Products I've Used Up II

I've finally hoarded enough empty containers to warrant another empties post!

The fact that I've been experimenting with a lot of different products lately hasn't exactly been helping my "use everything up" initiative but I've made a bit of progress.

I've talked about a few of these products before so I'll link to those posts for the curious.

Here we go:

Ojon Damage Reverse Restorative Conditioner (Sample)  I did enjoy using this conditioner but I feel like I didn't see any real changes in my hair during the time I tried it.

Bioderma Sebium (for oily/combination skin)- I didn't like it as much as the pink-capped one as my skin tends to get a bit drier.  I really only tried this because they were out of my usual

MAC Brush Cleaner- pretty standard.  This used to be my favourite but I've since found a much better alternative (I'll be sharing that in a future post!)

Josie Maran Cleansing Oil

Lush Sweetie Pie

L'Oreal Power Moisture Infusion Mask was really good for a drugstore mask.  It still can't compete with Macadamia Oil though

MAC Studio Fix in N3 -it finally died!

Organix Everstraight Brazilian Keratin Therapy Anti-Breakage Serum

I know feel a weird sense of pride at finishing a product- hopefully you guys can relate!

Kendall

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Products I've Used Up

To mark this lovely Saturday, I thought I'd show you all some nice empty containers.  Beautiful, I know.

I've been exercising my hoarding tendencies by hanging on to a couple empty containers to remind myself to either get around to making this post or re-purchasing a few of them.  I'm not the best at throwing things out.

Makeup

From L-R: Makeup Forever HD Foundation in 110, Makeup Forever HD Primer in 1, Boots No7 Lash Adapt Mascara, NYC Liquid Liner

Now my feelings for the Makeup Forever foundation have reeeaaaally ebbed and flowed.  When I first bought it, I thought it was my HG foundation.  I bought it in early fall, when I still had the lingerings of a tan and winter dryness hadn't caused any flakiness or dry patches (gorgeous I know). If your skin isn't too dry, this foundation really is beautiful.  So beautiful that when I had almost used up my first bottle, I bought a second (it took almost a year to use up).  Now however, my new bottle has barely been used in the few months since I bought it.  Even though I have it in the lightest shade available, at the moment it's looking a tiny bit too dark and orange, not to mention it is clinging to dry patches and making it look cakey.  Which is pretty much the opposite of what this foundation is supposed to do.  Maybe I've just become more picky, and I'm sure I'll get more use in later spring and in summer but right now I'm kind of regretting re-purchasing.  Right now, there are other foundations that I'm loving waaaay more.

Now after that novel I just wrote about Makeup Forever foundation, I have nothing but good things to say about their primer.  It's super light, has never caused any problems with my sensitive skin and it's great at neutralizing redness (which I have a good deal of). I have also re-purchased this and probably will continue to do so. I know it's not really as much of a cult favourite as, say, Smashbox Photofinish or Benefit Porefossional but I just don't enjoy the way they feel on my skin (and break me out).

Boots Lash Adapt Mascara is my favourite mascara ever.  Unfortunately, I have no way of getting it in Canada though.  I picked it up while in London about two years ago, fell in love and suffered withdrawal when I finally ran out. Lucky for me though, I got to spend a bit of time in London again last summer and during that time I bought a ton of it so I still have some left.  This doesn't seem to be a super popular mascara amongst beauty bloggers but I think it does everything. It lengthens, separates, and provides great volume. Not to mention, you can layer it like nobody's business.  If anybody knows of a way I could somehow get this product in Canada (online, in-store, whatever) I would be so grateful.

I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about my NYC Liquid Liner because I've already had a little love-fest about it before.  It's a pretty basic liner but the colour payoff is great and I love the brush applicator.

Hair

Redken Smooth Lock Intensive Rinse out Treatment is something I'm on the fence about.  I'd heard great things about it so I was expecting great results.  I did find that my hair was softer after using it (if I'd kept it in my hair for about 20 minutes) but I don't think it made my hair look less damage or protect against future damage.  Overall, it's a nice product, but I'll probably try a few other hair treatments before I re-purchase.

Oscar Blandi Volumizing Dry Shampoo Spray is the best dry shampoo ever.  I find spray dry shampoos either run out super fast (like 2-3 uses which really gets my goat) or make my hair feel sticky, tangled and disgusting.  However this one does exactly what I dry shampoo should.  It absorbs oil, adds body, and doesn't make my hair feel like it's full of gunk.  I've been experimenting with other brands as this one is quite expensive but I'll probably end up going back to it as it's also lasted longer than the others I've tried.

I talked about Moroccan Oil Light in my Curly Hair Problems post and it is basically a staple in my haircare routine.  It leaves hair smooth and smelling great, plus it was designed to cut down on blow-dry time.  I will definitely be re-purchasing.

You've probably noticed I also have an empty mini bottle of Bioderma but really, it's Bioderma.  It's awesome.  I showed you all in my last I Was Bad post that I managed to pick up more of this, so I'm quite a happy little camper.

I hope you're all having an awesome Saturday and that this post was somewhat helpful to anyone wanting to try any of these products.

Kendall

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I Was Bad Part Three

Happy End-of-Weekend my friends! Well that's a bit of an oxymoron as Sunday nights have got to be one of the most depressing parts of the week. So to make your evening (or more likely your Monday as I'm a procrastinator and this probably won't be up until late) a bit more enjoyable, why don't you have a look at the latest damage I've done to my bank account.

All of the things here have been purchased from Shopper's Drug Mart (again for the non-Canadians, as the name implies, it's a popular drugstore of the north).  I'm planning on doing reviews of a few of the newer products that I picked up, so if there's anything specific you would like to see, don't forget to let me know in the comments!

So I did a fair amount of damage as you can probably see.  Just jumping right into it, from left to right: Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser in Fair (I've yet to try this but I've heard a lot of promising things about it and I'm still on the hunt for a great concealer), Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in (05) Candy Shimmer, Clinique Almost Lipstick in (06) Black Honey, Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate in 102, Rimmel ScandalEYES Waterproof Kohl Kajal in (008) Light Blue, Covergirl Lip Perfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in (215) Watermelon Twist, Revlon Photoready BB Cream in (010) Light, Benefit Hoola

Oh boy.

From top to bottom: Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate in 102, Clinique Almost Lipstick in (06) Black Honey, Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in (05) Candy Shimmer

You can probably tell I'm feelin' the pink-lip look for spring.  The Rimmel lipstick just struck me as such a beautiful spring pink; for some reason I want to call it a tulip pink but that can't be right.

As for the Clinique one, I think I actually bought the wrong colour.  I swatched it in Sephora and it  seemed a bit more berry-toned there whereas now that I've bought it, it looks a bit more wine-toned.  Apparently this is one of their best-sellers though and I've yet to actually try it on the lip so I'll keep you posted.

Now I know I've just recently posted about my recent Clarins lip gloss purchase (you can read that one HERE) but I just couldn't help myself.  Candy Shimmer is a sweet, shiny pink that's new for spring that I can tell is going to get a lot of use.

I also picked up a couple of skincare items

I know this might be a tiny bit boring but I partially just wanted to share that I managed to find two full-sized bottles of Bioderma! I've been hunting for this like mad as it still isn't consistently available in Canada but here it is.  I also picked up Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer in Aloe-Fresh which was basically just an experiment.  I liked the idea of a spray-on moisturizer that dries quickly, as I really can't stand that sticky-skin feeling while you're trying to get dressed.  I've only tried it once but so far I think it does a great job.  It's quite watery but I think it has to be in order to be spray-able.

Mercifully for my wallet, that's it! Please stay tuned for reviews because most of these products are first-purchases for me so I'm sure I'll have lots to say.

If you've tried any of these products, be sure to let me know how you feel about them in the comments.

I hope you all have a great week!

Kendall

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