EMPTIES | January to March 2019 Makeup Empties & Declutters

Hello internet! It's been a very long time since my last post (July 2018!) but to be fair, I haven't been blogging consistently for a couple years now. Life has been hectic for me, both good and bad. But I think I'll save that for another post because I've been saving all these beauty empties for months! It's definitely time to jot down my thoughts on these items and find a good way to recycle them. Here's a quick glance at all the makeup I used up from January to March of this year:

There's just so many products to talk about so I'm dividing the posts into makeup, skincare, and finally hair and body. I threw in my declutters at the end of this blog post since most of them were makeup, sadly. 

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EMPTIES | March 2017

Happy Monday everyone! The Monday blues are nowhere to be seen here and with the sunshine, I feel so uplifted. I've been hoarding these empties for a while now so to justify my pack-rat tendencies, let's write about them! This was a slow month for me but I did finish a few full-sized items.

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EMPTIES | February 2017

 So I don't remember which month I finished all the products but I'm going to go in order to keep a semblance of order. I'm slowly working through all the photos I have so bear with me as I catch up. Besides that little hiccup, let's get into the products I'd repurchase and which ones I'd pass.

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EMPTIES | December 2016 & January 2017

I've been holding onto my empties for over a year now so to justify my hoarding, I've decided to write about them. As I write this, it's Valentine's Day and what better way to end the night with some blogging about what I loved and what I didn't? 

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BEAUTY ROUNDUP | Year in Beauty: 2016 Edition Part 1

Welcome to my first post of 2017! It's been another 366 days around the sun and many a beauty love has been discovered. In previous years, I chose four products in six categories to talk about. Strategic buying made this year's list harder to compile because I really do love so many things! Some things will come as no surprise but there are others that are just getting their spotlight now. I'll link to related blog posts so y'all can get more information if you're interested. I've split it into two parts and this one will be all my makeup loves. So without further ado, here is 2016's Year in Beauty!

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BLOGMAS | Day 7: Candy Cane-Inspired Christmas Makeup

Christmas is less than seven hours away as I'm writing this post! I've been super behind on #Blogmas due to family commitments but I'll continue to post what I have planned because I think they still fit it with the winter season. This look was inspired by a candy cane, though it's a shame I don't have one to eat right now. I'm also documenting the Anastasia Modern Renaissance Palette for y'all so I'm doubly excited! So let's head into the tutorial!

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PRODUCT SMACKDOWN | Battle of the Lip Balms

It's been over two weeks since I last posted on the blog and I do apologize for the silence. School is my main priority, so I hope you understand. I'm taking human anatomy, along with two other courses, and it's been kicking my butt. I hope this doesn't come across as bragging, but I've never studied so intensely for any course in my life! The last time I was this studious was for AP U.S. History in high school. So, it's definitely a challenge but I'm enjoying everything so far...let's see how I feel by the end, haha. 

Anyhoo, since I start school super early in the mornings, I can only put in minimal effort. On top of that, the past few weeks have been hot and dry. Out of all lip products, lip balms are my favorite because they require little to no effort to apply and don't look horrible if I don't do touch ups. I mean, not much to touch up throughout the day if it's a lip balm?  I've been rotating between the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatments, Maybelline Baby Lips, the Burt's Bees Replenishing Lip Balm and the ULTA Lip Balm. So let's get into my thoughts on each!

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BEAUTY ROUND-UP | July 2016

July is finally over and that means only one more month until school starts! It's been a month of ups and downs but let's focus on makeup, shall we?These are the 8 products I've been using this month so let's dive in. 

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BEAUTY ROUND-UP | June 2016: The Throwback Edition

It's that time of time of the month when I share about all the products I've liked these past few months. I call this the throw back edition because they're all products I've had for a while. Pulling them out for the Great Purge (a destashing project where I go through my entire collection to use up all my non-CF products) reminded me how much I love them. I am going cruelty-free so most of these will not be repurchased but I'll still talk about them while  I have them. Without further ado, let's get into the products!

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DESTASHING PROJECT | Going Cruelty Free: Eye Edition Pt. 2

This is part 2 of my Eye Makeup De-stashing Project! If you haven't checked out part 1 of the De-Stashing Project: Eye Edition, head on over there to find out what eyeshadows are staying and which are going onto greener pastures.

So without further ado, here is me trying to decide what to keep and what to let go...harder than it looks :(

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DESTASHING PROJECT | Going Cruelty-Free: Eye Edition Pt. 1

Welcome to the first part of my De-Stashing Project! As you all know if you read the previous post, this blog is going cruelty-free. I have been limiting my purchases to cruelty-free only items but decided that it was finally time to go through my collection and either sell or use up the non-cruelty stuff. The process took me at least 3 hours plus photography time but it's been organized and being put to use. Since I have such an overwhelming amount, it was difficult to find things but with the way things are now, I am reaching for more products and getting use out of them. We're starting off with the eyes since it was the easiest to go through.

When I finished writing this post, it was super long and ain't nobody got time for essays. So, I'll be splitting it into two parts. This first part (going up today) will be single eyeshadows and palettes while the second part will be eye primers, eyeliners eye crayons and mascaras. The second part will go up on Saturday so you get an extra post this week--yay!

 I'll be keeping tally of what's staying and what's going to a better home. So let's get started!

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DE-STASHING PROJECT | Samples Weekly Edit #1

As I mentioned in my Beauty Samples Hoarder post, I've made a commitment to use up more of my items. I like to save things for rainy days or for travel but they end up going bad before I get any use out of it. Stockpiling items has made my collection grow out of control and like I mentioned before, I've lugged all of these items through 3 houses and since I'm about to move again, I really need to clear things out.

Each week, I'll pull out at least 5 samples from 3 categories: hair & body, skincare and makeup, to use throughout the week. Every Sunday, I'll report back and give mini-reviews. I'll try to include swatches but since these aren't official reviews, I apologize ahead of time if there aren't any!

So with the introductions made, let's get into the juicy bits!

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HALLOWEEN INSPO | Helpful Hufflepuff

For the graphics in the header photo, I used Mikey Booch's Hufflepuff Banner Wallpaper and Emily Corene's HD Hufflepuff Traits Wallpaper

With 5 days left to Halloween, I decided to kick off this new series! Halloween usually calls for scary costumes and horror movies but that's never been my scene. As a Potterhead, I will rewatch the Harry Potter movies and hand out candy instead. If you're looking for a terrifying makeup tutorial, you've come to the wrong blog. However, if you were looking for an understated and simple Halloween look that you can wear to the office, you've come to the right spot! I'm starting with Hufflepuff because it's my favorite house, not that I'm biased or anything...

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BEAUTY REVIEW | August 2015 ♡

This month has flown by so I didn't test as many products as I wanted to. There are repeat loves but there are a couple new products that I'm extremely excited to talk about! Without further ado, let's get on with the post. :D

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HAUL + MINI-REVIEWS + EOTD | ⁂ Sephora Annual VIB Rouge Sale ⁂

Not the most glamourous background but it'll do xD

With 20% off at Sephora, temptation was too great and I picked up a few things I was interested in. As you can see, I restrained myself to 4 items so this will be quick! Reviews for some of the items are forthcoming :D I forgot to photograph the Marc Jacobs Enamored Hi-Shine Nail Lacquer - Collector's Edition in Midnight in Paris but the long and short of it is that I liked the dark, almost black color and the application but the shine wore off way too quickly for me and chipped sooner than I'd expect from a $24usd bottle of polish, even though I used my usual base and top coat. 

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FAVORITES | Year in Beauty: 2014 Edition

It's already the fifth day of the new year so this post is a bit late I've just been really busy running errands and visiting family and friends, running from one place to another like a headless chicken on a caffeine high. In no particular order, I'm really excited to present to you the 20 products I tried and fell in love with this year and the 4 that will never get a second pass in my collection. 

1. MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Invisible Cover Foundation (Feb) -- The first high end foundation I ever tried, I fell in love with the light but buildable coverage. Most importantly, it was the best color match for my yellow-toned skin. The wide color selection, packaging, and performance make it a staple in my makeup kit!

2. NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer (May) -- The exorbitant price tag made me hesitate at first but again, the color match was spot on! I don't have to mix two colors like I used to, cutting down the guesswork, waste, and time spent getting ready by a good 2 minutes. Since I can use it on both my undereye circles and spots, it makes a perfect touch-up makeup bag companion. There's a bit of leakage at the top but that won't stop me from repurchasing this concealer!

3. Tarte Cheek Stain in Flush (Dec)-- This was a recent discovery  but it quickly made its way into my everyday rotation. I actually picked this up a while ago in the summer during Beautycon but only used it now that my skin has gotten quite dry. I've been meaning to post about this so I won't go into specifics but this is my favorite shade out of the ones I have (updated)!

4. Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer (Apr) -- Bronzer was not a part of my daily routine but this bronzer changed all of that. Not only does it smell like divine cocoa, the undertone is perfect for my tastes in contouring--no red or orange. One with a grey undertone mimics shadows best but those tend to look ashy on my warm skin tone. I got mine in a kit but I'm seriously considering purchasing it in a full size so I can take it everywhere!

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PRODUCT SMACKDOWN┊ MUFE Aqua Cream vs Tarte emphasEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow vs Maybelline Color Tattoo

The last time I wrote a Product Smackdown was months ago and so I brought another one here today :) I've been sitting on this one for a while and am so ready to talk about these now. I'm discussing the Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream, Tarte emphasEYES Amazonian Clay Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow, and the Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal Eyeshadow in this post. If you're a fan of cream eyeshadows, you won't want to miss this one!

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TIPS┊ ✈ What's in my Bag?: Travel Makeup Edition ✈

So this might be a little late as the summer is winding down, but I've been doing a lot of travelling these past couple of weeks. I have a problem with overpacking (gotta have my options!) and these are just some of the tips I have that helped me cut down on the number of products and bags I bring with me. I was heading to BeautyCon LA (I'll have a separate post on that!) so I packed a lot more than I usually do but...you get the gist of it. The items I packed aren't taking into consideration airline regulations, which vary by country/airline, so this is more if you're going to be checking in your luggage or travelling by methods other than air.

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FOTD | ✿ Jun Ji Hyun Inspired Spring '14 Makeup ✿

I'm slowly catching up with my posts >.< I just had a midterm and now I have a paper due next Monday so it's taking me a while but I'll get there! I've never heard of Jun Ji Hyun before but after watching You Who Came From the Stars, I've completely become a big fan of hers and cannot wait to see what project she'll come up with next! Now, I do not claim to look like her but I love how her makeup was fresh looking, with the dewy skin as well as on trend, with the pop of orange on her lids, strong orange cheeks, understated orange lips and a bit of contouring. Like the title says, I'm going to show you how to get a fresh, on-trend Spring look without going overboard. ✿

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FAVORITES | March 2014 ♡

This month, I didn't wear too much makeup because my skin was just not in a good place.  I was breaking out all over my chin and upper mouth/under my nose region, which wasn't pretty. Needless to say, I really focused on my skincare this past month and my skin has improved somewhat. I have a couple of products to show you, makeup-, skincare- and nail-wise, so let's jump right in!

MAKEUP

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