Sunday, June 5, 2016

Update: May Sample Challenge!


My sample stash!

Hello! You may remember my self-appointed challenge for the month of May, to use up as many of my beauty samples as I possibly could. You can read about it in this May: Month Of Samples post. Well, I took on the challenge, and I'm here to report the results!

This was a fun venture and I did manage to find some great products within the huge box of samples. There was no way I was ever going to get through all of them, but I made a nice dent in my collection. I'm going to continue working my way through the samples, just not as intensely as I did during this challenge. I'll list all the beauty samples I finished and give my thoughts on the ones that were noteworthy!

All the samples I got through in May!

  1. Tigi Bedhead Recharge Shampoo
  2. Bobbi Brown EXTRA Eye Repair Cream ~ I liked it and will keep the little container for de-potting sample sachets into.
  3. Chanel Le Volume Ultra-Noir Mascara ~ this made for clumpy lashes, but I'm not sure if it was due to the brush within the mini-sized sample, or the formula.
  4. Clinique Foaming Sonic Facial Soap
  5. Banila Co Mineral Salt Clay Pack
  6. Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair ~ I've tried this before and really enjoy it.
  7. L'Oreal Revitalift Laser X3 ~ I'm not a fan. It seems like a primer and didn't sit right on my skin.
  8. John Frieda Full Body Shampoo
  9. La Roche-Posay Lipid-Replenishing Body Balm ~ didn't love it.
  10. Kora Organics Hydrating Day And Night Cream ~ smells earthy, is OK.
  11. VDL Naked Cleansing Oil Cream ~ felt nice rubbing it around my face, but was a hassle removing it. Also, it didn't entirely remove my makeup.
  12. Clinique Sculptwear Lift And Contour Serum For Face And Neck ~ I went through 7 sachets of this (received a week's supply). This has a lightweight, almost gel-like consistency. I love how it feels and the results. Would consider buying.
  13. Dermalogica Dermal Clay Cleanser ~ strong smell and not my cup of tea.
  14. Too Faced Shadow Insurance ~ really good. Eyeshadow colour was intensified and didn't budge all day. I would consider buying.
  15. Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Intensive Exfoliating Treatment ~ this is green and smells quite strongly! It says you may experience tingling, but my skin actually hurt. However, my skin was so smooth afterwards and wasn't red or irritated.
  16. ASAP Anti-Ageing Night Cream ~ this is more like a gel and smells lovely, but didn't absorb properly and just 'sat' on my skin. I ended up using it as a hand cream to get rid of it.
  17. Indeed Labs Hydraluron Moisture Boosting Serum
  18. L'Oreal Revitalift Day Cream ~ did the job.
  19. Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream ~ I like it. I've liked every Bobbi Brown cream I've tried.
  20. Estee Lauder Advanced Night Micro Cleansing Foam
  21. Dermalogica Clear Start Emergency Spot Fix ~ not a bad treatment, didn't blow my socks off.
  22. La Prairie Anti-Aging Rapid Response Booster ~ absolutely love it as I do all La Prairie products. If only it wasn't so expensive!
  23. Sephora Lagoon Creamy Body Wash ~ kind of fun but difficult to get out of the little round thing!
  24. Sunday Riley Start Over ~ really good, liked the results.
  25. Ren Keep Young And Beautiful Firming And Smoothing Serum ~ weird earthy smell, lovely and gentle but hard to tell if effective due to the amount given.
  26. SK-II Facial Treatment Essence ~ OMG, I love this! It really improved the look of my skin. I'm definitely considering buying this.
  27. Philosophy Renewed Hope In A Jar Eye ~ I liked this and was happy with its performance.
  28. Chanel La Solution IO Sensitive Skin Cream ~ this was OK, nothing to write home about. It was gentle and non-irritating.
  29. Kate Somerville Cytocell Dark Circle Corrective Eye Cream ~ my dark circles were reduced but it didn't have enough moisturising properties for my liking.
  30. Malin + Goetz Facial Cleansing Oil ~ these oils aren't for me. It did remove my makeup but I'm just not into this method.
  31. Estee Lauder Flawless Start Instant Perfecting Primer ~ I really like it. It improves the staying power of makeup and provides a great base for foundation.
  32. Perricone MD Advanced Eye Area Therapy ~ I love love love this. I got amazing results and will probably buy it.
The best of my samples in my opinion!

So there were five products that were outright winners for me, that I'd consider buying:
Perricone MD Advanced Eye Area Therapy, SK-II Facial Treatment Essence, La Prairie Anti-Aging Rapid Response Booster, Too Faced Shadow Insurance and Clinique Sculptwear Lift And Contour Serum for Face And Neck.

I still have all these samples to go!


I'm linking to the Fabulous And Fun Life Monday Makeup Madness Linky Party!

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Disclaimer: Reviews and thoughts are my honest unbiased opinion. Please see the Disclosure page for further information.

Have you tried any of these products?



32 comments:

  1. I haven't tried anything from your post, but I take my hat off to you for getting through all of those samples!

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    1. Haha thanks Shell. I'm quite proud of my efforts lol :)

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  2. That's a lot of samples you got through. I sometimes find it hard to make my mind up about a product from a small sample sachet. I wish all companies would give out deluxe sample sizes instead. Deluxe sized samples are so much more helpful in deciding if a product suits your needs or not.

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  3. Nice discipline! I absolutely hate sachet samples though, unless it's a one shot hair treatment or similar. SO messy and gross!

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    1. I've been emptying the sachet ones into little travel or empty Mecca pots if I know I'll get a few uses out of them. Otherwise, yeah, the sachets are hard to work with!

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  4. OMG my jaw dropped looking at the amount of empty samples you went through!!! Nice work lovely!!

    Lily not Louise

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    1. Thanks Lily! I've got enough leftover for another challenge at some point too lol. :)

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  5. Wow so many samples! I have the full size shadow insurance from too faced and it is SO good. One of my absolute favourite eye primers.

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    1. Oh cool! Yes, I love it too and I'm considering forking out for the full size!

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  6. So many samples! I am going to have to have a challenge like this with my collection I think!

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    1. It's a good way to get through them and possibly find some winners!

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  7. My sample box looks about the same but I just don't have the time to get to them. I love the idea of this and might need to do something similar next month but perhaps choosing at least 10 things to sample so I'm not feeling so overwhelmed.

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    1. That's a great idea. I know the feeling of getting overwhelmed, it happens to me too often!

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  8. and I thought I had a lot of samples lol. I need to get my hands on the estee lauder night repair asap!
    Pam xo/ Pam Scalfi♥

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    1. Yes it is rather a lot isn't it? Haha. EL Night Repair is really good! x

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  9. That is amazing for a months worth! Happy you found some ones you would like to purchase full size too. :) I decided to use up all of my samples back when I began blogging so I'd have something to show in my empties at the end of the month in fear I'd have nothing to show! haha! Now I only get the odd sachet now and again. I don't think I have any samples at the moment which is pretty weird. x

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    1. I just seem to grow them or something haha. I turn around and they've multiplied. I'm sure you'll build up some more again! xx

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  10. Those samples sure can build up. Great idea to focus some time on using them up every now and again.

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    1. Yes, I'll probably do this again in another few months. Don't want to waste them!

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  11. I've started trying to use a sample here and there, my stash is starting to get a bit out of control (not as big as yours though!)

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    1. Good luck getting through them! Yeah I think mine takes the cake, haha.

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  12. Gadzooks Di you're a champion at the sample sampling! I ditched a whole heap of mine because I couldn't remember how long I'd had them for, but some of them were at least 3 years old. Interesting you liked the SK-II essence - did zilch for my skin, but it seems to be love or mehh with that particular product ♥♥♥

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    1. The SK-II is interesting, because it's an essence so it's basically like water, but boy it really did make my skin look good. Shame it did nothing for you! I'm struggling because I really don't want to pay a sh*tload for something that's like water though! Haha xx

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  13. Wow you got through so many! I wish more samples came in tubes than those annoying sachets. I'm definitely keen to try that Clinique serum thing

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    1. Aah me too! And you'll love the Clinique serum, it's really good!

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  14. Oh wow, you have so many! I thought I had a lot because I'm subscribed to Birchbox, and I'm trying to get rid of mine as well. They send so many lotions!

    Angelina Is | Bloglovin'

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    1. Oh my, things would be so much worse sample-wise if I was subscribed to a box service! Thanks for reading! :)

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  15. Whooo, that is quite a dent in your samples collection! Congrats on getting through so many products!

    Kez | acaciasdreams.com

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    1. Thanks Kez! Yep, I'm happy to get through a lot of them! :)

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  16. Wow, this collection is insane! I love sample/travel sized things, too cute. This makes me want to start a collection (though I'll probably end up hoarding most of them instead of using!)

    hellomoonies.com

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    1. I feel you on the hoarding front! Yes, travel size is just so cute! :)

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