November Empties

How on earth have we got to the end of November already!!

I've been working through my stash and not buying anything new so a lot of my empties are samples. I'll do a list of everything I have used and comment on those that really stood out for me.

Full Size:

Neal's Yard Remedies - Frankincense & Mandarin Body Polish

Neal's Yard Remedies - Geranium & Orange Shower Gel

Neal's Yard Remedies - Purifying Palmarosa Mattifier - The tube may be small but it lasted months. Not sure it actually did anything though, I've not noticed a difference not using it

Neal's Yard Remedies - Wild Rose Beauty Balm - Noooooooooooooooooooo! Totally gutted to be at the end of this magical balm. I feel like I have parted with a best friend and don't know when we will reunite. I'm going to hold off buying this until I have worked through my stash but I WILL be repurchasing. Full review here

bubb & DIMPLES - Nourishing Organic Body Balm - Another multi-purpose balm. See my full review here

Weleda - Rasiercreme - For some unknown reason, Amazon sent me a German shaving cream. Still it doesn't matter that I couldn't read the instructions - its shaving cream! I really liked this but at £7.15 for 75mls it was expensive, especially as it only lasted me about 5 weeks.

Weleda - Citrus Deodorant - Full review here

Lavera Basis Sensitiv Shampoo - Full review here

Naked Shine - Shampoo & Conditioner - I know, I know. These aren't great but the really work for my hair! 

Samples & Minis

The Organic Pharmacy - Antioxidant Face Serum & Antioxidant Face Gel - Yuk. Both smelt of bitter orange and did absolutely nothing for me

Alva - Handcream

No7 - Beautiful Skin Day Cream - Finally used up from Christmas last year. Not one I will buy again

bubb & DIMPLES - Shea Butter - See my full review here

Marble & Milkweed - Nourishing Body Oil - Delicious body oil, shame it wasn't bigger! Full review here

bodhi - Mint Thé Bath & Shower Therapy - Mmmmm, the best shower gel. Full review here

Peppy Galore - Nurse Peppy Hand Cream - This hand cream was perfect for me, just the right amount of moisture. Full review here

Glow Skincare - Rose & Macadamia Face Cream - To heavy for my skin

What have you used up this month?

What I've Been Using This Week - The Poorly Edition!

I've been really poorly this week with a cold and bronchitis so I have been keeping my skincare routine to a minimum as I just haven't had the energy to do much more!

I decided that a bit of pampering would be in order yesterday and this is what I used:

bodhi Mint Thé Temple Balm - I have been using this over the week as a chest rub and also steam inhalation to help clear my head and it certainly does provide release from these symptoms. I don't like to use painkillers so I have been turning to this instead. See my full review here.

Neal's Yard Remedies Wild Rose Beauty Balm - This balm is my multi-purpose saviour. When I'm poorly my skin really suffers - breakouts, dry and flaky, that horrible leathery skin around the nose (you know what I mean!). I have used this morning and evening to cleanser, double in the evening and as a mask twice this week. I have also used it daily as a barrier for the skin around my nose.  See my full review here.

bodhi Mint Thé Refreshing Bath and Shower Therapy - I poured this into running water for a bath and it really did help to clear some of the fog in my head and work to soothe my aching muscles. I have been holding out buying the full size due to the cost and managing on samples sachets, but I will be purchasing the full size after this.

bubb & DIMPLES English Garden Nourishing Body Oil Candle - During my soak in the tub, I had this candle lit. The scent is so beautifully floral and uplifting and watching the flame dance around was really relaxing. See my full review here.

Marble & Milkweed Nourishing Body Oil - I had this sample in the abw A/W '13 Sampler Box and had been waiting for a good excuse to use it. Although the sample is small (3.7ml) and I'm a big girl, I still only used about half the bottle for an all over treatment. I loved the sandlewood, cardamon and rose scent and it absorbed really easily into the skin without leaving a greasy feeling behind. My skin felt soft and pampered for hours after application.

What are your go-to products to use when you aren't feeling at your best?

October Empties

My list of full and sample sized empties that have been used up during October.

bubb & DIMPLES Luxury Hand & Body Wash in Rose 100ml - Good lather and left my skin feeling squeaky clean. See my full review here

bubb & DIMPLES Luxury Hand & Body Wash in English Garden 200ml - See my review here

bubb & DIMPLES Rose Sugar & Salt Spa Body Scrub 100ml - I loved using this scrub, it had a really good amount of 'grit' to polish my skin and was really moisturising. One to buy again. See my full review here

bubb & DIMPLES Cocoa Butter Cream with Vitamin E 100ml - A very rich and luxurious body butter, sadly too thick for my skin. See my review here

Trilogy Clean + Balance Conditioner 250ml - Didn't have enough ooomph for my thick hair. See my review here

Freyaluna Marigold & Bergamot Soap - sample size - Part of the Freyaluna Try Me box, see here. Lovely scented soap and so beautifully packaged

Freyaluna Rose Lotion - sample size. Delicious lotion, just the right consistency for me.

Freyaluna Chamomile & Lavender Lotion - sample size. Again, a wonderfully scented lotion and a good consistency

Freyaluna Patchouli and Orange Hand Cream - sample size. Another lovely product. I used this at night time as it was a bit rich for me to use during the day.

Peppy Galore Herbs de Provence Body Mousse - sample. I bloody loved this sample and have to get the full size ASAP. Such a great fragrance and really worked with my skin.

Neal's Yard Remedies Melissa Hand Cream 30ml. I really love this hand cream, the refreshing lemon balm really gives my skin added zing

Neal's Yard Remedies Rehydrating Rose Facial Polish - sample size. I have loads of these stashed but always forget to use them, I don't know why because they really make my skin glow!

Neal's Yard Remedies Bee Lovely Busy Bee Balm 15g - A lovely scented, multi-purpose balm. I really liked this but probably wont buy again for some time.

Neal's Yard Remedies Beauty Sleep Body Butter 200g. Got this as I LOVE the Concentrate but the butter is too thick for me. I applied it at night and could still feel it on my skin in the morning. Not for me

Neal's Yard Remedies Eye Make-Up Remover 100ml - A staple for me for the last few years. I wont be re-buying just yet though as I will be giving REN's 3-in-1 Cleansing Water a try

Dr Alkaitis Night Cream - sample size. This came with my SoukSouk box in August. Not sure if my skin got any benefits from this sample.

Dr Organic - Aloe Vera Deodorant 50ml - Holland & Barrett has this as a buy one get one half price, no tea tree ones so I ended up with two Aloe Vera ones. Wont be buying again.

Bathing Beauty - POP Fabulous Effervescent Foot Reviving Tablet - single use. I used this after a long, long day on my feet in heels. I got home and popped my feet in for a soak with this and they felt so much better! Part of my swap with Sandra from Beauty Balm See what I got for her here, see what she got for me

Suti Fabulous Foot Balm - sample size. Another item from my swap with Sandra. This was such a lovely minty balm. I got a few uses out of it and it make my feet so soft.

Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence- sample. One more from Sandra! This smells really refreshing, I love facial mists and this one was just lovely.

REN Mayblossom T-Zone Control Cleansing Gel 5ml - This didn't really do anything for me, I felt no benefit from using it although I did get a good few uses out of it.

Neom Travel Candle in Harmonise 75g. (pine, ceaderwood and eucalyptus) I picked this up with the idea that I would trial it and see if I liked it enough to buy a full sized one for Christmas. I don't think I will be parting with £40 for a full size, it didn't fully impress me.

Review: bubb & DIMPLES Body Balm, Face Balm and Body Oil Candles!

Last on my list of lovely bubb & DIMPLES products to review are the Nourishing Face & Body Balm, Face & Lips Balm in Vanilla Pod & Rose*, Lavender* and Chillax*, Nourishing Body Oil Candle in English Garden and Afternoon Tea.

Nourishing Face & Body Balm - When I initially received this, the product had actually gone bad and was unusable. Fortunately, after a quick email to the bubb & DIMPLES team they sent me a replacement the same day and I received it the day after! Great service. This came with a muslin cloth which was a lovely bonus. As for the balm itself, I have been using it nightly for a few weeks now. As with most balms, this is a true multi-tasker. Remove eye make-up, cleanse, moisturise, lip balm, hair treatment and spot treatment. It has a lovely scent with a mix of Rose Geranium, Lavender, Neroli and Grapefruit. The balm is a good consistency - not too hard or too runny and is easy to use. 

Face & Lips Balm in Vanilla Pod & Rose*, Lavender* and Chillax* - These were sent along with my order as samples. Great sized pots for keeping in the handbag, desk draws or car. I've used them as lip balms mostly but also as a hand balm and to tame a bit of hair frizzage that occurred during this rubbish muggy weather. The Lavender Balm was my favourite as it had hints of bergamot and I love those earthy smells!

Nourishing Body Oil Candle in English Garden and Afternoon Tea - What a brilliant idea - a candle that you can also use as a moisturiser! I was so excited to get these after reading a few reviews on them. I love candles but since "going green" have struggled to find eco-friendly ones. That was until I turned to Twitter! Anyway, this Body Oil Candle was like a dream. 

Ideally you light the candle for 15-20 mins and leave to cool for a few moments before dipping your fingers in the soy wax and apply to the skin - particularly dry areas. It felt a bit odd the first time I used it, pouring hot wax all over myself (!) but the odd feeling soon went and now I look forward to this part of my pamper evening. I found the English Garden to have a slightly citronella-ry fragrance which I wasn't really keen on but that my Husband did like. 

What balms and candles do you enjoy using?

*PR Sample