Happy New Year’s Eve / New Year everyone! This is my last empties post for 2022. From the beginning of October to the end of December I managed to collect some empty products to write about. There aren’t as many products this time around compared to my previous 3 empties posts because I’ve been rotating through many new and old products in my collection recently so it’s been hard to finish things. If you want to read any of the full review posts for more detail on a particular product, please click on the product name as I have linked the reviews if there is one.
Here are all the empties I collected from October to December this year:
Skincare
Cleansers
By Wishtrend Green Tea & Enzyme Powder Wash
I adore this gentle exfoliating enzyme cleanser so much and have repurchased it already for myself and for my sister who also likes it a lot. I love how I can adjust the consistency from watery, to foamy, to scrubby paste-like texture depending on how much water I add to it and what kind of feel I want on my skin on a particular day. Either way, it always leaves my skin clean, clear, bright, and smooth with a refined appearance of pores.
Creams
Malin+Goetz Vitamin E Face Moisturizer
This cream is lightweight, cooling, refreshing and moisturises well. It has a subtle fresh type of scent that isn’t overpowering and sometimes not noticeable. Although it’s a decent moisturiser there’s nothing unique about it. The key ingredient vitamin e provides antioxidant benefits to the skin and you can find it in many creams.
CODEX BIA Hydrating Skin Superfood
This cream has a nice ingredients list but quite a funky old dusty damp and herby but not in a good way sort of scent. Every time I apply it my skin feels nicely moisturised but the smell is terrible. Possibly a bit too earthy and natural for me. I got this mini free with a purchase on cult beauty but I wouldn’t purchase it myself.
Drunk Elephant A-Passioni Retinol Cream (Travel Size)
This retinol cream contains 1% retinol at pH 5.8 and has that distinct retinol yellow colour and no artificial fragrance. It also contains other well-ageing ingredients such as a triple peptide blend and photo-protective xanthophylls, as well as a whole load of skin nourishing, balancing and repairing ingredients such as ceramide NP, niacinamide, vitamin F, virgin marula oil, olive fruit oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil, winter cherry juice, kale leaf extract. passionfruit extract and apricot extract. All of these combined create a thick and creamy buffer for the retinol so that it’s not too harsh.
I’ve seen other reviewers have a bad experience with this however I didn’t experience any adverse reactions and found it quite comfortable. I used a pea-sized amount 3 times a week and closely monitored how my skin felt and looked just in case I need to lessen my usage, which luckily I didn’t need to do. I would still suggest trying it out just once a week if you are new to retinol as it’s better to be safe than sorry.
As I applied the cream it sometimes felt a little warm, itchy, tingly and taught after it absorbs but it wasn’t uncomfortable and didn’t last long. I didn’t experience any redness or major irritation. I did however notice small pimples form around my temples and hairline which I attribute to the greasiness of the cream as opposed to the retinol purging my skin. With continued use I also noticed sebaceous filaments surface and my skin texture start to change from rough at first to gradually smoother. The overall effect I got was a moisturising but slightly greasy feel with soft supple skin that looks healthy, nourished and plump.
I used this retinol cream after applying the Drunk Elephant B Hydra Serum which also acts as additional hydration and a buffer for the retinol. The B Hydra Serum finished quicker than the retinol cream though but the cream on its own was still comfortable for me. I wrote about the B Hydra Serum in my previous empties post.
Shani Darden Retinol Reform (Travel Size)
I really like the ingredients list of this retinol product and happy it also doesn’t contain any artificial fragrance. It contains 2% lactic acid + 2.2% encapsulated retinol for slower release. It also contains other beneficial ingredients for the skin such as green tea, rice bran, soybean, aloe vera, rosemary leaf and apple fruit extracts as well as lactobacillus ferment. It pumps out as a thin lightweight pale yellow lotion and glides effortlessly over the skin. It absorbs well and feels very comfortable on the skin without any residue. As the retinol percentage is higher than what I’m used to I started off using this once a week and moved on to twice a week once I realised my skin wasn’t experiencing any irritation, redness or flaking. I was a bit chicken to use it more often than that though. I did experience some slight warmth and tightness which was expected. I also noticed sebaceous filaments surfacing and a little texture to my cheek area which went away the more I used it, a similar effect to the other retinol cream mentioned above. The result I got with bi-weekly use was smooth, plump, healthy looking soon without any greasiness. The only thing stopping me from buying this retinol myself is that it costs £80 for 30ml of product, so for now I’m just happy to have gotten this little freebie with a cult beauty purchase.
Kate Somerville +Retinol Vita C Power Serum (Travel Size)
This serum is for firming and brightening the skin and although it says it’s a serum it’s much more like a cream to me. The key ingredients are retinol, ascorbic acid, hyaluronic acid and sodium hyaluronate, however they haven’t disclosed the percentage of retinol or vitamin c in the product. It also contains artificial fragrance which gives it a light lemon cream popcorn sort of scent. Whenever I pump the product out it comes out separated at first even after shaking the bottle, a few pumps later it comes out as a consistent pale yellow cream but another pump might reveal some darker patches of yellow. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be inconsistent like this or if the ingredients had oxidised or gone bad. The serum/cream applies smoothly to the skin and feels a little tacky until fully absorbs but once it absorbs my skin feels incredibly soft in a silicone smoothness sort of way, and you’ve guessed it, this does contain dimethicone and some other silicones in the formula. This soft and smooth feeling however doesn’t last long. I have other vitamin c products that I prefer in reliable formulas so I won’t try this one again.
Body
Sol de Janeiro Brazillian Bum Bum Cream
I adore this cream and had been using it sparingly so I’m a bit sad that this freebie is finished and I’m seriously considering purchasing the expensive full-size jar. It’s got a classic body butter sort of feel but maybe slightly lighter and nourishes my skin beautifully getting credit of any dryness. The cream is infused with guaraná, a strong antioxidant packed with caffeine, as well as nourishing ingredients like cupuaçu butter, coconut oil, açaí oil, guayusa and Brazil nut which deliver a rich dose of essential fatty acids and antioxidants. It does contain artificial fragrance but I’ll allow it for my body especially because of how divinely sweet and warm it smells. The scent isn’t overpowering but it does linger for the whole day which is something I love in a body cream. It actually pairs really well with spritzing a vanilla body mist or perfume on top too. I’ll have to rummage through The Body Shop, or some K-Beauty brands to see if I can find a more affordable body butter with a similar scent, and if not then I definitely be forking out the cash for this beaut.
The Body Shop Vanilla Eau De Toilette
I love vanilla-scented perfumes and find the body shop one to be the most affordable so it’s easier to repurchase. I also have the vanilla body mist which I have repurchased a few times, whereas I’ve only bought this perfume once and as it’s a stronger version of the same scent I spray less of it. This took me several years to finish as I don’t use it every day. Towards the end, as it was quite old I also used it as a bathroom spray.
Haircare
As I Am Coconut Cowash
I thought I was going to like this cowash because I’ve previously liked other coconut-based shampoos before but the only thing that was good about this one was the delicious coconut and tangerine scent. For me the point of using a cowash instead of a shampoo is to prevent my hair from drying out however this one left my ends dry and frizzy as well as my roots pretty flat, gappy and not cleansed enough. I do have another cowash from this same brand that I prefer which is the As I Am Long and Luxe GroWash, but even still I’m realising that I’m more of a regular shampoo for my roots followed by a hair treatment mask for my ends sort of person.
Kerastase Resistance Bain Force Architecte Strengthening Shampoo Refill Pouch
This shampoo is for brittle, damaged hair and split ends and I feel like it does a great job of cleaning my scalp whilst strengthening my hair. I got the refill pouch without the matching refillable container because I didn’t really like the metallic aqua colour of the bottle and would prefer to either refill my own reusable clear bottle or just keep the pouch as it is and carefully pour a little bit out at a time when washing my hair. I found that this refill pouch lasted me and my husband a good few months of use and a little goes a long way as it lathers up really well. I’ve repurchased this shampoo a few times over the years and probably will repurchase it again at some point after trying out a few others I’m interested in.
Makeup
Dior Diorshow Mascara (mini)
This mascara is super old, and I was keeping it purely for the brush thinking I could sanitise it and dip it into any other mascara tube but I’ve come to find that it’s just taking up unnecessary space in my collection especially because I rarely reach for it and just use whatever wand comes with my other mascaras. I like the diorshow mascara for the pigmented fluffy fanned out false lash effect it gives whilst the formula is still new, however when it dries up it doesn’t apply as well anymore which is usually around the 3-month mark.
Heroine Make Long & Curl Advance Film Mascara
I’ve had this mascara for quite a while now, probably around 1 year and I’ve used it a lot. It’s a great mascara for lengthening curling and separating the lashes while also giving some volume. The advanced film version is also pretty easy to remove off of the lashes compared to the original. I found that this brand of mascara no matter the version is pretty easy to tell when the mascara is too old as it not only dries up a bit and stops performing the same way as a new tube but it also starts smelling of petrol which is a sure sign that it is at the end of its life.
NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe
This is my favourite brow pencil that I’ve repurchased quite a few times. I use the colour taupe to add some light shading and definition to my brows before going in with a dark colour (ash brown) to fill in gaps with hair-like strokes. The combination of light and dark gives me a softer brow look. I also like that it has buildable pigment and isn’t a creamy type of brow pencil so it doesn’t look harsh, smudgy or unrealistic. I have 2 other brow pencils from another brand to go through but once I finish those I’ll definitely repurchase this brow pencil in taupe and ash brown again.
Etude House Play Color Eyes Juice Bar Eyeshadow Palette (case only)
I actually like quite a few of Etude House eyeshadows and had a bit of a collection of palettes going on. I realised that each of the palettes I owned just had a few shades that I simply love, some that are workable and some that just don’t suit me or show up on me, so I decided to rearrange 4 of my Etude House Play Colour Eyes Palettes to make 2 custom palettes that suit me, and also crushed pinks, peaches and light beiges from each palette and pressed them together in a separate container to create a single powder blush shade. I decided to put the rearranged shades in the palettes that I like the outer case colour of, so the orange-coloured Juice Bar Palette case is now ready to be discarded, even though I still have some of the shades housed elsewhere. If you’re curious my 3 favourite must-have shades from the Juice Bar palette are: Orange Peel, Muscle Mania, Orange Bianco & Raw Cacao. I always thought the shades Fever Orange & Kissing Gourami looked great swatched on my hand but wouldn’t always turn out the way I like on my lids. As for the shades I added to my blush mix from this palette, those would be: Fresh Grapefruit Tart, Soft Peach & New Recipe. Lastly, I’ve also kept the shade Bubblebath for a light champagne highlight but I crushed and pressed it together with 2 other highlighter shades from the other palettes to create a custom highlighter, all of which are not must-haves in my collection. Reading this back, I should clarify the eyeshadows themselves are not empties as I’ve kept most of them and I’m only discarding two along with the case.
Urban Decay Naked Heat Eyeshadow Palette
This isn’t an empty however I wore it quite a lot in 2022 and realised warm smokey orange burnt red browns aren’t hundred percent flattering on me. Sure I can make it work somehow but I’m never satisfied with it so I feel bad for asking my husband to buy it for me few 2 years ago. I tried my best with it and hit tiny pan in a few shades, but now I’ll be passing it on to my sister who has a darker complexion than me and might be able to make it work better. I took some swatch photos of each shade to write a full review of this palette which will be up soon so stay tuned.
YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Lipstick 19 Fuschia in Rage
I had left this one in Korea with my sister for a while but she brought it back to London for me during her summer holiday. I wanted her to try it out and then discard it if it doesn’t suit her but because I felt bad discarding an expensive lipstick that I asked my husband to buy we thought I should give it another chance. When I asked him to buy it I didn’t realise it wouldn’t suit me as it looked more like a vibrant pink in the Lisa Eldridge Youtube video I saw it on in 2013, whereas on me it pulls very true to the actual cool blue-toned purple colour of the bullet and not flattering on my skin tone at all. Since getting it back, I’ve tried so hard to make this lipstick colour work for me by adding brown lip liners and lip tints which sometimes work but then is a pain to reapply. It’s time to just let it go and learn from my mistakes. I do love the YSL Rouge Volupte Shine lipsticks though as they are so super juicy and hydrating on the lips and give a nice sheer but buildable wash of colour. My favourite shades are discontinued but I’ll look into what else YSL have to offer for sure.
Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter in Shade 4 Medium (sample)
I like the glow that I get from the Hollywood Flawless Filter and use different shades for different reasons, usually 3 for highlighting and 4.5 for bronzing both of which I have in travel size, but I found this sample of shade 4 to be a closer match to my skin colour so it was nice to use as an all over glowy primer under foundation or mixed in with foundation.
Dior Eye & Lip Pencil Sharpener
Of course not an empty but a discard. This little tool is probably around 15 years old, originally belonging to my mum and then when my sister and I started wearing makeup we would sharpen our lip liners, brow pencils and eyeliner with it too from time to time. I recently tried to use it again after a long time and the blade was so blunt that it left one of my lip liners with jagged edges so it’s time to part ways.
So that’s everything I managed to collect in the last quarter of the year. Have you tried any of the products mentioned above? I’d love to know what you think of them 😀
Simply Saima 