October 200 Pan

In September, we left off at 126/200 and now, we get to see our total for October. If I finished 10 items this month, it would be a lot. I don’t even think that I have that many empties. I am not discouraged though, because I still have two months until the end of the year and I think that I will still be able to knock off a few more things. I won’t make it to 200, but over 100 is more than I ever thought that I could do. I am still so proud of myself. When I see room in my backup stash, it makes me so happy to soon have that space back to store other things besides products collecting dust. On a side note, I am in my element right now. I have written so many blog posts to try to keep ahead of the curve and I just had so many ideas. Now, I feel a bit emptier and less stuff is on my mind. But anyway, I am happy to see that my backups are not squished together anymore, but have plenty of room. I will not fill up that space though.

SKINCARE:

130/200 I have four items here and I am counting all of them. I have a full pack of the Aveeno Baby hand and face wipes complimentary of Influenster and they were very nice. They are expensive, but if you have the money, they are the perfect morning face wipe. I finished two deluxe sized eye creams. One was my day gel and the other was my night cream. I also used up my month’s supply of Curology. I just got my 2 month supply bottle. I will be reviewing this on my blog soon, so stay tuned. Sneak peek, I LOVE it.

MAKE UP:

132/200 I also finished up 1 lip balm and I decluttered this Nude Stix lip crayon that left white residue around the inside of my mouth. It also wore terribly and flaked away. Not to mention that the color was all wrong for my skin coloring. Not too bad on the lip front with two more out of my collection. Maybe, I can get one or two out again by the end of the year. I go through lip products and I have a good stash of them. I enjoy buying the Sephora Favorites kits to refresh my supply. I rarely buy a full size. I mostly go for mini sets, because they are the better deal and I love trying new lippies.

HAIR CARE:

133/200 I finished up one deluxe sized can of dry shampoo and two packets of hair conditioner that I use to shave my legs with. These conditioner packets come with my dad’s hair dye and I use them. I have separate conditioner that I like to use for my hair, so these are perfect for using for shaving where I don’t care what kind it is. I am going to be buying pricier hair care that is CF, so I will not be using my expensive conditioner on my legs. If I ever use up my back stash, I will buy a cheap conditioner to use for my legs. I have one more can of dry shampoo and then, I will attempt to use up my Lush one again.

BODY CARE:

135/200 Wow. I actually did have ten empties! That really surprises me! I am pleasantly surprised. I used up my B&BW Sweet Pea Body Spray. We used this as a bathroom freshener. Dean really stinks up the house when he goes number 2. I have been going through all of my sprays this way. I am consistently going through 1 a year. I used up one last year and now, this one for this year. I am currently working on a VS one in the Fresh and Clean scent. It is a rarity that I use up a body gel, but I used up this no name sweet pea one that Danielle gave me.

MISCELLANEOUS:

I broke one of Dean’s bubble wands. We salvaged the fluid and poured it into two other wands. I didn’t do it on purpose. It just snapped from use. The other is a pencil that I used up. Remember those plastic pencils with the little lead refills? I still have a few of those hanging around from my middle school/high school days.

135/200 is what I wanted to have done at the very least, so I am very satisfied that this is what I got done in October. I have a masking challenge going on in November and December, so that will be boosting my empties a little bit. I also have a few odds and ends on their last legs as well. I think I might have 15 to 20 empties in the month of November. Now, that might be a generous prediction, but I believe it might come true. At the very least, I want another 10 to be a productive month. I have two skin cares on their last legs, two body lotions, and a few makeup bits and bobs. Hopefully, I can make this prediction come to life. Wish me luck!

With Love,

5 Out: July

I wasn’t sure how to name these review posts. I knew that I want to title them 5 Out, but I didn’t know beyond that. I think that I will just name them with whatever month that we are currently in. Even though, these are items that I finished in May. It takes me awhile before I get around to blogging about them, but I am going to be better about it for sure. I have 5 more items waiting to be written about and I will do that right after this post. You might see two if these posts in July then, but they will be named the same.

Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Refreshing Dry Shampoo

I liked this dry shampoo, but I would not repurchase it. I don’t think it absorbed enough oil in my hair. It still was a bit oily. If I sprayed a ton, it did leave a bit of a white cast, but you couldn’t really tell with my grey hair. It does not leave your hair feeling gritty and it does provide some volume. I think there are other dry shampoos that do a better job on oil hair. I have oily roots and this did a 50% job on day 2/3 hair. I need to find something affordable to work on my hair. The only dry shampoo I have found that works is Amika Perk Up. That stuff is amazing!

Victoria Secret’s PINK Coconut Mango 2-in-1 Wash & Scrub

The scent on this is to die for, but I will not be repurchasing. Somewhere along the way, VS has become non-cruelty free. I will continue to buy bras and such from them on sale, but no more beauty products. This was a great scrub, perfect for summer. It was very gritty like sand on the beach. It was like a beach in a bottle. I really enjoyed this scrub, but it is not as good as Tree Hut scrubs. Hopefully, I can get my hands on them at Marshall’s soon. You can always get VS on promotion, so never buy them full price like B&BW. It is not worth it.

Alba Botanica Acnedote Deep clean Astringent

Alcohol is the second ingredient, so I will not be repurchasing for that reason. It stung my skin if I used it after a drying mask. It was effective against acne, but there are less harsh things that work just as well. If this brand makes an alcohol free toner, I would buy it. I like to use a toner that also doubles as a morning cleanser or micellar water. It also had a strong smell that irritated my eyes and made them sensitive. I like that the ingredients are 100% vegetarian and that it contains no “bad” ingredients, except for the alcohol.

Dr. Brandt BB Cream Self-Adjusting Flawless Coverage SPF 30

I am decluttering this BB cream. It is not self-adjusting. It comes out super orange and muddy. I cannot wear this at all. I don’t know why I have this around still and it for sure went bad. It was a good idea if you have a medium skin tone or are tan. I will not purchase from Dr. Brandt, since he is not CF. I have never found a BB cream that matches my skin tone. When I think I am medium, I’m light. When I think I’m light, I’m fair. It is just a bit of a guessing game with most brands.

ELF Tone Correcting Powder in Cool

I am super sad that they discontinued the warm powder. I loved this powder. The only drawback is that the cool makes me overly pale and ghostly. I have warm yellow undertones, so it doesn’t really suit my skin tone. The only other negative is that the powder kept on getting hard pan on the blue and yellow side until I repressed it. The powder is finely milled and kept my skin oil free all day. I didn’t notice any benefit from the color correction, but I have yellow undertones. So, a purple color would have suited me better for a brightening effect. Overall, a great powder for 3 dollars.

Do you like this new review style? I think it works for my blog and makes my review posts more interesting. It does take awhile for me to write these posts, because I have to take the time to review each item. I hand write all of my reviews first before they appear on my blog. I like to get my feelings out on paper first before typing them up and adding a few bits and pieces that I forgot to mention. Even though I do online college, I still take notes in my notebooks. There is just something about putting ink to page that speaks to me and helps me remember. But maybe that is just the writer that is talking in me.

With Love,

May Empties

I may be late sharing my empties, but I never knew how much I had to share in a month until I cut down my schedule to about 15 posts a month. I’ve been having to switch around the format of my posts and so this one is coming up later in the month than what I like. I basically sit down two Sundays a month now and write posts. I now have two Sundays a month free for classes. I only work on my blog for about 4 hours a month. That only includes writing the posts, not taking the pictures and coming up with the ideas. I am happy with this new pace of my blog. It makes it so I can be a well-rounded person and have time for everything that I want to have time for. It is nice to know that when life gets hectic, I generally have a week or two already planned out on my blog.

You hear about these every month, so I am cutting out the drinks that I purchase without fail every month. You know that I love them or else I wouldn’t have featured them for over a year here on my blog.

1 Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Refreshing Dry Shampoo

2 Hair Teasing Brush

1. MJCARE Sea Weed Sheet Mask

2. Alba Botanical Acne Dote Deep Clean Astringent

3. Borghese Clay Cleanser

4. GlamGlow Super Clean Cleanser

5. Philosophy Purity Face Mask

6. Clinique Pep Start Eye Cream

7. Derma E Hydrating Day Creme

1. VS Coconut Mango 2-in-1 Wash & Scrub

2. Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter

3. Equate Pain Relieving Cream

1. Dr. Brandt BB Cream

2. ELF Color Correcting Powder

3. Buxom Plumping Lip Gloss

4. YSL Black Opium Perfume

5. 1. Perfume Sample Cards

19. Physician’s Formula Cushion BB Cream

1. 719 Walnut Avenue Honeysuckle Jasmine Hand Soap

2. Fresh Breath Brushing Gel

3. Equate Cotton Rounds 100 ct

4. 1. PaperMate Ink Joy Blue
5. 1. 1. B&BW Mini Candles

6. Avon Mini Emery Board

Well, I had a lot more empties than I had originally thought. I cannot wait to do my progress update on my 200 pan goal. I have been working on my pictures and I hope you can tell a difference. I think it looks more professional and I have added a bit of brightness to the pictures themselves by staging some lightening. Since I have a bit more time, I thought that I would put more effort into the picture taking themselves. I have a feeling that my empties will be slowing down, because I am running out of mini things. I still have a whole bunch of samples that I need to get through though. I hope you enjoyed looking through my trash today. Reviews are to come. 🙂

With Love,

Hair Care Collection 2018

I have a ton of hair care products in storage. I am obsessed with having healthy shiny hair, so I have a lot of different products that do different things.  I have fine, thin hair that is hella oily at the scalp and dry on the ends. I haven’t found anything that makes my hair less oily. I only wash my hair once to twice a week, so from what I heard it should be less oily than when washing it every day. If you know something the gets rid of oily roots, let me know. Dry shampoo only works so much.

I have two hair oils. The Moroccan Oil is a definite repurchase after I finish it up and open up the Ghost Oil. I love the scent of the M oil so much. I will see if I can finish the M oil this year, but I also have a few shine sprays that I need to get through as well. I have two thirds of it left and a little bit of oil goes a long way. Not sure if I can meet this goal this year, but I am going to try.

I have a love hate relationship with mousse. If it works, I love it. If it makes me greasy, I hate it. My hair has fallen out of love with TRESemme and it makes my roots greasy and crunchy. The Herbal Essence smells amazing, but I am not sure that I see any difference whatsoever. I just recently got the eSalon Above The Clouds Volumizing Mouse, so I can’t say too much about it yet. The Big Sexy Hair Root Pump I have yet to try. I would like to use up the TRESemme and the Big Sexy Hair can this year.

I have four dry shampoos here and I know that I can finish off the Drybar Triple Sec and my favorite, Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo. I have TRESemme Waterless Foam Shampoo that is just ehh…..I don’t care for it, so I’d like to use it up. I have been using Lush No Drought on the weekends as deodorant. I don’t like it for dry shampoo, but I’m going blonde, blonde. So, maybe I will then.

I have a backup matching set of Pantene Shampoo and Conditioner, A Deva Curl Melt Into Moisture Matcha Butter Mask, and a John Frieda Frizz Ease Daily Nourishment Conditioner. I should have no problem getting through all of these this year. I wash my hair once to twice a week, so it takes me longer than most to use this stuff up. Still, these are small containers, so it should be all gone by the end of the year.

I have two aerosol shine spray and one manual spray. I want to finish off the manual spray and then probably the Rusk spray this year. I have the Rusk Elixir Mist, L’Oreal Glass Shine, and Nick Chavez Starlet Shine Spray. I love these silicone hair coating products that give my hair shine and strength. I have an oil I want to go through, so hopefully I can balance out these products to use them up.

I have two leave in products that I like to use on freshly washed hair. I will probably only get through one of these this year, since I only use them 52 to 104 times a year. Hmm….maybe, I will get through both of them. We shall see. I have the Nexxus Pro Mend Split End Binding Leave-In Creme, Infusium 23 Moisture Replenish Leave-In Creme.

I have a few miscellaneous products. I will finish the B&BW True Blue Spa Malibu Wave Spray and the TRESemme hairspray. The TIGI Bed Head After Party Smoothing Creme will not be used up. I am trying to use up a lot of shine sprays and an oil. I won’t have enough time to use this one up too. I have plenty of hair care products for next year and this year will be a learning process of finding out what I really like in my hair.

I have a huge hair collection, because I like to invest in my appearance. First impressions are everything.

With Love,

December Sephora Play!

The last box of the year and it came on December 23rd. Seriously. I usually get my box from 10-20. I feel like it took FOREVER! Okay, I’ll stop complaining. lol. I really do love the Sephora Play subscription that I get every month. Some months are better than others, but overall, I think you get good bang for your tenner. I might not use everything immediately, but I am happy to try everything that I can. I am rotating through my makeup collection and making it a big priority next year that if I don’t love something, I give it away. If it is too old, throw it out. If I’m not loving it, it isn’t worth the effort to use it up or pan it.

I love the bag! It is very cute, but I really don’t have a need. I usually just donate these bags away to be recycled and proceeds goes towards a local charity. I’m actually going to be using my card, because I am hitting up Sephora. I want to buy something during the 20% off sale and possibly cash in some points.

Drybar Triple Sec, 0.35 oz for $2.17

This is a 12th of the full size, so to me it seems like a tiny sample. I would have at least liked to have seen a half of an ounce for a hair product. This will probably only be a couple of uses. I have to use a lot of dry shampoo to soak up the second day oil in my hair. It gets oily super fast. I think it smells nice and I cannot wait to use it once I use up my Not Your Mother’s dry shampoo. So far, I really love the Amika Perk Up dry shampoo for my hair. I don’t have to put a ton in and it really works.

Stella McCartney perfume sample

I love that this is a natural rose scent. I’ve been really into rose scents lately. I would love to receive a foil packet instead of a perfume every other month though. I haven’t gotten one yet and I would really like to. I have too many perfume samples at the moment since I’m trying to work through a bottle of perfume.

Clinique Pretty Easy Liquid Eyelining Pen, 0.34 g for $7

I’m going to say that this is a third of the full size, since I cannot find how much is in a pen anywhere. I look forward to using this when I don’t currently have an eye liner open. I am trying to use up a black and glitter eye liner. I’m pulling it out in January, so we shall see if it is still good or not. I’ll be blogging about my makeup clearing journey, so you guys won’t miss a beat. Subscription bags are great, but if I don’t like it, I’m not going to be keeping them around anymore.

Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colour in Matte Au Natural, 1 g for $17.40

This is more than half of a full size! It is pretty close to a full size and way more than half. I am very pleased with the amount of product in this one. This is a nude color that I will be using all of the time. I actually prefer to work with cream shadows, so I am excited to try this out in my January rotation. If it wears nicely on my eyes, I will be very happy. Eye shadow creases on my hooded eyes like crazy, especially creams. I had a hard time getting rid of the swatch so I have high hopes for this one. I would work this on the lid and crease and pop a bright eye shadow on the lid.

Caudalie Vine[Activ] Energizing & Smoothing Eye Cream, 0.16 fl oz for $13

This is a third of the full size of eye cream, so I am happy that it is a really decent sized eye cream sample. It takes me a while to go through eye cream. I almost never need to buy it, because these samples carry me throughout most of the year. I am curious about this brand, but I feel like the beauty world is over it. I’d like to try more of it. I really love the beauty elixir, but I can buy a Smashbox Primer Water for less and get more. I feel like they are overpriced and trying to be luxury.

MUFE Artist Rouge Creme Lipstick Fuchsia Pink, 0.04 oz for $7.34

Another generous size for being a third of the full size. This lipstick is super soft. While I love the purple pink color, the bullet is already being smashed around inside of the tube. I would not buy a full size of this. I will be pulling it out in the spring and summer, but this really isn’t a winter color. I would have appreciated a soft pink or a winter berry.

$46.91 is the total value of this box. I would give this box 3 out of 5 stars, because of the great value and I’m not excited for the lipstick and the black liner. I am excited to see what the next year brings to the Sephora Play! box. I have been really happy with the items that I have received this year. I plan on going through my collection soon and getting rid of the samples that I didn’t enjoy.

With Love,

November Sephora PLAY!

I’m very late with my Sephora Play this month. I could have blogged about this last week, but I never got a round to it. I’ve been very busy, but that’s not the entire reason why. November and December is a very busy time for me with working overtime, meeting with ABA worker for Dean, Christmas, and of course, Dean’s birthday. Blogging has taken a bit of a back burner for me. I’m hoping to have more time for blogging, because I really love it. Taking the time to write a post during my lunch has helped a lot. I really look forward to it now, when I can squeeze it in.

The bag is okay, but I really wasn’t thrilled with what I got in my box this time around. Sephora had been doing so well and this box was a let down to be honest. I mean, it was bound to happen. I can’t always get the best box. The theme is Survival of the Chillest. I didn’t think that all the products went with the theme. A red lip is not chill. That’s high maintenance at least for me.

Burberry My Burberry Blush

I love the fresh floral fragrance, but I don’t think that it is that unique. I would not purchase this. It is a nice fragrance though, it’s just not for me. I will use the sample up and enjoy it. Who knows? Maybe by the end of it, I’ll want to buy it.

Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Major Volume Mascara 0.17 oz $13

I’m not totally mad at this. It is a luxury brand and half the full size. I just wish that it wasn’t a mascara. I would have preferred a lip product or an eye shadow OR SOMETHING. I will still use it and appreciate it, but I’m not excited about it. It’s yet another mascara to add to my collection of unopened tubes. I just opened a MAC sample, so maybe when I’m done with that one, I’ll open this one. I have like 6 tubes now? I could use a sample mascara break.

Philosophy Purity Made Simple Pore Extractor Mask 5 ml $2.34

This is such a small sample. I probably only have 1 to 2 uses in it. I think Philosophy is alright as a brand, but since they test on animals, I’m not going to be buying this. This is a meh product for me, because it is so small and I won’t be buying from the brand. I’m happy to try out a mask though, because I do mask about 3 times a week. I have oily, acne prone skin most of the time. Clay masks are a necessity for me. During the year, I use hydrating masks as well from all the products that I use to dry out my skin.

Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo 0.75 oz $3.06

 

I’ve used a reviewed this product HERE. I am super happy to have another one of these on hand. Although, I haven’t been using dry shampoo recently since I got my hair cut. I look forward to using this and getting back into the dry shampoo mood. I’ve been washing my hair every other day. Now, I’ll be able to go 1 day longer. The shorter my hair is, the more often it needs to be washed. When it was long, I only washed once to twice a week. I’m washing my hair three to four times a week now. I’d like to go down to two to three washes and this will help me get there.

Farmacy Honey Drop Lightweight Moisturizer 10 ml $9

This is a 5th of the full size, which I think is generous for a face cream. It is close to a half of a fluid ounce. It has cool little honey beads in it to give your face extra moisture. This is a really unique face cream, but I’m definitely a no more than $30 face cream girl. Face cream takes me a long time to use up. A 2 ounce jar takes me 6 months of better. I don’t want to spend a ton on face cream. To be honest, I’m more likely to spend the $30 on a night cream than a face cream. I’ll probably go back to Simple or Cetaphil when I’m done with what I have.

Sephora Rouge Cream R04 The Red 1 g $3.12

Eh. I’m not a fan of how I look in red lipstick. I guess, I haven’t found my shade yet. I’m glad it’s just a mini. I’m going to just wear this around my house. I find it drying on the lips, so when I put this in my December makeup bag, I know I’ll be reapplying it often in order to get rid of that drying feeling on my lips. I tested it out today and I’ve had it on for an hour before touching up. I just had products that make my lips feel dry. If it’s a color I like, I add a gloss, but I just want to use this red up. I need a vampy red or a berry red. A true orangey red like this one doesn’t look good an neither do the pinky ones.

I would give this box 2 out of 5 stars. I love the Amika dry shampoo and I’m only half excited for the mascara and face cream. I hope December brings a better bag or at least more interesting products that are new to me. I just feel blah about this bag. Nothing truly excited, except for a product I know I like and have considered buying the full size off. This is a good way for me to finally decide to put it on my Love’s List or not.

With Love,

Perk Up

For Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo

Honestly, this is the best dry shampoo I have tried so far. It works on my third day hair to where it looks freshly washed. I wash my hair at night (which I consider day 1), so really second day hair, but the third day from when I washed it. This does not leave residue in my hair or the dreaded white cast. It soaks up all of the oil without having to spray a ton in my hair. I love the scent of it as well. I am considering buying a three pack for like $25 at Sephora. It is the best and buying it during the sale would make the price drugstore. I also would be stocked up for the rest of next year. I hope I get another sample of this or something else from this brand. I really love this product.

With Love,

❤ Selena Hannah ❤

Six Before Summer Finale

So, this project was a half fail. I only managed to use up half of the products in this challenge. I am still proud of myself though, since the last project was a total fail. I have already started my 14 Before Fall Challenge and I have already used up 1 item, so I feel like I might have a blooming success in my hands. Anyways, here is my progress on these products since the beginning of the challenge.

Lush No Drought Dry Shampoo

The progress pictures are above. As you can see, this is taking me FOREVER to use up as a deodorant. I will continue to use this up, but I am going to take a little break from it and use traditional deodorant for the summer. I sweat more in the summer. This will be more suitable for Fall/Winter and maybe, I will manage to use it up then.

DKNY Be Delicious Fresh Blossoms Eau De Perfume Spray

I made a lot of progress with this perfume and I look forward to finishing it up next Spring. I would guess that there is two weeks to one month of use left in this perfume bottle. I really enjoy the scent, but I will not be repurchasing this particular scent. I will be buying the original Be Delicious perfume, because I think that it smells perfect for Spring/Summer. It’s a dual season scent. This was two-thirds full when I started and now I have about a quarter of the perfume left.

Eyetini Shadow Tint EC007 Violette

I didn’t use this product enough between the last update and the finale to update the progress mark on this one. I will be taking a break from this eye shadow. Maybe, I will take it back out in the Fall and try to use the rest of it up. I am about half way through the tube and I will remove the stopper to use every last bit of it up when I get there. I do like the shade, even though I like to tone it down with a bit of powder eye shadow on top.

Wen Sweet Almond Mint Volumizing Treatment Spray

I am finally almost done with this one! I am very happy with my progress on this product especially. I am going to put it away to focus on two other hair products that I want to try out/use up. I will still use it occasionally, but I probably won’t aim to use it up again until Fall. I need a break from these products and then, I can come back to them in a fresh new season. I find that I can get sick of a product, if I put them in back-to-back project pans. I am very happy that this will be gone by the end of the year.

Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush 45 Orchid Hush

I used quite a bit of this blush, but did not manage to hit pan on this. I will bring this back out for the Winter into Spring project pan. It will look very good on the cheeks during that time. I wore down the dome shape of the product and with another project pan, I can see using up about half of the product that is left in the pan. I might put it in my Fall to Winter project pan….we will see. I want to use up some other cheek products that I have laying around.

3 Finished Products

These three masks are what I managed to use up during this project pan. I still have one more mask that I want to use up before opening up my Loreal mask that I got from my birthday, but once that one is done, I will be opening up that bad boy. I might open it up sooner if I manage to use up some more skin care products to make room for it.

If you project pan, I would love to follow you. Please comment on this post, so I can follow you and keep tabs on your progress. Reading others posts, help me to feel motivated for my project.

With Love,

April Empties 2017

I know I’m about two days early for my monthly empties, but I am ready to empty my wicker basket and start collecting for May, my birthday month. I am hoping to go through more beauty products next month, since it is my birthday month. I will probably be wearing more makeup anyway. I also have EXCITING news on my Pan That Pallet progress, at least exciting for me. LOL. This was a lighter month with less empties, but I am happy that I finished off two makeup products. I also have three more on their last legs, so I am hoping to have 5 or more makeup empties in May. I have so many update posts to write, but I love being busy on my blog. I might have a May Reads post this month, because I made a promise to myself to read an hour on Saturday and Sunday. I hope that I can keep that promise. I’ll be back to reading more once I finish my last class for my Associates Degree in Information Technology.

1. Aerin Rose Lip Conditioner

2. Glam Glow Glow Starter Mega Illuminating Moisturizer

3. Scented Secrets Gingerbread Cookie Body Lotion in Wild Berry

4. Victoria’s Secret Hydrating Body Lotion in Pear Glace

5. Lush Cup O’ Coffee Face and Body Mask

6. Bumble and Bumble BB Hairdresser Invisible Oil Primer

7. Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray

8. Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo

9. IGK Mistress Hydrating Hair Balm

10. Crest 3D White in Arctic Fresh

11. Sharpie Accent Highlighter in Green

12. 13. 14. 15. PaperMate InkJoy Pens in Green, Red, Pink, and Light Blue

16. Halls Triple Soothing Action Drops in Cherry

17. 18. International Delight Coffee Creamer in Amaretto Cafe and White Chocolate Raspberry

19. Boston’s Best Jamaican Me Crazy Coffee

20. Celestial Seasonings Green Tea in Candy Cane Lane

21. 22. 23. 24. Gerber Lil’ Beanies with White Cheddar & Broccoli

25. Gerber Fruit Pick-Ups Diced Apples

It was a slow month with a few product multiples, but I really enjoyed using what I have up. I currently have a lotion on its last legs and I think I might use another mini lotion after I use this one up. I never realized how much I really had before I did my collection videos. I knew that I had a lot, but it really puts it in perspective. I know how much I can use up and I strive to enjoy using up my stuff everyday. I don’t want to be the girl with 20 lotion backups anymore. I think I can have a few in back-stock once I use up what I have. Naturally, when I go B&BW shopping, I will be shopping the annual sale and the buy 3, get 3 free sale. Naturally, I will have multiples of products, but it won’t bother me. I’m not going to buy more on top of that. It keeps the back-stock reasonable when you just buy once. Once I run out of something, I’ll do another haul when I can, but I’m really loving my mindset right now. Very zen and minimalistic. I really love minimalism. I got my closet down so much that now, I can go out and do a clothing haul to buy pieces I will love and that will last. I don’t want to support consumerism anymore.

With Love ❤

May Birchbox

I know that I am really late with my May Birchbox, but better late than never right? I could blame the baby, but I was also a bit lazy as well. I have a three day weekend, so you can look forward to at least two posts today and one tomorrow. I’m hoping to write more than three posts, but you never know. Raising a child is hard work and time consuming. Right now, he is sitting in his pink bubba seat. So cute how he loves to watch me type on my laptop. Anyways, here is my May Birchbox.

I love the pastel color scheme and the fact that I received a box that I really love. There is variety in this box: a hair product, two face product, a makeup product, and a body product as well. This box is about protecting and having clear, luminous skin.

Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel for Body, 0.5 fl oz for about $3.50

I have tried this product for the face and I wasn’t really impressed with it. It’s a good product, just nothing exciting or special about it. This foil packet probably has two uses in it. I plan on using this only on my arms…and maybe my legs. It has 1 to 2 uses depending upon what you use it on. It is enough to see if you like the product and I enjoy trying out products from different brands. I wish it would have been something different from this brand, since I already tried this one for the face.

Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo, 0.75 oz for about $4 USD

I could always use another dry shampoo and I use this almost on a daily basis now. So, you will probably be seeing more dry shampoo empties in the future. This is a nice sized sample to try. I love the scent of this product and it is the perfect size to throw into my purse to touch up my hair throughout the day at work or out and about. In fact, it is going in my purse right now. It is a basic staple and can double as deodorant in a pinch, especially with this scent.

ModelCo Lip Lacquer in Viva, 0.05 fl oz for about $5 USD

This is the perfect pinky-nude and it is not very opaque. It has some color to it, but it isn’t a liquid lipstick, but has more pigment than a lip gloss. It is the perfect nude for my lips and I will be getting a lot of use out of this gloss. It is something that I can just throw on and not have to worry about a perfect application. I am satisfied with this formula and color.

Kalos Skincare Triple Threat Detox Masque, 0.5 oz for about $12 USD

Since taking this picture, I have tried this mask. It seems to be a moisturizing mask that removes impurities from the skin. I like this mask, but I wouldn’t go out and buy it. It has a warming sensation due to the cayenne pepper in it. It’s an okay mask, but nothing really special about it. I enjoyed trying it out and it seems to have 5 uses in it.

COOLA SPF 50 Sport in Mango, 10 ml for about $2 USD

It smells like mangoes and coconuts! It is the perfect summertime scent. I cannot wait to try this out. It is a decent sized sample and I should use SPF everyday, but I don’t. I need to get better at that. Time to start now, I guess.

I look forward to trying everything I received and I am happy that everything seems to be a decent size as well. May was a winning month for Birchbox.

With Love,