Empties: August 2015 – Part 1

This is the first time – but I just have to do it; this month’s empties will be split into 4 instead of the usual 2, because of the amount of products is so much more than normal, and my backlog at work is so huge so I don’t have the time to sit down and write a post on 20 items at one go. So I’m splitting them into something more manageable basis, and hopefully I can get them all out in a week because I don’t want to be writing about August empties in October either! I know reading empties post after empties post can be quite boring, so please bear with me – I personally love empties posts!

Empties #22: July 2015 – Part 1

It’s time for July’s empties! O. M. G. This is insane! I probably say this every month but time just flew by. Sometimes there’s a positive side to time flying by – because there’s less time to harp on nasty things. I’ve been working like mad to avoid the fact that I don’t enjoy my current workplace. I have made plans to move on but I’m working on them – I just need some time to make sure everything is in place, which means I just have to bear with it for a few more months. Anyway, let’s get to the empties!

Empties #13: September 2014 – Part 1

When an empties post become an EPIC post. This month I had a really good clear out of some of my sample size products, as well as some old products. I also bought a lot of Memeboxes lately, so I wanted to clean out some of the older stuff I have to make space for the new. I suspect the next few months’ posts will be littered with sample size products as I try to wind them down.

1. Nalthin Body Fit Patch x7sheets
I’ve been trying out a few slimming body patches – out of sheer curiosity and desperation to lose some weight… and now I have to report back that nothing but exercise and diet really works. It does heat up and make the area that it’s applied to really hot, but besides giving me a rash I don’t think it really did anything. I still have another 2 weeks worth that I will continue to use up.

Empties #8: April 2014 – Part 1

I had to split up this month’s empties into 2 posts because there were just too many products – which is a good sign! I could be typing forever if I did it all in 1 post! I tried to split them by type, but thought if I tried to show all the bath items in 1 post then it would be pretty boring. So, random it is!

1. Petitfee Collagen & CoQ10 Hydro Gel Essence Mask
2. My Beauty Diary Birds Nest Mask
3. Clearderm Herb Essence Mask
4. Dermal Royal Jelly Collagen Essence Mask
5. Dermal Grape Collagen Essence Mask
6. My Beauty Diary Earl Grey Tea & Macaron Sheet Mask
Used up another bunch of sheet masks. I love using sheet masks! They’re so convenient and relaxing, great for an after-work quick pampering.

7. Pangea Organics Japanese Matcha Tea Facial Mask
I like the scent and how it works both as a mask, and as a scrub upon removal. However, I don’t like how it claims to “do everything all at once” (including deep-cleanse, detoxify, exfoliate, tone, hydrate, prevent wrinkles, nourish, protect and balance), and then ask you to follow up with a moisturizer and oil. I thought it’s supposed to do everything?

8. Ciracle Good-bye Blackhead Blackhead Off Cotton Mask
This is a really weird mask – it’s actually a sheet mask for the nose, and then followed up with a cotton bud to wipe off excess sebum, and then extract the other blackheads. The mask is suppose to dissolve blackheads to make extraction easier, but I’m not a big fan… it smells strongly of chemicals and I don’t feel that it is good for my skin.

9. Clarins Extra-Comfort Cleansing Cream
Reviewed here. A nice comfortable cleansing cream, but not one for makeup removal. I like using it when my skin is feeling extra sensitive.

10. Make Up Store Brush Cleansing Soap
The second one I’ve used up; I’ve just repurchased another two and I love it! It’s my preferred method for cleaning brushes; review will be up soon!

11. Love More Deep Hydrating Aqua Brulee
Reviewed here. I like the texture but find it not moisturizing enough.

12. L’occitane Shower Gel 3 Essential Oils
Just a little shower gel that I bring along to the gym; took it from a hotel stay – nothing special about it, and I won’t pay to purchase it.

13. Sally Hansen Mega Shine Extended Wear Top Coat
14. Sally Hansen Complete Care Extra Moisturizing 4-in-1 Treatment
A couple of nail items that has dried out. I don’t think they did very much; the top coat did not give enough shine, especially as compared to Seche Vite, even though it claims to be “mega shine”. And I just don’t use the treatment consistently enough to see a difference in my nails.

15. Simple Kind to Skin Soothing Facial Toner
Reviewed here. I really liked this; simple, affordable and does the job well.

16. Tsubaki Head Spa Shampoo
I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this item before but I do like this; it’s not an everyday shampoo, more of a weekly deep cleansing for the hair to get out all the gunk for the week. It’s too drying to be used daily, but I love how clean and light my hair feels after the weekly cleanse.

That’s it for the first part of my empties post! Stay tuned for part 2, which has more makeup items, soon! 🙂

Empties #6: February 2014

After the massive clearout of 26 items in January, this months’ empties look mighty small in comparison! But after counting them, I guess it’s still a healthy amount. Honestly I’m surprised that I still have empties after clearing out so many last month! Yay!

1. Organix Hydrating Macadamia Oil Conditioner
A rather thick hair conditioner; I think it’s pretty average – I can’t use it regularly as it makes my hair oily and weighs it down. Used twice a week only at the ends of my hair, my hair feels softer and more manageable, but anything more turns it into an oily mess.

2. Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray
My favourite makeup setting spray! This is the only makeup setting spray that really worked for me; I find that it really helps my makeup last through the day, even in Singapore heat! Will repurchase!

3. L’Oreal Total Repair 5 Shampoo
I actually really like Loreal’s shampoo but I don’t often buy them. Maybe they’re just not as visually attractive on the shelves. I really enjoyed this shampoo – I feel my hair is more manageable with less tangles after using it.

4. Laneige Snow BB Soothing Cushion in No21 Natural Beige
I really wanted to try this and was so excited when I received a sample, but was so disappointed; this did not stay put at all even on my very dry face – by mid day it was clearly gone, and messed up the rest of my makeup as it shifted around. If I powdered my face, I could see it clearly breaking down in patches as the BB cream “migrates”. Not pretty. Will not purchase.

5. Caudalie Eau De Beaute Beauty Elixir
Reviewed here. Not a fan; will not repurchase.

6. Loccitane Mom & Baby Balm
A rather thick and oily body balm; I’m neither a Mom nor a Baby, but because of my intensely dry skin I was recommended this. I do find that it soothes my skin when they are going through a “cracked and insanely dry” phase, but it’s also too heavy for regular use even for my dry skin.

7. Neogence Extremely Off-Heads Serum
Initially I did not like this because I didn’t think it made a difference. But I wanted to use it up so I’ve been using it every night for over 2 weeks. One day, my mum suddenly asked if I’ve had facial treatments because “your black heads are gone”. OMG. I haven’t used anything lately that’s targeted at black heads, so it must be this! I’ll be getting the full size to make sure.

8. Mario Badescu Herbal Hydrating Serum
I really adore the texture of this – it’s gel like, and feels cooling on the skin plus not sticky at all. Will look to purchase full size.

9. Lancome Visionaire Advanced Skin Corrector
I already own a full size bottle of this before receiving the sample – I would say, try to get a sample first before purchasing the full bottle, as this broke me out badly initially. I’ve learnt to prevent breakouts while using this – alternating this and never 2 consecutive days of using this.

10. Watsons Nail Polish Remover
Another bottle down! I’ve lost count of how many of these that I’ve used up. Affordable and works just like any other more expensive brands.

11. Bausch + Lomb Renu Fresh Multipurpose Solution
Not empty but expired. I don’t wear lenses daily, so I rarely finish a full bottle of solution before they expire.

12. Daiso Detergent for Puff and Sponge
I used to love this and stocked up before I discovered the Make Up Store Brush Cleaning Soap; then I realised that this was stripping out my brush hairs, making them really dry and scratchy. I’ve since stopped using this for my brushes with natural bristles. Will not purchase after I finish my stash.

13. The Face Shop The Rice Ceramide Lasting Moisturizer
Did not finish this item actually; but it has expired so it’s time to throw out. Was way too watery and not moisturizing enough for my liking.

14. Caudalie Makeup Remover Cleansing Water
Reviewed here. Not a favourite.

15. Beauty Buffet Charcoal & Cyress Facial Mask
16. My Beauty Diary Black Pearl Mask
17. Leaders Hydrogel Eye Therapy Patch
I use facial cloth masks regularly but never remember to keep the packaging. I did remember with these 3 this month, though I definitely use lots more in a month. I find that cloth masks dont really differ between brands in terms of efficacy, so I usually just opt for the cheapest. I really like the Leaders Eye Patch; slimy in texture and feels really good and soothing.

Again, not many makeup related items. I’ve been clearing out my stash in other ways lately – by giving and selling some makeup away. I’m really happy at how my stash is shrinking to a more reasonable amount as the months go by – I no longer have 5 bottles of creams that will expire in 2 months, nor a stock of 10 face washes. It’s still a huge amount and way more than an average person, but they’re getting more manageable.

I’ve found writing on empties so therapeutic – because of my wanting to write these posts, I feel less of an urge to buy and hoard new products. I don’t know if anyone can understand this, but this is how I feel. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post as much as I’ve loved writing it!

Empties #5: January 2014

I have a ridiculous amount of empties this month – way more than I ever expected to be able to finish! Obviously, I did not use up the entire amount in just one month! With Chinese New Year here, I wanted to spring clean so I made extra effort to use up all the already-opened and half-empty bottles. So let’s not waste time and dive right in for some quick thoughts!

1. La Roche Posay Anthelios XL SPF 50+ Spray
2. La Roche Posay Hydrating After-Sun Melt-In Gel
A couple of items that are not empty but I had to throw out as they have expired. I do love La Roche Posay’s sun protection series, but I just don’t go under the sun enough to complete them and I only use these on my body. I will repurchase them again for my next summer or beach holiday!

3. La Roche Posay Anthelios XL SPF 50+ Melt in Cream
This I did manage to complete. I’m actually a vampire morbidly terrified of sunlight, so I slather this on my face every day religiously. This has not broken me out and dries very quickly without messing up my makeup.

4. Plante System Rosakalm Cleansing Micellar Water
Reviewed here. Not a fan; won’t repurchase.

5. Himalaya Herbals Purifying Neem Face Wash
Although this was meant for normal to oily skin, I did quite enjoy it. The texture is like a gel; my skin felt nice and clean without being too dry.

6. Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser for Face & Body
7. Gillette Satin Care Shave Gel Avocado Twist
A few bath items. I only use the Cetaphil on my body as I didn’t think it did anything for my face; won’t repurchase. I did like the Gillette Shave Gel, but I’ve not actually seen a shave gel that doesnt work anyway.

8. My Beauty Diary Rose & White Peony Brightening Mist
This does smell nice and I appreciate the good spray nozzle, and does feel refreshing. It doesn’t have any real impact on my skin though.

9. Make Up Store Brush Cleansing Soap
I love this brush cleansing soap; it cleans very well – even week old foundation washes out easily to reveal the original brush hair color – without drying out the brush hair. I also like how easy it is to use; just sweep the brush back and forth on the soap itself, then rinse off. Will repurchase!

10. Beauty Blender Sponge
I don’t really understand all the raves for this. I was sucked into the hype and bought two! Since it was so expensive I continued to use them anyway, but once they’re all spoilt, I won’t be buying any more.

11. L’Occitane Pivoine Flora Eau de Parfum
I quite like the scent; it’s very feminine and floral, but also very light.

12. Biore Cleansing Oil-in-Cotton Wipes
13. Sulwhasoo Snowise EX Whitening Water
14. SkinFood Fresh Apple Sparkling Pore Toner
Some useful skincare items for the gym. The Biore wipes is a regular item that I bring to wipe off all makeup before I exercise. I also like bringing little samples of skincare to the gym; after sweating it out, it always feel good to do some basic skincare steps. I’m not too concerned about what I bring though, as I usually clean my face again when I get home.

15. Poretol Pore’s Care Cleanser Pack
This was supposed to be a pore clearing wash off mask; I really didn’t like it. It was messy, and did nothing for my skin. The texture is rather gritty, which I guess acts as a scrub as you slather it on. I liked the light fresh tingle when it first go on the skin. Will not repurchase.

16. Avene Skin Recovery Cream Calming Formula
Reviewed here. Really enjoyed it and will be repurchasing!

17. VMV Hypoallergenics Hydra Balance Smart Moisturizer
Hated this. This was supposed to be a “smart moisturizer” that keeps dry areas moisturized, without adding shine or clog pores. My skin is very dry, and I’ve rarely seen a moisturizer that can make me shiny; this is a really weird moisturizer that while its texture felt light, it made me feel unbearably oily the entire time I had it on. Will never purchase.

18. SKII Facial Treatment Clear Lotion
19. SKII Facial Treatment Essence
I used to love SKII items, but I find that with prolonged usage, the effects become less apparent. Maybe my skin are used to the ingredients? I haven’t used these for a couple of years, and after using these sample sizes my skin seems clearer, so I might pick up a few full sizes to see if they will work again on my skin.

20. Good Skin Labs Smooth 365 Intensive Peptide Serum
I quite liked this; it goes on slightly tacky feeling, but the tackiness just goes away after letting it dry for a couple of minutes leaving a very velvety smooth texture. The sample is too small for me to tell if it made a difference to my skin, but I did liked it while I used it so I might check out a full bottle.

21. Lancome Genifique Yeux Eye Illuminating Youth Activator
An item that I thought was pretty gimmicky with its rotating applicator that you use to roll under the eyes to apply the serum. I didn’t think that it did much for me. Will not repurchase.

22. Lancome L’absolu Rouge in 365
A really great find; got this as part of a Christmas Purchase-with-Purchase set. It was my go-to red lip for a while; goes on smoothly, very comfortable and is on the sheer side so I can use it everyday.

23. Too Faced Primed & Poreless Bronze Tint SPF 20
Another item that has expired. I barely used it as I’m too lazy to bother with primers, and I don’t really want to bronze my entire face.

24. Essence Long Lasting Eye Pencil in 15 Bling Bling
I think Essence has a really nice affordable line of eye pencils. While they’re not the most long lasting, they do go on smoothly with good color payoff and a little eyeshadow on top will extend its wear.

25. Bourjois Volumizer Mascara
Another gimmicky item; this mascara has 2 “dials” – step 1 is supposed to give defined lashes, while step 2 is meant to give dramatic lashes. I ended up only using step 2 as I didnt think step 1 did anything for my lashes. I liked the effect of step 2 though, my lashes were nice and big!

26. Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation SPF 15 PA+ in 3 Beige
One of my favourite foundations! It’s just amazing; it gives about medium coverage, and feels so light on. I really like how natural it looks on and I can layer it for better coverage without it looking like it’s caked on. I will definitely be repurchasing this.

The scariest thing about clearing out that much makeup and skincare products is when you realised that even after throwing out 26 items, it still did not make a dent to my collection! And I need to work on using up more actual makeup too! If you’ve managed to read through all I have to say about my trash, I hope it didn’t bore you out! 🙂

Midweek Peek #5: The Miniature Perfume Collection

I’m not really a big perfume person – but I am someone who loves cute perfume bottles. I don’t usually buy them, but friends and family members know how I adore these cute little bottles of perfumes so they tend to pass whatever they do not want to me. I also receive some now and then from my beauty box subscriptions.

A quick midweek peek of my current small but still adorable collection. I love how the Elizabeth Arden Red Door perfume looks like a set of red doors, but the scent is rather grandmotherly. Both the Jimmy Choo perfume and the L’occitane Pivoine Flora perfume bottles look like cute little baubles, and I’m quite fond of their scent. The Lancome Tresor in Love perfume bottle looks simply gorgeous and sophisticated but I haven’t actually tried it.

It’s a small collection – it would have been more but I try to use them as well, not just stare at them, and don’t keep empty bottles because after a while I get bored of looking at them anyway. Anyway, that’s all for my midweek peek; I hope you’ve enjoyed this little peek into my mini perfume collection!

Empties #2: October 2013

This is only my 2nd empties post but I am loving this! It feels weirdly good to know that I have been using up the things that I bought, rather than just hoarding them. Now I know that I have put them to good use! Without further ado, let’s see what I have used up this month and some quick thoughts!

1. Garnier Clean Sensitive Gentle Facial Cleansing Wipes
Bought a few packs of these when it was on sale. I like it; I only use cleansing wipes before my gym session, and this is really convenient and removes makeup quite easily. I do find that it doesn’t clean my waterproof eye-makeup thoroughly, but I haven’t really found a cleansing wipe that can. It’s not too dry or wet. Would repurchase.

2. Essence Pureskin Anti-Spot Toner & Powder
A really cheap toner that does its job. I found regular use to be too drying for my dry skin, but if I just used this for a few days before my PMS, my hormonal breakouts seem to less severe.

3. Darlie Double Action Enamel Protect Fluoride Toothpaste
4. Watsons Nail Polish Remover
Not much thoughts on these 2 items; bought the Darlie toothpaste because it was on sale – it’s okay, the smell and taste is not too minty which I like. As for the nail polish remover, it’s cheap and I think it does its job quite efficiently – have already repurchased!

5. Alpha-H Balancing Cleanser with Aloe Vera
6. Lancome Maqui Blanc Miracle Liquid Foundation
7. Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Eye Contour Cream
A few items that were not that memorable. I used the cleanser in the gym, and carried around the foundation just for ’emergencies’. I brought the eye cream on holiday and had a bit left.

8. Rimmel Glam’Eyes Professional Liquid Liner in 001 Black Glamour
Not a fan – I received this free with purchase of other Rimmel products so I actually have a few of these stashed away. I find the wand to be too flimsy and skinny to draw a line, and deposits too much so it takes too long to dry.

9. Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Gold Ultra Restorative Capsules
Talked about this in my last empties post as well – favourite serum/oil!

10. Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat
The worst smelling top coat ever but also the one that gives the best results! I really love how shiny and long lasting this makes my nail polish looks, but I’m now looking for something else because the smell of this always gives me a headache.

11. Clarins Shaping Facial Lift Lip-drain Serum
As my age gets nearer to the big 3-0, I’ve been looking around for products that prevent parts of my body from sagging. I don’t really know if it works but I do like its thick creamy texture – I don’t think a small tube like this would show results so I have already bought the full size.

12. L’Occitane Dry Skin Hand Cream
Reviewed here.

13. MAC Navy Stain Powerpoint Eye Pencil
I loved this – I went through a phase of rocking a navy blue eyeliner. It glides on very smoothly without tugging on my eyelids. Sometimes I just blend it out with another black eyeliner for a dark blue smokey look.

14. Okuma Cover Control Concealer in 01
This is actually not used up – I loved it at first, but I think the product is now ‘spoilt’ as it goes on a perfect shade and then oxidises very quickly to a dark orange-tone, which didn’t happen when I first bought it. Weird.

And that’s it! I said good bye to 14 products this month! I can’t wait to see what else I can use up for next month!

Review: L’occitane Dry Skin Hand Cream

For someone with very dry skin, hand cream is a must on a daily basis just to make sure that my hands are not all old and crinkly by the end of each day. Sometimes I forget and my skin turns scaly; not a good sight and rather a pain. So a really good moisturizing hand cream is a must for me and I am forever on the hunt for something that’s moisturizing without being too greasy, as I spend all day typing up excel files and an oily keyboard does not make the job any easier.

In comes the L’occitane Dry Skin Hand Cream. I received this rather generous sample of 10ml as a VIP gift from Sephora (in the US) some time ago but only dug it out recently from my stash. I must say that I really like this! It’s quite creamy in texture, but not too thick. I find that it absorbs really quickly on my dry hands without an oily residue and my hands felt really nice and soft afters. It does have a pretty strong scent which I don’t really mind but it’s something to take note of.

One thing that I didn’t like was the price – at about S$44 for 150ml, I thought that was pretty crazy for a hand cream! There is also a smaller size version but the price per ml is even more ridiculous. I think whether an item is really worth it or not is very personal; for me, I think as much as I did really enjoy this, I will be hunting around for much cheaper alternatives or when I really feel like splurging on myself.

The search for the perfect hand cream continues…