Beauty addicts thread: share empties, chucks and mindful buying tips

[Experiment627]

Welcome back (or welcome in!) to our little corner of beauty bliss, where shelves are full, wish lists are longer than ever, and there’s always something new to try.
This thread has been around for ages (since at least 2015), 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!

And to continue:
57. Bibi The Other Room perfume - I might RP this if I find a cheap one on eBay.
58. Sunday Riley Good Genes - love this but wouldn't buy a big one.
59. Davines, Oi All In One Hair Milk - this smells horrible but it does leave my hair really nice.
60. Lacura Colour Correct Treatment
61. Cicapair Tiger Grass Colour Correcting Treatment - I've had both of these for ages. I actually fine Eborian the best for cancelling out red skin. I have to say that out of these 2 products the Lacura was much better. Will RP if I ever find it in Aldi again.
62. Larry King Spoilt For Choice - smells too strongly of rosemary and I am binning cos life is too short 😍

Not a bad week for me. No cosmetics used up but several toiletries gone:

68-69) MZ Skin Hydra-Bright Gold Eye Mask.

I like these much better than the full face masks. My under eye area looked much smoother and brighter after use. I have another one or two in the stash but would repurchase at the right price.

70. Mirror Water Smooth Body Oil 50ml.

Love this. One of my staples but I'm resisting buying another just yet as I have other oils to use up first.

71. Olverum Body Polish 50ml.

Nice and scrubby but I have loads of body scrub in the stash so not a repurchase.

72. The White Company Grapefruit & Mandarin votive.

Nice enough but nothing special plus I have loads of scented candles.

73. MZ Skin The Rich Moisturiser 10ml.

Love this, it's my favourite moisturiser. Have loads more in the stash.

Sound the klaxons! Let the streamers fly!

I have finally finished the Zelens Melatonin B12 night cream! No 43 for the year.

It’s good value, and is a deceptively small tube, it went on and on! And it has left my skin lovely and soft each night. I would probably rp if I needed a night cream and had no stash.

Happy Easter!

A few empties this weekend:

Molton Brown shower gel Sunlit Clementine, very lovely.

Bibbi Santal perfume - got this in the Liberty AC, I really like it and have another on the go now too

M&S Apothecary ‘warmth’ shower gel- lovely scent

ESPA serum- can’t tell if this even did anything for me! The dropper didn’t work and it was a faff to get any liquid out.

Molton Brown recharge black pepper bar of soap- just opened this so not an empty but it will last for ages as it’s massive and I’m not keeping the packaging for that long! Glad I’ve opened it to use cos these are the sorts of things I hoard for some weird reason!

ooh, I can't believe I haven't seen this thread before.

I was gifted a bunch of Trinny stuff. The Plump Up is my favourite and I definitely would like to buy again.
the Be Your Best cleanswer is okay. But I have loads of balm cleansers and it's not my favourite.

THe tiptoe in I think is good but I have realised I just don't like acid exfoliants.

The niacinamind moisteriser - I'm using it still but I find it too thin (not used up yet - does it still count?). I have very dry skin. I think it's great, and it smells nice, and if your skin was less dry, you'd probalby like it. I had a Vitamin C sample and again, I liked it, but I'm not sure it's worth the money.

The Clarins Hydra Essential - frankly, I'm indifferent to it but I'm using it so that I can use up the freebies. This is the last one as I think I had a little swathe of those freebie bags and this was at least my third!

The Simple Hylaronic acid - cheap and cheerful and effective when I want HA. I'll buy again.

Hydrating gentle foaming cleanser - Clarins. This is actuall ythe new one that I just opened - I threw the old tube away last week. It took me a while to get use dto this as I loved the old formulation but I love it now. Clarins is also so opaque on how their ingredients match to ingredients we see elsewhere but this feels like its their version of something with salycilic and/or glycolic acid like the Cerave cleansers. I find my skin is really smooth when I use it a few times a week and makes make up go on so much easier.

@Experiment627 The person who gifted me the Trinny did it because she knows I LOVE her BFF foundation so thought I might like these. I've been using it for a couple of years now and I am a big fan. It's medium coverage but I find it's very buildable - I can do it lightly using the KJH brush method or thicker as I need it. My skin is neutral to cool undertones and very dry so finding foundations can be tricky. On the cheaper end, the L'oreal one is good but coverage is definitely heavier so I tend to use that for nights out or when I need that extra coverage.

Welcome @1AnotherOne and @MsMarch

@clary – that is a very good question! I have a ridiculous amount of face moisturisers, hand creams and eye creams. But it looks like I will need to buy sunscreen (I have about 4 unopened facial ones!)

Congratulations @TragicMuse!

I’m away for the Easter weekend, so while I do have some empties, I’ll wait until I get home tomorrow to write them up and take a photo.

See @Tarragon123 I have no hand creams at all and in fact had to buy one recently. Never in ACs for some reason which is odd as surely everyone needs one.

@Ilikeyoursleeves I love that Bibbi fragrance too. DD told me it smells like Parma violets haha but it dries to a lovely smell.

Happy Easter! I've got a few more to report (to help distract me from buying more stuff)
40.
Irene Forte Hibiscus Night Cream 30ml - I liked this but it's way too expensive to RP individually, especially as I liked it best when I was practically ladling it on to battle winter dryness. There are much cheaper ceramide creams you can get for that though and I saw no specific results from the advertised peptides.
41.
Decree Eye Mask - I have been waking up with really puffy eyes, hence the recent eyemasks. This isn't under eye patches, but a full Zorro-style mask, it did hydrate and smooth although the smoothing wasn't quite as good as it is with most rubbery patch-style ones.
42.
Eve Lom Cleansing Balm 100ml - this is my personal klaxon/ confetti cannon moment @TragicMuse I was given this for my birthday 6 years ago by a generous friend who got it muddled with my then-favorite balm cleanser I'd lent her whilst we were travelling ( Emma Hardie Moringa ) Good news for anyone that has a load of this in their stash, it lasts forever. I find this too heavy a balm cleanser and really don't like the smell of cloves, hence taking so long to get through it. Hallelujah it's gone! Shame I have another 30ml one to get through in the stash.
43.
Tatcha The Dewy Cream 15ml - Love this and this mini had the normal texture unlike the weird lip-balmy one I used on my holiday.
44.
Fresh Black Tea Firming Mask 30ml - Underwhelming. Left a greasy residue on my skin whilst it still felt dehydrated. Says it has a lifting effect, damn lies I tell you!
45.
Numbuzin no9 sheet mask - used this as my skin felt parched, and everything was smoother and plumper afterwards.

Haven’t got a photo, but just finished Garnier Cocoa & Ceramide Handcream - the holy grail of hand creams! Soaks in, rich and softening without feeling greasy, smells divine - and currently half price at Boots, so just £2.49 for 75ml. I’m buying in bulk!

@LightandBreezy I ended up using the Irene Forte cream as a neck cream. I liked it but just not as a face cream.

@Ovahere we probably bought the same Liberty edit then? With the random Playing cards? I liked the IF stuff too, like the brand ethos and am glad to have tried it but it wasn't wow enough to RP. I'm only just getting around to the Sunday Riley CEO cream and the Emma Lewisham elixir from that edit, looking forward to the elixir but not sure the CEO will be right for me. Have you used those yet?

Welcome @1AnotherOne!!!
have you tried the Dossier dupe - may give you less of an ick?

Well done @TragicMuse!!!

Welcome @MsMarch !!! And thank you for the Trinny suggestion.

Thank-you @Amiable I am always on the look out for the ultimate hand cream

Chucked a lipstick I picked up on holiday that was too peachy for me and a Nuxe Miel balm that I saved so long for best, it was past the expiry date. What a wally I am!!

@clary I have soooo many hand creams, they are always in gift sets 😀

We need like a mass sharing event where everyone can bring the things they have loads of. You can all have my many serums (Sp? sera??) and also eye treatments and I will gather up handcreams and bath bubbles :)

Yes I loved the Elixir and bought a refill. It smells lovely.

I've used the SR Vit C cream before, it's a very glowy cream. I do like it but it falls into the category of would use up from an edit or advent but probably wouldn't go out of my way to purchase.

Overall that was a pretty good Liberty edit.

My first empties post!
I have so many products from ACs and boxes, it’s causing me ‘first world problem’ stress.

1. PK Elasti-Styler. Actually like this much more than the classic Elasticizer as it can be used post-washing, but wasn’t a wonder product. No RP
2. Kate Somerville Exfolivate Cleanser. Felt nice to use as a second cleanser in the evening but no RP.
3. Morph Highlighter. Had this powder for so long but binning as I much prefer highlighter creams.
4. Scandaleyes liner from Rimmel. Have bought this many times but won’t be buying anymore due to aging 😢 and eyes now needed a softer look.
5. Rimmel white eyeliner. Definitely no RP. Don’t know what I was thinking!
6. Neom Magnesium body butter. This was quite a nice product, but prefer the Verden night product that was in the Liberty AC.
7. Wild Source cleansing balm. My second one of these. It does work really well to remove my makeup- will possibly RP but I anticipate another from a beauty box.
8. Maria Nila Heal Conditioner. My hair lived this. Considering a RP once I’ve used up my massive collection of hair products.
9. Votary Night Star serum. Nice product, but not convinced it made any real impact to my skin overnight

@countdowntonap that Verden sleep cream is wonderful isn't it? I love the fragrance and am convinced it helps me sleep. Probably all in my head but it seems to work :)

Oh I also really like the Verden magnesium cream! I like to triple up with some CBD drops and a pillow spray and I can get 6 hours unbroken sleep!

I found some more bloody sheet masks hiding in a bag in my car. (GWP from local J&K beauty shop.) Was rather glad as I am on the tail end of manflu and feeling bleh. Skin is grey and drawn. It’s sort of the change of seasons here which means it’s not as humid but still hot. I find my skin still responds to cooling and soothing bits and bobs. (Also shocking hayfever so histamines are going nuts… redness around nose and eyes, etc.) Anyhow, I am rather pleased to be lying here with a Mediheal ceramide sheet mask. She’s thiiiiick! This is lovely, creamy and rich. Probably not for oily skin. Great if your barrier is compromised. While I am still resolved not to buy sheet masks (saving the planet my way), I feel I can do this myself with cotton gauze (I use it at work) and milky toners.
Also finished the last of my BOJ Green Plum Refreahing and Soothing Gel Cleanser. I purchased this for travelling as it is not a large tube. It’s lasted ages.This one really surprised me. It’s a completely transparent, lightweight gel that foams beautifully. It’s effective but extremely gentle. My skin has never felt right after use. I would buy again. Will admit that I am disappointed that it is not scented at all. I am obsessed with green plum (Ume).

Welcome newbies, btw… This is one of the few places on MN that has never devolved into nastiness and I am so grateful for my fellow lovely beauty addicts for being themselves. I’m so proud of us all!
I am fairly sure I joined the OG thread. How long have we been puddling along? Pretty sure I was the only Aussie and was definitely the only one using J&K beauty stuff. (It really is cheaper than drugstore products here). Now they are much more mainstream and I love that they have become accessible.
Still determined to edit severely as I pack to move. We are moving to a city approx 2600km south from here, or 1600+ miles in your world. We will go from super hard, chlorinated water to super soft water. There will be much less pollution and a very dry, cold climate. I suspect you are going to hear how this challenges my status quo. I have been onto a good thing with my routine!

Not many empties this week because I have somehow managed to have multiple moisturisers, night cream and serums all on the go at the same time so it’s taking a while to actually finish one.

91..red lane body cleaner. From a hotel. Not that impressed so used it as a hand wash.
92.. marvis toothpaste. I was quite annoyed to get toothpaste in a beauty advent calendar however I really like this. I have RP. Smooth teeth and def whiter.
93..clarins body wash. Fine but wouldnt RP as I prefer others.
94..aveda nutriplenish hair mask. Fine but wouldn’t rp.
95..drunk elephant polypeptide cream. I actually really liked this. Similar to AB the cream- light and absorbs very well. Prob not great for dry skin. I would RP if I ever get through my current stash of moisturiser.
96..glossier you. Nice and fresh but didn’t wow me so wouldn’t rp.
97…clarins purifying cleasner. I didn’t like the smell (very similar smell to the yellow one which I also don’t like). Would not rp.
98… omoroviza body serum. Really liked this. Lights and absorbs really well. Would rp if I ever get through my body lotion stash.

That seems like quite a few empties @Beautyfox 😀

ps I also have that little Drunk elephant one

@Francesteinit is a lovely thread 💜💜💜
I started posting on it in 2015 - it was light relief from all the TTC threads I was on at the time.

@OvaHeremy iherb order arrived! And first impressions of the Cover Girl foundation are very good. THANK YOU!

I may have indulged in a Superdrug haul