January 2026 Empties

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

1. Ardell Wispies in 113 Black x2: These lashes are pretty and provide some nice length. That said, I find that they're delicate and bend easily so if you cry with these on or take a nap or something, it will bend the lashes funny and impact their longevity. You have to be careful with them! Otherwise they're easy to work with, have thin bands that bend to the eye nicely and wear well.

2. Dr. Jart Ceramidin Facial Barrier Mask: This mask truly did give my skin a nice boost of hydration wherein it felt juicy. It also gave my skin a pretty glow. 

3. Dove deep moisture body wash: I love using this particular body wash during this time of year because, due to it being hydrating, it helps counteract dry winter skin. These provide a really nice glide for my razor and leave my skin feeling soft and smooth without any irratation. 

4. Trader Joe's Oatmeal & Honey Soap: This soap is an absolute holy grail for me and one I highly dislike being without! It's fantastic for anyone who struggles with eczema because it's gentle, soothing, and hydrating. It leaves my skin feeling clean and soft. 

5. innisfree My Real Squeeze Mask EX in Aloe: This mask gave my skin a nice boost of hydration. It left my skin feeling really soft and smooth.

6. LuLuLun Precious Mask White WF3: Like the other sheet masks I described, this mask gave me a boost of hydration and it did sort of even out my skin-tone. My cheeks were a bit red after using this but overall I feel like my skin had a glowy sort of clarity to it.

7. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: As you know, this is something a of holy grail sunscreen product for me so I'm sad to run out. It's just so lightweight and has this great hydrating formula to it. It makes my skin look smooth and glowy.

8.  patchology Soothe 5 Minute Flashmasque: Despite it being a 5 minute mask I do like to leave these on for longer - about 15 min to get the max benefit from it (although, unsure if that does much more) and find that this mask helped to boost the hydration of my skin.

9. papa recipe Bombee Whitening Honey Mask Pack: I'm genuinely unsure if this mask has just dried out or it wasn't meant to be very wet, but either way it was a bit dry. Despite that, it has a delicious honey scent and left my skin feeling soft and smooth.

10.  Brushes that are falling apart: Unfortunately the following brushes are starting to break so I'm letting them go:

bubbi Powder Brush

misc Memebox brush

11. Random lip products: The following all have developed an off scent so I'm discarding them from my collection:

Anastasia Beverly Hills Paint Liquid Lipstick

Christian Dior Rouge Dior Brilliant in 775 Darling

wet n wild MegaLast Lip Color in Pinkerbell

wet n wild MegaLast Lip Color in Purty Persimmon

wet n wild MegaLast Lip Color in On the Ave

12. Physicians Formula Eye Booster Waterproof Ultra-Fine Liquid Eyeliner: As always, I'm so sad that it's time to replace this eyeliner because I love it so much! That said, it did start drying out so it was time for a new one. 

13.  DUO Brush-On Adhesive with Vitamins: This has also started drying out and getting gunky so it was time for a new one.

14. equate Ocean Breeze Shea Sugar Scrub:  I love how gritty this scrub is. Out of the ones I've tried, I'd say this has a masculine scent to it. Like that kind of ocean breeze scent that has a hint of something musky or spicy that gives "men's scent" vibes. This leaves my skin feeling very soft, smooth, and is great for shave prep. 

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

16. wet n wild photo focus Dewy Foundation in Rose Ivory: As you might know, this has been something of a holy grail foundation for me for years. It looks very natural and wears well while giving my skin a healthy glow. I am a bit sad to have run out. 

17. now essential oils 100% pure grapefruit: During the winter time I like to use these essential oil in my oils diffuser to humidify my room and make it smell nice. I like a citrus scent so I just went with grapefruit this time around. This has a yummy, sweet, juicy interior of a grapefruit scent to it. 

18. BROWFOOD Chamomile Makeup Eraser Pen: This is a handy little makeup remover that was fantastic to clean up any eyeliner or eyeshadow booboos. Unfortunately it is beyond dried out so it's time to discard it. 

19. L'Oreal Telescopic Intense Lash Length Original Mascara: Honestly it was time to replace this mascara because it's starting to dry out and sort of clumps my lashes together in a funny way. I don't really love the effect it gives - I wish it gave more length and volume than it actually does.

20. Green Pharmacy Rose Water and Almond Oil Facial Toner: This toner has a hydrating, refreshing effect and a nice, sweet rose scent to it. I really enjoyed using it.

21. Christophe Robin No Frizz Care x Style Anti-Frizz Rescue Milk with Shea Butter: I liked this in the sense that it's a lightweight, hydrating hair cream that helped give my curls a boost of shine and hydration. That said though, I didn't find that it was hydrating enough for when my ends got really dry or needed a little extra TLC. 

18. LASplash Jelly Eye Pads x15: I found these eye patches alright. They did a nice job of adding a boost of hydration on my under-eye area. However, they did tend to slide down unless I was very conscious of keeping my head back or when I wore a sheet mask along with them. They're also meant to be depuffing, which they sort of are, but the issue I have not just with these but any undereye patch is that, they don't fit directly on my undereye area. Meaning, they go more into the hollow beneath the eye, whereas the puffiness on my eyes is right below the lash-line and that area is left bare by undereye patches so that puffiness is left unaddressed. 

19. CALA 3D Faux Mink 35151 Multi-Dimensional Lashes: These are a pretty fluffy-looking lash that I feel help to open up my eyes and make them look larger. That said, I find that they have the tendency to want to pop up at the inner and outer corners. 

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the products mentioned above with the exception of the sheet masks and under eye patches which were a Christmas gift.

December 2025 Arrivals

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

1. Dr. Sante Pre Age Ceramide + Prebiotic Moisturizing Mask: Since I'm running a bit low on one of my masks and we're already in December where it's only going to get colder and thus my skin is likely to get drier I went ahead and purchased this mask in hopes it'll keep my skin hydrated and happy. 

2. Organic Kitchen Pistachio Mafia Polishing Face Scrub: I am entirely out of my facial scrub and needed to pick up another. Since I've liked the masks from this brand I went ahead and got this facial scrub to try out.

3. L'Oreal true match Radiant Serum Concealer in  W1: I'm running low on my current concealer and decided since I always get the same one I might as well give something new to me a try. I've liked the true match formula in the past in terms of the lumi foundation so we shall see.

4. wet n wild Loose Setting Powder: I'm running low on my current powder so I felt that I should go ahead and replenish before I ran out. This is a really nice, smoothing, slightly blurring powder that feels like skin and doesn't make my skin look or feel dry so I just went ahead and repurchased it. 

5. The Ordinary 100% Plant-Derived Squalane: I was running low on my squalane oil and since it's a holy grail for my skin I went ahead and replenished.

Sephora also sent me the following samples with my order (I say sent because these aren't what I asked for but alas... also do we remember when 3 samples were the standard? They've gotten cheap for no reason, I'm sure companies send them loads of samples and want customers to discover these products...)

Juliet Has a Gun Not A Perfume

Isle of Paradise Body Beautifully Balanced Body Butter 

6. Biore UV Aqua Rich Water Essence SPF 50+ PA++++: I was running low on my sunscreen and noticed they now have this packet that is nearly twice as big as the tube and only $5 more so I went ahead and picked it up.

7. Reinarebelde On Your Face Contour + Color Trio in Adorada: My friend got me this really cute face palette for Christmas. I love the vintage tattoo vibes that it has.

8. Sheet Masks: My sweet wifey got me a whole bunch of sheet masks (among other self-care goodies) for Christmas:

innisfree Jeju Root Energy Mask in Lotus Root

Dr. Jart+ Ceramidin Facial Barrier Mask

LuLuLun Precious Mask White Resilient, Glowing skin Aging Care

papa recipe Bombee Whitening Honey Mask Pack

patchology Soothe 5 Minute Flashmasque

innisfree My real Squeeze Mask EX in Aloe

LASplash Jelly Eye Pads x15

9. CoverGirl + Olay Simply Ageless 3-in-1 Foundation in 205 Ivory: I've been wanting to try out a new foundation for a while and decided to give this a try since I did have the cream version years ago and wanted to check out the liquid version. 

Disclaimer: I purchased all the items listed above myself with the exception of the samples and Christmas gifts I've been given. All opinions are my own.

October 2021 Empties

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

Sheet Masks Galore:

the Saem Oatmeal Natural Oatmeal Mask Sheet: I wasn't sure what to expect with this but it's a really nice hydrating mask despite having a clear serum. I find the serum to have a nice viscosity to it where it's not dripping all over the skin and feels very nourishing. 

the Saem Honey Natural Honey Mask Sheet: Much like the mask above, this is a very hydrating, softening mask with a nice viscous serum that tends to stay with the mask and not drip all over the place.

WONJIN Effect Power Rejuvenation Concentrated Essence Mask: This mask felt intensely hydrating and left my skin feeling really smooth. 

WONJIN Energy Infusion Concentrated Essence Mask: This mask is lightly hydrating and left my skin feeling smooth and soft. It also has a nice refreshing, "green" type of scent.

TONYMOLY I'm Rose Mask Sheet: This is a nice lightly hydrating rose-scented sheet mask. 

2. Essie Closing Night Gel Couture Polish: This is a really pretty elegant gray color and I'm sad to discard it but it's down to the bottom.

3.  Dr. Jart Ceramidin Cream: I was using this to treat my bodily eczema and have ran out. I really like that this is deeply nourishing without being a very heavy or sticky product. 

4. Bath & Body Works PocketBac in Banana Rama Beach? Alpaca Towel: I thought this was such a cute hand sanitizer because I always pack an extra towel for when I go to the beach for sitting on (because wiping oneself off with a sandy towel isn't exactly fun). This has a sweet banana scent that I enjoyed.

5. KISS Lash Couture Faux Mink Collection Lashes in Little Black Dress x2: As much as I love the look of these lashes in the box and on myself I wish that, especially given how soft and natural they look, that they had thinner, more flexible lash bands. I find them difficult to work with because they don't want to bend to my eye shape. I do find this annoying thick band frequently with faux mink lashes so that might be the issue. 

6. Suave Professionals rosemary + mint invigorating conditioner: This is a very hydrating conditioner that leaves my hair feeling very smooth and silky. I really like its herbal scent which shocks me a bit because I typically don't like herbal scents but I think rosemary smells delicious, so there's that. I really enjoyed using this and it lasted me quite a while.

7. wondergloss Blossom Balm: Honestly this is a great makeup remover but it's too thick and balmy for my personal preferences.

8. Dove glowing mango butter & almond butter Nourishing Body Wash: As I've mentioned in the past, I really like to use these to shave with because they're moisturizing, foam nicely, and provide a nice glide for my razor. It leaves my legs feeling super smooth and silky. It works great as a hydrating body wash also, leaving me feeling soft and clean. 

9. m-61 PowerSpot Clear: As I've mentioned before I really like to use this as a spot treatment because it really helps reduce inflammation and helps any of my breakouts heal quickly. 

10. Shea Moisture Lavender & Wild Orchid Calming Hand & Body Scrub w/ Shea Butter: I  really grew to like these scrubs as they provide good scrubbiness without being abrasive. This has a sweet lavender scent that i enjoyed.

11. Chantecaille Faux Cils Longest Lash Mascara: Honestly I feel like I was determined to dislike this mascara just because it is ridiculously expensive so I wanted to avoid, at all costs, falling in love with it. That being said, I genuinely enjoyed this so much! I have seen a difference in my lash hairs becoming longer and thicker over time and I'm not 100% that I can attribute it to this or to the fact that the makeup remover I'm using is hydrating and removes most of the lash glue so my lashes just have a better chance to grow. I also really like the rose scent that this has but I can understand how it might irritate someone's eyes. Overall I do like this a lot but I still don't think I would drop $72 on an item that needs to be replaced every three months. 

12. Ben Nye Luxury Powder in Rose Petal: Overall I liked this powder because it's brightening and this jar lasted me quite a long time. That being said, I find that it can look just a bit cakey on the under-eye area and can emphasize texture there. So if you're someone with a lot of dryness, texture, or lines on the under-eye I don't know that this is great on its own. It did work really well when I would use a sponge sprayed with good setting spray and press it into the powder but not all of the sprays I used created good results. So overall mixed feelings. If you don't have the issues I described above though, it's definitely a good value product because it'll last you. 

13. Tree Hut Shea Sugar Scrub in Exotic Bloom: The reason you're seeing two scrubs essentially back to back is because I was already low on this but I put it back in my stash and then took put it back out to use it up. Frankly, after all the other scrubs I've used, I find the sugar crystals here a bit TOO abrasive but not enough to bother me much. This smells delicious too, I really like its sweet floral fragrance.

14. Duo Brush-On Adhesive with Vitamins: I feel like this has become my standard go-to lash glue. It does the job and is easy to find and purchase. 

15. KISSME Heroine Make Smooth 01 Jet Black Liquid Eyeliner Super Keep: I know a lot of people really like this liner and feel they can get precision from it because it's so thin but honestly I found it a bit of a learning curve to use this because it's so thin. Overall it's not my favorite.

16. The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%: I genuinely wanted to love this because so many people say that it helps them with their breakouts and pores. Niacinamide is supposed to be a great alternative to Vitamin C as well, I hear, because it has anti-oxidant, brightening, and anti-inflammatory properties. That being said, I didn't notice any change to my skin while I was using this, and if anything, I broke out more than usual with cystic acne. With all that being said, I will most likely not be repurchasing this.

17. CVS Health Ultra-Soft Cleansing Wipes: These are fairly standard fare as far as baby wipes go - they do a good job of wiping down surfaces, especially on my makeup collection as well as removing swatches from my hands/arms when I take blog photos. 

18. Femme Fatale Glass Coffin Artisan Nail Lacquer: This nail polish is beautiful but unfortunately has gotten to the stage where I am unable to dispense enough from the bottle to go over my nails smoothly. 

19. Maya Chia Supercritical Omega-3 Chia Face Oil: This is definitely one of my very favorite facial oils because it's very nourishing to the skin and has a beautiful citrusy scent. Like I said in my review of this product, I think I will always come back to squalane because it really helps my skin's redness diminish this but this oil is a more nourishing, more luxurious-feeling alternative for hydration. 

20. Fourth Ray Beauty Turmeric Face Milk: Honestly I found that this isn't hydrating enough on its own and while this gives my skin a pretty radiance I can't tell if its the turmeric doing anything or if it's because this has a shimmery pigment in it. In addition, turmeric is supposed to have anti-inflammatory properties but I haven't noticed a difference in my skin's redness when I was using this.

21. Mario Badescu Facial Spray with Aloe, Herbs, and Rosewater: I think this spray smells great and it feels very refreshing when applied but I personally prefer sprays that are designed to keep makeup on and this is more just for refreshment. I don't mind it but I wouldn't get it again.

22. Chesapeake Bay mind & body Clarity peppermint Essential Oil: This is a really nice peppermint essential oil that worked well to scent my apartment, keep rodents away (mice don't like the scent of mint), and worked well in my diffisuer. 

23. Korres Body Firming Serum Spray in Lilac Hyacinth: I really liked this as a lightweight moisturizer for the summertime and felt that, despite its very lightweight, silky milky serum texture, that it provided really wonderful hydration. This leaves my skin feeling super silky, smooth, and hydrated. As always, this wasn't enough hydration for the soles of my feet but it left me legs feeling amazing post-shave. I LOVE the scent of this; it's a very fresh lilac scent. The scent always takes me back to my childhood as we had lilac bushes growing all over the neighborhood back in Minsk. It smells so good and I am sad to have used it all up.  Additionally, I can't say that this had any noticeable firming effect for me personally BUT I only use body moisturizer on my legs below the knee and on my feet, because I walk around a lot and worked retail where I was standing constantly, those areas are fairly firm to begin with. 

24. Christophe Robin Cleansing Purifying Scrub with Sea Salt: I am SO SAD to have used this all up as it is by far my very favorite scalp scrub - this is amazing for dandruff or otherwise dry, itchy scalp conditions because it will physically buff away the dead skin. The sea salt in this soothes inflammation and I find that this product does a great job of also cleansing the hair without being extremely drying. That said, because of the salt, I do suggest following this up with a deep hydration treatment or thick conditioner.

24. Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Illuminating Body Scrub: This body scrub smells so delicious and is a great level of gritty without being too intense.

24. Kiss Lash So Wispy Lashes in Pompadour: These are a pretty, voluminous wispy lash. They're very lightweight and fairly easy to apply which I appreciate.

25. Peter Thomas Roth Rose Stem Cell Bio-Repair Gel Mask: This mask had a very beautiful rose scent, is lightweight, refreshing, and adds a nice boost of hydration when applied.

26. Youth to the People Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Mask: I am so sad to have used up this mask because I just loved it so much. It hydrated my skin so beautifully, left it with a pretty glow, smelled nice, had a beautiful texture. I highly recommend it as a hydrating sleeping mask.

27. Dr. Teal's Pure Epsom Salt Soaking Solution Balance & Calm with Matcha Green Tea: Honestly I was hoping these would have more of a matcha scent which was there, but it was faint. In terms of efficacy these are as good as any of the other Dr. Teal's Epsom salts, they work great for relaxing sore muscles and feeling soothing overall. 

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

Disclaimer: I purchased all of the above with the exception of the Chantecaille, Mario Badescu, Christophe Robin, Peter Thomas Roth, Youth to the People, and TONYMOLY products. 

Moisturizer Review: Dr. Jart Ceramidin Cream

Today's review will be for the Dr. Jart Ceramidin Cream

Availability: This product retails at $48 for a 1.69 oz (50 mL) tube and is available at sephora.com, along with its respective physical store locations as well as amazon.com, and birchbox.com.

Would I buy this again? Possibly.

What it is formulated to do:

Allow us to quote the lovely sephora.com

What it is:

A lightweight cream to moisturize the skin. 

What it is formulated to do:

This lightweight cream with the power of microcapsule ceramides hydrates the skin barrier from within, preventing chronic water loss. Dry, rough skin instantly becomes plumped with all-day, time-release moisture. It enhances the skin’s natural strength and function for smoother, softer skin. 

What it is formulated WITHOUT:

- Parabens

- Sulfates 

- Phthalates 

What else you need to know:

This product has been dermatologist tested.

Does it contain any special/beneficial ingredients?

According to sephora.com:

-Ceramide 3: Provides time-release moisture. 

-Licorice Root Extract: Soothes and provides anti-redness properties. 

-Portulaca Oleracea and Aloe Vera: Calm irritated skin and hydrate. 

-Panthenol: Alleviates signs of sensitivity and softens skin.

What is the texture like?

This feels like a rich cream and is super nourishing.

Is it scented?

I would describe the scent as clean and medicinal.

My overall experience/comments on the product:

    Ok so I use this in a somewhat unconventional way - as hand cream. Now $50 is kind of steep to drop on a regular hand cream but essentially this is what happened. The Ceramidin line had a soft buzz going around it and I was curious, especially because if you look at the gel version there's pieces of the ceramide goodness in blobs throughout the gel and it's just interesting, you know. That said I have a ton of moisturizers and didn't even want to try this stuff because if I fell in love with it I didn't want to justify buying it. Then one day one of my clients asked me to make her a sample of this and I got a little on the back of my hand. I figured my hands are getting dry let me just rub it in. Legit in that moment I felt such a great burst of moisture that I figured let me put this on properly. Every single year around wintertime I think I mention in one way or another that my hand eczema comes back and last year it wasn't as severe only because going to Puerto Rico mid-January must've confused it but it can get really painful and I've had my skin crack and bleed in the past so anything that helps is always a plus. This doesn't just hydrate though, this legitimately stops the hand eczema in its tracks, when I feel the tell-tale dryness and itchiness I only have to put a little of this on and typically I'll be good for a week or so. I bought this because it really works for me and because it'll last me a while. Out of all the moisturizers in the line the cream texture works best for my hands and body which is why I bought this. I did try this on my face but it feels a bit thick and I think I'd prefer the gel for that. That said once I start using my laser for hair-removal I might use this to soothe the possible irritation.

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

Disclaimer: I bought this myself.