Empties: June 2019.

During June I managed to finish twenty-three samples and thirteen full-sized products.

Skincare.

I used up nine full-sized skincare items.

La Roche Posay Eau Thermal is great for refreshing and rinsing skin and to use as an extra hydrating layer between products. Reasonably priced, packaged in an aerosol can this French pharmacy staple is a welcome addition to any routine and a must have in warm weather.

Emma Hardie Midas Touch Revitalising Eye Cream has a creamy gel texture and absorbs instantly offering immediate hydration and a temporary smoothing of the eye area. It was very nice but didn't stand out for me in any way and there are plenty of other (similarly priced) eye creams that I prefer.

I used two full-sized serum and one oil.

Vichy V Liftactiv Vitamin C Brightening Skin Corrector is a water weight serum that feels slightly tacky on application. I used this mainly for protection as I don't have any hyperpigmentation right now. Once absorbed it layered well with other products but I didn't see any noticeable difference in my skin. It comes in a tiny 10ml bottle and ml for ml works out to be more expensive than Drunk Elephant CFirma which surprised me. I was a bit disappointed in this one, to be honest, and wouldn't repurchase it.

 Kat Burki Retin-C Treatment Complex is an absolutely beautiful night time serum. It is a very lightweight 'wet' serum that has a wonderful white flower scent. I'm always on the lookout for a  retinol product that is effective, feels moisturising and doesn't cause redness or flaking - this is it! Worth saving up for.

Beauty Kitchen High Definition Facial Oil is a thick viscous oil scented with Anjelica that absorbs really well despite its thick consistency. I really liked this, it was plumping and moisturising and didn't feel at all greasy.

 I used two full-sized moisturisers up.

Tata Harper Repairative Moisturiser is a lightweight liquid moisturiser with a  fresh clean grassy scent. It is very nice but it's expensive - more than I would usually pay for a moisturiser so I don't see myself getting this again.

Beauty Kitchen Everlasting Radiance Moisturiser is nice and creamy. It feels very comfortable on my skin and absorbs well. This is a good inexpensive moisturiser with a clean formula that I would recommend and one that I would definitely repurchase if it was freely available in the US

Unanai Dermo Defence Mask is a basic Aloe mask that is very cooling and soothing. I found it great to use after a treatment or as a final mask in a three mask masking session. I have had this a while and ended using it up with my NuFace face firming device which needs an oil-free Aloe gel to conduct its ultrasonic waves.  Overall this is a very good basic aloe product that I liked because it wasn't at all sticky or tacky.

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I always carry a spray-on sunscreen for top ups throughout the day as needed in the summer. This one, Hampton Sun Continuous Mist Sunscreen SPF 35 was effective but I didn't enjoy its strong chemical fragrance and it stung my eyes if I got it in them or too close. I wouldn't repurchase this for those reasons - even though it worked well.

I also finished eleven skincare samples.

I used Biore Charcoal Cleansing Micellar Water to remove my eye makeup and it worked well.

Dove Gentle Cleansing Face Wash was a creamy cleanser that felt gentle. It was surprisingly good for a drugstore cleanser!

Fresh Soy Cleanser is a cucumber scented gel cleanser that I love to use as a morning face wash as it is very gentle and doesn't strip my skin. I've done well with samples of this one over the years!

Chantecaille Anti-Pollution Mattifying Cream is a mattifying daytime moisturiser/protector. It was a light gel that didn't feel stripping and prepped my face nicely for makeup.

I used two samples of very expensive face creams. 

Revive Moisturising Renewal Cream is an overnight exfoliating moisturiser and an old favourite of mine. Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream is an extremely thick cream that I used at night. I found it was far too heavy for my skin. I also don't think that it warrants its rather astronomical price tag.

3Lab Super Eye Treatment is a lightweight gel that I actually really like but it is another super pricy product. There is no way I would (or even could!) buy this but I will be delighted to use any more samples that come my way.

Sunday Riley Good Genes is always a joy to use. It is one of my favourite ever serums and one that really makes a visible difference to my skin.

I finished three samples of facemasks.

Goldfaden MD facial Detox Mask is a deep cleansing mask that I love. It has zinc and camphor but is gentle, effective and not at all drying.

Biologique Recherche Masque Vivant looks, smells, and feels like Marmite! It's very odd but it is amazing. As soon as I washed this off I could see that my skin looked evenly toned, clearer and brighter and smooth.

Chantecaille Bio Lifting Mask is a nice hydrating mask that feels soothing. I like this but it is again something that I wouldn't buy as it is so expensive.

Bodycare.

I used up two full-sized body lotions.

Andalou Naturals Citrus Sunflower Body Lotion is so gorgeous. Fragrance wise it reminds me a lot of Fresh Sugar Lemon (perhaps a little bit less zingy?) It is very refreshing and did a great job of moisturising my skin - there was no stickiness whatsoever with this product which literally melted into my skin. This one is a definite repurchase!

Nip+ Fab Viper Venom Body Serum is more of a firming product and it wasn't quite moisturising enough for me. It was a thick waxy gel with a very faint fresh scent. It did absorb well and surprisingly given its consistency it wasn't sticky bit overall it was a bit of a miss for me.

Olay Whip Body Wash is a body wash that dispenses as a foam. It has a slightly fruity fragrance. This didn't feel all that cleansing to me and it left my skin feeling a little tight and itchy. I  also ran through this pretty quickly too so overall it is not something that I would purchase

I repurposed three face washes as body washes as they were all too drying for my face.
Biore Baking Soda Pore Cleanser worked well for me as a body wash and it smelled kind of spa-like which was nice. Bliss Rose Gold Rescue Gentle Foaming Cleanser smelled like face cream and also worked well as a body wash. Both of these produced abundant amounts of bubbles! Lancôme Creme Radiance was a thick creamy cleanser that was very frothy, it left even the skin on my hands and body feeling very tight and stripped. A reviewer on the Lancome website says it leaves their face 'squeaky clean' which I think says everything we need to know about this one!

I also finished 2 months worth of Goop High School Genes supplements. There are 5 pills to take each day and I like how these come packaged in daily doses. This version has a multivitamin, an Omega 3 capsule, an Alpha Lipoic Acid pill for enhanced antioxidant activity, a gut balance pill made with herbal extracts, and a natural metabolism booster. I can't honestly say that I noticed a difference when I took these to when I didn't but I'm pleased to have had a chance to try these somewhat pricy supplements and didn't suffer any ill effects from taking them.

Haircare.

I used up two full-sized and five minis/samples of haircare.

Windle & Moodie Nourishing Conditioner had a thick slightly oily consistency, contained green tea and cocoa butter and smelled lovely. The packaging was stylish and the pump worked well.
This did a good job of detangling wet hair but I found it wasn't moisturising enough for the ends which got a bit frizzy still. I wouldn't repurchase this one even though I love the brand as there are other luxury conditioners I prefer.

I used up a handbag sized Tressame Fresh Start Volumising Dry Shampoo. I'm not sure why I used this up when I have so many luxury dry conditioners but it was actually pretty good! There's a little bit of a chemical edge to its scent, and while it did add a good amount of texture and volume to my hair without leaving any white residue it, my hair did feel very matted after using this and I needed to use a clarifying shampoo the next day.

I finished three travel-sized conditioners.
 I love Beauty and Planet Argan Oil and Lavender Conditioner. It smells gorgeous, has a 'clean' formulation and performs like a much more expensive product.

I also liked Nature Box Coconut Oil Conditioner which was another drugstore offering. The coconut scent is slightly too sweet and synthetic but it left my hair extremely soft and manageable.

Sachajuan Colour Protect Conditioner is really lightweight - it is very runny and so you have to use quite a lot of it as it is difficult to work through your hair. I love the results, my hair is left hydrated and very soft and sleek but I dislike its strong chemical fragrance and it stung my eyes quite badly.

Davines Oi All in One Milk is a spray on leave in conditioner. It smells great and it works well but the formula always separates into a cream and a liquid no matter how hard I shake the bottle so I never use it as a spray but rather tip a dab into my palm and smooth it on that way.

I also used a tiny vial of Wella Cr Oil Reflections. I liked it well enough and it didn't weigh my hair down or make it look greasy but I probably wouldn't buy it, simply because it's not that easy for me to find.

Makeup and Perfume.
I didn't use up any makeup this month but I did finish three fragrance vials:

Loewe 001 Woman EDP is a warm, spicy, sexy, amber. It's really more of a winter scent but I like it a lot and am happy to wear it year round

Tory Burch EDP is a bright tangerine scent that's a little soapy. It is a refreshing summer scent albeit a little generic.
I didn't realise Paco Rabanne 1 Million EDT was an aftershave! It is a big amber fragrance that is strong and has a lot of projection and longevity. It is a very warm scent with leather and rose notes, I liked this on myself but wouldn't like it on a man.

And that's all my empties for June. It's a bit of a mixed bunch but I'm pleased with the skincare samples I finished - let us see how many I can use up in July!