzel, you'll know that I have been using the Lee Stafford Hair Growth Treatment (£7.99) faithfully since October last year to help my hair to grow. The treatment is a protein enriched masque that you use after shampoo but before conditioner, and it helps to nourish the scalp and follicles for healthy hair. It's a gorgeous creamy formula with a delicious nutty scent that reminds me of the Macadamia range, and it makes the hair feel extremely soft and nourished. After more than 3 months of use, my hair had grown almost 6 cms, and although it might not be down only to this lovely treatment, it's certainly helped to keep my hair sleek and glossy. I can't recommend this wonderful masque enough, and in fact I would say - buy two at the same time to make sure you don't run out.

When I first got the L'Oréal False Lash Flutter Mascara (£10.99) I had some mixed feelings about it, that you may remember from a separate review I did in November (see here). Although the formula starts off quite thin, it does add a wonderful length, and as the formula thickens it also adds quite a lot of volume to the lashes. Another plus point is the fabulous fanned butterfly wing effect on the lashes that the very scary looking brush creates and the mascara also wears great throughout the day. What I found most difficult to get used to is the brush - it's big, sturdy, heavy in the hand and the shape makes it difficult to reach the inner lashes and to get a nice even coverage of the lower lashes, at least until you get used to is and you find a way to use it that works for you. Despite my initial struggles with the brush I absolutely love the dramatic lash effect this mascara creates, and truth be told I have already bought another one, and can't wait to start using it again.

This month I've finished another fragrance, Flora by Gucci - Glamorous Magnolia EdT (£48.50) one of the amazing scents from Gucci's Floral Garden range. I'm a massive fan of the original Flora scent, but the Floral Garden range is far from your garden variety of perfumes and Glamorous Magnolia is a fabulous, fresh, soft and sensual modern scent. It blends delicate white flowers with lots of character like magnolia and freesia with warm peony, invigorating citrus fruits and warm, earthy musk and wood. It's such a cool, crisp and glamorous scent and it's perfect for warm, sweltering summer days. Glamorous Magnolia - you will be sorely missed... at least until I get bottle of you, and this time I'm going large!

Last but not least is a candle that I bought just before Christmas, and I know what you're thinking - what, that's months ago? But the reason for not showing it sooner is that it burns up to 170 hrs, so it's lasted me aaaages. I had never tried this brand before but the Village Candle in Mulled Cider (£17.25) smelt so delicious of warm, sweet fruity and slightly spicy cider that I just had to have it. It came with two wicks and burnt really well from side to side, deep into the glass jar, with next to nothing left of it. The Village Candles look and smell so similar to the Yankee Candles that you can easily mistake them for each other, although the Village Candles might be slightly lower priced. With 170 hrs burn time, these candles are excellent value for money and I would definitely try this brand again. If you have tried both Yankee and Village Candles I'd love to hear if you think there's a difference between them and which you prefer?

A girl's second best friend - Dry Shampoo

If diamonds are a girl's best friend than the dry shampoo comes a very close second. I don't know of many girls who've never tried a dry shampoo, and it seem their popularity is growing by the day with every self respecting hair care brand releasing their version of the product and we've even seen the first dry conditioners hit the stands in Boots and Superdrug. I'm not at all surprised since there must be others out there, who like me are dependent on dry shampoos since I try to limit the washes to about twice a week, and dry shampoo is indispensable for those in between days.

The point of dry shampoos is very simple - to remove excess oil and shininess, to refresh your hair and an added bonus is that they always add a bit of texture. It was actually my mother who introduced me to dry shampoo a besquillion years ago, when I was still in school and even though the formula then wasn't as good as they are these days I was hooked straight away. Dry shampoos have been around for more than 50 years and come in either a spray or powder format, but I definitely prefer sprays since they are so easy to use and you can carry a mini sized one with you in your handbag for on the go touch ups. Some of the negative things you hear about the most when it comes to dry shampoos is that it creates build up on the hair and it makes it white and dusty. I can understand both those points, but I find that if you hold the spray about 15 - 20 cms away from the roots, you'll get a more even application and it won't feel gritty and built up. It's also important to leave the product to sit on your hair for a few mins before your brush it out or heat style it so that it gets a proper chance to absorb oils and mattify without creating a powdery look. I usually apply the dry shampoo, massage it into the roots and then go put my makeup on, leaving it on for about 15 mins before I brush it out, and I never get that powder feel. Mind you I do have blonde hair, but if you still feel you get a white powder there are dry shampoos with a hint of color that work really well for red and darker hair.

There are so many dry shampoos to choose from at the moment and some of them in my humble opinion come at a completely inflated price (above £25) for what is basically an oil absorbing powder spray. I don't shy away from splurging but I would never pay that considering I use them up faster than you can say Dry Scham..... yep - gone! I still wanted to do a comparison between the more reasonably priced dry shampoos to see if there's really any difference between them so here's a selection from the High Street in ascending order of price.

First up is the product that for me is the Original and in a way the mother of all dry shampoos - Batiste, and I have chosen the scent Monochrome (1.99). What I love most about Batiste is how they keep reinventing themselves by introducing new scents to keep it fresh and interesting and there are about 15 differently scented Batiste products on the market at the moment - what an amazing range. The bottle is fun in its monochrome look and it makes me think of the swinging 60s. Batiste gives great body and texture to the hair at the same time as it refreshes it and Monochrome is a lovely scent - the mix of slight pepper and lovely soft and creamy orange soda is very feminine and modern.

Next up is a fairly new addition to the dry shampoo shelves and it's the Dove Style+Care (£3.06), which works exactly the same way as Batiste and it also gives wonderful body and texture to the hair. The only different I noticed was that it feels less powdery in it's texture than the other dry shampoos I've tried and there's less fall out as well when you apply it. The bottle looks slightly bigger than Batiste but it's actually exactly the same volume. At the moment it only comes in one scent - it's a beautiful light, airy and fruity scent, I only wish that it smelled a little stronger on the hair because it really is so lovely.

The first alternative to Batiste that I remember seeing on the High Street a year or so ago, was the TRESemme dry shampoo and now they have released an improved formula with their Radiance Dry Shampoo (£5.25). The new version is translucent, which means that it doesn't leave that white powdery residue that can be so annoying and it's also been enriched to bring out radiance rather than dull down the shine which can also happen if you've applied too much dry shampoo. It's works very well as a dry shampoo, however on my hair I don't really notice any improved radiance which is a little disappointing since it's one of its main selling points. The scent is the traditional TRESemme scent that you'll find in the heat protectant spray and all the other products, which I usually quite like but in the dry shampoo I find it a little too perfumed and strong for my liking. 

Finally we have the Toni & Guy Cleanse Dry Shampoo (£7.19), which is the most expensive out of the products, but it also does contain a bit more - 250ml. This is a clear spray, and just like the TRESemme dry shampoo it won't leave any white powder on your hair. It makes your hair feel genuinely clean and fresh and I could probably go a whole week without washing my hair if I used this. It has a wonderful crisp and clean scent of green apples that stays on your hair and I tend to use a little bit more than I actually need, just to get more of the scent.

To be perfectly honest there's not a lot of difference between the products in terms of performance - they are all easy to use and make your hair feel refreshed, textured and clean. The biggest difference is that the dry shampoos from TRESemme and Toni & Guy are clear sprays, so if you've been annoyed about white powder on your roots or you have darker hair, then these products are definitely for you and you'll also get less of a fall out when you brush it out. The other big difference between them all is scent, but for me both the scent and the white powder is a question of personal taste and it's wonderful that there are so many to choose from.

They are all great dry shampoos and the only one that I probably won't repurchase again is the TRESemme, simply because it didn't give the radiance that it promised and I also didn't take to the scent. If I had to pick one as a favourite, it would be the Dove Refresh + Care, mainly because of the amazing fruity scent, although I must emphasize that Batiste and Toni & Guy are in very close competition and I would highly recommend any of them for lovely smelling, fresh 2,3,4,5 or 6 day hair.

July Empties

Yes - I know that there are a lot of posts on Empties out there, but I really like to read them and the more the merrier, right?!

I have to confess that I tend to use up a product even though I may not love it, or for that matter even like it very much and my first contribution to this classic beauty blog category contains a few examples of exactly this.

For the first time in history for me I have finished a shampoo before the conditioner. Usually it's the other way around, but I think it's because I've started to use hair masques and other treatments more often than before. I have long hair that tends to get dry with damaged ends, so I always look for a moisturising shampoo - enter TRESemmé Vitamin E Moisture Rich Shampoo. I got the shampoo and conditioner a while back and I finally finished the shampoo. It claims to "boost moisture, resiliency and strength for soft, shiny, healthy-looking hair.". I didn't find much of that though - it cleaned my hair, smelled fresh but that was about it. It's an OK shampoo but it didn't rock my world and I'm not in a hurry to get the same one. Saying this, I have other TRESemmé products that I love in the styling range and I also find the Split Remedy Leave-In treatment great.

I've also tried the VO5 Hot Oil Give Me Moisture treatment since I really liked the idea of applying it to my hair and leaving it for 1 min before shampooing. Sounded easy enough and should also help strengthening the hair. It definitely made my hair soft and shiny, but unfortunately I haven't noticed any significant improvement in strength, so despite the appealing price I don't think I'll go back to this one.  

If I've started with products that underwhelmed me I'll finish strong with some staple items starting with the Origins Drink Up Intensive Overnight Mask. This is without a doubt the best mask for dehydrated skin I have ever used, and even if your skin isn't dehydrated, it's a nice treatment every week to maintain plumpness. It almost has a cinderella effect and you can really see the difference after just a few uses. I've used the mask after Clarins One-Step Gentle Exfoliating Cleanser with Orange Extract, and they're a great combination. I use the exfoliating cleanser a few times a week to get rid of any dry skin, but I know it's supposed to be gentle enough to use daily. It doesn't feel as abrasive as many other products, but it still does a super job with the deep cleaning.

Going back to hair products - I finished my beloved Bumble & Bumble Mending Complex. After styling, or even during the day when my hair's felt a bit dry, I've smoothed a few drops through the ends and it just make my hair feel deeply moisturised, shiny and the smell is amazing! Admittedly the bottle is only 125ml and comes at a fairly steep price - £25.50, but it does last a very long time and I will definitely be repurchasing.

Last but not least is the Jo Malone Nectarine Blossom & Honey candle, that's been scenting the bedroom for a few months. This is my favourite Jo Malone fragrance and the first one I ever got a few years ago now, and it certainly didn't disappoint as a candle. It is a luxury item, but I do plan to get another one, when my English Pear & Freesia is no more.