January, February & March 2017 Empties

As promised, I'm showing you all the products I've used up so far since the beginning of the year. It's not alot since I wasn't really taking care of myself because of being with my daughter in the hospital. Now that she's home, it'll be much easier using up products and caring about my health and happiness again. 

Starting off with skincare, I have finally used up the Clean & Clear Morning Burst Shine Control Facial Scrub. I used to like this, but over time I ended up actually hating it. The scent is overpowering and the scrubbing bits can be kinda harsh. 

The Fresh Soy Face Cleanser is something I'd buy over and over again if it wasn't so expensive! I LOVE this cleanser so much. It makes my skin feel clean, without stripping it dry. 

Jack Black lip balms are incredible. I had been trying to use up the Natural Mint scent since before Olivia was born. Granted, I lost it a couple times, but always ended up finding it. I have a few more of these in different scents to use up and would consider repurchasing once I go through my stash. 

Philosophy skincare is hit or miss for me, but the Renewed Hope in a Jar is a hit! I'm not a fan of the cult classic original moisturizer that everyone raves about, but this one is nice. I'd consider purchasing once I use up what I have. 

I got a sample of the Exuviance OptiLight Essential 6 Serum with a product I was sent to try ages ago. I got quite a few uses out of this, but I didn't find it to be anything special. Exuviance is a pretty expensive brand, and I'm sure if I had a bigger size, I would've seen a difference in my skin. 

I tend to get a few samples of the DDF Ultra-Lite Oil-Free Moisturizing Dew, and I think I may have another to use up. This is a pretty decent moisturizer that has a gel consistency, so it's great for Summertime use when my skin is more oily. 

You all know my love for Valentia and their skincare. I did a review of their Royal Rose Hydrating Serum, and completely love it. The rose scent isn't too strong, and it helps to hydrate my skin well. If I didn't have a million serums to use up first, I'd buy this again in a heartbeat. 

I didn't care for the Murad Oil Control Mattifier SPF 15. It smelled weird and made my skin look super pale. 

Philosophy body products are my jam, and the Gingerbread Girl body lotion is no exception. It's not the most hydrating moisturizer in the world, but it does the job well enough and smells like baked goods, which is a plus in my book!

The next four products I used up were hand creams. I went through so many handcreams while my daughter was in the NICU from all the hand washing. The Gold Bond Ultimate Healing Cream with Aloe is probably meant to be a body moisturizer, but it felt so nice and luxurious on my hands, and made them feel like soft baby skin. The Mitchell and Peach Luxury Hand Cream is far from luxury to be honest. It smells like nothing and didn't hydrate my skin at all. I think it made the dryness worse. Everyone talks about the Soap & Glory Hand Food and for good reason! The scent can be a little strong, but the hydration it gives is amazing. Out of all of these hand creams, the L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream is my favorite. It smells like baby powder and hydrates like no other. It's expensive as hell, but worth it and I will probably repurchase when I use up my stash. 

Lastly, we have some random products. Bath & Body Works hand soaps are amazing, but expensive, even when there is a sale. Crisp Morning Air smelled nice and fresh, but I like sweet smelling hand soaps more. 

The Colgate Cavity Protection Toothpaste is something both my husband and I used. He used it more than I did since I prefer toothpastes with sensitivity protection. 

Since having Olivia, I have been shedding like a German Shepard. It's so bad, but I know it's postpartum hormones that are causing it. I like the Natrol Biotin 10,000mcg because I feel like it really helps in normal, everyday life, and works great at making my nails super strong as well. 

Number of products used up: 16
Total used up for the year: 16

I'll be going back to monthly empties now that things are starting to settle down. Hopefully I can make my goal of using up 150 products, and that does include foil packets as well. I'm so bad at using my foil packet samples and need to make it a point to use some up this year. 

What are some products you've used up recently?   

December 2015 Empties

*Post contains some affiliate links*

Hey everyone! I've fallen behind a little bit on the blog here lately. I've been on this decluttering my house kick, and all I want to do is just clean. That's pretty weird for me since I hate cleaning, but I figured since we're in a new year, I should start getting rid of junk I no longer use or need. Anyway, today's post is going to be the products I used up in December. I initially didn't think I used up much last month, but it was more than expected!

Starting off with a few bath/shower products, I finally have managed to use up the Pura D'or Premium Organic Hair Loss Shampoo and the Argan Oil Conditioner. I had reviewed this duo here close to a year ago now, and it took forever for me to go through. Now that these are gone, I'm glad they are honestly. In the end, I didn't like these. They didn't do much for my hair, and if anything, they made it feel more dirty. The only good thing is that the conditioner smelled incredible and made my hair feel soft. 

I also manged to use up the Adovia Dead Sea Salt Scrub. I did a review on this here, and at first I really did like it. The scent is pretty strong that reminds me of a very fancy spa, and the scrubbing bits are pretty rough as well. That helped me with the rough bumps I have on my arms, but this scrub is oil based and it made the bathtub so slippery, which I'm not a fan of. I'm clumsy enough, so a slick tub and I don't get along too well. 

Next is some body and health products. The Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer seemed like it was never ending! It lasted me through the Summer til the middle of December, with nearly daily use on my arms. I had gotten this a long time ago in a past Influenster voxbox, and I really freaking liked it! It's very light, sinks in nicely, and feels pretty hydrating considering it was so light. I have another one of these in a brown container which I believe is a cocoa butter scent. This one has pure oat extract in it, so it smelled like uncooked oatmeal to me. 

Next up is a Bath & Body Works Foaming Hand Soap in the Georgia Bourbon Peach scent. I adore these soaps, but prefer the soap with the scrubbing beads, so I'm trying to use up the foaming ones first. This scent was incredible for the Fall time. 

The Tom's Sensitive toothpaste is wonderful! It's fairly expensive and I only buy it when it's on sale, but it makes my teeth and gums feel clean and not irritated. 

Last up is a Wegmans brand Women's multivitamin. Nothing special about this, but I do like to take a daily multivitamin for the supposed health benefits they're said to provide. 

Lastly is some skincare and a lone makeup product. The sample size of the Lancome Definicils Mascara was awesome while it lasted. it gave my lashes amazing definition and length, but not the best volume, which is fine. I just use a separate mascara if I want the extra volume. 

You all know my love for The Body Shop is strong, and the Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner is no exception. This makes my skin feel soft and not as greasy. However, I don't think I'll be purchasing this anymore, because it contains denatured alcohol in it. I haven't had any bad reactions because of it, but I want to start really taking care of my skin more and use products with better ingredients. I do have one left of these that I'll start using again in the Spring, but that'll be it once it runs out!

It took forever for me to use up the Radha Beauty Intensive Youth Eye Gel. I reviewed this almost a year ago here and overall, I think it's a nice eye gel. It's not incredibly hydrating, and if you have very dry under-eyes, you won't like this at all. I'd say I have normal under-eyes, so this worked fine for me, especially in the warmer months. As it got colder, I felt like I needed something a bit more hydrating. 

I used up a sample of the MyChelle Sun Shield SPF 28. Don't buy this stuff, it's awful! I'm not sure if the sample I had went bad, but it balled up immediately when I put it on my skin, and I had to wash my face all over again. 

The final product I used up is a deluxe sample of the Murad Perfecting Day Cream SPF 30. Murad products are pretty darn amazing, but they're expensive. I hate to say that I liked this, but I really liked this! I may have oily skin that turns more combination in colder weather, but this made my skin feel incredible and look amazing. 

So, I decided to be a little weird and tally up how many products I was able to use up the entire year of 2015:

January: 17
February: 16
March: 19
April: 15
May: 15
June: 15
July: 8
August: 11
September: 14
October: 10
November: 25
December: 12

So if my math is correct, I used up 177 products this year! I honestly didn't think I had used up that much, but it just shows how much stuff I really have. I'm making it my mission in 2016 to use up as many products as I can. Like I said above, I'm in decluttering mode lately. Mainly because the lease is up on our apartment the end of June, and I really want to be able to move by then because we'll have been living in the same place for 4 years, and I feel like it's time to move on to a bigger place. I figured I'd get a head start with cleaning up and just getting rid of stuff I no longer care for, use, or haven't used in years (which is alot honestly), therefore making the move a bit easier for us. I'm also putting myself on a beauty spending ban for three months, so I can't buy myself any makeup, skincare, bodycare, or haircare until April 1st. I don't foresee myself running out of anything in that time frame, so I should be okay. There are alot of new products out in the drugstore that I'm dying to try out, but they'll have to wait for now!

What did you use up last month? Any resolutions you have that you hope to stick with?

June 2014 Empties

Hey guys! It's time for one of my favorite posts, empties! I love reading these and watching YouTube videos of products that have been used up. I may be weird, but it's incredibly satisfying using up products. I didn't use up quite as much as I have in the past few months, but here is what I did use up!

 Starting with haircare, the first product I used up is the Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Shampoo. I always go through shampoo way faster than conditioner, so that's still in my shower! I absolutely loved this shampoo! I featured this and the conditioner back in a favorites post here and basically I just think this is amazing. It made my hair feel soft and fluffy, and took ages to go through since the bottle is so huge.

Next up we have the Rusk Sensories Full Green Tea and Alfalfa Shampoo. My husband was the main person using this, but I used it every once in a while. It was nice, smelled good too, but wasn't amazing. It's one of those shampoos that doesn't lather much, so I felt like I had to use more to make my hair feel clean. 

Last product for hair is the best dry shampoo to ever exist, Batiste Dry Shampoo in the Tropical scent. I've had these in multiple empties posts and my original review of it is here. The post is over a year old, but I still get views on it! 

Now for some healthcare stuff! I used up a Crest Complete Toothpaste in the Wintergreen flavor. Honestly, I didn't care for this much. It did its job, but I have really sensitive teeth so I have to use a sensitive toothpaste, which this one is not. I think I only bought it because it was inexpensive and I wanted to try something different.

Then we have some vitamins from Nature Made. Nature Made vitamins are my favorite brand for some reason. Their prices are reasonable, and drugstores usually have deals for buy 1, get 1 free and they also have multiple coupons available. I recently stocked up at Walgreens and paid just under $20 for 4 bottles of vitamins. They'll last me a while too. Anyways, I used up a Super B-Complex which is supposed to help with energy and D3 which is good for people who don't get much sun (I'm practically a vampire). 

 Lastly is skincare. I used up the L'Occitane Moisturizing Lip Balm. This has to be one of the best lip balms ever! I looked it up on Sephora recently and at first I couldn't find it, but it looks like they changed the packaging to a squeeze tube. Anyways, this stuff is really hydrating and it doesn't leave a slick look to the lips, it's mainly matte, which makes for a great base under lipsticks and pigmented glosses.

Next up we have the Murad Soothing Gel Cleanser. Honestly, I wasn't much of a fan of this. It cleaned alright but I just didn't like it. Won't be repurchasing!

The Body Shop's Tea Tree Skin Clearing Toner is a Godsend for my super oily skin in the Summer! This is a bottle I had leftover from the end of last Summer or beginning of Fall. It's way too harsh in the colder months, but I absolutely love using this in the morning to get rid of any excess oils from the night before. 

Next is another Murad product and it's the Essential-C Eye Cream with SPF 15. This stuff was great! It's just a tiny sample size I had but it lasted me a good 3 weeks or so. The full size of this costs a whopping $69 but I feel it may be worth it. It left my eye area feeling hydrated but not oily, and I suffer from greasy eyelids too! Murad, why you be so expensive?! 

Last product I used up is the infamous Glamglow Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment. I have a review of this here and basically I think it's not worth the hype. Some people love it, and that's all fine and dandy, but I won't waste my money on this again. I'll use up the other small jar and little sample tube I have though, but I won't repurchase!

That's everything I used up! Hopefully next month we have some makeup since it's been a while! What did you use up last month?

How To Take Care of and Treat: Dry skin

It can be tough having dry skin. It can get all flaky and feel tight and uncomfortable but following these tips and tricks will help keep it feeling more normal.

Now with finding a cleanser for dry skin, you want to look for a creamy or milky cleanser. Those cleansers are more moisturizing and hydrating than gel cleansers. If you use a gel cleanser, you're just going to dry out your skin even more. Sometimes a foam cleanser is okay, as long as it says it's hydrating and moisturizing. In the morning and evening, splash your face with lukewarm water. Don't use hot water since that will dry out your face. Take about a dime to nickel sized amount of cleanser massage it on your face for about a minute. If you tend to get flaky skin, get a washcloth and gently massage your face to remove the cleanser, rinse off the rest with lukewarm water and pat your face dry with a clean towel. A really good cleanser that can be found at Sephora is First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser. This cleanser starts out with a whipped consistency, but when water is added, it turns creamy. This is also a good cleanser if you have sensitive skin on top of the dryness. A good drugstore cleanser is CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser. This is a nice, simple cleanser if you don't want to break the bank on skincare.

A toner is optional with dry skin because most toners will dry it out more. If you absolutely need a toner, look for one with out denatured alcohol (alcohol denat. is usually the abbreviation on the ingredient list), as that is super drying, even for oily skin. A good toner to try is Murad Hydrating Toner. This does have witch hazel in it, which helps balance skin, but it also has chamomile and cucumber which helps to soften and soothe dryness. a nice drugstore toner is Simple Soothing Facial Toner. You can find this at Walmart and it's only around $7, so it's very affordable.

Onto moisturizers. When looking for a good moisturizer to treat dry skin, look for ingredients like glycerin and hyaluronic acid. These are water holding ingredients which will keep your skin hydrated and moisturized all day. Some people say go with an oil based moisturizer, but I only recommend that if you have super dry skin. Like so dry, it seems drier than the desert. A really good moisturizer that I hear very good reviews on is Clinique Moisture Surge Intense for Very Dry to Dry Combination skin. People I know have said this moisturizer has changed their skin from dry and flaky, to healthy, dewy and hydrated. A drugstore moisturizer I recommend is Olay Regenerist Micro-Sculpting Cream. This moisturizer has glycerin in it for hydrating skin and a bunch of vitamins and other good stuff to help with some anti-aging as well.

For sunscreen, people with dry skin have it easier in my opinion. Having super oily skin like I do and trying to find a good sunscreen that won't make me oily hasn't been very fun. (until I found my Neutrogena Dry Touch Sunblock! :)) A nice sunblock to try is L'Oreal Paris Sublime Sun Advanced Sunscreen for Face SPF 50+. This can also be found at Walmart and it's only about $8, depending on your location, for a little under 2 ounces.

It's not fun being super dry, nor is it fun being super oily, so I hope this has helped anyone who has dry skin. You can always play around to find things that work too. Always read ingredient labels and description labels to make sure what you're getting is for dry skin and not oily. Hey, you might even find out that products for dry skin may be too much for you, and you might have combination skin, which is luckily going to be my next post. :) 

Anyways, thank you everyone for taking the time to read! :)