Late Spring/Summer 2024 Empties

I have a lot of empties ready to talk about so let's dive in with some speed reviews! 

Caliray Come Hell or High Water Mascara (x2) – I only used one of these over late spring and summer. The other one I finished at the end of last winter. I had put it in my empties basket and then it disappeared. I recently found it in a strange place and the obvious answer is that my cat must have fished it out of the basket and played soccer with it. Anyway, I love the fact that this mascara doesn’t budge or smudge so it is great when I am wearing my glasses. It gives good length, volume and curl too. Not my favourite mascara, but definitely in the top 5 and it serves a specific purpose for me.

The Inkey List 10% Azelaic Acid Serum (x2) – I discovered that by using this twice a day, instead of once, my rosacea is so much better. Since then, I have started blasting through these tubes. At $24 Canadian, at least the price is right! The product looks like clay but doesn’t leave a grey cast on the skin. Highly recommend if you struggle with redness.

Acure Brightening Facial Scrub – I use this on my body, not my face. I like it very much and it makes my skin look and feel better. The sea kelp and French green clay certainly give it a memorable smell, but not a bad one. I believe this was my first tube and I have since bought 3 more. That’s how much I like it.

Laneige Lip Sleeping Masks in Berry, Sweet Candy and Chocolate – Another three of these bite the dust. I really like the minis, especially for travel, but I go through them so fast. It is nice to get different scents though to try. Two smaller sizes were from a holiday set I believe. The Chocolate was maybe from a Valentine's Day set last year. It did turn my lips a bit brown (not a good look on me) so I only wore it in the house, but it smelt amazing. 

Caudalie Premier Cru The Serum – I got this little bottle in a Caudalie set I bought last Christmas. I really like the cream (which was the main component of the set as it was full sized) but honestly I didn’t feel like this serum did much for me. I saw the same results when I used the cream with another serum, in fact the results with another serum were better. This was only a travel/sample size. The full sized bottle is $178 Canadian. Unless this gave me a miraculous result, I wouldn’t repurchase so will not be buying this again. Kudos that they put this in glass though!

Benefit Cosmetics The POREfessional Hydrating Primer– This is a solid primer if you are looking for a hydrating primer that makes your makeup last longer. I would argue it is smoothing and reduces the look of pores too. I have no idea why no one is talking about this product. It’s solid and I have repurchased. I think at $47 it’s a tad pricey though. The one I used up here was a large sample. 

CeraVe Eye Repair Cream- I bought this because I was really frustrated with all of the eye creams I have tried and none of them were helping my dark circles. This eye cream had very good reviews and it was inexpensive (tired of wasting money on expensive ones that did little to nothing) so I thought what the hell. Anyway, this did nothing for me. It was ok hydration-wise but nothing spectacular. It did nada for my dark circles. I am amazed I even finished it. To make matters worse, the entire tip broke off when I was 90% done the product. Never had that happen with an eye cream before. Will not repurchase, cannot recommend. 

Tarte Sea Hydroflex Serum Foundation – I cannot begin to tell you how delighted I was to finish this foundation. I found it was hit and miss some days. Once in a while, it looked ok and other times it felt tight and dry and looked bad. I swear I shook it every time! I know my used bottle looks like a train wreck, but I did abuse it. Hated the packaging. I mostly wore this for on camera work meetings since no one would see it up close. Good riddance. I believe this product has now been discontinued. 

Sonia Kashuk Latex-Free Makeup Blender Sponge – I bought these in a set of two. I have already repurchased a second set of two. This is a large sponge and if you have a little face, it may be a bit much. I do prefer a smaller sponge myself. The sponge itself is so cute so props to Sonia Kashuk for making it appealing. It works well, but in my opinion, the Beautyblender and Paw Paw sponges from Amazon are superior. I may repurchase in the future, but I may simply stick with the Paw Paw or Beautyblender ones instead. A word of caution for the Sonia Kashuk sponges. They do not dry quickly, tend to hold water for ages and can get spots of mold. That is why I am throwing this one out. Yes, I washed it many times. I have never had this issue with my other sponges. The Sonia Kashuk didn’t rip or breakdown in any way though, which I cannot say for other sponges. It lasted me a long time and it was very inexpensive.

IT Cosmetics CC+ Cream Full Coverage Color Correcting Foundation with SPF 50+ - Another tube done. I really like this foundation as it is full coverage, covers all my redness and the SPF makes it a good choice for the summer especially. It gives a nice, glowy finish. I always buy the shade “Light” but I find it is really yellow and taupe on me but it hides redness like nobody’s business. I find the yellow and taupe hues fade quickly and blend into the skin so it’s ok. I may try a new shade the next time for a change. Already repurchased in “Light” though haha.

Nivea Pure & Natural Body Lotion in Organic Oat – I have gone through a number of these bottles and refills. I decided to switch things up and try a few new body lotions recently so you will see the empties on those in a bit. Would totally repurchase. Solid lotion, good price point.

L’Occitane Foot Cream – Simply the best. Have been using this for 9 years and I love it. Already repurchased. High recommend.

Pixi Correction Concentrate in Brightening Peach – I am so thrilled I have finished this. I had this for years. It didn’t go bad and I used every last bit. It was ok. One of the best drug store correctors you can buy but I have better ones in my stash. Will not repurchase but would if I was in a jam.

Bobbi Brown Corrector in Peach – This was a holy grail for so many people for so long. It was decent, but I have better correctors in my stash. I used this for years and then forgot about it. I noticed I only had a tiny amount left and decided to finish it off. Would repurchase possibly but not as long as there are better ones out there. The packaging with the cute little mirror is perfect for a corrector and Bobbi Brown gets the award for that, hands down. 

Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream – I have gone through so many of these. A great moisturizer, makeup primer etc. If you have dry skin, you need to get this. Already repurchased. This was from the Tinkerbell collection and I got it on sale, 2 for 1! Great deal!

Fresh Tea Elixir Skin Resilience Activating Serum – I tried a sample of this and I loved it so I bought the 30ml bottle. This makes my skin look glowy, feel bouncy, minimizes fine lines and softens. Already repurchased. 

Skinfix Barrier + Triple Lipid + Collagen + Niacinamide Activating Serum - Another refill done! Already repurchased. This is great for keeping my face hydrated and reducing redness.

Tower 28 SOS Daily Rescue Facial Spray – This was a mini bottle and sadly did not last long. I have bought the same product in a generic format for a fraction of the price and maybe 10x the size and it works just as well. Full disclosure, I already have another mini bottle of the Tower 28 I got in a Sephora Favorites Set. If your face is red, itchy or irritated in general, this is a good product for that. 

Sephora Solid Brush and Sponge Cleaner with Pad - This is almost as good as the Beautyblender version. The Beautyblender one smells better and I think conditions my brushes a tad more. However, the difference between the two is not significant. The price of the Sephora version has gone up and as a result, it is nearly the same price as the Beautyblender one. I think Sephora has some nerve charging nearly the same price for their version. As a result, I have gone back to the Beautyblender one.