There is another set of products that I have accumulated over past months. Some of these are new to the stores and some are just new to me. There is a bit of everything and surprisingly a lot of drugstore hair care. 

Panetene Pro-V Intensive Repair 3 in 1 and Reapir & Care Conditioner

Seems like Pantene is all I have been buying for my hair lately. It's the cheapest drugstore hair brand that actually has amazing formulas for dry and damaged hair. Plus the price is right as well. Repair range is suited for dry and damaged hair. I especially like their hair conditioner. 3 in 1 was bought for me to take to the holiday and it worked out great as well. It removed salt out of the hair well and made them soft as well as moisturized. I already used up hair conditioner and bought Skin Food version again, because it's even more nourishing and will be great for those colder months, when my ends break a lot and get much drier. But Repair version is also nice, especially for dry and damaged hair. It nourishes and moisturizes it.

Pantene Pro-V Aqua Light Shampoo

Another shampoo by Pantene that I bought on a whim and I like it. It's for hair that gets greasy quickly and supposedly doesn't weight them down. I have thin hair and this feels lightweight enough and also doesn't make my hair greasy any sooner, so I like it. It seems like a good everyday option for those with greasy roots that shampoo their hair often like I do. 

Panetene Pro-V 3 Minute Miracle Extra Volume Conditioner

This was on sale, because I think it's either getting repackaged or is being discontinued all together. It was ok. I didn't seem to get any major difference than using the usual hair conditioner and there wasn't any impressive volume. I think of this more as a conditioner and not a mask. Hair masks are usually much more nourishing and that one was just ok and not impressive. All of Pantene products have really nice sweet sort of fruity scent to them.


Pantene Pro-V Volume + Colour Glow Conditioner

I believe this is the new repackaged volume line, but it was on sale as well, so I am not sure, if this will be staying or not. It's another one for volume, but I don't really notice any difference. It smells nice and makes my hair soft enough as well as moisturized and that's all. So not bad, but nothing revolutionary either. 

Batiste Dry Shampoo - Naughty and Nice

Batiste dry shampoos are my absolute favorite dry shampoos. They are the only drugstore version that I have tried so far that actually soaks up all that greasiness and refreshes your hair. Granted, dry shampoo will also add texture to your hair and matte finish, but that doesn't bother me. I like added texture, because it makes my hair look more voluminous. I saw these two naughty and nice versions in our Müller and since design was so pretty, I got them both. I'm not sure, if I already had those scents before. Naugthy smells more oriental strong and nice is more creamy sweet. But they both have such nice scents. I have already repruchased more of these two scents. 

Etude House 0.2 Therapy Air Mask - Snail and Madecassoside

Etude House makes one of my favorite sheet masks, because they are affordable, sheet is thin enough and esssences are usually nice as well. These two were purchase based on Mateja's reviews (snail and madecassoside). Snail slime is known for its healing and moisturizing capabilities and I definitely felt like this mask helped me heal pimples faster. It has nice milky essence. Madecassoside is essentially made out of Centella Asiatica herb, which is very well known in Asia and is great for sensitive skin. I tried it only once so far and I can't find my memos of it, so I'll have to report back, when I use it again. But I remember it being nourishing and soothing on my skin. 

Lisa Eldridge Plush True Velvet Lipstick Colour - Velvet Ribbon

This is by far the most boujee makeup lipstick in my stash. It's high end priced and the packaging is luxurious, from the bullet to the actually weighted gold metal. Velvet Ribbon is classic neutral medium red shade that will pretty much suit any skin tone. I knew I wanted a classic shade that will go with everything. These lipsticks are made by Lisa Eldridge, a well known makeup artist that has worked with many makeup brands as their creative director, so she definitely knows her technology and design behind it. It's a masterpiece from the velvet looking bullet to actual soft formula that has insane pigment and doesn't feel drying or look too matte. It's not something you need, because you can get amazing red lipstick at a drugstore price, but it was just one of those products that I wanted to treat myself with, because I love Lisa and for me it was worth it. I never get dry lips while wearing it, although formula isn't moisturizing either. Finish is such a wearable matte. I have worn it several times already.

Essence Stay 8h Lipliner 03 so default

I believe these are new in Essence range and since I've had only good experiences with Essence lip liner, I wanted to try these as well. They are that type of a lip pencil that doesn't need to be sharpened, but there is small plastic sharpener attached to it, so you can shape it into a sharp point. It's creamy in a way that it glides on the lips without tugging, but has a lot of pigment and doesn't feel greasy or moves on the lips at all. Once it's on, it's quite long lasting. But it will leave a bit of that sticky layer on the lips. Shade is such a wearable dusty rose that is a bit darker than my natural lips. So far, I like it, although texture might feel a bit heavy for my taste.


Manhattan Brow Pro Micro 24h Precision-Stroke Pen 002 Soft Brown

I really want to find a good drugstore felt tip or brush brow pen. This is the first one that I saw in Austria that drew my attention. It was fairly affordable. Because it's a felt tip, you have to store it upside down or it won't get saturated properly. It actually works well. Color is like a light grey brown, but there is almost some olive tint to it. It's not a dead match for my natural brown, but I can make it work. It's fair enough that it doesn't look too dark. Once its on, it's on. I find it to be very long lasting and so far it performs well. I would prefer even thinner tip on it. 

Inglot AMC Liner Matte 77 and Duraline

I have waited for these products for quite some time. When Inglot came to Beauty Bay I was so excited, but it sold out in the matter of few hours. Especially their more well known products, like these two. Let me start off that I was so disappointed with their gel liner. Granted, I wore it in the summer heat, but still...this is being advertised and promoted by beauty gurus as one of the most smudge-proof gel liners and mine smudged like crazy. I've had cheaper drugstore alternatives that held on better than this. Seems like such a waste of money. So I am trying to figure it out, how to make it works before I try to resell it.

Duraline, on the other hand, is another story. This is mixing medium or liquid that you mix with any powder or cream products to make them liquid and waterproof. So far I have used it with different powder eyeshadows to create liquid liner and once this sets on the skin, it doesn't move at all. It's definitely waterproof. This will give you endless options of creating colorful eyeliners from any eyeshadow. I have to further investigate this products to see its full potential, but this so worth the price. One drop is almost always too much, so it will last you a long time.

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion Original

I have had this primer in the past and I was most impressed with how long it lasted me. I've had mini travel size before and this one is mini as well, and it lasted me about 6 months. I purchased it again, because I don't own any good eyeshadow primers right now and I felt like this one performed well. It's a bit pricey, for sure, but it lasts me long enough to justify it. It has sponge applicator and it's more of a transparent silicon primer, so don't expect it to cover vains or discoloration. I have gotten some comments saying that NYX eyeshadow base is also nice, so I might invest in that one next. 

Skin Fairytale - Atopic Cream and Zinc Balm

My eczema has been flaring up again, especially after discontinuing use of corticosteroid creams and I have been trying everything to get it to a descent state. Nothing really helps so far, it just relives symptoms. Since I heard so many people raving about Skin Fairytale creams (which is Slovenian brand), I wanted to try them out as well. As far as I know, this is more of natural brand, and I am one of those people that believes in pharmacy based products when it comes to dealing with heavy-duty issues - like eczema.  But I gave it a go anyway. Atopic Cream didn't impress me. I saw some amazing results with atopic dermatitis with kids and this cream, but it just didn't work for me personally. Although I so hoped it would. I must have expected miracles from it, to be honest. It's a thicker white cream which I like, but I felt I needed more greasiness to it. I expected it to coat my hands with some extra nourishment that lasts, but it soaked in the skin quickly and my hands still looked very dry most of the time. It didn't help to heal wounds any quicker either. There was some nourishment to it and maybe a bit of relief, but the results I expected from it, were underwhelming. It's also not the cheapest and I must have used it up in a month.

Zinc Balm was a different story. My type of eczema is dishydrotic eczema, which means my skin forms small liquid filled bubbles (often times inflamed), which itch and once they burst, they leave behind cracked wounds. Bubbles are underneath epidermis and sometimes need a long time to pop. Zinc is one of those ingredients that helps to dry them out as well as helps with the itchiness. I felt like this cream actually dried them out a bit faster. Especially, when I applied it over night. I think of zinc balm more of as a treatment and not a nourishing cream for everyday use. So I am still on a search for alternatives to help my skin look less dry and not further irritate it and that I can use daily, multiple times a day. It's hard to find affordable options that don't irritate and nourish your skin, because I use huge amounts of this through the day and I don't want to spend 40€ on a cream that will last me only 2 to 3 weeks. Obviously, when you're skin is that bad, you're willing to try anything in hopes of at least helping a bit with the symptoms.

Essence Peel Off Base Coat Nail Polish

Products like that always excite me and I really hoped this works. So far I have only tried it on its own, on one finger. I feel like I will have to apply a very thick layer of this to make it peel of easily, which may need longer to dry down. But I hope it works. I also remember Essence having a similar product in the past and that one didn't perform as well, so I hope they changed the formula. Since my eczema flared up so bad, I don't apply any nail polish on my nails to prevent further irritations, so I don't know when I'll have the chance to properly test it out. But I'll report back, at least on my Instagram. 

Lidl Silver Crest Straightening Hair Brush

Silver Crest is Lidl or Aldi brand. I wanted one of those hair straightening brushes for a while. Actually, ever since I first tried one in a beauty event. I have to wash my hair in the evening, because I don't have time to do it in the morning anymore, so through the night my hair gets all wavy and the ends usually turn out or in. I have used hair straightener every morning and I felt like this damaged my hair a lot. This brush seemed like a less aggressive version to get my hair into somewhat uniformed straight look. I always use it on lower temperatures, but I feel like I should go up higher with this than with hair straightener. It's not as powerful. But it also doesn't damage hair as bad, since one side is open and you don't close hair in between two heated plates. It doesn't make my hair pitch straight and they definitely don't stay as straight as with a regular hair straightener, but it's enough to make my hair look descent for every day. I don't regret buying it. It was cheaper than with most hair brands, but it's also a bit less refined and powerful. 

Nivea Deo Beauty Elixir Deomilk Sensitive Anti-Perspirant*

Packaging

Nivea recently came out with new anti-perspirant that actually contains some of their famous body milk ingredients. The whole concept is supposed to be nourishing anti-perspirant that doesn't just prevent you sweating and smelling bad, but also adds some nourishment to your freshly shaved armpits. It contains calcium, vitamin C and E as well as pro-vitamin B5. I find idea great. There needs to be more nourishing ingredients added to everyday body and skin care products anyway.

Simplistic white aerosol design with simple typography is nice and you can lock it, so there's no mistake of spraying it while transporting. It has nice enough fine spray.

In it is 150 ml of product and the price is around 4€.

Formula

It's a light, sort of milky spray, but leaves no wide residue on the skin or clothes. It dries down to a dry, but comfortable finish. I find it to definitely be a bit more nourishing then other such products. It also doesn't sting my skin at all, because it doesn't contain any alcohols.

There are three scents available - Sensitive, Dry and Fresh.  I believe these also come in a roll on version, if you prefer that.

Performance

Sensitive definitely felt gentle enough and the scent is typical Nivea, sort of creamy and almost powdery. It didn't prevent me sweating, because I always sweat, but at least I didn't smell bad. I liked it a lot. So much, that I already bought Dry version and am looking forward to trying that one out as well. 

Avon Nutra Effects Boost Sheet Mask Hydration Boosting*

Packaging

It has very thin cotton sheet. The fit is good and I like that it covers brows and it's tight around the mouth. There's a cut around smile lines that lets you overlap the sheet to fit perfectly. It is soaked with essence.

Formula

Essence is transparent, thinner and lightweight. There is a good amount of leftover essence. It has subtle, but sort of artificial scent, but I believe there is no added fragrance in it.

Performance

I used it on very dry skin and at first it felt a bit stinging, which must be due to the acids in it. It felt moisturizing, but I would say it's pretty basic. This wouldn't be enough for really dry or very sensitive skin. It leaves behind a sticky layer which makes it feel slightly more nourishing.

Judith Williams Firming Face Serum and Lifting Sheet Mask 

I found this in Austrian DM a while back. I didn't pay much attention to it, until I read more about EGF ingredient being used in skin care. EGF stands for epidermal growth factor and it's apparently the new "it" skin care ingredient. It's main function is promoting healing which results also in wrinkle improvement, hydration and pigmentation prevention. I realize much of this is just marketing, but what can I say, this was affordable and I wanted to try it out. I have been missing a good serum in my routine anyway and the sheet mask was even cheaper than some of Balea ones.

So far, I've noticed that serum has nice slightly nourishing texture, but it's so heavily scented that I was afraid to use it. It seems with good reason though, because I feel like this was the reason I broke out on my face. So I stopped using it for a while and am waiting for my skin to get in better shape before I try it again. 

I haven't tried sheet mask either, but I'll report on it on my Instagram Stories. 

Max Factor Miracle Touch Skin Perfecting Foundation With Hyaluronic Acid And SPF 30 - 080 Bronze*

Packaging

I believe this is revamped and now contains also hyluronic acid. It comes in a glass pot with plastic top. In it is 11.5 grams of product and it costs 14.99€.

Formula

It's a cream foundation that actually has a good glide to it. As soon as I touch it with fingers it sort of melts and gets almost liquid. I didn't notice any hardness to this formula, but Mateja said hers felt too hard to touch and didn't come off on the brush.

Colors

I got it in the darkest shade 080 Bronze, which is obviously too dark for me. It's medium warm shade. I mixed it in with other foundation to try it on and I used it on its own as a bronzer as well. 

Performance

I can't say how this performs, since obviously I never wore it on its own. But I didn't notice it coming off unevenly. It felt like a medium coverage and blended well. But don't take my word for it, as I said, it is too dark for me, so I never use it all over the face.