beauty empties for the first four months of 2017 & mini reviews

At the end of 2016, I decided to set a box aside for beauty things I finish throughout 2017. This will enable me to see just how much I go through with the intention of preventing hoarding and excessive impulse buys. Here are the first four months and some mini reviews on each finished item.

J A N U A R Y

Baby Foot 
I had high hopes for this foot mask but it disappointed me. I'd read reviews that said they had peeling feet for a good few weeks after but mine didn't even flake! Feet were no different afterwards and I soaked them for the recommended time. 0/10

The Body Shop Blueberry Body Butter
Performance-wise, I'm a huge fan of The Body Shop body butters but not the price. I usually wait until they have a sale and a 40% discount code as you can usually combine the two. They are a luxury and so I try and only use them during the cooler months where my skin is dryer. Smells lovely and keeps my skin soft and moisturised. 7/10

Tony Moly I'm Real Radiance Sheet Mask
I reviewed this mask earlier this month, please see here :)

Liole Super Gold Snail BB Cream sample
I found this was the right shade for me but it didn't seem to go on as smoothly as my Missha Perfect Cover BB cream (my current go-to base). It made my skin look dry and flaky and just wasn't impressive. Disappointing as I do love products with snail in! 1/10

Holy Snails Shark Sauce sample
Holy Snails have some well loved products on the Asian Beauty Reddit subforum and so I found myself eager to try their offerings. I bought the sample pack and gradually made my way through each product. Shark Sauce has Niacinamide in, an ingredient that brightens and evens complexion while fading scars. This product didn't do anything (negatively or positively) so for that, 2/10. There are many who say that Shark Sauce has improved their skin beyond expectations though so you may think differently.

Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero Smudge Lengthening Mascara
Smudgeproof mascaras are a holy grail item for me and this one is perfect in that respect. The price is on the higher end though and though I did replace it (but with the volume version), I don't think there'll be another replacement after that one! 6/10

& Garnier Ultimate Blends Shampoo for Coloured Hair and a Dove Beauty Blossom Body Cream.


F E B R U A R Y

Tony Moly I'm Real Skin Soothing, Elasticity and Moisturising Sheet Masks
I reviewed these masks earlier this month, please see here :)

Emma Hardie Vit C Intense Daily Serum sample
Sometimes, when you use a sample, you don't expect much and that's the expectation I had with this one. However, by the end, I was gutted that I ended up loving the effect it had. It brightened my skin and evened out my complexion, seemingly overnight! With the main active ingredient being vitamin C though, I'm hopefully there'll be a product just as good for a fraction of the price. 8/10

Berrisom My Lip Patch
Very disappointing product. Tastes foul and no visible difference after. Fun to use and only good if you want to spend half an hour or so in silence. 0/10

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Duo [+]
This was one of those products where you don't notice much of an effect when you use it but once you stop, you then see the difference it made. Just that. I'm too scared to stop using it for that reason. 9/10

Mizon All In One Snail Repair Cream
I'm going to lay this down straight: I love snails. Snails have done wonders for my skin - from preventing break outs to decreasing redness - and this is the product that started it all. It lasted forever (ok, maybe more like eight months) and was great as part of a multi-step routine. I'm currently trying out the Black Snail version and it's not given me the same results unfortunately. 9/10 for this version.

& Arm and Hammer Enamel Pro Repair Toothpaste


M A R C H

Rilakkuma x A'pieu Sheet Mask Patches
This was a weird sheet mask - it came in patches shaped as the two bears: Rilakkuma and Korilakkuma. It was good at moisturising and had an instant brightening effect but the weird sheet mask style wasn't for me. 6/10

Fix & Tox S.Pore Unit Programming Sheet Mask
A steady sheet mask that didn't do anything special for me. 5/10

A'pieu Facial Cleansing Tissue
Good for removing make up and even the most stubborn eyeliner. 8/10!

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
This is a wonder product for my skin and I've mentioned it previously here in this post and here too! Not a bad word from me but others have reported pilling when using this serum under other layers.  9/10

Holy Snails Snowbang sample
The key product in this sample were ceramides and Snowbang did wonders for my skin. When I started using it, I did wonder why I hadn't thought of adding in this key ingredient sooner. It was the product that confirmed just how dehydrated I suspected my skin to be. Due to the price and lack of availability in the UK, I won't be repurchasing but have since found an adequate replacement. 9/10

Caudalie Reservatrol Lift Night Infusion Cream
A bit of a 'meh' product. Didn't do anything for me. 1/10

Benefit Professional sample
On the days where I don't feel like wearing a base layer, I sometimes just use a primer. Porefessional did a decent job of blurring my pores but was awful under my Missha Perfect Cover BB cream. It also didn't make my make-up last for longer but I did purchase the full size for those days where I don't feel like wearing make up. 7/10

Missha Time Revolution Borabit Ampoule
Again, one of those products that didn't make a difference. 1/10

Banila Co White Wedding Night Cream (two samples)
Another that made no impact. 2/10 (because I liked the consistency!)

& Garnier Ultimate Blends Shampoo for Coloured Hair and The Body Shop's Passionfruit Body Butter.


A P R I L - a month of samples!

Banila Co Miss Water and Mr Oil SLM Gel Cream (two samples)
No visible difference but I did like the texture and smell. 2/10

Tony Moly Cherry Blossom Whitening Cream (four samples)
Again, no impact. 1/10

Soap and Glory Scrub Your Nose In It
Ended up using this as a gentle body scrub instead. It has a refreshing minty smell to it... and that's as much as my review goes. It doesn't really do anything (at least not for me). 2/10

Fix and Tox Derma Clear System Mask x 2
A middle of the road sheet mask (not dissimilar to the other Fix and Tox sheet mask mentioned in the previous month. 5/10

Estee Lauder Re-Nutriv Ultimate Diamond Eye Cream (three samples)
This cream seemed to brighten my skin (I used it all over my face instead of just under my eyes). I did end up liking it but I don't purchase eye creams as (in my opinion) they are overpriced for what they are. 6/10

Neutrogena Hydro Boost sample
I loved this sample! It was the last step to my evening routine and when I woke up the next morning, my skin was so much plumper and fresher. It is on my wishlist for once I finish my other sleeping packs! I hope they don't reformulate or discontinue by the time that comes around. 9/10

Tony Moly Intense Care Dual Effect Sleeping Pack sample
Meh. No difference. 1/10

Cosrx Ultimate Moisturising Honey Overnight Mask sample
Seemed to have a good effect overnight but not as good as the Neutrogena Hydro Boost. 6/10

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% and Zinc 1%
This was my second finished bottle and I know the first one is in the month of March so it looks like it doesn't last long! However, it didn't take me a month to get through this; I was using both bottles pretty much simultaneously since October so it probably takes me closer to three months to finish a bottle.

Mario Badescu Drying Lotion
Used as spot treatment, one bottle of this can take me months or even years in this case to finish. Because it has alcohol in it, I'm not too worried about keeping it for years. I talk more about it here. 9/10

Garnier Micellar Cleansing Water for sensitive skin
Pretty good as a first step to take off make up. I follow it up with Banila Co's Clean It Zero (up next!) and then a foam cleanser. 8/10

Banila Co Clean It Zero
An excellent sherbet oil cleanser for dissolving make-up. I love the faint soapy smell and how it just melts on my skin. The tub lasted me for a good six months of near daily use and though it is on the pricier side, I'm too scared to try other oil cleansers in case they break me out. 8/10

& Jergens Daily Moisture Body Cream and Garnier Ultimate Blends Shampoo for fragile hair prone to breakage

* * *

My goal this year was to use up things before buying replacements and so far so good! I usually have one, maximum two, samples open at any time. I'm lucky that a bad reaction to something new is quite rare for me (touch wood this continues!) and using up my samples are a good way to add things to my wishlist. Saying that though, I still patch test each sample before slathering it all over my face. This gives me time to see if it really assess if it's something I want to try next or if it was a transient lust.

So far, I've noted that one bottle of shampoo and one tube of toothpaste lasts me for a month or so, sheet masks make an appearance once or twice a month and that buying back ups is something I need to stop because I just don't go through things as quickly as initially thought. I'm already excited to see what the next four months of empties will look like!

beauty review: Benton Cacao Moist and Mild Cream

Benton are a Korean beauty brand; pretty well-known for their snail and bee products. The name 'Benton' is inspired and named after The Curious Case of Benjamin Button where Benjamin Button grows younger with time; and that is the premise of the Benton brand.

Today, we have the Cacao Moist and Mild Cream. It claims to be a lightweight, natural cream whilst still providing moisture to the skin to keep it smooth. The key ingredients are Cacao extract and hyaluronic acid. Both ingredients are already well known in the beauty and skincare world for being good skin hydrators. I currently use Palmer's Cocoa Butter as my body moisturiser so was excited to try this on my face (though I did have a fear of it clogging pores...).

The cream comes in a cute pink bottle and is the size of a hand cream. The box is also a cute pale pink colour and as much as we shouldn't be seduced by the aesthetics of packaging, I can't help but feel an affinity towards this bottle design.

So, how did this cream fare?

Well, there were many positives: it is a light, white-coloured fluid and does not feel greasy. It is easy to apply (so not too runny or too thick) and there was no strong fragrance to it. I half-expected it to smell like the cocoa butter I slather over my body after a shower but nope, nothing with this one.

It claims to be suitable for all skin types and with my oily-dehydrated skin, I was skeptical. Cacao butter for greasy skin? Sounds like a recipe for disaster but I was pleasantly surprised. Benton claims the cacao extract gives the complexion a dewy glow and I can't confirm this. My current routine does a good job of making my skin appear dewy so I'm not sure how much this cream contributed to that.

It didn't clog my pores or cause a breakout and it did a good job of keeping my skin moisturised. However, it was tested during a spate of hot, summery weather - a climate which usually means I don't need much in the way of an intense moisturiser.

Overall, this is a promising moisturiser, given how it has performed so far. It has a pleasant texture with no fragrance, did not clog pores and appeared to give my skin the moisture it needed. Did it outperform my current holy grail moisturiser (Dr Jart's Ceramidin cream - only used when my skin needs some heavy-duty moisture)? I'm not sure it did and probably won't know until the colder months, though I'm sure this will definitely serve me well during the summer months.

Note: This product was provided for review. I have reviewed it as honestly as possible and as if I had purchased it myself.

my week #271

With just over a month to go until I can no longer say 'sorry, I'm only a medical student', I spent this week making the most of the sunshine and fitting in as much downtime as possible. On Wednesday, I took my mum out to the London Eye and then we spent the rest of the day as tourists. It was blistering hot though and we didn't last that long in the heat. All I'm saying is that I'm glad it got cooler towards the end of the week.

How has your week been?

preparing for life after university: feat. a rhodia notebook

Now that my time as a student is definitely coming to an end in just over a month, it felt like a good time to start some proper future planning. What better place to plan for the future than a Rhodia notebook?

In it, it features things related to housing (from mortgages to the basic furnishings required for a flat/house) to lists of simple meals for a packed lunch or an easy dinner when shattered after a day of work. Each list has an estimated cost too so that I can see how much I'd need to save for a fully furnished property. Cue selling of all unwanted/barely used items on eBay...!

In a bid to be more grown up, I made a custom budget spreadsheet on Microsoft Excel. I've over-estimated all outgoings to try and account for as little surprise as possible. Whilst I've accounted for a mortgage, etc, that's how much I expect to pay for rent anyway so it is still equally applicable even if I were not to buy a property so soon. The total outgoings is a little scary and, if I'm honest, I'm not even sure if my salary will cover it all... This'll mean that I have to potentially have to cut down on non-essential spends. I'm going to see how things go over the first two months before reassessing my budget.

So this is my attempt at adulting, a little later than planned! Though there is still a lot to learn, this'll hopefully get me off on the right foot :)