Beauty Empties: 1 – 30 November 2017 & Some Philosophical Reflections on Being Sad

I haven’t done an empties post in a while – the last one was back in August, before I fell into a state of loss and depression and just couldn’t bring myself to do anything. I did use up more items between then and this post, but I didn’t keep everything but I would say that a lot of my self-care fell during that period too, so I also didn’t use up many items because I kind of just let myself go and didn’t quite bother.

But now I am sort of forcing myself to make an effort, even if it’s just to paint my nails a happy colour or put on some lipstick for no reason to add some colour to my life and I’ve picked up yoga again. I think it has started to make a difference – my skin looks better, I feel stronger and more prepared for the world, and my mood has lifted a bit. I still wonder sometimes about what is wrong with me – how I am no longer the same happy person that I used to be, and I still notice how much effort I have to make now in order not to drown in my own self inflicted sorrow. I have peppered my life with dinners and meetings with family and old friends, random educational classes, and lots and lots of yoga. I still feel like hiding from myself from time to time, but now that I have a schedule and a plan to follow I have a lot less time to ponder and get sucked into it.

But I digress. Whew – that was some heavy and philosophical thoughts! I never planned to get into all that but it just came up and I thought I’d keep my thoughts where and as it is. Let’s get back to the topic for the day – empties!

1. Sassi Top Coat
2. Arezia Nail Color in 723
3. Canmake Colorful Nails in 58
4. Sally Hansen Triple Shine in 240 Play Koi
5. Essie Nail Polish in 814 I Am Strong
6. Mavala Nail Color Cream in 196 Racy Fuchsia
I will admit that only the Sassi Top Coat is actually used up, the rest have all dried up or become really sticky in consistency and are beyond the stage that it’s salvageable.

7. Clio Kill Black Waterproof Pencil Liner
This was and is still one of my favourite pencil liners. It goes on very smoothly without being too slick (which can make them slip and slide) and dries down very quickly, doesn’t budge on me, and is a really nice deep black. Would totally repurchase.

8. K-Palette Real Lasting Tears Tank
I got this as a gift and I have absolutely no idea what purpose this serve. It’s supposed to make those cute little “pouches” under the eyes which is considered pretty in Korea but honestly it doesn’t show up on me.

9. Eve Lom Cleanser/Creme Demaquillante
Got this in a beauty box – actually I’ve received TONS of them; they’re kind of given out in every single beauty box. I’m not the biggest fan of it – I find it very heavy and sticky, and really hard to remove without a good and too-abrasive wash cloth.

10. Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Spot-Control Base UV
Tiny tube; I can’t recall what I thought about this really.

11. Odacite Pure Elements Gt+L Serum Concentrate
This is supposed to be a green tea and lemongrass serum that enhances radiance; I like it – it’s pretty light, doesn’t smell too strong which can be the problem of a lot of lemongrass products, and isn’t sticky. There’s less product than I thought there would be though; I used it up pretty quickly – definitely way less than a month.

12. Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil
I’ve always been a fan of Sunday Riley’s oils and this was no different. It’s slightly runny so it doesn’t feel oily on the skin. I think my skin feels really well moisturised the next morning.

13. Emma Hardie Ammazing Face Age Support Cream
Another item that I can’t recall because I brought it along on a trip.

14. Innisfree Sea Salt Cleansing Water
I’ve reviewed this here – so pop over to the link if you’re interested to find out more. But in short, I love it – I’ve been using a number of different cleansing waters and they all don’t quite match up to this so I will be repurchasing another.

15. Audace Regan Extra Hair Reactive and Hair Fall Control Shampoo
My hair has been falling a lot a few months back and I’ve been trying out many different shampoos to control it. The situation has improved – but I’m not sure if it’s because of this shampoo or perhaps because my hair fall was related to my state of sadness and anxiety and has improved because my mood has picked up a little. But I’m leaving things to chance so I’m still trying out all sort of hair fall control shampoos.

So that’s it! I apologise for the rather lengthy philosophical reflections but since it came pouring out of my mind, I thought it was much healthier to just let it be rather than keep it all in. I haven’t really used up many items this month (or past few months) but now that I’m hoping to get back on track to be happier and take better care of myself, so maybe the number of empties will pick up as well.

Anyway, how about you? Have you used up anything this month?