Beauty Empties #8

There's nothing better to me than a start(ish) of the year clean out. I'd been holding on to quite a few empties for the sake of this post, and I'm glad that I finally got around to throwing them away. I used up a fair few old favourites as well as some new products that I wanted to trial.

The Ordinary Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5* x2

I've rambled on about this dang product enough times on the blog, so I'll keep it short and sweet: The hype is real! I use it before my usual moisturiser, basically how you would use a serum and it just leaves my face feeling soft, moisturised and plump. This has honestly been a life saver for my dry, flaky skin. I really do notice it's absence if I don't use it.

Repurchase? Always

Reef Sun Tan Oil x2 - Dark and SPF15+

I've been using tanning oil almost every day on my lunch break and I must say, I'm looking quite brown these days. The formulation helps to promote a natural tan whilst also hydrating and leaving your skin smelling all coconut-y and delicious. I went through a "dark" bottle, which contains no SPF (because YOLO) and a bottle with an SPF rating of 15+, depending on how long I was going to be out in the sun.

Repurchase? Yes. It really does work to give me a natural tan, which I love.

Burt's Bees Intense Hydration Nourishing Facial Water*

I swipe this all over my face with a cotton pad in the morning when I'm after a more gentle, less drying approach to toning (I usually use a much harsher, alcohol-based toner). This offering is great for sensitive skin, and soothes and hydrates my face wonderfully. It's full of nutrients, balances pH and improves texture, and cleanses the skin, which is awesome of such a gentle product. An added bonus is that glycerine is listed as the second ingredient, so it not only helps to prep my skin for the rest of my skincare, it also acts as a primer for my make-up.

Repurchase? Yes

Rimmel Brow This Way Eyebrow Sculpting Kit in 'Mid Brown'

I use the powder component of this kit every single day I do my brows. I usually use it to set my Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow but I also use this kit alone when I'm looking for a lighter brow look. For such a cheap product, the pigmentation is awesome and it doesn't smudge or fade throughout the day. Now if Rimmel could just make a blonder shade, damn it, and I'll be set for life.

Repurchase? Yes

LUX Petal Touch Shower Gel in 'Peach & Orange Blossom'

If you ask me, a shower gel is a shower gel, more or less. This one is lovely - it lathers up so luxuriously and is super moisturising. I prefer a more fruity scent over a floral one so the smell didn't excite me a whole lot. Neither did the shimmer particles which stuck to my shower walls and floor, but a nice gel that left my skin soft and scented nonetheless.

Repurchase? Perhaps in a different scent.

Rosehip Plus Organic Cold Pressed Rosehip Oil

I absolutely love rosehip oil. It's the ultimate skincare ingredient if you ask me! I apply 3-4 drops after my shower, before moisturiser, every night and I mix 2-3 drops in to my moisturiser every morning. It works to moisturise dry skin without leaving any oily trace of its existence; it just leaves my skin feeling soft and healthy. I always use Trilogy's Antioxidant+ Rosehip Oil* but decided to give Rosehip Plus' offering a go. This was great, but I definitely prefer the added antioxidants in Trilogy's one.

Repurchase? Not this brand, I'll stick to Trilogy's Antioxidant+ Rosehip Oil*.

Natio Ageless Brightening Eye Cream

I was on the look-out for a good drugstore eye cream as a cheaper alternative to my beloved It's Potent!* by Benefit. Unfortunately I wasn't overly impressed with the Natio offering. I don't know if I didn't like it because I'm just so used to my higher end cream, but this just didn't work for me. I can get quite dry eyelids so I need something rather intense to keep the skin around my eyes moisturised. I just felt as though this didn't do anything at all for me. Which is a shame, because the reviews were quite positive.

Repurchase? No

AVON Yoghurt Body Lotion in 'Mango & Passionfruit'

This is a lovely body lotion. It was so old (they don't even make these anymore)that I just wanted to use it up, so I sort of blew through the last 1/3 of the tub but I did enjoy using it. It left my skin feeling soft and moisturised and wasn't greasy in the slightest. It actually smells exactly like yoghurt, too! Not synthetic "fruit" but an actual tub of yoghurt.

Repurchase? I probably would if they still made it, once I'd used up more of my stash of body lotion.

Origins GinZing Refreshing Eye Cream*

I'm such a fan of Origins' GinZing Facial Mist* that I decided to give their eye cream a try. It was hydrating enough to keep any flaky skin away, which impressed me (that skin is dry) but I mostly liked this eye cream for how refreshing it was, especially on tired, puffy eyes. I ended up only using it on no make-up days or at night because the brightening aspect of this cream seemed to consist of little light reflecting particles which sat on the skin. I wouldn't have an issue with this if it didn't bunch up and form little balls when I applied concealer over it.

Repurchase? No. I just can't get past It's Potent!*.

Playboy "Play It" Perfume (set)

I received this trio as a gift so long ago! I have that many perfumes that I'm currently trying to use up old ones. All three of these (of mine, they may have changed the formula since then) smell pretty much the same, and I have no idea whether I used up Lovely, Sexy or Spicy but that's more than okay by me because I absolutely love the scent!

Repurchase? I probably wouldn't buy it myself, but I wouldn't' be mad if I received another as a gift.

Batiste Dry Shampoo in 'Cherry'

A dry shampoo that every person and their dog is aware of so I won't ramble on. It's relatively inexpensive and smells amazing. I use it on third day hair if I ever get that far without washing (I'm an every second night kind of gal), or for a boost when it's looking a little flat/oily. I haven't ever found it to leave any powdery white build-up against my blonde hair, which is exactly what you want in a dry shampoo. The cherry scent smells lovely, too.

Repurchase? Nope. Contrary to Batiste hype, I much prefer V05's offering - Plump It Up.

The Body Shop Oils Of Life Sleeping Cream*

This cream is my life! I like to think of it as a face mask that sinks in, therefore, not sticking to your pillow. Although it's a cream, it has an almost gel-like texture which soaks into skin nicely and does a whole lot of good while you sleep. If you don't like the feeling of heavy creams or sticking to your pillow, then this is definitely one for you. It's light enough to layer over my heavier nighttime moisturisers (yes, plural) and rosehip oil combination for an overnight boost without feeling sticky, heavy or congested and I wake up with THE softest, MOST plump and supple skin. It's probably worth noting that it does have a very (and I mean very) strong scent, however.

Repurchase? Yes x1,000.

Maybelline FitMe Concealer* in "Fair Clair"

It's safe to say that this is a constant use item for me - I've mentioned this damn concealer about ninety-zillion times on the blog. It does provide relatively nice coverage of dark circles but I tend to use this as an under eye brightener, over the top of Maybelline's Instant Age Rewind*, rather than a concealer as the light shade is amazing for brightening and highlighting. It's easy to apply and its creamy formula allows it to spread and blend beautifully, leaving a dewier finish all the while feeling so soft on the skin. The creaminess of the formula means it does not accentuate my dry skin, either.

Repurchase? Always

John Plunkett Glyco Peel

This stuff is gooood. I absolutely love how my skin felt in the mornings after applying this! So soft and smooth, and clear of any dead or flaky skin. I'm often worried about acidic products or chemical peels on my dry skin and the fact that this is salon strength worried me a little at first, but it's surprisingly gentle (although don't get in in to any cuts on your hands/fingers - ouch!) as it contains ingredients such as Aloe Vera to soothe the skin as it works.

Repurchase? It's quite pricey for the size, but a little goes a long way. I probably would.

Neutrogena Hydro Boost x2 - Water Gel and Gel-Cream

I love, love, LOVE the Water Gel moisturizer! It has got such a clever formula that continuously releases moisture throughout the day without going too far and leaving the skin looking oily. It has such a refreshingly light and non-sticky texture that my skin slurps right up. My dry patches have been getting the nourishment they need and my skin looks supple. The scent actually reminds me of jellybeans, which is an added bonus. I decided to give the Gel-Cream option a try as I saw that it is specially formulated for dry skin. Strangely enough, I actually prefer the regular gel formula over the Gel-Cream. I just felt that my regular offering much better hydrated my skin than the "intense" Gel-Cream. Strange.

Repurchase? Water Gel, always. Gel-Cream, no.

Kmart Hydrating Coconut Sheet Mask

I got this is in a cute Kmart goodie bag put together by my friend. I wasn't expecting much from it and it turned out to be nothing special. It feels refreshing whilst you're wearing it (although the mask itself is pretty large and ill-fitting) and it has a lovely scent (if you like coconut) but I don't feel as though it did much to my skin.

Repurchase? No.

What products have you loved and used up lately?

See also: Beauty Empties 1-7

As always, this post has not been sponsored in any way, meaning that none of the items mentioned have been sent to me, endorsed or paid for by anyone other than me, myself and I. This post does, however, contain affiliate links. I will always disclose such information with an asterisk (*) for full disclosure to my readers.

Feel free to find and purchase these products elsewhere if you don't get down like that. :)