• October 2018 Product Empties

    Hi Everyone!

    Happy Hallowe’en! Here are this month’s product empties.

    Dove Advanced Hair Series Regenerative Nourishment Serum-in-Oil (read my review) – I don’t do a lot of things to my hair, so it’s in pretty good shape. I don’t think I really need a hair oil, but I think every now and then I’d use a hair mask. This did make my hair feel soft, so if you need something to help smooth and soften your hair, I’d recommend this.

    Repurchase? Probably not.

    Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Oil – I got a little sample of this and it lasted a long time (probably because I liked it and I was saving it until I bought another). I mostly used it on and around my nose to moisturize those areas. It could sometimes look cakey in those areas after a few hours of wearing foundation. So, I learned to be light-handed with it and make sure it absorbed before applying my makeup on top.

    Repurchase? Absolutely. Although, right now, I’m using the Tarte Maracuja Oil instead (it’s cheaper because it has more in the bottle for the price).

    Milani Keep It Sweet Sugar Scrub (read my review) – Initially, I really liked it, but I realized it was kind of just moving the loose skin on my lips back and forth instead of actually scrubbing it off. I would rather use a warm, wet cloth to exfoliate or use the elf lip scrub.

    Repurchase? No.

    Sonia Roselli Water Balm (read my review) – When I first got this, I used way too much of it. I learned that a smaller scoop went a long way because when you rub your hands together, it turns to water beads.

    Repurchase? Absolutely!

    Bobbi Brown Intensive Long Wear Makeup Remover – This was a really good makeup remover, but there are tons of drugstore brands that are more affordable. I only had this because I got it free when I purchased a palette from Nordstrom.

    Repurchase? No.

    First Aid Hello FAB Coconut Skin Smoothie Priming Moisturizer – I don’t really love the smell of this. I’d rather get the Sonia Roselli Water Balm if I’m going to get a 2-in-1 moisturizer and primer.

    Repurchase? No.

    Live Clean Biotin Extra Body Shampoo & Conditioner – This shampoo says it thickens and volumizes. While I could use some volume in my hair, it definitely doesn’t need to be thicker. I liked the smell of this shampoo and conditioner. I didn’t really notice if it did, in fact, thicken and volumize my hair. I noticed that this conditioner was the thickest of the Live Clean conditioners I tried.

    Repurchase? No, my hair is already thick.

    Garnier Skin Active Micellar Water (Waterproof) – This micellar water is great to remove makeup. Although, it does have an oily feeling. So, if you prefer not to have that feeling, get the pink one that’s not for removing waterproof makeup.

    Repurchase? Absolutely, but I want to try other micellar waters.

    Shiseido Benefiance Extra Creamy Cleansing Foam – This had some type of bead in it which I didn’t like. If I’m using a foamy cleanser, I want it to be nice and smooth. This was very fragranced and I’m not sure if my skin had a reaction from it.

    Repurchase? No.

    Earth Therapeutics Purifying Foot Scrub – I bought this a loooong time ago at Winners. It’s a good scrub and it made my feet and hands feel smooth, but I don’t know if they still sell it. One thing that I didn’t like is that it was really hard to squeeze out product, I don’t know if it was a flaw in the design or something, but I always had to use both hands to squeeze out the scrub.

    Repurchase? Probably not.

    Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Pink Grapefruit Foaming Scrub – I think this was an old formula, so it still had the plastic beads to exfoliate. I was using it every day which was too much for me. If I use it a few times a week, I think it would’ve been okay. I didn’t really love this product.

    Repurchase? Probably not.

    The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Body Wash – This product worked well. It concerned me that it said not to use on the face though- how much stronger is it than their other tea tree products?

    Repurchase? Possibly.

    Essence Get BIG! Lashes Triple Black Mascara (read my review) – This mascara does darken and volumize my lashes…and it’s a great price! The brush is just too big for my lashes.

    Repurchase? No.

    Inglot x Jennifer Lopez Lipglossy Lip Gloss in Pinky (read my review) – This is a beautiful lip gloss shade, but it’s so expensive and I don’t really like that it’s scented.

    Repurchase? No.

    Bobbi Brown Intensive Skin Serum Concealer in Warm Ivory – I did not like this concealer. I would rather get a drugstore one than use this one. I got a bit of a reaction from using this concealer under my eyes. When I swatched on my hand and blended it out, it would look beautiful, but when I used it under my eyes, it would just look terrible. I’m glad I didn’t pay full price for this (bought it at the MAC Warehouse Sale).

    Repurchase? NO.

    Maybelline Fit Me Shine-Free Balance Stick Foundation in 130 Buff Beige (read my review) – I actually really loved this foundation (I think I preferred it to the liquid Fit Me). It lasted throughout the day on hot summer days. Of course, I would still get shiny in the t-zone, but it still looked really good after 8 hours of wear. I don’t know how it would do on someone with oily skin, but it worked great on my normal-dry skin. I’ve compared it to the Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation stick (read my review).

    Repurchase? If I were going to continue buying drugstore foundations, I would definitely buy this again.

    bareMinerals BAREPRO Performance Wear Powder Foundation in Cashmere – This was a sample size and I really liked using it to pop in my purse (because of the size of the sample) for spot conceal touch-ups. I also liked using it to clean up my brows.

    Repurchase? I prefer loose powder foundations, but I would definitely consider bareMinerals.

    OPI Mini Nail Lacquer in Tickle My France-y – I love this colour, it’s a pinky-purple shade. I have to declutter this mini because the polish was starting to get really thick when I painted it onto my nails.

    Repurchase? Yes.

    What did you finish this month?

    Love,

    jen

  • 2018 Mid-Year Makeup Inventory | Highlighters

    Hi Everyone!

    Continuing my makeup inventory, today’s post is on highlighters! Check out my other mid-year makeup roundup!

    Primers & Foundations | Bronzers | Blushes | Mascaras | Highlighters

    Current inventory:

    • 12 powder highlighters
    • 1 liquid strobe highlighter from Milk Makeup

    You can never have too many highlighters, especially when you can get different shades and you can use highlighter as eyeshadow too. I won’t be putting a makeup buying ban on highlighters.

    Physician’s Formula Butter Highlighter in Pink

    I love this, it’s creamy and gorgeous. I will definitely be picking up other shades of this highlighter.

    Maybelline Facestudio Master Chrome Metallic Highlighter in 100 Molten Gold

    This is a fave of mine. I would definitely pick up another shade since this is a bit too dark for my skintone.

    Wet N Wild MegaGlo Highlighting Powder in Precious Petals

    This is beautiful. I wish I could get other shades of this highlighter, but that’s all that was left in stock at Rexall.

    Urban Decay Afterglow 8-Hour Powder Highlighter in Sin

    I got this as a rewards bonus from Sephora. It’s really pretty and the nicest out of the higher end ones that I have. I don’t think I would pick up the full-size because there are so many pretty drugstore highlighters.

    Clionadh Cosmetics Marble Highlighter in Mother of Pearl (read my review)

    I picked this up at Indie Expo Canada. It’s a gorgeous marble highlighter. It’s more of a fun highlighter since it has different colours- it looks purple, but when you move it in the light, it changes.

    Stila All Over Shimmer Powder

    I picked this up at Winners. I don’t think I’d pay full price for it. The darker shade in the duo is beautiful, but the lighter one is a bit powdery. When mixed together though, they make a beautiful rosy gold shade.

    Essence Light Up Your Face Luminizer Palette (read my review)

    I really want to try the Pure Nude Highlighter by Essence which I plan to pick up at some point. One of the shades in this palette is kind of chunky which I don’t love.

    MAC X Star Trek Trip the Light Fantastic Powder in Luna Luster

    When I first swatched this, I was surprised that it wasn’t buttery. It’s actually better to use a fan brush with this one so that it can disperse the shimmer nicely. If you used your finger, you’d get a splotch of shimmer in one spot of your face. This highlighter looks better when wet.

    H&M Spotlight Glow Powder in Sumptuous Peach (read my review)

    The pan of this is huge and it’s a beautiful highlighter for a brand that’s known for clothing.

    Inglot x Jennifer Lopez Livin’ the Highlight Illuminator in J201 Radiant (read my review)

    I prefer to use this as a body highlighter since it’s a loose highlight.

    Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder in Halo

    This is kind of chunky which was surprising since it’s Bobbi Brown. After using the blush, bronzer and highlighter, I don’t think I would pick up a Bobbi Brown product from any of those categories. If I were to get a Bobbi Brown product, it’d be an eyeshadow palette or skincare-related products like primer and foundation.

    Smashbox Blush Soft Lights Duo in Passion/Shimmer

    This highlighter is pretty, but it’s a bit powdery, if you wet your brush, it looks better. The duo would be great for travel since it has a blush and a highlighter.

    Physician’s Formula Pink, Smashbox Shimmer, Stila Shimmer (light shade, dark shade, both shades mixed), Essence Light Up Your Face Palette (3 shades), Wet N Wild Precious Petals
    Bobbi Brown Halo, H&M Sumptuous Peach, Clionadh Mother of Pearl, Urban Decay Sin, Mac X Star Trek Luna Luster, Maybelline Molten Gold, Inglot x J Lo Radiant

    The prettiest highlighters were actually the drugstore ones (in my opinion). I prefer the wet look instead of chunky, shimmery highlighters. My favourites are the Maybelline Master Chrome, Wet N Wild MegaGlo and Physician’s Formula Butter Highlighter.

    I realized that I forgot to include the Milk Makeup Liquid Strobe Highlighter in the swatches. If you want to see the swatch, you can read my review on it.

    Love,