Trimming My Stash - April 2016 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

Hey Guys x Happy Saturday x I hope you're all having a lovely weekend despite the rather changeable weather. It doesn't seem as though it can make it's mind up at the moment, one minute the sun is shining and the next minute it snowing - oh please can we have some decent weather for once! Probably because of the drunken weather I'm full of cold again, and my voice today resembles someone who has been inhaling helium - squeaky! I had planned to record a couple of videos this weekend but I'm going to have wait until I can talk properly, so instead of the haul post and video I had planned I thought I'd get my April empties post of nice and early.

It's hard to believe that it's the first of May tomorrow, but do you know what I'm not complaining, May is one of my favourite months of the year because it's my birthday month. I have to say that I'm not really looking forward to my birthday this year but it's always a chance to indulge in some new beauty products, so it important to start making a bit of room in my cupboards and in my drawers x

Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water - 250ml
Make Up Gallery Well Polished Cuticle Oil -10ml
Benecos Natural Nail Care Pen - 2ml
AVON Mrs Frosty Spiced Cranberry & Orange Bubble Bath - 250ml
Bumble And Bumble Bb Hairdresser's Invisible Oil Sulfate Free Shampoo - 60ml
Benefit Bathina Touch Me Then Try To Leave...Cream - 140ml
Lush Santa's Belly Shower Jelly - 100g
Rituals Fortune Scrub Sweet Orange And Cedar Invigorating Body Scrub - 70ml
Molton Brown Eucalyptus Body Wash - 30ml
Total - 9 Items

I managed to finish 9 beauty products in April, including a sneaky one today to make April my best month so far. Again no make up but I managed to finish a skin product and lots of long standing body products including a few Christmas things.

1. Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water - 250ml

I finished this one today so it's a very late addition to April's Trimming My Stash list. I love my micellar waters especially when I'm in a rush or if I'm not feeling too well, so this one has been a godsend over the last month or so. This was a product that I chose for one of my regular My Pure reviews x I like it but to be honest my eyes don't, so personally I wouldn't go out and buy this one - it's a shame really as it's a decently priced, nasty and cruelty free product. You can read a full review here x

2. Make Up Gallery Well Polished Cuticle Oil -10ml

This is the first of two cuticle care product on this months list which probably tells you that my hands and nails are in a bit of a state at the moment. This one is from the Make Up Gallery range at Poundland, so believe it or not it was just £1 ;) For the price it's not too bad,it doesn't have any real scent and it contains Vitamin E and Sweet Almond Oil. It's not the most hydrating oil I've ever used but it's a nice cheap product, that you don't feel guilty for using liberally. I've got a few other cuticle products to use up but I've already bought another bottle.

3. Benecos Natural Nail Care Pen - 2ml

Another cuticle product and another product from My Pure. You can read a full review of this pen here. Given the dispenser and the texture of the product I think this is a great product for holidays and for your handbag but for me it just didn't seem to last that long for the price which was a shame

4. AVON Mrs Frosty Spiced Cranberry & Orange Bubble Bath - 250ml

Five products in and we've hit a Christmas product. This was actually a bubble bath that I got the Christmas before last. It was put away to be brought out at Christmas but what happened? Well the wet room happened didn't it, no bath and no more bubble baths. I'm trying to get stuff used up though so I pulled this out and I've been using it as a very bubbly shower gel. It had a slightly citrus, tart scent, and whilst the packaging looked very Christmassy, you could easily use it all year round. If you interested in trying this or picking up some very early Christmas pressies I have seen this in a recent AVON sale brochure x

5. Bumble And Bumble Bb Hairdresser's Invisible Oil Sulfate Free Shampoo - 60ml

I was originally given a bottle of this in a kit from the lovely people at Bumble And Bumble, and I have to say I liked it so much that I went out and bought another bottle. It was a lovely, gentle conditioning shampoo that gave the hair a temporary plumping effect. I have quite a few shampoos to use before I consider buying anything but this is something I would definitely consider repurchasing despite the scary £23 price tag for the full size x

6. Benefit Bathina Touch Me Then Try To Leave...Cream - 140ml

This one product probably shows why I need to do something like Trimming My Stash. Benefit Bathina Touch Me Then Try To Leave...Cream has been discontinued for many, many years now, yet I still had a open pot and rather scarily a sealed, unused one (now opened ;). The thing is this one wasn't a full tub in fact there was only about 2 tablespoons left so needless to say when I rediscovered it I used it up pretty quick. This is so typical of me I use a product for a little while, then I move onto something else so I end up having loads of half finished products that I just seem to forget about - slaps wrists - I really need to start using things up when I open them! Anyways this was a lovely, rich body cream, that was delicately perfumed with Benefit's Maybe Baby floral fragrance. Long gone as I say but this Benefit Maybe Baby, Baby Be Mine set contains various products with the Maybe Baby scent including a body cream, which I suspect will be similar to this one x

7. Lush Santa's Belly Shower Jelly - 100g

Another Christmas product and one that I'm pretty sad to have finished. I loved the smell of this, apples, red wine and spices, yummy. The showers jelly are a bit of a pain to use at first but once you get the hang of them, they're really good fun to use. Resembling jelly, I find the best way to use them is to squish a lump, into a shower puff or shower scrunchie, hold it tight and then rub it over your body to produce a lovely creamy, sweet smelling foam. If you gave me a choice between shower smoothies, and the shower jellies, the jellies would win hands down and I have my fingers firmly crossed that Santa's Belly returns this Christmas.

8. Rituals Fortune Scrub Sweet Orange And Cedar Invigorating Body Scrub - 70ml

As you know I love my body scrubs and this one from Rituals appeared in one of many beauty boxes quite a while ago now. Thanks to some beauty boxes and some blog events I've been lucky enough to accumulate quite a few Rituals products now and whilst this isn't my favourite fragrance this was a pretty decent scrub and I'll be happy to use up the full sized one that I have in my scrub drawer. Add water to this gel based salt scrub, and it transforms into a lovely, pleasantly gritty exfoliating scrub, with a unisex, woody citrus scent.

9. Molton Brown Eucalyptus Body Wash - 30ml

Again thanks to blog events and goodie bags, I seem to have acquired a lot of mini bottles from British brand Molton Brown. Many years ago I was a regular Molton Brown customer but with changes in ownership and their temporary disappearance from QVC, I moved on to other brands. This product though has been and will be one of my most regular Molton Brown purchases. This is a travel size but even at £18 for the full 300ml size it's well worth it. It's not like showering with Olbas Oil or Vicks Vapour Rub instead it has a pleasant yet not overpowering  eucalyptus based herbal scent. It's a must have if you're feeling hot and bothered or a real essential if like me at the moment you're full of cold and feeling all yucky and congested.

So they were my April empties x Lots of bath and shower products but I did manage to get rid of a lot of long established and never ending products. Plans for May? well pretty much more of the same - I'm aiming for some more skincare products, and a few travel sizes, and maybe some hair things. Again I'm probably going to be holding off on the make up thing because Project 10 Pan is gonna happen probably from June onwards so I'll keep you posted  x If you've produced a recent empties post or video then link me up below x If you have any questions then leave me a comment and I'll get back to you x

Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water - A Review For My Pure*

At the moment we're slap bang in the middle of all of the fashion weeks, we've already had New York, and London, this week it's Milan and then finally Paris. As well as clothes and accessories, the various fashion weeks also showcase some of the key beauty and hair trends for the upcoming seasons, I love seeing the clothes and the bags but I also love seeing sneaky peeks of new make up and beauty products and new beauty trends.

Like a lot of people I've been surfing the net, and checking out magazine and blogs for behind the scenes pics from some of my favourite designers catwalk shows, and I have one word manic! The preparation that must go into the shows, and  the stress backstage is something that looks way beyond me, everything needs to be done quickly and perfectly and that includes the skincare and the make up.

There is no time for a full cleanse in between outfit changes or shows, so a lot of make up artists tend to use the quick fire option. In the old days a lot of artists used to use baby wipes and I'm sure that many still do but something that you now see backstage at a lot of shows and shoots is micellar water.

Whilst I still buy wipes for swatch clean ups and emergencies I've really grown to love the convenience, speed, and skincare benefits of micellar water, and I for one am grateful that it's something that's now available to all and at all price points. I've tried quite a few micellar and cleansing waters now, and whilst I've found a couple that I love I'm always looking to try new ones just in case I find something better. I've tried a couple of micellar waters from My Pure now, but recently a new one popped up on the site so I decided to give it a go.

Back in November I tried my first product from Australian, brand Sukin, and I was impressed not only by the product but also by the fact that they are a ethically run family business that are committed to producing high quality, affordable and effective beauty products using only the finest botanical extracts, essential and natural ingredients. Their range encompasses a variety of hair, body and skincare items and I was delighted to see that they produced a micellar water.

The Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water is suitable for all skin types and is designed not only to gently cleanse the skin, removing make up and impurities but it also contains a variety of ingredients to help soothe and soften the skin including chamomile, cucumber and aloe vera.

The cleansing water comes packaged in a quite, utilitarian plastic bottle with an easy to use flip top cap. It might not be the most attractive bottle ever but it's certainly practical, with the dark plastic protecting all of the natural extracts inside.

Although it looks quite blue is this picture it's actually just a clear liquid, that looks and feels a little bit like water, but strangely it has more of a moisturising feel than water on the skin.

Micellar waters are simple to use and this is no exception, just pour some out onto a cotton pad, and gently wipe it over the face to either freshen and cleanser the skin or to remove make up. I've been using this are my morning cleanser for the past few weeks but I've also used it to remove both a light, and a heavy make up

Before

You can't get a fuller make up than what I'm wearing here, not the best pictures I'm afraid thanks to a strange thing called sunlight, but I'm wearing a full base - foundation, concealer and powder, powder bronzer to create a tanned look on the face and eyes, a heavy brow product, lip gloss,and a mascara that's supposedly so difficult to get off that the brand actually sells a specific remover. A pretty big test I'm sure you'll agree but how did this micellar water perform?

After

Arghhhh scary no make up face but as you can see this ordinary looking bottle of clear liquid did the job and it did it well. It took just four large double sided cotton pads, and a gentle sweeping motion to remove all of my face make up, and my eye and brow make up. I held the pads on the eyes for a few seconds to loosen the mascara and then with just a few gentle wipes, the mascara just melted away, with no eye bogeys left over if you what I mean. 

The product felt pleasant and cooling on the skin, and it had a pleasant fresh, vanilla scent, thanks to the inclusion of vanilla in the ingredients listing. My skin looks a touch pink in these photos but that is completely normal for me and nothing to do with the product which does feel gentle and non drying on the skin. The skin was also feeling super soft and above all clean and fresh. The only issue I had was a bit of tingling when I used too much of the  product on my eyes, my eyes can be quite sensitive so this unfortunately is a pretty regular occurrence for me.

Whilst I'm not sure whether I would purchase this product again for that reason, I would thoroughly recommend it if you want to remove a heavy make up and long wear mascara quickly and easily and if you prefer to use ethically sourced, natural products. The Sukin Micellar Cleansing Water comes in a 250ml bottle and retails at £9.99 from My Pure. Are you a fan of micellar waters? Let me know x 

Sukin Cleansing Hand Wash - A Review For My Pure*

Yesterday I washed my hands 16 times - is that normal? I'm not sure what the average is - I guess it depends of your circumstances and your lifestyle but it's something that we all do numerous times a day without even thinking about it. I don't need to tell you how important it is to wash you hands, but in this post maybe I'm going to make you think about what you use to do it.

What do you normally use to wash your hands when your at home? Please, please don't tell me that you still use a bar of soap - I don't know what it is but bars of soap at a communal sink makes me feel slightly sick! Thankfully the majority of people now seem to be embracing a more hygienic solution and are using either a liquid soap or a specialised hand wash.

As much as I love some of the fruity, and novelty fragranced  hand washes, they aren't always that good for the skin. They can contain a lot of harsh foaming agents, and whilst they leave your hands feeling clean, they can often leave them feeling dry, tight and a sore, which is a big no no especially at this time of year. Although the worst of the weather is still to come, my hands are already showing signs of winter dryness, so as well as layering on the cuticle oil, and the hand cream, I decided to switch up my hand washes and try something new from My Pure.

One of the best things about My Pure is that the site stocks so many unusual and niche, natural brands that are hard to find elsewhere, I've been introduced to so many brands via the site and this month I'm trying a product from another new one, Sukin.

Founded in Melbourne, Australia in 2007, Sukin is a family business that produces a wide range of affordable, effective and high quality natural skin, body and hair care, products using only the finest quality botanical extracts and essential oils.

The product that I tried was the Sukin Cleansing Hand Wash. which is designed for all skin types but specifically for hard working hands that are prone to dryness. It is sulphate, mineral oil and paraben free, and it's suitable for vegans. It contains a huge array of natural extracts, and ingredients and natural foaming agents. It also contains moisturising oils of jojoba and avocado, soothing aloe vera extract and hydrating rosehip. It also contains a variety of different citrus oils, and lavender for its anti-bacterial properties.

Packaged in a dark plastic pump action bottle, the hand wash is clear in colour (the product contains no artificial colourings), and has a thin, gel like texture. Simply add a little bit to some warm water and you get a gentle lather, that feels creamy on the skin and rinses away with out any dryness, leaving the skin clean and silky soft. This wash has a gentle scent, with subtle lavender, citrus, and herbal hints and it leaves the hands smelling clean and fresh.

One of Mummy Lou's biggest bug bears is hand washes that have too strong a scent. Anything goes in the bathroom, but in the kitchen you want something that will cleanse the hands and remove food odours without overpowering or tainting food. If you're the same, this is the hand wash for you, it cleanses the skin, and leaves it feeling soft, and subtly scented.

Yes you could probably pick up a hand wash for less than a pound but what your getting here is an excellent quality product, from a cruelty free and ethical company, that does what it promises. Sukin Cleansing Hand Wash retails at £8.12 for a 250ml bottle from My Pure. If you have any questions please let me know x Thanks for reading x

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