Garbage time!

Having never used a brow gel, I wasn’t sure what to expect. But uh… it’s really just gel.. for your brows. Revolutionary. I don’t have unruly brows (hell, I barely have brows at all) so this was essentially pointless on me. I used up the Chella Eyebrow Defining Gel and it was perfectly adequate, but I doubt I’m the best test subject for this kind of product.

Purchase? Nah.

This was super disappointing. Make Up For Ever‘s Aqua Liner in 13 Black was super shiny which caused it to collect eyeshadow from the rest of my lid. It picked up pigment from the eyeshadow on my lid. It was beyond infuriating and drove me absolutely mental. Never again will I buy a shiny liquid liner. Ugh.

Repurchase? GOD NO

MAC‘s Prep + Prime for lips – a must have for me. I finish one of these every 3-6 months because I wear it whenever I wear lipstick. It holds my lip product in place and prevents bleeding outside my lip line that not even lip liner can stop. Must have!

Repurchase? Already have two more open! One at work and one at home.

Real Techniques‘ Miracle Complexion Sponge is my preferred way to apply foundation. I can barely stand to use brushes now because this thing is so amazing. I’d actually been using this one since March of last year and was worried that perhaps it had gone mouldy in the middle (since I’d heard some people complain that had that happen with their Beauty Blenders) despite regular washings. So I cut it open one day and low and behold, it’s perfectly fine. So if you clean your sponges regularly enough, I wouldn’t worry too much about it going rotten on the inside, even if you’ve been using it for about 9 months.

Repurchase? Already have! I picked one up at IMATS 2014.

I’ve had MAC‘s Lip Conditioner in Petting Pink for quite a while before I finally used it up. It was a bit goopy and never really stayed on my lips that long. I didn’t find it actually moisturized all that much since it wore off so fast.

Repurchase? Nah. Pass.

essence Get Big! Lashes (pr sample) – Great product, but I never really fell in love with it for whatever reason. The curve of the brush made it easy to apply to my lashes and it definitely made them quite black.
Purchase? Nah.

Benefit They’re Real – I love this mascara! It makes my lashes look enormous since the volume it builds is incredible. HOWEVER, this stuff dries up way too fast. For a thirty dollar mascara I’m pretty pissed off that it’s near un-useable after a month and a half. BUT for that month and a half, my lashes looked amazing.
Repurchase? On the fence.

Estee Lauder Sumptuous Infinite (sample size) – This one surprised me. I was expecting an old style bristle brush, but it was actually a rubberized wand with really nicely spaced out bristles. It applied mascara evenly and separated my lashes perfectly.
Purchase? Maybe. I’m put off by the price of high end mascaras, but I really did love this one.

Urban Decay Perversion (sample size) – Another amazing one! Not as separating as some mascaras, but the volume on this was one was especially nice. This one small sample size actually lasted me a really long time (longer than the Benefit one!)
Purchase? Same as the Estee Lauder one. Nice to use, but damn that price is really a put off.

Revlon Colorstay Top Coat was… a top coat. Man, I don’t notice any difference with top coats really. Like what’s the difference between a top coat and a clear nail polish? I sure as hell don’t notice one!

Repurchase? Nope.

A well loved eye makeup remover, but not my favourite as I prefer oil-based removers.

Repurchase? Nah, gone back to my favourite Marcelle one.

This was interesting. I’m not a big fan of primers, so I’m mostly trying to finish up what small samples I have to get them out of my collection. However, Dr. Brandt‘s Pores No More primer was a lot of fun to use. It smells like tea tree oil (and was therefore quite refreshing on my skin) and smoothed on my face like butter. It’s tinted slightly darker than my own skin colour (roughly MAC NW20), so it helped darken up some of my lighter foundations. I have no need for a primer, but this was fun to try out nonetheless.

Purchase? Nah.

Olay Bead Me Up! Exfoliating Cleanser – Totally sucked in by the awesome packaging on these. The scrub is nice, but not especially abrasive. Smelled nice, worked just fine.

Olay Shine, Shine, Go Away! Shine Minimizing Cleanser – Yeah, I’m not convinced this reduced any shine on my face at all. I did love the product though – it was a cool grey colour and smelled really fresh.

Repurchase? Maybe (to both). I don’t have sensitive skin so I like trying out new products all the time, but I’m sure I’ll eventually repurchase these.

Aveeno Skin Relief Body Wash – I *love* the smell of this. To me it smells intoxicatingly like almonds and cherries (not the cough medicine kind of cherry smell). It’s also gentle on the skin, especially during the winter months when my skin can feel dry and itchy.

Repurchase? This is probably my tenth bottle of this stuff, and I already have another one in the linen closet ready for use!

All of the Fortune Cookie Soap items are not going to be repurchased by me as they are primarily seasonal scents. Mini reviews below.

Personal Space Air Freshener in Flying Monkeys – This was no good at all. It would scent a room for about 10 seconds, then totally dissipated and it definitely didn’t take any bad smells with it.

Lip Scrub in Blow Me! – Delicious! Tasted like bazooka gum with a bit of Fun Dip. Did its job and was fun to use.

Deep Conditioner in Christmas Bonus – This was WONDERFUL. The pepperminty, white chocolate scent was amazing and it made my hair feel fantastic.

Whipped Cream in Wicked, Good – Lovely, but a bit too much of the rich pumpkin scent. The scent would’ve worked better as a candle.

Whipped Soap in Fried Pussycat – Smelled nice and was fun to use. Not sure it’s a cost effective way to make or use soap though.

Hair Oil in Hair Flip – I used this on the ends of my hair and while I didn’t notice a change in the quality of my ends, it sure did make my hair smell nice.

This was my “leave at work” moisturizer. I’ve bought  Vaseline‘s Cocoa Radiant moisturizer many times over the years. It can be a bit greasy, but it’s because it’s so thick. Heavily moisturizing and smells great.

Repurchase? Definitely.

You really can’t go wrong with The Body Shop‘s shower gels. This one in Frosted Cranberry smells like a fruity alcoholic drink. It was a small size (it was in my Christmas stocking), but it gave me about 5-10 uses out of it.

Finally! /throws out the garbage