Sample Saviour Spending Ban: Update

It’s finally November which means that my Sample Saviour Spending Ban is over (you can read my original post here)! It was a real struggle for me, as I’m used to buying makeup and skincare products a few times a week. I was also hampered by the fact that my work roster changed at the last minute, meaning that I was stuck out bush minus most of my samples for the last half of the month. That meant that I really only had 2 weeks where I was regularly using samples. Given that my sample using time was halved, I think I did a pretty good job!

As a reminder, I started with:

25 sample sachets

18 deluxe or travel sized samples

I managed to use:

16 sample sachets

9 deluxe or travel sized samples

This is actually the first time that I’ve tallied up everything and I’m quite impressed with myself! Here’s what I managed to use up.

Skincare

Boots Optiva Aqua-Capture Serum – A nice, quick absorbing serum but sadly, I didn’t see any visible results from the 3-4 days use I managed to get out of the sachet.

MOR Hand Cream – I had five different scents: Sugar Rose Tiger Lily, Honey Nectar, Blackcurrant Iris, Basil & Grape and Neroli Clementine. These were delicious and I’d love to track down a full size.

Nutri-Synergy Heel Balm Complex – This was AMAZING! In one use, it completely transformed my scaly lizard feet and I was lucky enough to have been recently sent a full size. 

Bioderma Eye Contour Gel – I don’t know why they don’ just call this an eye cream cos that’s what it is! It was quite runny for an eye cream and it did quite a good job at reducing puffiness but it’s not top on my list of must-have eye creams.

Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil – This was a super lightweight argan oil and probably one of the better ones I’ve tried. I used it as an overnight treatment and my skin looked for plump and radiant the next day! I don’t really like to use oils much in summer but I’ll keep this one in mind for next winter.

Trilogy Very Gentle Calming Serum – I was so impressed with this sample! From the picture, I was expecting an oil but it’s actually a gel-like, creamy serum that worked an absolute treat and I will be adding it to my must-haves. 

Boots Serum 7 Protecting Day Cream – I wasn’t a huge fan of this one, I found it just a little too thick and greasy for my skin.

Dr Lewinn’s Sensitive Cleansing Milk – I have strongly mixed feelings about this one. It left my skin feeling quite soft but not all that well cleansed so I would probably not purchase a full size version.

Bioderma Sebium & Crealine H2O – Micellar cleansing waters are all the rage at the moment and while these two were great, I am more than happy with my Garnier Micellar Water which is a fraction of the price. 

Dr Lewinn’s Day Cream Moisturiser – I did not like this at all! It was much too greasy for my skin and I also found the scent very off-putting, it kind of smelled like plasticine. 

Dermalogica Solar Defence Booster SPF 50+ - I’ve heard so many good things about this sunscreen but I personally wasn’t a fan. I didn’t like the herby smell and I found it quite greasy (that seems to be my main complaint about a lot of these samples!).

Alpha H Daily Essential Moisturiser SPF30+ - This sunscreen was a big big winner for me. It was quite lightweight and absorbed really easily. As someone who spends almost all day in the blazing sun, it’s super important to me to have a great sunscreen and this one makes the grade for sure.

Haircare

Schwarzkopf Professional Quality Conditioner – I love the conditioners that come with boxes of hair dye and this one is no exception. It left my locks soft, shiny and shampoo-ad worthy!

Decolour Conclude Balm – The name is just a fancy word for conditioner I think. It was a pretty good one but I preferred the Schwarzkopf one.

Make Up

Make Up Forever High Definition Pressed Powder – So much yes! This translucent setting powder was amazing and I wouldn’t hesitate to purchase a full size.

Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Foxy – I already have this as part of the Naked 2 and Naked Basics palettes but it’s one of my favourite shades and it wasn’t hard to incorporate it into my routine. 

Benefit’s Agent Zero Shine – Another of my HG shine busters, I already have this in the full size so it wasn’t hard to use up a mini-version. I cannot recommend this enough for oily skinned girls.

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Original – You guessed it, I’ve got the full size! To be honest, I don’t wear eyeshadow primer that often (gasp!) but if you do want to make certain colours pop or make sure a look stays put all day, this is your product.

La Roche Possay Melt-In BB Cream – The problem that I have with a lot of BB creams is how awfully orange they are but this one is an actual skin colour and I love it! It does what it says on the packaging and melts in to blend with your skin.

BareMinerals Stroke of Light Concealer – I am in LOVE with this product and I wouldn’t hesitate to purchase a full size. I’ve been on the hunt for a new concealer for a while and I’m pretty sure this is it!

Now to the all-important question, did I break my spending ban? …..Yes I did BUT when you see what I broke it for, I’m sure you’ll agree that it was a worthy choice! I happened to be on Amazon when I saw that the Limited Edition Lorac Mega Pro Palette was back in stock and I was still sore about missing out the first time so I hopped on that bandwagon and clicked purchase. I’m really happy that I did because it’s an amazing palette and I feel that if there was anything worth breaking a spending ban for, the Mega Pro is a pretty worthy choice. It was also the only slip up I had so I’m pretty pleased with myself!

Image from LORAC because I haven't managed to take any photos of my baby yet!

I actually quite enjoyed using up samples, although I wasn’t a big fan of having to close my eyes whenever I walked past Priceline or Mecca! I’m hoping that I’ll be able to cling to my newly formed spendthrift habits and maybe be a bit less frivolous with my cash now that I know I can do it…mostly.

Dani xo