Trimming My Stash - May 2020 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews*

The hot weather in the UK this week has kind of messed up my plans a bit - Although it's currently chucking it down with rain, on the whole it's been way to hot to shoot the make up looks that I need for my next two Glossybox unboxing posts so I've decided to post my May empties this weekend instead.

Primark PS...It's All Good Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes
Delhicious Hello Beau-Tea-Ful Exfoliate & Glow Original Black Tea Body Scrub - 100g
AVON Foot Works Expert Exfoliating Foot Mask 1 x Pair - 2 x 20ml
Poundland #6 Limited Edition Gold Anti-Ageing Woven Face Mask - 1 x Woven Sheet Mask
L'Oreal Paris Nutri Oil Nails & Cuticles - 5ml

Total - 5 Items 

I was really pleased to finish 8 items in April, and I was hoping for a similar result in May, but alas it wasn't to be and I only managed to finish 5 items. Still it was better than nothing and I did manage to finish quite and interesting mix of products, including one bottle, a few packets, a few sachets, a few wins and one big fat fail

1. Primark PS...It's All Good Oil Balancing Facial Cleansing Wipes x 25 Wipes

If you were to look back through all of my previous trimming my stash posts, I've probably finished more packets of these wipes, in their various incarnations, than any other product. As I've said on many occasions I don't use them that often on my face, but I find the tea tree scent and tea tree in general very clean, and refreshing, so I've mainly used this pack for general freshening up, and also for cleaning up my hands and arms in between swatch photographs.

I only have one more packet of these wipes left, and as useful as I find them, I don't think I'm going to be rushing off to Primark to buy some more. They are really handy for when you're on the go and for holidays, and I'd definitely consider buying some more in those circumstances, but at home I could just as easily use a muslin cloth, or a reusable cotton pad rather than use a wipe that has to go into landfill. 

2. Delhicious Hello Beau-Tea-Ful Exfoliate & Glow Original Black Tea Body Scrub - 100g

Next up a sachet, and this was a lovely natural, vegan and cruelty free body scrub that I received in the September 2019 edition of Glossybox UK. You can read a full review here but I really like this scrub. it contained black tea, brown sugar, Himalayan pink salt, almond oil and Vitamin E. I loved the citrus scent and the grittiness of this scrub. It left my skin feel super soft, smooth and toned but it was very messy and the tiny tea particles seemed to get everywhere, so if like me you have a wet room, then be prepared to do a bit of extra cleaning. If you can deal with that though this is a really nice scrub, and even though Mummy Lou wouldn't necessarily approve I would definitely consider buying it again. This scrub retails at around £7.95, and it's available direct from Delhicious and from Fragrance Direct.

3. AVON Foot Works Expert Exfoliating Foot Mask 1 x Pair - 2 x 20ml

From something that I loved to my fail of the month. I love foot masks, not quite as much as I love a good body scrub but yeah I like them a lot. Thanks to some nice inherited thyroid problems my feet always feel and look dry. I have to scrub them with scrubs, pumice stones, and foot files, and slather them in moisturiser, just to keep them looking even vaguely presentable. Every now and then though I like to give them a bit of an extra treat, and treat them to some sort of foot mask.

There are two different types of foot mask on the market, plastic booties that are designed purely to add moisture to the feet, and socks that contain some sort of acid based solution, to literally make the dry skin on your feet just peel off.

These AVON socks fall into the latter category, they contain glycolic acid, and aloe vera and promise a salon like 'foot peel' callus treatment, which is designed to exfoliate soften and smooth the skin on the feet.

The packet contains 2 plastic socks and 2 adhesive strips to hold them in place. The socks are sealed so you need to carefully cut along the line so you can put your feet inside. Each sock contains a fibre lining and liquid solution. They are very wet and you need to be super careful not to spill the liquid. The liquid itself has a clean, fresh, slightly astringent scent.

They are really simple to use you just pop the socks onto clean, dry feet, and then you seal them securely with the adhesive strips. I take a size 8 in shoes, and I found the booties very loose, so I could really have done with a few more adhesive strips to tighten them and to hold them in place - I should really have put a pair of socks or slippers over the top to keep them in place and to be able to move around a bit more easily.

The socks feel exactly like you think they would, slippy, cold, soggy and wet, but after a few minutes they did seem to warm up slightly and you could feel a slight tingling sensation especially on the tops of the feet. As I say you could put some socks or slippers on over the top if you wanted to walk around a bit but I took the opportunity to sit down and rest for an hour.

After an hour you take the socks off and rinse your feet in the warm water. The tops of my feet did look slightly red, and the soles of my feet did look slightly wrinkled as though they'd been soaking in water. 

There were no real instructions as to what to do next so I just did what I've done in the past with similar socks, no moisturiser, no picking, and lots of foot soaking, and then I just waited, and waited, and waited, but nothing happened! There was difference in the moisture levels of my feet, and unlike every other pair of similar socks that I've tried there was no drying and no peeling! I used these socks nearly 2 months ago now and I'm still waiting for something to happen!

The skin on my heels especially is still very dry, so there was definitely skin to come off so that definitely wasn't the problem - I just don't think that the solution in these socks was strong enough to make any real difference. I've a look at the small print on the packet and apparently you can use these socks every 1-2 weeks, compared to once every few months with similar products so I definitely think that the strength of the glycolic / AHA's has something to do with it. These socks are available from your local AVON representative or online for around £5 but take my advice and give them a miss, and try another brand instead.

4. Poundland #6 Limited Edition Gold Anti-Ageing Woven Face Mask - 1 x Woven Sheet Mask

From a foot mask, to a face mask, and this one is from Poundland's high end inspired #6 skincare line. This limited edition gold anti-aging woven sheet mask, is suitable for all skin types, and it's suitable for vegans. Designed to fight visible signs of ageing, it contains Vitamin E, aloe vera, and a special blend of herbal extracts including rose geranium, bamboo lily, and golden camomile.

The first thing I noticed was just how wet this mask was, the sachet was nearly half full of a clear, barely scented, viscous liquid, there was so much of it that I actually rubbed it all over my body and my next. The mask was quite tightly folded but it felt pretty sturdy, one side was comprised of a gold plasti feeling foil, and the other side was made of a white fibre. As well as the obvious holes for the eyes, nose and mouth, there were also some folds, which I think could have been there to help the mask contour to the fact. It's a good idea in theory but it actually meant that I couldn't get the mask to lie flat.

Like most sheet masks, it feel very cool on the skin, and it also felt and looked very wet. The excess fluid from the mask ran down my neck, and into my eyes and nose for the full 15 - 20 minutes.

As you can see from the picture below my skin was left both feeling and looking very wet. I rubbed as much of the excess liquid as I could into my skin, but it still took around 10 minutes for it all to absorb, and even then it still felt a touch sticky.

Although there wasn't too much of visual difference, my skin felt a little bit plumper, and a bit more hydrated. It did feel nice and refreshing on the skin and it would be a really nice treat if you were on a budget - This mask is a limited edition so I'm not sure if it's still available but if you can find it, it is just £1.

5. L'Oreal Paris LA Manicure Nutri Oil Nails & Cuticles - 5ml

Finally another Poundland purchase, and it was a nail and cuticle oil from L'Oreal Paris. I don't always have time to look through the purple packets containing branded make up that Poundland often sell, but every now and then you can really find a gem. There is no real writing on the bottle and to be honest I can't find out too much about it. Apparently it contains a blend of 11 nutritive oils and vitamin derivatives - I've no idea which ones though, and it was designed to improve the appearance of the nails, and leave nails and cuticles nourished and more elastic and to help prevent breakages and flaking.

It was a nice cuticle oil, with no real scent, it was hydrating and moisturising, but it wasn't too heavy or greasy.

I can't find this oil on either the Boots or the Superdrug websites so I think it has possible been discontinued. I can only find it on eBay and Amazon, and on discount beauty sites like Fragrance Direct and Beauty Outlet. It has an RRP of £5.99 but it seems to be selling for around £2.99 so I think that I got a bargain.

So I didn't finish that many products in May but I did finish a few interesting bits. I've already finished 7 products so far in June, and fingers crossed I might be able to add one or two more in the next few days x If you have any questions on any of the products that I've mentioned then leave me a comment below, and don't forget to link me up to your empties posts or videos x 

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