December Empties / Products I've Used Up

What better way to round off the year than with an Empties post.  Here are the last bunch of products that will be hitting the recycling bin for 2013.

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The One & Only Make-Up Tag

I was tagged by the lovely Ana from Anagoesgreen to do the One & Only Tag that's currently circulating on the blogosphere.  It was tough going through my make-up collection and compiling what's essentially an ultimate favourites list, but here we go - these are my final picks to the question "If you could only have one.....what would it be?".

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Currently Using: Lip Balms!

It's no secret that I have something of an obsession with lip balms.  I have a tube, pot, stick, tin or even sphere of the stuff somewhere near me at all times.  If I didn't, I'd probably run to the nearest shop and purchase one, such is my dislike for dry, chapped lips.  I decided to count up how many of these lip saviors I have in current usage which involved a quick check of my handbags, desk drawers, coat pockets and generally any available surface space that could accommodate such an item.  The total that came back was nine!  So here are those nine lip balms that I currently have on the go:-

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January Favourites

January has finally come to an end (Hooray! We're getting closer to Spring!), so here's a roundup of the beauty products I have been loving throughout that cold, wintery month:-

The freezing cold weather we've had recently threatened to play havoc with my lips, but thanks to Dr. Lipp's Original Nipple Balm for Lips* and Korres Lip Butter in Jasmine, they have stayed happily hydrated and smooth.  I have also been reaching for this beautiful eco-sized terre d'Oc Natural Lipstick in Cerise* to try and get myself out of my neutrals make-up rut.

One of the best xmas sales bargains that I bought was the L'Occitane Almond Gift Set which had an enormous 500ml bottle of their much hyped Almond Shower Oil in it.  I'm pleased to say that it really does live up to its hype, although I still wish it was more almondy!  Another product that I feel deserves to be hyped up is the Laidbare For Richer For Porer Facial Masque*, a fantastic natural face mask that helps to reduce the size of pores and is perfect for oily/combination skintypes.

Lastly, although not strictly beauty, I think it's safe to say most bloggers either already love NEOM candles or have them on their imminent wishlists.  I bought a set of four travel sized ones in the sales and they have added a welcome touch of warming luxury to my home with their gorgeous scents.

What beauty products have you been loving lately?

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Winter Lips Saviour: Dr. Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips review

Dr. Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips* (15ml, £11.50, link)

If you've been following my blog for a while, you'll probably already know that I'm somewhat obsessed with lip balms.  And if a lip balm also doubles up (or triples up) as a brilliant multi-purpose product, I'm instantly happier than a mucky pig! 

When this tube of Dr. Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips arrived through my letterbox recently, I couldn't wait to give it a whirl.  As the name suggests, it was originally invented for nursing mothers with sore nipples, but its popularity soon grew as a cult multi-purpose product.  It can be used on any dry skin areas so it's ideal for cuticles, elbows, heels etc, and is also great for taming flyaway hair, smoothing fine lines under the eyes, and helping to heal minor burns and cuts.  My favourite way to use Dr Lipp is simply on the lips, and I've been reaching for it everyday since the snow started to fall.  I only need to use a tiny amount and my lips look glossy and feel soft and moisturised for a couple of hours.  I also like that it doesn't have any taste or scent to it, so it's nice to use under lipsticks.

Dr. Lipp is made from 100% pure medical grade lanolin** which is the same ingredient that's used in Lanolips 101 Ointment (which I also love).  Are there any differences between the two?  Well, I'd say that the main difference is that Lanolips is a slightly thicker formula and that Dr. Lipp delivers more of a glossy shine to the lips, so I prefer Lanolips as an all round multi-purpose product and Dr. Lipp as mainly a lip balm.  Other than that, they're pretty much the same IMO.

**For those who don't know, lanolin is a grease that's secreted by sheep and extracted from their wool.  It's used by sheep as a natural 'weatherproofer' to protect against the elements, which is why it's so commonly used in lip products etc.  Whilst I personally don't have any problems with using products that contain lanolin, I wanted to note that it can cause allergic reactions in some people (e.g if you're allergic to wool, you'll likely be allergic to lanolin too).  Sugarpuffish has an interesting post about it here if you'd like to find out more.

What are your winter lips saviours?

Do you use or avoid lanolin?

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