I don't know if I'm just a mutant compared to the rest of the blogging world, but I just do not go through product as fast as the rest of y'all. Maybe it's because I have a billionty of everything and use a little from all of it, but for some reason it takes a lot for me to go through a whole product. I also just suck at using samples or foilies, but oh well. Add to that my tendency to forget to keep my empties, and you have a lame looking empties post. But I'm going to try. Just like blogging, man.
Here's what I went through in the last couple of months:
See what I mean? I just suck compared to those people who use like, four things of face wash and eight bottles of shampoo a month. I just can't do it! And this was for probably July and August. Whups.
1) Etude House: AC Clinic Daily Acne Foam Cleanser (9.90 USD @ BeatuynetKorea.com)
So this is basically my HG face cleanser. This is probably my third or fourth bottle of it, and it's just the best if you've got oily and/or acne prone skin. It's a thick cream that builds to a light foam. It smells clean, not overly medicinal, which is so important if you're using a lot of acne products. Why do all of them smell like feet? It works great in a Clarisonic, on a Foreo Luna, or even with a sponge.
Rating: A+++, will buy it again, already did buy it again. I'm halfway through my next bottle.
2) Boscia: Konjac Cleansing Sponge with Bamboo Charcoal (15.00 USD @Sephora)
This is going to make me sound like a skincare blasphemer, but I'm not really the biggest Clarisonic fan. For what it does, it's great, sure. But it's not the be all end all product to help my skin. I used it religiously for a year, and I didn't see any market improvement versus not using it. I don't know if I'm a mutant or something, but finding the right cleanser did way more for my skin than the Clarisonic itself. Now that I do have the right cleanser, the Clarisonic seems like overkill for my face. That, and the waste. Augh, the waste! I'm such a hippie, throwing out a brush every month hurts my heart.
So I got the konjac sponge, and it's been working out really well. It's super gentle in terms of exfoliation, and it's not too drying in combination with my cleanser. That, and it's biodegradable. Fuck yeah! I'm not too keen on the price, but fortunately there's lots of konjac sponges out on the market that aren't attached to the Boscia label and are much cheaper.
Rating: A+ for product, but C- for price. I've bought a similar product from another manufacturer already.
3) Josie Maran: Whipped Argan Oil Intensive Hand Cream in Vanilla Apricot (2.37 ounces for 22.00 USD @ Sephora)
This lotion is really nice. It's whipped and creamy, just like you'd expect from the name, and it's hella hydrating like you'd expect from the Josie Maran brand. Argan oil is something I love and have long sung its hydrating praises. It works great, but honestly? For the price, I'd expect it to work so well that angels came to give it to me every time I opened the bottle. I'd expect it to clean my flat as I slathered it on my legs.
Rating: A for product, but F for pricing. I'm not rich, and even if I was, I'd be buying property or investing my wealth as opposed to spending 22.00 USD for 2.37 ounces of product. Sorry, not sorry.
4) Etude House: Mini Jam Jam Hand Lotioin in #3 Steam Milk (I paid 5.99 USD for it @ RoseRoseShop about six months ago. They're sold out of this scent now, but what they do have they're selling for about 3.15 USD right now.)
This is hand lotion. It's not too watery or too thick. It didn't smell particularly like steamed milk, but it didn't stink either. It just kind of smelled like off brand drugstore hand lotion. It also made no marked difference in the hydration of my hands. It's weird, it was like the idea of hand lotion more than actual hand lotion. But the packaging was adorable?
Rating: C. I'm not going to repurchase this, even though it was adorable, because it just didn't really do anything.
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5) Josie Maran: Argan Oil Hair Serum - Model Citizen: Ian Somerhalder Foundation (2 ounces for 30.00 USD @Sephora)
My love of Josie Maran's Argan Oil Hair Seurm is known. It's amazing, I've written its praises before, and probably will again. (But if you want it, here's my post about how amazing this product is.)
The only difference between the standard hair serum and the Model Citizen imprint is that once a year, Josie Maran's company picks a non-profit organization and partners with them to release versions of the Josie Maran products that will benefit the NPO. It's a great idea. The differences in the Model Citizen product is that there's usually a different scent. This is last year's Model Citizen product, and it benefited the Ian Somerhalder Foundation. They in turn help out a lot of animals and try to raise awareness and activism for various green earth charities. I've donated them money before, so getting this for my anual bottle of hair serum was a no-brainer.
The scent was a little different, kind of a honey and chamomile thing, and it allegedly had some "luminizing essence" which ended up just being glittery stuff that stayed in the bottom of the bottle. It didn't make a difference in my end use, so whatever.
Rating: A++++, as always. I go through about a two ounce bottle of this stuff per year, and I immediately repurchase. This is my HG hair product, and I will literally weep if it goes away.
6) Yu-Be: Moisturizing Skin Cream (1.25 ounces for 16.00 USD @ Sephora)
I got a deluxe sample of this stuff with a purchase I made at Sephora a while ago, and recently I'd noticed that my elbows were really hurting me with how dry they were. Clearly, my standard lotion wasn't working, and it was time to bring out some big guns.
This stuff smells like Tylenol taste if you let them melt on your tongue: painful and awful. My roommate actually had to leave the room after I put this on, because the smell made her gag. For all that stink, I'd hoped it would have a corresponding medicinal effect on my skin. It didn't. It moisturized well enough, but I have Eucerin balm that does a better job with minimal scent. Screw this stuff.
Rating: F for smelling like a funeral home. I will pay you to not put this on around me.
7) The Face Shop: Rice Water Bright Cleansing Foam (6.83 USD at Korea Depart)
This is a foilie I got from a f2plus1 purchase I made a while ago. I thought I'd try it as I love The Face Shop's Rice Water Bright Cleansing Oil and use that on the daily. It was a cream that goes to a foam, as can be expected. It smells the same as the cleansing oil - kind of an old lady floral perfume smell that fades quickly as it's applied. I can't say how well the product works as I only got one use out of it, but it foamed well and played nice with my konjac sponge.
Rating: Ehn. C, based on what I know from one use. I probably won't buy this. Too many cleansers to try already.
8) Jurlique: Lavender Hand Cream (40 ml for 25.00 @Jurlique's web site)
I didn't purchase this for myself; this is something my mother gave me when I last saw her. Whenever I see my mom, whatever beauty purchases she made for herself that she's not feeling? I inherit. This was one of those. She realized belatedly she had more hand cream than anyone needed and snuck it into my purse. I always have a tube or three of hand cream in my purse, if only because when I'm a job, I turn into a compulsive hand washer. I don't want to get sick.
This hand cream was thicker than I'd expected, and really creamy. It felt luxurious, almost. Absorption was a lot faster than I expected it to be for how thick it was, and it smelled soothingly lavender-y. Think less old lady and more field in Provence. Unfortunately, this is one of those little luxuries that my mother can afford, and I just can't.
Rating: A for the product itself, but C when you take into account the price tag. I'd love this as a gift, and might rebuy it as a little luxury, but not as my daily go-to purse lotion.
9) Tokyomilk Dark: Tainted Love No. 62 Handcreme (.75 ounces for 8.00 USD @ Sephora)
I got this because I was looking for new fragrances. (Let's be honest, I'm always looking for new fragrances.) I'd heard good things about Tokyomilk and got this sample sized hand cream and a bottle of the perfume. The perfume was nice, but faded super fast and I ended up giving it to my sister. The lotion went into my purse and got used.
It smelled all right - really teenage girl on a vanilla binge at Bath and Body Works with just a hint of hippie wearing too much sandalwood to make it more "adult". But even if I'd been in love with the scent, it faded too fast to really get worked up about.
Rating: D. It smelled nice enough but faded so fast I may as well have been borrowing the scent instead of buying it. Tokyomilk Dark, in my experience, does that, and it's enough for me to have written off the brand. No repurchasing.
Disclaimer: All products were purchased by me. No compensation was received. All opinions are my own. I am not affiliated with any retailers mentioned here.
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