Showing posts with label FCUK. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FCUK. Show all posts

Tuesday, 16 January 2018

Trimming My Stash December 2017 Edition Empties, Mini Reviews And A 2017 Round Up

So like so many things at the moment, this post is late, nearly a fortnight later than it should have been but as I said life got in the way and this virus just doesn't seem to want to shift. Never mind over the last couple of days I've started to get back into the social media thing again, I've filmed 5 You Tube videos, and I've been editing photos and doing lots of blog planning and research.

Some of the videos that I filmed were my What I Got For Christmas videos, I know they aren't to everyone's taste but a lot of people seem do seem to like them and do seem to share my nosey side. I've already upload the first video which is all about beauty (click here to watch it) and over the next couple of days I'll be uploading another two featuring fashion and accessories, and home and lifestyle.

Compared to previous years I didn't get a lot of beauty products this time round, and I'm fine with that. I didn't really ask for anything beauty related and unusually for me I didn't stock up on any of The Body Shop festive lines, and I didn't even get the 2017 Soap & Glory Star Gift. Putting it simply I'm finally realising that I really do have more than enough to be going on with, I have loads of shower gels, and body lotions, and skincare, make up and nail polishes, and quite frankly I don't really need any more.

Yes I did buy a few beauty bits in the sales but to be honest, I can't see myself splurging unnecessarily on beauty bits in the foreseeable future. I'm not saying I'm not going to buy anything beauty related but I'm certainly going to be a bit more selective in 2018 about what I do buy, and of course I'm going to concentrate on using up the products that I already own.

AVON Senses Romantic Kiss Magnolia And Jasmine Shower Gel - 250ml
Holler And Glow Purrfect Pedi Foot Peel Socks - 20ml x 1 Pair
Face Inc By Nails Inc Sparkle Like A Unicorn Illuminating Sheet Mask - 1 x Sheet Mask - 20ml
French Connection FCUK Signature Body Polish - 50ml
Philip Kingsley Elasticizer Geranium & Neroli - 150ml
Foltene Pharma Shampoo Thinning Hair For Men And Women - 200ml


Total - 6 Items

Which brings me on to the whole point of this post, December 2017's Trimming My Stash, it wasn't the best of months but I still managed to finish a respectable 6 items, including some skin, body and hair care items.

1. AVON Senses Romantic Kiss Magnolia And Jasmine Shower Gel - 250ml


First up a shower gel, and one from AVON's popular Senses range. I've used quite a few of these over the years, and they usually represent excellent value for money with prices often starting as low as 99p. Like a lot of AVON products though the range is constantly changing, and they are forever changing and discontinuing products. Unfortunately I can't find this one in the current senses line but it was a pleasant floral scent, with just a hint of heady jasmine. This was probably more of a summer scent but it certainly made a change from the fruity and foodie scents that you normally associate with the festive season.

2. Holler And Glow Purrfect Pedi Foot Peel Socks - 20ml x 1 Pair


You might have seen these socks in my recent Primark haul (Have a read here if you haven't seen it). It was Boxing Day and I was just starting to feel a little rough and drained and I felt like a pampering session was in order, so I stuck these socks on my feet and waited for the magic to happen! I'm slightly addicted to these foot peel things and I've used a quite a few different ones now, but these are the cutest I've used by far. In a fab teal blue animal print, you stick these socks on for an hour and so and then you rinse your feet and get rid of all of that peeling solution and then all you do is wait for a few weeks, and then all of the dead and dry skin starts to peel off your feet. Mine are currently still in the peeling stage but these socks definitely did what they promised and I'll definitely by picking some more up on my next visit to Primark. You can do the treatment every six weeks or so and I'm determined to keep on top on my hobbit like, dry feet in 2018.

3. Face Inc By Nails Inc Sparkle Like A Unicorn Illuminating Sheet Mask - 1 x Sheet Mask - 20ml


Another mask and this time one for the face. From the cutest foot mask, to one of the cutest face masks that I've ever used. This was something that I reviewed just before Christmas from the fabulous Nails Inc Sparkle Like A Unicorn Beauty Gift Set. You can read a full review of this mask and the set here x but this sheet mask was the perfect quick fix for when your skin was feeling a bit tired, a bit dull and a bit worse for wear. I think it is still available from various outlets on it own but if you can get the full Sparkle Like A Unicorn set then I would really recommend especially since it now seems to be on sale x

4. French Connection FCUK Signature Body Polish - 50ml


Ahhh, a blast from the past and a product from deep with my stash. A few years ago I couldn't get enough of the French Connection FCUK Signature scent, and thankfully before it disappeared completely I stocked up on as many kits as I could, and I was lucky enough to receive a couple of bits from a former blogger that I was extremely grateful for. I still have a few shower gels, body creams, and body sprays in my collection but I think that this was the last of the body scrubs, and as much I love the scent I won't miss this particular item too much. I love a nicely textured, scrubby scrub and this just wasn't it. It was a sort of liquidy cream, with the occasional nut based particle running through it. It was too runny and it wasn't abrasive enough for me.

5. Philip Kingsley Elasticizer Geranium & Neroli - 150ml


From a product that I didn't get on with to a product that I love beyond words. I'll hold my hands up, when I first used this product I didn't really get it but over the last 18 months or so it really has come into its own in LouLouLand. My hair to put it politely has been crap for the longest time, it has spells when it comes back to some realm of normality and then it just goes back to a weak, dropping out ball of frizz. No this stuff hasn't given me that fabulous waving in the wind on a Cornish cliff top, beautiful hair that I crave but it has given it some of it's umph back. When I use this product my hair becomes more manageable, it's calmer and it seems stronger and less fragile. My hair still isn't anywhere near what I want it to be but this product makes a noticeable difference to my hair every time I use it and I even managed to get it coloured at the salon recently and that's something I haven't dared to do from sometime. It's a work in progress, and whilst I'm going to keep trying new things, and concentrating on taking care of my hair from the inside, this product in all of it's various scents is now a staple in my bathroom.

6. Foltene Pharma Shampoo Thinning Hair For Men And Women - 200ml


Finally another hair product and this time one that is specifically designed for thinning hair. I'm not sure where I got this from, but the words hair loss, thinning hair and anti fall seem to draw me in a like a magnet at the moment. Designed to strengthen the hair and restore the natural balance of the scalp this shampoo had quite a distinct but not unpleasant aromatherapy type scent. Like most of these shampoos you wash your hair and then leave the products on your hair for a few minutes before rinsing. It was a nice shampoo but I didn't really notice a difference in the condition of my hair or my scalp and I definitely didn't notice a difference in the amount of hair that I was losing. I think that this product is designed to be used alongside the Foltene Hair And Scalp Treatment so maybe I would seen a bigger difference if I'd used the two products together - definitely something to try in the future I think but in the meantime I'm currently using the AVON Anti Fall range and I also have the Nanogen system to try.

Trimming My Stash - 2017 Totals 

January - 2 Items

February - 3 Items
March - 7 Items
April - 5 Items
May - 5 Items
June - 5 Items
July - 12 Items
August - 7 Items
September - 5 Items
October - 5 Items
November - 8 Items
December - 6 Items
Total - 70 Items

So in the final month of 2017 I managed to finish 6 beauty products, and when you add that to the rest of my monthly totals I managed to finish 70 beauty products in 2017. It sounds a lot on paper but in reality it was actually my worst year since I began this whole Trimming My Stash thing in 2013. Never the less I'm still pretty pleased with that total, imagine if you had to go out and buy 70 skin, hair, body and make up products, you'd need a quite a few shopping bags to carry it all home, so I need to put it into perspective and by positive about my achievement.

I still have a long way to go though and I still have drawers and storage boxes groaning under the weight of my beauty stash so in 2018 I'm going to keep on trying to use up the products that I already have and I'm going to try and be a little bit more selective about what I do buy, and with any luck I'm be able to equal, if not beat 2017's total!

Are you doing something similar in 2018? Do you have any tips on how to use things up or how to stay focused and only buy what you need? Let me know your thoughts in the comments and don't forget to let me know if you have any questions x

Monday, 3 October 2016

Trimming My Stash And A Life Update - September 2016 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

Well September was a month that I would love to forget but in reality, the events of last month will probably be imprinted on my brain for the rest of my life. It's safe to say that September was pretty horrid in LouLouLand, as well as losing my Godfather, as an individual and as a family we went through mini crisis after mini crisis, talk about kicking someone when they're down! Like most things though you just have to battle on, and deal with what ever comes you way. Although I feel as though I'm been pulled in a lot of directions at the moment I know that I need to take some time out for me and do the things that I want to do, and what do I want to do ? well at the moment I want to organise my life,  I want blog, I want to take photographs and I want to make You Tube videos!

I'm back, I'm eventually getting to grips with my Mac book and I'm determined to get myself back on track, and get all of those overdue posts written and those videos uploaded so only a day or two late I'm starting with my September empties post.

Primark PS Love Your Skin Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes

FCUK Signature Body Polish - 50ml
Imperial Leather Mouthwatering Fruit Salad Shower Cream - 250ml
Total - 3 Items 

I bet you're wondering why I bothered? It's safe to say that September's Trimming My Stash was like the rest of the month, a bit of a fail! What can I say? I opened a lot of new products, and I didn't manage to finish the majority of the ones that were nearly done. I guess that 3 products is better than none though so lets take a closer look at the items that I did manage to finish.

1. Primark PS Love Your Skin Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes


Yawn, yawn, yawn - you're probably sick to death of seeing these, in pretty much every months empties posts but I really do use that many of them. I've got to admit that I probably used these on my face more times than I probably should have done over the last month but hey that's how life is at times. Normally I just use them for swatch clean up, and general freshening up but in an emergency the tea tree oil in these wipes really works well on my oily skin. I always have a pack or two of these in my skincare drawer or in handbag, and at just £1 for two packets of 25 they're a beauty and lifestyle essential.

2. FCUK Signature Body Polish - 50ml


We're coming up to gifting season, and every year I look on the Boots website or in the gift guide and hope upon hope that they've brought this fragrance back but I really do think that it's gone for good. Thankfully I still have a nice little stash of products in the FCUK Signature fragrance to get my fix but after finishing this I now have one less product to use. This was probably my least favourite product in the range, the scrub had the scent that I love, but it wasn't scrubby enough for me. It was a nut shell based scrub with the grains suspended in a slightly watery, cream. The particle for me were few and far between and the cream was just a bit too runny to do a proper job.

3. Imperial Leather Mouthwatering Fruit Salad Shower Cream - 250ml


What can I say about this that hasn't already been said? An inexpensive super fruity fragranced shower cream, that makes you think of sweeties. It doesn't the have quite the same tang as Fruit Salad  chewed do but nevertheless it was still pretty yummy. I think it's now been renamed Fruit Chew for some reason, maybe copyright but according to Imperial Leather, it is still the same product. I would definitely buy this again but next on my list to try is the Imperial Leather Sherbet Lemon Shower Cream - yum!

Well that was quick wasn't it! I'm definitely going to try and finish a few more bits in October and try and improve on September's woeful total. In case you haven't already realised Project 10 Pan is on hold again. I'm not planning on buying anymore make up what with the run up to Christmas and the need to spend money on other people but we'll see. Thanks for reading and I'll see you tomorrow with a long-awaited skin care review xx 

Thursday, 4 September 2014

Trimming My Stash - August 2014 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

I'm a little bit all over the place this week, this post was supposed to be up yesterday but thanks to a mouth ulcer and a throbbing wisdom tooth, I spent most of yesterday clutching a wheat bag to my face whilst resembling a member of Alvin And The Chipmunks! Never mind the show must go on as they say, so it's time for my August empties post.

Ginvera Green Tea Marvel Gel - 60g
Palmolive Thermal Spa Ocean Vitality Shower Gel - 250ml
Superdrug Nourishing Nail Polish Remover - 250ml
FCUK Signature Body Polish - 200ml
Naturalmente Rosemary and Lavender Shampoo - 50ml
Covergirl Lash Blast Fusion Mascara - Very Black - 13.1ml
Gorgeous By Gok Body Wash With Rose Oil - 200ml
Total - 7 Items

After a pretty impressive performance in July the mediocrity of 2014 returned and I only managed to finish 7 beauty products. Yet again I managed to finish quite a few bath and body products but I also managed to finish one make up item and one much loved skin care item.

1. Ginvera Green Tea Marvel Gel - 60g 


This is one of those products that I was convinced that I'd reviewed for you but I haven't. I promise I will do a full review of this at some point. I absolutely love it it's an exfoliating but it's not like any other exfoliator  that you've probably ever used. It makes your skin feel smooth and silk and look as fresh as a daisy in less than 2 minutes. It isn't cheap but I will definitely repurchase and this time I will do a proper review for you.

2. Palmolive Thermal Spa Ocean Vitality Shower Gel - 250ml



A lovely summer, shower gel from Palmolive. This was sent to me to review and you can read all about it here

3. Superdrug Nourishing Nail Polish Remover - 250ml


This is one of my favourite ever nail polish removers ever, it cheap and it does the job. You can read a full review of it here.

4. FCUK Signature Body Polish - 200ml


Another product from my beloved FCUK Signature range, and to be honest probably my least favourite. It has the same smell that I love but I'm not a fan of the texture. It's one of those nut / apricot shell scrubs. The particles are very fine and are suspended in a very runny, slightly sticky cream. I prefer my scrubs to be salt or sugar based, and despite the nature of the grains this one just wasn't scrubby enough for me.

5. Naturalmente Rosemary and Lavender Shampoo - 50ml


Another product that I was sent for review. I loved this product and I especially loved the eucalyptus and rosemary scent. I later found out that you could use it as a shower gel as well so I will definitely consider purchasing. You can read my review here

6. Covergirl Lash Blast Fusion Mascara - Very Black - 13.1ml


This is one of my favourite mascaras of all time and it's reputation is well deserved. It makes the lashes look thicker and longer in just one sweep. Alas we can't get Covergirl in the UK but ebay usually comes up trumps and Max Factor False Lash Effect is very, very similar.

7.Gorgeous By Gok Body Wash With Rose Oil - 200ml


Like the FCUK Body Polish, this is another item from a Boots Christmas set. This came with quite a number of other products in a gorgeous purple patent, vanity case . I was a nice body wash which had quite a heady scent. It didn't smell as rose based as I expected it to but it was nice and quite moisturising.

So they were my 7 empties from August  If you have any questions on anything in this post please let me know x and if you've written a recent empties post on your blog please leave me a link and I'll check it out x Thanks for reading x 


Sunday, 9 March 2014

Trimming My Stash - February 2014 Edition - Empties, Mini Reviews And A Sort Of Giveaway - Closed

Another overdue post for you, this time it's all about about empties. February's total was a little bit disappointing if I'm honest, I only managed to finish 6 items :(

Soap & Glory Flake Away - 50ml
Yonka Pamplemousse Normal To Oily Skin Protective And Vitalizing Cream With Botanical Essential Oils - 50ml
Avon Solutions Body Cellu-Sculpt Massaging Anti Cellulite Treatment - 200ml
Baylis & Harding Sweet Mandarin And Grapefruit Balancing Body Wash - 750ml
FCUK Signature Bodywash - 300ml
Primark Beauty Oil Balancing Cleansing Wipes With Tea Tree x 25 Wipes
Total - 6 Items 

Okay there were a few bits that I've been using forever and I thought would never end but I'm still a little bit mehhh that I couldn't manage to finish at least a couple of more products. Never mind some of the things that I thought I would finish in February are very nearly done so March should be a better month.

1. Soap & Glory Flake Away - 50ml


A mini to start off with -This scrub came in my Boots Beauty Advent Calendar. I love all of the Soap & Glory body scrubs and this one was no exception. This is the original, with the famous Soap & Glory fragrance. It's nice and scrubby but it feels moisturising at the same time. I will definitely consider repurchasing all the scrubs I've tried from this range.

2. Yonka Pamplemousse Normal To Oily Skin Protective And Vitalizing Cream With Botanical Essential Oils - 50ml 


This was an item that came in a beauty box, and at first I loved it, I must have done I bought another one!, but whether it's down to a change in my skin (ageing!) or the change in the weather but by the end of the tube I hated it. This facial moisturiser from Yonka Paris is for normal to oily skin and contains essential oils such as Grapefruit, Lime, and Lemon. It's designed to revitalise and brighten the skin and tighten the pores. It's not a bad moisturiser by any means but I think my skin at the moment just isn't oily enough for it and is just a tad too sensitive.


The sad thing is I actually have a new and sealed tube of this moisturiser in my skincare drawer, it's unboxed and in the old style packaging (same as my empty) but the foil seal is still intact. A new tube would retail at a scary £36 but one of you can have this one for free.


If you have oily skin and want to try this out and your in the UK leave a comment on this post telling me that you want to try it and leave a contact email and I'll pick a name out at random next Sunday. It seems a shame to waste it when somebody else might see more benefit from it than I would. You can find out more about it here x

3. Avon Solutions Body Cellu-Sculpt Massaging Anti Cellulite Treatment - 200ml


Anti-cellulite products - I've used lots of them over the years and to be honest 90% of them have done naff all and this was another one. This was just a basic firming cream which came in a tube with a dimpled massaging head on the end. It left the skin feeling a bit softer but it didn't really do much with regards to the dimply bits. It's no longer in the Avon catalogue which I guess tell you everything you need to know.

4. Baylis & Harding Sweet Mandarin And Grapefruit Balancing Body Wash - 750ml


This is another one of those products that seemed to go on for ever - no matter how much I used the bottle never seemed to go down. You can get Baylis & Harding everywhere especially at this time of year (Mothers Day) and for the price I really like the range and their products make great gifts. I thought that this would smell like the handwash that I reviewed here but the smell wasn't quite as strong. It was nice but it just wasn't quite as zesty as I'd hoped.

5. FCUK Signature Bodywash - 300ml



One of my biggest beauty disappointments of 2013 came in the Boots Christmas Gift Guide when to my horror I couldn't find the usual FCUK French Connection Signature gift set - they'd changed the fragrance :( I first got a gift set several Christmas' ago in a gorgeous patent weekend bag and I fell in love with the smell. It's hard to describe but I think it's classed as an oriental floral. I stocked up in the 2012 / 2013 sales so I still have quite a few bits to use up but every time I use up something from the range now I'm going to be disappointed that I can't get any more :(

6. Primark Beauty Oil Balancing Cleansing Wipes With Tea Tree x 25 Wipes



I've just had a look through my blog because I thought I'd done a full review of these but it doesn't look like I have. The probably isn't a need to do one now though because I've talked about these that often both on here and on my You Tube channel. Basically you get two packs of 25 wipes for just £1. Designed for normal to oily skin then contain the real I am when it comes to Tea Tree, Melaleuca Alternifolia, as well as Witch Hazel, and Aloe Vera. I'm not huge on using wipes on my face but these babies do the job and remove make up without any problem, when I'm having an sick or a lazy day. I predominantly use them for freshening up, and for clearing up swatches but they are a really good bargain basement buy. They probably are the biggest or thickest wipes but for the price I'm not going to argue.

So they were my February empties, as I say not the most impressive tally of empties I've ever achieved but it was better than nothing and hopefully March will be better x Don't forget to comment if you'd like my unopened Yonka moisturiser and I'll let you know who gets it next Sunday xx Thanks for reading xx