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During the month of February, I ended up finishing quite a lot of beauty products, today I’m going to be reviewing all of my February beauty empties.
One of my beauty resolutions for 2020 was to ‘broaden my beauty horizons’ by trying out more products from different brands.
But, before I can even think about this resolution, I need to get serious about using up some of the products that I already have in my collection.
So many products are lying around unused, and it’s not even that they are bad products, I just never give myself enough time to use them up before buying new ones.
So, for 2020, I am going to be operating under a strict(ish) one-in, one-out rule.
Every time I finish a product, I can fill the gap with something new — this should hopefully stop my collection from getting too out of hand with new products.
This also means a somewhat regular round-up of my empties, starting with reviewing all of my February beauty empties
Glossier You Perfume
I have loved this perfume since it first launched, mainly because the scent is so unique and interesting.
I like that this perfume is heavy on the base notes, it makes the scent really melt into your skin so it appears different on everyone who wears it.
My normal perfumes are very different to this, I’m normally a Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau So Fresh wearer, so I can’t quite put my finger on why I love You so much.
You feels like a grown-up fragrance without being the stereotypical musky, heavy scent that you’d normally think of.
I feel cool when I wear this perfume, and that’s probably just about as much description as I can give it.
If you haven’t trialled this out yet, I would definitely recommend doing your nose a favour and picking it up.
The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
If you suffer from breakouts, congested and dull skin – this is the product for you. I use this every morning and it’s one of the few products where I can honestly see a difference after continuous use.
It makes my skin look brighter and clearer, and works well with the other skincare products that I use on a daily basis.
I really feel like something is missing when I don’t use this product, even if only for a day — I will notice a difference in my skin right away.
As soon as I finished this I picked up another bottle, this time opting for the jumbo size so I don’t have to worry about running out again any time soon.
The Ordinary Squalane Cleanser
Another product from The Ordinary which *spoiler alert* I love is the Squalane Cleanser.
It’s a gel to oil-like consistency that melts makeup off easily and leaves the skin feeling fresh and hydrated.
As someone who has quite sensitive skin that can be prone to getting dry, especially around the colder seasons, I hate any cleanser that feels too stripping on the skin – which makes this perfect.
When you’re in a pinch you can easily use this product on it’s own and it will remove all of your makeup, but I find that it’s best as the second part of a double cleansing routine.
Like the Niacinimade, I also upgraded and repurchased the jumbo-size version of the cleanser. The regular 50ml size really won’t last long at all if you’re using it every day, and the jumbo size is just shy of £14 for 150ml so is far better value.
Origins A Perfect World Moisturiser
This is one of those products that I feel like I have had floating around in my collection forever, and towards the end I was itching to get it used up.
It’s not because it wasn’t a good moisturiser – it was nice enough. It just didn’t get me excited, I found that it wasn’t something that I reached for on a regular basis.
I used this mainly in the summer months because of it having SPF 40, which is great, but it also made the product a lot thicker than your usual daily moisturiser.
It made my skin feel hydrated, but was pretty heavy which could sometimes disrupt the rest of my makeup.
It was a nice product, but I am glad that now I will have some space on my skincare shelf to make room for some new products, or perhaps just another bottle of my holy grail Embryolisse.
WiDEYE Rehab Cleansing Balm
WiDEYE is a brand that makes natural, ethical beauty products that are affordable and gender neutral — that also all fall in the £10 to £20 price range.
They have different lines that target specific skincare concerns, for example, I picked up a Cleansing Balm from the Rehab range which contains orange, lemon and rosehip seed oil to brighten and invigorate the skin.
This product is a thick, oily balm that does an incredible job at removing even the most stubborn of makeup. It breaks down easily when it comes into contact with water, but because of the thick nature of it you really do need to follow up with a water-based cleanser to make sure that none of it builds up in your pores.
This makes my skin feel great after use, it’s noticeable brighter and fresher – I thoroughly enjoyed using it.
WiDEYE have a store in Brighton, which is where I picked this up, and where I will be visiting again to pick up some more products. But if you’re not on the south coast, they also sell their products online.
La Roche-Posay Toleriane Ultra Moisturiser
La Roche-Posay is a brand that I will trust to the death, I have yet to try a product from them that didn’t work for me and Toleriane is one my favourite ranges of theirs so I knew this product was going to be a winner.
This is your standard daily no-fuss moisturiser – there’s no crazy scent or anything overly fancy about this but that’s what makes it so great. This whole range is formulated for sensitive skin so it’s super gentle and does what it says on the tin – keeps your skin hydrated all day long.
