May 2015 Empties!

Here we are again. You, me, my trash, and the excitement I feel to share what I used up with you. Empties are my favourite to write and my most read. Lets do this!

Mega Food Blood Builder - These whole food vitamins are incredible. These specific ones contain iron, B12, vitamin C, and folate, and have helped increased my iron levels. I've been taking them for over a year now (not this one jar) and can honestly say that I feel a difference when I take them. Will be repurchasing, though I'm totally trying to find them on sale.

Clean Well Foaming Soap in Lavender - Love this antibacterial hand soap. It contains thyme oil to kill bacteria, is gentle, and smells nice. Sadly, it is no longer available in Canada. Maybe it's not as clean as we though? Dun, dun, dun...the plot thickens. If you guys know why it's not carried in Canada anymore, let me know.

*Odylique Gentle Herb Shampoo - review here - Didn't like it as a shampoo but loved it as a shave gel/cream/thing. It didn't have much of a scent and didn't cause any irritation when shaving. Wouldn't repurchase.

The Body Deli Living Hair Shampoo - review here - Love! Smelled like minty greatness (not too strong though), full of living/raw/organic ingredients, left my hair and scalp feeling lovely, and I enjoyed it. Already repurchased.

Wedderspoon Manuka Honey - This stuff is golden, literally. I love using manuka honey in my DIY face masks, or even on its own as a face mask because it is antibacterial and brightening properties. Wedderspoon sent me an organic version a few months back, so I won't be repurchasing right away, however I have already bought and gone through several jars of this magical stuff.

Pure Anada Hydrating Toner - I picked this up, on a whim, at the Big Carrot some months ago and loved it for setting my makeup. It didn't have a smell, which is nice, and worked well to to prep my skin for makeup and set makeup. Will likely repurchase.

Andalou Naturals Illuminating Toner - review here -  Surprise, surprise, I went through another bottle and am already going through another. It's my fave, what else can I say?

Andalou Naturals Radiant Skin Polish - review here - This was probably my favourite physical exfoliant ever, and that's coming from someone who doesn't normally like scrubs. It was a harsher scrub that could easily be "sheered out" (do those words work with scrubs?) by adding more water. It left my sensitive skin feeling soft and smooth, never irritated. Would repurchase.

Andalou Naturals Super Goji Peptide Perfecting Cream - I sense an Andalou theme, anyone else? This range just works so well for my skin. I have had the most difficult time finding a facial moisturizer that doesn't give me red bumps all over my forehead. Then, this one came along. It smelled faintly of oranges, was light enough to wear under makeup, yet moisturizing enough to smooth out dry patches. I can't even explain how much I love this cream, I'm already on my second jar.

Badger Balm Joint Rub - This balm was a Godsend when I was working at a spa, my whole body needed this ish after days of back to back clients and it immediately relieved pain. Sadly, the texture, colour, and scent changed and it needs to be tossed. I would repurchase, preferably in a smaller tin if available.

NBW Marigold Magic Body Scrub - When I worked at the spa, this was the only scrub that we used for manis and pedis, the texture was perfect. It contains shea butter, which held the scrub together without the oil separation happening. Because of my positive experience with it, I decided to buy a small version from Glam Goes Green. While the smaller version was still awesome, it did have a lot of oil separation. Because of that I would recommend and repurchase the full/bigger size of this scrub over the mini.

*North Hill Soap Company Soap in Happy Hippie - review here - This soap definitely made me a happy hippie with it's patchouli scent and exfoliating properties. I wish I was able to find this soap in more shops as I would 100% repurchase it.

*North Hill Soap Company Soap in Sea Goddess - review here - Not my favourite. It was more scratchy than exfoliating and just didn't excite me. Products need to excite, know what I'm saying?

*Kari Gran Cleansing Oil - review here - Really enjoyed using this cleansing oil. It removed makeup and left my skin super soft. Would consider purchasing the full size.
*Kari Gran Hydrating Tonic - review here - Ugh, I loved this. I didn't want to because it's pricey but I can't say no to a good facial mist. Would consider purchasing the full size.
The Body Deli Living Hair Conditioner - Since I love the shampoo, I thought that I'd try a sample of the conditioner. The sample was enough for two uses and I didn't find it to be as special as the shampoo. It felt like it washed off and didn't actually condition. Wouldn't purchase the full size.
Ilia Lip Conditioner in Arabian Knights - review here - After almost 2 years, I've finally used up this lip conditioner and if I've learned anything, it's that you should use your lip products and not save them for special occasions. Anyway, I loved this moisturizing berry toned lip conditioner from Ilia. It was easy to wear year round and the intensity was buildable. After two years, I'm over the tinted lip conditioners. I've been transitioning to lipsticks and lip pencils, and prefer a less glossy formula.  
Cheeky Cosmetics Mineral Shadow in Midnight - review here - This navy blue mineral shadow worked well when doing a smokey eye and as a liner, but it's now a shade I lean towards often. I mean, it took me two and a half years to finish this sample.
That's my trash! Let me know if you see anything you love, hate, and/or want to try.
*PR samples

May 2013 Empties!

I now get why in most Youtube empties videos they start with, "I can't believe (enter month) is already over". Time seems to be passing quicker and quicker every month. As usual, this will be a lengthy empties with some random products. I'm going to try and keep it short and sweet.

Skin Care

Pai Echium Biorejuvenate Eye Cream - review here - This is such a lovely eye cream. It's light, yet hydrated well, and did seem to slightly minimize the appearance of my fine lines. It worked great alone or under makeup. I've gone through two tubes of it and will likely repurchase.

Weleda Baby Calendula Face Cream - review here - LOVE.THIS.STUFF. It is so moisturizing, nourishing and just wonderful. I use it on my face and body on the regular and have already repurchased.

Camocare Organics Instant Radiance AHA Lifting Peel - review here - This was a nice chemical exfoliating product. Was it better than P+S lactic or Devita glycolic blend? No. I wouldn't repurchase.

Aura Cacia Avocado Oil - no review - I was experimenting with different oils and making my own blended facial oils in the Winter. I think Avocado oil is a bit heavy for my skin, so I ended up using it in my hair which worked great. I wouldn't repurchase though.

Thayers Cucumber Witch Hazel Toner - review here - I've gone through several bottles of this stuff, it's my absolute favourite toner at a such a great price point. I'm not going to repurchase right now because I've been experimenting with a DIY apple cider vinegar and aloe toner.

Scrubs

BambuEarth Sugar Cookie Body Polish - review here - This left my skin soft but the scent was too strong for me. Great company, great ingredients, just not the scrub for me.

Lush Popcorn Lip Scrub - review here - I really enjoyed the taste of this scrub. It's sweet and salty, and worked great at exfoliating my lips. Won't be repurchasing because I'm going to attempt (not like it's hard) my own lip scrub.

Samples

Suki Transformative Cleansing Clay/Bio-active Purifying Face Serum/ Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser - These sample packets were way too small to decide if they a. did anything and b. did anything. I've had multiple samples of the exfoliate foaming cleanser and that's lovely.

Dermalogica Daily Resurfacer - I was using the daily resurfacer while in my second skin care course and it worked really well on my skin. I found it reduced break outs and helped lighten acne scars. Obviously the sample was a one time use, but it gave my skin an overnight boost. It's pretty expensive and not totally natural, I likely won't purchase.

Dr. Alkatis Organic Cellular Repair Mask - review here - I didn't find this mask did anything special for my skin. I won't purchase the full size.

More Samples

Dr. Alkatis Organic Herbal Toner - review here - This was a nice toner. It hydrated, cleansed, didn't irritate or burn my skin, and smelled nice. A little expensive for a toner though, I won't purchase the full size.

Dr. Alkatis Organic Soothing Gel - review here - My face initially burned upon applying this soothing gel, but it got used to it. I found it helped heal acne and calm down my skin. I'm still unsure on if I'd purchase the full size. I guess if I'm that unsure, it's likely I won't.

Green Beaver Green Tea Facial Cream - I also used this in my skin care course as my moisturizer for each facial. So instead of whoever worked on me applying a chemical filled moisturizer, I used this and it was great. It hydrated and soothed my skin really nicely. I think I may purchase the full size eventually.

Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence - I kept this in my purse to refresh my makeup during the day. It's pretty miniature but one spritz is all I needed. It's very scented, overpowering really. It's not a scent that I could see myself getting used to. I won't be purchasing the full size.

I actually met Nancy and Patricia, who own Shoosha True, at The Big Carrot earlier this month. The line is geared towards babies and mothers/mothers to be. Patricia told me how the products can be used as skin care and how both (Nancy and Patricia) use their products on their face. Both ladies were super sweet and passionate that I ended up getting a couple of samples to try on my face.

Shoosha True Gentlest Baby Wash & Shampoo (Unscented) - It was nice, slightly foaming, unscented cleanser. It worked well at removing most of my makeup and keeping my skin hydrated. I still much prefer my Pangea cleanser though and so I won't be picking up the full size.

Shoosha True Rejuvenate Stretch Mark  Serum - Apparently this works wonders on both Patricia and Nancy. What really made me want to try it is the tamanu oil in it. Y'all know how much I love tamanu! Sadly, it gave me little red bumps all over my forehead. I ended up using it on some actual stretch marks (behind my knees, hips, etc). Of course, it's too small a sample to see a difference but it smelled really nice and could work with continued use.

Randoms

Pukka Tea in Chamomile & Vanilla, Harmonise, and Green Tea - Yes, I have a tea problem. I especially have a Pukka tea problem because I just love them. In all fairness, I think I have 2 bags left of both Chamomile & Vanilla and Harmonise, but in attempt to make space and throw out the boxes, I included them. I absolutely love C&V! It's so soothing and comforting, I've actually already purchased a backup. Harmonise was alright, I didn't find it to taste like much. I won't be repurchasing that one. The Green Tea was really nice because it's a blend of three different green teas. This was actually my second (or third) box. I'm going to look into a loose leaf green tea next, so I haven't repurchased.

More Randoms

Udo's Choice Flora Probiotic Super 8 Plus - I talked about this probiotic in my April Empties. I've noticed a massive difference since taking probiotics and this one is apparently really great. I've already repurchased but I go through them rather quickly, so I may look into a different brand next time.

Mega Food Women's One Daily - I really like taking a multi when I don't feel like I ate enough or ate nutritious enough. This one in particular is supposed to be a whole food multi, basically the vitamins and minerals come from actual food sources and can be better absorbed by the body. This is a great brand and even my boyfriend bought some as well. I haven't actually repurchased this brand. I'm trying another whole food brand that's a little more wallet friendly.  

Tossing

EOS Shave Cream in Pomegranate Raspberry - I bought this like two years ago, not even looking at the ingredients. I figured their EOS lip balm is pretty natural so their other products must be as well. A tip, from me to you, never assume! I don't shave often because I've had laser hair removal done, that's why this lasted me forever. It smells amazing but it's loaded with crap ingredients like fragrance, mineral oil, etc, etc.



Also tossing

Dr. Alkatis Night Crème - review here - I actually found this after I had tossed everything out, but since it's not being used I've decided to toss it. Both my mom and I don't enjoy this cream and we agree it's too heavy regardless of how much or little we use.

If you've made it through the entire post, I applaud you. It was exhausting to write, probably because it's late and I'm pretty tired, and I hope it wasn't as exhausting to read.

Let me know what you've finished up!