November 2014 Empties

The end of a month means it's time to look back and see what all I used up and what I'll be repurchasing. In October I predicted a small pile for November, maybe around ten items. Let's dive in and see how I actually did.

Yeah, I did about as expected. 13 items total, so not a huge amount finished. But October was a pretty good month so it evens out I guess. I'm just going to dive right into the items because I have other stuff to talk about.

Mason Jar: N/A The jar held some homemade toner pads, which I liked quite a bit but I'm using a different recipe for the winter months.

Altoids Tin: N/A This held my chocolate mint lip scrub, which I liked quite a bit. Currently using my fall flavored scrub.

Muslim Cloth: Not Repurchasing This is the cloth from that nasty cleanser I tried last month. The cloth was nice to wash my masks and stuff off in the shower but it's all gross now and honestly I have wash clothes that do the same thing.

Kirkland Makeup Removal Wipes: Repurchasing I am finally out of my Costco box of these, so I'll be getting more this weekend. But as I've said in the past, I really like these and will continue to get them.

LA Fresh Makeup Removal Wipes: Not Repurchasing These came in an Ipsy bag and were utter crap. Super small, SUPER thin, smelled weird, and just didn't do a good job removing my makeup.

Feria Conditioner...Stuff: Not Repurchasing This is the last tube of conditioner stuff that came with my hair dye. I'm pretty unhappy with this brand, I feel like y color faded super fast and never really set. I'll probably redye it this month with a different brand, my roots are getting pretty long.

Not Soap Radio Body Wash: Repurchase This was a free item from a Birchbox order and I loved it! Smelled like lemon sugar, made for a super relaxing bath. Once the holidays are over I'll be ordering the whole set so I can try all the different scents out and see which one is my favorite.

Beauty Protector Spray: Repurchase I actually already bought a full sized one, this was the sample that came in my October Birchbox. I LOOOVED this, it smells divine, detangles my hair, makes it soft and shiny, and protects it. This will become a staple in my household for sure.

Aveda Perfume: Undecided This was my free birthday perfume from Aveda, and while I really liked the scent I'm debating trying a different one next time. It did last a while though, which was nice. And it smelled great.

Nivea Creme: Repurchase I like to keep a lotion in my desk and this has been my favorite so far. Worked great and had a really good price for the full sized (this was a travel one) so I will be picking up a full sized one probably after the holidays.

Mary Kay Liquid Eyeliner: Undecided This was my first introduction to the world of non-crappy liquid eyeliners. I loved the formula and the felt tipped brush but I'm not crazy about the price. I'm going to try a few other brands before I decide if I want to repurchase this one or not.

Caudalie Divine Oil: Repurchase Another item from Birchbox, this dry oil was fabulous and I used it to keep my hands and nails looking great. It is expensive though so this will be a birthday treat for sure.

Essence Get Big Mascara: Not Repurchase This brand gets a lot of love online for their mascaras, and at $4-5 a piece they are worth trying for sure. This one got really clumpy after a month of use and is super not water proof, so I'm actually chucking it before I actually finish this. But I'll be trying some of the other mascaras Essence offers just to see why so many people love them.

That's it for my empties, I am proud that so many of them were larger items or things I really needed to use up. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seem my picture (the one above) of the basket full of stuff. There were 30 items in that basket, and my goal for December is to finish them all off, or at least make some serious progress on them. I'll report on how I'm doing so far during tomorrow's Thursday Thoughts, but this will be an interesting challenge for sure.

October 2014 Empties

These post have oddly enough become one of my favorites to do. I love looking back at what I've used up and seeing my empties bag fill up makes me feel super proud. Is that weird? I feel like its weird. Any ways, last month I set a goal of finishing at least 20 items and I hit it! I actually had 29 empties for the month of October, so I'm pretty pleased with myself. Since I had so many items I'll try to keep it quick.

Wow, that is an impressive pile, right? I'll divide this post up by foilies, hair, skin, and makeup to make things easier and quicker. If you want more details than what I give let me know down in the comments.

DHC Velvet Skin Primer x4: Not Purchasing I got about 3 uses out of each pack so 12 uses total and it just make me love it. And for the price I need to love it.

EVE LOM Cleanser: Not Purchasing According to Vogue this is the world's best cleaner and all I can say is what the hell is Vogue smoking. This stuff REEKED and took like 10 minutes to use. Sure, it got my face clean, but so does the non-stinky cleaner I already own that takes me a minute to use. I do like the muslin cloth that came with it so I'll be using that as my shower face scrubbing cloth till it gets gross. Did I mention this stuff smelled awful? Because it did.

Curel and Jergins Lotions: Not Purchasing Some lotion samples I wanted to use up, didn't wow me enough to actually buy.

Garnier Cleansing Oil: Not Purchasing I actually requested this sample because I was looking for a cheaper dupe of the DHC Cleansing Oil, which is amazing. This stuff sucked. Left makeup on my face, doesn't emulsify at all, and left my face feeling oily. I got about 3 uses out of the packet so I tested it out pretty well.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil: Purchasing Eventually This stuff is amazing, as I've mentioned before. I have one more foil pack and a travel sized bottle left so when those are done I'll actually buy a full sized bottle of this expensive but totally worth it cleansing oil.

Alba Botanica Acne Gel: Undecided I haven't decided it I liked it enough to actually buy one. Didn't like the other things in this line and I *think* it only comes as a set at the store I got the sample from.

Briogeo Hair Mask: Not Purchasing I got this is my last Ipsy bag and while it did make my hair soft it smelled super bad. Which meant my hair smelt super bad for the day every time I used it. Gross

Marc Anthony Sea Salt Spray: Purchase Eventually I already have an second bottle of this, this bottle is the one that got damaged in an exploding Ipsy bag. I really liked it, smelled great, and was cheap.

Feria Hair Dye and ect: Undecided I'll write more about this later probably. Like the color but I think it's fading faster than it should.

OGX Moroccan Deep Conditioner: Purchase I actually have one more tub left but I love this stuff as I've mentioned and buy several whenever it's on sale at Ulta, which seems to be every few months.

Marakesh Split Endz Mendz: Not Repurchasing Another Ipsy bag item, worked ok but made my hair smell like moldy earth. Not exaggerating at all.

Klorane Dry Shampoo: Not Repurchasing I was going to do a full post on this but long story short works really well but is SUUUUPER expensive, $20 for a regular can. And I go through a can every other month, so that would add up fast. I'll stick with my $6 Psssst! Dry shampoo.

Kirkland Facial Wipes: Purchasing I've talked about these often enough you know I like them, but I'm finally down to my last pack so I need to actually buy more. Wish they would go on sale for even better savings.

ULTA Heart Throb Body Was: ???? So I *think* this was a seasonal Valentines Day scent and isn't usually available. I got it on clearance for under a buck and actually really loved the scent. If it ever comes back I'll buy more, but it may never come back. Curse you seasonal items!

Whish Saving Cream: Not Purchasing A Birchbox item, I liked it enough to use it but not enough to spend $20 on a full sized tube. The scent was weird too.

Cotton Swabs: Purchasing I buy a pack every other month from the dollar store.

Save Tan Lotion: Not Repurchasing I'm not even going to tell you how old this was. Don't even ask. So embarrassing, but I go through lotion really slowly I noticed. This was actually bought in Hawaii to help my severely burned Husband, this stuff is like an IV for the skin. So even if I wanted more I doubt I could get more.

Up&Up Face Toner: Not Repurchasing I was actually going to buy more of this until I made my own toner and decided I liked that better. But if you are looking for this one I recommend it. It is a dupe for the Proactiv+ toner for a fraction of the price.

Mary Kay Foundation: Not Repurchasing I have a friend who sells Mary Kay so every once in a while I buy stuff from her. This foundation matched my skin tone perfectly when I bought it, but it's old enough the color is getting orangish and it smells off so I'm chucking it. Though in retrospect it is pretty old. Like older than my son...by a lot. Kind of grossed out I was still using it. These aren't bad foundations, but they are on the more expensive side and can only be purchased from a rep which can be a pain if you don't know someone who sells it.

Dr Jart+ BB Cream: Not Purchasing Another Birchbox item, this is apparently a really popular brand and this specific BB cream is really popular, but it just didn't do it for me. Color and texture were great, wasn't heavy at all. It just felt greasy on my face, like it never really dried. And it had to be applied with either a stippling brush and then buffed in or applied with my fingers for a smooth finish, which meant it took a while to do. I'm a brush fan, keeps things cleaner too.

Makeup Forever Mascara: Not Repurchasing This was part of my free birthday gift from Sephora and is apparently a nice brand but I'm not seeing it. The mascara was pretty standard, though the brush was gigantic! Just not m cup of tea.

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara: Purchasing Ok, I know I typically don't buy expensive things that won't last for a while, but this mascara is AMAZING! I got this tube in an Ipsy bag and I fell it love after the first time I used it. Not the most waterproof out there, but it make my lashed look long, thick, and as black as can be. I'll treat myself to a full sized tube if I can make it through the holidays without murdering anyone any trouble.

Urban Decay 24/7 Eyeliner: Not Repurchasing Another Ipsy item, just wasn't worth the $20 price tag. Is it better than most pencil liners? Yes. But for $20 I expect a heck of a lot more. Like not having to sharpen it every friggin time I used it. I seriously hate sharpening my eyeliners, I prefer liquid, cream, or those mechanical pencil ones. Sharpening just takes to long and I always end up breaking the tip off.

That's it for my empties, I think I did really well. For November I'm predicting a lower number, maybe around ten if I'm lucky. I've got some makeup almost finished so fingers crossed that they are in next month's post. If you keep track of your empties, how did you do?

September 2014 Empties

Ah, the end of another month which means its time to look at what I finished up during the month of September. September also happened to have been a no buy month for me, which was really hard with Ulta's 21 days of beauty event. So many good sales! I'll have to plan better next time I do a no buy. Last month I predicted that my empties would be somewhere around 15 if I remember correctly. Or more specifically more than ten, less than twenty. So let's see how I did for the month of September.

I got 15 items exactly, which is amusing me more than it should. Mostly body or face items this time, which doesn't surprise me. I'm close to finishing a bunch of makeup products right now so October will probably be makeup heavy. I'm pleased with how much stuff I'm getting through, especially items I've had for waaaaay to long (like the lotion).

Lets do the foilies first, since they're the easiest.
Eucerin Everyday Body Lotion: Not Purchasing I got this in the mail, and while it wasn't a bad lotion I have one I really like.

DHC Concentrated Eye Cream x2: Not Purchasing Another free sample, I love DHC products but I'm so damn picky about eye creams. This one wasn't bad, but I didn't like the greasy feel of it. If it was creamy I would more than likely purchase a full size.

DHC Extra Nighttime Moisture: Undecided Yet another free sample, this time for a moisturizer. I actually liked the moisturizer, just not sure if I liked it enough to buy a full sized one. I have some more foilies of it so I'll give it a better test run and make my final decision then.

Aveeno Oatmeal Anti-Itch Cream: Repurchase This item is on constant repurchase in my household between my toddler, my super sensitive skinned husband, and little miss stress hives (me). Yes there are cheaper brands out there but this has the least amount of "other" ingredients so I pay the extra few bucks.

Aveeno Oatmeal Bath: Repurchase This item is also a constant repurchase item, and trust me DON'T buy the knock off Rite-Aid brand. Pay the extra few dollars and get the really nice stuff. Your skin and whoever gets stuck cleaning the bath tub will thank you.

Kirkland Makeup Removing Wipes: Repurchasing I buy these at Costco so I only need to buy a new box about twice a year, and I'm just about out now. Hoping they go on sale soon for an even better deal.

Skiin Soothing & Smoothing Eye Cream: Not Repurchasing I got a bunch of stuff in a swap and this was in it. Not impressed at all, didn't see any sort of difference.

Goldbond Daily Moisturizing Cream: Not Purchasing I received this free as well (free is my favorite price), and while I really liked it I like another lotion better. But I recommend this one if you are looking for a good body lotion.

Crystal Waters Lotion: Not Repurchasing This was part of a trio of lotions I received as a gift one year and while the other two were great this one smelled like cheap cologne. And wasn't a great lotion either.

Mary Kay Eyeliner in Jade: Not Repurchasing The color on this was gorgeous but it smeared like crazy. If they improved the formula so I could wear it without it making me look like a green raccoon I'd be all over that.

PSSSST! Dry Shampoo: Repurchase I'm actually doing a blog post on this later this month so I won't spill the beans just yet, but this stuff rocks.

Lacome Makeup Remover: Not Repurchasing I know this is high end stuff, but I don't get what the hype is for. It barely took off my eyeliner and mascara with scrubbing, so for the price tag I am so not impressed. Not worth it at all.

Ulta 3-in-1 Bath Smoothies (Yum Yum Yumberry and Buttercream Cupcake): Repurchase I actually already repurchased 2 large containers of the cupcake one, but they were out of the yumberry one so I'll pick it up at a later date. These are really great, they're shampoo/body wash/bubble bath and they smell great. These little bottles are great for your travel bag, but they come in lots of different sizes and scents. I currently also have an apple one, a dragon fruit one, a strawberries and champagne one, and a few of the Ulta brand regular body washes. All of them are great and I super recommend them, plus are constantly buy 2 get 2 free.

Overall a whole big pile of not repurchasing, minus a few things. Next month should be a big month, I want to try and clear out some room before the holiday season comes up. My goal is to hit at least 20 items for October, wish me luck!

August 2014 Empties

Beginning of a new month means its time to look at my empties from the last month. My prediction for August was that I'd only get a few things finished and boy was I wrong! This was my biggest pile of empties since I started keeping track of them, with 16 things finished up. Since I have so many items this month I'll try and keep it quick.

Wow, that is a lot of stuff!

My breakdown this month comes to: 1 hair, 6 makeup, 6 skin care, 1 tool, 1 personal hygiene, and 1 perfume. Again, that is a LOT of stuff! Although some of it is from my travel bag and was pretty much done so I figured I'd just finish them.

Kirkland Wipes: N/A I buy these in bulk at Costco so I've got plenty left. I love them though as I've stated.

Rise Perfume:  Not Purchasing I got this sample free through some program and while it was nice it wasn't really my style.

DHC Deep Cleansing Oil: Repurchase I've talked about this stuff before so you know I love it to pieces.

Cotton Rounds: Repurchase These are on my permanent buy list as I've mentioned.

Dove Deodorant: N/A I've mentioned that I get these at Costco so I've got enough left till Christmas I think. This was the one in my travel bag and since I'm done traveling for the year I figured I'd use up the last teeny bit left in it. But this is the only kind I use, so obviously I will buy more when I completely run out.

Random Hand Sanitizer: N/A This was a free handout at some event I worked years ago so I couldn't buy another one even if I wanted to.

E.L.F. Tinted Lip Balm in Clear: Repurchase I did a review of this here so I won't write any more.

Mary Kay Lipgloss: Not Repurchasing Like the other ones I've talked about, this was awful and gritty and I'm so glad it is done.

Benefit Lollitint: Not Repurchasing I got this in my April Ipsy Bag and while I initially hated it, once I figured out the steep learning curve I grew to like it. Not enough to fork over $30 for a full sized, but enough I'd use it if I received some again.

CK One Mascara: N/A I received this FREE from Ulta for my Birthday (just sign up for their free rewards program) and I loved it a lot. I actually have a review in the works so I won't say anymore.

Almond Oil: Repurchase I use this in most of my homemade beauty products so I'll be picking up another one when I go grocery shopping next weekend.

Tresemme Dry Shampoo: Not Repurchasing You can see how much I hated this here.

Cocoa Butter Lotion: Not Repurchasing To give you an idea of how long it took me to finish this, I bough it after my son was born and he'll be three and a half next month. I didn't hate it, I just didn't like it. Didn't really help with my stretch marks (which I've learned to like).

Coppertone Sunscreen: N/A I've talked about these before so you know I typically like them, but this one separated and got all gross for some reason. I don't know if it was just a bad tube or what, all my other tubes were fine and my big bottle is still fine. I still have a ton of these left so I'm not worried about buying more.

Covergirl Eyeliner: Haven't decided I love these because they're cheap and a nice matte black, but I've fallen in love with gel/cream liners so I don't know if I'll pick up another one of these or not.

Be a Bombshell Mascara: Not Repurchasing Oh my god this mascara was super bad, the review I did can be found here, but to give you an idea of how much I hated it I wouldn't use it again even if they paid me serious money.Such a terrible product.


I'm very pleased with how much old stuff I finally used up, I'm really bad about that I guess. My prediction for my September empties is that it will be more than 10 but less than 20, probably around 14. I've got a few products almost done so I think I'll make a decent dent on my stash this month. How did you guys do on your empties for August?

Buying in Bulk, Do or Don't?

I am lucky enough to live within 20 minutes of two different Costco stores, and since my son seems to have a black hole where his stomach should be that helps me out in the food department. But what about the bath and beauty department? This isn't going to be a cut and dry answer, a lot will depend on the number of people using the item or what you personally like. What works for me won't necessarily work for you.

Shampoo, conditioner, and soaps are always going to be a yes in my book if they happen to have something I like. Generally the bigger sizes are more cost effective and you'll have to go shopping for them less often. I have very long hair (past the middle of my back so far, going for butt length to win a bet) so I go through a regular sized bottle of shampoo and conditioner at LEAST every other month. These types of products have a much longer shelf life than say toothpaste, so I give these a big thumbs up for buying in bulk and storing.

Lotions can be cheaper in the bulk, but are you really going to go through a whole gallon of lotion before it gets all funky? I say only get lotion if you know you can get through it within a year at the longest. If your whole family will use it then go for it, but if you are a once a week sort of lotion user just say no.

Deodorant is something I ONLY buy at Costco, they offer a 5 pack for the price of buying 3 sticks at my local Albertson's and every few months they have a coupon for them. I like the Dove brand in the cool cucumber and since I teach Taekwondo in the evenings I tend to go through more deodorant than your average person. If you aren't sure if you'll use them all up by the expiration date find someone to split the pack (and cost) with you, win win for everybody!

Makeup is something I approach on a per item basis. I generally don't buy makeup from Costco since they seem to mainly carry the Kirkland brand makeup, which I'm super not interested in. I will get lip balm in the big packs because I use it a lot and I tend to lose them. Mascara I will buy if it's a brand I like because you should be replacing your mascara every 3 or so months.

Makeup remover is something I always buy there as well, I really like the Kirkland brand makeup removal wipes. Giant box with 6 full sized (30 wipes) pouches and 2 travel (15 wipes) pouches for a really great price. But if you prefer Neutrogena they also had their wipes last time I checked.

When shopping in bulk make sure you know you will use it up before it expires and that it is actually cost effective. And make sure you have room for it or you will end up with packs of makeup removal wipes all over your dresser (oops). What do you like to buy in bulk?