August 2013 Empties!

August was quite an eventful month.  A lot happened...good and bad.  But amongst the good, I did finish quite a few products.  Somehow, I ended up finding a bunch of items that were close to being finished and annihilated them.  This is probably the most makeup products I will ever have finished in a single month. It's going to be a struggle to top that in future empties posts to come.

1. L'occitane Hand Cream Sample. Quite a luxurious hand cream.  I've got about 6 more tubes of these lying around....

2. Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner in Zero.  Can you believe that I've never purchased a full size of these?  I've always received them through Urban Decay's palettes or eyeliner sets.  I have a few extras lying around somewhere.

3. Nivea Kiss of Moisture Lip Balm with Honey. Same wonderfully moisturizing properties as the original but it has a bit of an herbal scent to it.

4. Laura Mercier Hydrating Primer. A lovely primer that kept my foundation on fairly well.  If you have super dry skin, I'd still recommend using another moisturizer rather than using this product alone.  This is the XL size that Sephora had for a limited time, and took me about two years to finish up.

5. Head & Shoulders 2 in 1.  I started using Paul Mitchell shampoo and conditioners for a while.  I continued to use them even though I was allergic and got itchy bumps on my scalp cause I didn't want to waste it.  When my dandruff came back after 10 years, however, I had to put aside fancy ol' PM and bust out the big guns.

6. NARS Laguna Bronzer.  Definitely a lovely bronzer.  I like using this to add warmth to my complexion and do some light contouring.  It took a little over a year of every day use to use up.

7. Up & Up Makeup Remover x 2.  Cheap and effective.  I keep a bottle on my vanity and a bottle in the bathroom, both of which are pictured in this post.

8. Tarte Silicone Free Primer.  Since I used up my main foundation primer, I had to hunt around for my primer samples to use up.  This wasn't an outstanding, bullet proof primer but it was decent.

  9. Kirkland (Costco) Baby Wipes x 2.  I've gone through maybe 15 packs of these.  And will continue to go through a lot more.  I use these to wipe makeup off my hands as well as my face before I use a cleanser to get the rest off.

10. Neutrogena Daily Moisturizer SPF 50.  I'm forcing myself to put sunscreen on daily even on days when I don't see the sun much or when it's cloudy.  My skin better thank me further down the road.

11. Bare Minerals Prime Time Foundation Primer Sample.  This was quite a nice primer actually.  It kept the oilyness off my nose for a good amount of time.

Goodness gracious that's five whole makeup items!  How am I ever going to beat this record?

May 2013 Empties

Lately, I haven't been too adventurous with my makeup, hence the lack of FOTD posts that I usually overwhelm you guys with.  I have just been sticking with products that I know won't fail me and have been especially concentrating on using up products.  While I'm sick I have been reorganizing and attempting to make order to my vanity.  In the process I have been astounded and overwhelmed at how much makeup I own. I have TONS of new and barely used products so using them up is going to be a serious battle, but I've got to try.

Anyways, let's move on to the topic of this post: May empties.  I've got a good handful of items but only one makeup product.  Mark my words I will be sure to have more next month.

1. Nivea Kiss of Smoothness Lip Care SPF 10.  This is hands down my favorite lip balm--it's like lotion for your lips!  And I totally didn't realize it had SPF until I looked up the name for this blog.  Definitely a plus.

2. Neutrogena Healthy Defense Daily Moisturizer SPF 50.  I'm trying to be really good with SPF because....I have sun/age spots on my face.  I was in shock when I first saw them because I don't go out of my way to tan and I'm still young (or so I think)!  The last thing I want to do in 10 years is spend half an hour each day concealing sun spots so I'm trying to be really good with sunscreen now.

3. Cover Girl Waterproof Lash Blast Volume Mascara.  Technically, I'm not quite finished with this mascara but I've been using it for four months and it really has to go.  Great thickening and lengthening mascara.  I already have backups.

4. Evian Facial Spray.  I bought this a few years ago because I thought it was a setting spray.  It's actually just a refresher spray and you use it when you feel hot and sweaty.  It also helps to make your makeup look more melted in if your powder is looking a little cakey.  I've just been using it for both purposes, and I have one in my kit.

5. Kenra Volume Spray Super Hold Finishing Spray.  I was in love with this product when I first purchased it at last year's CosmoProf Hairshow in San Jose, California.  I still like it but I want to try out other sprays.  Too bad I bought two giant bottles of it already when I was in love with it.

6. Kirkland Unscented Baby Wipes.  I go through tons of these.  I use them to wipe makeup or hairspray off my hands, to wipe off my face makeup before washing my face, and for wiping off my vanity when it gets dusty.

That's it for this month!  Did you guys finish a lot of stuff as well?  I love empties posts so if you made one and I missed it, feel free to link it down in the comment section below.

EDIT:  I just realized I have backups for everything listed in this post.  REALLY, Janny!?  Really!?!

April Empties

I'm going to try to do these posts every month.  I've done one or two in the past but hopefully committing to do these sorts of monthly posts will force me to use up products that I already have instead of constantly running out to buy more.

But here it is, folks!  I actually have some empties worth mentioning this month!

1. Two bottles of Target eye makeup remover.  What can I say?  I love this stuff and it goes down by the bottle.  Last time I ran out I freaked out and bought 15 more bottles.  I should check my stash again.

2. Lancome Teint Idole Ultra Foundation in Bisque 4.  I knew I should have purchased a backup bottle.  I got this on clearance from DF&CCO for $20 since it was a line being upgraded/discontinued.  Great foundation!  Dried to a nice matte finish and was pretty longwearing.  

3. Smashbox Healthy FX Foundation in Light 3.  This one definitely needed to go.  I've had it since 2009.  It was my second bottle but it still needed to go.  I used up every last bit, and it was a very good medium coverage foundation but I'd like to explore other brands.  It made my skin look glowy and healthy while evening out my skin tone.  

4. Paul Mitchel Original Conditioner.  A very good conditioner.  It made my hard very sleek and shiny.  Only problem is.....I was allergic to it.  So I won't be purchasing again.

5. Aveeno Daily Moisturizing body wash.  I'm rather fond of Aveeno products.  This body wash wasn't life changing for me (are they ever?) but it doesn't stink or break me out so I will stick with it.

I have a handful of products that are SO close to being finished but alas I couldn't make it happen for April.  Look forward to seeing those at the end of May!

How about you guys?  Finish a lot of stuffs this month?  Please share!

June 2012 Empties!

I always enjoy reading other people's monthly empties posts, so I thought it I would start doing them as well.   On one hand, it makes absolutely no sense for me to do these posts because I rarely finish products.  On the other hand, it may push me to use up my products that are nearly empty or need to be used.  So I'll try this out for a while and see how it goes.

For the month of June, I finished an entire THREE products.  Woohoo!  Sounds pathetic but it really is an accomplishment for me.

I had a few of these partially used makeup removers lying around, so I just used them up.  This is currently my favorite makeup remover as it it inexpensive, effective, and I use tons of it.

Ah, baby wipes.  Not just a baby mama's best friend.  I use this to wipe down my hands if they get grimy with makeup, or to break down my face makeup before I go in with a cleanser.  I never use these for disinfecting or as a main source of makeup removal, as they are ineffective for either.

And that's it!  Short and sweet.  Definitely hoping to use up more products in the month of July.  We'll see!