Bye-Bye Empties #4

If you think about it, us beauty bloggers are really weird.
I mean, what other community collects 'junk' and empty products and showcases them?

But in all seriousness, I have finally accumulated a decent amount to bring you the 4th installment of my "Bye-Bye Empties" posts. My last empties post was last year, which just shows you how much of a snail I am at finishing up things. As usual, it's mainly skincare products because it is so hard for someone like me who wears minimal makeup on an everyday basis, to finish up a whole makeup product.

First up are my holy-grail cleansers. (By the way, where did the term 'holy-grail' even come from?) The Sukin Foaming Facial Cleanser is my absolute favorite due to the gentle cleanse it provides and how it doesn't irritate my sensitive skin at all. It has a calming scent and I find assurance in the fact that it contains natural ingredients and no parabens. Putting the two bottles side by side, I just realised that they've changed the label slightly.

Would I Repurchase? Absolutely. I tried using another cleanser by Sukin but my skin just wasn't having it so I'll always return to this one.

Biore is one of the few skincare brands that I trust due to my beloved holy-grail facial scrub that belongs to them (wow, lots of holy-grails popping up). The Biore Pore Unclogging Scrub exfoliates well yet is gentle enough and not too abrasive. I feel it really deep cleanses well and helps to prevent and fight the persistent acne that is the bane of my existence. It also contains salicylic acid, and I like to have products that have acne-fighting properties in my everyday skincare routine.

Would I Repurchase? Already have.

Unfortunately, the same glorification cannot be said about the Biore Triple Action Toner. Initially, it really stung my skin and I didn't (still don't) appreciate the strong alcoholic smell. It isn't gentle enough for me and it didn't do anything for my breakouts that seemed to keep coming. I've only used a quarter of it but I will be binning it since I don't use it.

Would I Repurchase? Nope, I'll be sticking to my HG Witch Hazel Toner, thank you very much.

And so continues the onslaught of skincare products. I finished up the Clean&Clear Advantage Continuous Control Acne Cleanser and truthfully, I was sad to see it go. Although I've now given my skin a break from benzoyl peroxide, this cleanser didn't overly dry out my skin despite containing the harsher variety of acne-fighting ingredients. Also, it was quite effective at getting rid of active breakouts within a few days to a week.

Would I Repurchase? Possibly in the future.

The Dirty Works Life's a Beach Coconut Scrub was a new and exciting product to me. After seeing the brand featured in Sarah's blog, I went out to investigate and chose this product based on the sweet coconut scent. Prior to this, I've never used a body scrub before.The exfoliating beads in it look like salt and you could probably make it yourself (but hey, my middle name is lazy). It was really exfoliating but my skin didn't feel much different after and I still felt bumps on my skin. Also, I ran out of this after 2 months and I was quite surprised to see it go so fast. When nearing the end of this product, the consistency of the scrub became really watery and it just flowed out like a faucet, which I did not appreciate.

Would I Repurchase? Probably not but I'm interested in trying other body scrubs.

I'm not too picky with body washes and I actually finished up a lot more but as the shower is a communal area between my family, the finished body washes are often vacuumed up by my mother who then... bins it *gasp*. To my 'surprise', she didn't seem to understand why I wanted to hoard the empty bottles. I managed to keep the Dial Triple Moisture Body Wash from her prying eyes and I really loved the smell of it. The scent is really the only thing I care about in a body wash. It had a subtle mango scent but in terms of its ability in cleansing the body, it was just average.

Would I Repurchase? Nah (but I don't mind giving it an occasional sniff in the aisles).

The Suigo Volume Control Hair Treatment had been sitting in my shower for 6 months. I've been using it as a normal conditioner due to my laziness to sit around and let it sit in my hair as a treatment. It was nice but I have other conditioners I love a lot more.

Would I Repurchase? No.

This is the most exciting product I've finished to date. At last, after years of my makeup journey, I have finally finished a foundation! Last year, I considered the Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Foundation my favourite foundation and I used it religiously. I still think it's a good foundation but my skin's gotten drier and the whipped texture doesn't sit on my skin as well as it used to. The shade Buff Beige is also not quite as yellow as I would like it so it's an odd colour match. 

Would I Repurchase? In my excitement, I already have but am struggling to use it up as I don't love it as much as I used to.

The Basq Cucumber Soothing Eye Gel was my eye cream of choice for awhile. It certainly had a cooling effect on the eyes and was nice but I don't think it provided any long-term benefits eg. brightening, and the moisture wouldn't last too long either.

Would I Repurchase? No, but I'm interested in finding an affordable eye cream so please leave any suggestions down below!

About 4 years ago, I was gifted the Essence No Limits Mascara. Clearly, it's passed its due date but I never stick to the "mascara rules" and only throw them out when it's clearly not usable. The wand is way too big for my small eyes and I always managed to nick my eyelid with mascara. It also had a very wet formula which just weighed my lashes down and took forever to dry. Since I never really got any use out of it, I thought it's best to clear it from my mascara stash.

Would I Repurchase? No, and it is now discontinued.

Here's another ancient product that I uncovered from my collection. The Mode Eyeliner Pencil is one I never got much use out of, apart from my first noob year of makeup exploration. Of course, I bought it because it was the cheapest. The eyeliner itself is not soft at all and so scratchy that you could probably line your waterline and it would feel like someone was poking your eyes out.

Would I Repurchase? I think it's quite clear that the answer is no.

And another product that I never got much use out of it - the Coral Colours Raspberry Lip Balm was a hand-me-down from my mother. While it smells nice and the colour is nice too, I am just not a fan of sticking my fingers into a pot. Not to mention, this product is years old.

Would I Repurchase? No. 

Empties posts give me a chance to chuck out products that are embarrassingly old and are still kept in my makeup drawers. Take this lip palette for example. I don't even know the name of it and I think I got it from The Reject Shop. Clearly, I used to have a great passion for the colour in the top left but honestly, I never use lip palettes due to the hassle of needing a brush. I prefer my lippies to come in a lipstick bullet. 

Next, the Covergirl Wetslicks lip gloss. Ah, remember the times when we were little girls and we loved our squeezy lip gloss tubes? Yeah but even as a little girl, I didn't like this. I found it way too tacky on the lips and my mouth almost felt like it was glued shut every time I closed my mouth. It was a nice berry colour  though and kinda smelt like watermelons.

When rummaging through my drawers, I also found an unidentified lip gloss tube in what appears to be a pearly light pink. I've had this for years since my childhood best friend gave it to me as a token of our friendship and while I would like to keep it for sentimental reasons, it's been so long that the contents are questionable, so I shall be throwing it out.

Would I Repurchase any of these? No.

Whew! That rounds up this bunch of empty products. Sorry for the lengthy post but hope you guys enjoyed it.

Hope you have a great Easter break!