Issues

I had a few empties piling up and some I am desperate to get rid of/recycle so I figured I had enough to do an empties post. Here are some mini reiews on what I used up in February:

TRESemme
Tres Two Extra Hold Hairspray – I have had this can for YEARS. I don’t use a ton of hairspray in
general and this can is huge. I am so happy that I finally finished it. I think
this is a great, cheap drugstore option, but there are better out there so I
likely will not be repurchasing.

Drybar Triple
Sec 3-in-1 – I really
want to love a dry finishing spray so badly as I think it would be the answer
to so many of my hair prayers, but they always end up leaving me flat. No pun
intended. So far all of the ones I have tried are basically like spraying air
into my hair. This product is supposed
to provide instant volume, texture and refresh your hair. It did none of that.
Honestly, it was like I sprayed nothing into my hair whatsoever. Unless I get a
glowing recommendation from someone I know and trust for a finishing spray, I
think I am done with them. Needless to say, will not repurchase.

MAC Cosmetics
Zoom Lash Mascara –
At one time, this was MAC’s best mascara. I wouldn’t say it is any longer. It’s
ok, but not much better than a good drugstore mascara. In fact, it appears to
be discontinued. I’m not sad about it.

Bumble
and bumble Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Conditioner – This was a travel sized conditioner that I
used for travel and then decided to finish at home. This is one of my favorite
conditioners ever! Will definitely repurchase. I am waiting for the Sephora
sale at the moment. Have a bunch of other conditioners in my current rotation
so I am good until then.

Living proof
Perfect Hair Day 5-in-1 Styling Treatment – I have gone through countless bottles of
this product and I already have repurchased another two. I really love all of
the volume, thickness and manageability that this product gives me. My only
complaint is that it makes my hair a bit stiff.

fresh Soy
Cleanser – I got this in a gift set from fresh and I really
do like it. I would say it is now in my top 5 cleaners. My skin was oily/combo
for most of my life and then a few years ago it turned dry. So I say I love this
as a dry skin woman. I am not sure if it would work for me if I still had
oily/combo skin. This tube was a large travel size at 50ml. It took me a while
to use it up, which is a good thing. I would definitely repurchase. I have a
few other smaller sized tubes kicking around my bathroom from gift sets so I
may try to use those up first. Also, I have a number of other favourite face cleansers
in my regular rotation, so I am good for now.

Nivea Soft
Moisturizing Crème –
I have had this jar for far too long and I decided it was high time I finished
it so I could get rid of it. It was nice and worked well but was a tad greasy. The smell can be a bit
much some days. I would consider repurchasing but I do have better creams so
likely will not.

Bumble and bumble Hairdresser’s Invisible Oil Heat Protectant Leave In Conditioner Primer – Love this stuff and will be repurchasing for sure. It’s a fantastic hair detangler, softener and heat protector all in one. I’m waiting for the Sephora sale which is in 3 weeks to buy it again. I have another similar product to use up so I will be using that in the meantime.

MAC
Cosmetics Bronzing Powder in Golden – I believe this is discontinued. It wasn’t my
favourite bronzer in world and it was a tad shimmery and too “golden”. However,
it worked in a pinch as an everyday go to and I decided over the past several
months that I wanted to use it up. Mission accomplished.

Caudalie
Premier Cru (The Rich Cream) – I really enjoyed this as a night cream. My skin looked and felt so glowy,
plumped and healthy each morning after use. It lasted me about a year with somewhat
consistent use. The jar is refillable so I will be repurchasing, likely when
the Sephora sale happens next month.

So that’s it for February empties! For those of you on March Break, enjoy!

Welcome to another empties post with mini reiews! I didn’t have a ton of empties in March so I lumped them together with April’s. Let’s dive in!

Cerave Hydrating Cream-to-Foam Cleanser (Removes Makeup) – This was by far one of my best finds back in 2023. The fact that it is easy to get (any drug store) and is reasonably priced is fantastic. This cleanser is very hydrating, gentle, does not play with my skin barrier and removes my makeup including eye makeup! Makes my skin so clean! I tend to use this only at night but I think you could use it in the morning too if you want. Already repurchased. This is easily in my Top 5 cleansers.

Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm in Vanilla Beige and Iced Coffee – I got a mini set of 4 of these last Fall during the Sephora sale. I bought them as I wanted to try a variety of scents and colours. The Iced Coffee one grew on me quickly and I would repurchase that scent no problem. The Vanilla Beige was ok. I really like Summer Fridays lip butter balms and although I wished they lasted longer on the lips, I think they are one of the best lip balms you can get on the market. I have already repurchased a regular sized tube in Birthday Cake and will be reviewing that one for you shortly.

The Inkey List Supersolutions 10% Azelaic Acid Serum –
This product has been a lifesaver for my rosacea. I have already repurchased. Can’t live without it now. This is a
must have for anyone with rosacea and the beauty is you can layer it with other
serums. I highly recommend using it twice a day for full effectiveness. I am not sure how many of these I have gone through now but I will be buying it likely forever.

Sol de Janeiro Rio Deo Refill in Brazilian Jasmine & Pink Dragonfruit – I quite like
this deodorant and have gone through a few of these already. I am starting to get confused with all of the scents. I think I like the original one the best. The refills never seem to sit right in the containers and the temporary lids are awful. All that being said, I do like this product and have repurchased. I would’nt say it is workout appropriate, you would need something stronger but
it’s great for day to day.

AOA Studio Super Soft PawPaw Wonder Blender – I don’t care what anyone says, these sponges are far inferior to the Beautyblender. I don’t find these to be as porous as the Beautyblender and therefore product tends to sit on top of the sponge and slide around more. You don’t get as good of a blend. Also, I find these dry weird and can get moldy after a bit which I never had happen with the Beautyblender. Since I bought a bag of 6 I will use them up but then it’s back to spending good money on Beautyblenders again and I am ok with that.

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask in Berry – I really enjoy a lot of these Laneige Lip Sleeping Masks and I have to say that the Berry scent is by far the best scent from their regular line. In general, I tend to prefer some of their limited edition scents. Already repurchased in a few other scents.

Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion – I bought this a long time ago online from the U.S. At the time, I couldn’t find it here in Canada. I was starting to get some dry patches on my hands in winter and this was recommended by a beauty influencer that I follow. It did seem to work well and I think I had two bottles of them and this was the second one. First one is long finished. I hadn’t used it in awhile. I noticed it was nearly empty so I decided recently to use it up. If this was readily available, I might repurchase, but I don’t think it is. I also think other creams have come onto the market in recent years that are better so I would likely buy those first.

Aveeno
Restorative Skin Therapy Repairing Cream – This was one of the best Aveeno
lotions that I have tried and let me tell you, they are not all created equal. I
really liked this cream and I will likely repurchase.

Caudalie
Hand & Nail Repairing Cream in The des Vignes (The Vines?) – I got a set of
3 of these in a Holiday Set a year and a half ago. I have used up 2 of them so
far and am on my 3^rd and final one. I really liked this hand cream
and I will be repurchasing once I have used up the last one I have. It’s great
to throw into your purse and I do find that it moisturizes both my nails and my
hands well.

Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Concentrate Matrix – First thing I have to mention is that the wand inside broke off very quickly and I had to use a Q-tip to get the product out. That was disappointing. This s a sample size though so the packaging was not going to be stellar. I think the product was nice enough. It was soothing on the eyes and I think I may have looked a bit more refreshed when I woke up after wearing it overnight. I didn’t really notice it doing anything for my dark circles in general though. It is an expensive product so not sure I will purchase it in the future, but I won’t rule it out.

Makeup by Mario Moistureglow Plumping Lip Serum in Rosewood Glow – I got this as a Sephora birthday gift along with a lip liner from the same brand. I liked the colour, but I think it is more of a autumn shade so I wouldn’t rush to wear it in spring or summer. Even though this is a minty plumping product and not terribly tingly, I really detest plumpers and as a general rule, will not buy them. I don’t need them and I don’t care for the sensation. It was a decent product, but since it is a plumper, I will not buy it. The packing was awful and the inner tube would not retract if you turned it up too high. Since this was sample, I don’t know if the regular sized tube would be the same.

Biossance Squalane + Marine Algae Eye Cream x2 – I thought I only had 1 of these sample jars, but somehow I had two and was using them simultaneously. Part of my confusion was that I have the same sized jar by the same company with face cream in it. Anyway, I managed to finish both of the eye creams recently. I didn’t find it was any better than any of the other eye creams I have used and it did didley squat for my dark circles. Some days, I even found it burned a little so I had to be careful to not place it too high up under my eye. Would not repurchase, but I love the glass jar and will be reusing it for travel with another product in it.

Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream– This is my ride or die. I’ve spoken about this at length so will spare you all. Already repurchased.

I already have my May empties piling up so should be back soon with more mini reviews.

My Makeup Issues: February 2025 Empties

My Makeup Issues: March/April 2025 Empties