Sample Sunday

This week I thought I would bring back Sample Sunday as I have been making a conscious effort to use up some of the samples of products that I have and use up the sample sized tubs, tubes and bottles of other products that have come on various trips away with me.

This is my progress:

Givenchy Noir Couture Mascara which is from a Glossybox and I had two samples of it - I actually really like this mascara, though I didn't love it. The sample itself is just 1.5g and lasted for about a week, so not really enough to gage a formed opinion, but I did like the brush and you can see more detail about it HERE when the first sample appeared.

Soap & Glory Scrub Of Your Life  - One of my favourite products from Soap and Glory, I love the fact I can have travel sizes of this and take it with me when I go away. It is apparently the Ultimate soapy, super-smoothing body buffer.  I love the scent and how effective yet gentle this is on my skin.  It retails for around £3 for this travel size and it does last a long time.

Next up there are two Montagne Jeunesse Facemasks.  I am a huge lover of facemasks and love trying them out and these particular masks are just complete bargains.

The first is Chocolate Mud Pie which is an indulgent skin softening mask and it combines Cocoa and shea butter.  This mask smells good enough to eat, it is like someone pushing your face into a lovely chocolate cake and you leave it on for 15-20 minutes, it dries, you rinse it off using warm water and it leaves you with lovely soft to the touch skin, for 99p this is a total bargain and I got it from Asda.

The second is Manuka Honey Peel Off.  Now I love love love facemasks which you peel off, I know I have probably mentioned it before, but there is something so satisfying about waiting for a mask to dry on your skin and then getting to peel it off, yummy.  Anyway, this mask is described as being a famous natural cleanser and it contains Manuka Honey and Jasmin and as with the other mask, cleanse your face, apply, leave for 15-20 minutes and then peel it off.  Another fab mask for 99p

Next comes three Jenoris sachets which I got back in July from the London Blogger Meet and there are two hair masks and a shampoo within this collection.

The Keratin Shampoo, which is sodium chloride free, contains Omega 3,6 and for a healthy scalp and shiny hair.  It includes Keratin for long-term protection, moisturises the hair whilst restoring its natural gloss and vitality.  I actually quite liked this sample, it smells quite nice in that it has the clean smell and it didn't irritate my scalp and my hair was lovely and soft after using.

The Pistachio Hair Mask is described as being ideal for treating split ends, dry, coloured or lightened hair and as with the Keratin Shampoo it contains Omega 3,6 and 9.  With this mask you apply to your hair after washing and leave on for just 3-5 minutes before rinishing it off but if your hair is in a bit of a state, you can leave it for up to 12 minutes for a more intensive treatment.  I am not too sure this mask did anything for my hair in all honesty, it smells lovely and is easy to use but my hair didn't feel any different after using.

The Keratin Hair Mask is again sodium chloride free and is enriched with Omega 3,6 and 9 as well as Pistachio and borage oils as well as keratin to moisturise and give long term protection to your hair.  After using it claims to leave your hair with perfect softness, shine and glamour.  I preferred this hair mask to the pistachio one but again, I didn't really feel too many benefits of using the mask, it would make a much better conditioner in my opinion.

Apivita express beauty with Apricot - this is a gentle exfoliating gel with apricot and I got the sachet from the London Blogger Meet.  This was my first introduction to Aprivita and I loved this gel.  It smells divine, as though someone has just squeezed the life out of some apricots and put them into this sachet.  It is a gentle but effective exfoliator and it leaves your skin feeling super soft after using.  This is a brand I want to explore further.

Elemis Fresh Skin Skin Glow - Put simply, I am a big big fan of this product and I did a whole review of it which you can find HERE and it is a product I would buy again.

Dr Lipp Original Nipple Balm - This product has quite a few mentions on my blog and has its own review which you can read HERE.  Before I got it in a Glossybox I had heard so many people compare it to Elizabeth Arden's 8 hour cream which I dislike, I fully expected to dislike this product as well... WRONG... I love it and am sad it has run out, though I fully intend to purchase a full size version.  it has been an absolute lifesaver in this cold weather, I smother my lips in it before bed and it also makes a great base before applying lipstick.

So those are my empty samples for this month and I think I have done quite well in using them up and remembering to keep them for this post.  Have you ever tried any of these products, are you a fan of any of them?

January's Glossybox!

It has been a long time coming this month, but here is the January edition of Glossybox! I haven't been all that impressed with Glossybox in the last quarter of the year, some of the products left the mind blogging as to why in earth they would be included and even some of the 'themes' made no sense compared to the accompanying products.

Anyway it is now 2014 and here I am hoping Glossybox have got their act together before I log in and finally hit that cancel button...  Here is the contents of my box:

So back to basics is the topic and subject of the box and Glossybox has had a bit of a make-over.  The box is much pinker than usual and glossier and the ribbon on the inside is a nice touch... but the products this month... well:

Anatomicals Puffy The Eye Bag Slayer Wake-up Under Eye Patches - made me giggle as the name is funny and apparently if you look like a character from The Walking Dead these eye patches should reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and revitalise the delicate area around my eyes.  A full size pack of 3 retails for £6 and in my pack there are two.

Vaseline Essential Moisture Lotion - a non-greasy moisture lotion to keep your skin supple and looking great.  This is a 50ml bottle, nowhere near fullsize (which would cost £4.99) not too chuffed to have this in my box as I am not that much of a fan of Vaseline products personally.

Balance Me Super Toning Body Wash - another 50ml product and one I am happy to see because I am a huge fan of the Balance Me range and this is a product I am yet to try.  Said to have a blend of juniper, bergamot, geranium and lavender essential oils, this body wash is a good way to start your day.

Yu-Be Moisturising Skin Cream - 2 sample tubes with 3g in each.  This product is a multi-use cult moisturising cream from Japan which revamps your skin, enriching it with Vitamin E, Vitmain B2, Camphor and has a uniquely high glycerine content.  Not heard of this before, but will see what it is like once I use it.

The final product, the one I knew would be in the box is this lovely floral design tweezers from The Vintage Cosmetic Company.  You can never have too many pairs of tweezers and these ones are actually quite good and retail for £8 and I believe the only full sized product in the box!

So, erm that is it! What do you think?