Category Archives: Empties

evo Mane Tamer Smoothing Shampoo & Conditioner – Every now and then I come across a product that smells so good I want to eat it. This is one of those products. The scent of the conditioner reminded me of caramel mudcake, which lingered on my hair and made for a very pleasant hair-washing experience. Besides that and more importantly, as a shampoo & conditioner these both worked really well. My hair can get a bit dry and frizzy during summer, and these helped to tame my fly-aways during that time. I would definitely consider purchasing the full sized versions of these in the future.

Paula’s Choice Moisture Boost Essential Hydrating Toner – I rotate between three different Paula’s Choice toners, and this is my favourite. It makes a noticeable difference in the hydration levels of my skin, and is a lifesaver during the times of the year when my skin is drier than usual. I tend to pick up one of each toner when I place my Paula’s Choice orders, so no doubt I’ll be cycling back around to this again soon.

Tony & Guy Flexible Hold Hairspray – I told myself I needed to use up all of my hairspray stash before repurchasing another of my holy grail (O&M Queenie, for those playing at home), and this was the last product I needed to finish. To be honest, Sebastian used up most of this tube because he has discovered that the best way to tame his hair is not gel, it’s hairspray. This did a good job of both holding a curl in my fine hair, and maintaining control of his extremely thick and wavy hair.

Glasshouse Candle in The Hamptons (teak & petitgrain) – I picked this up to burn in our living room because it’s such a fresh and light scent. I love using Glasshouse candles in our living areas because the throw of the scent is far enough to fill a large space. I had a couple of friends comment on how nice this scent was while they were visiting, which is the sign of a good home fragrance for me.

Pantene Pro-V 3 Minute Miracle – This has been my little hair lifesaver for many years now. I try to pace myself with these because I don’t want to run out too soon, but one of these tubes is enough to give me three deep conditions of my hair. This never fails to leave my hair soft, silky, and shiny.

[sample] By Terry Baum De Rose – I was really disappointed by this. It had been hyped up for me for so long as being one of the best lip balms, but I found it to be way too heavily scented and felt like it was so thick that it just sat on my lips rather than moisturising them. It’s probably a good thing that I didn’t fall madly in love with this, because it’s certainly not an inexpensive product.

Paula’s Choice Resist Daily Pore-Refining Treatment (2% BHA) – Truth be told, Sebastian used the majority of this product and it was because he had asked me for something that would help control the pores on his nose. There was a noticeable difference in the size and condition of his pores after using this, and he was pleasantly surprised. After finishing this up he asked if I had anything similar he could use, which I think is a testament to the quality of the product.

Mario Badescu Facial Spray with Aloe, Herbs, and Rosewater – These Mario Badescu Facial Sprays are my new obsession. I have one of these and one of the Aloe, Cucumber, and Green Tea in regular rotation. I sometimes use this in place of a toner, or just to give a nice refreshing boost to my skin throughout the day. This smells incredible, and has been such a treat to use during summer.

Paula’s Choice Redness Relief SPF 15 Mineral Moisturiser – This is my favourite facial sunscreen and I’ve gone through quite a few tubes of this over the years. I like this because it doesn’t leave a white cast on the skin and it has an almost mattifying effect, which is the opposite to all of the sunscreens I’ve tried in the past. It also works really well, which is saying a lot because my skin LOVES to burn.

Paula’s Choice Skin Balancing Invisible Finish Moisture Gel – I like to rotate my Paula’s Choice moisturisers, but after this round with the Invisible Finish Moisture Gel I think I’ll be giving it a miss in the future. I’m not sure if it was because my skin is drier than usual at the moment but this was not doing me any favours in the hydration department. I think I’ll be sticking to my old faithful Hydralight moisturiser for a while.

Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleansing Wipes – These are my favourite facial cleansing wipes and I try to always have some on hand for nights where I’m too lazy to properly remove my makeup. They are reasonably inexpensive, gentle on my skin, and do a good job of removing makeup.

Dove Go Fresh Deodorant in Pear & Aloe Vera – Two deodorant empties in a row, that must be some kind of record. As I said last month, I tend to not include deodorants unless I think they’re something worth mentioning and this is another winner from Dove. This has a delightfully fresh and summery scent and as an added bonus on top of that it does a really good job as a deodorant in general.

Longvitalite Collagen Firming & Moisturising Silk Sheet Mask – I have a bunch of these in my cupboard because they’re a really easy go-to hydrating sheet mask that work well with my sensitive skin. I still prefer the Garnier masks to these, but they are an easy mask to slap on my face on a Sunday morning if I’m feeling like I need a bit of a hydration boost.

Pantene Pro V 3 Minute Miracle – I recently repurchased a few of my old-school hair favourites (Kerastase Bain Satin and Terax Crema), and remembered how much I loved using these little miracle workers in conjunction with those products. It does a wonderful job of smoothing fly-aways and noticeably enhances the shine of my hair. I love this product, and I’m glad to have reintroduced it into my hair care routine.

[sample] Josie Maran Pure Argan Milk Intensive Hydrating Treatment – I wasn’t a huge fan of this treatment because it seemed to leave a bit of an oily residue on my skin. Sadly, this didn’t have enough of an impact for me to consider purchasing a full size.

Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser – November was apparently a month of finishing up favourite products, starting with this one. We always have a bottle of this in our shower because we both use it every day as an all-over body cleanser. It’s gotten to the point where I’ve started buying this in bulk sets from Costco because it’s such a staple in our house.

Paula’s Choice Hydralight One-Step Face Cleanser – Yet another staple in our house, this is my favourite and is now something Sebastian is using every day as well. If you’re in the market for a gentle cleanser that will work well with sensitive skin and keep your skin clear — look no further.

Dove Deodorant in Pomegranate and Lemon Verbena Scent – I don’t always post my deodorant empties because it seems weirder than other empties, but I do like to share this one because it smells incredible. If you haven’t stopped to give this a sniff, do so next time you’re at the shops because once you’ve smelled this you probably won’t want to wear anything else.

Hourglass Brow Arch in Dark Brunette – I’m pretty lucky in the eyebrow department because my brows are thick and dark but they do need some help with shaping. This is my go-to brow product because it matches the shade of my brows perfectly and it fills in the gaps where I need it to. It’s also easy enough to remove if I’m a bit clumsy with my application, which is a win for me.

[sample] Kate Somerville Quench Oil Free Hydrating Face Serum – I went through a phase a few years ago where I purchased a whole bunch of Kate Somerville products, purely because Lauren Conrad used them. I was pretty happy with the products at the time, but they weren’t good enough to knock Paula’s Choice off the top of my list. This is the first sample I’ve tried in a while that I would seriously consider buying a full-sized version of. This did a good job of hydrating my skin, and the results were almost immediately noticeable. I’m not in a position to be purchasing any expensive serums at the moment, but when I am this will be something I will be looking at getting.

[sample] Dove Daily Moisture Shampoo & Conditioner – This was a ‘neither here nor there’ sort of product for me. It did the job of cleaning my hair well enough but it wasn’t something I would rush out to purchase.

Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant – This is a product that I almost always have in my skin care rotation. It is tried and true, and I feel like if I go without it for too long my skin breathes a sigh of relief when I start using it again. If you’re in the market for a gentle exfoliant that works well with sensitive skin, I really can’t recommend this enough.

Ecoya Mini Diffuser in Guava & Lychee Sorbet – I had this diffuser in our second bathroom and it was a really light and refreshing scent, well suited to such an open space. As much as I like these Ecoya diffusers I don’t think I’ll be repurchasing them in the future purely because of how much cat hair the diffusing sticks seem to attract. I have one left in our bedroom, and then I think that will be it for me.

Evo Mane Attention Protein Treatment – I have left it far too long between haircuts, and instead of just going and getting a haircut I apparently have decided to try and mask the problem by using an array of lifesaving hair products. This is a hair mask I always come back to because it does such a great job of injecting some life into my sad looking hair.

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara – I picked this up at Mecca earlier in the year when my best friend was visiting from Perth. I figured I would give it a go, but I didn’t have high expectations because as everybody knows Lancome Hypnose is the greatest mascara of all time and couldn’t be toppled from my holy grail list. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised and this is something I will be repurchasing in the future. It did a great job of thickening and lengthening my lashes, and didn’t smudge throughout the day.

Tresemme Salon Finish Freeze Hold Hairspray – After I finished up my last bottle of O&M Queenie I told myself that I had to use up all of the other hairsprays I had in my collection before I was allowed to repurchase it. This was the first bottle I finished, and it did a decent job of keeping a curl in my fine straight hair. I wasn’t able to test how it held up during a full work day because I don’t bother curling my hair when I’m working from home, which I have been doing since March.