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!

Skincare Empties!

I'm still writing up mini reviews on my empties from January through the end of April...which has convinced me that four month periods are too long for racking up empties! However, it does let me see that I actually use up a lot of products! Here is all the skincare that I finished up in those four months, along with my thoughts!

End of 2016 Empties

I'm trying to track actually using up products, so I began saving some empties from the end of 2016. Throughout the rest of the year I hope to have more items that I've used (there's a distinct lack of sheet masks here!) but I wanted to get started with what I had.

Hoarded trash from last year!

Collective Sephora Haul

So instead of making a post for each Sephora purchase (because let's face it...there have been a few!) I decided to make a collective haul post for the past month or so. Holiday sets have come out, the Friends & Family sale went on...so let's take a look!

There are a few items not pictured here. I bought a few gifts, and some are set aside and a secret, while others are enroute to their recipients. I also got a package of Shiseido cottons (that I immediately tore into...) and a bottle of Cinema Secrets brush cleanser. I had picked up a bottle of the Sephora cleanser that is similar, but it just didn't measure up. Glad that I was able to get the Cinema Secrets again.

• Bite Beauty Best Bite Remix - Every year, Bite Beauty puts out a holiday set in a little tin. The past two years they've done sets of their High Pigment Lip Pencils (which I love!) so I was happy to see that thy switched it up for the Matte Crayons this year. There are four shades, three new and one from their general collection. I gave the Aubergine from this set to a friend, as I already had a mini. I was also happy that they didn't reincarnate Pomegranate for this set into a matte, because honestly everyone is sick and tired of Pomegranate, we all have five of them we can't unload, just stop it, Bite.
• Make Up For Ever Step 1 Skin Equalizer Mattifying Primer - I've been in the market for a new primer, and the new-ish MUFE ones come in small sizes, so I picked up the mattifying one. I have a super mini of the smoothing primer which is nice, so I figured why not? This primer is a little difficult to spread, like the Becca Ever Matte primer. It does keep me pretty matte when paired with a non-dewy foundation. I'll be doing a full review of this in the future.
• Boscia Tsubaki Oil and Green Tea Hydrogel Masks - If you've been following me blog for any amount of time, you've probably seen a post with some Asian skincare in it. This is just me getting more masks for my hoard. I like Boscia products, but they're a little pricey (especially considering how much cheaper ordering from Korea is...) so I got these two masks to try with the coupon I had.
• Verb Volume Spray - My tried and true Alterna Bamboo spray was running out, so I decided to try something new. I haven't yet given it a test drive, but I've heard good things and I'm excited!
• Guerlain Holiday Meteorites - I have a tin of REGULAR Guerlain Meteorites that I reach for often. So since I have those, I wouldn't need these, right? Wrong. The holiday set that was released this year has mini stars in it. Also, the packaging is like a wonderful snow globe. They're quite sparkly, but I'm about that life, so I like these.
• Sephora Collection Bright Future Gel Serum Concealer - I won't lie, that is a ridiculous mouthful of a name. A friend asked me to send her one of these, so I was like of course, and I will do a little one for you, one for me while I am at it. I originally picked up shade 02 which was not good for me, at all. So I have shade 03 here to try next! I don't think it'll give my NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer anything to worry about, though. This concealer is a little thin from what I've tried. I can't really judge it though, since I wasn't working with the right shade at all. I'll definitely be reviewing this once I use it more!
• Kat von D Lolita Lip Duo - This product has been teased for months, and it finally was released last week. I immediately ordered it the moment I woke up. My full size Lolita went missing months ago, and I never replaced it. (I have a mini Studded Kiss Lolita...but that is completely different.) I can't wait to try both of these, I don't remember which iteration of Lolita I originally owned. Supposedly there's going to be another release,OG Lolita, in the future. I love Kat von D's liquid lipsticks, so just sign me up.
• Bite Beauty Kir Royale 250 Point Perk - Bite Beauty did a series of 250 point perks from August-October. I wasn't interested in the first two shades, but I jumped on Kir Royale. The set includes a mini lipstick, mini gloss, and small mirror. I feel like it is perfect for the 250 point mark, as you get two makeup items and a small additional item to make up those extra 50 points. I love Bite products, so I'm happy I snagged this and I can't wait to try it!

Not too bad, all things considered. Especially as this was all spread out over the course of a couple of months! What is bad, however, is that I already have a cart going for the upcoming VIB Rouge sale! Did you pick up any holiday or limited edition items recently?