Product Empties November 2022

Hey guys! I’m back with another product empties. As I mentioned in my last empties, I’ve been going through products faster than I can write about them! I have fifteen empties to share today and I have about another twenty in my empties bag. Maybe I should do an empties Youtube video? Let me know what you think. Let’s get into today’s post!

Starting with body lotion, I finished the St Ives 24 Hour Moisture Body Lotion in the scent Almond & Flaxseed. I’ve mentioned my love of almond-scented products before and someone recommended this to me (I think on Insta). I liked this lotion! The pump made it easy to apply and it absorbed quickly into the skin. My only complaint is that it didn’t smell like almonds! If you prefer lightly scented products then you’ll love this but if you’re like me and want almonds this won’t hit the spot. I have other lotions that I like more but if you’re looking for a good drugstore lotion, this is a great option.

If you watched my USA shopping haul, then you’ll know that I’ve fallen in love with the Hero Cosmetics Mighty Patch. It’s just as good as my beloved Peace Out Acne Patches but more affordable! If you’re in the US you can get them at Target. For my fellow Canadians, they are available at Shoppers but currently only online. I put it on a whitehead before I got to bed and by morning the pimple is all gone! I will be purchasing these again in the future.

Another favourite is the OLEHENRIKSEN Cold Plunge Pore Remedy Moisturizer. I finished both a full-sized and a mini travel size of this moisturizer. I recommend this to all my fellow oily & acne-prone friends out there. It’s super lightweight and doesn’t feel heavy on the skin. If you have sensitive skin I would be careful though because it has BHA and LHA in the moisturizer to help with pores. While I decided to purchase something else to review, I would purchase this moisturizer again in the future.

I had a deluxe sample of the First Aid Beauty Pure Skin Face Cleanser and it was alright. It’s a fragrance-free, gentle cleanser and I would say that it does exactly as it says. But for my skin I just like a little something more. If you have sensitive skin you would love this!

The next product is the Cerave Moisturizing Cream. I much prefer Cerave’s Moisturizing Lotion over the cream. The lotion comes in a pump so it’s easier to apply. I find the cream to be a little too thick for my skin. It’s nice in the winter when it’s super cold and my skin is super dry. But for the majority of the year, it’s just not the right moisturizer for my skin! If you have drier skin you’ll love this though!

I got the Clean Skin Club Pineapple Glow Mist in my Boxycharm box and I ended up liking it! It’s like having hyaluronic acid in mist form! It’s super easy to apply to the skin, it provided some extra hydration and smelt great. I would consider repurchasing in the future but I don’t want to deal with shipping and customs so I’ll be passing on that because I’m sure there are similar products available in Canada.

Now I wish the St Ives lotion smelled just as good at the L’Occitane Almond line. I finished the Almond Smoothing and Beautifying Milk Concentrate and it was amazing. It smelled just like almonds and applied so well to the skin. It left me feeling so soft after. I used this only on special occasions because this is a pricey body lotion. But if you’re looking to treat yourself (or badly want an almond-scented product) then I highly recommend checking it out! I see myself purchasing from this line again in the future.

It takes a lot for me to not like a mascara, but the PUR Cosmetics Fully Charged Mascara just wasn’t it for me. I like length, definition and a little volume with my mascara. This PUR one gave me barely any length and was so clumpy. As the mascara aged it also became flaky, which is not something I normally deal with mascaras. It was almost impossible to remove! There are so many better mascaras out there, don’t get this one.

Another item I received in my Boxycharm was the Skin & Co Truffle Therapy Radiant Dew Mist. The website says this can be used to set makeup but I preferred using this as a skincare mist. I would spray this all over my face and then apply my hyaluronic acid. This mist is supposed to be good for breakouts and oil but I didn’t notice a difference. Based on the photos from the website it looks like they changed their packaging, which is good because I found the nozzle wasn’t the greatest. I won’t be repurchasing this mist because it was fine but not great enough to deal with shipping it to Canada.

A product I’ve repurchased is the Dove Exfoliating Body Polish. I decided to pick it up again since it’s a great body scrub available at the drugstore. I’ve come to realize I’m not a huge sugar scrub fan because I find they dissolve before I can scrub my body. This one is great because it’s not sugar so I can get a good scrub in. And I love the Macadamia & Rice Milk scent it’s nutty and sweet. I would repurchase again in the future.

Another scrub, this time a face one, is the Origins GinZing Refreshing Scrub Cleanser. I struggle with texture so I love having a good physical exfoliator. This one was pretty good. It has tiny beads to buff away the dead skin. It has a very refreshing and citrusy scent which I enjoy. Overall I like this cleanser and would recommend it!

I finished a deluxe sample of the IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better Makeup Primer+. Honestly, I wasn’t that impressed by the primer. It wasn’t bad. But if a primer claims to be a gripping primer, I expect it to grip my foundation and not budge throughout the day. I found it didn’t make much of a difference in the longevity of my makeup. If you want a gripping primer, the ELF one is much better and cheaper.

Another product I was completely unimpressed with was the Bumble and Bumble Curl Defining Cream. I didn’t finish this product, I’m throwing it away. It’s way too heavy for my hair. I could feel the cream in my hair and it weighted my hair down so the curls couldn’t form. I tried using this cream a few times using varying amounts and each time it was too heavy for my hair. It’s a real shame because I love Bumble and Bumble’s Curl Reactivator. But this curl cream wasn’t for me.

The Mudmasky Vitamin-infused Eye Serum was like the neverending eye cream. Most eye creams are 15 ml (or 0.5 oz) and the Mudmasky eye cream is double at 30 ml (or 1 oz). It took me forever to finish the eye cream. Overall I found it to be an alright eye cream. It did a good job of hydrating my under eyes and that’s all I ask for in an eye cream. It absorbs quickly into the skin and it worked well under concealer. But I don’t love it enough to ship it to Canada.

And the final empty is the Maybelline Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara. I liked this one! It was great at adding length to my lashes. I liked the skinny wand because I find it easier to not get mascara on my eyelids with the skinny wands. I wish it was a little bit more volumizing but overall it was great for everyday wear. I would repurchase this mascara.

And those are my product empties! If you have tried any of these products let me know what you thought about them in the comments!

xoxo

Lea

Sephora Sale Haul & Reviews

Hey guys! It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for – my Sephora Sale haul and reviews! If you haven’t seen it already, I posted my Sephora Sale haul on my Youtube channel last weekend and that was filmed a couple of weeks ago. I’ve now used the majority of the products and am now ready to give you my thoughts on all the products. If you haven’t, I would check out my wishlist post so that way you can see what products I was thinking of purchasing and can compare to this list. Let’s get into it!

Up first I decided to get a mini of the Glow Recipe Blueberry Bounce Gentle Cleanser. The cleanser is a product that takes me a while to get through so getting a mini allows me to try more products. This is a gentle cleanser with hyaluronic acid and AHAs to help with pores, oiliness, acne and blemishes – everything that I suffer with! This is a nice cleanser. My skin feels soft and also hydrated after I use this. I think if you have normal or combo skin and suffer from acne then you’ll like this. I’ve found lately that my skin has been looking oilier by the end of the day. I’m not sure if it’s because of this cleanser or some other products but it’s something that I wanted to note that if you have oily skin like me it might be too gentle. I’ll continue to use this but if I notice that the oiliness doesn’t improve this might be relegated to a second cleanser.

I am already in love with the Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional: Super Setter Setting Spray. I have been using this setting spray every day since I’ve received it. It does make my skin looks smoother and poreless. Not sure if it necessarily makes my makeup last longer but I love it for the way it makes my face look initially. The mist is very fine so I do use a good amount to properly cover my face. I wish I had picked up the full size!

I like it but I’m not quite in love with the OLEHENRIKSEN Cold Plungeâ„¢ Pore Remedy Moisturizer with BHA/LHA. It has an interesting texture that is not quite a gel but not quite a cream. I find that my skin feels more smooth than hydrated with this moisturizer. Much more of a summertime moisturizer than for the dry winter months. Also because it has active ingredients in it, I just need to be careful not to apply it over top of other actives otherwise it’s too much for my face and I get a reaction. I will continue to use the moisturizer because at this point I wouldn’t necessarily repurchase it.

The next product shouldn’t be a surprise – I picked up the Briogeo Honey Hydration Don’t Despair, Repair! Hair Repair Kit. I have not used the products in this kit yet oops! I have used this deep conditioner before and I absolutely love it so I didn’t need to try it again to let you guys know you need it to try it! It’s one of the most hydrating deep conditioners on the market that is Curly Girl Approved. The scent is also magical. I haven’t tried the shampoo and conditioner yet just because I have other ones open and I try and avoid having multiple shampoos and conditioners open since I have limited space in my shower. Once I finish the products I’ll update you guys in a products empties post.

I did end up splurging and getting the L’Occitane Almond Smoothing and Beautifying Milk Concentrate. And I’m so happy I did. I used their Almond Delightful Body Balm last year and I loved the scent but found it was a little too thick for me. The Milk Concentrate has the exact same scent but is just a lighter cream compared to the balm. It’s still very moisturizing don’t worry! It also comes with a lot of products so I know this will last me a while.

For lip balm, I ended up getting the Laneige Dream Team Lip Set. It’s the same price as the Tarte one I was looking at as well but I get two products for the price of one! I do like the Lip Glowy Balm formula and it’s been forever since I’ve used the Lip Sleeping Mask. The Lip Sleeping Mask comes in Peach Iced Tea and I like that scent (or flavour?). The Lip Glowy Balm is in Berry. I like the slight tint it gives the lips but I do find the Berry to be slightly medicinal. At least it doesn’t linger on the lips. This is a great set and I’m happy with my purchase.

The final product is the Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Setting Powder. First I want to say while the packaging looks absolutely gorgeous, I was surprised by how light it feels. I always expected the compact to be super lux since it’s expensive. But at the end of the day, it’s what’s inside that matters. This is an ultra-fine powder so when I first apply the power it goes on so smooth and looks so good. My face looks flawless and not too cakey. But because it’s just a fine and lightweight power, but at the end of the day I’m a greasy mess. It does touch-up well. I can apply this to do touch-ups and it looks good. But if you’re like me and have oily skin this isn’t going to keep you locked in all day. I think this powder is perfect for dry, normal and combo skin people who need a powder to set everything in place but not necessarily keep the oils at bay. I will continue to use this because I love the way it makes my makeup look but if I need something long-wearing I’ll pick up something else.

I also did want to mention that I picked up the Gucci Mémoire d’une Odeur Eau de Parfum, but it’s going to be a Christmas present so I haven’t used it. I sprayed it in-store and liked it! It has a clean and slightly earthy scent. I can’t wait until Christmas when I can wear this more!

And this is my haul and reviews! Let me know in the comments what you guys picked up during the sale!

xoxo

Lea