Trimming My Stash - November 2018 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

Have you ever felt as though there just aren't enough hours in the day? I'm feeling that way at the moment, and it's so easy to see why people get so frazzled at this time of year, there just seems to so much to do at times and the to do list never seems to get any shorter! The annual decorating and tidying frenzy is well and truly under way, there are gifts still to wrap, cards still to deliver and there is shopping still to be done. For a spoonie that's hard enough to deal with but throw in an attack of the sniffles, a coughy, snotty and snuffly Mummy Lou, and all the everyday tasks that still need to be done, then it's no surprise that I don't whether I'm coming or going at the minute. It's hard for everyone at this time of year, so I'm trying not to put too much pressure on myself, I'm going to do what needs doing and I'm going to try not to stress about the little things, and above all I'm going to try and focus on what's important.

Having said that, although this post is up a lot later than I would have liked, this and my previous post probably marks the start of what hopefully be my busiest spell on the blog of 2018. I have lots of posts planned, they are nearly all photographed, and I'm really excited to start getting some content up, eventually! I've also got a festive giveaway planned so providing the creeks don't rise, stay tuned for some long awaited blog posts x First of all though it's time to take a step back to last month and have a look at November's beauty empties.

I was so proud of myself with October's total of 10 items, but alas I couldn't continue that success in November. I tried hard I really did but for some reason it just didn't happen and I only managed to finish a measly 3 items :( Not the best month I'm sure you'll agree but every little helps as the famous supermarket saying goes and it does, I now have 3 less items in my bulging cupboards and drawers, and I've created a tiny bit of space for potential beauty gifts (fingers crossed ;) Although there aren't many of them, the items that I managed to finish are pretty interesting and weirdly I loved them all and as you'll see, I will definitely be repurchasing two of them x 

Baija Paris Green Tea Jasmine Body Oil - 30ml
Oh K! Fruit Enriched Peeling Foot Mask - 2 x Skin Softening Socks - 2 x 20ml Sachets Stimulating Foot Essence
Simple Kind To Skin Eye Make Up Remover - 125ml

Total - 3 Items

1. Baija Paris Green Tea Jasmine Body Oil - 30ml

We'll start off with an item that I probably won't be repurchasing but I would if I could. Like so many unusual and less well known brands this product came in beauty box, I think it was either a My Little Box or a Birchbox. This isn't very well known brand but in my experience it should be, it's a French based predominantly body care brand, that seems to be famous for it's beautiful, natural aromas.

This was a beautiful, fine textured, easily absorbed body oil. You could use it as an all over body moisturiser but I tended to use it on my tiger stripes to add a bit of excess moisture and a bit of TLC! Okay, I admit it I have stretch marks, who doesn't? I'm not the biggest fan of them but thanks to growth, and periods of weight loss and weight gain, I have them and once you have them there isn't too much that you can do about them bar embrace them, and give them a little bit of moisture love. Although it doesn't get rid of them completely, moisturising can make them less visible and it can definitely prevent new ones from forming. Whilst this wasn't a miracle worker it did leave my skin feeling smooth and silky, and smelling amazing.

This oil had an amazing scent - a fabulous fresh, fruity floral green tea scent, mixed with just a hint of jasmine. It actually smelled very similar to Elizabeth Arden Green Tea, a scent that some people find a little bit old fashion but personally it's a one that I love and that I used to wear regularly. I would definitely consider repurchasing both this product and some of the other products that I've tried from Baija Paris but the range is incredibly difficult to get hold of in the UK, you can occasionally find the odd thing in TK Maxx, but other than that you're pretty much relying on resellers which is a shame, if you see it though the entire range is well worth trying x

2. Oh K! Fruit Enriched Peeling Foot Mask - 2 x Skin Softening Socks - 2 x 20ml Sachets Stimulating Foot Essence

Foot peels and peeling socks are probably one of the grossest beauty products on the market but personally I love them! There is something completely gross yet somewhat fascinating and even enjoyable about watching all of that dry skin fall off your feet! I don't even like feet that much but these things are just so satisfying - Does that make me a bit weird lol I don't know?

I've tried a lot of different types of peeling socks over the years but these ones are a little bit different to all of the other brands that I've tried so far. The box contains a pair of paper / fabric socks with a plastic lining. The socks are pretty decent quality they don't feel flimsy or thin and they have a tie which helps secure them onto your feet. The tie is a much better idea than the sticky tabs that these socks normally have, they felt really safe on my feet, they didn't feel as though they were going to slip off, and I didn't feel that I needed to put a pair of socks on over the top to hold them in place. 

Sounds pretty standard so far doesn't it but what is unusual is that the socks are completely dry, so the box also contains two sachets of stimulating foot essence (1 for each foot), which contains lactic, salicylic and glycolic acids and a variety of fruit acids including lemon, lime, orange, apple, grape and wild cherry, which you then pour into your socks.

All you do is wash and dry your feet, and then put the liquid filled socks on to your feet, secure them with the ties and then you just sit and relax for between an hour and an hour and a half, to let the liquid do it's thing before rinsing off your feet in plain, warm water.

There was no real scent to the liquid just a slight astringency, almost alcohol scent, The two phase system meant that the socks were really wet, and the liquid really did completely cover the feet. I'm not going to lie, after about 10 minutes I started to feel a tingling sensation, it wasn't unpleasant but it was noticeable, and you definitely felt as though it was doing something. 

The worst thing with this type of product is the waiting, over the next week or so your feet steadily get drier and drier, and no matter how much you want to, you can't moisturise them! I used these socks around 2 weeks ago now and it's safe to say that my feet do not look pretty! The skin is drying and peeling off on the soles, and balls of my feet and even between my toes . Soaking your feet makes a big difference and it can really help speed the process up, so for best result either shower with your feet in a washing up bowl (that's what I've been doing!), have a bath, or treat yourself to a foot spa, to really loosen off that dead skin!

Based on the initial feeling and the results so far these are probably the strongest type of these socks that I've tried, yes my feet look pretty horrid at the moment, but in a week or so they'll be smooth, baby soft and party ready x If your feet have seen better days and the thought of showing them to anyone fills you full of horror then these could be something to try, just make sure you give them long enough to work before that big event, as with these things it definitely gets worse before it gets better x Based on my current results I will definitely be repurchasing these socks again x They retail at around £8.50 from various retailers including FEELUNIQUE, ASOS and the Oh K Life website x 


3. Simple Kind To Skin Eye Make Up Remover - 125ml

As you know my quest for a new eye make up remover has been a long one - there have been lots of fails, and lots of nearly's, but at long last I think I may have found the one. Simple are specialists in skincare for sensitive skin, so why on earth did I wait so long before giving this one a go? I'm obviously not quite with it at times! 

Like all Simple products this eye make up remover is free from colours or dyes, artificial perfumes, or chemicals, it's also oil free, non comedogenic, hypoallergenic, dermatologically tested and approved, and opthamologically tested. Containing Pro Vitamin B5, it is designed to gently and effectively remove all eye make up including waterproof mascara, and it's also suitable for contact lens wearers.

As you would expect it is clear in colour and it has an almost water like appearance and texture, and no real scent. Given the slightly unassuming appearance I was really surprised at how well this worked. It removed everything that I threw at it with very little effort, long wear mascara took a little bit longer but it still removed easily without scrubbing or rubbing, and most importantly my eyes didn't feel dry or sore, and there was no watering or stinging!

I don't know if my quest is over, and I'll definitely keep trying new things, but with this product I've definitely found something that I like and that I'll continue to repurchase. In fact I've already bought another couple of bottles, the RRP for this is around £3.79 but in Superdrug in particular, it's normally on special offer so it's well worth stocking up if you like it as much as I do.

So only 3 items, but as hopefully you can see they were three very interesting items, 2 of which have subsequently become firm favourites. We're now well into December and so far I've only managed to finish one item so fingers crossed I can up my game and finish the month and the year on a high x Don't forget to let me know if you're doing something similar to Trimming My Stash and of course please let me know if you have any questions on any of the items in this post x