Empties - V2

[scott1201]

Seeing product empties is so satisfying 🙂

Post your weekly, monthly, quarterly, whenever-ly empties and let us know how you felt about them!

Previous Empties thread:

Spoiler

https://community.sephora.com/t5/Insiders/Empties/m-p/589003

[Samtian]

This year ended up being a very good year overall for me. Beat my declutters from previous years. 

2025- 119/100
2025- 86 Destashes

Love-
* Pumpkin Juice Bath Bomb by The Witch's Bath (OMG amazing! It was themed like a butterbeer from HP and it looked like I was swimming in a Budweiser foam and all. But smelled way better)
* Peace Out Acne Dots Peace Out Salicylic Acid Acne Healing Dots 40 Acne Healing Dots 
* Spa Life Overnight Mask
* Nose Strip

Ok-
* Jollyrancher Watermelon Chapstick
* Hershey's Smores Chapstick

N.O- 
* Valentino Foundation  
* Dermologica - wrong picture

Declutter-
* 1270 Frapin Sample- Forgot to include in picture
* CT Pillowtalk Mascara  Charlotte Tilbury Mini Pillow Talk Push Up Lashes Volumizing & Lengthening Mascara 
* Bobbi Brown Smoky Mascara 
* KVD Lovecraft
* Mary Kay Mascara
* Rare Beauty Inspire 
* GA 400( Can't Open )
* Bite Rose Pearl
* Kora FS expired ...2018!
* Kora sample also probably expired
* Burt's Bees Almond Milk ( Can't open)
* Save the Queen lotion bar ( Can't open)
* Hot Topic Eyeliner
* Bite Demi Glace

[haleyvvvv]

Congratulations on your totals, @Samtian !! I'm so impressed at how much you've decluttered this year, kudos to you!!

[Samtian]

@haleyvvvv Thank you! It ended up feeling pretty good, sad but a good reminder.

[haleyvvvv]

Empties for the last 6 months. A little slow, but quite a few makeup products. 

Holy Grails 🏺

Spoiler

These are all favorites, if I don't have a backup already it's because my collection has too much stuff in it to justify.

• Tower 28 Beauty Jumbo SOS Daily Hypochlorous Acid Spray Refill for Breakouts & Redness 16 oz /480 mL...  - I love this not only as a nighttime most to start my routine, but anywhere in having skin irritation.
• Danessa Myricks Beauty Infinite Chrome Waterproof Micropencil Eyeliner  - these are so cool. I love the duo chrome effect with these, they're so smooth. My only gripe is that there's not a ton of product and they can get dislodged easily.
• Sol de Janeiro Delícia Drench™ Moisturizing Shower Oil for Dry Skin - This name is a bit of a misnomer. Because upon hearing oil, I was like, there's no way this will suds up and clean my body. But it does!! And it smells so good. A h/t to YouTuber Lauren May Beauty for talking about this one. I think this is my second or third bottle.
• The Dove Body Love lotion is maybe no longer made (I think it got reformulated, which I have one to test). The Sol de Janeiro Bum Bum Cream was my HG for a while because of the scent, and while I still love it, after I tested this from Influenster, I've been a fan. It's so moisturizing for my dry, sensitive skin (which the SDJ doesn't do as well, despite being deliciously scented). I think I've bought like a dozen or more over the past few years. If it is discontinued I'll be sad, but I also bought the Sol de Janeiro Body Badalada™ Lotion with Hyaluronic Acid for Daily Hydration 13.52 oz/400 mL to test to see if it'll be a good replacement.
• Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder -Universal Primer Universal Radiant - once I finish my pile of foundations and primers, I will buy a full size of this. I love it for like easy makeup days or work events, to just give my skin some smoothing and glow. It's amazing how well this works in even dry skin, I find it managed to blur without looking dry.
  The REFY Brow Sculpt Shaping and Lifting Gel with Strong Hold 0.29 oz/8.5 mL is maybe overhyped. But honestly, for my bossy brows, it's been the only thing that works. It holds ALL DAY without looking crumbly. I had a bunch of other brow minis to use up, but I have her back again and I'm excited.
  The K18 Biomimetic Hairscience AirWash™ Dry Shampoo 4 oz/118 mL is also magic. The hair scientists at K18 are wizards. I love this. Yes, is it expensive. But I go through a bottle about every 6 months, whereas before I would go through an aerosol one every 1-2 months, so the price is actually pretty good.
  I like the glow the Iconic London Prep-Set-Glow Hydrating Glowy Setting Spray gives. I don't know how much it helps set, but as a finishing spray it makes my skin happy.
  PAT McGRATH LABS Dark Star Volumizing Mascara 0.43 fl oz / 13 mL but the colored editions. I got these on sale for $12 each and used them for maybe a little longer than I should have, but I'll miss not having them around. 2025 was supposed to be the year of coloured mascara, please give me something beyond brown, burgundy and a deep blue companies that I can easily access (yes, both Glisten and Question Beauty make some, but I want to buy one mascara a month for the year, not twenty colors at once in a set and pay shipping fees from Europe). 2026 pretty color mascara let's goooo.
  The The Ordinary Argireline Solution 10% for Reducing Fine Lines 1 oz/ 30 mL , Summer Fridays Jet Lag Mask + Moisturizer 2.25 oz / 64 g , Sol de Janeiro Samba 2-Step Foot Fetish Care 3 oz/90 mL and SEPHORA COLLECTION Sugar Body Scrub with AHA 13.52 oz / 399 mL are all repeated faves as well

Green Lights 💚 (Would seek out again but maybe have a holy grail in that category)

 

Yellow Lights 🟡 (Would use but not seek out or necessarily repurchase)

Red Flags ❌ (A nope from me) 

Spoiler

The Sephora*Sigma Makeup Sponge Cleaner, the Dr. Althea cleaning balms aren't bad products, just terrible packaging. The Beekman and Glow Recipe both have bad packaging and were meh. And the brow products either didn't work at all (Patrick Ta) or fixed my brows but left them with white strings throughout (Melt). 

Decluttered 🫣

Spoiler

I went through my lipsticks the past few months and didn't have many that needed to immediately, but this Bite Capricorn and Tarter one did. The Too Faced one still was good but then the poof fell off so 🤷‍♀️.
And two moisturizers that dried out before I could use them 🫣

And my partner's skincare which helps me get GWP 

[Samtian]

@haleyvvvv Oh wow! I agree it's awesome seeing it all together! 

[haleyvvvv]

Thank you, @Samtian !! It is nice seeing how much I realistically go through in that time but also sobering lol

[missjeanie]

@haleyvvvv Oh my gosh so satisfying seeing it all together!  You went through so much makeup!  I love the T28 spray as well.  I may need to look into the SDJ body oil wash as well.  If memory serves that scent was my absolute favourite, but I like the idea of a body oil wash again.  Especially in this weather!  Hope you're staying warm!

[haleyvvvv]

I think there's a mini or a kit with the body lotion and spray, @missjeanie. but you're right it's perfect for this weather and dreaming of the tropics. Hope you're also staying warm!!

[itsfi]

Yes, yes, yes for that K18 dry shampoo @haleyvvvv 💖 The longevity of a bottle of the K18 compared to aerosol dry shampoos hadn't occurred to me but you're right! I'm still working on my original bottle of the K18 dry shampoo; granted, I rotate between it and some aerosol ones that I'm just trying to use up to not waste them but it does last longer and I can go longer between uses.

Interesting about the Dr. Althea cleansing balms - did the component jam up on you or are you not a fan of the mechanism in general for dispensing the product?

[haleyvvvv]

Yes!! Not only do I use less of it, but I go longer between uses of it, which cuts down on usage compared to aerosols for me.

For the Dr. Althea, I just hate how bulky the packaging is for how little you get (50 mL), @itsfi. I feel like these each lasted me a month at most. Like I'm sure there's a ton 'extra' in there too, but I haven't like figured out how to deconstruct it to get the rest out. And I just price checked at the Farmacy one (100 mL) isn't like so much more than two of these. So I'm glad I tried them in a Style Korean box or two, but I'm not going to seek them out separately I think. To me, I don't feel like the benefits of improved 'cleanliness' or accurate usage amount are necessarily true or such that this was a necessary component to make. 

[adamsev]

Row 1 - OK. 

Row 2 - All but the dry shampoo are HG. Luv the Moroccanoil scent and the EL foundation is a OG. I’m in my 40s and I swear I’ve gone thru like 5 or 6 bottles by now maybe even more. 

Row 3 - All likes. I have more Touchland and Good Genes and got some of the holiday scents on sale..

[missjeanie]

@adamsev Oh I've grown to love the Touchlands as well.  I really like the holiday scents and I hope they come out with more limited edition ones.

[itsfi]

Yes, yes to the Touchland and Dr. Jart Cicapair cream @adamsev; they're staples in my collection. EL Double Wear is a classic; it has a huge fan base. It's so nice when you find something that works that well for you.

[lmaster]

@adamsev thanks for sharing!! Great job

[itsfi]

November 2025 Empties (I thought I had posted this earlier in the month 😬)

Month-To-Date = 24 (including the one and only sample for the month)

Year-To-Date = 285

Got through a lot of products that have been in use for a while 🙌 most of which fell in the "like and would repurchase" category. That said, I may hold off on repurchasing until spring / summer 2026 as I have several other products in rotation that I want to use up first.

👍 JMsolution Quick Routine Nourishing Honey Mask - my skin loves honey as a skincare ingredient and the JMsolution brand has always performed well on my skin when it comes to their sheet masks so this limited edition sounded like it would be right up my alley. It did not disappoint in that it was loaded with serum - with some mask packs, I need to flip the pack upside down every so often to allow the serum to envelop not just the sheets at the bottom but get more of the serum into the sheets at the top of the pack. Not so with these. It took me pretty much the entire year to work through the pack - which isn't advisable as they are not intended to be kept around for that long. In my defense, I did perform a smell and sight check before each use after we passed the 60 days after opening mark and it was fine with each subsequent use. When I did use these, my skin felt hydrated, nourished and bouncy, with a healthy dewy glow after use - great as a pre-makeup prep step as well as for some extra hydration in an evening skincare routine.

❤️ Voluspa Tahitian Coconut Vanilla Votive Candle (from the 12 Day advent calendar) - I love the clean, cozy and comforting vibe this scent gives a room without it being too sugary, synthetic or overwhelming. There's a luxury tropical beach resort vibe to it that I can't complaint about. 

😘 Voluspa Baltic Amber Votive Candle - As with all the Voluspa candles, the vessel that holds the candle is beautiful and great for using for other purposes. This scent is nice too - warm, slightly sweet and creamy, with comforting spice notes to add some dimension to it. My iffy-ness over it rests in the candle's throw. More than any scent among the Voluspa candles, Baltic Amber, for me, is the most inconsistent- with this votive, the cold throw is lovely - noticeable but not too strong, but when lit, I get nothing unless I bring my nose almost directly next to the burning wick (do not do that!). That said, I have this scent in other sizes and those perform beautifully and the scent projects well lit and unlit. Generally speaking, this is a scent and candle I would repurchase but not in this votive size. 

🐐 Love, love, loooooove the Sephora Collection Caffeine Eye Masks (discontinued). I stocked up before they sold out and a few BIC'ers snagged a handful from their store shelves to send my way as well - much appreciation for you for doing that! 

👍 This Voluspa Forbidden Fig Candle was part of the 12-day advent from 2024. I use it like a candle of the month beginning in January.  The glassware on this is beautiful. The scent profile on this one is very interesting - even though the most (but not all) of the key notes listed are ones that I typically steer away from, I somehow don't mind them all mingled together. Some of that has to do with the other notes included in it to give it a warm, citrusy, fruity, woody leafy-ness to it, as well as this scent being one of the more subtle ones from the brand. 

😐 HUM Celery Juice Fiber Gummies (gwp) - I don't know if I just needed to use more of this product to see results but I didn't think one bottle did anything.  

😘 I rarelly use nose strips these days and when I do, it's usually the OG, Biore ones since they work best for me (even if they're not the gentlest to use). Many a nose strip has tried to live up to the results of the Biore and failed so The Hero. Mighty Patch Nose (gwp) was up against some stiff competition. I wasn't expecting much from it and to my great (and welcome) surprise, it performed very well - malleable, adhered to skin well, even around the contours of the nose which isn't always easy to work around, and it sucked the impurities from my nose and the ick from a pimple on my nose overnight. Although removing the strip wasn't what I would describe as a pleasant experience, it was easier and gentler than I expected, especially for something that I kept on my nose overnight. I received this as part of a gift with purchase promo but I would pay money out of pocket for it. 

👍 8Greens Supergreens Tablets Peach Tea is a good way to supplement your veggie intake. I used to really enjoy the taste but it's become a little too sweet for me. I think they've reformulated the product, including adjustments to the flavor. I've found similar products I like more so while I wouldn't mind trying the reformulated product at some point, I won't be picking it up anytime soon.

😘 Hero. Mighty Patch Variety Pack includes two sets of the brand's pimple patches - the original version and the invisible+ version. The former is similar to Peace Out Acne Dots (original) and, in terms of thickness, the invisible+ falls between that of Peace Out Acne Day Dots and TIL Hydrocolloid Pimple Patches 🐐. 

😘  Hero. Mighty Patch Micropoint for Dark Spots surprised me in that it seemed to actually work, at least on some smaller dark spots, accelerating the healing time. These worked better for me than their Peace Out counterparts.

👍 Byredo Alto Astral Eau de Parfum is marketed as a tropical vacation, coconut scent. It sorta is? When I spritz the perfume into the air, I can detect a fresh coconut scent - no beachy, sunscreen smell, a light, fresh, fruity, coconut, almost coconut water like scent and then some oaky and woody notes. When I spritz it on my skin, however, it's very clear my body chemistry is compatible with the scent, at least not in the summer / fall season - instead of a fresh coconut scent, my nose picks up a stronger musk like smell with a hint of what reminds me of possibly what the husk of a coconut shell might smell like.

😘  There's a ton of product in the Bath & Body Works Exfoliating Lip Scrub Champagne Toast and it does a good job of sloughing away dry patches on my lips without being harsh. This has been a long time coming - I feel like I've had this in my stash for a good 3-4 years.

🐐 Another Touchland hand sanitizer, this one of the Salted Caramel varietal. One of my most well liked scents among the entire Touchland hand sanitizer collection.  I would (and have) repurchased this one. 

👍 Aaaaaaand, also 3 or 4 years later (eeek!!!), I've finally made my way through the very luxe Cle de Peau The Cream (gratis). It's lovely, it really is. I was very fortunate to have received it as gratis. It contains retinal, a fabulous skincare ingredient for, among other things, anti-aging, skin renewal, brightening and managing acne - all things my facial skin needs, but sadly, that same skin on my face does not tolerate retinol. The skin on my body, on the other hand, is much less sensitive, and since it's such a tough cookie, it gets all the skincare products my face cannot handle or does not handle well. My hands, arms, legs, torso, bum and feet all appreciated being treated to such a luxe cream. 

😘 I was very interested to give the Aestura Atobarrier365 Hydro-Ceramide serum a longer trialing (slightly disappointed that this deluxe sample tube was only half filled). The lightweight, thin (but not watery) consistency makes it easy to spread and it absorbs quickly and my skin really likes that it contains both hyaluronic acid and ceramides. I prefer Rhode glazing fluid for most of the year but will pick up this serum for use in the summer months when my skin leans oilier and when the thinner consistency on this one will come in handy when I don't want a lot of product on my face but still want the benefits of a hydrating to help my moisturizer work better. 

😘 Love how fresh and refreshing the room smells when I light the Coco by Stone Grapefruit + Pomelo Natural Coconut Wax Candle. 

❤️ Trader Joe's Grapefruit Scented Candle - fresh, bright, clean, not-too-sweet grapefruit scent has a good throw to it. ON some days it can be a bit strong for my senses but that's not often. 

😘 Voluspa White Cypress hits the right notes for me when it comes to a scent leading into the holidays. It has what I think of as a classic winter holiday scent - a slightly alpine-y evergreen smell - but there's something citrusy and subtly sweet in there that keeps it from being too pine-y. 

😐 Voluspa Temple Moss isn't bad per se and if you're into green earthy scents, it's worth checking out. It was a bit too ... mossy? for me, though I now it's less so than some other similarly scented candles; I would have liked to pick up more of the crisp, woody, Hinoki notes. The green hue on the full size jar though is gorge!

❤️ Holiday scents can be very similar and while I enjoy them a lot, Voluspa Gilt Pomander & Hinoki is one of my favorite holiday scents because it projects both a familiar and unique scent with its spices and berries. I also really love the mercury glass jar in which its full size offering is packaged.

❤️ DW Richly Scented Candle - Sunday Morning was gifted to me by a dear friend and smells deliciously of warm, fresh off the griddle and topped with butter and maple syrup. Mmmm... yum!

👍 Well, this was a surprise. When I first tried Phlur Mood Ring in the summer months, my assessment was that it was nice but I would not repurchase. Having tried this again with the weather having cooled significantly, it lasts longer on my skin and is more nuanced - less gummy candy-like - it's still there but less pronounced and sweet. I pick up some floral, spice and woody notes as well - they're all very subtle but they do change how the scent came across when I first tried it. This also smells beautifully as a room spray. That being said, I'm not sure I'd pay so much for a room spray, even on sale. Lol. As a perfume though, I could see myself possibly picking this up, but there are a couple other fragrances from the brand that I would purchase before this one.

❤️ Typology. Lip Peeling Serum was part of the pan it! Challenge and one of my favorite products of the year. The exfoliating ingredients in this peel are powerful enough to be effective at keeping my lips smooth when I use this consistently but gentle enough that it does not sting when applied, even two layers. Gentle enough for me to use morning and night as well, on a daily basis. Wondering if this will be included in this year's Typology. advent calendar; if not, it will go on my list of things to repurchase in 2026 (or maybe even before the year ends).

EMOJI KEY

🐐= product is a GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) in its category [I have a personal requirement that before a product receive this designation, I have to have finished a minimum of two of the product (with at least one being a full size).]

❤️ = Love

😘= Like and would repurchase
👍 = Like but would not repurchase (at least not immediately), usually because I like another similar product more or because I have other similar products to work through before making a purchase
😐 = Lackluster = it's okay / meh, includes products that are fine enough but are not suitable for my particular skin / hair type or concerns or are just not what I prefer/gravitate towards
✖️ = No [This is typically given to a product that irritates my skin]

[lmaster]

@itsfi oh my goodness,  those honey sheet masks!! So many great candles too 

[itsfi]

Candle season has settled in nicely here for sure @lmaster. I had a bunch that were partially used from last year so it's nice to finish them; it also doesn't hurt that they smell really good, too!

[Samtian]

@itsfi whoa good job! I'm going to have to look into those nose strips. 

[itsfi]

@Samtian, I don't think I've tried anything that's given the OG Biore strips any competition but these Hero. ones are really nice - more gentle than I expected too when it comes to removing them - more gentle than the Biore. 

[Samtian]

@itsfi That is good to know!