I’ve clearly been in some weird product cycle because I seem to have used up a ton of products in the past couple months, and have been in a cycle of letting them pile up, taking photos for a post, not being able to post about them, and letting them pile up again. The empties in this post are from November and some of December, so I used them up awhile ago.
SKINCARE
First is the famed Bioderma Micellar Water that is so great for taking off makeup in the most gentle way possible. I like this occassionaly, but I find that I usually need an oil cleanser to really take off all my face makeup including sunscreen, so I don’t reach for this as much as I used to. I’ll always have a bottle of this on hand for easy morning cleanses and removing light makeup, though. Other cleansers I used up are mini tubes of the Muji Moisture Face Soap, Etude House Wonder Pore Cleanser, and La Roche Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Facial Wash. They were all fine but nothing mind blowing for me that makes me want to go out of my way to purchase them, though I did notice that the LRP cleanser felt really gentle and hydrating even though it was foaming. If you have very dry skin, that cleanser or the Muji Moisture Face Soap would be worth trying out, and Muji cleanser is especially creamy and hydrating.
Both serums I finished were winners for me – the Sunday Riley Good Genes Serum is one of my all time favorites for making my skin look brighter and feel smoother, and the Mad Hippie Vitamin C Serum is a great vitamin c that is a combination of gentle, effective, and easily accessible. I will certainly repurchase both at some point, but I’m trying other AHA and Vitamin C products at the moment.
I used to use the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion religiously before I got into skincare, but I have found far more effective formulas so I won’t be repurchasing this. For the daytime, I really enjoyed the Murad Essential C-Moisture Broad Spectrum SPF 30, especially during the winter. It was a really moisturizing formula and it had a light orange scent that gave me a bit of a mood boost on dreary days. I wouldn’t repurchase for now but I would go back to it. The Philosophy Multi-Rejuvenating Cream SPF 30 was a thicker version that felt heavier, which I wasn’t a huge fan of. I wouldn’t purchase a full size of this one. The Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen SPF 40 made a great makeup primer because it felt very silicony and smoothing, but I don’t always love the feeling of such a silicone heavy primer on my face. I’d consider getting it again but I prefer other sunscreens.
A face oil I finally used up was the Acure Blue Tansy Oil, which I sadly wasn’t a fan of. It felt a little heavy on my skin, and even though it did a fine job of moisturizing my skin, I’ve used many oils that have sunk into my skin better. Bummer, because I like that this has a lower price point.
As usual, I used up a few face masks. First is another mini of the Glam Glow Super Mud Clearing Treatment, which I don’t use enough to buy a full size, but love for clearing up blemishes. For sheet masks, I wasn’t super impressed with the Tony Moly Tea Tree Mask Sheet, but I did like the feel of Whole Foods Soothing Avocado Face mask, which did feel very soothing, and the Etude House Hyaluronic Acid Face Mask, which was great after a particularly cold and windy day. The Bliss Hangover Fix Holographic Sheet Mask was probably my favorite at refreshing my face and making it a little brighter after an evening of too many drinks, and I would consider buying it again. I’ve said before that I’m just generally not a huge fan of sheet masks, and most of the sheet masks I get come through gifts with purchases or sets, so I probably have a biased opinion. One fail were the Patchology FlashPatch Hydrating Lip Gels, which I couldn’t get to work for me. They kept sliding off my lips, and I didn’t notice any long-term hydrating effects.
MAKEUP
As usual I have a mix of boring every day products and more exciting lip product (!!) empties. First is the long discontinued but very loved Maybelline Dream Matte Powder, which I hoarded when I heard they were discontinued. This was an amazing sheer drugstore powder that kept my skin matte. Obviously I can’t repurchase anymore, which I’m a bit sad about.
I had one win and one fail for brow products. The fail was the Colourpop Brow Boss Gel in Clear, which make my brows appear thicker, but it definitely wasn’t clear because it left a white cast. The Benefit 24-Hour Brow Setter is a clear brow gel that really SETS your brows. It’s easy to overdo and make them crunchy, but just a quick swipe will keep my brows in place all day. This is definitely my new favorite clear brow gel that I will likely purchase again soon.
I’ve had the mini Stila Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner sitting in my emergency makeup bag for awhile and finally took it out to use it up for good. I know this is a beloved eyeliner by many, but this is not my favorite. Although it is budgeproof, it feels scratchy going onto my eyelids and the pigment isn’t as rich as I’d like. My mascara empty this time around is the Maybelline Total Temptations Waterproof. I didn’t like this. It was dry and didn’t give me enough hold to keep my lashes curled. It also had a coconut scent that I wasn’t a huge fan of…why would add fragrance to a mascara?? Anyways, I won’t be repurchasing this.
As far as lip products, I finished some older products in my collection that definitely needed to be used up. Does anyone still remember the Revlon Colorburst Lipsticks? It seems like they weren’t around for very long but I loved the moisturizing formula. I finished the shade Petal, which was a lightly shimmery sheer pink shade. It wasn’t my favorite shade but it gave my lips some luminosity. I can’t rebuy this but I have a couple other shades in this formula left. I also finished my beloved YSL Glossy Stain in #9 Rouge Laque. It was a warm-leaning red that I adored. This long wear glossy lipstick is one of my all time favorite lip formulas, and I’ve moved on to other reds, but I’ve just repurchased other shades in this formula.
Finally, I finished 2 very well loved lip balms. The Jack Black Lip Balm in stick form was wonderful. I would love to have it back in my collection at some point. I also loved the Bite Agave Lip Masks, which was a great thick mask to wear overnight. This has just been reformulated and I’m eager to hear if it’s just as good as the one I used.
BODY
I’ve been on a roll with finishing body products, which is just as well, because the dry winter weather means I’m slathering lotion on everyday to keep my lizard skin at bay. In the shower, I loved using the Natura Brasil Maracuja Shower Oil. I used it on wet skin in the shower, let it sink in for a minute or so, and then rinsed off. Over the summer, it could replace my daily moisturizer, and in the cooler months, it was a nice added boost of hydration.
I haven’t used a Bath and Body Works lotion in awhile, but this Stress Relief Body Cream was delightful. It had a light scent of sage and cedarwood that did feel very calming, and it did a pretty good job of moisturizing my skin, especially in the summer. The Clarins Moisture Rich Body Lotion was a splurge when I first bought it, but I think it was well worth it. It is a silky lotion that was very hydrating and also sank into my skin quickly. I plan on repurchasing this in the future. On the other side of the price range, the Trader Joes Coconut Body Butter. This large tub is less than $10 – it might even be around the $5 mark – and it’s great for a quick fix. Unfortunately, I don’t feel like this provides long-lasting moisture even though it is very thick.
I bought the Le Labo Hinoki Hand Lotion on a whim, and also because I love how earthy the hinoki scent smells. Luckily, this was also a great hand lotion that felt lightweight but was also hydrating. And although it is a pricier lotion, I used this every night and it lasted my about exactly a year, so I feel it’s pretty decent value.
I’ve been trying a lot of natural deodorants, and my most recent empty is the Soapwalla Deodorant Cream, which I enjoyed. I liked it more for less active days because it didn’t absorb wetness quite as well as other natural deodorants, but it was pretty decent.
I don’t normally talk about toothpastes, but I’ve used the Twice Toothpastes for awhile, and they kindly replenished my stock when they saw I had finished them. I generally like these toothpastes and felt like they did a great job of cleaning my teeth. They didn’t lather up as much as other toothpastes, which I had to get used to. For some reason it’s easier to just pick up a tube from the drugstore rather than having them delivered to me (how un-millenial of me, I know), so I have other toothpastes I’m using already.
HAIR, FRAGRANCE, NAILS
My dry shampoo empty of the month is the Klorane Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk, which is a long time favorite. It doesn’t out do my holy grail Elizabeth and James dry shampoos, but those are discontinued..and these are not. I also finished a mini Peter Thomas Roth Conditioner, which I think was from a hotel. It was a pretty average conditioner.
For fragrance samples, I used up a years old sample of Kate Walsh Boyfriend, which was a bit too heavy for my taste. Bvlgari Omnia Paraiba was a sweet juicy scent that was bearable for me, but not my favorite. I was pleasantly surprised by the Paco Rabanne Olympea perfume, which had subtle vanilla scent and jasmine notes. Once upon a time it was available at Sephora, but I think it’s been discontinued now. Sad, because I liked it enough to consider getting at least a travel size of it. It turns out that Vince Camuto Solare was supposed to be a men’s cologne, but I enjoyed the woody-oriental notes of it, and thought it worked well on me. I didn’t love it enough for it to want to use it a ton.
And to round out this giant roundup, I have a couple nail polish empties. The Seche Vite Top Coat has been a long time favorite, but I’ve recently started using the Ella and Mila Top Coat and really enjoy that as well – and it doesn’t have as strong of a scent as the Seche Vite, which is a bonus. And sadly, the Sally Hanson Dry Fast Nail Color in Quick Sand…dried out a little too quickly in the bottle so I had to throw it out.
Whew, was that a lot of products for a month and half…or was that a lot of products? Props to you if you finished the whole post! But you won’t have too much time to miss empties post…I have another big batch of empties coming up that you’ll probably see on here in a few weeks.
What have you finished lately? I’d love to know!
Beauty Unhyped 