A Few Spring Empties
Happy June! It’s my birthday month! I hope you all had a nice, safe Memorial Day weekend. We hosted three fully vaccinated friends for a BBQ in our back yard. Though I’m still being very cautious about going out places, having a small outdoor get-together at home feels like one of the safest things you can do.
I didn’t empty a ton of products last month but I do have a few to share, including a couple gifted items:
I used some sheet masks and a foot peel as well:
Would I Repurchase?
- Wander Beauty Glow Getter Mist: this is my second bottle, and I really like it. The packaging has since changed, but the formula remains the same. I believe I received this particular bottle as a gift from my mom. I would purchase the mist on my own, though.
- Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream with TFC8: I received this very expensive luxury cream complimentary via Influenster. A 30 ml bottle (the size I received) retails for $170, and the 50 ml bottle is $265. There’s also a 15 ml for $85. Did I like this cream? Yeah, it was pretty good. Would I spend $170 on it? No. This cream was not life-changing for me. The texture was interesting: thick at first, but thinned out to almost a watery texture as I rubbed it into my skin. It hydrated well, but there was nothing extra-special about it for me. There’s a lot of hype around this cream, but for me, it was just another (albeit nice) cream.
- Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant: the brand gifted me this bottle (which I very much appreciated!), and I really liked it. I mostly used it on my nose & chin to help unclog pores in those areas, and I think it did a good job. I’ll likely purchase a bottle on my own.
- Naturopathica Espresso Mud Body Scrub: I received this as a birthday gift last year. I LOVED the two Naturopathica masks that I also got, but this scrub was just okay. I do love the strong coffee scent, but the granules are pretty large so it felt a tad harsh. This scrub isn’t available on the brand’s website (they have a lemongrass mimosa scrub instead, which sounds lovely), so maybe it’s been discontinued? I wouldn’t buy this scrub on my own, anyway.
- Briogeo Be Gentle, Be Kind Aloe + Oat Milk Ultra Soothing Shampoo: I bought this shampoo because I was curious about fragrance-free hair care. I’m very picky about shower product scents, but after using this shampoo I’ve decided that I do prefer some fragrance in my hair care. This shampoo was serviceable for my super fine hair, but nothing that I feel I need to repurchase. If your scalp and skin are sensitive to fragrance, though, it’s nice that this exists as an option.
- EO Everyone Unscented 3-in-1 Body Lotion: this is a declutter, not an empty. I bought this huge pump bottle from Whole Foods, but it was taking me so long to use it up that it started smelling off. When your beauty products start to smell different, it’s TIME TO GO. I would repurchase in the future, though I’d go with the regular sized tube next time.
- Dr. Jart+ Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment Mini: this might have been from the 2019 Sephora Soko to Tokyo set. I had actually bought a larger mini of this stuff and used it up but didn’t love it. The product blended out to a shade that didn’t quite work on my skin; it was too golden for me. It also felt oily sitting on my face. But because this sat around unopened for a long time and hadn’t hit its expiration date yet, I decided to crack it open and use it up. Eh, I wouldn’t buy again.
- Pacifica Highest Lash Chronic Volume Mascara: another declutter, not an empty. I make sure not to use mascaras for more than three months because of potential bacteria. This mascara is pretty clearly Pacifica’s answer to Milk Makeup’s Kush Mascara (which is great). Highest Lash lengthened and volumized well, but it did smudge underneath my eyes sometimes. I’d consider repurchasing but I wouldn’t call it my new favorite.
Mask-o-Rama
- GLAMGLOW Bubblesheet Oxygenating Deep Cleanse Mask: I’ve had one of these masks lingering from a set that came in a FabFitFun* box quite some time ago…I finally used the last one. These are just so fun, and I love the lemony scent! They’re not cheap ($9 a pop) but I’d buy them on sale.
- Patchology FlashMasque Illuminate Sheet Mask: I bought this mask at a spa store right before the pandemic hit, and finally busted it out this weekend. I really liked it and will probably repurchase.
- Karuna Exfoliating+ Sheet Mask: from my Winter 2019 FabFitFun box. This was the last mask from the set in the FFF box, and I liked all of them. I’d certainly consider buying from Karuna in the future.
- Boscia Fruit Acid Smoothing Foot Peel: this is a rebranded, reformulated foot peel. I’ve used the brand’s old foot peel and thought it did a pretty good job. I felt the same way about this new version. Starting about three days after I used the booties, I had some pretty dramatic peeling for a day or two. I would have liked a little more peeling, but it still removed quite a bit of dead skin from my feet.
- Skyn Iceland Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels: these were initially gifted by the brand but I’ve since bought them on my own. These have a good brightening and de-puffing effect. I will repurchase in the future.
The end! I guess I had a lot to say about the few products that I did empty. 😛 Have you ever used a super luxe skin care product that you felt meh about?
*Last month, I canceled my FabFitFun subscription. It was fun to get the boxes and post about the surprises inside, but I’ve amassed too much stuff and really didn’t need any more skin care coming into the house that I didn’t pick out myself. While surprises can be fun, I currently prefer to shop for skin care myself.
