Life has been so busy lately that I haven't had much time to blog so this is a very late post, but I still wanted to post it as it features some amazing products...
Beauty-wise I've been making my way through a lot of products this year. I've been trying to use up what I already have opened before trying something new.
In September and October I was able to finish quite a lot. I normally finish quite a lot of hair products but surprisingly I was able to finish quite a few make up products too!
Here's what I've used up...
Skincare
Finishing up my 3 Coast To Coast products was bittersweet. I adore these products so it was sad to see them go. The Coast To Coast Skin Whitening Facial Polish is INCREDIBLE!!! Firstly it smells so beautiful. But it also has the perfect mix of graininess. It's not too rough but has enough grains to make my skin feel soft and smooth. I'll be purchasing another one in the new year.
The Coast To Coast Skin Illuminating Cleansing Oil is another standout from the range. While it's a little bit pricier than my Dr LeWinn's cleansing oil (the CTC oil is $39.95 from David Jones) I love how efficient this is at removing my make up at the end of the day. The pump packaging is also a winner. Most likely I'll repurchase this or I might try their cleansing oil from their Ultra Soothing range.
And finally I also finished the Coast To Coast Skin Illuminating Cleansing Water.* I love the packaging on this. I like that I can lift the lid, put my make up pad on top of the dispenser and then press down to get out the product. While this easily removes my make up I did find it stung my eyes when I tried to remove my mascara. I'd most likely purchase this in the Ultra Soothing range.
The Natio Argan & Almond Facial Cleansing Balm* is a really unusual cleansing balm because it's in a tube. The packaging would make it perfect to take away with you while you're travelling. The balm removed my make up easily and quickly. If you're wanting to try out an affordable balm cleanser then this is fantastic. Just a tip: if you find that the balm is not dispensing, hold it in your hand to heat it up with your body temperature for 60 seconds to dispense the balm.
The Grown Alchemist Gentle Gel Face Cleanser: Geranium Leaf, Bergamot and Rose-Bud is a wonderful cleanser. It's a gel based cleanser that doesn't feel drying or stripping on my skin. I love the pump packaging, which is perfect for slippery shower hands.
Hair
As usual I went through a lot of hair products. The Lani Tropical Hair Treatment was amazing and it's something that I will repurchase again in my next Natural Supply Co order. The packaging is adorable, but it's the ingredients that are amazing. It contains 4 natural oils and that's it! I apply it to dry hair for 20 minutes (or longer if I can) and then wash my hair. My hair is left so soft and silky.
The Charles Worthington Intense Rescue Melting Balm is a great pre-wash mask that you use like the Lani treatment. This is available from Priceline so it's more accessible and is slightly cheaper than Lani. While the Lani treatment is either an oil or a soft tacky balm due to the ingredients, the CW balm is much harder. I use a spoon to remove some from the pot and then hold it in my hands for 30 seconds until it starts to melt. It's a great product, but I do refer the Lani version because it's a natural product.
I also finished 2 other masks (I normally use a hair treatment every wash so I go through them quickly). The Macadamia Professional Deep Repair Mask is a product that I've repurchased many times. It helps to hydrate my hair and leave it silky smooth. This is a smaller size.
I also finished the Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Keratin Intensive Treatment.* Keratin is one of those ingredients that can make or break your hair. Too much keratin will do the opposite of what you want (to strengthen your hair) and make it snap off so I was a bit hesitant about using this mask, especially since the shampoo and conditioner that I use also has keratin. Luckily it has some amazing hydrating ingredients in it and it left my hair feeling soft and smooth. I really want to try out some of their other masks now.
The evo Water Killer Dry Shampoo really surprised me. I received this deluxe size as a GWP and it's made me want to buy the full size. It's a light dry shampoo, which is perfect for my fine hair. It's pricey ($30 for a 300ml bottle) but is worth the price because I can get away without washing my hair for nearly a week using this.
I finished 2 lip balms and while I loved one, I wasn't a fan of the other. The People For Plants Vanilla & Cocoa Butter Organic Lip Balm is one of my favourite lip balms. It's a natural lip balm that hydrates my lips and I've bought 3 or 4 of them so far (and will most likely purchase more in the future). Sadly I didn't have as much luck with the Avene Cold Creme Lip Balm. It felt heavy and gluggy on my lips but it didn't offer much long lasting hydration.
I finished up my Arbonne Sheer Finish Tinted Moisturiser* and it was a product that while I enjoyed it, I found the more that I used it the more that I loved it. It offered a slight amount of coverage, so I normally used this as a base underneath a mineral powder foundation.
After using my Benefit Gimme Brow* for nearly a year, I finally finished it. While it looks small, there's a LOT of product. This has to be my holy grail brow mascara. It helps to give my brows a fuller look due to the small fibres as well as depositing colour. This completely lived up to the hype for me.
Another brow product that I finished was the Maybelline Brow Drama Sculpting Brow Mascara. This doesn't contain any fibres so it just gave my brows a more polished and darker look. A lot of people have complained about the wand as it's quite large and has an odd ball on the end of the applicator. I found it easy to use, but it seems most people prefer the Benefit wand.
Max Factor is one of the only mascara brands that doesn't leave me with panda eyes and I adored using their 2 latest mascaras. The Max Factor Masterpiece Glamour Extensions 3 in 1 Mascara* and the Masterpiece Transform High Impact Volumising Mascara* are both amazing mascaras that help to give your lashes volume and definition. You can't go wrong with either of these!
While I either loved or liked all of the products above, I can't say the same for the next 3 products. The Herbal Essences Naked Dry Shampoo was one that I was really excited about. I went to 4 shops to find this!! Sadly it felt heavy in my hair and actually made it feel wet. It didn't feel like it cleaned my hair.
The Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara did not work for me. It gave me panda eyes and I threw it out after 3 uses.
One product that I was really sad about was the 3 More Inches Life Saving Styling Treatment which is a leave in conditioner. It's supposed to be a spray but I found it felt like a heavy but watery conditioner. It was almost like i had just forgot to wash out my conditioner. I tried to use it up as I spent $30+ on it but had to throw it out after using only a third of it.
Has there been anything that you've tried that didn't work for you?
Amy, XO
*I was kindly sent this for consideration. All thoughts and views are completely my own, and are always 100% honest. See my disclosure policy here.
Follow me on Instagram
Oh my! So lots of great products here. But among these goodies, what caught my attention was the coast to coast line. They seem to be great ones to try out.
ReplyDeleteThe Coast To Coast range is really great. I want to pick up some more products next time I go into David Jones.
Delete