Project 6 by Christmas!

UPDATE!

I didn't finish all 6 in each category but I did really well!  We unexpectedly traveled over the holidays and I was unable to pack everything. I will continue using the products which are not crossed off below.  There are a few challenges going around, Finish 7 by Spring, Finish 5 by Cinco de Mayo which I will be participating so look for those blog posts soon as well as a special challenge, Pan that Palette 2015 inspired by Amber F yet again!  She finished the original Urban Decay Naked palette!  More on that challenge soon but I will say that I started today!

I have been inspired by YouTube yet again, but this time in a positive way!  Well not that YouTube affects me negatively but I can some times be influenced to purchase unneeded makeup and skincare products.  Duh.

I'm not sure when this all started but I was browsing Amber F's channel and felt really inspired by her "Pan that Palette."  She has finished all but one shadow (Gunmetal) of the original Naked palette finished!  Hot damn...  I've had the palette for roughly the same amount of time, 4 years, and I have a significant dip in Virgin, a dip in Sin and uh, that's it.  All the shadows have been used of course but to see completely empty, shiny pans?  That's incredible.  And why don't I use a palette like that?  

Amber F and a bunch of other Youtuber's are doing the "6 by Christmas" tag.  Since I didn't pinpoint when the "6 by Christmas" started, I decided to pick some products that I know I can finish, not easily, but realistically in 31 days.  Yes, I know Christmas is on the 25th, but I'm going to cut myself a little slack since I'm starting late. Fair?  :)  

To keep things even more challenging...  I've chosen 6 products not only in makeup, but skincare, hair and body categories.  Oh yes, 31 days...  Only one product included is unused, the rest, are more than half to nealy finished.  I love a challenge and with a deadline within a month, it's on!

Let me first start off with products that I know will be finished by the end of the year without any fuss, products that I have been enjoying and not necessarily in a rush to finish but they are nearly empty with just a few more uses.  You know that I love me a list of products to use up:

Embryolisse Lait-Creme Concentre

Alpha Hydrox Oil-free Treatment 10% Glycolic AHA Anti-Wrinkle

Pore Medic Derma@Home Peeling by Dr. Jart

Rita Hazan Root Concealer

Korres Greek Yoghurt Advanced Nourishing Sleeping Facial

Crabtree & Evelyn body lotion in Wisteria and Evelyn Rose

Serenity Spa Affinity Bay Ultra Relaxing Bath Tablets 

Yes to grapefruit correct & repair brightening facial towelettes

Simple Smoothing Facial Scrub

The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash

Bliss fabulous foaming face wash

2 Urban Decay mascara

Almay mascara

Out of this list, I will definitely repurchase Rita Hazaan, this is my 3rd bottle, Embryolisse, I have another Korres, and I will be needing another The Body Shop Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash.  I do need another at home derma product and a Glycolic treatment.  

So now on to my "Finish 6 before Christmas" makeup products

1.  CoverGirl 3-n-1 Outlast in 825

2.  L'OREAL Magic Nude LUMI in 816 Nude Beige

3.  Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque

4.  Philosophy Concealer (failed to include in photo!)

5.  NYC Sunny Bronzer

6.  Tarte Smoothe Operator Amazionian Clay Finishing Powder

All of the liquid/cream products are nearing expiration or have technically expired, 1.5-2 years...  NYC SUNY bronzer is close to pan and I was a bad girl and purchased some new products that I will be sharing with you soon! Tarte is about half way and I have a lot of other finishing powders in the wait.

There is a serious dip in this bottle!  

Now on to skincare products!  For some reason I choose a lot of primer-like items.  This will be tough.  I can't really use primers in the humidity, everything just melts so now that the weather has cooled, it is a good time to use them up.

1. L'OREAL Revitalift Miracle Blur

2. L'OREAL Youth Code Texture Perfector

3. L'OREAL Magic LUMI Light Infusing Primer

4. Rimmel Gentle Eye Makeup Remover

5. Sephora Anti-Shine Primer

6. Lorac POREfection Primer

Luckily I have 2 samples, but I try not to use a lot of extra products on my skin as to not clog my pores.  I like to add the LUMI to the CoverGirl 3-n-1 which is quite matte and the Magic Blur around my eyes and on a fun little crease that is forming between my eyes...  Oh the joys of age!  I haven't quite found a benefit to using the Texture Perfector so this will be a test to see if I have some results.

Hair!  I'm usually a wash-and-go kind of gal but now that the weather is cool, blowing my hair dry is a more realistic prospect.

1. Klorane Dry shampoo

2. It's a 10 Miracle leave-in product

3. Bb Straight Blow-Dry

4. L'OREAL OleoTherapy Oil Essence

5. Living Proof prime Style Extender

6. Christophe Professional Dry Conditioner

Klorane was a birchbox sample which I have had forever, time to use it up!  It's a 10 is another product which I have 2 other smaller size bottles that I need to remember to use.  Bb Straight and Living Proof both have a couple more uses.  This month I should be able to determine which one I like more.  They both act very similar and I like the both of them!  The Christophe Dry Conditioner is really nice.  I was thinking that this was a dry shampoo but it's not for the roots.  I use it on second day hair and it really softens and seemingly moisturizes my ends without greasing things down like an oil or cream does.  I use the L'OREAL Oil essence on my ends, right out of the shower.  

Last but not least, body care!

1. Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy Eucalyptus spearmint body cream- UNUSED

2. Eucerin Original Healing Soothing Repair

3. St. Ives fresh hydration

4. mark. there's a charm 3-n-1 body cleanser

5. Crabtree and Evelyn La Source Relaxing Body Lotion

6. Crabtree and Evelyn La Source Relaxing Body Wash

Lots of lotion!  Tis the dry season!  I have a lot of lotion left over from last Black Friday 2013, shopping. I didn't hit the drugstore this year.  The deals weren't really extraordinary like last year.  But don't feel sorry for me, I more than made up for it on Cyber Monday.

Ton of stuff, a ridiculous amount really, but well on their way to be finished up.  Waste not want not!

Are you participating in any of these tags?  Let me know what products you are using up!

Current Skincare Routine

One major thing my skin likes is consistency.  I can mix in a few samples here and there, but I learned that it is not something I can do every single day.  That being said, I cannot use the same products months on end.  My skin doesn't like that either.  Or I just haven't found the right mix of products to use forever.  But what fun would that be if I never tried another product?

Let's start with my morning routine...

I start off with a cotton round soaked in Boots N7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water to remove my skincare from the night before and any residual eye makeup that might have migrated under my eyes.

I then go in with some Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser and massage that all over my face, neck and décolletage.  I take a warm Muslim or face cloth and gently wipe off the cleanser and then I do my rinsing.  I hold my head over the sink and splash my face several times until I no longer feel any remaining cleansing. 

To ensure no remaining cleanser remains and to further balance the pH of my skin, I soak a cotton pad with witch hazel and go over my face, neck and décolletage.

After tonor, I follow up with Alpha Hydrox Oil-Free 10% Glycolic AHA Anti-Wrinkle Treatment on my face, neck and décolletage.  If I am having an active breakout, I will use Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid with Salicyclic Acid instead.  I soak and cotton pad, concentrate the product on my face and use the rest of my neck and décolletage.

For eye cream, I use Olay Regenerating eye lifting serum most mornings.  If I'm feeling puffy, I tap on Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift eye gel.

The final step is sunscreen.  Currently I use Doctor T's Supergoop City Sunscreen Serum with SPF 30. I'm running out of this product but (of course) I have 2 backups.  My first backup is Olay Professional ProX even skin tone Anti-Oxidant Sunscreen in SPF 35.  It is heavier than the Supergoop but I still like it.  

I also have Cetaphil Daily Facial Moisturizer in SPF 50.  Super greasy though.  If I am using Cetaphil, after my Witch Hazel step, I go in with a cotton pad with Milk of Magnesia and press it on my t-tone.  I'm not convinced of MoM's oil controlling magic, but I keep trying it out anyway especially with heavy high SPF moisturizers.

Regardless of the sunscreen I use, I apply it in my face, neck and décolletage every day.

My skin is now ready for primer and foundation!

Now on to my evening routine...

I start off with removing my eye makeup with a cotton pad soaked in Nuance by Salma Hayek Cumcumber & Rosewater Dual Phase Makeup Remover.  Dual Phase means that it must be shaken to mix both layers.  Since I have been using L'OREAL lash out butterfly mascara in waterproof, I might have to go in with jojoba oil to break it down further.  It's seriously budge proof which I like because it holds my curl in the pool and at the beach.  :)

Next step I use 2 pumps of Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser and I massage into my face, neck and décolletage but really concentrate and message the product into my face and t-zone for about 3-5 minutes.  I either use a Muslim cloth or a face cloth and wipe off the product and then steam my face, neck and décolletage for another 2-3 minutes.

For my second cleanse I am using a Neutrogena facial bar which I lather up, briefly massage on my face and then I go in with my cleansing brush on my face, neck and décolletage.  I have to be super careful not to get the Neutrogena in my eyes.  It burns like crazy!  If my skin is having a freak out as in allergic reaction, I will use Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser day and night, followed by Witch Hazel.  

For tonor, my absolute favorite is Korres Pomegranate Tonor (see above) which I initially bought 2 bottles from Marshall's and have been looking for more ever since.  This stuff finds more dirt even after both my cleanses.  

 

Same step as above, after toning...  Alpha Hydrox Oil-Free 10% Glycolic AHA Anti-Wrinkle Treatment on my face and neck.  If I am having an active breakout (not allergic reaction) I will use Paula's Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid with Salicyclic Acid instead.  The only difference here is that I have Studio Beauty 35 Alpha Hydroxy Face Cream 8% AHA of 70% Solution on my décolletage to use it up.  I had this way before the Alpha Hydrox which I just recently found at TJ Maxx. 

For eye cream at night, I'm using Ole Henriksen visual truth eye creme.  I picked this up on clearance at TJ Maxx and I really like it so far.  Nothing earth shattering, but it provides adequate moisture.

My night moisturizer changes every couple of days depending in what my skin needs.  I have been using Olay Professional ProX Brightening Renewal cream which came in a set with the Even Skin Tone Anti-Oxidant Sunscreen with SPF 35.  I bought this set on clearance at CVS for $11 so I'm assuming it is discontinued.  I really like it and I will start the search for a back up.  If I need a little more moisture or if I do a clay mask, I will use Korres Greek Yoghurt Advanced Nourishing Sleeping Facial.

I do mix in some oils here and there.  I will do a separate post.  But same cleansing routine and treatment but I will use an oil instead of a moisturizer.

Now that I have all the products lined up in front of me, it's a lot of product!

The following products are nearing the end:

Supergoop City Sunscreen Serum

Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser

Aura Cacia Organics Jojoba Oil

Nuance Dual Phase Makeup Remover

Studio Beauty 35 Alpha Hydroxy Face Cream 

Olay Regenerating eye lifting serum

Items I will always repurchase:

Supergoop City Sunscreen Serum

Liz Earle Hot Cloth Cleanser

Witch Hazel

Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser

Alpha Hydrox Oil-Free 10% Glycolic AHA Anti-Wrinkle Treatment

Korres Pomegranate Cleanser

Items I bought on clearance that I will try to find again: 

Boots N7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Water has been repurchased several times at Target and have not seen it since the last one I bought on clearance. 

Olay Professional ProX even skin tone set was bought at CVS on clearance and I believe before that I saw it at Walmart on clearance. 

It's a lot but it is working and my skin looks and feels really nice.  I'm really liking this routine but as I mentioned above, a few items are almost finished so I will need to adjust slightly.

Coming up soon will be posts on the oils that are currently in rotation a couple times a week and also my cleansing masks and cloth masks that I use a couple times a week as well.  So be in the look out for those!

Hope you are well!

Week 5+6 Empties!

We had a busy couple of weeks complete with more snow and no school in North Carolina.  What a winter!  We are finally back up to 70's.  Sorry everywhere else!  Truly I am...  I grew up in MA.

So on to the empties.  I finished up a few things.

Nexxus Therappe Ultimate Moisture Shampoo.  Sometimes you need just straight up moisture.  This one helps.  This is a drug store version.  From my understanding, the Nexxus you buy in an actual salon is more potent.  Any truth to that?

Korres Pomengranate Toner:  Thank goodness I have a backup.  I went back to Marshall's to buy the shelf but they were all gone.  This toner is a dirt magnet without stripping the skin.  I love, love, love it!

Julep Bare Face Cleansing Oil:  As soon as this ran out, I started having congestion issues with my skin.  That tells me that I need to repurchase.

Aveda Smooth Infusion Shampoo and Conditioner:  I wanted to be blown away by this stuff but sadly I wasn't.  It is super concentrated, maybe I used too much but it leaves a filmy feeling in my hair and when wet it's difficult to run a comb through it.  I don't feel comfortable yanking out all of my hair when trying to brush it.  No thanks.  Like the smell though.

Amlactin Ultra:  This has a terrible smell and its difficult to smooth into the skin.  It takes a lot of work.  I'm not afraid of a little extra effort, but I also have 3 kids and 2 dogs and cannot spend 20 minutes applying lotion to my body.  However, if I had extreme dry issues, I probably would.  Fortunately for me, I don't.  This was great for my feet though. 

Fresh Umbrian Clay Mattifying Serum:  Effective, but not during the summer for me.  But nothing truly has worked perfectly. 

Jose Maran Argan oil:  Though I have never purchased full size, based on the sample, it's worth whatever price it is.  This stuff is really good and my skin loves it.  I have the "light" version to try next.  I will see which one works the best and purchase.  After I use up a few things of course.

Korres Greek Yoghurt Moisturizing Face Cream:  My skin has been drinking this up.  I had to use this under CC and BB Creams.  My skin really needed it the past 2 weeks.

Murad Pore Refining Gel:  I had to break this out for some congestion issues 2 weeks ago.  I still have some issues on my chin but they are more localized under my lip and I'm starting to think it is from the lip balm I have been using.

Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Serum:  I thought that this was all gone but I'm still shaking a few drips out here and there.  I will keep trying!  I don't think it's enough moisturization for the winter.  Perfect for under makeup though.

Epielle Deep Cleansing Nose Strips x2:  They work pretty good and they are $2 for 3 at Big Lots.

md Skincare 4-in-1 Facial Treatment wipes:  Ugh my Holy Grail and I think these were discontinued.  And this was my very last one.  :(

UD Eyeshadow Potion:  I'm pretty sure I can break into this tube and slice my finger in the process to scrape out the last bits but I won't.

Lancôme Dreamtone in #1&#2:  They don't seem to have a color so I have been using them.  I don't see any dramatic results after 3-4 uses.  But maybe used in conjunction with other Lancôme facial products...

Lancôme Visionnaire:  This will go in the LUSH repurchase bag.  I would like to try this one a little more extensively.  I should probably share what I mean by the LUSH repurchase bag in another blog post.  Stay tuned!  :)

GlamGlow:  Remember when I said that I didn't understand the hype about this product?  Umm, I take that back.  It is very nice.  I'm not sure if I purchased a crappy tub from Hautelook but this sample was amazing.  Total skin clearing savior.  Maybe I used it when my skin was perfect or something.

Golden Root Purifying Mud Mask:  This used with Lancôme Visionnaire was complexion perfect.  I mean wow.  My skin looked beautifully even.  I would like to have both of these permanently.

And the rest were sort of unremarkable really.  Not going to sugar coat it. 

Of to the curb they go! 

Week 3 Empties!

This is why I will be doing this weekly...  Yikes.

So as you can see I dyed my hair.  I haven't dyed my hair in months.  Probably 3.  I had 4-5 inches of growth which was nice because I actually saw my natural hair color.  Ashy brown, golden highlights...  Oh and gray, massive amounts of it!  Ahhh!!!  Despite the gray strands, I immediately regretted ever dying my hair in the first place.  I thought I could just use my Rita Hazan Root Concealer but realistically, after 1-2 inches of root growth and the amount of product that was needed to conceal up to 5 inches, it's not the perfect solution. 

I thought I could deal with the gray, but the other 20 inches of hair on my head disagreed. So I grabbed a box of dye at Target.  I actually haven't seen Clairol Natural Instincts Crème in shade 21 anywhere so I took that as a sign to dye my hair.  Fun fact:  I grabbed what I thought was the last 2 shades of 21 at Target back in October?  I returned them a week later, swearing off dying my hair at home.  Oops! 

I like that this dye is ammonia-free and rinses out after 28 washes.  I can see where the claim "blends away grays" is true.  The product does not truly cover gray hair, it deposits a light coating on them so that they are less obvious.  Unless someone is right up in your business inspecting your strands, they are less noticeable.  And like I said it washes out. So when my permanently dyed hair grows out to shoulder length, I might just go natural?  Who am I kidding, I will totally get highlights or something.  I hate highlights, but like the idea of them and they blend out your grays...

Let's see what else.  Some Crest Prohealth, not sure why this is included but I will review it anyway.  This is alcohol free yet it still tears up your mouth the first couple of uses.  Total inside cheek skin peeler.  Which is annoying, but I really need to stick with a fluoride regiment.  I like mint or the blue mint variety of this.  I have a few bottles of various mouthwash in my stockpile.  Now I'm using Listerine. But this is one I can tolerate and would probably purchase in the future.

I've been working on this tube of Rembrandt since the summer.  I'm such a saver.  I would use this 1-2 times a week.  You can tell it is working by the color of the discarded toothpaste in the sink.  My teeth aren't bright white thanks to coffee and tea, but they aren't yellow either.  But this product does not make my teeth sensitive, probably because I do use it sparingly. I keep meaning to pick up white strips on a sale.  They are just so expensive for me right now.  I know Target makes a range, I should pick those up.

Korres Pomegranate Cleansing wipes were purchased at Marshall's.  I grabbed 3 or 4 of these at $2.99.  Good price for 25 wipes of a high end brand.  I like them.  Not as much at AVON's but these might be a little more natural?  It's hard to tell really.  But they are mineral oil, silicone propylene glycol, and ethanolamine free.  They are for oily/combination skin.  If I see these at Marshall's I will definitely repurchase.

I used a epielle nose strip which you can pick up at Big Lots for $1-2.  These work pretty good.  This one hurt coming off though.  Tear city!  But I have repurchased these nose strips several times and have not been disappointed.

I reviewed the Clinique and Boscia masks in my Week 3 Results post.  I really like them both.  Now I have 3 favorite masks including Eve Lom Resuce Mask.

The Kate Somerville CC cream was too dark but holy glow!  And not a bad thing.  I will definitely revisit this product in a lighter shade in the future.

The Nip+Fab products were unremarkable.  It's difficult to gauge products like this from a sample packet.  Results take 2-4 weeks of continued use for most products. 

The First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair cream was very nice.  I was able to use this sparingly almost the entire week at night.  I just read the packet for the first time.  Says it can be used from "head to toe..."  Hmm...  I used this solely on my face.  My skin must have needed it though!

Ugh I waited to long to use the Weleda Iris and it was all separated.  I usually take that as a sign that it has expired.  I've had this for a while.  I believe this was a Beauty Army sample so that brings us to 2012.  MAD Eye Defense Shielding Serum was another Beauty Army sample.  This was nice.  I used this over the Arbonne Eye Cream.  It had a silicone/slip like feel to it.  It helped to minimize/fill in fine lines.  I might be open to purchasing a full size of this!

I ended up dumping the rest of the AVON ANEW Rejuvenate Glycolic Facial Treatment.  It was also a different color than what I remembered it to be so I knew it was time.  This stuff works at smoothing the skin and evening out your skintone.  This is the old packaging, I believe the new packaging is white and silver.  I will repurchase.

Omojo fine line defense serum was purchased last summer on clearance at Walgreens.  They had 2 different varieties and I picked up both and subsequently finished them.  I use this after toning and before moisturizer.  I can't say I saw "results" but I feel serum is a necessary repair step before moisturizing.  As someone with oily skin, its a delicate balance finding products that hydrate without leaving you oily.  I used to not moisturize, but found this just dehydrated my skin, further creating oil. 

I'm still looking for the perfect solution.  My skin changes with the seasons, always oily, but lately it has been more normal.  And don't get my started on my skintone.  It changes color too! I'm like a chameleon.  It's a never ending battle!  One product, be it moisturizer, cleanser, foundation, will never work all year until the end of days for me.

Julep makes some amazing products.  I might have to do a separate post just on Julep products that I love.  Word to the wise, shake this product before using.  Towards the end, it was difficult to remove polish.  But in the beginning, it melted the glitteriest glitter bomb polishes with a single swipe.  No joke.  And it was nondrying.  I think it worked better than ZOYA and it is acetone free.  I make my own remover with Acetone, Glycerin, Water and Lavender Essential Oil but if needed, I would repurchase this.  Along with ZOYA's.  I love them both.

Neutrogena Body Oil and the Castor Oil were used in a salt scrub that I make.  Which I started a blog post on but never finished so I will do that ASAP.  This Castor oil bottle was a Oil Cleansing mix that I used on my face for a few months.  The Oil Cleansing Method works but you have to find the right combination of oils for your particular skin or it can be disastrous.  This method also uses a lot of time and a lot of hot water to thoroughly steam your face.  My routine takes forever as it is so the OCM pushes it to over 30 minutes.  I digress...  So to use up this castor oil mix or should I say repurpose, I made a salt scrub and mixed it with the Neutrogena body oil.  I think that they changed the formula or my skin changed but it doesn't have enough moisture for me anymore.  I find myself using this and then layering lotion over it.  I have a Nuance spray oil that I am going to try next.

Boots No.7 Cleansing water is a favorite of mine.  I really do not need it, but I really do.  I've never tried Bioderma, but very curious.  I feel hesitant to order off of Amazon for fear that I will receive a fake.  But when I'm on my possible trip in July, you know I will purchase and bring some home!  But this Boots product smells really nice, cleanses, does not strip the skin and it can remove eye makeup. I do not use waterproof so I can't say if it works that well.  But for my purposes I'm happy with it.  It's affordable and readily available at Target.  It's a win for me!

What did you finish up this past week?

Hope your week is going well!