Empties #5

Herbal Essence Bee Strong Conditioner

This is surprisingly good for a drugstore conditioner and it's so affordable at only 2.45€ per bottle. I love the effect of it, the scent is nice and it moisturises my dry, coarse hair very well. My only real gripe is the packaging because when it's about to run out, you need Hercules' strength to get the rest of the product out (hence why mine in cut in the middle). I know there is a pot version available, which I'd prefer, but it's not sold in my country.

Repurchase: Yes.

John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Moisturising Conditioner

An absolutely lovely conditioner that I have been repurchasing for years and have rarely been without a tube of this in my bathroom. In fact, I currently have a 500 ml bottle of this with a pump.

Repurchase: Yes.

Dove Nourishing Oil Care Express Treatment Conditioner

(a.k.a. Dove Oil Care Nährplege 1 Minute Kur-Spülung)

I used up another one of these - I must have gone through at least a dozen tubes so far. This is one of my favourite drugstore treatments for dry hair. It's very thick, which I love, works great on my dry hair and it smells gorgeous. I recently bought the blue Intensive Repair version to try and it's nice as well, but I still prefer this one.

Repurchase: Yes.

Tigi Bed Head Masterpiece Massive Shine Hairspray

This was my only hairspray for years. I used to love it, but since I discovered Lee Stafford's Hold Tight, I find it a bit sticky from the start and doesn't hold as well as I would like. It can also feel a bit crispy, especially when you really go to town with it, while at Lee Stafford that doesn't happen to me. That being said, this is still a great hairspray and my second favourite. It smells like pineapples (like the (old) Dumb Blonde line), so obviously I like it. 

Repurchase: Probably not, only if Lee Stafford's Hold Tight gets discontinued.

L'Oreal Elvital Volume-Collagen Push-Up Spray

I actually bought this only for the packaging. I needed a better, preferably a spray bottle for Alpecin Medicinal Forte that needs to be applied on the scalp. The nozzle looks right, however, the I find it so hard to squeeze.
So on to the actual product. It's a volume spray that is supposed to be applied close to the the roots. It's a liquid that pretty much feels like water and can be used on damp or dry hair. Due to it's lightness, it doesn't weigh down the hair at all. I notice no additional volume, which is not surprising considering that it has no hold at all. It has a high alcohol content, which is never a good thing in my book, and it also contains sollutable collagen - in all honestly, I have no idea how collagen would be creating volume. It has a chemical scent that is nothing special nor does it last. There are far better volumising products.

Repurchase: No.

The Body Shop Coconut Oil Hair Shine

I wanted to like this, but I just can't. Though the ingredients are nice and there are no silicones, it feels too waxy. As a dry ends treatment on dry hair, it feels too heavy, waxy and it doesn't even give much of a shine. As a pre-wash treatment, it doesn't do much of anything either, particularly compared to proper coconut oil. This has a very hard consistency, especially if it's left in bellow 22°C degrees, so it's hard to scoop it out. You need to warm it up a lot between the hands and then it turns into a waxy oil. I place it on a radiator before use and it feels much more creamy, almost buttery and therefore easier to work with. It smells strongly like hazelnuts to me. The tin is nice and great for travel, I just wish there were a better product inside.

Repurchase: No.

Orofluido Shine Spray

It does what it's supposed to and nothing more. This is a typical shine spray with a high alcohol content as so many of them, though it didn't dry out my hair. As it's expected, it gives lot of shine, but doesn't weight down the hair. Orofluido packed it with their delightful fragrance, so I loved using it as a hair fragrance. It's nice, but I prefer Orofluido Sahara because it also provides care on top of shine (but it is much heavier than this). 

Repurchase: No, but it's nice for those whose hair gets weighted down by products and just want shine.

Rosal Milk and Honey Lip Balm

This is a very waxy feeling lip balm, but still moisturising, though you can feel how it mostly just coats the lips. This waxiness makes it less appropriate for wearing it under a lipstick. The scent is more of a honey and milk meet plastic and beeswax, but not in a bad way. 

Repurchase: No.

Labello Soft Rose Lip Balm

A very average lip balm, but one that a lot of people have/had and some really like it. It really doesn't stand out in any respect, neither the scent, colour or effect.

Repurchase: No.

Balea Sweet Wonderland Lip Balm

I used this only once and I'm tossing it. The scent is a weird, chocolate-chemical one, nothing like the yummy smelling shower gel from this LE. The texture and the moisturising power are below average.

Repurchase: No.

Yves Rocher Noix de Coco Malaysian Coconut Lip Balm

Apart from the scent, which is one of the best coconut scents I tried, it's just not worth it. It's not really moisturising and the packaging is very impractical. The opening is way to small, so the only way to get the product out is with a lip brush and I just can't be bothered. 

Repurchase: No.

Essence Matte Top Coat

I actually ended up using this a lot also as a base. It may sound odd to use it in such a way, but I like it because it dries in less than 10 seconds. The bottle didn't last me that long and what was left got completely unusable.

Repurchase: Not sure if they sell it any more, but I liked it.

Essence Profi-Nail File 4 in 1

I bought several of these so far. There are four different textures: one to trim, one to clean, one to smooth and one to polish the nails. I like it, it does what it's supposed to, does that well, and it's affordable. I still have one that I use all the time.

Repurchase: Not sure if they sell it any more, but I'm sure Essence has a similar one and I will purchase that one.

Have a great day!

Oh, Honey

It's time for one of those post again, when I have a craving for a certain scent and go all bonkers for all the products (previous posts for coconut, chocolate/cocoa, tropical and peach). This time it's honey.

 Lush Honey I Washed the Kids  

HIWTK is probably one of the most famous products by Lush. It's a bar soap and honestly, a pretty average one when it comes to quality. Though it's marketed for dry skin, I find it drying as any other much cheaper bar soap and it leaves that (for me) awful stripped, squeaky clean feeling. I got quite a big 200 g chunk of it because that was the smallest piece they had at the time, but I cut it in much smaller pieces to use. The top "honeycomb" part is essentially useless. It smells exactly like Honey Bee bath bomb, Soft Coeur massage bar and the already discontinued Ma-Bar bubble bar. I don't get any honey at all, rather a very gourmand, toffee scent, however, it is not one of my favourites (I do like it and everyone that sniffed it, loved it so far). Though the scent is relatively strong, in my experience it doesn't last that long on the skin, which is a a pity. It is priced €4.95  for 100g.
If you want a shower gel version of HIWTK, it is called It's Raining Men. I didn't get it because I hate Lush's plastic bottles with passion as they are so bloody hard to squeeze. 

 The Body Shop Honeymania Body Butter

I'm a fan od TBS body butters, actually this is my seventh so far and it is another great quality product. Texture-wise it's similar to the shea butter, grapefruit and passion fruit versions from TBS, which in my opinion is one of their best kind - properly buttery, not too hard and easy to apply. You might be surprised at how freshly floral the scent is when you smell it in the pot. I certainly was concerned at the lack of honey, however, applied on the skin, the proper honey note finally appears. It's a nicely blended mix of soft honey note with a fresh wildflowers scent. It may not be a warm, sweet scent that L'Occitane excels at, but it's a well made floral interpretation, which I find quite lovely.
By the way, we need TBS in Slovenia. Just sayin'.

 L'Occitane Honey Foaming Gel

If there is one company that makes their honey scents perfectly, it's L'Occitane. So far all the products I tried from their various honey lines were amazing. Unfortunately, they have all been discontinued or LE, including the Honey Foaming Gel, which has a gorgeous sweet honey scent and jelly-gel texture. It is basically the same thing as the discontinued Honey Harvest Foaming Jelly from their old honey line. This is the best honey scent I've found so far.

Fame eau de Parfum by Lady Gaga
Fame became my favourite scent mainly because it has honey in it. However, this is not a full-on honey scent, but rather a lovely honey-floral fragrance with a strong fruity note in the beginning represented by apricot and a hint of smokiness from the incense. I did a full review here.

 Burt's Bees Honey Lip Balm

A lip balm that smells like soft honey mixed with beeswax and I also detect a hint of rose (it's an earthy, natural scent). The texture is quite waxy for a lip balm, therefore not my favourite, yet it's still an okay product. What I like about it is how small the tube is, so I carry it in my overstuffed makeup/essentials mini zip bag that's in my bag. However, I doubt I'll ever repurchase it since I've had it for a year and rarely used it.
I stumbled upon Burt's Bees products in Müller and almost every product has a tester there. I was sadly disappointed by all the scents, it's not what I expected by a brand with a honey tradition.

Rosal Lip Balm Milk & Honey

Another lip balm, but this time in the milk and honey version. The scent is more of a honey and milk meet plastic and beeswax, but not in a bad way. It's pretty much just a run-of-the-mill lip balm. Basic is the best way to describe it and most like petroleum jelly in a sense that it feels like it's just coating the lips rather than nourishing them. It's really similar to Labello (Nivea) lip balms in texture. I wouldn't repurchase since I already found my HG lip balm (Palmer's cocoa butter formula Swivel stick). This is Croatian brand and mine is a bit old now, so I don't know in which countries it's sold, but's it's inexpensive and comes in a lot of flavours. Labello has a honey and milk scented lip balm as well, but I have never tried it.

Milka Milchcréme & Honig

I found this on my recent trip to Müller. Milka often has fun new editions and honey is one of the current ones. It's can get quite sticky if you're not careful because the drops of honey ooze from the chocolate, but the taste is surprisingly good. It's mostly regular Milka with cream, but that bit of honey gives it that bit of extra yummy sweetness.

Some more honey based products
I've been eyeing the Lavera Body Spa Organic Honey Moments line that is available in a local Müller but I never took the plunge as my previous experience with this brand was not that great. It sound interesting though, especially since it has a eau de toilette in the line.

Whilst researching for best honey scented products I came across a recommendation for Kings & Queens Nefertiti Honey Body Butter (a part of Korres brand), which supposedly smells like very sweet honey. But since I can't see it in person, I doubt I'll go as far and buy it.

As an affordable option there is always Balea and their Milch & Honig line of products. I recall having a hand soap, but I believe I was unimpressed by it and switched to by favourite Peach & Nectarine version.

The amount of rave reviews Antipodes Aura Manuka Honey Mask got is good enough reason by itself to include it here. It's described as a deeply moisturising, cleansing and anti-oxidising treatment, but it is not the cheapest face mask.

Though Marc Jacobs Honey eau de parfum has honey only in it's name, I included it here solely because I find the bottle adorable. I tested it yesterday and it smells like fruit punch. Why name it Honey then, right? At least Daisy smells like daisies.

NUXE's Reve de Miel line with it's famous Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm, is a line of products for all dry and sensitive skin types. It consist of several products and I've read some great reviews for most of them. They are quite expensive, though.

Tigi Catwalk Oatmeal & Honey Conditioner is an old favourite of mine. I used it for years before it was discontinued and now it's finally being relaunched with an addition of a hair mask to the original shampoo and conditioner. It doesn't smell exactly like honey, but it does smell like Christmas cookies: vanilla, cinnamon and gingerbread - all the goodness that make washing your hair a special treat. Once I use up my stash of hair masks and conditioners, I'm definitely buying it again.


That's quite a lot of honey based products. Most brands use honey in at least a few of their products, but there are rare ones that actually smell like honey. I still use honey as a face mask when my skin gets super dry (it was my saviour a few years ago, when my skin became dry) and I even used honey as a face wash for a few months, though I wouldn't recommend it because it's very difficult to completely wash it off.
If you have any recommendations for products with a good honey scent, write them in the comments.

Have a great day!