Empties! Facial Masks, Hair and Body Care Items I Used Up Sept-Jan

Life has been busy but here (finally) are the rest of the products I used up or tossed from September to January. That will teach me from getting behind on posting these in a timely manner :-) First up are masks, and I'll highlight a few favorites and a few that left me underwhelmed.

Memebox has their own line of masks out, and the bonvivant Botanical Masks come in a variety of botanically based formulas that I quite like. They are inexpensive (especially when bundled together), and I've yet to try one that I thought was sub par.  The mask sheets are made with 100% Eucalyptus-derived material and I find them comfortable to wear. They are well-saturated with essence and I can get a good 30 minutes of wear before they start to dry out. Regular price on these is $3, but during a sale you can find them for $1-$2 dollars each. Well worth it, IMO, and I've got quite the stockpile now.

I also like the Banobagi Vita Genic masks, which come in 4 different varieties: Lifting, Whitening, Relaxing, and Hydrating. I got mine as part of a mask bundle from Memebox, but I no longer see them listed on the site. A quick search shows them to be reasonably priced at anywhere from $14-$20 for a box of 10 masks from a variety of online sites.

I bought the Karuna Online Only Flawless Skin Kit ($39) during a 20% off sale from Ulta. The box presentation itself is lovely, but I've got to admit I was a bit underwhelmed by the masks themselves. They were okay, but nothing I would purchase again at that price. The do have little booster patches you can wear under the masks that are designed to target problem areas, which is what intrigued me. Can't say I saw much of a difference after using them, however. I'm probably spoiled by Korean masks, which feature stellar ingredients at much cheaper prices.

But if you really want to talk about expensive facial masks that are not worth the price: look no further than the Le Metier de Beaute (LMdB) Revitalizing Hydro Red Algae & Collagen Mask.  I received this as part of a LMdB subscription box, and they are a whooping $15 each. It was a two piece mask that kept wanting to slide off of my face due to it's gel composition and there was nothing in the ingredient list that you can't find in a good Korean mask, at a fraction of the price. This is definitely a case of paying for the LMdB name, since it's a luxury brand. Not worth it in this case.

The Moroccan Oil conditioner I've had for years and am just now finishing. It's nice, but I'm not as big of a fan as many seem to be. I also used up a few foil samples that I really like, and one that left me cold.

Hask shampoo and conditioners are probably one of my favorite finds from 2016. They are inexpensive yet feature more "clean" ingredients, and the Charcoal shampoo and conditioner has little flecks of charcoal in it, which I find so cool. Charcoal absorbs impurities so I can see where it would make a good clarifying shampoo. I would probably use it only when my hair needed a good cleanse to degunk hair care products like hairspray, in order to avoid over stripping.

I also enjoyed these Klorane shampoo and conditioner samples for blonde hair. They felt gentle and refreshing and left my hair soft and shiny.

The DHC After Bath Hair Treatment is a good leave-in conditioner that makes it easy to comb through but does not weigh my hair down. I always enjoy getting samples of these when I purchase from DHC or they send one in their catalog.

The Oscar Blandi At Home Salon Glaze however? Not a fan. It makes my hair feel strange and I cannot tell any difference in shine. I didn't even finish using up this generously sized sample.

Next are some body care and perfume items.  The Real Chemistry Luminous 3-Minute Peel is a product that is just not for me. I didn't feel like it really did anything and found it too cumbersome for such lackluster results. Give me a good sugar scrub any day over this.

The Crystal Essence deodorant is a favorite. I tend to rotate natural ingredient based deodorants and this one has a solid place in the rotation.

I also really like the Julep top coat, although it does tend to get thick before I can finish a bottle. I finished a few perfume samples but had to toss the Versace Eros after trying it and disliking it so intensely I had to scrub it off. Not sure what in the note list is causing such extreme dislike, but it smelled vile to me.

Whew, I'm finally caught up with my empties and will make sure to post monthly from now on so that it doesn't get so overwhelming!