Cult Beauty Best of 2018 GWP.

I really do have a lot of beauty things 'in stock' at the moment but it has been a while since I did a Cult Beauty order and the above GWP was simply too good to miss out on!

It's rare that there aren't a few products that are a bit of a miss in a free bag but this one certainly appealed to me and there was only one item there that I knew I wouldn't use (Huda False Eyelashes).

Free with a £175.00 purchase all of the above treats came in a large canvas pouch (which I used for the photo's background) along with a black makeup bag and a £15.00 gift card to apply to a future order. Valued at over £300.00 the gift included seven full sized products!

There's a great mix of makeup and skincare, along with an eyeshadow brush, hair mask, a sample of Le Labo Santal 33 EDP and even some GoopGlow Skincare Supplements. 

I particularly like the way that this bag has been put together. It seems as if, not only are these some of the year's best sellers, there's a seasonal party theme going on, with sparkly (yet wearable) makeup items and a selection of skincare items that are geared towards getting a  much needed healthy glow back after all the late nights and parties!

Everything in this bag is great (yeah, except the lashes) but I'm particularly excited to see some of my favourites such as Omorovicza Moor Cream Cleanser and Dr Dennis Gross Dew It All Hyaluronic Eye Gel. I'm also looking forward to trying out Lixir Vitamin C Paste, a quick brightening mask that I've seen all over social media. 

Makeup items in gift bags usually leave me feeling a bit 'meh' but I'm actually excited about the ones in this bag, particularly the Jouer Lip Topper Gloss, Farsili Jelly Beam Illuminator, and Laura Mercier Glow Setting Powder.

In case you couldn't tell I'm over the moon about this GWP and while it is no longer available it's always worth signing up for Cult Beauty newsletters so you know when their next gift is available.

cultbeauty.com 

CVS Beauty Day Giveaway: October 2018.

I love those random Saturdays (I never see an announcement about them in advance!) when you walk into your local CVS and the beauty consultant is hovering by a stand full of bags of beauty samples which are being handed out to anyone who wants one irrespective of whether you have bought anything or not. Beauty samples are some of my favourite small treats so of course, I pick one up for myself if I'm ever in store when they are giving them away! 

On a recent Saturday, I was given a bag containing money off coupons and all of the goodies pictured above.

Nature's Bounty Hair Skin and Nail Gummies. 

I must admit to being a little sceptical about supplements but these orange flavoured gummies certainly tasted great.

Cerave Moisturising Lotion. 

I'm looking forward to trying out this basic, gentle moisturising lotion as people seem to love this brand.

Love, Beauty & Planet Argan Oil and Lavender Shampoo and Conditioner.

I've used these before and not only did they smell good they left my hair in great condition. I'm actually using the LB&P Argan Oil and Lavender Body Wash at the moment and really enjoying it.

La Roche Posay Anthelios 60 (SPF60). 

This is a favourite sunscreen of a lot of people but personally, I find it a little uncomfortable to wear. I'm always happy to have samples of sunscreen though as I carry one around in my bag at all times just in case...

Invisibobble Hair Ties. 

You can't go wrong with free hair ties and my hair is currently long enough to tie back so these are a winner in my book. There are three in this pack and I'm pleased that I got to try the 'blond' colour of these so they really should be 'invisible'.

Vichy Mineral 89 Booster. 

I love this Hydrating Booster and have already used a couple of bottles of it! It's a basic Hyaluronic Acid serum/booster which I like to use in the morning on top of a Vitamin C serum before my moisturiser and sunscreen. Bonus points to this sample for coming in a cute sachet.

Garnier SkinActive Soothing Facial Mist. 

I love facial sprays and mists so it's no surprise that I have already used this up. This spray has a soft rose fragrance and I like that it doesn't contain any alcohol at all. It's very reasonably priced and a good alternative to the Mario Badescu Facial Spray with Aloe, Rose and Herbs that I frequently buy.

Pantene 3 Minute Miracle Moisture Renewal Deep Conditioner. 

I've used this quick conditioning mask previously and found it to be effective. I always need extra conditioners so I'm happy with this sample. 

Dove Dry Skin Relief Gentle Cleansing Face Wash. 

I will try this out as a face wash but I expect I will end up using it as a body wash if it proves to be at all drying or foamy. 

La Roche Posay Toleriane Double Repair Moisturiser. I really like this moisturiser, it's very gentle and I like to use it if my skin feels in need of some TLC. It is a great product to use after a peel or any sort of exfoliation as well.

I'm very happy with this little goody bag. It's a nice mix of old favourites along with some new products to try and it's a great little perk especially as it was completely unexpected and was free!

Empties: October 2018.

I feel that I'm not doing as good a job as usual with my empties of late because I have been swapping up my routines and as a result have a lot of different products open all at the same time. Nevertheless, I did manage to finish twelve full-sized and twenty-three empties during October.

Skincare.

I only used three full-sized skincare items but I did manage to finish fourteen samples. 

I used two full-sized facial sprays. Caudalie Beauty Elixir is a classic, but I have to admit to not loving this one, I like the smell, but it feels a little drying on my skin. (I think that this is really overpriced for what it is). Little Barn Apothecary Coconut+Mint Cooling Mineral Mist was lovely however. It felt very fresh and cooling and the blend of coconut and mint smelled great. This spray contains aloe rather than water as its main ingredient so it was very hydrating as well. I have a ton of sprays and toners at the moment but I can definitely see myself repurchasing this in the future. The other full sized item I used was Algenist Complete Renewal Eye Balm. I like this eye cream, it is easily absorbed and addresses a whole range of eye area issues. It isn't the best eye cream I have used but it is fairly effective all around.

I enjoyed Odacite Black Mint Cleanser so much. This non-foaming liquid cleanser was fantastic to use in the morning, it was just minty enough to be invigorating and left my skin feeling clean but not stripped. This is top of my shopping list!

I liked Tula Exfoliating Treatment Mask a lot too. It is a pale blue clay type mask with a few exfoliating grains. I liked it because it didn't dry out and pucker my skin and wiped away easily. It also left my skin looking clear and bright and saved me having to use a cleansing clay mask and an exfoliating one.

The two serum samples by DCL that I used were both absolutely fantastic! DCL Skin Brightening Complexion Treatment is used in the morning and their C Scape High Potency Night Booster Serum is used at night. Together these two made a visible difference to my skin in just a couple of uses. My skin was brighter, more evenly toned and generally fresh and healthy looking after using this duo. They aren't cheap but they are powerful and they really do make a difference! 

Trilogy Q10 Booster Oil was a dryish oil that I loved using at night, it was plumping and easily absorbed.

I finished four samples of moisturiser. Caudalie VineActive 3-in-1 Moisturiser was just okay. It didn't do much for me beyond hydrating and I noticed that the formula had a tendency to separate in the tube which isn't great. La Roche Posay Toleriane is a very basic moisturiser for sensitive skin. I used this when my skin felt stressed or compromised, it's not an exciting product but it calms and hydrates nicely and it's very reasonably priced. La Mer The Moisturising Soft Cream always leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth but it is exorbitantly priced for what it is so its samples only of this one for me!

I used up two eye cream samples, both from La Mer. I really like The Eye Concentrate as it absorbs so well, it's very expensive though and doesn't impress me enough to actually by it. The Eye Balm Intense is a pale green cream, lighter in texture this also sinks in beautifully but I didn't find it as good as The Eye Concentrate.

I used three sunscreen samples. Coola Organic BB+ Cream SPF30 wasn't to my liking as it left an odd grey cast on my face and felt uncomfortable on my skin. Peter Thomas Roth Max Sheer All Day Moisture Defense Lotion SPF 30 is oil free but it still felt heavy and oily to me. I did like Clinique Pep Start Hydrorush Moisturiser SPF 20 though, a lightweight moisturising gel cream that layered well with other products and worked well under makeup.

Finally skincare wise I used up a mini ByTerry Baume de Rose. I know this cult product has many fans but it fails to impress me and I find the price of this shockingly high.

Bodycare.

I used four full-sized and four mini bodycare items.

Softsoap Shower Gels are a frequent drugstore purchase for me, they are cheap, they smell great and they leave my skin feeling pretty soft. I honestly don't think that you can beat these considering their price! 'Almond and Coconut' had a sweet summery scent that wasn't overpowering, and I really liked the 'Luminous Oil Coconut Oil and Lavender' which had a rich powdery, almost patchouli type of fragrance. I also finished up two of the Rituals Foaming Shower Gels. 'Yogi Flow' and 'Ritual of Sakura' are both slightly sweet florals. Of all the foaming shower gels on the market, these are the best as they dispense as a gel which then turns into a foam - the other cheaper ones that I have tried come out of the tin as a foam. I like these a lot but I do think that they are a bit uneconomical as I always get through these very quickly.

I've a few body lotions open at the moment so the only ones that I finished were samples. Jo Malone 'English Pear and Freesia' isn't a scent that I would have picked out for myself but I have to admit I loved how this smelled! These are very effective and luxurious body creams but not something that I could see myself buying as they are pretty expensive - they would make fantastic gifts though. I also used a sample of Nivea Aloe Vera Body Lotion. I love Nivea lotions and this smelled and felt very fresh but the sample was teeny tiny which felt a bit wasteful.

Crabtree & Evelyn hand creams are some of my favourites, they are so convenient for carrying around and the formula is great, soothing and moisturizing without being greasy. 'Old World Jasmine' smelled amazing, I love Jasmine anyway but this was perfectly blended so it just smelled clean and sweet rather than sickly. Molton Brown Gingerlily Hand Cream was very nice but didn't feel quite as nourishing as the C&E one and its scent was very light. I also used a sachet of Mario Badescu Hydrating Hand Cream, which felt nice and moisturising. It was very lightly scented and I liked it enough to consider purchasing it in the future. 

Haircare.

I finished three full sized and two samples of haircare. Rossano Ferretti 24/7 Vivace was a water weight leave-in conditioning spray. It smelled quite nice, like an old-fashioned ladies' hairdressers but I didn't feel that it did anything to my hair other than perfume it.

I used two travel sized Pantene Foam Conditioners both of which were 'Sheer Volume'. I can't help but feel that these are a tad gimmicky. The conditioner dispenses from the can as a foam and while it did an okay job of conditioning my hair it didn't add any volume and I used these up so quickly, each one only lasted around a week.

Aveda Smooth Infusion is intended to be used as a  pre-styling product but I merely used it on damp hair as a leave-in conditioner. It worked well but had a rather odd scent that smelled a little like curry, not unpleasant, but definitely odd! Philip B Light-Weight Deep Conditioning Creme Rinse was okay. Nothing outstanding so I don't see that it warrants it's high price.

Makeup and Perfume.

I used another ByTerry Terrybly Growth Boosting Mascara. I like the formula of this, it thickens, lengthens and defines lashes, although it doesn't add any curl and I didn't notice any growth but it does get a little flaky when it begins to dry out.

I used two perfume vials. Byredo Bal d'Afrique is a deep warm scent, perfect for colder weather. On me, it smells of amber and florals. I liked it but it is a little generic and there are examples of this type of fragrance that I like much better. Diptyque Fleur de Peau smells like warm skin, I love the initial scent of this but I cannot smell it on my skin at all, I really wish this one wore a little stronger.

And that's it for empties in October! All in all, I'm fairly pleased with what I managed to use up but I'm hoping to concentrate on using opened products and get through a few more in the way of full-size skincare items next month. Let's see if I will!