2020 is just doing the most, amirite? With all the quarantine craziness, I hadn’t realised so much time had passed since my last post. Let’s just jump right in with this new set of empties.
Balm Cleansers
Only one entry here, another Heimish All Clean balm is done. I’m now on my last one and getting kinda worried about how I’m going to get more.
2nd/Morning Cleansers
We used up another Soon Jung Whip Cleanser, luckily I have some more stashed away. This pandemic is really not helping my hoarding tendencies.
Luckily, the Simple Refreshing Facial Gel was well stocked when we shopped before the lock down, so there are a couple backups here. I recommended it to a friend a few days ago but she couldn’t find it anywhere (again, not helping!)
Toners
I bought this Paula’s Choice Skin Balancing Pore-Reducing toner during their Black Friday sale last year, and thanks to the customs debacle called ASYCUDA World, I barely got it in time for Christmas. I was going to save it for later, but I got impatient and cracked it open. They recommend you use this on a cotton pad to apply, but I found doing it that way wastes it, so I poured it into my palm and slathered it on. This was disappointing, it is not very hydrating, and I didn’t notice any improvement in my skin even though it contains one of my favourite ingredients (niacinamide). Definitely not repurchasing.
Serums
I’ve used up my last bottle of Olay Regenerist serum. I’m not getting any urge to repurchase, so I think this is the end (for now). This was the very first serum I ever bought and I never regretted it, still highly recommend it.
Sunscreens
Obviously, I wasn’t going outside as often during the past few months, so I only finished off this bottle of Anessa Perfect UV sunscreen. This is still the only sunscreen I have that is actually sweat proof, so it’s a great thing I have a couple backups, this summer is already shaping up to be another scorcher. One of these days I’ll try the new version, but for now this still works.
Lip Balms
A new category! I’ve had both of these for well over a year, close to two if I’m honest.
The Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask is a cult favourite, for good reason. They recommend you apply at night so it can exfoliate and hydrate overnight and you’ll wake up to soft lips ready for makeup the next morning. I can’t comment on the exfoliation claim, but this is very hydrating. My usual dry lips routine is to exfoliate using a toothbrush with my combination of honey and brown sugar, use either some hydrating toner or The Ordinary’s Natural Moisturising Factors cream after, then cover with this. My lips are back to normal by morning. You can also get away with using this during the day, just use a tiny amount because it is tacky.
I bought this from Yesstyle, but now I don’t see any Laneige products on their website at all. Not sure if that’s COVID-related or they’re not selling the brand at all anymore, really hoping it’s the former because I’m only seeing their products on Sephora, which is a pain to order from.
This Nuxe Reve de Miel lip balm is another cult favourite, and I … can’t stand it. I bought this because Emily Fox keeps raving about it, and if she’s able to keep her lips hydrated during Canadian winters, it should work for me here in Barbados, right? It is hydrating, I’ll give it that, but it creates the ugliest white scum on the inner rim of my lips after a few minutes, so I can’t wear this during the day at all, no matter how little of it I use. Note, this is not advertised as a sleeping mask like the Laneige is, it’s supposed to be used during the day. And honestly, it’s not even that hydrating either. When I do my exfoliation routine, my lips are way softer when I finish with the Laneige compared with this. This was a complete fail, would never repurchase.
That’s it for now, but I’m planning a separate post on body lotions, hopefully I’ve have that up soon. In the meantime, find me on Instagram!
Keisha's Beauty Blog 