I think I may singlehandedly be keeping Priceline in business with the amount of money I've been giving them lately! There was my Cosmetics Bag GWP Haul and hubby threw some cash their way to get me Lady Gaga's Fame, YSL's Parisienne and Katy Perry's Royal Revolution for Mother's Day in their fragrance sale, too. And there's still the Skincare GWP to go!
Let's talk HairCare, though. My hair has been giving me a fair bit of grief lately. It's naturally fine, but lately it's becoming increasingly difficult to inject some volume into it. I need to cut an inch or so off, as that usually gives me a little more body, but I'm getting frustrated with how flat and lifeless it appears. I use volume shampoo, conditioner and mousse plus various root booster sprays and thickening lotions, so I'm really throwing everything at it and I'm just not getting the results I used to. So I used the 40% off sale as an opportunity to buy a bunch of volumising products (plus a few extras) in the hopes of finding something that works well for me. Fingers crossed that something in this massive haul is a miracle worker!
Batiste Dry Shampoo XXL Volume (x 2) - my favourite ever dry shampoo because it gives me extra volume from the roots. When this goes on special, I stock up, as it's a staple in my hair styling routine. Check out my mini-review here.
Batiste Dry Shampoo Light & Blonde - I use dry shampoo every day, so I go through it fairly fast. I've tried this before and just decided to get this to mix things up a bit.
L'Oreal Elvive Fibralogy Thickening Serum - I've gone through about four bottles of this, and when used daily, I can easily finish a bottle in a few weeks. If it's on special I'll get it, because it's a lovely product that does give my hair body, providing I scrunch it through properly. I'm not loving it as much as I used to, though, going by this post where it made my Favourites last year!
L'Oreal Elvive Fibralogy Thickening Shampoo - Another repurchase, because this one is quite good. I do have a fair few bottles of shampoo in the cupboard waiting to be used up at the moment though!
Fudge Root Juice - this is a 'medium hold root booster for extra volume and grunt'. I will give anything a go that claims to provide body from the roots and I'm loving a few other Fudge products at the moment, so hopefully this is just as good.
VO5 MattClay - I included one product for hubby, because it makes me feel slightly less guilty about this huge haul! I can also use this on my son's hair, so it was a no-brainer.
VO5 Give Me Texture Tousled Style Spray - I still don't know if texture is a good idea when you have fine hair, as you don't want it to go too piecey, but I'll give this a go. I'm thinking it will be similar to salt spray.
Toni & Guy Glamour 3D Volumiser - this sounds promising. I'm expecting miraculous results from this 'volume boost with a spritz of shine' spray. No pressure or anything!
Pantene Light Detangling Spray - I'll only need to use this right before I wash my hair. That's when it's at its tangliest. I don't blame it, with multiple days worth of dry shampoo, serums, various sprays and lacquer through it!
Schwarzkopf Ultime Sea Salt Texture Spray - I just finished off my Tigi Catwalk Session Series Salt Spray and thought I'd try this as a replacement. Schwarzkopf is a good brand and all salt sprays would be pretty similar ingredient-wise, wouldn't they?
I'm joining up with the Fabulous And Fun Life MakeUp Linky Party. Join in!
Have you used any of these products?
I've decided to combine my Empties from the last two months together into one giant post. Many of these are regular Empties products so I won't bore you with my thoughts on those. Let the Emptiness begin!
The Body Shop Papaya Body Scrub
O. M. G. I bought this in Singapore for half price. Best buy ever! The aroma was sensational and the scratchy exfoliating bits knocked my socks off. SO satisfying. Alas, this is no longer available to buy in Australia (I checked with The Body Shop staff). Although, they said try eBay. This product alone has totally got me hooked on body scrubs. Let me know in the comments your favourite body scrub!
Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly Shampoo
I love this! It's infused with Wild Violet and Pomegranate. Smells great and my hair actually looked good after use. I will probably buy this again once I use up all my other shampoos.
Colgate Max White One Toothpaste
Again, I was pleasantly surprised. I'm no Dentist, but this seemed like an exfoliant for the teeth! It contains little particles that help remove stains. It claims to give you whiter teeth in one week, but I actually noticed whiter teeth after one use. Maybe my teeth are just that bad. LOL. I got two tubes for free, so I'm now on my second tube, and will probably buy (shock, horror!) one when it runs out.
Garnier Fructis Fortifying Conditioner
I wasn't really impressed with the results from this and I won't get it again. Probably not the conditioner's fault, as I need hair products aimed at fine hair, something that will give me volume. Shit know why I bought something with the word 'Normal' on it! Maybe this is hubbys? LOL.
Pantene Pro-V Aqua Light Conditioner
This is a "lightweight nourishing" conditioner that is supposed to give you "hair that is beautifully nourished with virtually no weight". Apparently the Aqua Light range was developed with a low-suds formula, because when the product is not rinsed out properly (due to too many bubbles) it can weigh the hair down. Personally, this conditioner (in conjunction with the shampoo) left my hair squeaky clean. But to the point where it was really difficult to brush (ie, it left my hair tangled). I already have really tangly hair, so this may or may not be related to the Aqua Light formula.
Sunsilk Plumped Up Volume Hairspray
So I saw the words "volume thickening and flexible hold hairspray" and I thought YES, this is for me. I am on a never-ending quest for volume and thickened locks. However, I was mighty disappointed when this bastard sprayed out huge bubbles into my hair. WTF? I have never had this happen with my usual Schwarzkopf Super Styling Lacquer. So I shook that fucker like buggery and STILL got huge bubbles. Lucky I know the emergency fix: blast it with the hairdryer until the bubbles disappear. As a result, I cannot use this in my fringe, however I can use it in my ponytail and kind of scrunch it after spraying. I won't be buying this again.
Schwarzkopf EC Ultimate Repair Shampoo
I won this range of products, but it's not really suited to my hair type. It contains 3 x liquid keratin which is more suited to very dry hair. For me, it just made my hair lank and lifeless. If your hair is mega-damaged, the injection of moisture this provides would be a godsend. Luckily, just about every product works fine on my husband's hair, because I've given him this range to use, too.
Sunsilk Frizz & Weather Defence Shampoo
I have absolutely no recollection of using this, so I better not comment. In the interest of fairness.
Olay Total Effects Cream Cleanser
Love it! I've previously covered this product here
Schwarzkopf EC Super Styling Lacquer
My favourite hairspray ever. Thoughts on it here
Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush & Fresh
Adore these! I've blogged about them before here and here and here
Well August is gone, and with it the products I finished during the month. Here are said products and mini reviews on each.
Garnier UltraLift Anti-Wrinkle Eye Cream
I am so sad that I've finished this, because it worked extremely well on me, lifting my under-eye area and diminishing the look of my dark circles, and it's been discontinued. I was initially in disbelief when I couldn't find this product in my local Woolies, but after an extensive and exhausting search through pretty much every available outlet, I give up. Garnier initially replaced it with a double-ended tube of similar product (tried it, did not get the same results), then also released a roller-ball product. There is also a tub of Garnier Ultra-Lift Pro Deep Wrinkle Dual Eye but I don't get the same results from that either. Sucks!
Pantene 3 Minute Miracle Treatment
I hardly ever put a treatment through my hair, so this was a little bit of heaven for me! Sad, I know. I was pleasantly surprised by the results. My hair was soft, smooth and silky after using this and I'm definitely going to buy this after trying the sample.
Simple Refreshing Facial Wash Gel
I wasn't overly impressed with this gel, but it was inoffensive enough, being colour and perfume free and designed for sensitive skin. Satisfactory if you're into 'no frills' products.
Alpha-H Gentle Daily Exfoliant
I have previously reviewed this product here. I would just like to add, that since writing my review, the results I experienced from using this exfoliant continued and increased. My skin became brighter and clearer with continued use. This is an expensive, but effective product. I am now using Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant instead (only because this ran out and I won the Dermalogica) :o)
Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Pink Grapefruit Foaming Scrub
I absolutely hate this product with a passion. When I first used it, my face reacted badly, resulting in red, dry patches that took weeks to clear up. I left this alone for months, but recently decided to use it as a body scrub (sparingly and carefully!) as there was no way it was going anywhere near my face again. No bad reaction this time. This was just way too strong and stripped my skin dry (and I don't have sensitive skin, either). Hopefully Neutrogena don't make this any more, but if they do, proceed with caution.
Toni & Guy Volume Shampoo
This was on special so I thought I'd give it a go, considering how much I love the T&G Dry Shampoo. I didn't really notice any more volume after using this. Also the pump action dispenser is a bit of a pain in the arse in the shower. Meh.
Batiste Dry Shampoo in Blush
This is a reliable dry shampoo in fun, cheerful packaging, with a lovely scent. Batiste is one of my regular dry shampoos. I love Original, Blush and Tropical.
**Garnier, Toni & Guy & Batiste were purchased by me, Pantene was a freebie in the mail, Simple I won, Alpha-H was provided for consideration, Neutrogena was provided to review on another site.**
