Empties

[wendyomgwar]

I love seeing other peoples empties! So I decided to make a board where people could post pictures of their empties, or just tell us about them! I'd also be interested in knowing whether you're repurchasing anything or not.

[ather]

@Sililivi  Yay for finding a product you like!! 

[CynthieLu]

Finishing a product is so satisfying @Sililivi 😄 way to go!

[RGbrown]

Cleaning out January! (It's already over?? 😲)

YTD 31

 

[ather]

@RGbrown  Did your January move fast? I feel like it lasted forever!! Great job! I need to pull my empties for the month! I keep forgetting!

[RGbrown]

@ather 

New Years was just last week for me, I swear. It flew by! 😂

[CynthieLu]

Wow, what an amazing start to the year @RGbrown Good job! Your starting this year out on a roll 🥳

[RGbrown]

@CynthieLu 

Thanks so much!

[Mellmars1185]

@RGbrown Excellent empties. How do you like the scent of the coconut pear bb lip balm?

[RGbrown]

@Mellmars1185 

Thank you! I found it a little overly sweet for my taste, it wasn't my fave, but I don't like pear in general, and have been shying away from coconut lately, so I wasn't surprised that it didn't float my boat much lol...it came in a multipack that I picked up on sale and I figured I'd give it a shot. If you like both elements though, I'm sure it's perfectly lovely!

[Samtian]

@RGbrown Great start to the year!

[RGbrown]

@Samtian 

Thanks so much!

[caitbird]

Recent empties:

-Living Proof Full dry volume & texture spray - I like this and have restocked it. It actually manages to add some volume and 'oomph' to my very fine and flat hair, so it's a definite winner for me! I have noticed that the results don't last as long as I would like though, so I will be experimenting with other volumizing products (anyone have any recommendations?😅) in between continuing to use this.

-Batiste dry shampoo (original) - this is fine and was my dry shampoo HG for a long time, as it was the only one I'd tried that actually worked as intended without introducing other problems (like tangles). I am now looking for alternatives because I am trying to buy cruelty-free whenever possible.

-Laneige water bank moisture cream (sample/trial size, was part of 'hydration-to-go: normal to dry skin' set) - this was fine, but nothing that really stood out about it.

-Urban Decay Original Eye primer potion (free sample) - I have since purchased the full size of this, which I like to use on days when I wear eyeshadow. I do feel it helps the eyeshadow appear more vibrant.

-Lumene Nordic-C Glow Boost essence serum - this was the first vitamin C serum I tried and I've finally finished it! I liked this one (I actually loved the scent of it oddly enough, it was mild but very nice), but I have since been using a couple of mini vitamin C serums I got - Sunday Riley & YTTP - and trying to decide which one to purchase the full size of.

#LANEIGE Mini Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer .67 oz/ 20 mL (free sample) - this was a free GWP and I've been trying to use up some of the many free samples and trial sizes I've accumulated. It was fine, but didn't wow me enough to buy the full size.

-TonyMoly I'm Makgeolli skin Purifying Sheet mask - I picked up a pack of 10 of these masks at TJ Maxx, which was a bit of a gamble as I'd never tried them before. Fortunately I did like this one, so I will be happy to continue using these in my weekly sheet mask rotation.

-COSRX low ph good morning gel cleanser (sample/trial size) - this was part of a 'COSRX favorites/bestsellers' set and I have since purchased the full size. I probably still like the YTTP superfood cleanser best as my morning cleanser, but this one is a close second.

[ionianblue]

I'd recommend (non Sephora brand) Dove dry shampoo. My fave is the regular one seems to add volume to my hair but am unsure if it is Cruelty-free or not.

[RGbrown]

End of the year total: 455! 🗑️

Spoiler

Candles:
-DW Home Wheel of Fate: burned well, but a little weaker than I'd like, throw in the light-medium range. The notes were amber, vanilla, and saffron, but I caught more of a sweet/fruity scent than I expected. It still smelled good though, not mad at it! 
-Sand + Fog Vanilla Tobacco: the kind of scent I'd base my entire personality around...would love this in body wash, lotion, perfume, etc lol. Warm, cozy, and this one had great throw. I keep looking for more every time I hit TJM, but haven't come across any yet.
-Ulta something or other, from one of the old gwp sets they used to do: the candles in those sets were never impressive, but I want the container for something else 😅

Nioxon Instant Fullness Dry Shampoo: I can only use this once per wash cycle, as it builds up too stiff and crunchy for my taste, but it has become a very nice first day dry shampoo to add a little volume to my bangs. I'm working through some other texturizing stuff I have on hand, but I'd be happy to add this back to my stash with a good deal.

Kwailnara Strawberry Milk mask: perfectly fine, not quite as much moisture as I'd like, but serviceable at helping to add a layer of hydration under a moisturizer. Sweet scent, but not overpowering.

Innisfree My Real Squeeze Mask Green Tea: the scent leans towards cleaning products, but it's light enough to be tolerable. Light moisture.

Tonymoly I'm Rice Exfoliating Enzyme Cleanser: this one took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out the right ratio of water to powder...too little and it clumps into little balls that won't dissolve and just fall off your face and disappear down the drain, too much and it all just vanishes into the ether, and it felt like the line between these two states was as little as a single drop of water lol. But once I figured out my best strategy and got pretty good with hitting it consistently, this was a nice cleanser! Not stripping, great clean without feeling dry or tight afterwards, no scent. I've got a bottle of DHC's powder in the cabinet that'll I'll use up before buying more, but could see myself grabbing this one again in the future.

liquid/gel shadows: mostly dried out (though the PUR ones were actually still fine)...I last checked on these a couple of years ago now and tossed a bunch, then sealed them up in a mason jar to hopefully help keep the rest from drying out, and it was mostly pointless. The reality is that I haven't even thought about these since that last time I looked at them, so it's time to let them go.

Spoiler

Huntington Home Cedar Oakwood candle: gorgeous warm and cozy woody scent, burned well, though the throw was a bit weaker than I'd like, light-medium or so

another Ulta gwp candle, same notes as the pic above

La Roche-Posay Toleriane Purifying Foaming Cleanser: no scent, cleansed well without stripping. Perfectly lovely stuff that I'd use again.

Orlando Pita Play Ampli-tint Color Depositing Hair Mask (Copper Red): I've dabbled with using temporary red dyes many times over the years, and had this in my closet for maintenance whenever I did it again, but it's been sitting there for years now to the point where I'd forgotten it existed until I saw it while looking for something else, so I decided it was time to just pull it out and use it as a standalone product. It worked well enough for me, playing nicely with my natural highlights and giving me some red tones all over. I just used it as a conditioner, letting it sit for 5ish minutes after shampooing in the shower, so results weren't super wow amazing, but I got exactly what I wanted out of it that way, a noticeable shift without being a huge change, and it's still hanging around a bit even after 3-4 washes since my last use. I've got another tube in the closet (because of course I overstocked on this stuff like I do everything else lol), so I'll pull it out maybe spring or summer and consider playing with longer application times before washing it out, and see just how deep this stuff can go.

Dionis Sole Keeper foot cream: now that BBW has stopped carrying foot creams, I guess this is my fave? I love love love minty foot creams, and this one is definitely minty, though it's not quite as thick and rich as BBW's was, so there's room for me to find another HG. It's quite lovely though, especially if mint is your jam!

FAB Ultra Repair Cream (Candy Cane & Honeysuckle): used up as foot creams...Ultra Repair isn't my fave formula for this use, but as I just said above, I'm a sucker for minty so I always grab some of that one at the holidays, and honeysuckle was a nice scent as well.

SK-II RNA Power Eye Cream: too thick for me, left me breaking out with small bumps and clogged pores around my eyes 😕

SK-II Pitera Facial Treatment Essence: also not for me, I've found most ferments tend to break my forehead out (maybe fungal acne, not sure, but it's something I rarely get as long as I avoid ferments).

Batiste Dry Shampoo: ok as a cheap daily driver. Can build up in my hair after about 3 days of use, but I find if I alternate with a loose powder, the chances of build up go down. Redken is still my all time fave, but this is a decent budget friendly substitute.

Masks, finally finished off the Tonymoly Master Labs that Ulta sent practically expired (ordered in Aug or so, and they had something like Sept or Oct exp dates, sigh). I'd actually like to have more of the collagen one, it was nicely hydrating, one I typically didn't need to follow up with moisturizer, but overall, both were good. Image Hydrating Hydrogel Mask, not sure where I got it, sub box I guess? It was fine, stayed in place well which can be iffy for hydrogels, nice moisture, low scent. Would use again if I came across more. 

[Mellmars1185]

@RGbrown Impressive empties! I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the items.

[RGbrown]

@Mellmars1185 

Thanks so much! ✨

[Samtian]

@RGbrown Wooo great job!!

[RGbrown]

@Samtian 

Thanks so much! 💕

[RGbrown]

YTD 426 🗑️

Huntington Home Citrus Clove candle: Aldi's version of Woodwick candles, this had a nice throw, good burn time, and a lovely scent. 

Tree Hut Tropical Mango scrub: basic staple, excellent all around body scrub with a fun scent. I'll try most any body scrub, but I always come back to Tree Hut as my fave.

Nest Ocean Mist & Sea Salt candle: excellent throw, but I do not like the scent of this at all; I catch a very strong floral scent, nothing salty or ocean air about it.

Huntington Home Holiday Cranberry candle: this seems to be a scent that comes back reliably every holiday, and I am glad it does, I love the spicy fruity scent, it's got good throw, and burns well, though this one didn't burn quite as far down as they usually do...it seems the wick holders are much taller this year, leaving a little extra wax in the bottom.

System Professional Hydrating Conditioner: passable; worked decently well on my dry ends, but not as well as others. I think I've got another packet or two of this in the shower that I'll use up, but it's not something I'd repurchase, as it didn't dethrone my fave, and is near impossible to find anyways.

Philosophy Purity cleanser x10: basic staple. One day I'll finally finish all these packets!

Ulta Makeup Remover Towelettes, watermelon: lovely scent, and they cleanse well enough on my lazy nights. I've got some other wipes in my stash, and they aren't something I go through quickly, but if I ever need to rebuy in the future, Ulta's will be in the running.

Tom Ford Ombre Leather: turns sickly sweet on me, which makes me sad, but made a nice pillow mist instead

Dionis Lip Balm, Blood Orange: basic staple, nice daily driver, cheap enough that I don't mind keeping a stash of various scents around the house

Butter London glass cuticle pusher: I had been testing this versus a metal pusher, and was just deciding that I might like this one a wee bit better when I dropped it in the sink and managed to break *both* ends. Might replace, but may not...my clumsiness isn't dissipating with age, it seems

TONYMOLY masks: thin material, low scent. The collagen variety leaves me with more moisture than the vitamin C one, but both fall into "fine, would use again" territory.

Holika Holika Strawberry Pure Essence mask: also fine, ok moisture, but I've had better. Low scent. Not bad, not spectacular.

Give Them Lala Stay Calm Soothing sheet mask: meanwhile, I liked this one enough to pick up a few more boxes for $4 from BoxyCharm. Moisture is really all I look for in a sheet mask, and this one was pretty darn nice. Thin material, stays in place, very low scent, all around excellent for my preferences, and I was happy to add more to my stash.

[Mellmars1185]

Geat empties @RGbrown . I want to start doing a year to date total. I think this year is the year! Congratulations!

[RGbrown]

@Mellmars1185 

Oh yay, join us, it's fun to keep track! ❣️