175. March Empties

Hello lovelies and welcome to April!

I've collected a fair few empties this month so I wanted to share my thoughts on them, with you. As you will see, all the products are high-street products, available from places like Boots and Superdrug. 

First up, one of my all time favourites: Soap and Glory's Heel Genius. I've written a full review of this amazing foot cream here, and I still swear by it to this day. It's incredibly moisturising and smells amazing - I've used it on my feet, elbows, basically anywhere with dry skin and it always does the trick. Although it's towards the pricier end of the scale, it is definitely something that I would repurchase as it's just so good. 

A new purchase for me, and one that I've already repurchased, is Provoke's Touch of Silver shampoo. I went for their twice a week brightening shampoo and, as suggested, used it once or twice a week to refresh my hair colour and keep brassy tones away. I wouldn't say that Touch of Silver completely eradicates brassy, yellow tones but I think it makes my hair appear a lot lighter after using it, as well as feeling fresh and clean. 

Shampoo seems to have been my 'thing' last month, as I also finished my L'Oreal Elvive Extraordinary Oil Nourishing Shampoo, which I bought on a whim one lunchtime. It claims to nourish dry hair from root to tip, leaving it soft, shiny and detangled. Perfect. Although it doesn't act as a miracle cure for my hair which is so prone to knots and split ends, it smells gorgeous and leaves my hair feeling nourished and soft. It also feels so luxurious to use, which is a definite winner for a budget hair care product! 

When you're as lazy as me, and your mane is as thick and as much of a pain to wash as mine, dry shampoo often acts as a life saver. I absolutely swear by Batiste's Dry Shampoo as I've always found it to do a better job, and have a much nicer scent, than the other offerings, from Superdrug's own brand to Herbal Essence's. I usually go for the Oriental scent which smells beautifully floral and fresh, it's a very 'girly' smell, that's for sure. And it certainly does what it says on the tin, or in this case - can, as it leaves my hair looked refreshed and feeling softer, rather than limp and greasy.

I've blogged about my love for Sure Maximum Protection anti-perspirant deodorant before, and I'm constantly banging on about it to anyone who'll listen, because it is incredible. If you're prone to 'getting your sweat on', whether it's from exercise, stress or that's just the way you are, this is the solution. It comes in a variety of scents and lasts 48 hours. No jokes. It even withstands baths and showers; it's like the cockroach and nuclear apocalypse scenario - it can survive anything. 

Whilst everyone raves about Benefit or Eyeko's latest eye liner offerings, I faithfully stand by my tried-and-tested, budget favourite - Collection's Fast Stroke Eyeliner. I've been using this eyeliner for as long as I can remember and, although I've tried others in between, this always comes out on top. The shape of the brush means that its easy to create either a thick or thin line, and flicks with ease, and it lasts all day - as pure black; none of that patchy, grey mess that you get with some eyeliners. For just £2.99, in Superdrug, you really can't go wrong if you want to give it a go!

Have you tried any of my March Empties?

Any products you'd recommend I try out this month?

121. Beauty // My Soap & Glory Favourites

Today I'm going to share four of my favourite Soap & Glory products. Soap & Glory are a brand that I've been familiar with for years - I remember buying Sexy Mother Pucker when I was about 13 years old, and thinking it was amazing (I've still not gotten over it!). I recently repurchased a few of their products and they've quickly become absolute essentials.

First up is 'Heel Genuis', which I've blogged about in the past - read more here. It's a lovely, thick, fresh-smelling moisturiser, specifically for feet and it works wonders. For the price it's totally worth it, as mine has only just run out, and I've had it for around six months, using it a few times a week. 

I also love Soap & Glory's 'Hand Food'. For starters, it smells divine - I just want to eat my hands after applying it, possibly why it's called Hand Food?! It soaks into my skin quickly and leaves no horrible sticky residue, but it does leave my hands feeling silky smooth. As I work in an office and spend a lot of time typing, writing and scrolling around on my mouse, the skin on my hands can get quite dry and irritated, but this stuff sorts it out completely. 

Sexy Mother Pucker XL 'Extreme-Plump' is another amazing Soap & Glory product. I love the tingly, buzzing feeling that you get after applying, and it lasts for a while (Shane, on the other hand, is not a big fan! When I kiss him whilst wearing this lip-gloss, he thinks his lips are 'burning' - what a wimp..). The actual lip-gloss itself doesn't last all that long but, to be honest, does lip-gloss ever?! I'm not sure how true the claims are that it makes your lips swell slightly and therefore look more 'plump' but I always feel like my lips look a lot fuller. 

Finally, another beautifully sweet smelling product from Soap & Glory, The Righteous Butter: this stuff is just perfect. It's a lovely, thick, creamy texture and it absorbs quickly too, leaving my skin feeling not only smooth but supple too. I swear by it after shaving my legs, and I've quickly got through half a tub in just a couple of months! It's wonderful to use after Soap & Glory's 'Flake Away' exfoliator. 

Soap & Glory really are a brand worth checking out. Their products not only work, but they smell delicious and their packaging is just so cool, I love the whole retro look! 

Have you tried any of Soap & Glory's products?

Which are your faves?

119. Lifestyle // Update

You may have noticed my lack of blogger-presence over the last few weeks, and I think it's about time I explained myself...

As those of you who follow me on Twitter or read my recent mental health post will know, I struggle with anxiety on a day-to-day basis. Sometimes blogging is a wonderful escape for me to write, without anxiety, without doubt, but other times, when my anxiety is really bad, even the internet fills me with panic.

Add into the mix, lots of other normal commitments, stresses and tasks, along with me handing my notice in at work, losing my grandad to cancer and, generally, just feeling quite lost - I, understandably, didn't feel like blogging. 

However, although everything is still up in the air and I'm, by no means, in a good place right now, I feel it's time I pull myself together and put my energy into things that I enjoy, such as blogging. 

Everybody goes through tough times, everybody has bad days, bad weeks or even bad months, and everybody feels a little (or a lot..) lost at times, but dwelling on it won't help - you can only help yourself.

And that's what I'm ready to do.

My mind is now brimming over with ideas for future posts, and I have a couple more planned over the next week or so, such as a #bookbloggers tag, a wishlist and a round-up of some of my favourite Soap & Glory products.

So keep your eyes peeled.

PS. My Blog Sale is still on - check it out here.

104. Beauty // My Top Moisturising Products

We all have our favourite moisturising products that we swear by, whether it's for our face, body, hair, or anywhere else, and today I'm going to share mine. Admittedly there are only two but, seriously, they are miracle workers.

About a month ago, I started to get really sore, cracked skin on my elbow (gross, I know, but oh-so-common) which - I figured - was a result of sitting at a desk all day, with my elbows rubbing against my clothes as they pressed against the desk. It got really painful so I went in search of something to help. In Superdrug I stumbled across a product by a brand that I really love, making all the claims that I needed to hear, so I thought I'd give it a go.

Palmers Shea Butter Formula with Vitamin E Concentrated Cream for extra dry skin well and truly came to my rescue. It's a very thick, creamy texture which takes a while to soak in and has a really bizarre smell (to me it smells of bananas, but maybe I'm just imagining that?!) but it seriously works wonders. I noticed a difference in the space of a few days, and now my elbows are 100% dry-skin-and-pain-free. I keep a tube of it on my desk all the time, apply it once or twice a day, and would recommend it to anybody with very dry skin.

Available from Superdrug, RRP £2.09/60g

As tights and boots are a major factor in about 99.9% of my outfits, my feet are - all too often - cursed with dry, hard skin, particularly on my heels and the balls of my feet. Although this doesn't cause me any discomfort, it looks horrible and when the skin on my feet started to feel like sandpaper, I knew that I had to find a solution.

Welcome Soap and Glory's Heel Genius. Round of applause, please. This product is, literally, amazing. Every night - well, almost - I apply the creamy, fresh-smelling lotion to my feet, massage it in and slip on a pair of cotton socks before bed and during the night, the magic happens (oo-er). After only a few uses, my feet were 10x softer and smoother and now, as long as I remember to use it at least every other day, they stay that way. 

I bagged this product super cheap at a car boot sale but it's something that I'll definitely be repurchasing time and time again.

Available from Boots, RRP £5.50/125ml

Have you tried any of these products?