October 2025 Favorites

Hey folksickles,

Alright, all the goodies I've been enjoying in October :) 

1. Green Pharmacy Cactus Squalane Ultramoisturizing Face Serum: I really enjoyed what a nice boost of hydration this serum gave my skin. It felt really juicy and refreshing going on while leaving my skin really glowing and bouncing with the hydration. I like the way it smells too.

2. ORLY Kiss The Bride Nail Lacquer: I feel like this nail polish repeatedly makes into favorites and that's because I feel like it's just universally flattering on me. Meaning regardless of nail length, it looks good. It goes with absolutely everything. I just love it, it's the perfect shade of pastel blush pink for me. 

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer:  I paid for everything mentioned above. All opinions are my own. 

October 2025 Empties

 All my monthly trash on display for you to see. :P

1. now essential oils lemon oil: I'm so sad that I ran out of this oil. I like using it in my diffuser and it smells delicious! It has such a lovely, fresh, lemony scent. 

2. COVERGIRL Lash Blast SuperCloud Mascara: Although I liked this mascara when I initially got it, I find that it smudges like no one's business every time I'd go to apply lashes and would cause me to have to do a lot of clean up work. I would not get it again.

3. Physicians Formula Eye Booster Waterproof Ultra-Fine Liquid Eyeliner: I feel like we've already established that this eyeliner is a holy grail for me. I replace mine every 3 months to avoid eye infections and I feel like it works great and it really does make my lashes nice and conditioned over time.

4. DUO Quick-Set Striplash Adhesive: I feel like this isn't as quick-setting as it once was. Meaning it used to at least be tacky within 30 seconds but now I feel like I have to wait a bit longer for it to get tacky enough to glue lashes on. 

5. COSRX Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence: This is absolutely a holy grail serum for me because it really helps to rejuvenate my skin whenever it's dry and bring it back to life. It leaves my skin feeling plump, soft, and supple. 

6. Green Pharmacy Cactus Squalane Ultramoisturizing Face Serum: This is another really hydrating serum that I enjoyed using. I feel like this one is even more hydrating than the COSRX one I just discussed but it's a bit pricier too. 

7. Dr Teal's Prebiotic Lemon Balm Shea Sugar Scrub: I love how gritty this scrub is and how delicious and sweet it smells; it has a refreshing sweet-sour lemon scent. This leaves my skin feeling very soft and smooth and is great for shave prep. 

8. equate Island Coconut Shea Sugar Scrub: I love how gritty this scrub is and how delicious and sweet it smells; it has a sweet, creamy, yet refreshing coconut scent. This leaves my skin feeling very soft and smooth and is great for shave prep. 

9. berkley jensen Scented baby wipes in Green Tea & Cucumber: As I always mention, I used these primarily to wipe down surfaces and to remove makeup swatches from my skin. They smell really nice and stay moist for quite some time when kept upside down and last a long time so I'm pretty happy with them. 

10. The Creme Shop Flexible Fit 3D Faux Mink Lashes in Bossy x2: These are a beautiful thick, voluminous lash and they go on fairly easily. Occasionally they do want to pop off at the inner corners of the eyes but generally I find they stay put well.

11. Trader Joe's Oatmeal & Honey Pure Vegetable Soap x2: This is a holy grail bar soap for me. I mostly use it as hand soap, but it's fantastic for not only keeping my hand eczema at bay but also for keeping my hands gently hydrated. It's not irritating at all and produces a gentle. slightly hydrating foam.

12. equate Tahitian Vanilla Shea Sugar Scrub: I love how gritty this scrub is and how delicious and sweet it smells; this has a sweet, almost yeasty scent to it. I know yeast might sound gross in this context but I mean it in the sense of the scent that yeast gives freshly baking bread. It's very pleasant without being cloying. This leaves my skin feeling very soft and smooth and is great for shave prep. 

13. Compliment Lavender and Blueberry Clay Face Mask: I really liked this mask because despite being clay, it wasn't drying on my skin. It has a nice, blueberry yogurt scent to it and left my skin feeling both deep-cleansed yet soft. 

14. Bath & Body Works Pocket Bac Anti-Bacterial Hand Gel in Pineapple Mango: I am genuinely so sad at how this is gone now, because it smells absolutely delicious. I like that these hand sanitizers smell nice but that the scents aren't intense in the sense of, sometimes hand sanitizer smells really "sharp" in a way that I find bothersome. They do have quite obvious, long-lasting scents though. They also don't dry out my skin at all which I appreciate.

15. Compliment Banana and Guava Face Mask: Just as with the mask above, I liked that this has the deep cleansing properties of clay but without being dry or tight on the skin. This has a yummy, creamy banana scent to it.  

16. Wow Skin Science Apple Cider Vinegar shampoo: I like that this shampoo foamed up nicely, and due to the apple cider vinegar properties it kept any dandruff at bay and left my hair shiny. That being said, I found it somewhat stripping and not hydrating enough for my personal taste. I wish it had all those properties I described but would also hydrate the hair. 

17. Lebelage Snail Cleansing Foam: I found this cleanser worked ok, but it isn't my favorite because I wish it were more hydrating. It did leave my skin feeling clean without making it dry or tight. 

18. MIZON Multi Function Formula Snail Repair Eye Cream: I'm so sad to have run out of this eye cream. It is literally my favorite because it's so hydrating yet lightweight, it plays really nicely with makeup over it, and helps with undereye puffiness as well.

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the products mentioned above with the exception of the Wow shampoo which I received as a gift. 

Mask Review: Organic Kitchen Revitalizing Face Mask

'Ello folksickles. Today's review will be for the Organic Kitchen Revitalizing Face Mask.

Availability: I can't seem to find a retailer online for this, but I bought it at my local Russian-speaking pharmacy for $4.29 for 100 ml.

Would I buy this again? Yes.

What is this product? What is it supposed to do?

According to the packaging (note: I edited my translation for enhanced grammar):

Want a change? Take action! Start with a total image reboot! This revitalizing face mask activates natural restorative processes in the following three ways: nourishes, increases skin's elasticity, and improves discoloration/brightness (technically the outright Russian says it improves the "color of the face" but I assume that's what's meant).  

Does this contain any special/beneficial ingredients?.

Once again, according to the packaging:

Organic rosehip oil: moisturizes, tones, and nourishes with vitamins, making the skin smooth and glowing.  

Organic atlas cedar: Prolongs youthfulness and refreshes the complexion, improves metabolic processes in skin cells (I assume this means it encourages quicker skin cell turnover which results in glowing skin). 

What is the texture like?

I would describe this mask's texture as being like a cold cream. It never fully sets or dries. 

Is this scented?

I would describe this scent as being clean and spa-like, with a subtle sweet, green or perhaps floral kind of note to it. It's difficult for me to describe but I personally find it pleasant. 

What has my experience with the product been like?

Personally, as someone with dry skin that can be sensitive or get inflamed easily I really enjoy using this mask and I feel like it leaves my skin feeling soft and supple - I like that it doesn't dry down or feel tight. As my skin ages, masks that are heavily clay or mud-based that dry down often make my skin feel uncomfortable and dry/tight so these cold-cream-like masks are a nice transition. This mask smells nice and leaves my skin feeling hydrated with a really nice healthy glow. 

Please let me know if you have any comments or questions.

Disclaimer: I purchased this myself.

Love It Or Leave It; Review 2.0: Milani Gilded Jade Palette

Hello folksickles. As a makeup junkie and blogger you may have realized that I review a LOAD of eyeshadow palettes and I like to think of myself as being largely an eyeshadow junkie. In order to declutter a bit  I've decided to pick out a palette or series of eyeshadows for the month and have that be my monthly selection for those instances where I'm not doing a tutorial for the blog. Every month I'll do a recap on the eyeshadows - how I feel about them and whether I'll be keeping them or giving them away (and why :P) as well as if I think it's worth its price tag. 

Milani Gilded Jade Palette

You can find a look I did with the palette here. These are the looks I created this month:

So as you can see I created all sorts of colorful, some soft, some smoky looks with these shadows. Generally speaking, the quality of this palette is fairly good - the shades have great color payoff and blend together easily. That said, I will be passing this palette along. The reason for that being is that I feel like I have very similar shades in palettes that I'm more likely to reach for so I just don't see this particular palette getting much love and would rather pass it along.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: My wifey gifted me this palette, all opinions are my own. 

September 2025 Arrivals

Ok folksickles! I'm back to replenishing on things that I'm running out of and buying mostly just necessities.

1. e.l.f. Brow Comb & Brush: Unfortunately, even though I prefer these with metal teeth because these plastic ones inevitably always break, the metal one I had broke off from the ferule and I feared that it would poke my eye out at some point so I decided to pick this brush up since it is fairly inexpensive. 

2. Chique Pro Highlight Brush: My highlight brush also fell apart a while back and I've been experimenting with existing brushes in my own collection but haven't found anything I loved for highlight application. So given that this brush was also fairly inexpensive I decided to pick it up and give it a try. 

3. one+other Pro-Strength Nail Polish Remover Dip 100% Acetone: The version of this I currently had has become all gross to the point it was no longer working well so I've gone ahead and replaced it. 

4. L'Oreal True Match Lumi Glotion in 901 Fair Glow: I really enjoy a glowing primer and I've found I like ones that are translucent without much of a base tone. I find this is a great option because it has a pretty pinkish glow and looks nice under foundation. 

5. Organic Kitchen Reboot Mask & Silent Hour Mask: I'm running low on my masks and given that these were fairly inexpensive I decided to give them a try. 

6. L'Oreal Telescopic Intense Lash Length Original Mascara in Black: Ok so disclaimer, I purchased this mascara not realizing I had already had it in the past and didn't love it. It's just that I really dislike how smudgy my current mascara is so I was so excited to buy a replacement that I managed to forget.

7. Le Mieux Iso-Rose Hydrating Mist: One of my friends got me this for my birthday because she knows I like rose scents and said that she herself really likes this spray. I'm a bit surprised because she's notorious for disliking rose-scented things but I have tried this mist out once and like it so far.

8. Sephora Mini Haul: I was running low on my squalane oil and while I was replenishing I decided to pick up some samples as well. 

The Ordinary 100% Plant-Derived Squalane

Ole Henriksen Banana Bright+ Instant Glow Moisturizer (sample)

Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate (sample)

9. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: I was near running out of this entirely so I had to go out and replenish on it.

10. The Creme Shop Flexible Fit 3D Faux Mink Lashes in Bossy x3:I had run out of lashes and realized I like spikier lashes; I feel that they look nicer on me - I remember I had these before and I liked the way they looked so I was willing to give them another chance. 

11. Ardell Wispies in 113 x5: I have very vague memories of having these in the past and liking them so I decided to give them another chance. They appear larger than the demi wispies I've bought before so I decided to give them a try. I've begun to feel like, lately, while I used to like wispy lashes, I feel like they don't give my eyes adequate oomph and I want something that feels both natural yet has some drama to it and I'm hoping these fit the bill. 

12. DUO Brush-On Adhesive with Vitamins: Given that I had a bunch of coupons at CVS including $3 off DUO I decided it was a good a time as any to go ahead and replenish on my lash glue. 

Disclaimer: I purchased all the items listed above myself with the exception of the Le Mieux item and the Sephora samples. All opinions are my own.

September 2025 Departures

Ok folksickles. Departure blogs will contain items that aren't empties but that are going to be given away for one reason or another. I'm working hard to curate my makeup collection and want it to include only the products that I think truly work well, that I reach for often and do what they're supposed to do.

1. Milani Gilded Rouge Palette: I really don't like the glitters in this palette because they're chunky and cause the eyeshadow under them to crease when applied as toppers. Additionally, they're very difficult to remove. Initially, I considered keeping this palette and not using the glitters in it but I realized I have similar tones of eyeshadow in other palettes and am not likely to reach for this. 

Disclaimer: The Milani palette was a gift from my wifey. All opinions are my own. 

September 2025 Empties

All my monthly trash on display for you to see. :P

1. ProBeauty Essentials Wispies Lashes x2: I honestly feel like these lashes are a bit frustrating to work with because they're so thin and have such thin bands that rather than being easy to apply, they're outright flimsy and bend funny. Due to the way they bend and are stubborn about gluing to the inner corner in a way that flows with my eye shape nicely, I feel like they make my eyes look droopy.

2. equate Coconut Hibiscus Shea Sugar Scrub: I love how gritty this scrub is and how delicious it smells. This has that kind of sweet, sour, floral scent that you'd expect from hibiscus with the coconut note here being extremely subtle. It leaves my skin feeling very soft and smooth and is great for shave prep. 

3. pop arazzi Retro Remix Nail Polish: This is a pretty dark olive green that I think was really pretty as an autumnal or holiday nail shade. Unfortunately I am low on this and it's gotten goopy so it is time to say goodbye. 

4. Brow Brush/ Metallic Lash Comb: This is just a no-name one I bought off Amazon last year. Unfortunately the ferule has come loose and I worry that any day now this will poke my eye out so I'm parting ways with it. 

5. one+other Pro-Strength Nail Polish Remover Dip 100% Acetone: I personally really like these dip removers for quickly taking regular nail polish off my fingers. That said, unless you're willing to invest a long time soaking each individual finger, I just don't think this would be time-efficient for removing gel nail polish compared to doing foil wraps. 

6. Dove refreshing cucumber & green tea body wash: I like to use these in place of shave gel because I'm a hairy beast and these last me much longer than shave gel does while still providing me with a nice, smooth shave. This particular one has a nice, refreshing scent but personally I wish the formula was a bit more hydrating.

7. NYX Professional Makeup Baby Powder Faux White Inner Eye Brightener: Unfortunately the end of this dried out completely so my attempts at sharpening the pencil merely ended up with it crushing up into tiny bits. I'm sad because these were such great pencils for the waterline and really did brighten the eye. However, I believe they've been discontinued.

8. Secret Powder Fresh 24 HR Invisible Solid Antiperspirant/Deodorant: I tend to have good luck with Secret both keeping me from sweating and not irritating my armpit skin so that's why I keep getting these. It has a soft, clean, slightly powdery scent.

9. equate Tropical Mango Shea Sugar Scrub: I love how gritty this scrub is and how delicious and sweet it smells; it has a really yummy sweet/sour mango scent. This leaves my skin feeling very soft and smooth and is great for shave prep. 

10. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: I was getting so sad when I started running low on this so of course I had to go and replenish on it because it's my favorite sunscreen. It got kind of gross and goopy toward the end, I assume because I cut the tube open and it dried up a bit.

11. Cococare 100% Natural Peppermint Oil: During this time of year I like to use peppermint oil as a deterrent to keep insects from hanging out in my room. While it really doesn't protect against centipedes, it seems to be effective otherwise. 

12. The Ordinary 100% Plant-Derived Squalane: As always, I love my squalane oil, so I'm always sad when a bottle comes to an end even when I have replenishment. This oil is just fantastic for providing a boost of hydration, being anti-inflammatory, and soothing any redness and irratation, and really smoothing out the surface of my skin. 

13. m-61 PowerSpot Moisturizer: This worked alright as a lightweight moisturizer for the summertime but honestly I don't like how thin it is and I'm not a fan of its medicated scent. 

14. Shiseido Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate: I am genuinely so sad at how high the price point on this serum is because it adds such a lovely boost of extra hydration to my skin and just feels like a drink or splash of water. I adore it. 

15. Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Instant Glow Moisturizer: I really liked the light, sweet scent of this moisturizer and the pretty glow it gave my skin. This felt really hydrating too which is nice. 

16. deal worthy Fresh Scent Body Lotion: I like that this lotion is fairly inexpensive and does a great job of hydrating my legs and feet.

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the products mentioned above with the exception of the Shiseido and Ole Henriksen products which I received as samples with purchase. The m-61 product was provided for testing purposes. All opinions are my own.

Love It Or Leave It; Review 2.0: Milani Gilded Rouge Palette

Hello folksickles. As a makeup junkie and blogger you may have realized that I review a LOAD of eyeshadow palettes and I like to think of myself as being largely an eyeshadow junkie. In order to declutter a bit  I've decided to pick out a palette or series of eyeshadows for the month and have that be my monthly selection for those instances where I'm not doing a tutorial for the blog. Every month I'll do a recap on the eyeshadows - how I feel about them and whether I'll be keeping them or giving them away (and why :P) as well as if I think it's worth its price tag. 

Milani Gilded Rouge Palette

You can find a look I did with the palette here. These are the looks I created this month:

So as you can see I created all sorts of colorful, some soft, some smoky, some glittery looks with these shadows. Generally speaking, the quality of this palette is fairly good - the shades have great color payoff and blend together easily. That said, I will be passing this palette along.  The main thing that turned me off from the palette is how difficult the glitters are to work with - they're difficult to apply smoothly, even when I use a wet brush (which is usually the most efficient way for me) and tend to crease on the eyelid and cause whatever eyeshadow I applied under them to crease as well. They are also difficult to remove at the end of the day.  Initially, I thought about keeping the palette and just not using the glitter shades but I really feel that I have dupes for nearly all of the shades here in other palettes that I'm more likely to reach for. So to me, it makes more sense to part ways with it.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.

Disclaimer: My wifey gifted me this palette, all opinions are my own.