May Empties

I feel really good about the amount of products that I was able to push out this month. It even out the amount of products that I have brought in. I really have been concentrating on using up samples, deluxe sizes, and almost empty products this month. I am sure there will be just as many empties in June as well from my May efforts. I don’t want to have a crazy backstock of items. I don’t want to have to keep 3 bins in my closet to hold all of my items (hair, body, skin care). I want to hold everything in just one backup storage bin. If by the end of the year I can have two bins, I will be a very happy girl. I think this is more realistic at this point in time. I keep my makeup totally separate, but I would like to have one empty drawer out of my jewelry case for my everyday jewelry to be accessible. I have larger makeup items on top where jewelry is stored, so I’d like to have an empty drawer for that purpose. If I use up enough makeup, I can make this happen. Fingers crossed!

1.DKNY Be Delicious Fresh Blossom

I used up this perfume in my project pan. It was the first item in the project that I was able to use up. I enjoyed this Spring scent, but I am more interested in buying a different Be Delicious perfume than repurchasing this one. I would not repurchase this one, because the scent wasn’t apple-y enough for me and too floral. Glad to have a perfume out of my collection. That is the second perfume used up this year, so I am a happy girl right now. Hopefully, I’ll be able to move out two more by the end of the year and keep up the pace.

2. Smashbox Primerizer Sample

I have no opinion on this product. It was a nice primer to use up, but I notice nothing from foil packets. I’m not interested in trying this primer, though.

3. Sumita Jaipur Gold Contrast Eye Pencil

This came in a subscription box, but has since dried out. It looks great on the back of my hand, but I cannot press it hard enough into my eye lid for the same pigmentation. I am not going to kill my eyeballs for the sake of using up an eye liner that I didn’t even buy myself, so I am happily decluttering this one.

4. Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Major Volume Mascara

Chunky and clumpy lashes. I just hate that type of look on me. I have naturally long dark eye lashes, so I am just looking for darkening and volume. It was too clumpy to salvage it. I even tried using my lash brush to brush out some of the clumps and I had mascara bits all over my face from brushing out the clumps. I’m glad to be decluttering, because I don’t enjoy using it. The short stubby bristles on the wand are not great for lengthening and gives really chunky lashes.

5 – 7. Moda Oval Makeup Brushes

I hate these with a passion. I don’t like them. I prefer traditional brushes. The only one that was good is the biggest one, but with a flimsy wand, I quickly grew tired of it. Now, I have the ELF blending brush and couldn’t be happier with it.

8. Benefit High Beam Cream Highlighter

I scraped out every last bit that I could. I even cut the tube in half. I enjoyed this by adding it into my moisturizer for a healthy glow. It was perfect for that. I am enjoying using up my cream highlighters in this way. I would rather use a glowy primer when I am done with my cream highlighters though. I still keep a pink cream highlighter in my collection though in case I use a pore filling primer. It would be good to use on no makeup days for a glowy look. Yeah, I think I’ll always have a pink cream highlighter on hand, but that is all the cream highlighter that I need. I will not repurchase this. It was too frosty for what I want to use it for and it is not cruelty free.

9. HIGH Expectation Cannabis Facial Oil Sample

This sample lasted me a week of nightly use leaving me very pleasantly surprised. It sinks in faster than other oils and smells like fruity pebbles. I like other oils that sink in faster and do more for my skin than just hydrate AKA the Sunday Riley UFO oil. I still did enjoy this sample, but I mostly buy main stream brands and I’ve never heard of this one before. Oh and the fact that its cannabis doesn’t bother me in the slightest. LOL.

 

 

10. MAC PREP + PRIME FIX + MINI in Lavender

I don’t see these as a necessary step in my routine if I am already using primer. I feel like I need a pore filling primer or a mattifying one that does something for my skin rather than this one that just adds moisture. This might be nice for dry skin, but I don’t see the point for my skin. I will gladly use my minis up and buy this on sale again, because it is very refreshing and nice. I wouldn’t buy it full price. I’d rather spend money on a setting spray that will lock my makeup in place. I really enjoy the experience of using this though. I can see drier skin types loving this spray.

11. Johnson’s Bedtime Baby Moisture Wash

I bought this for $1 or $1.50 when a Walmart I lived near was clearancing this line out to redo their baby section. I used this as a nighttime bubble bath for Dean. I got a ton of use out of it and it did have a very soothing scent. I would not purchase this full price, but I would buy it on sale again. I usually buy Dr. Teals or the Walmart brand bubble bath. I am not gonna lie, I used this a few times as well. It made quite a few baths and lots of bubbles. Even though technically its not a bubble bath, we used it as such and it performed great.

12. Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream Sample

This was enough for 2 uses on the face. It was nice enough, but I really have no opinion of it. I would need a deluxe size to really comment on it.

13. Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Body Butter Unscented

I only used up one of the samples. I’ve had it before. I wouldn’t purchase it. It takes a long time to sink into the skin, so it’s kinda a hassle to use. It was enough for almost 2 full body uses.

14. Magic Bath Crackles

This was enough for 2 baths. Dean ignored it for the most part. It was worth a shot.

15. Crayola Color Bath Dropz

These continue to be a repurchase for us. Dean loves different colors in his bath water. It makes bath time a fun experience for him. They just change the color of the bath water, so there isn’t much to review about it. It doesn’t stain the tub or his skin, so its a winner in my book.

16. Not Your Mother’s Way To Grow Long & Strong Shampoo

I really enjoyed this shampoo. I liked the fragrance and it lathered nicely. I don’t know if it did anything to make my hair grow longer, but I would buy another shampoo from this brand again. It is a great cruelty free drugstore option. I wasn’t blown away by this shampoo, but it is a solid shampoo with good ingredients. I’m not too fussy when it comes to shampoo, but I do like them to clean my hair. I always shampooed my hair twice with this as I felt that once wasn’t enough to strip out all the oil in my hair. I wouldn’t mind repurchasing this again, but I’d rather try another shampoo by the brand.

17. ROLOXIN LIFT INSTANT SKIN SMOOTHING MASK

I am decluttering this to my mom.

18. Mr. Bubble Bubble Bath

My mom put this is Dean’s easter basket and we used it up once our bath was fixed. In a few baths, we finished this bad boy off and I ordered some bubble bath at Walmart. Dean loves bubbles in his tub and I do like it as well when I indulge in a bath.

I am very proud of how much stuff I was able to use up on my birthday month! I am happy that I used up 18 products this month with 8 being full sized, 4 deluxe, and 6 samples. I don’t expect much coming into my collection in June besides maybe another VS bra or something since I do have another $10 gift card. Nothing beauty wise though, so these numbers have put me in a good spot to cut down on my collection while adding to it. I am very happy and proud of what I have been able to accomplish this month. Hopefully, June is just as good of a month. I can see quite a few products hanging by a hair in my collection, so I’m going to take that as a good sign.

With Love,

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Birthday Hauling: Sephora

I did a little Sephora haul for my birthday and I spent $57 USD and some change. I was very frugal as I usually spend $100 at Sephora alone for my birthday. I organized everything by samples, free gift with purchase, birthday gift, and purchases from low to high. I am brimming with excitement over everything that I have picked up. I have swatched everything out and it is so beautiful. Everything is exactly how I thought it would be. I read so many reviews and do a lot of research before I pick anything up at Sephora. It is an expensive place to shop and I want to end up with something that I will more than likely love instead of return.

High Expectations Cannabis Facial Oil

This is wierd, but I am just going to put it in my bathroom with my skincare to use up the sample this month.

Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream

I am excited to have another sample of Drunk Elephant and I will put this in with my skin care to use up this month. I don’t want these samples building up again.

Josie Maran Whipped Argan Oil Body Butter in Unscented and Honeysuckle Vanilla

These are always nice to try and I already know that I love this sample. I am putting it in my bathroom to use up immediately.

Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask

I am happy to have snagged a baby size of this to try as it is on my Sephora Love’s List to buy (and the Avocado one). I am putting this baby size in my bathroom immediately as well, because I have been dying to try it. I do have another sleeping mask open, but this is more of a gel and does something different than my other one. It smells like a watermelon jolly rancher, but also a bit fresh in the after note. I am sure that I will be out of this baby soon enough. It is a third of an ounce, so enough to make a decision if I want to purchase a full size or not.

 

Drunk Elephant Beste No. 9 Jelly Cleanser & Protini Polypeptide Cream Duo

This was the birthday gift that I picked this year, because I do not support Kat Von D. I still would have picked this up though, because I have been dying to try Drunk Elephant products. I even added a kit to my Love’s List since my declutter post. I am putting the cream immediately into my bathroom as I need a gentle night time cream for after treatments and harsh masks. The cleanser will be put away as I am using something else at the moment as my night time cleanser. I only use a cleansing wipe or water in the morning after a thorough night routine.

 

 

 

Too Faced Bronzed Peach Melting Powder Bronzer in Toasted Peach

I paid $10 for 12.5 grams of bronzer, which I feel is a steal. I only paid a third of the original price making this essentially drug store. The packaging is super adorable and it smells lightly of peach. I don’t find the scent too strong and I really like it. It contains a nice mirror and the bronzer isn’t shimmery. It is glowy, but I don’t feel like it is too much. Even though I have oily skin, I have been into glowy skin and makeup looks lately rather than my matte go to. The bronzer isn’t too brown or orange on me and blends out to be very light. I can be light handed and also build this bronzer up. It is the perfect color for my light skin and it will still match me in the summer since I can build up the color. The cream to powder formula is really nice as well. I like to dab with my fingers and buff out with a buffing brush. It’s perfect.

 

 

Urban Decay Naked Skin Highlighting Fluid in Skywalk

I paid $14 which is half priced for this beautiful light blue highlighter. I have heard good things about it being used as an under eye corrector for dark circles that brightens up the area and makes them disappear. This is for sure opaque and a lovely highlighter. You can have it look straight up purple/blue on the skin or blend it in for a diffused lit from within look. It is very thin and lightweight. I can see why it was made in the Naked line. Right now, I just got an under eye corrector in a FITFABFUN box, so I will wait on using this as an under eye corrector. I will be using it as a pretty highlight though. I have been dying to get one in this shade. Blue/purple highlights look really nice on my skin tone and really brighten up my face. Put on my cupid’s bow, it makes me teeth look whiter as well. Overall, I am really happy with this already and I’m sad that it’s being discontinued. I love this cream highlighter and I don’t usually like creams/liquids. It really has to be something special for me to not put it in a project pan.

 

 

Ciate London Glitter Storm Palette

I paid $30 and saved $10 off the original price of the palette. I wasn’t going to get a palette originally, but those glitters?!!!! They stole my heart and swatched out, they still look lovely. These are one finger swipe swatched btw. I wanted to see how opaque they were. I like to build up my eye shadow. These have amazing pigmentation. The glitters have a nice eye shadow base to them and I love them all. My favorite glitter would have to be Firestorm, which is the red/pink one. None of the colors are too dark for my hooded eyes. The packaging of the palette is pretty to look at and very weighted. It feels expensive like a $30 palette. The only color I don’t get in this palette if Whirlwind which is the matte peachy shade. It’s a sore thumb. They could have done a soft rose or a cream and it would have looked a lot better. Still using every shade though. I am so excited! This palette is very me, which is why I bought it. This palette will motivate me to use up my project pan items, so I can bring this out and play with it.

I am so happy with my Sephora purchase! Not one product disappointed me right out of the gate that I purchased. I am looking forward to playing around with all of my new makeup. Hopefully, I move out some project pan items in order to do so. Keep my motivation up. I tend to lose motivation around products. I might switch it up and do a monthly makeup rotation instead……let’s see how I do with the first project.

With Love,

Birthday Hauling: Marshall’s

I went birthday hauling online and in store for the month of May. I shopped at Marshalls, Etsy, Sephora, and ELF. Then, my boyfriend and I decided that we are going to get a hedgehog. I had cashback on a credit card, a rebate, and I added in a few extra dollars for my birthday. I save my cashback all year to spend on my birthday, so I don’t break the bank. lol. Hedgehogs are initially an investment with buying their habitat and the hedgehog themselves. After that, it is a low maintenance pet and very affordable. I am super excited to be getting a hedgehog! It’s going to be a boy and we already picked out his adorable little name. I am hoping in a few months we will be able to buy one. I want to make sure funds aren’t too tight with affording daycare before committing to a pet.

 

BECCA X Chrissy Teigen Glow Face Palette

I bought this face palette for $19.99, so half off the original price of $40. We were supposed to see a movie on date night, but it was all sold out. We went out to eat instead and browsed at the mall. I wasn’t sure whether I wanted this palette or the Aurora Highlighter Palette by Anastasia. I ended up going with Becca, because it is a face palette and I already know that I love the formula of her products. I love, love, love the packaging on this. It is super pretty! I have no clue who Chrissy Teigen is. I bought this solely as a Becca product.

 

 

From Left to Right: Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter in Rose Gold, Luminous Blush in Hibiscus Bloom, Sunlit Bromzer in Malibu Soleil, and Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter in Beach Nectar.

I love this palette! I love all of the colors in it. The bronzer isn’t too orange or muddy. It is the perfect brown that can be worn light or built up. The blush is the prettiest pink flush that I know I will be reaching for a lot over the summer. The rose gold highlighter would look good with a bit of a tan, but I can still use it now with a light hand. The peach would be perfect year round and great in the winter. It would be very work appropriate for a glow. I love this palette so much. I might pull it into my next project pan just to get some use out of it.

With Love,

Sephora Loves List

Today, I am going through my loves list and ITS MY BIRTHDAY TODAY. I am printing my whole Loves List in this post. I will be telling you what I am removing, what is staying, and which items I want to purchase for my birthday that I really want. I usually indulge a bit for my birthday month and I recently accumulated points to spend on my credit card and I received a rebate in the mail. I usually spend about $100 to $200 on myself for my birthday. I know that I got a tattoo earlier this year that I said was a birthday gift to myself, but I spoil myself. It’s the only time of year besides Black Friday where I really indulge myself. Otherwise, I put everything I have into my son. So, I put myself on a self-induced low buy every year and it’s good for my collection. I want to move a ton of makeup out this year.

Too Faced Bronzed Peach Melting Powder Bronzer – Peaches and Cream Collection
COLOR: Toasted Peach – soft bronze .44 oz/ 12.5 g
WAS $30.00 NOW $10.00

I am SUPER EXCITED about this one. I already put it in my cart. It is 1/3 of the price and something that I have had my eye on. Do I need it? No, I do not. I am a big fan of a bronzy glow though and I am allowing myself a $50 Sephora purchase for my birthday to get my free birthday gift. I would love to own something by Too Faced and I use bronzer. I know that this will be used. I do have two other cream bronzer/contours but they are in my Smashbox palette that is REALLY bulky and I always forget to pull it out. I will need to put it in my Summer Project Pan. I need to decide if I like the creams or if I only like the powders. I need to use up the creams if I like them.

BECCA Iconics: Prime, Brighten and Glow Trio
WAS $40.00 NOW $30.00
($70.00 value)

I have tried the primer before. I am a big fan of BECCA highlighters and I really want to try the under eye corrector. Having said this, this will not be going into my basket for my birthday. I just bought a BECCA limited edition kit at Marshalls, I just got an undereye corrector in my FITFABFUN, and I have a full sized primer that needs to be used up. I don’t need to go out and purchase this kit, but I do like it and will keep it on my loves list until it goes out of stock.

BECCA Glow Essentials Kit
WAS $39.00 NOW $29.00
($68.00 value)

Again, this is another BECCA set with two primers, a mini highlighter, and a mini lip gloss. I don’t need this, but it is staying on my Loves List because it is an incredible value.

Ciaté London Glitter Storm Eyeshadow Palette
WAS $42.00 NOW $30.00

This palette is small and absolutely stunning. All of these colors would be usable on my hooded eyes. I added it to my basket to buy for now. This is something that I really want. I don’t have a ton of eye shadow and I plan to be panning a good chunk of it this year. I have been wearing a pretty full face of makeup minus foundation everyday. I have been enjoying doing my eye shadow and throwing on mascara. I would get a ton of use out of this, but I don’t need it. It make not be purchased this time around, but I will keep it on my Loves List for sure.

Glow Recipe Avocado Melt Sleeping Mask Set
SIZE 2.7 oz/ 80 mL + Free Eye Mask
WAS $45.00 NOW $39.00

I just got a sleeping mask in my FITFABFUN Spring box, so this will be staying on my Love’s List. I really want to try these sleeping masks from this brand though. Has anyone tried them? I love luxury skincare, because I want to put good ingredients on my skin. I only invest in items like these though. I don’t buy high end toner water. lol. I usually spend a bit more on treatments and masks.

Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask Set

SIZE 2.7 oz/ 80 mL + Free Eye Mask
WAS $45.00 NOW $39.00

The same goes for this kit as well. It is staying on my Love’s List for one rainy day. REALLY dying to get one of these bad boys though.

Urban Decay Naked Skin Highlighting Fluid
SIZE 0.21 oz/ 6 g
COLOR: Skywalk – pale iridescent blue
WAS $28.00 NOW $14.00

I added this one to my cart as well and keeping it on my Love’s List. Do I need it? No, I have a few liquid highlighters to use, but this one is unique in that it is blue. I could truly use it as a highlight instead of an all over face glow for the ones that I have that have literally no pigmentation. It is also half off and discontinued. I may not get another change to buy this.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Norvina Eyeshadow Palette
$42.00

These are all colors that I would wear as well. I am keeping it on my Love’s List for when I move out most of my collection of eye shadows. It’s a big palette, but all these colors work for me. I am looking forward to getting this probably next year!

COOLA Full Spectrum 360° Sun Silk Drops SPF 30 1 oz/ 30 mL
$46.00

I am taking this off of my list. I’m not paying $46 for 1 ounce of sunscreen. LOL. What was I thinking?! Not clearly apparently.

Marc Jacobs Beauty Eye-Conic Multi-Finish Eyeshadow Palette – Coconut Fantasy Collection Fantascene
$49.50

Another one taken off of the Love’s List. I am never going to wear that dark purple shade. I can’t spend $50 and not wear one of the shades. That would just be wasteful to me, even though the rest of the palette is gorgeous.

Tatcha The Pearl Tinted Eye Illuminating Treatment
SIZE 0.4 oz/ 13 mL
COLOR: Moonlight – warm glow for fair-medium skin
$48.00

Another eye treatment that is staying on the Love’s List. I want to try this one eventually. I did just get an eye treatment though, which is why I am not trying this one. Even though it is in a pot, I am still interested in trying this one out.

Marc Jacobs Beauty
Dew Drops Coconut Gel Highlighter – Coconut Fantasy Collection
SIZE 0.8 oz/ 24 mL
COLOR: Fantasy – warm rose-gold
$44.00

This is staying on the Love’s List. I have been lusting after this for soooo long. I cannot justify it though when I still have a ton of liquid highlighters and I am already buying a different highlighter to boot. It will stay here. Hopefully, I can buy this one next year if all I have left are powders.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Soft Glam Eyeshadow Palette
$42.00

This one is coming off the list as well for that one black shade and possibly the one above it that I will never use. I am only buying palettes that I can use every shade in, unless there is something uniquely special about that palette that I can overlook one shade. This palette is nothing special, pass.

Too Faced Sex On The Peach Complexion Set
$45.00
($85.00 value)

I totally forgot about this being on my list, but I currently have two powders. I am keeping it on my list, but will think about purchasing it once I am down to my last powder. I don’t want to be too much of a hoarder. This will probably be a next year purchase as well unless more powders come into my collection between now and then.

GLOW RECIPE
Watermelon Pink Juice Moisturizer
SIZE: 2 oz/ 60 mL
$39.00

This is for sure staying on my list. It is reasonably priced for 2 ounces of product; however, I have two tubes of moisturizer right now and cannot justify having this sit around on my shelf. This might be more of a November sale buy this year. I might be picking it up then as long as I am almost out of my daytime moisturizer.

IGK
Foamo Holographic Hair Foam
SIZE 2.4 oz/ 70 mL
COLOR: Moon Rock
$22.00

I totally forgot about this. I put this right into my cart and keeping it on my list as well. This would be nice to put into my blue hair for a fun color shift or a nice play time with a certain little girl in my life. This could be a lot of unicorn fun. Hopefully, it at least gives off a little bit of color, but its okay if not too. Its making fun memories that really count. I will for sure buy this even if it isn’t during my birthday. For sure in time for Halloween though.

STILA
Shimmer & Glow Liquid Eye Shadow
SIZE 0.153 oz
COLOR: Starlight – shimmering light gold champagne
$24.00

This is coming off of my list. It is really plain and I still have two other minis of these. I would buy this in a mini size, but not in a full size. I don’t want to waste money to have these dry up on me. Maybe once I get used to living here, I’ll see how fast I’ll be going through my makeup. I have already used up a few makeup items, because I have been using it more since the move.

TOO FACED
Chocolate Gold Eyeshadow Palette
$49.00

Again, there is 2 shades that I won’t wear and I don’t think it is that unique of a palette. I am taking this off of my Love’s List. I am happy to see that I am chipping away at my list. Sephora has a ton of great items. It would be nice to keep my list somewhat reasonable.

TARTE
Top #Shelfie Essentials
$36.00

This is a great mini set! Minis are something that I can finish in a reasonable amount of time. This is a great treat yourself gift. I am keeping it on my list, but passing on it for now. I already know that I love this line and want to keep buying minis of it to refresh my skin once in a while.

SOL DE JANEIRO
Brazilian Bum Bum Cream
SIZE: 8.1 oz/ 240 mL
$45.00

This is staying on my list to buy next year. I need to go through my current backstock of body lotions right now. This is a guilty pleasure one that I will indulge in next year though. The scent is too die for and I neeeeed it. I would love it if I could find one of these at Marshalls for even $10 less.

TOO FACED
Diamond Light Multi-Use Highlighter
SIZE 0.42 oz/ 12 g
COLOR: Diamond Fire – diamond blue/ diamond pink/ diamond yellow
$36.00

This is a super unique looking highlighter and I would love to add it one day to my collection. I need to move through a few of my highlighters first though. In case you haven’t noticed, highlighters are my weakness. I covet them the most out of any other piece of makeup. I buy tons of lippies, but only have 1 on my wish list. My obsession is highlighters. I will always love them and wear them to death.

SUNDAY RILEY
Space Race Fight Acne, Oil + Pores at Warp Speed Kit
$65.00
($85.00 value)

This is staying on my list and I will probably buy it during the November sale. I have a few acne treatments to go through first, but this line really works for me and is worth the splurge. The oil of that size lasted me a year of use, so I know that it is a great buy as well. I highly recommend this kit if you have oily, acne prone skin. It will change your skin for the better if it is anything like mine.

MARC JACOBS BEAUTY
Dew Drops Coconut Gel Highlighter
SIZE 0.8 oz/ 24 mL
COLOR: 50 Dew You? – golden peach
$44.00

This is just a lighter more wearable shade that I will be buying in the future as well. I am thinking this will be my winter shade for a believable glow in the cold. My favorite brand is Marc Jacobs. He may be expensive, but it is so so worth it.

CAROLINA HERRERA
GOOD GIRL
SIZE 1.7 oz/ 50 mL
$94.00

 

I want to smell this before I purchase this, but it is a pretty bottle to add to my perfume collection. I want to get down to 5 bottles TOPS. I am keeping this on my Love’s List for when my perfume collection dwindles down. I have already used up one perfume bottle this year and I am almost done with another. I still have loads to go before I am down to five however.

TOO FACED
Sweet Peach Creamy Peach Oil Lip Gloss
SIZE 0.14 oz/ 4 mL
COLOR: Papa Don’t Peach – spiced peach
$19.00

I have had this lipgloss on my Love’s List FOREVER. I have been hoping to run into this at Marshalls but no such luck so far. I don’t want to spend $19 on a lip oil when I still have SO MANY lip glosses to get through. This will be staying on my Love’s List until I have used up a good portion of my lip gloss collection or if I need to add a low price item during the November sale to get free shipping.

I have since placed my order, so it will be a surprise in my birthday haul what I ended up picking up including my free birthday gift. I am super excited to be sharing that with all of you later this month or the beginning of next depending upon when I get my hands on all of my orders. I am waiting on my LUSH purchase to see if my tub gets fixed or not. As I write this, it is supposed to be fixed on the 3rd. Fingers crossed for that.

With Love,

April Empties

I was able to use up my Nexxus Pro-Mend Split End Mender and I would not repurchase this. I didn’t notice a difference in my hair at all. I’d rather use something that helps with strength and detangling. My hair gets knots easily, because of how long it is getting. When my hair was at my collar bone, it was very rare to get a single knot in it. I am tempted to do a big chop at the end of the summer to start my hair afresh without all the bleach damage. I also know that my natural hair is light enough to use the brand SPLAT on it for fun colors. I know that purple works specifically on it, because I did that back in 2013 and it was fairly easy to use.

I am decluttering my Maybelline Dream Bouncy Blush in 45 Orchid Hush. I actually hit major pan and had intentions on using it up. The formula has changed however and it is super crumbly. I don’t enjoy it anymore, so I am throwing it out. This is the oldest bit of makeup out of my collection and I feel like I got my money’s worth. It just would have been nice to have used it up. I am not a fan of cream blushes in general. I’d rather use powder on my oily skin, but I did enjoy the just bitten color it gave my cheeks. Now, I can move onto the cream blush stain in my project pan.

I finished up my sample of the MAC Strobe Cream in Pinklite. I really enjoyed this luminous primer and I would purchase this once I am out of my current primer and run out of liquid highlighters to mix in with my lotion that give me the same effect. It does the perfect job of primer the skin, giving me moisture, and a glow that does not emphasize texture or bother my oily skin. It just gives me a nice lit from within glow that I am all about. I am a matte girl through and through, but there is just something about healthy glowy skin (NOT DEWY) that has been calling to my lately. It looks more youthful than a matte look. I’ve been reserving my matte look for long work days in the office and special occasions where I want my makeup to last. Otherwise, I have been rocking a healthy glow instead of a matte complexion.

I also had another sample that I used up of the Sephora Waterproof Eye Makeup Remover. I really enjoyed this bi-layer makeup remover that I used on my entire face. I would get another sample as a point perk, because it was really nice. If Sephora was cruelty free, I would purchase a full bottle for them too. I highly recommend it for removing all types of makeup efficiently.

Martin bought me this to makeup for me having to go coffee free for a few days and then, his Keurig was broken so I couldn’t even use it! LOL. We got a used Keurig from my mom, so we did manage to use up this Starbucks Breakfast Blend in Medium Roast. I really enjoyed the simplicity of popping in a cup and having a good cup of coffee and the fact that someone else thought of me. I have been eyeing their specialty packs on Amazon like the caramel and the mocha coffees. Seriously considering buying a Nepresso machine and keeping it in our room.

Used up another deodorant because you know, priorities. I still love this brand of deodorant, but I am currently using Secret. I went back to a full strength aluminum deodorant, but I will be going back to this one. It was just sold out at Walmart when I needed deodorant.

Last but not least, I was able to use up my MAC Cleanse Off Oil. It is just a baby sample, but another item out leaves room in my collection. May is my birthday month, so I have a ton of items coming into my collection this month from makeup to skincare. So, even tiny samples I am happy to be out of my collection. I really love cleanse off oils and balms. Once I finish off my full sized cleanser, I will replace it with an oil or a balm. I am more partial to a balm personally, because I feel like it gives my skin an added boost of moisture.

I was able to move out 7 items out of my collection, abide one was a declutter but I had MOSTLY used that one up as well before the texture changed. I writing this post on May 2nd and I feel like I will have maybe ten empties this month. I am mostly working on full sized items, but I do have a few samples and items that already have progress in them. I am trying to work through all of my opened products this year. I will only open a new product if I don’t have something like that opened. Next year, I plan on doing another inventory count and sticking with it. I just had/have so much going on this year that it just fell behind.

With Love,

5 Out: Product Reviews

It is that time again where I finally wrote about 5 more products in my collection. I am trying to do these posts twice a month, so I am writing 10 product reviews a month. I am behind though, because I have a basket of trash collected from this year that I still have yet to review. Next year when I am concentrating on 19 things instead of 200, I am sure that I will be going through a little less product. I will be working on mostly full and full sized items. Most of it will also be makeup which takes a while to use up. I can take the time next year to finish up the reviews from this year and keep up with next year’s empties. I still use up a lot of items throughout the year, but with having a set goal this year, I was motivated to use products every day and not skimp out most of the time. I am looking forward to enjoying my collection more next year instead of focusing on using up most of my mini products.

Philosophy Purity Made Simple Facial Cleanser

For a high end cleanser, this was too basic. I expected more from this brand. It didn’t even remove all of my makeup. My Aveeno cleanser did a better job than this one. This mini was overpriced at $10 USD. I do not recommend and I will not repurchase. You can do so much better at the drugstore or Marshalls. I have to say though that it is hard to find cruelty free at the drugstore. The ones that I know offhand for skin care are Alba, Elf, and Burts Bees.

Disney HSM Super Moisturizing Body Lotion

Nearing the end of its life, this body lotion started to turn on me, which is why there is a bit melted to the side. It hardened into the side of the bottle. This was a really light gel-like body lotion that was also very moisturizing. I enjoyed the light sweet scent that I couldn’t place. It didn’t really smell of anything recognizable. It didn’t smell like vanilla, just sweet. It is hard to describe. I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy it, but it is very good.

Manna Kadar Sheer Glo Shimmer Lotion

I enjoyed mixing this stuff with my moisturizer. It gave a very subtle lit from within glow. I am starting to mix all of my liquid highlighters in with all of my moisturizers for this glow that I am enjoying so much on my oily skin. You don’t need this particular one. Any liquid highlighter will do. This one gives a nice, healthy pink glow to the skin! I have yellow undertones, so it wasn’t too much pink for my complexion. If I ran out of liquid highlighter and I saw this at the store, I would repurchase it. I do recommend this, but it is very subtle as a highlighter. It is great for those of us that wear minimum to no makeup for a healthy glow.

Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Light 2 Vanilla

I did not enjoy this under my eyes. I think it made my under eyes dry and did nothing for concealing my dark circles. Powder tends to cling to the concealer making it look like you have dry patches of skin. I used this all over my face as a foundation. It was okay as a foundation, but nothing special. I do not recommend it and I will not be repurchasing anything from Nars as they are no longer cruelty free.

Boscia Charcoal Pore Pudding

This did not minimize the appearance of my pores, but it did purify my skin and helped pull out acne. I would not purchase, because I have a few clay masks already that do the same thing. I would purchase from the brand again, but this mask is nothing special. i think I would try their peel off mask, because I have a ton of black heads and I think that type of mask would be more effective for my skin concerns. On the plus side, this mask was very easy to remove with a warm wash cloth.

With Love,

Marshalls Haul

I am super excited to bring you a very small and modest Marshalls Haul. I needed a refill on some pretty notebooks and I told myself that I could spend $20 ($10 for each class) as a treat. I am pretty sure that I got As in both of my classes. I am just waiting for the results of the finals to come out and I’ll have my transcript grades ready. I couldn’t believe what I found for $20. I got to buy two seriously expensive items that would have equaled $63 at Sephora. I am happy to only pay 1/3 of the price for both of these products. I haven’t done a haul in forever! I have been really good at using what I have and not buying anything I already have. I decided to replace my skincare with ELF products. ELF has been killing it lately and there is free shipping with a $25 order. If I can find what I need at Marshalls for less than ELF price, I will get it. Otherwise, I’ll be placing an order at ELF. Let’s get into the haul!

I got this adorable book for Dean for $2.99. The book is originally marked at $9.99, which is insane! Dean sometimes literally eats books, so $3 is an easy buy for me and it’s no skin off my teeth if its ruined in a week. He loves to flip through the book and the poor spine can only take so many flip throughs. I am so happy to have such a great boy who loves to “read”. He takes after his mother for sure. This is a cute Easter book with tons of pages, so it is a lot of bang for your 3 bucks. Dean and I also bought my dad a soap that he promptly opened and complained about no scrubby pieces. LOL. I had to tell him all the benefits of Turmeric and he’s on-board with it now.

I got a two pack of notebooks for $4.99 for my next semester. They are super cute and I needed something bigger than last time. I couldn’t find any Kate Spade, but these have the same theme and I am really loving it. $2.49 isn’t a bad price for a quality notebook and I love the thickness of these pages. It beats buying a $1.50 notebook from Walmart where my PaperMate InkJoy Gel Pens bleed through the page. One of my notebooks from last semester still has a few pages left in it, so I’m using that for reviews.

Yes, I got the $25 Anastasia Stick Foundation in Fawn (a contour shade) for $9.99! I am super excited about this find! It wasn’t swatched and in pristine condition. The box wasn’t even opened! I didn’t realize it was a contour shade, but as you can see it disappears into nothing on me. I can for sure pull it off as a light foundation. The packaging is so heavy and luxe. I am in love and I plan on using this as an all over base. Maybe contour on the days that I can building it up. I also plan to use this to cover up spots. The color looked scary swatched, but like the tab on the outside of the package, it blended into my skin flawlessly. It is definitely matte and I am interested to see how long this lasts on me.

Hell yeah! I got a $38 Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Poured Creme in Prosecco Pop for $9.99, the same as the foundation stick. This highlighter is PERFECTION and I love the golden sheen on my cheekbones. The dark spot on it isn’t from being swatched. It is from the thin plastic protector, but some of the highlighter came off on it. I’m going to use up the product on the protector sheet before swirling this around. There is no hard pan on this and no spray over. The protector just lifted up a deep layer of product, you get to see the deep base to this highlight. It still works for me though. It isn’t too deep. My Marshalls also had Rose Gold, but I thought that it would be too deep for my complexion compared to this taupe/gold highlight. Two of the bottom photos are with flash to really captured the golden sheen, otherwise it looks very taupe/pinky/yellow to me.

Well, that is my haul! I am going to enjoy my treats now. I know that I will be using the contour stick every day and comparing it to two other creams from Smashbox that I own. One cream is too orange and the other cream might be too brown. So, I might be decluttering both of them. I also have three Smashbox cream highlights that seem to be just glitter eye gloss. I think I will keep them for my eyes, but I don’t enjoy them as highlights with that slippery feel to them that never dries down. I hope you enjoyed what I picked up. There will be another mini haul in November and probably some Black Friday hauls as well.

With Love,

Makeup Monthly: June

Another month gone. I lost my May photos as you may know if you have been reading my blog. So, I cannot comment on last month really, because I cannot show you the photo and recap the month. Let us start off fresh with the June makeup that I will be using and wearing. I wanted bright, fun, but also easy to wear makeup. On work days, I get up early and only have time for few things. This is reflected in my makeup choices. On my days off and work from home days, I can put in a bit more effort and use all of these products or a good amount anyways.

I really want to use up this B&BW perfume once and for all. It smells great like a lime freshly juiced. The problem? It lasts as long as a body spray, so an hour at most. I like my perfume to last all day or at least, most of it. I totally forgot about this BareMinerals trio that I own. I remember not liking the bronzer, so I am going to try it again and see my thoughts on it. The blush, I don’t think I liked either. I really love the highlight though. I remember getting this on sale at Sephora. If I end up not liking the blush and/or bronzer, I am just going to crack them out of the pans and keep the highlighter. I have a good dip in that. I love the Kat Von D liquid lip in Pool Party. I want to get serious use out of it. The Avon I just want to use up and plan on using at work on my desk. The PIXI cheek gel is SUPER old. I want to use up this gel blush this month. I love how easy eye glosses are to use. But I love my Stila Glitter and Glows. Would love to use up this gloss in June.

This is all the makeup that I will be using this month (for the most part). Do you do a monthly makeup bag to rotate your stash?

With Love,

Project 200 Pan: April

April was a very light month when it came to empties. I know that I will have a bit more makeup next month, because I have a lip gloss on its last leg. I also hit pan on a couple of items this month that were very surprising to me, because they were my April makeup picks and one was completely brand new. I guess it just goes to show that I really loved using these two products last month.

The first thing that I hit pan on was this Marc Jacobs Lip Gloss in Sugar, Sugar. I recently got it for Christmas and only swatched it. At the end of April, I am already seeing side pan on this deluxe size. I am absolutely in love with this lip gloss formula. It isn’t sticky and it isn’t heavy. It feels perfect on the lips. It is my favorite lip gloss and I think the only formula that I would repurchase right now. I want to get a set of his glosses once I go through a few more in my collection. I’m not a fan of this nude though. It does nothing for me. My lips are too pigmented, so all you see is the gold sparkle.

I also hit major side pan on my Benefit cream highlighter in High Beam. I even had to remove the stopper to get more of the product out. I will not repurchase, because Benefit is not CF. I do love adding this in with my moisturizer for a glowy look. I am using glowy powders for the month of May and it looks more artificial on my skin. I love these cream highlighters more for a natural glow.

We left off at 38/200 or 19% of this project completed in March. Now, we are at 40/200 with the products that I have hit pan on. Let’s see which empties count towards this month’s total, shall we?!

I finished up another 2 deluxe sized makeup items: a highlighter and concealer. I would not repurchase the Nars due to the brand no longer being CF and I wouldn’t go out of my way for the Manna Kadar highlighter lotion either. 42/200

This body lotion was so light and gel-like. I absolutely enjoyed using it. It started to turn bad on me, that’s why there is still a bit of lotion stuck to the bottle. I mean, like literally melted on there. I don’t know what happened, but some of it turned colors and hardened to the side of the bottle. I’ve had this since Freshman year of high school, I believe. So yeah, never again will my lotions go like 10 YEARS before I use them. 43/200

I finished a sheet mask to watch tv one night and the serum in this packet is INSANE. I easily got 5 more applications (of the serum) out of the packet. I love these masks for moisturizing only, because honestly, I don’t see any difference between all of the variations. I do see increased moisture in my skin with every one though. Plus, how can you go wrong for like 50 cents a sheet mask?! I also used up this pore mask that really didn’t do anything to my pores. They weren’t smaller or cleaned of blackheads. I would not purchase that mask. It detoxified the skin, but that is it. 45/200

I am 22.5% done with this project now. I was hoping to be closer to 25% at the quarter of the year mark. That means that I am 2.5% behind so I need to catch up to that PLUS keep up with my regular pace. I need to keep at 5% every month and catch up on the 2.5%. Hopefully, I can do some catching up in May. This challenge of using up 200 products has been more challenging than I thought it would be. I am still keeping at a great pace and not falling too behind. I feel good about it. I know that I am using up my stuff. It gives me that push to apply body lotion when I feel too lazy after a shower or reapply gloss after I have eaten. I really am using this stuff up and it gives such a high when you finish something after laboring over it for MONTHS. Seriously, project panning is SO addictive. Next year, I want to do four seasonal project pans.

With Love,

April Empties

Another month checked of of my calendar and we are officially in my birthday month. I am super excited to be getting my birthday treats and having a great second Mother’s day. I cannot wait for the day that Dean makes me Mother’s Day gifts from school. Speaking of school, that will be a big topic for me next year in regards to Dean. I was discussing it with his EI Speech therapist and I realized that he won’t be in mainstream classes. Since Dean is nonverbal, he will have different goals than the other kids and after kindergarten, will be separated and put in the “special” classroom with the other children that have autism, down syndrome, and mental handicaps. Part of me is glad that he won’t be made fun of and the other part of me is sad that he’ll be segregated from neurotypicals. I have very mixed and raw feelings about this right now.

1. International Delight Amaretto Coffee Creamer

2. Dunkin’ Donuts Cinnamon Coffee Cake Coffee

3. MJCARE EGF Sheet Mask

4. Boscia Pore Pudding Mask

5. Goody Paddle Brush

6. Revlon Conditioner

7. Disney HSM Super Moisturizing Body Lotion

8. 9. Perfume Sample Cards

10. Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Light 2 Vanilla

11. Manna Kadar Sheer Glo Shimmer Lotion

12. 13. B&BW mini candles

14. Papermate Ink Joy pen in green

15. Tylenol

16. Equate Ibuprofen

That is it you guys. Really small empties post this last month. I am hoping that May will be a bigger month, because it is my birthday month. If I am going to be using some stuff and pampering, this will be the month for it. I am hoping to finish off a face powder and a lip gloss this month. Anything else will be a nice bonus, because I am not focusing on anything. I am just enjoying the stuff that I have and using it up will just follow naturally. I don’t want to use stuff up for the sake of using stuff up, you know?

With Love,