Can’t stop buying & hoarding beauty treats? You’re in good company here!

[Experiment627]

Welcome to our little corner of beauty bliss! If you can’t resist trying the latest beauty launches or your shelves are bursting with favourites, you’ve found your tribe. This is the place to chat, share reviews, swap tips, and celebrate all things beauty — from budget gems to luxury treats.
This thread has been around for ages, and many of us have even tamed our beauty-buying habits thanks to the wisdom and support shared here. We post our empties and chucks, helping each other make smarter, more satisfying choices next time we shop.
All beauty product addicts welcome!

Monday conditioner - not bad at all, I suspect as good as any other “unprofessional” one.

Floral Street discovery set - these are more like body sprays than perfumes, I think. Simple and pleasant, but nothing to re-purchase.

Flora street Sunflower pop - as above.

Kerastase shampoo&conditioner - too small to actually tell a difference, but scent was nice and conditioner felt rich.

Hugo boss mini perfume- a bit boring, but not unpleasant.

sol de Janeiro - again, not my favourite scent but they just keep coming from different sets and edits.

Benefit face wash - very nice, I thought I wouldn’t like it but it had a nice jelly texture and was not drying.

Tacha kiddy lip mask - I prefer lip oils so won’t be repurchasing.

Tacha cream sample - have had all the creams at this point and don’t think I like them that much.

Amiga midnight mender - smells nice but has no effect.

Fable &Mane scalp oil - really heavy, I would need to use it longer to really see results but was nice enough.

Some more empties- brought to you with a heavy heart as my beloved skinceuticals CE ferulic has finally run out. I love this stuff, it improves the look of my skin within a few days use and no other vit c serum has ever come close in terms of results. But, it's very spendy, and this year has been financially brutal so I decided I'm going to try the medik8 ce ferulic instead and bought that over BF so it was 25% off too. Fingers crossed it'll be similar, I'm not a fan of their c-tetra serum. Other than that, the kerastase 8 hour magic serum wasn't anything special, it has rave reviews but I saw no improvement in breakage and it didn't make my hair feel that nice - a bit crispy. It did add shine but so would any hair gloss or oil, this was supposed to be a treatment. Much prefer how the davines oi milk makes my hair feel. Joanna Czech C+ serum - I got this in a net-a-porter edit ages ago, that was hugely discounted and then went in the sale as well. So this is crazy money rrp, would never repurchase. It's a light oil, which I wasn't expecting, and doesn't really have any fragrance. Fine to use but nothing wow. Sana Jardin Berner Blonde - my favourite of the Sana Jardin scents I've tried, possibly would repurchase but not for ages as it's very similar to Miller Harris Lumiere D'Oreé ( sp?) and I have a 100ml bottle of that atm. Beauty Pie Plantastic was a gift, quite like this but it pills a bit on me so could only be worn at night. It's kind of too heavy for a day cream though anyway. Sorry for the essay, got a bit carried away - well done to anyone who read all that 😂

I read all that @LightandBreezy 🙂. I'm lurking on the thread at the moment until I have some empties to report, but I'm finding all the posts interesting re: what products people recommend and what they've found a bit "meh".

I've gone overboard on edits and calendars this year so really hope I have really low spend in 2026 and start using up my vast stash.

I have been plugging away trying to finish a bottle of French body wash. It smells utterly delicious - a very nature-like orange blossom BUT it’s so, so drying. It was very much like using a Castile soap.
I finished a heap of testers and minis and none were brilliant.
A Rom&nd mascara and lip product - same brand, same day. That was weird. Both fabulous.
I have hit pan with my Kaja Chocolate Dahlia eyeshadow trio - in both the matte shades. Great to travel with and I might eventually buy another, but have my eye on the Chocolate Praline Viseart palette. (I won’t as am on no buy.)

Have been so pleased with all my empties that I bought the Look Fantastic Korean edit.
#thiswasnottheplan 🫣

@RoseTeaLady Any good? What’s in it?
I forgot to mention that I finished the last bit of my Fino Hair Mask. It used to be my favourite but the Tsubaki one wins by a mile. I also find the fragrance of the Fino rather abrasive now I have found the Tsubaki.

@Francestein Have not tried much K-beauty so thought I’d give this a go www.lookfantastic.com/p/beauty-box/the-k-beauty-edit-worth-over-130/17311942/

I've finished a Soap and Glory dry shampoo, it wasn't the best, think it came in a gift set. Wouldn't repurchase.

@RoseTeaLady Unfortunately the link doesn’t work. I hope you love the products!

@keepincool no need to lurk - we would love to have you on the thread xxx

@Francestein congratulations on hitting pan! Despite downsizing my eyeshadow palettes this year I still have enough to last me well beyond the next 50 years & that calculation is done based on wearing full eye make-up every day (which I do not!).

Empties report:

• Loreal casting 3 butter mask with honey: came with dye - taken me ages to use up as very hard to get out! Quite strong not entirely pleasant honey scent.
• Palette Deluxe Chocolate Brown: absolutely blown away by this box dye - was £3 off Amazon - hopes were not high! But results are superb!

@Francestein That’s a shame. Maybe UK only?

Some empties, probably the last lot of the year as everything else I’ve got on the go is pretty full.

Laneige Water Sleeping Mask - 70ml. Love this. Feels really lightweight and non-greasy and I wake up with really soft skin. Have already got a replacement.

Some By Mi Glow Barrier Calming Cream - 20g. A nice gel moisturiser. I like this propolis line from Some By Mi (the cleanser is really good and I like the toner too).

Lancome Genifique Yeux - 20ml. From the Lancome beauty box a few months back. This was a really good eye cream, properly thick and moisturising, but didn’t pill or cause milia.

Skin 1004 Hyaluronic- Cica Water-Fit sunscreen - 50ml. One of my two favourite sunscreens. Have now moved onto my other favourite, the original Beauty of Joseon rice one.

Perfume minis/samples - Shay & Blue Pineapple Ice (love this), Lancome La Vie est Belle L’ Elixir (nothing like the original in my view, this is very violet heavy) and Van Cleef & Arpels Bois d’Amande (nice, cosy evening scent).

Lush Creamsicle shower gel - 285g. Smelled very much like the name suggests.

Lush Sparkly Pumpkin body scrub - 130g. A citrus rather than pumpkin spice type scent. It had so much colour in that it made me look like an actual pumpkin while using 😆 (luckily did wash off).

Bath & Body Works Pink Pineapple Sunrise body lotion - 236ml. My favourite body lotion and my favourite B&BW scent.

Kundal Honey & Macadamia body lotion - 500ml. Quite hard to apply and took ages to sink in, so it’s been a bit of a slog to get through this big bottle. Did smell very nice though.

Cien Dry shampoo - cheap and cheerful, does the job without leaving white cast. Would use again.

Molecule 01 + mandarin - quite liked this but not enough to buy.

BeautyPie Japanfusion bioceramide moisture mask - love this, will be one of the BP products I'll really miss now Im not a member. On the hunt for a replacement!

BeautyPie Japanfusion genius lift elixir - another BP fave of mine , but I have a good stash of serums to go through to find a new fave.

Cien gentle cleansing milk - quite like this and picked it up free on lidls loyalty card thing. Was getting a bit bored of it by the end though! * *

I have an empty to report:
Neutrogena deep moisture body lotion: in a bottle with a pump. Is really nice on but I prefer tub of Neutrogena multi purpose comfort balm.

More empties

Grace & Stella Firming eye patches - like these ones. Try to use eye patches every morning but I've been rubbish at doing it in the last week due to being too busy.

Refy face cleanser sample - Thought this was nice. Found it to be very similar to the expensive La Prairie one that's been in some beauty advents and edits recently.

Tatcha Indigo Cream sample - an old fave. Always happy to use this.

Elemis Cleansing Balm - always good. Don't mind this scent, prefer it to the Rose one.

La Mer Night Cream tiny sample pot - Very nice, easier to use that the original La Mer Cream but it's even more expensive. I don't prefer it to my usual AB The Rich Cream which is a good job because The Rich Cream on discount is already the upper end of what I'd want to pay for a face cream. This is a lot more at £530 per 100ml.

Kerastase 8hr Magic Night Serum - Really liked this, find it easy to use and feel like it's made my hair softer. Already RP another during Black Friday.

Caudalie The des Vignes shower gel - Really like the scent of this. Would RP.

Farmacy Apple Lip Balm - Technically this is a throwaway not an empty. Used half of it but I hate it so I'm not going to suffer any longer when I have better options. I don't like the texture or taste of this. Find it very slimy and when the sliminess has worn off not that nourishing.

Dior lash primer- I think it definitely makes my mascara look better but i wouldnt RP.

Mitchum roll on- My go to, never had an issue.

Creed sample- Queen of silk. Purchased this as i liked it so much😀

Gisada sample- not a fan

Boots sheet mask.👍

Ren Evercalm serum- One of the few products i liked from REN. Really soothing, perfect for winter months.

Miss Dior Perfume- Went through multiple bottles of this. Will RP at some point, but not in a hurry to replace.

AB eye gels- I like that they dont slip down my face, or covered in serum. I dont mind spending £20 on a tub of eye gels, but not on a single pair😬 I found they left a tackiness though.

Tatcha silk serum sample- Used a full size up last year and liked it.

Batiste musk dry shampoo- liked the scent of this. I use batiste most of the time and like to switch up scents.

I have an empty:

• L'Oreal Elvive Dream Lengths 8 second wonder water: does add shine and smoothes the hair but I do wonder what is in this that allows it to act so fast.

I finally used the LBTY eye cream that arrived in a Liberty Beauty Drop box over a year ago! To be fair, I didn't start using it straight away as I was using something else but it really did last a long time.

I'm now on eight items left to use up before the end of the year... I have used up more than two since the last time I posted but my advent calendar keeps pushing the total up again. I'm definitely not going to quite hit my target with cosmetics but hoping I will with toiletries as I do have a few things that are close to being empty plus two scented candles that are well on their way to being finished.

I've reached my 100/100 but I cheated slightly as I donated some stuff last week.

I've just finished a Q&A body cream that I really liked and this Evolve moisturiser. Loved this but it does take a fair amount of rubbing in

I think I’ve pretty much achieved 80.

The summer Fridays mask was v average. I liked the Emma Hardie and obviously Elemis is always a winner.

Had a really good organise and clear out. I do this monthly where I clean my skin care boxes and decide what I’ll be using up going forwards. It’s a good way for me to see what stuff I don’t need to buy as I already have stock of it. I also got a couple of small gwp which I know I won’t use so have put it aside for gifting pile. And I also have empties:
Summer Fridays jet lag mask - it’s fine but I have other moisturisers I prefer. I have another one but think I’ll be gifting it to my SIL.
Axis y dark spot serum - I was totally over using this. Didn’t notice a difference and ready to move on
Biossance squalane and HA mist - fallen out of love with this as k beauty mists are just so much better. I have 1 open mini to go and another boxed which I’ll be giving to SIL also
I’m on a mission to clear out perfume samples:
Lazy Sunday morning - dislike a lot. I’m not a soapy clean frag fan at all
Tobacco vanille - like this a lot. Cozy and long lasting but as it’s a winter scent, it’s not suited to my new location and it’s seriously overpriced
Bal D’Afrique - love this but expensive and I have the rare beauty edp which is a close dupe
Gypsy water - love this and would purchase a fb
Le labo bergamot - the sample was dodgy, wouldn’t spray properly but what I did manage to smell was lovely. I generally like a lot of le labo scents with the
noir and another 13 being faves
Kayali vanilla 28 - I have a 10ml already

I’ve bought an organiser for all my small (10ml) perfumes as they’ve all been living in the travel box I bought with me when we moved. That way I’m probably more likely to use them. Going forwards want to be more mindful what I choose to buy and decide what I really love and only get larger sizes of those. I recently went a little crazy and bought scent edits and a fragrance advent calendar (relative bringing when they visit so a few months from now) so I have more coming my way so want to make space for those.

A couple of purchases to report 🫠

Dr Sebagh Deep Exfoliating Mask - used this 20 years ago and loved it so hoping it’s still as good as it was (used code ISABELLA30 for 30% off)

Shiseido WASO Satocane Pore Purifying Scrub Mask - close to finishing mine and 45% off at All Beauty

Merit Cheek Flush in Bespoke - love the other shades I have so thought I’d treat myself for Christmas

Hoping to have some empties to report soon!

Me yesterday: feeling purposeful, mindful, demure and mature: I'm going to spend some time over the Christmas period going through all my skincare and cosmetics and putting together a spreadsheet with total number of products per category. This will really help with my no/low buy efforts in 2026. I'm going to be so organised and in control of my buying impulses. I'm ready!

Me today: ping-ponging from one site's 'up to 40% off!' to the next with a sense of feral urgency, as though every beauty retailer will cease manufacturing cosmetics and skincare products on 1st January: WE NEED TO BUY EVERYTHING! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

🙄

@DidILeaveTheGasOn I know the feeling, it's actually really hard to resist.

I'm kind of annoyed they've started sales now, the day before Xmas. It should be minimum Boxing Day so at least you have time to browse with leisure.

I've picked up two basics, a hair product from LF and an eyebrow pencil from Sephora but I'm determined to not engage beyond that. I do not need any discounted holiday sets! 😂