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]

@RGbrown @itsfi  I snuck out today to go to the store. I thought it might not be appropriate if I asked my husband to pick up his own Valentine’s Day card and gift 😂

[RGbrown]

@ather 

Why not? "Hey babe, here's $20. I need a lip balm, and feel free to pick you up something special at the CVS with the change. Happy Valentine's!" sounds perfectly reasonable to me 🤣

Hmmmm, on the other hand, perhaps this is why I'm divorced? 😆

[itsfi]

Woohoo @ather! 🙌🏼 

[SAlyFitz]

I typed up a whole bunch of info about what I repurchased loved and like but there was an error and it vanished before I could copy it... sooo * means I loved it which quite a few of my loves I’ve repurchased into my stash✔️ Ask anything in particular and I’ll help as long as I remember lol I do need to give myself props for hitting my 600 product goal for the year - I didn’t hit the more out than in goal but I’m challenging myself to that again this year with increased seriousness! I’m going to also hope to have more used monetarily than I’m spending too! Happy 2021 and onto another month of emptying products!

 

 

 

 

 

[itsfi]

You're so good about tracking your empties @SAlyFitz! 😁 Good luck with your 2021 empties goals! 

[missjeanie]

And December 2020

My December totals, 16 loves, 24 likes, 19 meh and 17 nopes, for a total of 76.  My year long total was 635, I fell 95 short of my goal, but looking back I had a few months with less than 20 empties which is super low for me.  Covid and working from home are my excuses. I did however achieve the second part of my goal, to have more going out than coming in. I'm going to set the same goal as last year 730 empties and more empties going out than new coming in.  

Loves

Spoiler

The box is the Erno Laszlo combo pack of a cleansing oil and a cleansing bar.  I actually really enjoyed this.  The oil was the best cleansing oil I’ve tried thus far and I like the idea of the bar… I’m just not used to it.  The bar here lasted a long time as well.  This was the sensitive version and I’m already using a large full size of the cleansing oil.  I’ll use the bars again as I find that depending where I am the bars are better for me. 

The Pixi milky mist might have been my first mist, I’ve bought this before and I enjoy it.  Good price, good (not the best) mister, but overall a lovely product that I’ll buy again, though I use misters more in the warmer months. 

The Sunscreen is great for me, I like the higher SPF, though it does leave a white cast for a few minutes and I could see that as a deterrent for those of darker skin tone.  

Bars Pro Prime.  This was a mini that I’d refilled from a full size to keep my travel make up bag smaller.  Twas time to ditch it.  I have one full size on the go and two more backups.  This stuff is the best for more oily lid types. 

Sun Bum hair mask.  Smells. Divine. I use hair masks a few times a week and will buy more. 

 

Likes

Spoiler

The creepy baby mask is an odd one, but I like it.  So bulky though.

BBW body lotion wasn’t quite as heavy as I’d like, but dang she smelled ah-mazing.

Ok But First Coffee sheet mask.  Wish I could figure out who makes these, alas, I’m not looking again. Lol

The Ulta pen shaped spray hand sanitizer was an old one I used up.  I enjoyed the delivery method.

Charlotte Tilbury Powder.  This was so nice, I think I may still prefer the MUFE pressed powder but this compact… is perfect.  This is the most elegant compact, and I’d buy this again just for the compact.  I think they have them refillable now?  I felt bad tossing this, it’s that pretty. 

 

Meh

Spoiler

These dang look at me eye patches.  I’ve discovered that most eye patches like this just aren’t for me.  They’re too slippy. 

The Creme Shop cleansing balm wasn’t for me either.  I think I prefer a liquid oil.  This also left my face feeling oily, didn’t wash off at all on its own. 

The Lipstick queen cream blush was a green in the pan and a nice pink on the cheek.  This was nice, but not as nice as others I’ve tried.  

 

Nope

Spoiler

This dang egg!!  It somehow hid a gallon of peeling gel inside!  This, while cute, took up too much space on my shelf and had so much product inside that I grew tired of it.  The product inside also isn’t as good as the other peeling gels I’ve got on hand. 

The Masqueology eye patches did nothing for me, though in the past they’ve actually stung my dry skin.  The two blank silver patches held cucumber eye patches that were made of a regular sheet mask material in circles.  I get that you’re meant to put them over your eyes like cucumbers but I need to be able to move around and see.  I just like stickers better.

Kokostar eye patches.  Did nothing. 

Stilla CC Stick. This sat on top of my skin just never looked right. I finished it but certainly didn’t dig in to get the last of the product. 

Quo colour correct palette.  Felt greasy or waxy on my skin and didn’t blend in. Declutter

Living Proof styling products.  Left my hair feeling heavy with product and looking grimy. Declutter.

Fresh and Josie Maran Oils.  I generally only use oils in the winter and when I opened these up they smelled off.  Declutter. 

Benefit Pot Shadow.  Lovely taupe colour but it’s totally dried out.  I’d used about half of it as a one and done shadow look and I’d use it 

 

. 

[itsfi]

That's fantastic @missjeanie that you emptied more items than you had coming in! Impressive that you set goals for number of empties. I just aim to get through what I have. 😆

[missjeanie]

I'm really wanting a more curated collection @itsfi but the 'waste not, want not' feeling is real too.  I'm hoping a combo of things this year will help me out.  Decluttering, empties goals, less purchasing/more thoughtful purchases, and setting up my 'panning' make up bag on my counter.  I was super happy to have had less coming in than going out.  It makes me feel like I'm on my way to having a collection where I'm excited to use and love the things that I have. 

[Josiep23]

What are you talking about setting goals with empties? Im new here and trying to figure everything out.

[itsfi]

@Josiep23, @missjeanie and @RGbrown summed it up very well. No particular way to go about setting goals.

For the most part, I just try to use up what I have, but there have been occasions when I'll set out a specific goal for myself - I set a goal of 100 foil samples in 4 months a couple of years ago because I was just overwhelmed by the sheer number of foil samples I had. Every now and again, I will try to use 2 sheet masks a day for a month (thanks again for inspiring the 2-a-day program missjeanie!). Whether there's a goal you are working towards or you just want to share what products you've gone through, please feel free to jump right on in and join us. We'd love to see/hear about your empties! 😁

[missjeanie]

@itsfi And thank you for inspiring a Two-a-day February!  Might be more mentally palatable in a shorter month!

[itsfi]

@missjeanie, there’s a reason why my first across the board no-buy of the year is this month. Lol! 28 days. 

[missjeanie]

Hahahaha @itsfi !! Great minds!

[itsfi]

@missjeanie, 

 

[RGbrown]

@Josiep23 

It's just a way for some folks to make themselves accountable, and perhaps more mindful of the quantities of samples and products they accumulate; a way to help ensure all these items get used instead of piling up for eternity and going bad. It's not necessary for everyone of course, just a challenge some folks here like to set for themselves. 😊

[missjeanie]

@Josiep23 For me I have a massive collection of beauty products.  I'm trying to set goals for using up products so that I don't just have 10 cleansers open for example.  I'll try to only have two or three and finish some of them off so that my collection isn't as overwhelming.  For me, I want to set goals to use up products as well as goals to purchase less than I have leaving my home.  Part of this is doing some decluttering if I haven't used as many products as I like, and part of it is being more conscious of how much I'm purchasing.  I also found that over the last year where I'm working from home a lot more, I can easily slip into not doing my full beauty routines.  Now this is fine for makeup, but for me... I need to keep up on my skincare in order or keep my skin in decent shape, which also affects my mental health... I look better, I feel better.  So having goals on using my products keeps me using them and not falling out of doing any skincare. 

Hope that helps a bit.  I think everyones goals are totally different, some people just want to be able to share what they liked and didn't like, others just want to track how much they use so they know how much to purchase etc. 

[missjeanie]

Figured I should write up my November empties as I was reminding myself to go through my December ones lol

I had a few beauty goals this year of using up more than I brought in and I did accomplish this (I can't get into the US to see a TJMaxx and haven't been out shopping, no online version of Winners here).  I also wanted to use up 730 items, or two a day.  I have to say there were some days where I didn't even wash my face.  I know, I know... that's bad, but it's my covid reality.  I have gotten better the last few months and have gotten back to using up more again. My 84 for November brought me up to 559 for the year. 

Novembers Empties 84 all together

Loves 11

Extra likes 13

Fine 33

Meh 18

Nope 9

All together

 

All the masks

 

Loves

Spoiler

Amika Hair Mask is my go to.  I still have one yet to crack into and I’m a-ok whit that.  The amount of product is crazy and I use this 2-3 times a week in place of conditioner.

TCFS Egg Mask- Something about the texture of this is amazing.  It forms to my face so well, and I could easily use these constantly. 

Neogen Milk Cream mask- Another one with great silky texture that gives such nice hydration on my dry skin.

The Hello Bello and Look at me eye patches are great since they’re my prefered sticker style and leave a nice boost to my dry underlies.

Steam eye masks…. I need these in my life, I just need to remember to use them more often.  They feel so nice to fall asleep with, the heat and bit of pressure on my eyeballs helps melt away stress.

Dr. Jart Ceramidin.  I will own this again after getting through some other products.  This stuff is so easy to use, and such a great moisture boost. 

 

Extra Likes

Spoiler

Couple of great masks here.  And two bath bombs.  I feel like I enjoy 90% of bath bombs that I use, I just need to carve out time to use them more.  I do like for my tub to turn a colour and give a fragrance, part of the experience for me.  The tranquility swish bomb had no colour but had such a lovely floral scent and I’m not normally a floral gal. 

The fragrance was a mini of MM Coffee Break which I’ve bought in travel and full size.  

The native deodorant has been a win for me.  I have a few more from an order and will order again. 

 

Fine

Spoiler

These are all products that I’m happy with, though I wouldn’t likely seek out, if I had more I’ll gladly use.  The skin food cleanser was a good one and I enjoyed the little bit of scrubby that was in there so that I felt like I was still able to scrub without being too too harsh.  The Dr. Jart sleep mask was just meh.  Likely meant for someone with a more oily skin type. The dryer dry shampoo was okay, but the scent wasn’t my favourite and I did need to work a bit to ensure no white residue. 

 

Meh

Spoiler

I’m deciding that I’m not a fan of powder foundation, these samples included, even if they were a better colour match, I’m just too dry the last few years. The Masks were all ones that either didn’t fit well/didn’t stay on my face.  The pineapple slices smell lovely but I’d rather just use an actual mask as opposed to these little pieces.  These will be used on nieces going forward for fun not skincare.   The wipes were actually ones that my mom had purchased…. She’s been gone for 3 years now… so they old, that could be why I didn’t care for them, but they were mostly used to remove swatches or to take off kids face paint.  They did fine, but for how often I use wipes, I have lots that work better. The Biore strips…. Were weird, you put the strip on then instead of pulling it off you scrub it off with water and it dissolves.  Well there’s zero satisfaction in seeing the bits pulled out this way! Lol also not as effective. 

 

Nope

Spoiler

These masks didn’t stay on my face and had done nothing more than if I’d put a tissue on my face for 5 minutes.  Hard Pass.  The LP style extender just made my hair greasy looking or like it had a bunch of product in it.  I tried to use them just to use them… ended up in the trash.  The Alterna Caviar repair scalp elixir smells like star anise so that’s a strike already for me, and trying to massage it into my scalp was an exercise I wasn’t interested in after about 30 seconds of smelling this stuff. The deodorant did nothing for me.  Didn’t even smell nice right after I put it on. 

 

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[eshoe]

December Empties:

Spoiler

FS

Bioderma - my favorite unscented cream. Very rich, and blends well with oils for extra-dry skin. I have a few backups left, after which I will restock. Everyone in the family loves this one!

Glossier Boy Brow - I purchased a backup just before running out. Love the compact brush and handle, which make it easy to use. 

Pixi Milky Tonic - Love this gentle toner. Similar to the Laneige Cream Toner, which is also good for dry winter skin.

Pacifica Crystal Lava Bubbling Charcoal Mask - @lmaster introduced me to this, it’s such a fun mask with a slight watermelon scent. I bought two, so glad I did.

Bloomeffects Dutch Dirt - I really, really wanted to love this. I was soooooo excited to try it. It had the strongest scent of rubbing alcohol, I could not use it on my face and repurposed it as a body scrub. My daughter said it had a coffee scent, which I could just barely detect. The exfoliating granules were a bit harsh as well. Maybe I received a bad tube, but I am not going to spend the money again to find out. 

Japonesque Solid Brush Cleaner Goat Milk - This is a decent soap bar, a little richer than the Beauty Blender one. Did not repurchase, but would.

Origins Gin-Zing Eye Cream - this used to be my go-to as it adds an appreciated brightening for the undereye. This is a declutter because I am pretty certain it is expired.

DS

Philip Kingsley One More Day - this is a dry shampoo, which I don’t normally use. Seemed to create a bit of white powder on my hair, which is not a good look 😄 Nice scent, though!

B&BW Vanilla Butter Cream hand lotion - oh my goodness this has the most delicious cupcake scent! @Shosh85 was kind enough to send this my way and I loved every bit of it:)

Shani Darden Cleansing Serum - this was fine? Gentle, clear and not much of a scent make it a great candidate for someone seeking a different type of cleanser without the fuss.

Glossier Rich Moisturizing Primer - I have @SportyGirly125 to thank for introducing me to this. I had tried the Priming Moisturizer and ended up decluttering it, but this I loved so much I bought the FS. Thanks, SportyGirly125!

Innisfree Green Tea Capsule Recipe Pack - this caused redness and irritated skin for days after one use. 

Mahalo Hawaiian Hydration Advanced Cellular Repair Concentrate - a very fancy compound that works to increase absorption of serums, oils, and moisturizers. It is strongly scented with aromatic jasmine and sandalwood, and does feel like a treat to use. Although enjoyable, I don’t feel it made much of a difference in how well my other skincare worked.

Sulwhasoo First Activating Serum - pleasant enough to use, no bad reactions. This is the second DS I’ve tried of this and for the money, can’t say I would repurchase as there are plenty of less expensive options.

Dr. Dennis Gross Stress Rescue Super Serum - this was great to have on hand post reaction to the innisfree. The thick, milky-white serum was truly soothing and calmed my angry red cheeks.

Freeman Melting Sugar Matcha Ice Cream Pore Cleaning wash-off mask - a pretty mask, very thick in consistency and easy to wash-off. 

Foils

Viva La Juicy Le Bubbly -  not for me, a little too much on the sweet side.

Anti-Frizz Sheets - Wish I had tried this sooner, it was like running my hair through the flat iron without the hassle. Might pick up more of these after my no buy.

YSL Touch Eclat High Cover - the little brush that comes with this is adorable. I don’t normally use concealer, so instead tried this as foundation. The color was off, but it seemed to wear well throughout the day. Seems more medium coverage than I expected from the name.

Fresh Vitamin C Glow Powder - the scent on this is so delicious, reminds me of clementines. It always leaves my skin feeling extra-smooth, too!

Ouai Thick Hair Shampoo and Conditioner - I didn’t expect much as my hair is on the thinner side, but I was curious about the scent. Wasn’t a major hit, though their scrub and Melrose Place scent are loves of mine!

Glossier Body Hero Shower Gel - Oh, I fell in love and immediately ordered a bottle. The scent reminds me exactly of orange flower water. It has neroli as well, but I am embarrassed to say I am unfamiliar with the exact single note of it. The shower gel is fairly thin, and almost like an oil.

Givenchy Prisme Libre - well, this was a fun little sample! I had never used this product and have always been curious about it. It was a little mesmerizing blending the powders together, they seemed to turn white. This left my face a slightly ashy, so the shade wasn’t for me but I enjoyed trying it. 

Year Totals

YTD
Sheet Masks	368
FS	133
DS	150
Foils	124
Total	775

[lmaster]

Wow!! This is impressive 🙌 I hope you try the other pacifica bubble mask, it's actually my favorite of the two @eshoe 

[eshoe]

I do plan on it, @lmaster - once my six months are up😉 Thanks so much for the recommendation!

[tinobiscuits]

@eshoe I may have to pick up the Dr Gross serum.  The usual things that calm my skin aren't working this year.  Happy New Year!