Beginning of the month means one thing here on BA HQ. Time to whip out the hits and misses of June! I’ve combined my May and June favourites and not-so-favourites in one post because I, er, forgot to do a May hit and miss list so … here you go! Things like that happen sometimes here, folks. I’m not that organised after all. 😛

I’ve also added a few non-beauty favourites this time which I love in June. Alrighty then, let’s get started!

The Hit List

Embryolisse Soothing, Protective & Repair Lip Balm*
I brought a brand new lip Embryolisse lip balm with me at the start of my trip to Japan and by the end of the 14th day, I have about 1/3 left. I love it! The condition of my lips was absolutely awful after 2 plane rides due to the very dry airplane air and caused my lips to crack and bleed. The skin on the outline of my lips were so crusty that it formed a perpetual lip liner for well over a week. Although the lip balm didn’t heal my chapped lips quickly, it soothed it enough so that my lips didn’t hurt so much. Tim enjoyed using it too, which is surprising because he hates applying lip balm.

Clairol Herbal Essences Naked Volume Shampoo and Conditioner*
I’ve always loved shampoos and conditioners from Clairol Herbal Essences simply because they smell so. Damn. Good. The Naked range didn’t disappoint either. I love the slight zing of the shampoo (it contains menthol) and the conditioner really softens my hair. The shampoo and conditioner are silicone-free. My hair loves it so I’m definitely getting more bottles of these once I’ve run out.

Dermalogica Age Smart Dynamic Skin Recovery SPF 50*
I’m very used to lightweight Japanese sunscreens so when I first tried this creamy, medium-weight sunscreen out, I was quite worried that it was going to be a tad thick and greasy on my skin. I’m glad that wasn’t the case. My skin particularly likes it now that it’s winter and the air is dry. It keeps my skin UV-protected thanks to the high SPF and it also keeps it hydrated on top of the moisturiser. I’m not super keen on the scent but it’s easily forgiven for the rest of the good things that it does for my skin.

MUJI Face Soap Scrub*
I discovered a number of MUJI beauty products the past month and for the ones I’ve tried so far, the scrub made it into my Hit list for June. It’s a physical exfoliator but it doesn’t contain that much scrubby bits that makes the scrub harsh. It’s a good facial scrub that doesn’t cost a lot either (cheaper than a lot of drugstore brands).

The Miss List

Elucent Whitening Day Moisturiser
I brought a deluxe sample of this during my holiday to use as a body sunscreen because it contains a high SPF of 30. Unfortunately, I didn’t like this, not one bit. This is actually meant to be a face sunscreen but it’s so thick and white that it didn’t only leave a grey cast on my skin (on my body, not even the face!), it was very greasy and didn’t dry quickly. I wore shorts most of the time and sunscreen residue from the back of my thighs would stain chairs. A big no-no in my books.

MUJI Moisture Face Soap*
Even though I like the MUJI scrub, I didn’t like the foaming cleanser. It leaves a squeaky clean feeling on my skin that felt like liquid detergent. My skin also feels dry and tight after every wash. Price-wise, it’s definitely on par with drugstore prices but even so, I’d rather not have it, er, clean so well, if you know what I mean.

Mecca Cosmetica To Save Face SPF 30 Facial Sunscreen
I also brought a deluxe sample of this for my holiday to use on my face and while it’s not as thick as the Elucent, I still find it a tad too thick for me. It also left a slight oily sheen on my skin which I’m not a fan of. It’s not a bad sunscreen but I’d still prefer something more lightweight. Texture-wise, it’s still richer than the Dermalogica Dynamic Skin Recovery so this might suit those with dry skin.

Ettusais Lip Essence Deep Moist
This was an item from my Japanese shopping haul and it was definitely a regret purchase. It’s thick, gloopy, very sticky and not at all moisturising. It feels like slathering glue on my lips. It was dislike at first swipe on the lips. Sigh.

It’s Not All About Beauty

#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso
Okay, technically, I haven’t actually finished the whole book yet but I have only a quarter left so it should be okay for me to put it in this month’s Hit List, right? It’s a kick-arse book that makes you want to wake up in the middle of the night and create something fantastic. I’m not a customer of Nasty Gal but I’ve heard a lot about the brand. It’s an interesting read as to how Amoruso built her business from nothing to a 100-million dollar business.

Pandora
I started using Pandora back in uni many years ago and was quite disappointed when it wasn’t available in Australia when I moved here in 2008. I was very excited when it was finally launched and it’s just as good as I remembered. It’s a free service where you can listen to any genre of music you like (upgrade to premium for an ad-free service with more skip options). My favourite channels are Bossa Nova and Disney. In fact, the latter was the very first channel I saved as a favourite! 😛

Google Chromecast
This is my new gadget-y toy in the house and I absolutely love it! Being able to watch my favourite YouTube videos on the television compared to the small iPad is pretty bloody awesome. It’s a stinker that I can’t get Netflix or Hulu or else it would be even better (legally, I can’t but there are ways to bypass the geo-block. I haven’t done it … yet. 😛 ). At AU$49.00, it’s not very expensive and you can explore a lot more options on it.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my beauty and non-beauty Hit and Miss list for May/June. I actually have more but I’ll save it for July. 😉

What’s one beauty and non-beauty favourite for the past month?

Disclaimer: Products marked with * were sent for editorial consideration.