Special Edition Empties - Skincare

Hello, I'm here with my 2nd 'empties' post. This one is a little bit different, because ALL the 'empties' are skincare products. I have collected so many 'empties' that fit into different categories (haircare, skincare etc) that it was hard for me to decide which products I want to talk about first, so I decided to do these 'Special Edition Empties' posts. This gives me an opportunity to compare the products and maybe help you to decide which product/s to get as there are so many skincare products to choose from. Most of the products in this post are for oily skin which is prone to break outs, because my skin is very oily and it does break out a lot. 

Bioré Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser

I bought and used this cleanser before I went to dermatologist who recommended me the DR Wolff skincare products that I mentioned in my previous 'empties' post. When I recently started using it, it wasn't even half empty, it was nearly full, so I only finished it the other day. The cleanser is quite nice, it does its job at cleaning the face well. It did minimize the amount of spots I get, but not completely. I also break out on my back a little bit, so I also used it to cleanse my back and it worked much better on my back than on my face for some weird reason. The thing I like the most about this cleanser is the cooling feeling you get after washing your face, it helped me to wake up in the mornings and made my face feel really clean and fresh.

Will I repurchase?

No, because I've recently found other skincare products that work much better for my skin. I'll be doing a review on them soon, so stay tuned.

Do I recommend this product?

Yes, I definitely recommend it if you're on a budget, or if only drugstore skincare products are available to you. It's actually one of my favourite drugstore cleansers and it does work, so it's worth a try.

Garnier Skin Naturals Pure Active Deep Pore Unclog Wash

I bought this a while ago and I believe they've recently changed the packaging for the whole Pure Active range. Anyway, the cleanser is very similar to the Bioré Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser, it does help to clean your face from spots, but it won't help to erase the problem completely. This product has my liking for fastening up the healing process of the little scars you get from spots. I recently came back to this cleanser to finish it up and I only had a little bit left of it and from the fair amount I had left I did notice a difference. It lightened up a lot of the old spot scars.

Will I repurchase?

No, but that's not because I don't like it.

Do I recommend this product?

If you want to get rid of the red scars that are often left from spots and acne, I do recommend it.

Garnier Skin Naturals Pure Deep Pore Wash

This cleanser is a little bit different than the previous two I've already mentioned, because it has little tiny beads in it and it's not only meant to fight blemishes, but also clear up blackheads. I didn't really enjoy this one that much, it did clean the face from makeup that my makeup remover didn't remove, but it wasn't that good at fighting spots and it barely removed any of my blackheads.

Will I repurchase?

No, I don't think it's worth the money.

Do I recommend this product?

No, like I said it's not worth the money, the previous two products are much more effective.

Garnier Skin Naturals Pure 3in1 Wash, Scrub + Mask

I love this, it's great at removing makeup leftovers and it's also good at removing blackheads. My favourite part of this product is the mask, I like how it tightens my skin and minimizes the look of pores, but doesn't leave my face feeling dry although it has that tightening feeling. It also helps to fight spots. I really like this product.

Will I repurchase?

Yes, I have purchased this multiple times. I usually buy it, use it up, give my face a break from it and then come back to it and my face loves it.

Do I recommend this product?

I think it's pretty obvious ;)

Garnier Skin Naturals Pure Exfo-Brusher Wash

I have used quite a lot of Garnier skincare products, yes. I've tried many more than these, the same with Clean&Clear, when I was younger I was influenced by adverts on the tv, so I used to only buy Garnier and Clean&Clear skincare products. Anyway, I keep on rumbling, I'm sorry. This one is similar to the Bioré Blemish Fighting Ice Cleanser and Garnier Skin Naturals Pure Active Deep Pore Unclog Wash, it's just not as thick in the consistency, it's a lot more runny and it doesn't help with healing the spot scars, but it's good at fighting the spots. I love the exfoliating brush, it mentally makes me feel like it gets the face much cleaner and it does make the face feel squeaky clean after it's been washed.

Will I repurchase? 

No, I don't think it's anything special, the only thing that I really enjoy is the exfoliating brush, but you can buy similar ones separately and use them with different cleansers.

Do I recommend this product?

50/50, it's not a bad product and it does it's job, I would suggest trying it, because you might love it, but for me it wasn't anything special, like I said earlier.

Nivea Visage Daily Essentials Gentle Cleansing Cream Wash

This cleanser is actually not for my skin type, it's for sensitive and dry skin. I have actually used two of these, although I didn't buy them. One of them was my mums and one was my stepmums, both of them gave the same product to me. I would never purchase it myself, however I did enjoy this product, especially during the winter time, when my skin gets a little more dry or when I get dry patches from healing spots. It didn't break me out and it made my face feel really fresh.

Will I repurchase?

No, because it's not meant for my skin type.

Do I recommend this product?

Yes, if you have dry and sensitive skin. It really is a great product.

Nivea Visage Young Wash Off! Mild Cleansing Gel

I'm not a big fan of this particular cleanser. It doesn't really do anything, at times it doesn't even remove my makeup leftovers. This really disappointed me.

Will I repurchase?

No.

Do I recommend this product?

Only if you don't wear makeup, other than that no.

Clean&Clear Blackhead Clearing Cleanser

 This stuff is strong. I mean it smells like vodka, I'm not joking. I don't actually have an opinion about this. It didn't irritate my skin, but I don't think it made much of a difference either. I prefer the Clean & Clear Sensitive Cleansing Lotion which is a lot stronger in my opinion and I feel like it does something to my face.

Will I repurchase?

No, but I will repurchase the Sensitive Cleansing Lotion.

Do I recommend this product?

No, not really.

Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions 3-Step System

I had high hopes for this. I've heard a lot of great things about the 3-step system, so I decided to try the set thing which allows you to try the whole system without buying the full size products. When I went to the Clinique stand in House of Fraser I had the 3-step system for very oily skin in mind, but the shop assistant suggested me the anti-blemish one. I've tried the anti-blemish foundation by Clinique and I loved it, but the skincare line didn't do anything for my skin, in fact it broke me out more.

Will I repurchase?

Definitely no, the products both in set and full size are too expensive and the ones I've tried from drugstore work better than these.

Do I recommend this product?

I'm not sure what to say, a lot of people hype about the Clinique 3-step system, but my skin didn't like it, so I guess you need to try it for yourself to see if it's worth it.

What would you prefer me to post next for my 'Special Edition Empties' - haircare or body care?

City Skyline Nails

Hey guys, today I want to show you how to do these really eye catching and detailed looking nails.

I started off with applying base coat on my nails to protect them from all the chemicals that nail polish contains and then I applied one coat of white nail polish. I just used a Collection 2000 5 Day Wear in French White (103), but you can use any white nail polish you have. If you don't have a white nail polish you can use any other really light nail polish you have. The white is just a base that makes the blue and purple look more 'pastely' to make the buildings stand out more and pastel colours are also a big trend in spring.

After applying the white nail polish, I used a make up sponge and painted a stripe of blue and lilac nail polish on it and then I dabbed it on a paper a few times to remove the excess polish. The nail polishes I used are Rimmel Lycra Pro Professional Finish in Ultra Violet (312) and Beauty Uk nail polish in Neon Blue (36)

 

After that I just pressed the sponge onto my nails to create the sky, a little bit of nail polish went onto my fingers, so I removed it using some nail polish remover on a q tip. It created this really cute pastel ombre look which looks perfect for the spring, so if you like this look, you can just leave it like this.

Next, I painted some random buildings with a black nail polish. They are really easy to do. You can do the same kind of buildings on all of your nails or you can be creative making them smaller and bigger on each nail.

Lastly, I finished up by adding some lightening rods on the top of the buildings with the same black nail polish. I also put a lot of dots on the buildings with yellow nail polish and then I drew a moon with white nail polish. To do the little details I used a toothpick. I just dipped it into the nail polish and drew the lights and so on. After all that was done, I used some top coat, to seal the nails, so they last longer.

 

 

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed :D

Empties #1

Hey, I know, it has been a while since I last blogged. I have been really busy with school work, but now I have finally finished all my coursework. I'm so glad that the coursework part of school is over! Now, I just have to do some revision as my exams are in May, but I really need to revise for only one subject as the other subjects I'm doing have practical exams, which means I can relax a little. After my exams I will have plenty of time to blog which has made me really excited as I have so many ideas of what to blog about :)

My first idea was to make a series of blog posts and the first one I wanted to do is called 'empties'. I have seen many blogger's and even youtuber's doing monthly blog posts or video's where they show the stuff they have used up and give a little description of the product, what they like or dislike about the product, would they purchase it again and so on. I have a ton of products that are nearly used up, there's only a little bit left and I don't use them anymore, because I have bought something new and lately it's been really bugging me, because I don't have much space to store all my products anymore, because I have so many, so I decided to finally use them up.

I thought it would be great if I would blog the products I have used up, for multiple reasons, firstly because I think it would be a great future reference. I sometimes leave used up products laying around, just in case I want to repurchase them, but I think these 'empties' blog posts would be better as I could just get rid of the product after I've done a post instead of it taking up space in my room and just look back at them if I need to. Also, it's basically like doing reviews of products and letting people know if the product is good or not.

I'm thinking about doing up to 10 products a month, because now I have more than 10 products used up and soon I'll have even more, but when I finish up all those products that are nearly used up, I won't have as many in the future, so if I'll do like 20 now and 20 next month, it would mean that I wouldn't have as much products to post about after that and also I think it would be a really long and boring post, if I would post 20 products at once, what do you think?

I have this gift bag where I keep all the empty products and it is stored in my wardrobe, so it doesn't take that much place.

The products that I will mainly post about will be hair products, body products such as lotions, shower gels, body spray's and skincare products, and sometimes makeup, but that won't be as often as I rarely use up a whole makeup product.

Today I'll only post 5 empty products, because this post is already really long, but next time it will be less explaining and more products :)

 Empties #1 and #2

Dr. Wolff cleansing foam (reinigungs-schaum) and Dr. Wolff facial toner (gesichts-tonic)

These are German skincare products and they were suggested to me by my dermatologist. I have actually used two bottles of each and I have also used one tube of the moisturizer of the same Dr. Wolff skincare line, but I threw the tube out with the first two bottles some time ago. I got these at a pharmacy in Latvia and I have no idea how to get them here in England, because I haven't seen them anywhere and they are really hard to find online, so now I use different skincare products. I'm pretty gutted that they don't seem to be available here in England, because they are amazing. I have tried so many different skincare products and nothing compares to these. I have really problematic skin, it's very oily and I break out all the time. I don't have acne, but I have a lot of spots. When I was using these they helped a lot. They are really gentle to the skin and they don't irritate it and although they are no magic potions which clear your skin completely, they keep the spots to the absolute minimum and I have not tried anything that does the job as good as these two. If it wasn't so difficult for me to get these, if I could just go to a shop or a pharmacy to pick them up, I would repurchase these over and over again and I wouldn't even buy any other skincare products, because I absolutely love these. If you live in Latvia and you have spots and you want to get rid of them I suggest you to get your hands on these. Obviously everyone's skin is different, but maybe these will work on your skin as great as they do on mine, so it's always good to try things out :)

Empty #3

TRESemme SPLIT REMEDY SPLIT MEND SEALING SERUM

I got this serum a while ago, I think about a year ago when I had glued in extensions in my hair. I was really into haircare back then and I bought lots of different serums and hair oils. Only recently I finished this up and I have to say it lasted me for a while as it's only a 30ml bottle. However, I didn't use it that much, because it didn't seem to do anything. I'm not a big fan of Tresemme hair products I have to say, because they don't do anything to my hair. I have tried a few products, including a shampoo and conditioner from Tresemme and they only made my hair really oily. This serum is suppose to reduce split ends and it doesn't really do the job. I mean, if I wash my hair and I put it in my hair while it's still damp and if it dries naturally or if I blow dry my hair, the split ends won't be noticeable, or even if I put it in my hair while it's dry, it hides the split ends, but it doesn't actually reduce them, it just reduces the appearance of them for some time, if you know what I mean, because the next day the split ends are back. On the bottle it says for a smooth, flawless finish, yes it achieves that, but it also says up to 80% reduction in split ends after 3 uses and that's where it doesn't stand up to it's expectations. One thing that I really like about this product is the smell, it smells like this chewing gum I used to always buy when I was little, it has that sweet smell which I really, really like. Most likely I won't repurchase it again, because there are products that actually help with split ends. I don't really recommend it, but if you want something that hides the split ends maybe just for the nights out or something, this can definitely do the job for you :)

Empty #4

Derma V10 Strawberry Body Butter

I got this body butter a while ago from Poundland. The reason why I got it, is because of the smell, it literally smells like strawberry chewits. It is for normal to dry skin and on the jar it says that it can be applied anywhere to help nourish the skin, giving it a radiant glow. It is really, really moisturizing and it does give the skin a radiant glow. The only thing that I'm not a big fan of is that it doesn't dry quickly, it leaves the skin damp for a bit, but I can live with that. I actually like it much better than body shop body butters as they tend to make the skin white until they dry and they leave the skin damp for even longer, so this only being a pound is much better for my taste, actually. I definitely will repurchase this again, I just need to find it, because I was looking for it the other week, but I couldn't find it. Also on the bottom of the jar it says that it has not been tested on animals, which makes me like the product even more.

Empty #5

PANTENE PRO-V REPAIR&PROTECT CONDITIONER for Normal-Thick Hair

I have to say this has become one of my favourite conditioners. I have also used up the shampoo, but I already threw it away some time ago. I bet I'm not the only person who finishes the shampoo before the conditioner and then buys a different shampoo with matching conditioner and leaves that little tiny bit of the old conditioner laying around. Well I did that after using this shampoo and when I finished the shampoo I used after this one, I repurchased this one again and at the moment it's the shampoo I'm using. However, now that I have finished this conditioner I'll be using the other old conditioners I have laying around, so I can finally get rid of them. I actually really like PANTENE PRO-V shampoo's and conditioner's, because they clean my hair and scalp nicely and condition my hair properly. What I mean by properly is that they do exactly what it says on the bottle. There are certain shampoo's that make my hair oilier or they irritate my scalp and cause dandruff, none of the PANTENE PRO-V shampoo's do that to me, so I keep reaching for them a lot. Recently this exact shampoo and conditioner have become my favourites, because I have quite damaged hair as it's bleached. Ever since I've been using this conditioner and shampoo my hair has become a lot thicker and at one point my hair was so damaged it literally started breaking off and got quite short, but since I've been using these my hair has started to look much healthier and it has grown quite a bit. The conditioner is amazing for damaged hair as it really nourishes the hair and makes it strong. I wouldn't say the conditioner is very good for making the hair super soft, but it definitely makes the hair stronger and shiny. I do recommend both the shampoo and conditioner to anyone who has damaged hair, because they do what they say on the bottle :)

I really hope you enjoyed this post and I hope you're excited for future 'empties' posts as much as I am :D Let me know if you want more future posts!