Product Empties #5

It's been a little over two months since my last empties post so I've accumulated a respectable amount of products. I've divided the products up into categories like makeup and skincare. I won't go into too much detail with each product since I have more empties than usual. Keep in mind some of the products that didn't work for me might work for you. Don't be offended if I didn't like one of your favorite products mentioned below!

BATH AND BODY

L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil ($25 for 8.4 oz)
I had this sitting around in my samples drawer and finally decided to finally use it. If you like the smell of almonds in lotion and body care, you'll enjoy the scent. I consider $25 for body wash a luxury item and it was just okay for me. My skin felt slippery and not very clean but I imagine those with dry skin would really enjoy this shower oil. I gave the bigger sample size to my husband (he has dry skin) and he likes the product. I will not buy this in the future.

The Body Shop Body Butter in Strawberry ($21 for 6.9 oz)
I always have seem to have a Body Shop Body Butter in every empties post. It's a sign of how much I love them. I love all the fruity scents offered in the line but my personal favorites are Strawberry, Mango, Vineyard Peach, and Passionfruit. I do want to try the newer scents like Virgin Mojito and Fuji Green Tea. Some of the body butters are currently $10 and there's always a sale or promotion going on with the store. I buy 4-5 tubs of it online, a year's supply, every year around the holidays.

Bath & Body Works Mango Melon Twist Shower Gel ($12.50 for 10 oz)
I used to buy quite a bit of bath products at Bath & Body Works back in the day but use mostly drugstore brands now. I purchased this shower gel 75% off when the store had their huge semi-annual sale. It looks like they've changed the packaging but the scent is still available. The shower gel smelled great and left my skin clean. I liked it much better than the L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil. I'd repurchase Mango Melon again during a sale but I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it.

Mimi Lauryne's Beauty Lesson Hand Cream ($17 for 50 ml)
I received the hand cream in a Global Memebox. The cream comes in 3 scents: Rosee Fleur, Aromatic Citrus, and Exotique. If I had a choice I would have gone with the citrus scent but I was given the rose one. I'm not really a fan of floral scents but the smell started to grow on me and the cream did a good job of moisturizing my hands without feeling greasy. I'd buy this if a) it were sold some place other than eBay and b) I weren't inundated with other hand creams that need to be used.

MAKEUP

Caudalie Lip Conditioner ($12)
This has been sitting in my lip balm drawer for forever so I thought it was time to finish it up. It came in a kit with a few other Caudalie travel sized products. It's a good lip balm but I'd expect something better from a higher priced lip balm. It worked well underneath lip products if you needed a little more moisture. Again, I have too many lip balms that need to be finished so I won't purchase this.

Aquaphor Healing Ointment ($4.99 for 1.75 oz)
The price of this varies according to what region you're in. In the NYC city area, I saw this priced as high as $8.99 for the 1.75 oz tube at Duane Reade. I either buy this online or at Harmon. Anyway, Aquaphor is amazing. In the winter my lips are really chapped and Aquaphor is the only product that will relieve and moisturize them. I use this on my elbows and heels as well. I always have the product in a backup so I'll continue to repurchase this.

L'oreal True Match Super Blendable Crayon Concealer (varies from $5.39-$8.99)
I used the crayon concealer to cover up dark spots or acne scarring. It didn't really do much concealing and the shade wasn't a great match for me. I purchased shade W123. If you look at the foundations in the True Match line, there's a huge different between shades W1-3. There were a few things working for the crayon like the portability of the crayon stick and the creamy texture. Overall the lasting and concealing power weren't good so I won't be repurchasing the concealer.

Physician's Formula Organic Wear CC Mascara ($5.97-$9.95)
I wrote a review on mascara back in February which you can read here if you're interested. There was a little more product left but it was past the 3 month mark. My thoughts remain about the same as when I wrote the review although it's definitely not waterproof. In general the mascara doesn't smudge but it can't hold up in warmer months. I was starting to experience panda eyes but Physician's Formula doesn't advertise this as a waterproof formula anyway. I'm curious about the brand's other mascaras and I'd repurchase the CC Mascara to use for the fall and winter seasons.

Innisfree Moisture Up Fixer ($16 for 120 ml)
This is currently out of stock on the Innisfree website so I'm guessing it's a popular item. It's $10.62 on Tester Korean with the current exchange rate. The scent was nice, the nozzle worked really well in spraying out a fine mist, and the packaging is sturdy. There are oils in the product to help moisturize the skin and would have worked better on my skin type in the colder months. It was a good makeup setting spray and I'd repurchase it again. I'm currently using the Dr. Jart+ Pore Minish Mist I grabbed during the crazy Memebox sale.

SKINCARE

The Yeon All Day Sun Cream SPF 50/PA+++ ($17 for 50 ml)
I've already mentioned this in a few posts so I'll be brief. This is a good sun block but it was heavy for my skin type once the weather became warmer. It's fairly moisturizing and has a fresh scent. I was using the sun cream for my body since I didn't want it to expire. I'd repurchase this but would only use it in the fall, winter, and part of spring.

Caudalie Micellar Cleansing Water ($14 for 3.38 oz)
The cleansing water was part of the kit with the Lip Conditioner. The 1.69 oz lasted me forever. On days when I worked out in the morning I would put this on a cotton pad and swipe my face with it rather than washing my face. You would need to use 4-5 saturated cotton pads to remove makeup so it's not great for makeup removal. The scent is a little odd to me but it's not a bad smell, not quite sure how to describe it. I'm divided on if I should purchase this or not, especially since Simple has released a cleansing water with good reviews. It's not a necessary product but it did make for an easy morning routine on gym days.

Shara Shara Bee Tox Spot Cream ($18 for 15 ml)
This spot cream contains bee venom, white willow bark, and herbal extracts for clarifying and controlling blemishes, excessive oil and sebum. Let me tell you this did no such thing! I don't like to bash products but this was complete crap. I almost felt like it made my skin oily where I applied it. Just as you expected, I won't purchase this in the future.

Boscia Green Tea Blotting Linens ($10 for 100 sheets)
I mentioned Boscia's blotting sheets in a recent monthly favorite. I usually stock up on the sheets during Sephora's friends & family sale every year. They're handy to have around the house or in your purse for a quick touch up without ruining your makeup. I rotate between Boscia and Clean & Clear's Oil Absorbing Sheets. I'll continue to repurchase both brands of blotting sheets.

And then some samples of products I used while travelling.
I love how Innisfree packages their samples with a twist cap so you don't have to worry about resealing the product. The Innisfree Jeju Volcanic Pore Essence and the volcanic pore line in general seems to be a good match for my skin type. I didn't notice so much of a difference with the size of my pores but it did seem to help with controlling oil.
I always bring a mask(s) with me when I travel. I've read good reviews about the Goodal Deep Clean Pore Glacial Clay but I was disappointed by it. It has a grainy texture that almost feels like it's exfoliating. There is a ton of product in the pod but it didn't seem to deep clean or do anything for my oily skin.
I can't forget sunscreen for my face so I brought along Murad Oil-Free Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30 PA+++. Usually I want a higher SPF in the summer but it was the only sample I had on hand. The sunscreen didn't break me out and I liked the lemon-y scent it had. I might consider purchasing this for the winter months.

ACNE PATCHES

Missha Anti Trouble Patch Set ($5 for 8 sheets)

Each sheet has 12 patches, 96 total, so it lasts for quite awhile. I liked how each sheet came with a variety of sizes. I'm not sure the patches made a huge difference on my blemishes, even the small non-cystic ones, but they're great for people who touch and pick at their face. I've read that some people find the Missha patches to be a bit irritating for their skin but I didn't experience any sensitivity. Perhaps if you have drier skin it's an issue since the set contains alcohol denat. Now that I've discovered the perks of acne patches I'm going to try other brands like Apieu and Innisfree so I won't repurchase the Missha set.

Cosrx Acne Pimple Master Patch ($5 for 24 patches)

The Cosrx patches are $5 on Memebox but it's currently sold out. I'm sure it will be restocked soon so just check back regularly if you're interested in these. Otherwise they can be found on Amazon for $5.48 with free shipping. I bought 2 sets from the site and the shipping took forever, like a month. I think Tester Korea has faster shipping although you pay a little extra for shipping. Anyway, the Cosrx patches are highly raved about in the K-beauty community. So what did I think? These are higher quality than the Missha patches and considerably more expensive. Each patch feels padded and they're wrapped and sealed very hygienically. It was a little hit or miss for me in terms of treating blemishes. What's neat about this particular patch is that it literally drains stuff out of the blemish depending on what stage it's in. The tiny little patches (circled in the picture above) were pretty useless on me since my acne tends to be on the larger side. I might consider repurchasing these again but after I try some other brands.

Kwailnara Touch Therapy Cacao Pore Clear Nose Sheet ($10 for 10 sheets)
I didn't really know what category to put this in so I placed it here. The nose sheet was from last month's Mishibox. Even though I have a crazy amount of blackheads on my nose, I haven't used a nose strip in over a decade. It sort of had a cacao scent and didn't do much for removing gunk out of my nose. Perhaps my blackheads are deeply embedded into my pores but meh, I wouldn't purchase this.

SHEET MASKS

Innisfree It's Real Squeeze Mask (Kiwi, Strawberry and Mugwort)
I love these masks and they're always in my empties. They're affordable, fit comfortably, and moisturize. Lately, I've been cleansing my face and then using a sheet mask whereas before I'd wash the face, tone, and then mask. The reason for this switch is the toner keeps my skin from getting greasy and feeling sticky. I'll go back to my normal routine during the fall.

Missha Pure Source Sheet Mask (Lemon and Pomegranate)

This line of masks from Missha have gotten negative reviews and don't seem to be favorably received. I can see why if you have dry to normal skin. The essence isn't particularly moisturizing and it can be slightly irritating. The Lemon mask in particularly works great for oily skin. It really seemed to calm down areas where I had the the most acne flare ups and the mask isn't drowned in essence. I will repurchase the Pure Source masks during the summer months.

SNP Troubled Skin Care Essence Sheet Mask
I purchased this in the previous Memebox sale a few weeks ago. I regret not buying a bunch since the essence was calming for my skin. I noticed an improvement in the chin area the next morning and there's enough essence left over to use for the next few days. This and the Missha Lemon mask worked best for oily skin.

DD'ell All About Nature Tea Tree Mask ($7)
The mask came in a Tea Tree Cosmetics Memebox. It's on the higher end for a sheet mask but I didn't see anything special about it. It's supposed to cool, hydrate, and alleviate blemishes while stimulating skin. It's got tea tree oil and extracts, green tea, deep ocean water, and orange peel extracts in the ingredient list. I don't see this sold anywhere online but I'm not upset about it as I won't be purchasing the mask in the future.

Etude House Collagen Eye Patch

These eye patches have been in other empties posts I've written. The patches are a little thin and I wish there was a little more essence in them. The patches usually dry up after 10-15 minutes go by but they're super affordable and do a good job of treating the eye area. Side note- I get more and more creeped out by the girl on the packaging as time goes by.

Whew, it feels like I've talked about a lot of products but this is what I finished up in the past two months. I'm trying to make an effort to finish more makeup products so let's see if I can make that happen.

Thanks for stopping by,
Jennifer