Out with the old and in with the new! I looked through my stash and collected several items that I'll be saying good-bye to. I'm starting 2016 with a clean slate and a little extra room for new additions ;)
There are so many products I'm letting go, so I thought it'd be easier if I broke it up into categories. Let's start with skincare where I'll show you the products and then give you my thoughts.
S K I N C A R E
- The first product is the Becca Mineral Tint with SPF 30. I decided to include this into skincare because even though it says it has a tint, when applied, it's so sheer that It's literally just a sunblock. I purchased this through ACW cosmetics in a 2 pack thinking it'd be perfect for the hot spring and summer climate here in Cali.
The reason I'm giving this up is because I've learned in the past year or so that my skin does not react well to chemical sun protectant (oxybenzone). I get a rash-like irritation on my skin that takes just about forever to detox and heal….so for that reason, this little guy has got ta go!
- Next is my beloved Soap & Glory's Hand Food hand cream in the Sugar Crush scent. So many people love this smell so don't just take my word for it, but it's a little too sickly sweet for me. It smells like lemon frosting, which in theory sounds amazing, but for whatever reason my head decides to ache any time I use it (what a diva). The actual formula of this hand cream is good, but isn't anything overly amazing, in my opinion, to endure the headache.
What can I say? I'm a sensitive creature lol…
- Though it has amazing reviews on Sephora.com, I'm also parting with the Tatcha Polished Rice Enzyme Powder. It just didn't do very much for my skin type and I can only really pin it to the fact that I have larger pores that need a lot heavier work and upkeep. However, I do feel like it'd be great for someone with dry, normal or those who need a gentle physical exfoliator.
If you have a similar skin type to mine and are looking for a face polish with fine grit, I strongly recommend
Dermalogica's Skin Prep Scrub. It can get a little pricey, but worth
every penny.
- Next up is the Ole Henriksen Pure Perfection Nigh Cream. This is another product with absolutely amazing reviews on sephora.com, but I just could not get behind the scent. It smells very floral and gives me an instant headache even opening the jar. I did try it out a couple of times, but I didn't feel like it did enough in those two tries for me to try and tough it out. I also didn't notice that it's meant for dry skin lol…I guess I was just overly excited that I got it for such a steal at Marshall's.
I'll probably be passing this along to my mom since I feel like it has really moisturizing properties in it. I also love that it's made with no paragons, sulfates, or phthalates…such a shame for me, but great for my mama!
- Another Marshall's find is this Mama Mio Try Me Trio that I purchased a while back when I was first on the hunt to re-vamp my skincare. I fell in love with the Philosophy Purity line so quickly that I never actually got around to trying this out. I just didn't want to interrupt a good thing and unfortunately this one's gone to waste since it was sitting at the back of a drawer gathering dust.
If you're interested in reading any reviews about the brand or any products, I suggest looking up the product on
makeupalley.com :)
- Last up for skincare is this Burt's Bees Rosewater Toner. "Yikes" is what comes to mind when I think of this product. I found it extremely drying, irritating and pungently smelling of rubbing alcohol. I checked the ingredients and sure enough, denatured alcohol is the second ingredient on the list.
The interesting part is that no matter where I look up reviews, people seem to love this product! It's even been recommended and highly esteemed by a couple of followers on my Instagram. I'm not sure who I could pass this one on to, so instead I think I'm going to use it to gently sanitize tools like tweezers and things lol…
F A C E
- The two primers I'm letting go are so similar in consistency and wear. They're the Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Primer and the E.L.F. Mineral Infused Face Primer. They're both a clear silicone feeling type primer that I'd suggest more for hydrating purposes. If you have dry to normal skin, these two products may be something you'd consider under liquid makeup. They're also nice if you find that your loose mineral makeup is too drying for your skin which I do personally encounter on occasion even though I have oily skin. They're incredibly similar to the Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer which I also have and I decided to hold on to that one instead since I don't typically reach for these two.
- I'm also letting go of the E.L.F. Acne Fighting Foundation only because the shade oxidizes a bit too orange on me. I actually really enjoyed the formula, it gave great coverage, had decent staying power and was nice on days that I needed some extra TLC for a blemished face. Hopefully they release some more shades so that I can find my match and give it another try.
- Next is the Pur Cosmetics CC Cream Foundation with SPF 40. I purchased this when Ulta had it on sale for a ridiculously low price hoping that it'd be up there with my favorite It Cosmetics CC+ Cream. In short, that was not the case. The product only comes in 4 shades, I ordered medium, but much like the E.L.F. Foundation, it oxidizes like crazy, only this time just darker. In hindsight probably should have ordered the shade lighter. It also didn't work well with my oily skin. It felt oily itself and didn't give enough full coverage. I miiiiight keep this in the back of a drawer just to see if I'll pull it out during summer for some face SPF when going to the beach or something. Definitely not a product I'd use on an everyday basis.
- NYX blushes are beautifully pigmented and a great affordable option, but I just don't tend to reach for this little guy as much as I used to. For anyone interested, this is the NYX Powder Blush in Peach. I currently have too many blushes this shade so for that reason alone, I've just gotta let it go.
- The E.L.F. "blush" in Gotta Glow I'm passing on because I've found a better alternative. I originally purchased this because of all the hype around it being a drugstore dupe for the Nars Albatross blush. If you'd like to see & read about my better alternative, click here.
- I've spoken about my confusion with the E.L.F. Tone Correcting Powder before. I just don't understand the formula of it. it's incredibly chalky and leaves an almost ashy residue that sits on top of your makeup for far too long. This one's going straight into the bin.
- Next up is the Physician's Formula 100% Natural Origin Bronzer. This is a beautiful product to use as a light bronzer or as a transition shade under darker contour shades. Mine smells a little bit like cinnamon gone bad, though…and you know me and smells.
- I'm also passing along the Physician's Formula Cashmere Wear Blush (no longer sold) for the same reason as the NYX one. I tend to reach for warmer toned blushes and I just can't justify the bulky packaging to be honest. I'm sure I'll find this one a good home. She's a beauty :)
- Oh man…where to begin with the KVD Shade & Light Contour Palette? If you follow me on Snapchat, you'll already know that I've recently gifted the palette as well as replaced it with the Tarte Tarteist Palette. So stoked to try that one out! I'm hoping and praying I have more success with this one since my skin majorly freaked out with the KVD palette. (TMI…) I'm talking large and small blemishes, most of which are under the skin, painful, and extremely difficult to get rid of. I used it for the last time about a month and a half ago and I swear my skin is still healing from that. *sigh* I really wanted to like it, but…it just didn't like me :(
Here's a better look at all the products opened:
E Y E S
I had made a big NYX purchase from
cherryculture.com a while back and these are the shadows that I just don't reach for. It has nothing to do with the quality or formula. If you've ever used NYX eyeshadows before, you'll know that they're some of the best from the drugstore, but because your girl's always drawn to similar color schemes, I tend to impulse purchase dupes lol. These products were simply edited out of my collection for that simple reason.
The single shadows are in Violetta, Deep Brown, & Sensual (all single shades no longer sold). The palette is called
Love in Florence.
Maybelline make some great
Color Tattoo cream eyeshadows that I love to use as a base, but after a while they tend to dry up. These are lovely, but just need the boot from my collection since they're practically unusable.
The shades (clockwise, L to R) are Bold Gold, Gold Rush, Painted Purple, and Bad to the Bronze.
- L.A. Colors is a brand that has a really hit & miss line, in my experience. The 3 Color Eyeshadow Palette in Iris has some nice shades for someone a little younger, maybe someone just getting into using makeup and who likes brighter colors. All of these shades are quite wearable when you pair them right, they're pigmented, but do have a lot of fall out and are rather dull in hue if that makes any sense. Pigmented, but not as vibrant as they come off to be with the slight overspray. You can purchase this and other shade selections at the dollar store.
- I'm also passing along their 4 Color Baked Eyeshadow quad in Galaxy which is actually kind of nice and work well wet or dry,but again…I just don't reach for it as much as other similar products. I think this one will make one of my amigas very happy, though :)
MICA Beauty loose pigments looked so pretty at the mall, but once I got home, I just never reached for them lol…ahhh I'm a hoarder, I know. The shades are nice, but just not nice enough to make me want to fuss around with messy pigments.
Here's a better look at the shades:
Shades are Luxury, Zen, and Reluctance…and just looking at them is kinda making me change my mind. Let's swiftly move on!!
- I purchased the Makeup Revolution Mono Shadow in Make it Happen while over seas and though I liked the shade, the formula wasn't as impressive as I would have liked. It was okay and for the price of one pound, it was just fine.
- Next up is a Bare Minerals Glimmer loose pigment in Magnetize. I find yellow toned green shades really nice on brown eyes and this one was just a little too ashy toned and not as shimmery as I would have liked for a lid shade. Once you apply it to your eye area, the shimmer is so fine that it barely shows up. Still pretty, totally useable, but just not for me.
- Loreal had a gold pigment that I fell hard for back in the day, but this one in Gold Metal just didn't fill its shoes. Again, the shade was just not as vibrant as I would have liked.
- The E.L.F. Pigment Eyeshadow in Golden Goddess is actually really beautiful…but again, I'm a collector of similar shades and just don't reach for this loose pigment format as much as a pressed.
Here's a better look at these 4 :)
Oooh La La Lashes…
- Make Up For Ever is a brand I'm not so familiar with, so when I got this sample mascara, for whatever reason, I just wasn't so thrilled to try it as much as other options I had purchased…crazy, I know, but I got a little distracted lol. This is obviously out of date, so I'll be tossing it. Did you like yours?
- The Eylure Naturals lashes in No. 20 are farrrrr too light to do a damn thing. I got them in an tipsy bag a few months ago and think I can probably pass these right along without missing them.
These
Wet N Wild Color Icon liners aren't my fave if I'm honest. They were so cheap that I wanted to see how they held up because with these affordable drugstore brands, you just never know what's going to surprise you.
The shades I'm passing off are Calling Your Buff, Olive, and Taupe (which is actually not bad for brows in a pinch).
L I P S
- Benefit's Dandelion lip gloss is pretty, but too sheer for my taste. I'm not typically a gloss girl, so I think I'll pass this one off to a friend that'll get more use out of it.
- E.L.F.'s lovely smelling Moisturizing Lipstick in Ravishing Rose just wasn't my shade. It made me look older than I was. Is that possible from a color?! haha I think it's better suited for someone lighter or darker than me so I'll have to pass this one off to a better home too :)
- Lorac makes some of my favorite products, but I've gotta be honest and say that the lip glosses I've tried from them aren't exactly on the top of my list. I was so excited to get this purple shade called Rock Star thinking it'd be pigmented enough to layer overtop other shades to shift the hue, but it's just about as sheer as can be! It does have a very slight tint, but nothing that would show up enough. This is one of 6 glosses from their Rockin' Red Hot lipgloss set.
N A I L S
The grand finale are six nail polishes that are getting the axe from my collection.
- The first OPI shade from their LE Flamingo Collection is absolute garbage. It's streaky, the color separates too often which tells me it's gone bad already, and no matter how you try and layer this product, it just never seems to come out the way I'd like. This one's going straight in the bin.
- Sally Hansen, on the other hand, makes beautiful polishes with a great wide brush, but unfortunately this shade and finish just isn't flattering on my hands. This is their Xtreme Wear polish in Plum Power.
- Drew Barrymore's line called Flower is one I still haven't really delved into because nothing really seems to stand out for me (besides the cute packaging). I received this polish in a set from a gift exchange last year and this is another rubbish product. It's basically clear polish that is near impossible to layer the glitter specks a sufficient amount. I'm not really one for this type of glitter on my nails anyway, so this one's getting the boot too.
- Kleancolor Nail Lacquers have some great color options for really affordable prices and these are simply 3 shades that I just don't use. I'll be passing these on to a better home :) The shades are Signature Lavender, Kawaii Stuff, and Bite Me.
And that's it! Phew!
I hope this post inspires some of you to clean out some of the products you aren't using! Please don't forget that donating products to charity causes is also an option, but it's kind of difficult to know what the guidelines are.
I found
this article really helpful for any of you who are in the same boat as me :)
xoxo
♥
Labels: beauty purge, beauty reviews, body care, makeup, regret purchases, skincare
