January Empties

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I have to admit, I’m pretty proud of myself because I demolished some stuff this month! A lot of it was samples, but it totally still counts. I’ve just realized that looking at the picture you can probably tell that I’ve been incredibly dry lately, since almost all of them are moisturizing products. Luckily I’m finished with my accutane regimen now, so I only have frigid temperatures and gale-force wind to contend with.

My lips have been hardest hit by dry-cracky-ness, so I’ve got lip balms of every type squirreled away in various places. January saw the end of another tube of First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Lip Therapy, and another mini of Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment. I’ve got plans to do a compilation of lip balm reviews in the near future, but I’ll go ahead and tell you I love these both! Very hydrating and comfortable to wear. Will repurchase.

I finished out my MUAC Hyaluronic Acid Serum last month (I think it was last month?) so I went ahead and tested out a couple of samples I had for other hydrating serums, Guerlain Super Aqua Serum and Revive Intensite Moisture Serum Extreme (which smells vaguely like popsicle sticks). I didn’t notice any of the wrinkle-plumping that both of them claim, but they did leave my skin feeling nice and soft. But at $165 and $365 respectively, there’s a snowball’s chance in hell that I’ll purchase the full size. They may be worth it if you’re into luxury skincare, but they weren’t out-of-this-world-good enough to be worth it for me.

Next on the list is my sample of  Josie Maran Argan Oil, which I used as my last skincare step at night to hold in moisture. Like the Tarte Maracuja Oil I tried out before it, it did work beautifully, but I didn’t see any significant difference between it and my argan oil from Garden of Wisdom. Well, at least other than the packaging – the Josie Maran bottle is a lot nicer.

I’ve also been testing out Living Proof Full Thickening Cream to see if it would help out with getting some volume. My hair is curly but super-fine, so it can get a little bit a lot flat on top. I’m definitely liking this stuff. When I use it I can tell the difference in volume, and my hair also doesn’t flatten out later in the day like it does if I go product-free. I’m debating whether I should repurchase this, or if I should experiment with some other thickening/volumizing products first.

I finished a couple of makeup products too, of course. I’ve been hoarding all of the mini sizes of Hourglass No. 28 Primer Serum that I can get my hands on, because this stuff is seriously the most amazing hydrating primer I’ve tried. It was a huge help in getting through the flaky stages of accutane treatment, and it’s a life-saver now that we’re finally having winter.

Last but not least is my trusty Anastasia Brow Wiz in Ebony. This has shown up in my empties before, because I love them and keep buying them. I’m not sure how soon or if I’ll repurchase it though, because I’ve found another good brow match with NARS Brow Perfector in Suriname, which gives you a lot more product for the price. I’ve still got a good bit of that one left, so I guess we’ll see.

What stuff did you burn through this month, and what did you think of it?