A Life Update And Trimming My Stash - August 2017 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

After a pretty manic few weeks I've finally managed to grab a few minutes to sit down and blog. I wish I could say that I'd been away sunning myself but the reality is a little bit more boring than that, so I'm not going to bore you with too much of a life update. 

This week on the whole, has been a fun one though, I've combined a huge shopping trip, with lots of friend and family time, culminating in celebrating my mums birthday yesterday and a family meal tomorrow night. I'm not going to lie I'm exhausted and lacking spoons but when you've done or you're going to do, something that you enjoy it makes the drained feeling a little easier to stomach.

I know it's a bit of cliche but this year is really flying by, I can hardly believe that the first week of September is now done and dusted, despite my lingering hopes of an Indian summer, Autumn is definitely on it's way. I've drank my first Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte of the year, the Halloween and Christmas bits are starting to appear in stores and the leaves are beginning to fall from the trees. I'm still trying to cling on to the last remnants of summer but I need to stop kidding myself, August is long gone.

Sanctuary Body Scrub - 50ml
Benefit The Porefessional Instant Wipeout Mask x 1
Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Moisture Melt - 35ml
Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Bath And Shower Cream - 200ml
Creightons Creme de Coconut & Keratin Nourishing Conditioner - 250ml
Creightons Creme de Coconut & Keratin Moisturising Shampoo - 250ml
My Little Beauty Body Scrub - Sandy Shore - 210g

Total - 7 Items

Before we forget August completely though, it's time to take an all be it, late look back, at all of the beauty products that I finished last month. Although I'm nowhere near July's total, 7 items is still more than acceptable. There wasn't a lot of skincare again but I did finish a few pairs of products, that pleased my slim OCD side immensely.

1. Sanctuary Body Scrub - 50ml

This is a product that I've talked about on a few occasions. The Sanctuary range is one of the mainstays of Boots bath and body care brands, and it's a popular one when it comes to Christmas gift sets. I haven't bought a Sanctuary product in it's own right for a number of years now, but I do occasionally receive their products as gifts. This was a mini, travel sized body scrub that I probably got in a gift set. The smell of the Sanctuary products is intoxicating, an exotic mix of essential oil that creates a warm, slightly citrus scent. This is a gel based scrub that is full of fine, pumice based particles. It foams up nicely but it's just not scratchy enough for me. I would use it again if I got it but I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it myself.

2. Benefit The Porefessional Instant Wipeout Mask x 1

Next up a product from one of my favourite brands Benefit, and quite surprisingly it's a skincare product. I haven't tried a lot of skincare products from Benefit but I know for a fact that they have their devotees. In it's simplest terms these are a cross between a pore strip and a sheet mask. You pop the button and it soaks the mask with a pore refining solution. You then pop the mask on either your nose, your forehead or your chin and leave it for 10 minutes, before massaging the rest of the liquid over your face with the rough side of the strip. I know pores don't open and close like doors but this menthol scented, slightly tingly feeling strip definitely left my skin feeling a little bit smoother and tighter. I think these are on the verge of been discontinued by Benefit so if you want to try these get a move on! You get 8 masks in a pack and whilst they aren't a miracle product they do seem to improve the texture of your skin at least in the short term.

3. Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Moisture Melt - 35ml
4. Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Bath And Shower Cream - 200ml

Products 3 and 4 are both from Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi Moisture range. I'm a huge, huge fan of this range, if you want a luxurious bath and body range then this is definitely a one to try. With the beautiful exotic fragrance of tropical white flowers, infused with coconut oil, these products are perfect for pamper time, and they are even used in one of Elemis' post wedding treatments. The shower cream is rich, thick and moisturising, and it produces a rich, creamy foam that leaves you skin beautifully scented and feeling like silk.

The Exotic Frangipani Moisture Melt is a beautiful and unusual multi use product, solid at room temperature, pop the bottle into a bath or a bowl of warm water and it melts down to a beautiful, moisturising fragranced oil, that you can use on your body, your nails, your hair or even as a bath oil.

Both of these products are pretty expensive (the shower cream retails at around £26)  but if you want some luxury body treats and you love heady, white flower scents then you need the Elemis Exotic Frangipani Monoi range in your life.

5.Creightons Creme de Coconut & Keratin Nourishing Conditioner - 250ml*

6.Creightons Creme de Coconut & Keratin Moisturising Shampoo - 250ml*

Another coordinating pair of products and these were a budget shampoo and condition that I was recently sent to review. You can read my full review here x but for just £1 a tube I was pretty impressed with both the shampoo and the conditioner which in my experience proved that you don't need to spend a fortune on hair care basics if you don't want to or your if your budget doesn't stretch to it.

7. My Little Beauty Body Scrub - Sandy Shore - 210g

Finally a product from one of most recent My Little Boxes (check out my unboxing videos on You Tube) and it's another body scrub. This is from the My Little Box exclusive My Little Beauty brand, which unfortunately isn't available to repurchase in the UK. This was everything that I love in a body scrub and a little bit more besides. From the name you can probably already guess that this is a salt scrub, nice gritty grains, suspended in a moisturising oil. You could apply it to wet skin or if you wanted a real intense, almost painful scrub then you can use it on dry skin. It was nice and scrubby and it smelt beautiful - a combination of baby powder, and white flowers. I loved this and I'm gutted that I can't get any more x 

So it was a little bit late but they were my August empties, if you have any questions then leave me a comment and let me know x I've got a busy weekend ahead but I will hopefully be back on Sunday with a yummy recipe that I made for my mam's birthday and then next week with a haul, a review or two and a couple of videos xx

*Press Samples