Favorite New Products of 2018

It's the end of another year! I've sort of slacked on posting, time got away from me after I came back from my honeymoon. I wanted to recap my favorite new things of 2018 though, as I really enjoyed a lot of new releases! I'm only including new releases and not items that are new to me in the interest of keeping the list relatively short. (Though I did get into some older products like the Stila Glitter & Glow eyeshadows and Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Serum.)

Function of Beauty - Thoughts On My First Order

I've always been "meh" on haircare, and I've decided to start trying a little harder when it comes to my hair. I recently switched to sulfate free shampoo and conditioner, mostly because I got a lot of rose gold highlights put in my hair earlier this year and I wanted to keep them looking nice. (Meanwhile, I still blast the hell out of it with my heavy duty hair dryer. Baby steps.)

On Instagram, one of the people I love to follow, Lena, started posting about Function of Beauty - a personalized shampoo and conditioner service. I watched as she got her order, started using it, and then read her rave reviews, so I decided to try it as well! 

In-Flight Skincare - Combating 12 Hours of Airplane Air

I'm traveling to Hawaii for my honeymoon! It's a 12 hour flight, so that calls for some heavy duty inflight skincare. I've been amassing minis and foils specifically for this trip, and I wanted to share my routine.

September 2018 Favorites!

Trying not to fall too behind by getting out my September favorites, too! September is still hot mostly, but the weather slowly changes at the end of the month to still be warm but less humid (finally!) Since my No Buy July ended, I've gotten some new things - and there's a few of them featured this month.

August 2018 Favorites!

Better late than never, right? Life has been busy, and I took photos for my August favorites but never wrote the post!

Sephora Staples - What I Love & Recommend

Sephora is revamping their Beauty Insider program, and they're having a sale to celebrate! I've been planning my cart for a few weeks now, and am excited to pick up a few new things. I wanted to share some of my favorite products that I've purchased at Sephora. These are all staple items in my collection, and I have nothing but glowing recommendations to give. If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen these items all over my feed.

I took this on my phone, sorry!

July 2018 Favorites!

Picking fresh, new favorites is tough after a month on a no buy! I do, however, love seeing repeat products on other peoples' favorite lists, so I don't feel bad doing that with mine. It's been hot and gross here all month, so my favorites include some products that compliment summer weather.

June 2018 Favorites!

It's beginning to feel a lot like summer...hot and sticky! I'm not the biggest fan of summer, but I have learned to adapt to get through it. Like many others, I switch to lighter products that don't feel heavy on the skin, and break out brighter, more fun colors. My favorites for June include a few of these summer essentials!

Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Tencel & Midnight Blue Calming Sheet Masks - Review

Klairs recently released some sheet masks! I'm new to Klairs products - I got the famous Supple Preparation Toner for Christmas but haven't opened it yet, and recently got the Rich Moist Soothing Serum which I really like. I was placing an order over at Beautytap and tossed these into my cart to try! (...and to help reach the free shipping threshold.) I shared some mini reviews on Instagram, but I wanted to talk more about these two masks.

April Empties & Reverse Rouge Check In

Why yes, I have been slacking on my empties...it's June and I'm just now getting April's together. To be fair, tallying empties is my least favorite thing (mostly because I'm awful at math!) April had a lot of sales, so my shopping was a bit excessive in comparison to other months. This was also a light month for empties, so the shopping may have had more of an impact on my overall Reverse Rouge numbers.

May 2018 Favorites!

I can't believe we're already five months through the year! I feel like time is moving quickly every year, though. I have another month of favorites, with some returning items and some new purchases!

Cupidrop x Lovue New York Blogger Event

Last month, I received an invitation to check out a new K-Beauty shop opening up in Manhattan from the lovely people over at Cupidrop. Since I love skincare and shopping, and a good trip to New York, I accepted the invite. I took a half day from work, drove to Jersey City and took the Path into Manhattan, and entered KTown for an afternoon of mingling and swatching.

The new shop, Lovue (pronounced love you, so cute!) is right on 5th avenue in Koreatown. It's a block away from the 33rd St. Path station, making it super convenient for those coming from Jersey like me! I was a little early, so I went and got Starbucks (mostly so I could use the bathroom...) and happened upon an Amazon Books store. It was actually pretty neat, there were no listed prices - you just scanned the barcode and see what the price is on Amazon, and that's what you pay! Did some browsing and headed back over to Lovue for the start of the event.

I apologize in advance for the photos, I only had my phone with me!

The storefront! It is so, so cute.

The front of the store is super cute and super inviting! After walking in, I was greeted by a ton of staff and one of the ladies from Beauteers (the genius team behind Cupidrop), Jenny, gave me a name tag. After greeting people, I had time to take in what I had walked into.

The store from the second floor!

My first thought? OVERWHELMING! So many products, K-Pop blasting, giant screens where they played K-Pop videos, it was intense! I must have done 4-5 laps around the store just picking things up and putting them down. The store stretches pretty far back, I was shocked at how large it was! The best part about being able to check out the store the day before opening is that everything is so neat on the shelves, and testers aren't destroyed. The layout of the store is aesthetically pleasing - most of it is done by brand, but then there are walls of sheet masks and areas specific to a certain skincare step. Everything was arranged nicely - I saw a lot of color grouping. They had a large sink in the back for hand washing, and they even had some of the hand soap available for sale to try out at the sink. The store has several large, lighted mirrors as well.

The Great Wall of Cosrx

Sheet and Modeling masks!

Various Cleansers

Sheet mask overload!

Lovue has a ton of brands in stock, I saw the following:

• Cosrx
• Klairs
• Graymelin
• Papa Recipe
• Mizon
• Innisfree
• Thank You Farmer
• Missha
• belif
• Huxley
• Scinic
• JOne
• Benton
• Neogen
• Mediheal
• Elizavecca

...and a bunch more. Some brands only had sheet masks, while other brands had most of the entire line available. Some lines only had certain products - Cosrx had most everything aside from the super new releases, and their sheet masks. I didn't, however see any of the luxury K-Beauty brands like Sulwhasoo in stock. Prices were relatively fair, I think the only super outrageous markup I saw was belif creams going for $56, which outstrip Sephora's prices by a bit. The prices aren't as good as ordering from Korea, but they were definitely doable. Most sheet masks were between $2-$7, and boxes of masks were between $20-$30, all depending on brand. I think it's an okay tradeoff to not have to wait for shipping.

There was a second floor where snacks and drinks were being served. (The bulgogi was soooo good!) The Lovue team and the Beauteers team both thanked everyone for coming. They also whipped out an impressive gift box! The store team also let everyone know that there was 20% off store wide for the length of the event, which got a lot of people (myself included) very excited.

Being on a diet sucks, but I had a few bites!

I must say, the store did get very warm during the event, with 30someodd bloggers and staff hanging out on the second floor. Of course, the first floor was cooler, so I spent a decent amount of time browsing and putting things into my basket. The store staff was super helpful, and they were all very excited to help pick out and suggest products. I definitely did a little bit of damage, but it was 20% off, so it wasn't toooo bad.

A bit sweaty, but enjoying myself!

Now for the best part...the goodie bag and my purchases! I was super stoked about the gift bag, I love trying new products, and the bag was very, very generous!

• Elizavecca hydrogel mask
• Scinic modeling mask
• A. True Spring Green Tea Watery Calming Cream
• Bizoo Daily Sheet Masks
• $50 to Dons Bogam Black

I'm very excited to try both the Bizoo sheet masks and the A. True cream! A. True had some other products that looked good, so I'll have to check them out another time. Clearly the best gift was the $50 IN FREE FOOD!!! I can't wait to check the restaurant out.

It was really, really hard not to go wild in the store, they had SO MUCH STUFF! I have a lot of unopened skincare, so I kept myself in check. Here's what I wound up with:

• Peripera Airy Ink Velvet in Elf Light Rose - Everyone raves about these, and three ladies in the shop recommended them. I was glad for the chance to swatch them!
• Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Serum - I wanted a serum or an essence, and this felt the best on my skin from the ten (at least!) I tried.
• Every Helloskin Jumiso mask they had.
• A'pieu falsies - I love East Asian brands of lashes, since I have small eyes and they usually run smaller/more natural.
• Ultru I'm Sorry For My Skin Relaxing and Pore Care jelly masks
• Package foot peel - this was cheaper than my usual TonyMoly so I'm excited to see if it's as good!
• Holika Holika After Working Overtime sheet mask - I actually have a lot of OT scheduled (including this weekend) so this just happened to work out for me.
• SNP Bird's Nest Aqua Ampoule sheet mask - Faceonomics raves about it so I wanted to try it.

I could go back and buy a million more sheet masks. My wishlist grew five miles today! I'm really excited to try all these new masks - some of the ladies at the store suggested a few, and they all had great skin soooo...why not?

Lovue is located at 324 5th Ave in Manhattan. Thank you again to everyone in the store and the crew at Beauteers for inviting me! It was a wonderful time - I will definitely drop in next time I'm in the city!

April 2018 Favorites!

As much as I like having reliable products that I always reach for, it's also nice to have new things to play with! This month's favorites has a bunch of "new" stuff - some isn't truly new because I got it for Christmas. But between spring sales and some generous PR, I have some new products to talk about!

Recent Purchases & Acquisitions!

April means lots of spring sales (because it's also tax season! Gotta spend that refund!) (I did not spend my refund on this stuff.) so I was able to get some new goodies. I had posted earlier about what I was planning to buy with my various coupon codes, and here are all the shiny new things! I also included some new items purchased not from Sephora/Ulta, and some PR goodies.

Recent Repurchases

I've been doing well on my low buy this year! I haven't gone overboard at all, even this month with the sales and coupons going on. Earlier this year I didn't have enough new stuff for separate repurchases and purchases, but this month I do! I love talking about items I repurchase, and what makes them good enough to be bought again and again.

Spring Sales - Planned Purchases From Sephora & Ulta

It's that time again - Sephora spring sale time! Sephora offers 15% off for VIB and VIB Rouge members in April, along with 10% off for all Beauty Insider members. It's not as good as the holiday 20% off, but ti's something! Sephora is pricey, so I know a lot of people, myself included, plan larger purchases around these coupons. I've been adding and removing items from my cart since last month in anticipation!

Along with the Sephora sale, Ulta usually issues a 20% off Prestige coupon in early April. The coupon usually coincides with the end of their 21 Days of Beauty event. The coupon was mailed out today (4/12) and  I've been (not so) patiently waiting with a full cart for about a week now. However, I seem to get every Ulta email BUT these emails, so I am waiting to hear back from them about my code.

Sine I've been focusing on low buying and using what I have, I've been pretty particular about what's going into my carts. A lot of the items are repurchases, or trying something new in place of a product I'm almost out of. I also love seeing what other people are planning on getting, so I wanted to share what I'm looking forward to pulling the trigger on!

Fenty Beauty Mattemoiselle Plush Matte Lipstick in Spanked - Review

I am a super huge fan of Fenty Beauty's Gloss Bomb, so when Rihanna decided to drop a line of matte lipsticks, I was intrigued. I'm a little over matte lipstick, but this wasn't a liquid matte, so I was willing to give it a chance. I was really good though, I didn't immediately purchase one and waited a few months. Other reviews looked good, so I went for it! 

March Empties & Reverse Rouge Check In

I used up so much stuff in March! I had set a goal of twenty empties for myself, and was able to meet that with no problem. I've even been sheet masking more, which is great for my skin AND my mask stash! A few more months and I'll be able to buy some new masks without adding to an already large backlog.

I did requailify for Platinum status at Ulta during the month of March, but not due to my purchases! I got my hair colored last month, and my husband gets his hair cut at Ulta every two weeks, which adds up quickly. I don't see myself hitting the new Diamond level ($1200 spent!) this year, though.

March 2018 Favorites!

Being on a low buy has really had me looking at my collection lately, and becoming more familiar with the products I already have. I chose some staple products for this month's favorites, partially because I don't have a lot of "new new" to pick from, and partially because I feel favorites should be repeat, staple products. I have a couple kinda new products in this month's picks though, so that's a little exciting! (I won't deny that I love the rush of getting a package full of new goodies in the mail.)

Spring 2018 Product Picks

Spring hasn't quite sprung here yet - we've had four big snowstorms in the last three weeks. However, it'll be here soon, and that means springy colors and finishes! I wear colors year round, but I do have my favorite spring shades and looks that I like to dust off a bit this time of year. I don't think I'm going to be setting any new seasonal trends, but if you're interested in seeing what I'm into for spring, keep reading!

Marc Jacobs Beauty Shameless Foundation - Review

I love when I get stuff in the mail, especially unexpected goodies! I got the new Marc Jacobs Shameless foundation in the mail right before I left for Las Vegas, so it became my travel foundation for that trip. (I was originally going to bring the Fenty foundation but was meh on the matte finish for my going out looks.) It was risky, bringing a brand new, untested product with me, but life is about adventure, right? Before we get started, I received this product for free from Influenster (my referral link, fyi) in exchange for an honest review.

What's In My Travel Bag - Las Vegas!

I've never done a post about what I travel with, and what better time to start than with my first trip to Las Vegas! I really do try to pare down what I bring, but it isn't easy. I'm flying with only a carryon, so I'm limited to just a quart sized bag for my liquid products. Here's a quick look at what I've decided to bring!

I'll start with all of the makeup I'm bringing. I'm wearing a lot of either black or white, so I decided I'll bring a lot of bold pink lipsticks, which happen to be my favorite! I have liquid (Chanel Rouge Allure Ink), cream (Urban Decay Vice), and tint (Dior Addict Lip Tattoo) as formula options. I'm also bringing along my trusty Fenty Gloss Bomb and Bite Beauty lip pencil for a less bright lip option.

I'm keeping the rest of my options fairly basic. A neutral blush and a bright blush, a buildable highlighter, setting powder (how CUTE is that Laura Mercier mini?), and a finishing powder. For eye makeup, I have a palette with brights (Too Faced Peachy Mattes) and a neutral palette (Viseart Neutral Mattes.) I also have a glitter (Urban Decay Distortion) and a minty green (By Terry Fizzy Jade) for fun eye options. My trusty Kat von D Tattoo liner is coming with me, and I'm bringing a mini of the new Lancôme Monsieur Big mascara.

I'm debating taking the Fenty foundation, mostly because it's the best shade fit, but it's got more of a matte finish than I'd like. I actually received the new Marc Jacobs foundation right beforeI left(after taking these photos, of course...) so I wound up taking that with me to try out. NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer is the only concealer I own, so that comes with me as well. The only mini setting spray I have that I really like is the Kat von D spray, which is no Fix+, but it'll get the job done.

Skincare is more difficult, since most products are cream or liquid. I managed to get around bringing a liquid cleanser thanks to the Tosowoong Powder Wash. It foams up decently! I'll be trying out the Son & Park Beauty Water, finally! I'll be using that in addition to my cleanser as I don't have an oil or balm cleanser to take with me. I have some belif minis for my moisturizer and eye cream. I'm also taking the last of my bottle of A'pieu sunscreen.

I always bring an assortment of sheet masks with me. Since they're individually sealed, they don't count towards my bag of liquids. The Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta pads are individually sealed as well, which gets me some decent exfoliants as well as saving precious bag space. I need to double check my stash for essence and serum samples, because otherwise those masks are going to be filling that step in for me as well. (More foil packets don't hurt, either!)

In terms of haircare, I have a bumble and bumble mini set of shampoo and conditioner in my gym bag that I'll be bringing (thanks, Sephora birthday gift!) Normally I would use whatever the hotel provides and deal with it, but since I just colored my hair and the bumble and bumble set is sulfate free, I'm taking those. I also have the last of an Alterna volumizing spray, and I'll pair it with the Ouai Wave spray I have in my gym bag. I also have this cute Amika dry shampoo I'll be taking as well.

I try not to overload on tools. I bring the least amount of makeup brushes I can get away with. I don't need a big powder brush because I can just apply powder with my beautyblender. I use the thick Hourglass brush to apply finishing powder, and I can also use that for any serious buffing I may need to do as well. I'm also taking the Amika Polished Perfection brush with me to keep my bangs in check. As much as I'd love to take my Dyson dryer, it'll take up half my bag! I'll also be taking a handful of Shiseido cottons and Q-tips with me, along with hair ties and bobby pins.

I really do recommend hoarding any minis if you know you'll be traveling in the near future. A mini moisturizer isn't going to last for a week+ trip, but for a long weekend, it's perfect! All of the things I'm bringing manage to fit into the quart bag for my liquids and a jumbo pink Glossier zip top, so I'd say I did a good job scaling back my routines for my trip.

February Empties & Reverse Rouge Check In

February is over, meaning I get to purge last month's trash! I used up a bunch of products this month, I'm pretty proud of myself. I still have a huge backlog, but every little bit helps! There's a good mix of makeup, skincare, and haircare this month. I've also got my totals towards the Reverse Rouge Challenge further on in this post!

Lots of trash!

February 2018 Favorites!

I actually had a hard time picking my favorite products for February. I haven't really bought a ton of new stuff, so I was picking from items I use all the time. I didn't want to feature the same things again (yes, I love MJ Air Blush in Flesh & Fantasy, but we know that!) so it was a little more difficult picking things this time around. There's a couple new things I haven't featured, and one of my all time favorites in the mix.

Nivea Oil Infused Lotion, Zoya Kimber, Alterna Volume Spray, Fenty Pro Filt'r Foundation, IGK Down & Dirty Spray

Recent Purchases, Repurchases, and Acquisitions

I think it's a good sign for my low buy that I don't have enough stuff for a purchase post AND a repurchase post. It's my birthday month and I was pretty restrained, as you can see. (Unlike last year...) Two of these products were sent to me for review, so I didn't even buy everything here! I'm super excited about everything, though.

I Tried Glossier Solution So You Don't Have To!

Glossier announced a new addition to their skincare line last month - Solution. A chemical exfoliant touted as an "exfoliating skin perfector," Glossier claims that their Solution will "transform skin in four weeks." Naturally, as a skincare aficionado and a lover of a good miracle, I accepted the bait and purchased Solution. I also bought the Glossier branded cottons for $4, since buying the two enabled me to get free shipping under their normal free shipping threshold.

Glossier Solution

Dyson Supersonic - Thoughts From Someone Terrible With Hair

A $400 hairdryer. Of course it's a Dyson - with that design and price tag, who else would make it? I received the Dyson Supersonic hairdryer this past Christmas. It had been on my wishlist as sort of a  "stretch" gift, and I'm really happy that I received it. (My old $30 dryer was on its way out.) However, it's still a luxury item, and I wanted to talk about my feelings regarding it.

The Dyson Supersonic

Why I'm Hardcore Destashing, & Recently Destashed Products

As apart of my Reverse Rouge challenge for the year, and in general, I try to destash a lot of my beauty products that I am no longer in love with. I try to do a lot of destashing by rehoming my products, because sometimes trashing them just doesn't feel right - especially easily sanitized powder products and tube lipsticks. Over the past few months I've done a lot of destashing, but really gone into high gear lately with finding more outlets to just get things out of my house.

I first started destashing and rehoming my makeup on the Makeup Exchange subreddit. It's a great place, because it's all fellow beauty addicts looking for limited edition or gently used makeup items. It's also a great place to put out some feelers for any "white whale" products you may have.

I've had a lot of success destashing my lightly used items on Mercari. My listings are here, in case you're interested in anything I'm looking to find a better home for! The best part is, Mercari can be used for all sorts of things, not just beauty items. It also makes the process extremely easy for buyers and sellers. (I promise I am saying all of this of my own volition!)

At this point, I have so much stuff that I'm not really trying to get most of my money back - just trying to unload a lot of my products. Here's a quick rundown of products I've fallen out of love with, and why I'm destashing them.

January Empties & Reverse Rouge Check In

At the end of last year, I went a little overboard in my purchasing knowing I would be doing a Reverse Rouge challenge for 2018. I won't lie, it's been difficult not impulse buying all of the time, but at the end of January, I found that it's gotten a little easier. I've also made a concentrated effort to try and use up things that were close to empty that I had forgotten about. I'm still not where I'd like to be with the amount of sheet masks I use, but I did use some, and that's what counts.

Since I have a TON of empties this month, and there are some products that I have show up all the time, I'll highlight a few favorites/duds from the pile.

belif Moisturizing Eye Bomb - I LOVED this, and not just because belif sent it to me to review. It's just like the Aqua Bomb, but for eyes. Its a lightweight gel cream (my fave) that sinks in quickly and works under makeup. I have another belif mini eye cream that I am now using, but I really want a full size of this eye cream.

Bath and Body Works hand cream in Salted Honey & Vanilla - I HATED this! I bought it on black Friday because I constantly go through hand cream at my desk due to always needing to pee and the soap at work being stripping (the woes of staying hydrated...) but this was just awful. It didn't really hydrate my skin, didn't completely sink in, and the scent sucked. I had the same scent in a hand soap at home and I really liked it, but the hand cream did not have the same scent. I was really disappointed in this. Looking at the ingredient list, mineral oil is way at the top and shea butter way at the bottom, so that pretty much explains it. I won't repurchase this, or any BBW hand cream.

Boscia Sake Balm - I will be the first to admit that I purchased this due to the texture. You take a scoop out, and it jiggles back into place in the container to become smooth and perfect again. Overall, it was an okay moisturizer. Too much and it became very sticky, so I didn't like using it in the mornings. It was more expensive than I'd like ($46 at Sephora) and it didn't really WOW me enough to consider repurchasing. It was fun while it lasted though!

Cosrx Galactomyces 95 Whitening Power Essence - It took a while for me to jump on the bandwagon for this one, but I'm glad I did. I noticed an increase in the brightness of my skin while using this in my routine. It sank in quickly, and I used it mainly in the mornings for light hydration and quick brightness. I had a backup waiting for when this one ran out!

Clinique Moisture Surge Supercharged Concentrate - I had seen the full size of this in a nifty pump bottle on Instagram, and I wanted to try it. I got the mini size first - it was...okay? I think? It was definitely hydrating, but the gel seemed to have chunks in it that needed to be worked in. It also was a little tacky once it sank in. I like Clinique, so I may try one of their other moisture surge products since I'm a little iffy on this one.

Too Faced Hangover Rx primer - I really enjoyed this, and not just because of the scent! (Though the scent is really pleasant, I love coconut!) The formula for this is light and "sank in" to the skin quickly. I really like it under very matte foundations when the weather is dryer - it doesn't work for me in the summer due to my skin's extra oil production when it's humid. I have a few minis of other hydrating primers to try, but I can see myself repurchasing this soon.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer - I wanted to try this due to how much I like their Brow Wiz, but this won't be my new go-to brow product. It was a bit soft for my liking, and the smaller end of the triangular tip wasn't a fine enough tip. I'll stick with something closer to the Brow Wiz from now on.

Reverse Rouge Check In

Throughout the month, I kept a running list of all of my finished products, purchases, and destashed items. I looked up the value of each item (of course I had discontinued items in there and had to do my best) and calculated the value of any deluxe minis.

• Sephora Argan Oil hand mask - $6
• TonyMoly Foot Peel - $6.50
• belif Moisturizing Eye Bomb mini - $9.60
• Kat von D Tattoo Liner - $20
• Helloskin Jumiso First Lightening sheet mask - $2.70
• Benton Snail Bee sheet mask - $1.79
• Miss O Good Night sheet mask - $7
• Nivea In Shower Lotion - $4.99
• Cosrx Holy Snails sheet mask - $2.74
• C200 Bubble Peeling Pad - $7.95
• Boscia Sake Balm - $46
• Biore Aqua Rich sunscreen - $8.44
• Bath & Body Works hand cream - $4
• Tresemme Volumizing Mousse - $5.49
• Too Faced Hangover Rx primer - $32
• Estee Lauder Cushion Stick - $42
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer - $23
• Clinique Moisture Surge Supercharged Concentrate - $13.50
• Banila Co. Miss Flower & Mr. Honey hydrogel - $4.20
• Cosrx Galactomyces 95 Whitening Power Essence - $14

Total - $261.90

Here's all of the items I destashed this month. I've done destashing via Mercari and r/makeupexchange. I counted the full retail value of each item, and calculated the value of any deluxe mini items.

• Clinique Black Honey mini - $9.71
• MAC Naked Bud lipstick - $17.50
• Kat von D Halo Studded Kiss lipstick - $21
• Tarte Shape Tape - $27
• Make Up For Ever Artist Shadows (discontinued round pans) in i524, d708, m816, s556, m548, s314, s312, s836, s848, s234 - $210
• MAC Be A Lady Mineralize lipstick - $22

Total - $307.21

Finally, everything I purchased for the month! I'm really proud of myself, under $100 spent, and some of these were repurchases!

• Nivea In Shower lotion - $4.99
• Nivea Oil Infused lotion - $5.49
• Nailtiques Forumla 2 - $9.59
• Glossier Solution - $24
• Glossier cottons - $4
• Bite Lip Pencil 022 - $13.50
• Sephora Favorites Combo Skin set - $28
• Gold Bond hand cream - $3.89

Total - $93.46

Total Empties + Destashed - $569.11
Minus Purchases - $475.65

...WOW! Over halfway to my goal without counting purchases, and almost halfway there if I take purchases out, and it's almost January! That is a CRAZY amount of money when you think about it. I'm really impressed with my progress, and can't wait to see how the year unfolds. February is my birthday month, so I don't expect as much progress (especially with purchases cutting in) but January has me off to a great start!

January 2018 Favorites!

Happy New Year! January is almost done, so it's time to discuss my favorite products from this month! Four of these items this month are relatively new - bought either this month or the end of 2017 and I didn't start using them until January, so they count as "new." I bought so much at the end of 2017 that I haven't felt the need for "new" stuff, which is making my low buy a lot easier!

2017 Favorites - New Acquisitions

This is the second post on my favorites of 2017 - items that were new to me over the year! You can find the first post on my favorite new releases of the year here. I like highlighting "old" favorites, as sometimes they get forgotten after the initial hype. A lot of these products I bought due to seeing positive reviews from others, and I'm happy to say I wound up loving them just as much!

2017 Favorites - New Releases

This is the first of two posts containing all of my favorite products from 2017! I did a poll on my Instagram asking what type of favorites posts were more enjoyable - new favorite products or tried and true favorites that got a lot of use that month. (I try to do a mix of both, but sometimes I don't buy anything new!) The result was pretty split, so I decided to do one post of new new products, and one post of new to me items to sum up my 2017. This post is all about my favorite products that were released in 2017.

December Empties

My final empties of 2017! These don't count toward my Reverse Rouge Challenge, which sucks, because December was a great month in terms of finishing products!

Final 2017 Purchases & Reverse Rouge Challenge for 2018

New year, new goals! I'm one of those people who does New Years Resolutions, I'm not ashamed to admit it. One of my goals for 2018 is to spend less and be more mindful of what I do spend. But before I talk about that, I wanted to share my last few purchases of 2017!

November Empties

I've fallen a little behind on posting due to the holidays - they were great for me, and I hope yours were wonderful as well! I'm ready to start the new year with more posts - I've already gotten back into a routine over on Instagram. Thankfully, I had already taken photos of November's empties, and just need to share my thoughts!