Nails Of The Day - Beauty Pie Wondercolour Nail Polish - Violetta*

It's fair to say that posts have been a little thin on the ground recently, and I guess it's also fair to say that nail posts have been almost non existent! Despite using my body weight in hand creams, cuticle oils, and nail strengtheners, my nails have by and large, remained stubby, short and dry. However for whatever reason over the last week or so they seemed to have a mini growth spurt, so I had a little sort through some of my most recent nail polish buys, and got painting! Alas within a few days they'd all snapped off again so this post is dedicated to their memory ;)

I've been a Beauty Pie member for nearly a year and a half now and so far so good, I haven't gone daft and changed my entire beauty routine overnight but I've just been picking up the odd thing to try and by and large I've been pretty impressed with the things that I've bought, with the Soul Providers Re-Energizing Dry Oil Sugar Scrub being my standout buy so far. 

I've bought a few make up bits now, some of which I'm going to try and feature in a future post or two, but this was my first time trying one of their nail polishes. I have to say that if you're looking for an exciting nail polish brand, with different colours, finishes and textures, then the polishes from Beauty Pie probably aren't for you. Their shades and finishes are all pretty safe, and pretty wearable, but what you are getting from Beauty Pie are high end, salon quality polishes. All of their nail products are both vegan and cruelty free, and they are 7 free, so they are free from 7 common polish nasties including toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin, ethyl tosylamide, xylene, camphor, and triphenyl phosphate. Containing nourishing coconut oil, they promise a quick drying, long lasting, chip resistant, breathable formula.

Annoyingly Beauty Pie seem to like to discontinue things especially make up items and shades, and even though this polish is quite a recent addition to my collection, this particular shade - Violetta - seems to have already been discontinued :( If you're a regular reader you should know buy now that I'm rather partial to purple and lilac nail polishes, and this one is a gorgeous pale, milky lilac shade, that's perfect with spring pastels, and perfect for making your summer tan jump out.

The polishes come boxed and in a no nonsense plain glass bottle with a black cap. With a short and stubby handle the brush itself is quite short and wide. 

The polish had quite a thick consistency and whilst I normally love a wide brush, and cream finishes are usually okay to paint, I did struggle a bit with this one. The brush was just a little too wide for some of my nails, and if you look closely some of the edges aren't exactly straight! 

The formula itself was pretty self levelling but after one coat a few nails were a bit streaky and you could see the odd brush stroke. it wasn't bad but as per usual I went for two coats, which was enough for a lovely smooth finish. The end product was really glossy even without a top coat and the dry time was pretty decent. Look carefully and you'll probably see the odd mistake and less than perfect patch but whether that's down to the polish or the fact that I'm a bit out of practise when it comes to apply nail polish, you decide ;)

As per usual for the purpose of testing a polish, I skipped a top coat, and despite their chip resistant claims, within 24 hours I did experience a tiny bit of tip wear on my right hand. I just painted it over though, and the rest of my nails lasted a good 4 days before I needed to remove it, which is pretty good going for me x

Although I had a few issues with both the application and Beauty Pie's chip resistant claims I was actually pretty pleased with how this polish performed I liked the colour, the wear time was decent, and it didn't leave me nail looking white, and flaky when it started to chip off. As I say this shade appears to have been discontinued by Beauty Pie but you never know it might come back. I've actually ordered another polish from them to try so fingers crossed I can get my nails to grow a bit before it arrives. The core range of Beauty Pie Wondercolour Nail Polishes have an RRP of £15 but members cab buy them for around £7 each. If you fancy trying Beauty Pie for yourself please check out my link here to find out how it works and to sign up for yourself x Thanks for reading and I'll see you soon with another post x 

*This Post Contains Affiliate And Non Affiliate Links

Nails Of The Day - Morgan Taylor Platinum - Disco Days

Okay, slight change of plan! The Foodie Friday post that I promised you will now go live next Friday, and in the meantime I will have another empties post that will go up on Monday, and today I've got a nails of the day post for you and it's another holo!

Although I think I've showed you a few Morgan Taylor polishes in previous haul posts and advent calendar unboxing this is the first time I've tried one properly on the blog. If you haven't heard of them before, Morgan Taylor is a US based professional nail polish brand, with other 30 years of experience in the nail business. As well as been known for their innovative colours, and textures, they are also cruelty free, and formaldehyde, toluene, and DBP free.

From their 2018 Platinum collection, this polish, Disco Days, like all of Morgan Taylor's other lacquers comes in a custom designed bottle, which is specially designed with deeper and clearer glass so you see the colour bottle and you can see exactly what you are buying.

Inspired by radiant gems and minerals from the earth, all of the polishes in the platinum range were infused with rare and precious elements which is exactly what this polish reminds me of.

Officially described as 'green holographic' for me it's more of a blue / green, almost turquoise shade which is crammed full of fabulous multi coloured holographic sparkle, which changes in the light and when you move your hands. It's almost impossible to capture just how beautiful this polish actually is but the above photographs are taken in natural light, and all of the photographs below are taken with the camera flash, so you can hopefully just some of the shifts in colour and sparkle.

Like all Morgan Taylor polishes Disco Days, has a lightweight, easy to control, and easy to hold cap but  since this colour was from a special and more luxurious range, it has a gorgeous shiny, chrome, silver lid. The brush inside is quite short, which again makes it easy to control, it's quite a wide brush and it has a curved top which fits the cuticle perfectly.

It was really easy to paint with and to control, and it only took one or two stripes to cover my nails. The first coat was a little bit streaky on some nails, so I went for my usual two coats. The finish as you can see is super smooth and shiny even without a top coat.

When it comes to wear time, holographic polishes can work in one of two ways, like the original GOSH Holographic they can only last for around 24 hours without chipping, or they can go on for ever, and thankfully this particular lacquer fell in the second category. Even with no top coat I got a full week out of this polish before I started to see the odd chip and a bit of tip wear, and I've currently got it on my toes and despite being nearly two weeks in, it still looks decent!

Is there such a thing as the perfect nail polish? I'm not sure if there is but for me this one is pretty damn close! It was a dream to paint, the brush and formulations was perfect, the wear time was fantastic, and the colour and finish was to die for. I'm so, so happy with this colour that I've already ordered another polish or two from the Platinum collection, and I'm going to be digging out a few of my previously ignored Morgan Taylor polishes to try. Although it's a few years old now Morgan Taylor Platinum - Disco Days is still available online - although the RRP is £11.50 for a 15ml bottle, you can get it for around £8.63 from eBay, Amazon, and from Nail Polish Direct. If you love holographic polishes like I do then you need this one in your life! I've currently got two awful nails on my main photograph hand, but once they grow up a little bit more, I've got a whole load more nails of the day posts planned including some more holos from Maggie Ann, OPI, Nails Inc, and A-England, as well as a whole load of other creams, shimmers and glitters x So if you like nail polishes and nail posts make sure your subscribed x 

Nails Of The Day - China Glaze - Ma-Holo At Me

I know that this is probably going to be be the kiss of death for them, but my nails are currently the longest and nicest that they've been in years - despite all the hand washing and sanitising, my current nail care regime seems to be doing the trick, and at last I have nails that I think are worth showing off, and what better colour to show them off with, than a lovely sparkly holograph.

From their 2019 summer collection, Shades Of Paradise, China Glaze Ma-Holo At Me is a gorgeous pale, denim blue holographic sparkle. That shimmers, sparkles and changes colour as you move your hands. I've taken all of the pictures in this post with the flash so you can see it's true beauty but I think this video just shows how sparkly and beautiful it actually is.

The polish itself came with a long thin brush that was surprisingly easy to paint with. The polish itself was quite runny so you did have to watch out for drips but the brush was quite easy to control so it was pretty easy to be precise with your application.

The first coat was quite sheer, and on most nails 2 coats would probably have been enough, but since I wanted to show off the true wow factor of this polish I went for 3 coats - Because the polish was quite liquidy and the brush was so easy control the coats that I applied were quite thin so the polish actually dried quite quickly.

The finish as you can see was perfect, smooth, shiny, and very glossy. Normally one of the negative aspects of holographic polishes is the wear time but I actually got around 5 days out of this polish, with no top coat and only minimal tip wear, in fact with a couple of touch ups I probably could have gotten another couple of days out of it, but you know more polishes to try and all that..

Even now looking back at these pictures, I don't see how a flat picture of even a short video clip could ever do this polish justice. It really is beautiful, and it's amazing how the multi coloured sparkles just bounce out in the light. Alas like so many polishes in my collection this one is pretty hard to find now. China Glaze just doesn't seem to be that widely available in the UK anymore, so eBay will probably be your best bet. If you're in the US though you're in luck as this particular shade appears to be still available direct from China Glaze and online from Walmart. Don't worry though if you can't get your hands on this particular polish - I am a huge fan of holographic nail polishes and I have a couple more similar shades to share with you over the next few months, that might be a little bit easier to get your hands on, so make sure you stick around to see them x Let me know if you're a fan of holographic polishes in the comments and I will see you soon with my September beauty empties x

Nails Of The Day - Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure - 409 Good To Grape

Think of high street nail brands, and more than likely one of the first brands that will probably come to mind will be Sally Hansen. A chemist and even supermarket staple Sally Hansen was one of the first nail brands that I ever used, over the years I've tried quite a few of their treatments, but I haven't tried that many of their polishes. They do a few different polish ranges and the polish that I am going to share with you today comes from their Complete Salon Manicure range.

Shade 409 Good To Grape, is a gorgeous, slightly dusky purple, it's darker than I expected to be but it's still a beautiful almost deep lilac shade. This is the first polish that I've actually tried from the Complete Salon Manicure range and I have to say it was a winner.

First up the bottle, a nice shape, easy to hold in the hands and it looks quite striking. The black stripe that you can see at the base of the cap is actually rubberised so the handle is really easy to grip. Compared to the length of the handle the brush inside is really easy to control and to paint with, it's quite short and stubby, but it's quite wide so you only to paint one of two stripes on each nail.

The coverage after the first quite was decent, but in order to achieve the rich and glossy finish that you can here I went for a second coat. The polish was really quite drying though so adding another coat was no real hardship.

As I've told you on many occasions I'm pretty rough on my nail polish, and especially when I wear it without a top coat, I can barely manage two full days of wear, this polish though really surprised me. Even though it was quite a deep shade, it went on and on and on, with only a tiny bit of tip wear. In fact it was still going strong 8 days later when I removed it.

I love, love, love everything about this polish. I love purple nail polishes anyway but this one applies really easily, dries quickly and it also wear incredibly well. I only own one other Sally Hansen polish from this line, which I really need to try but based purely on this particular polish I'm definitely going to be buying a few more. I think I bought this polish from a discount retailer so I think this particular shade has now been discontinued, you still might be able to find either in discount type stores, or market stalls or on the secondary market, but even if you can't I'm sure that there will be a dupe out there somewhere x

Trimming My Stash - July 2020 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews*

 

Right, as promised, after another slight delay it's July empties time!

Beautaniq Beauty Guardian Angel Revitalising Eye Gels - 1 x Pair - 3g
Neutrogena Pure Glow Daily Cleansing Cushions - 22 x Dual Textured Cushions
Primark PS... Love your Nails Pump Nail Polish Remover Acetone Free - 150ml
Cuccio Naturale Pomegranate & Fig Cuticle Revitalising Oil - 3.7ml
John Frieda Radiant Red Red Boosting Shampoo - 250ml
Superdrug Naturally Radiant Glycolic Toner - 100ml
AVON Senses Romantic Garden Of Eden Shower Gel - 500ml
Neal’s Yard Remedies Bee Lovely To Your Hands Hand Cream - 50ml

Total - 8 Items

Alas I didn't manage to equal or surpass June's total of 9 items, but I was pretty damn close and I managed to finish 8 beauty products in July. Again no make up (I haven't really been wearing that much lately), but again I managed to finish a nice mix of body, skin and hair care items, and again quite a few hand and nail related products.

1. Beautaniq Beauty Guardian Angel Revitalising Eye Gels - 1 x Pair - 3g

First up a product that you may have already seen in my recent review of the June 2020 edition of Glossybox UK. You can read a full review of these under eye gels in that post, but to sum up, I liked them - the glittery angel wings looked super cute, they left my under eye area feeling really cool and refreshed, and they contained no animal ingredients, and they are suitable for vegans.

The one drawback is that they are a tiny bit pricy, with a single pack of gels retailing at £4.59, direct from Beautaniq, but they are a nice treat especially when the weather is as warm as it's been over the last the week or so.

2. Neutrogena Pure Glow Daily Cleansing Cushions - 22 x Dual Textured Cushions

The first thing I want to say about this next item is please don't judge me on this one, this is probably the most embarrassing item that I think I'll ever show you in one of these posts but please hear me out!

These babies are old! From what I gather that they were discontinued in the UK at least 8 years ago now! You know how it is though when you love a product and it's discontinued, it sucks! So when these pads disappeared from shelves I stocked up and bought about a dozen boxes from eBay, and from local discount store. You know me though I'm not always when it comes to products so I used the majority of them up, and then I moved on to other things, and pretty much forgot about the last two boxes. I recently rediscovered them though and as they were still sealed, and looked and smelled fine I decided to use them up.

They were basically a form of cleansing pad, think a large fibre round with two different textured sides. One side had a textured beaded / raised dot side - this is for gently exfoliating and cleansing the skin and the other side had a softer feel, and an almost striped appearance, this side is meant massage the skin, and to add moisture.

There is a little finger pocket in the pad so you just add some warm water, and start off my massaging the exfoliating side all over you face, followed by the massage side. The water and the massage action produces a gentle, creamy, slightly fruity smelling foam. Then you just rinse you face as normal and you skin is left looking clean, and fresh, and feeling super smooth.

I'm still to this day gutted that they discontinued these, which slightly outweighs the embarrassment that I feel for holding on to them so long. They weren't classed as a liquid so they were great for travel, as a quick and easy alternative to wipes. I still have around half a box left so the embarrassment will continue for a little bit longer, but I know I'm not alone in hoarding discontinued products for way longer than I should so please let me know if you have any ancient products in your stash that your still using and leave your product confessions in the comments x

3. Primark PS... Love your Nails Pump Nail Polish Remover Acetone Free - 150ml

My blog contents have varied quite a lot of the years, as I've gotten older and my life and tastes have changed, but some posts have remained pretty constant over the years including regular nails of the day posts. I love nail polish but nails of the day posts have been a little bit thin on the ground recently due to the god awful state of my nails. Thankfully though after a lot of cuticle oil, hand cream, and liberal applications of OPI Nail Envy, I actually have nails again, so I have lots of nail posts coming up including some nails of the days, and my foray into gel nails.

If you paint your nails regularly though, then you need to remove your polish properly, so I went into my nail stash and grabbed the first bottle of nail polish remover that I came across, and it was this half finished bottle of nail polish remover from Primark's PS... range.

I think what attracted me to this remover was the bottle and to be honest that's its major selling point. The liquid itself has a typical, chemically nail polish remover scent, with just a hint of fresh fragrance. It was decent, like all acetone free removers you needed to work at it a bit but it removed even the darkest shades without too much, strangely though it didn't seem to struggle a bit with just OPI Nail Envy, but I just used the soak the cotton pad and wrap method. I didn't find it drying or particular moisturising or greasy, but it did the job. For just £1 I likes but it still didn't surpass my holy grail, the Superdrug Nourishing Nail Polish Remover (you can read my thoughts on that here).

That said though I am going to decant my Superdrug remover in this bottle. The bottle is exactly like the pump action bottles that you often see in nail salons. You just press you cotton pad down, and the polish remover comes up and soaks your pad - no mess, no fuss, and much less chance of spillage.

I know you can buy these pump action bottles online and to be honest if my decanting idea doesn't work that exactly what I'll be buying. To sum up okay polish remover, excellent packaging.

4. Cuccio Naturale Pomegranate & Fig Cuticle Revitalising Oil - 3.7ml

Next up another nail product and this time it's a cuticle oil from professional nail brand Cuccio. 

As much as I love OPI Avoplex, the price has shot up, and as much as I love Primark's cheap as chips cuticle oils, I was running low during lockdown so I ordered a few new cuticle products to try including a couple of new oils from Cuccio.

The first one I tried was this dinky little bottle of pomegranate and fig oil. Containing natural antioxidant pomegranate extract, and naturally moisturising and Vitamin C fig extract, as well as sunflower oil, safflower oil, and cotton seed oil, the size of oil contains a brush applicator. The translucent pale pink oil has a slight fruity scent, and thin oil texture, it isn't sticky or too greasy or oily IYKWIM. It absorbs into the skin really quickly and it seems to have made an immediate and long term difference to my cuticles and nails.

I was so impressed with this, and the other Cuccio oil that I bought, that I've gone on to buy the 75ml salon size in the other scent. I bought this particular bottle from Nail Polish Direct for around £2.95, but they have loads of different scents and better value sizes. You can also find Cuccio's full range of cuticles oils on their own website and you can also find some products on Amazon.

5. John Frieda Radiant Red Red Boosting Shampoo - 250ml

Although the colours and end results have all been slightly different, on my last few visits to the hairdressers, I've recently been embracing the red. If you've had any form of red hair dye on your hair then you'll know how quickly it fades, and dulls down. One of the best ways of keeping that vibrance though is to use a colour boosting shampoo. I've got to say red colour boosting shampoos aren't that easy to find any more, but eventually I found the Radiant Red range from John Frieda in Boots.

Formulated again with pomegranate extract and vitamin E, the range is designed to preserve and enhance the red tones in the hair. With a translucent red, gel like appearance this shampoo has a gorgeous fruity, floral scent. A small amount produces a lovely creamy foam, and it left the hair feeling soft, clean and shiny. It's really good on it's own but for the full colour boosting treatment you really need to use it alongside the corresponding conditioner.

I'm probably going to talk about the conditioner in August's empties post but I definitely think that using the two products together regularly helped my colour stick around for a little bit longer. Like a lot of people I had over 7 months between hairdressing appointments and bar some root growth, and few greys coming few your could still see the red tones especially with the sun shining on it. I know just have the odd red streak in my hair, but I'm definitely going to keep using this range on a regular basis to keep it looks shiny and vibrant. 

The range isn't that easy to find, the only retailers that I can find are Amazon, larger Tesco stores, and on Boots; Each product retails between £6 and £6.99, but I've been buying in Boots where it's usually on 3 for 2. 

6. Superdrug Naturally Radiant Glycolic Toner - 100ml

The next product is a skincare product that I've mentioned before in a couple of empties posts - the Superdrug Naturally Radiant Glycolic Toner. You can read my thoughts on it in this post, but this is a product that I really like, it's a good alternative to pricier glycolic products if you don't fancy going down the dupe or copy route. It contains glycolic acid / AHA's from mulberry and kiwi fruit, as well as lemon extract and witch hazel. It's designed like most of these toners to re-texturise and brighten the skin; It feels a bit tingly on application but it really helps with improve the smoothness of my skin, it makes it look more even and it's great for clearing up, drying out and preventing blemishes. The one slight drawback is the aftershave, herbal type scent but I have another bottle to use and it's definitely something that I will consider repurchasing in the future. The price has gone up so it's now £6.99 for 100ml bottle but it's nearly always on some kind of promotion such as buy one get one free, or buy one get one half price.

7. AVON Senses Romantic Garden Of Eden Shower Gel - 500ml

One of my biggest gripes with AVON is the fact that they keep discontinuing things that I like. Thankfully though this product isn't one of them, it seems to be a regular stock item and for that I am grateful.

To put it simply this shower gel smells beautiful, its full name is Garden Of Eden Exotic Fruits And Basil Shower Gel. This translucent pink shower gel smells fabulous, it has a really fruity scent with a slight green aniseed hint thanks to the basil, it's a lovely a refreshing, and it foams nicely without leaving the skin feeling dry or tight, and it's really affordable. I've already bought another bottle but if you fancy trying it yourself this 500ml size retails at around £1.50 with the 250ml size retailing at around a £1, direct from AVON or from your local AVON representative.

8. Neal’s Yard Remedies Bee Lovely To Your Hands Hand Cream - 50ml

Finally a little bit of a cop out, I mentioned in my last empties post that 2 of my current favourite hand creams combined citrus and honey scents, well this is second one. I recently rediscovered another tube of this one which I think was also either a beauty box or a magazine freebie, and since I'm now nearly half way through it, I thought that at the risk of repeating myself I'd just hold off and write a full review of this orange and honey hand cream in my August empties post instead, so other than saying I like you'll have to wait till next month for a full review x 

So they were my July empties, so near, yet so far! I'm not holding out much hope that I'll reach 8 or 9 empties in August but we'll see, I'll keep at it and who knows? As per usual let me know if you have any questions on any of the items that I finished then please leave me a comment x I love reading your thoughts and feedback so don't be a stranger x 

*This Post Contains Added Automatic Affiliate, Added Affiliate And Non Affiliate Links

Trimming My Stash - January, February, And March 2020 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews*

Right, I said that this was going to be an epic post, and after spending the last week or so working on it, it's certainly that. Since I'm now so far behind on my empties posts, I've decided to do a 3 in 1 post to try and get myself up to date again. so this long and rambling post will cover all of my beauty empties from January, February, and March, and April's will hopefully follow in the next week or so. First up January, and a pretty mediocre start to 2020.

Derma V10 Deep Moisturising Hand Pack Argan Oil - 1 x Treatment
Bio Miracle Stardust Unicorn Bubble Mask - 1 x 20g Bubble Sheet Mask
Soap & Glory Thick & Fast Super Volume Mascara - Black - 10ml
The Body Shop Juicy Pear Exfoliating Sugar Body Scrub - 300g

Total - 4 Items

1. Derma V10 Deep Moisturising Hand Pack Argan Oil - 1 x Treatment

I think 2020 is going to be remembered for lots of reasons, most of which are fairly obvious but one of the reasons that I think I'll be remembering it for is it being the year that my hands and nails finally gave up hope!

My hands were already dry thanks to the central heating and the cold and windy winter weather, but thanks to  all of the extra hand washing and sanitising that going at the moment, my hands, and nails aren't looking their best.As you should know from the amount that I finish, I'm a regular user of both hand creams and cuticle oils, but over the last few months in a desperate bid to repair my hands and nails, I've been trying some more intensive treatments, including this hand mask that I picked up in Poundland, from UK based company, Derma V10.

Suitable for vegans, the pack contains two plastic gloves, with a paper / fibre like lining. Each glove contains a lot of milky, white liquid that contains Moroccan argan oil, shea butter and vitamin E.

All you do is pop the gloves onto clean, dry hands, and then just relax as best you can for around 20 minutes, whilst trying to ignore the cold, squelchy feeling that currently enveloping your hands.

After taking the gloves off, as you can see my hands were still very wet, and they were covered in a milky substance that smelled a bit like minty, plastic, and my fingertips were also really wrinkled as if I'd had had a nice long bath - hmm.

The instructions said to massage any excess liquid into your hands, but there was so much of it, it took a good 10-15 minutes for it all to soak in and even then my hands still felt really sticky.

Immediately After Removal

I took a few before and after pictures but to be honest I don't think that you can really see too much difference between the two pictures. In real life though my hands strangely did feel more hydrated, and the problem areas around my cuticles definitely didn't feel as hard or as dry, bit they did feel pretty tacky, and I did feel as though I needed to wash my hands, which to be honest outweighs any real benefit. I actually bought a few different hand masks to try out so I'll try and keep an open mind when I use them, but I can't help but think that that a pair of cotton gloves, and some hand cream, might be a better and more eco friendly option.

Before 

After 

I picked these up in Poundland, but Derma V10 as a brand is also available in various other bargain type, and chemist stores such as Savers, B&M and Bodycare for around a £1, and you can also find them on ebay.

2. Bio Miracle Stardust Unicorn Bubble Mask - 1 x 20g Bubble Sheet Mask

Next up a face mask, and one that I received in my last Pink Parcel box that I received way back in November! The least said about the shambolic end of Pink Parcel the better, I kept the faith with them for way longer than I should have, and I like so many others paid the price, literally! Anyways I didn't post an official unboxing but this was one of the items that I received and it combined two of my favourite skin care products, bubble masks and sheet masks.

Bio Miracle is a US brand that is popular in both the US and in Asia. Animal friendly, this mask is also paraben free, it contains green tea, anise, grape, papaya, and apple extracts and it's designed to promote cleaner, clearer skin, by eliminating impurities and increasing hydration.


Immediately on opening the sachet you're greeted with a mass of purple liquid, almost suspended in the liquid is a nice quality paper / fibre mask that is printed with a unicorn design that is barely visible due to the inky purple liquid. The scent is slight fruity but at the same time quite astringent.

Because it's so wet, it's quite difficult to open the mask up, but it's decent quality so I personally didn't experience any tearing. All you do is apply the mask to clean dry skin and then you wait for the magic to happen. The instructions say for best result to rub the mask to encourage the bubbles to form, but in my experience they didn't really need a lot of encouragement!

On Application 

After 1 - 2 Minutes 

After 20 Minutes

The mask felt slightly tingly on the skin, and it was almost quite ticklish with the bubbling sensation, and that only increased as more bubbles formed. it wasn't uncomfortable and like most bubble masks it makes you feel as though it's doing something.

Immediately After Removal 

After removing the mask there was a lot of purple liquid and bubbles left on the skin, so I rinsed the excess off with warm water. After rinsing my skin looked clean and clear, and it felt smooth with no redness or tightness.

After Rinsing 

I'm not going to lie this mask was messy as hell, with purple drips running down my face, and rogue bubbles escaping into my hair. I was actually pretty worried that it would stain and that I'd end up looking like Violet Beauregarde but I just looked like someone with slightly better skin!

Despite the mess and the almost horror movie esq visuals I really liked this mask and I would definitely consider repurchasing it. The only place that I can find this mask online in the UK is from a company called Beauty Bargains UK where it retails at £3.

3. Soap & Glory Thick & Fast Super Volume Mascara - Black - 10ml

The next item is a bit of a rarity for me when it comes to empties posts because it's a make up item. As much as I love make up because I have so much of it, I'm always switching it up and using different things so it's very rare that I ever finish anything. Obviously I should use up more mascaras but who isn't guilty of using one for longer than 3 months - I can't help it i feel guilty for throwing things out that aren't empty - what can I say?

Although 2019 was an exception, just about every Christmas I get some form of gift set from Soap & Glory filled with bath and body goodies, and sometimes skincare and make up. I've had a few of these mascaras now and I think it's a decent everyday mascara.

Featuring Soap & Glory's unique Superfill - false lash effect fillers, Shine Amplifiers, and no flake, 24 hour technology, Soap & Glory claim that this mascara has a no clump formulation, that add super volume, and length to lashes.

On me it adds a little bit of lift to my lashes, they look a little bit fuller, and a tiny touch longer, but they give a more natural look rather than a true false lash effect. It also wears well, with very little smudging or flaking. it's a good workhorse mascara that you could easily wear for any occasion. If you want to know what it looks like on, then it's the mascara that I'm wearing in my December Glossybox unboxing post, and in both parts of my 2019 Glossybox advent calendar unboxing, which you read here and here. This mascara retails at £10 and is available from both Boots and direct from Soap & Glory.

4. The Body Shop Juicy Pear Exfoliating Sugar Body Scrub - 300g

The final item from January sums up 2 of my favourite things, body scrubs, and festive scents from The Body Shop. From Christmas 2019's Juicy Pear range, this is a gorgeous sugar based body scrub that contains community trade, organic sugar from Paraguay, and pear extract from Italy.

I love anything apple or pear scented so this collection was right up my street. Unlike a lot of festive scents it wasn't spicy, there was no cinnamon or ginger just the subtle sweet, tart scent of ripe pears. The Body Shop sugar scrub is already one of my favourite scrub formulations, and when you combine it with such a yummy scent even more so.

This particular scent was obviously a limited edition for Christmas 2019, so it will probably be pretty difficult to find now, which is a shame because I think this scent actually has an all year round appeal. This size of scrub though has a retail price of around £16. Thankfully I managed to get my hands on a few Juicy Pear items in the after Christmas sales so I'll be able to enjoy this lovely fragrance for little bit longer.

Next up February's empties - To be honest I don't remember an awful lot about February or early March but what I do remember is that any attempt at beauty routine went straight out of the window because I barely made it out of bed for more than a few hours a day - damn you stupid virus - So understandably February's empties total, like Januarys, and as you will see March's, was less than impressive.

Baylis & Harding Skin Spa Rosemary, Eucalyptus & White Tea Luxury Cream Wash - 500ml
Beauty Pro Eye Therapy Under Eye Mask With Collagen And Green Tea - 1 x Pair - 3.5g
Primark PS...It's All Good Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes
Total - 3 Items

1. Baylis & Harding Skin Spa Rosemary, Eucalyptus & White Tea Luxury Cream Wash - 500ml

When you've got a cold, a chest infection, or if you're feeling a little bit bunged up, you will do anything to help yourself breathe a little bit easier, and whilst I really struggled a couple of thing that I relied on a lot were steam inhalations and hot showers. Thankfully we are lucky enough to have a wet room and a shower chair so I was still able to have nice warm, steamy showers.

I really found that the steam and the hot water helped no matter what shower product I used but this product in particular seemed to give me a bit of an extra boost.

From British based toiletry brand, Baylis & Harding, this vegan friendly and paraben free shower cream contains extracts of white tea, rosemary and eucalyptus. I've used a few eucalyptus based shower products over the years, and whilst you could definitely smell the slightly antiseptic notes of the eucalyptus and rosemary, the inclusion of the white tea seemed to tone it down slightly and give more of a green, woody scent.

As you can probably guess from the inclusion of the polar bear on the packaging this was also a limited edition Christmas item. I've had a little look online and the only places that I can now find this range online is on Amazon or ebay. 

2. Beauty Pro Eye Therapy Under Eye Mask With Collagen And Green Tea - 1 x Pair - 3.5g

Next up another subscription box item, and something from the August 2019 edition of Glossybox.

From mask specialist, Beauty Pro this is a pair of hydro gel under eye patched. Paraben, lanolin, mineral oil, and petroleum free, these patches are dermatologically tested, and aren't tested on animals. They contains collagen, green tea, aloe vera, and vitamins A and E. Designed to relaxing and cooling, they claim to relieve the effects of tired, swollen and puffy eyes, as well as minimising  dark circles, and improving the appearance of fine lines and dryness on the under eye area.

Each patch was stuck to a sheet of clear plastic film. One side of the patch had a paper / fabric fibre feel, and the other side was covered in a pale green semi solid gel, which smelled a little bit like Elizabeth Arden's Green Tea fragrance.

The shape of the patch fits the under eye perfectly. All you do is apply the patch gel side down, to clean dry skin. On application the patch felt quite cool but it wasn't quite as cool as I'd expected. The patch felt slightly tight on the skin, and once it was applied it didn't move. After 20 minutes it was fairly easy to peel the patch off, and unlike a lot of hydro gel based products there was no stickiness and virtually no moisture remaining.

Before

After

As you can probably see there is no real visual difference between the before and after pictures, but in real life my skin did feel a bit more refreshed and a little bit more hydrated.

I have to say that I actually prefer a pure hydro gel patches with no fabric side because I find them a little bit more cooling and hydrating but these one are way less messy to use. There is no excess liquid, or stickiness and you can even wear your glasses whilst you're doing the treatment.

These patches come in a pack of 3 pairs for around £4.95 from various retailers including Beauty Pro, Look Fantastic, Amazon, Feel Unique and Fragrance Direct.

3. Primark PS...It's All Good Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes

I can usually say that I've been using these wipes for swatch clean up, and for general hygiene reasons but I'm not going to lie - I probably used most of this packet on my face!

When you're not feeling well and you're all gross and sweaty, rubbing a cool, tea tree based wipe over your face makes you feel clean and fresh again, even it's just for a few minutes. Under normal circumstances using wipes on your face is a bit of a no no, so I hope that the skin care purists amongst you will forgive me.

I haven't been into Primark since before Christmas so I have no idea if they even still sell these but I have one packet left and I can assure that I have no plans to use them on my face, they will be used for swatches and swatches alone.

Finally it's time to look back at March's empties, and as I said like January and February before it, it was another mehhh month.

Primark PS... Nourishing Cuticle Revive Nourishing Cuticle Oil - 1.5ml
Sunday Rain Scrub Away Exfoliating Cubes Charcoal - 150g
Aldi Lacura Healthy Glow Exfoliating Toner 5% Glycolic Acid, Aloe Vera & Ginseng - 250ml
AVON Senses Festive Wishes Winter Apple Cheer Daily Hand Wash - 250ml

Total - 4 Items

1. Primark PS... Nourishing Cuticle Revive Nourishing Cuticle Oil - 1.5ml

Talking about Primark this next item was actually one of the last things that I bought there, way back in December. You can read a full review of it here. I haven't really got a great deal to add to my original review other than to add that I like, it's convenient and it works, it just doesn't last that long, and if you look really closely at the picture above, there is a tiny bit of product still left in the tube that I just can't get it out - hmm still it was only £1 so I can't really complain.
ETA - I eventually realised that it was was possible to twist and pull the brush end out to access the remaining oil - so no waste after all and so it was definitely worth £1.

2. Sunday Rain Scrub Away Exfoliating Cubes Charcoal - 150g

Next up another body exfoliator, and this time it's something from much hyped, vegan brand, Sunday Rain.

From their charcoal range, the tub contained 8 exfoliating cubes each containing shea butter to heal and moisturise, sugar to smooth, and to help retain moisture, as well as naturally derived wood charcoal, which is slightly gritty, to exfoliate, purify and refresh the skin.

The cubes themselves are like pumped up, dark grey sugar cubes. They are a bit softer than sugar cubes though and they have a nice, subtle fresh scent. I found the best way to use them was to slightly crumble the cube, and massage it into damp skin. The were nice and gritty and any excess rinsed away easily with warm water, leaving the skin super soft.

They are a touch messier than a normal tub of body scrub, but because of the sugar base any dark residue dissolves and rinses clean away.

I'm not sure whether these cubes are as economical as a normal body scrub but I do like them, and I really want to try the watermelon version as well.

These retail at around £6 - £7 for a variety of retailers including ASOS, Boohoo, Debenhams, and Amazon.

3. Aldi Lacura Healthy Glow Exfoliating Toner 5% Glycolic Acid, Aloe Vera & Ginseng - 250ml

Okay, lets cut straight to the chase with this one, this particular product has pretty much borrowed its entire being from PIXI Glow Tonic, it isn't really a dupe, it's much more of an out and out copy.The packaging is pretty much identical and the ingredients list is pretty similar too, all be it with Aldi version apparently containing less Aloe Vera extract.

Having used both products I don't think that there is too much difference between the two. The Aldi version smells a touch more astringent, and I did find that it tingled a little bit more, but I experienced pretty much the same results with both products. My skin was more balanced, blemishes dried up more quickly, and any rough patches didn't feel quite as rough.

To be honest I would repurchase both this and the PIXI product - I like them both, and in my experience the results were pretty similar, the only real difference is the price, a 250ml bottle of PIXI Glow Tonic retails at around £18, where as a 250ml bottle of Aldi Lacura Healthy Glow Exfoliating Toner, retails at around £3.99.

I can understand people hating on brands for such blatant dupes (although Aldi have now changed their packaging) but ultimately it's the consumer that benefits. If you can afford to spend £18 on just 1 skincare product that's fine but if you can't then there are cheaper alternatives out there. You pays your money and takes your choice I guess x 

4. AVON Senses Festive Wishes Winter Apple Cheer Daily Hand Wash - 250ml

The final product that I'm going to talk about in this post is a hand wash, and honestly who hasn't used one of these up in the past month or so?

Although I'm not 100% sure about this one's antibacterial properties, this was a lovely hand wash, in one of AVON's festive scents. It had a very similar smell to The Body Shop's Spiced Apple scent from a few years ago - sweet yet tart apple, combined with warming festive spices. It smelled lovely and it didn't feel drying on the skin.

Since this was a limited edition product it's not that easy to get hold of now. I spotted it in a recent sale supplement and tried to order some but unsurprisingly it was sold out, thankfully I have a unopened bottle of the accompanying shower gel, so at least I can enjoy the fragrance for a little bit longer.

So they were my January, February, and March empties, if you have any questions or comments on any of the items in this post then please let me know x I haven't had the best start of the year empties wise but hopefully things will get better from here on it. My April empties post should be up in a couple of weeks or so, and since I managed to get my new fibre broadband sorted I should be able to post a little bit more regularly x Thanks for reading and I will see you soon with a late unboxing and review of the February edition of Glossybox x 

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