Empties #2

Hi guys! Long time, no see! I'm not even going to give any excuses of why it's been so long so let's just jump right into this long overdue Empties post!

Herbal Essences Drama Clean Shampoo - This was actually in my last empties post so I won't go on and on about it. I still love and have repurchased it, again.
Redken Smooth Down Conditioner -  I'm pretty sure I've said before anything I loved when I had long hair, I've hated since I got my hair cut. I like this but it's not fantastic. It just doesn't do anything amazing enough to justify the price tag. I won't be repurchasing.

pHisoderm Cream Cleanser for Sensitive Skin - I'm actually really surprised I haven't spoken about this before! This is my all time holy grail cleanser. It removes makeup, cleans deeply but doesn't completely dry out my skin. Best of all it's super inexpensive! I will repurchase this as soon as I use up the cleansers I have left in my stash.
Olay Fresh Effects Shine Shine Go Away Cleanser - I reviewed this here when I got it in my Influenster VoxBox back in the spring. I actually like this quite a bit. There are things I do enjoy more but this was pretty good. If you've been considering it or are just looking for a drugstore cleanser to try, I say go for it. But I already have a holy grail cleanser plus a couple on my list to try, so I won't be repurchasing.
Clean and Clear Finishes Pore Perfecting Moisturizer - For something that says Oil Free right on the bottle, you could have fooled me. This regularly separates. It's ok, I didn't think it was particularly "pore perfecting" but it hydrates deeply. It does kind of make me look a bit greasy but that's not a major problem for me. I don't recommend and I won't be repurchasing.
Ole Henriksen Sheer Transformation - This is a great lightweight moisturizer! I felt like my skin was hydrated without feeling greasy. I highly recommend! I haven't repurchased but I would!
Benefit It's Potent! Eye Cream - I got this as a deluxe sample in a gift set last Christmas. It's ok, not overly impressive. If it got even the tiniest bit close to my eyes it would burn. Wasn't impressed enough to repurchase.

Bath and Body Works Sea Island Cotton Body Spray (travel size) - This is my all time favorite scent! It makes me smell clean and happy. This is the second travel size I've used up. I have half of another travel size and half of a full size left and I'll repurchase this over and over!
Victoria's Secret Ravishing Love Body Mist - I was recommended this scent when my favorite VS scent, Berry Kiss, was discontinued. It's kind of the older mom or aunt of Berry Kiss and I just couldn't love it. I actually think it's discontinued now but I wouldn't repurchase it.
Suave Body Wash in Fresh Berry Smoothie - I bought a bottle of this years ago for a trip to Israel so the scent of this is just so nostalgic for me.Suave body washes are cheap and effective and I'd repurchase this again, if only to take me back to the memories of that trip.
Candie's Shimmer Body Lotion - This came in a gift scent from my very first perfume purchase many years ago, Candie's Heartbreaker. The scent is very generic and preteen. I hate shimmer, especially in body lotion. It wasn't hydrating, and was very liquidy. I don't know what possessed me to feel like I had to use this up and not just toss it but I did.

So that's it! I'm so ready to just toss all this crap. If anything, I'll always come back to post my empties because it gives me a great sense of accomplishment. Of course, I'm going to try to post again very soon but not making any promises!

Friday Favorites! #1

Hi everyone! I'm sort of feeling ready to get back to blogging after my break so I figured I could start with a little Friday favorites post for you all.

1. Big Brother 15 (US)

Guys, I'm seriously addicted to this show. As in, I have a subscription to the live feeds and I can't stop talking about it. This season isn't even close to the best but it's still pretty good. I could write a whole blog post about and I'm really tempted to but in the meantime you can read my thoughts on my BB tumblr.

2. Bath and Body Works Sea Island Cotton

I had been working on using up a different body spray but we had a huge heatwave last week and that's always my signal to pull out my most worn scent ever, Bath and Body Works Sea Island Cotton. This is the only scent I've ever used multiple bottles of. It's so fresh and clean smelling, exactly what I'm looking for when its a million degrees outside.

3. 32 Perks of Living in Michigan on Buzzfeed

Ok, so it's less "perks" and more of just things I love about where I live. I'm pretty vocal about loving the state I live in and these are all so legit.

4. Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration After Sun Lotion

I'm very good about putting on sunscreen often during the summer, when me and MonkeyToes have our arms and legs bare and burnable. And we both have really sensitive skin so even if we are wearing sunscreen, a little pink irritation is common. This lotion is so soothing and cooling. I like that it helps keep your tan from fading as I don't tan that much in the summer but my freckles blossom something fierce. Plus it smells absolutely amazing!

5. Sheryl Crow - Easy

I'm not a big Sheryl Crow fan by any stretch of the imagination and I actually think this video is a little hokey but I really really love this song.

So that's it this week! I have no idea how often I'm going to be posting or what I'll be posting because I'll be easing myself back into this. I hope you enjoyed this post. If you have any requests or suggestions for posts, leave me a comment!

Empties #1

In case you couldn't tell by my numerous other related posts, I'm really trying to work on downsizing my stash. I've found that I've been using up a ton of stuff and I personally love empties posts so I figured it was time to start doing them myself. All of these empties are from the very very end of March through May.

Herbal Essences Drama Clean Shampoo - Shampoos are actually not something I have in abundance in my stash. The only shampoos I have on hand are actually in my shower. Drama Clean is fantastic! It cleans my hair thoroughly without completely stripping it. We go through the big bottles regularly because it's actually the shampoo my boyfriend uses every day.
Aussie Sydney Smooth Heat Protector and Leave In Conditioner Spray - I used to love LOVE this stuff. It was discontinued quite a while ago and this was my very last bottle of it. I've found with a lot of things that if I loved it with long hair, I probably won't like it now that I've got short hair. That's the case with this. If it was still available for purchase, I probably wouldn't run out and buy anther bottle.
Head and Shoulders Green Apple 2 in 1 Shampoo/Conditioner - Head and Shoulders is always a staple in my shower. My favorite is the Smooth and Silky formula (pink bottle) but sometimes it can be hard to come by and the other work pretty much the same. This was the Green Apple scent which is pretty good too. I currently have the Damage Rescue kind in my shower.

Bath and Body Works Black Raspberry Vanilla Body Cream - Lotions are something I have far too many of and this one has definitely been hanging around a bit too long. I love the Black Raspberry Vanilla scent but most of the products in this range are online only now. I'm not a super fan of BBW Body Cream formula but I'd probably repurchase in a sale or something.
Meijer Strengthening Nail Polish Remover - A decent nail polish remover for around $2. I've gone through multiple bottles of this before and I will continue to repurchase this.
Ole Henriksen Nurture Me Cream - I received this in a goodie bag I won from OH's Facebook page around a year ago. It's become my Holy Grail night cream. It's soothing and deeply hydrating. Ole Henriksen has really turned into the brand I check first when I'm looking for new skin care. Facial moisturizers are another thing I have too many of but as soon as I start my last bottle from my stash, I'm ordering the full size.
Pond's Evening Soothe Wet Cleansing Towlettes - I got a sample of these and it hung around for a while. When I did finally use them I went out immediately and purchase the full size. They are my favorite makeup removing wipes and I'm kicking myself for not buying them when Ulta had them on sale.

Since I bought so many Candles By Victoria, I've made an effort to use up some candles from my stash as well.
Yankee Cherry Lemonade - I bought this from my sister's Relay for Life fundraiser last year. It's actually really strong but I struggle to get this jar to burn all the way to the edge. I'd still buy this scent again.
Mainstays Fresh Cotton - I LOVE this scent on cold throw but it's strange warm and a really light thrower. Unfortunately I'll look elsewhere for my fresh laundry scents.
Celebrating Home Crisp Apple - I have no idea where you can get Celebrating Home candles but my boyfriend bought this from someone at work (fundraiser? or one of those catalog comapanies?). We both love green apple scents but this one was a super light thrower. Loved the jar though!

That's it for now! I have many products getting low so I'll hopefully do another one of these posts very soon! What have you used up recently?

Collective Haul: March 2013

So when I said at the end of February I wasn't going to get too crazy...yeah, that went out the window! March was a month of retail therapy for me and I don't regret it one bit. So let's just dive right in.

Color Club Halo-Graphic and Angel Kiss, Studio M Spring Fling, Illamasqua Fragile and Mottle

So I randomly found the Color Club halos at Meijer and of course Studio M is a Meijer brand so Meijer was an all around win this month! I broke down and ordered Mottle from Sephora but found Fragile in store and got that one too! Both of those will be up next week (and I'm so proud of myself for not letting all of these languish in my untrieds for months on end!)

Skin79 VIP Gold Super Plus BB, Skinfood Good Afternoon Rose Lemon Tea BB, Holika Holika Moisture Petit BB, Mac Mineralize Moisture foundation

YAY for Asian BBs! I ordered the Holika Holika on Ebay at the very beginning and loved it so much I ordered the Skin79 and Skinfood. They just arrived yesterday so I haven't been able to do anything other than swatch but I'm so excited to test them out. I'm hoping to get a review of the Holika Holika up some time this month. MAC's Mineralize Moisture foundation was something I was so interested in as soon as I saw the PR so after some adventures at the counter trying to find the best shade for me, I got a bottle in NC15. And it's perfect!

Nars Amour blush, MAC Melba blush

So I noticed during March that I don't actually own any matte finish blushes and only a couple satins. MAC Melba (which I keep wanting to call Peaches for some reason) was recommended to me at the counter but I'd had my eye on it for a while. Nars Amour was a complete impulse purchase at Sephora. When the mua put it on me, it was pure love at first sight. 

Revlon Lip Butters in Juicy Papaya and Wild Watermelon, Cover Girl Lipperfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in Blush Twist

I happened upon the new Revlon Lip Butters in Target one day and picked up three of them. I already passed along the third, Pink Lemonade, to my sister as I just couldn't pull it off. If you're looking for them, check the permanent display. I decided I had to have another of the chubby lip pencils from the drugstore (just not a Revlon one) and went with this one from Cover Girl, Blush Twist. It's been my favorite everyday lip color lately!

Wet N Wild Nude Awakening palette, Smashbox Entice Me palette and Full Exposure mascara (deluxe sample size)

I found the WNW palette at Meijer at the very beginning of March and it was the last one in the display! See, I told you Meijer was full of win this month. It's a great palette for sure, but I don't find myself reaching for it as often as I thought I would. The Smashbox goodies were a prize from their Love Me promo! I also got my entry on their billboard in Hollywood, even if it was for like 30 seconds.

Zoya Remove+, Bath and Body Works Beautiful Day fragrance mist, First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream, Batiste Dry Shampoo in Cherry scent, Beautyblender

I needed new nail polish remover and justified the cost of Remove+ because I had a gift card and I can reuse the bottle. I've used it a couple times and it's ok but not incredible. I had a coupon for BBW and decided to get Beautiful Day because I hardly ever see them have scents with green apple in them, which I LOVE. I threw the FAB cream in my Sephora order so I could get free shipping but it's so awesome! I got the Batiste with my gift card as well and I love it! It does exactly what I thought dry shampoo should do and it smells nice. Also in my Sephora order, I got a two pack of beautyblenders. Yes, they are worth all the hype they get.

So that's it. April shouldn't have even have half this amount because damn, that's a lot. I did place my first Candles By Victoria order a couple weeks ago but that shouldn't arrive until tomorrow. I also ordered during their April 1st sale so I guess I'll try to get a collective haul for you together whenever my sale order gets here. If you want a review of anything, let me know!

Disclaimer: The Smashbox things were sent to me for free from Smashbox for participating in their Love Me promo. Everything else was purchased by me with my own money.

Recent Purchases

I hesitate to call this a haul because it's a few new things I accumulated over the course of January. I did mention that I struggled to jump back into restricting my spending but I feel like it is worth showing what I've picked up.
I kept seeing the display for the Maybelline Color Whispers and I admit I was sucked in! I got Pin Up Peach and I've worn it just a couple times. I love it so far but like most lip products I feel like I need a lip balm before application. I loved the original Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser for dark circles so I had to pick up the one for dark spots. I like it but I've only used it once so I can't really give it a full review. Everyone talks about how awesome the Maybelline Color Tattoos are (geez, Maybelline got a lot of love this month) and Temptalia gave it an A+ rating, so I had to pick it up. Then Zoya had their three free promo so I got Mimi (which I'm hoping is everything I wanted Sally Hansen Loves Me Not to be), Zuza and Aurora. Meijer had a ton of polish on sale and this Sally Hansen Gem Crush polish in Lady Luck was just calling out to me. Finally, Jenn had one of these and let me try it and I had to get all three with Bath and Body Work's buy two get one free promo. These are the C.O. Bigelow Organics Moisturizing Lip Shines. They smell (and taste) AMAZING! They are super moisturizing too. The apple jelly one is such a nostalgic scent for me. If you've ever been to one of those little cider mills that sells donuts and fresh cider, that's what this smells like. It's a little sugary donut and a little fresh apple cider.
So not a whole lot this month. I'm definitely feeling a lot better about jumping back on the no buy wagon for February. I'm definitely thinking March I'll pick up another Color Whisper, anyone have any favorite shades?