Winter Empties - 2020

Hello, everyone!  Happy Spring!

I have my winter empties for you today.  Again, it's all skincare products.  I just don't wear makeup enough these days to use up an entire product.  *shrugs*

Anyway, here's everything I used up over the last three months.

Bolero Coconut Oil & Sea Salt Paper Facial Mask
This felt nice while I was wearing it, but I didn't notice any difference in my skin afterward.

Soap & Glory Radiance-Boosting Mask
I really liked this mask!  My skin looked amazing after I used this.  My face looked hydrated and brighter than before.  I'll definitely use this mask again!

Lancome Advanced Genifique Hydrogel Melting Mask
This mask was very hydrating too, but I prefer the Soap & Glory mask (it's also a lot cheaper!).

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion Age Defying Exfoliator
I love this scrub.  I repurchase it any chance I get.

Drunk Elephant Beste No. 9 Jelly Cleanser
This was nice, but I don't feel like it's worth its price.  I can get the same clean feeling with cleansers that cost a lot less.

Tula Dual-Phase Skin Reviving Treatment Pad
This was interesting!  One side of the pad has little exfoliating bits and the other side scrubs the granuals over the skin.  My skin felt incredible after using this!  I was given two of these and I need to find out where they're sold so I can pick up some more.

Neutrogena Alcohol-Free Toner
You've all seen this before.  It's good.  I repurchase it constantly.

That's everything I was able to use up!  Thank you for stopping by, and I hope you have a great weekend!

Spring Empties - 2019

Hello, everyone!  How has your week been so far?

These are all the products (not included in my Project Empty Challenge) that I was able to use up during the Spring.  It's all skincare because that's pretty much all I've been using lately.

Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion
I really like this lotion.  It doesn't feel greasy and it keeps my skin feeling soft all day.

Noxema Classic Clean Original Deep Cleansing Cream
I use this all the time and I repurchase it constantly.

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads
I don't notice a big difference in my skin when I use these.  I do like that they're super easy to use though.

St. Ives Blackhead Clearing Scrub
I like this drugstore face scrub.  I do prefer the Dr. Brandt one more, but it's crazy expensive.

Dr. Lili Fan Probiotic Eye Repair Cream
This kept my under eye area soft and hydrated.  It also smells nice which is always a plus.
 

That's everything I used up!  Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a great weekend!

Spring Empties - 2018

Hello, everyone! I know I've been MIA for the past month, but I've been feeling quite unmotivated for a while now.  For some reason, makeup just isn't as enjoyable as it used to be for me.  Does anybody else have these feelings too?  Sometimes I'm an addict for all things beauty, and then other times it just all seems so unnecessary.  I'm currently in one of those ruts, but no worries because I know I'll bounce out of it again soon!  :)

Anyway, I wanted to show you all of the products I used up during the spring (that are not a part of my Project Empty challenge this year) as well as share my thoughts on them.  I don't have a whole lot of products since I haven't really been into wearing makeup lately, but here's what I do have:

Noxema Classic Clean Original Deep Cleansing Cream
I've been using this product on and off for many years.  I really like the cooling, tingling sensation and that it deep cleans without my face feeling dry after.

Philosophy Take A Deep Breath Eye Cream
I don't think these little sample sizes are enough product to determine whether or not they actually work for me.  I never see any difference after using one of these small sample sizes.  This one felt nice, but again, I didn't notice much of a difference after using it.

Sea Breeze Astringent
I'm no longer going to be using this toner.  I never realized that this had so much alcohol in it and it was severely drying out my skin.

Dr. Brandt Needles No More
I don't really have any wrinkles, so I don't know if this works well or not.  It didn't disrupt my makeup when I wore it though.
 

That's everything I used up these past few months.  What have you used up recently that you enjoyed?

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you have a great weekend!

Collective Drugstore Beauty Haul

Hi, everyone!  How has your week been?

I thought I'd show you all the few drugstore items I've purchased over the past few weeks.  It's not a lot of stuff and most of it isn't very exciting, but I've been on a bit of a no-buy lately.  So most of these things are simply products that I've been running low on and needed to repurchase.

Wet N Wild Goth-O-Graphic Megaglo Highlighter in White Raven
Honestly, there isn't much from this collection that really grabbed my attention.  I wanted the loose highlighting powder, but it's always out of stock when I look for it.  This highlighter is the only other product that interested me.  It's a bit hard and chalky, but it's a nice shade.

Neutrogena Alcohol Free Toner

I have been using the Sea Breeze toner religiously these past few years (I also used it throughout my teens), and I only recently realized that the second ingredient is alcohol denat., and it has been drying my skin out.  So I went out in search for a new alcohol free toner and came across this one.  I've never used this one before so hopefully it works for me.

Noxema Classic Clean Original Deep Cleansing Cream

 I prefer the First Aid Beauty cleanser, but that one is $20.  This cleanser works fine for me and costs significantly less.

Goody 30 Count Ouchless Hair Ties x 2

These are the hair ties that I always use.  I was down to my last three and thankfully Fred Meyer had these on sale for BOGO free.  :)

Lip Smacker x Disney Tsum Tsum Mickey Mouse Spring Edition

Like I said earlier, I've been on a bit of a no-buy, so I put off purchasing the spring edition lip balms until now.  Of course, now I can't find the Minnie Mouse lip balm anywhere.  T.T

And that's everything I picked up recently.  I hope you have a nice weekend.  Thank you for stopping by!

Winter Empties - 2018

Hello, everybody!  How has your week been so far?

This year I've decided to do seasonal "empties" posts rather than monthly posts.  I usually don't go through many products, so my monthly posts contained about 3 products in each.  I figured seasonal empties would work better for me as they would have more products so they wouldn't seem like a "waste of time".  (Hopefully that makes sense.)  Anyway, here are the products that I used up through the Winter that aren't a part of my Project Empty challenge.

SpaLife Pore Clarifying Activated Charcoal Facial Mask
I really liked this mask!  My face felt so soft and smooth afterward.  I would purchase this again.

Vaseline Intensive Care Essential Healing Body Lotion
I won't be repurchasing this body lotion anymore.  I've used this constantly over the past couple of years, but I decided recently to try something new.  This feels hydrating for a while, but it doesn't last.  Within a few hours my skin would feel and look dry again.  I started using a body lotion from Aveeno and my skin has never felt better.

Urban Dollkiss Face Mask
This mask was very hydrating!  My skin looked incredibly radiant and youthful afterward.  I would absolutely purchase this again.

Pixi Beauty Glow Tonic
I really liked this.  I think I'm going to switch from my current toner (Sea Breeze) to this one.  My skin felt so nice after using this.  I didn't pay attention to the ingredients in the Sea Breeze toner, and I was wondering why my face was becoming so dry and flaky.  It turns out that alcohol denat. is the second ingredient, and that's why my face has been drying out.  This toner make my skin feel hydrated and soft and didn't dry me out.

Hey Honey Open Your Eyes Eye Contour Lifting Fluid
I didn't notice any tightening or lifting of the eye area after using this.  It felt nice under my eyes and didn't irritate me in any way, but I don't think I'll purchase a full size of this.

Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm in Natural Mint
There's a bit left in the end of the tube, but it's so hard to get it out without cutting the tube in half.  Honestly, I may just end up cutting it because I really like this lip balm.  I enjoy the minty flavor and it actually made my lips feel softer and hydrated.  I use a ton of lip balm, and this one is definitely one of my favorites (that I've tried so far).

Those are all of the products that I used up recently.  Have you tried any of these products?  What are your thoughts on them?

I hope this was in some way helpful.  Thanks for stopping by!

Current Skincare Routine

Hello, everyone!  How was your weekend?

I thought I'd share my current skincare routine for today's blog post.  My skin is in no way perfect or flawless, but it has definitely gotten better recently.  For all of my teenage years and half of my 20's, my skin was oily and acne prone.  Then halfway through 2014, my skin became incredibly dry.  I had dry, flaky patches everywhere.  I had dry spots on my eyelids which made my makeup look terrible...it was bad.  Then I got a 10 pack of samples of the "Ultra Repair Cream" from First Aid Beauty.  That stuff saved my skin!  It is really thick but sinks into the skin pretty quickly and keeps my skin hydrated all day/night.  I no longer have super dry, rough patches.  I still have some skin issues, like redness and acne scaring, but I'll take those issues over dryness any day because I can at least cover those up with makeup.

The first thing I do is remove any makeup I might be wearing with the Ole Henriksen "Pure Truth Melting Cleanser".  This removes even my waterproof makeup.  It's supposed to be a 3 in 1 cleanser but it's pretty oily so I use a regular cleanser afterward.

For my cleanser, my absolute favorite has been the First Aid Beauty "Pure Skin Face Cleanser".  My skin has never felt cleaner after using this face wash.  It's safe for sensitive skin as well.

Next, I use the First Aid Beauty "Facial Radiance Pads" that are meant to tone, exfoliate, and brighten the skin.  Honestly, I haven't noticed any brightening, but I do still like this product.

Then I go in with my eye cream.  I have two that I use: the Tony Moly "Panda's Dream So Cool Eye Stick" for in the mornings and the Bobbi Brown "Hydrating Eye Cream" for in the evenings.  I like the Tony Moly one for daytime because it's not thick and it cools the under eye area making me look a little more awake.  I like using the Bobbi Brown one in the evening because it's a thick cream that stays on longer and really sinks into the skin to keep the eye area hydrated.

Lastly, I moisturize with the First Aid Beauty "Ultra Repair Cream".  At first, I thought this would make my skin oily because of how thick this product is, but it doesn't.  This can be used on the face or body to help relieve dry, itchy skin.  I don't think I'll be changing out this moisturizer anytime soon.  It's been my holy grail product since I first started using it.

I also want to mention that once or twice a week I use this St. Ives "Blackhead Clearing Green Tea Scrub".  I purchased this because it says that it helps calm redness which is something I struggle with right now.  I also like that it contains natural exfoliants.

And that is my current skincare routine in full!  I hope this was helpful, and thank you so much for stopping by!

Also, if you have any other product suggestions for calming redness let me know!  I'm always looking for new things to try.