The Empties Post # 1

Every flat surface in my room has some of my beauty product empties and/or their packaging displayed. That's no exaggeration when I say that I have duck a certain way to make a path :-P It isn't disorganized, but you can safely assume that I give the sight of hibernation hoarding. The first Empties post is long overdue, so let me begin the spring cleaning by sharing these (and then tossing these away) !!

Apart from BB creams, I have yet to enjoy the feeling of successfully ending a makeup product by frequent usage *sigh* You'll find all of these empties and near-empties to be a part of skin care & bath products. Shall we?

I usually have 5-6 shampoos sitting on my bathroom shelves, unless my Mom goes ballistic and uses the "unwanted" ones up (which btw I am more than happy to offer) :-P Last Summer, I decided to finish all leftovers (to be responsible myself) and I am still following that path even when the Winters are nearly over! :-D I'd be briefly mentioning the products because there are separate reviews coming for some of them.

The four of my conquests are displayed:

L'Oreal Professionnel Liss Ultimate - This was the post-Xtenso shampoo recommended to me by the hair stylist. I don't doubt its performance, but it certainly wasn't meant for me.

Toni & Guy Cleanse Shampoo for Damaged Hair - Generally, the cleansing shampoos are meant to remove the scalp buildup once/twice a week, but the SA said it can be used daily. Liked the results, but wasn't a "cleansing" shampoo specifically.

Suave Naturals Tropical Coconut Shampoo - It was more like a memento my lovely roommate left me :-) I won't say it did something super different or super awesome. Nice fragrance, good product. Job well done.

L'Oreal Elvive Full Restore 5 Repairing Shampoo - It was a random buy on-the-go when I didn't pack my own shampoo. Turned out good. Again, nothing too special, but did the job well. 

I'm lazy about conditioners because I think they'd kill the volume. Once in a while, I do use these for nourishment and manageability of my weak tresses. I could never completely finish the conditioners, but here are some near-empties in this category:

L'Oreal Professional Liss Ultimate Conditioner - Just like your standard conditioner to be applied on strands (and not the roots) for few minutes before washing off. Gives smooth and frizz-free Xtenso hair.

Toni & Guy Nourish Reconstruction Mask - It's not technically a conditioner, but it performs like one (in simpler terms). A brief info - RECONSTRUCTION MASK was initially used by African-American ladies who would go through hardcore relaxing and other treatments to tame their hair. The heat damage and chemical do affect the strand of the hair and leaves it porous. A reconstruction mask was meant to fill those "gaps" as an aftermath of the treatment damage. It's not a cure, but a temporary fix. Those branched out into protein treatment/masks you get done from salons and conditioner-like masks that are meant for a similar purpose. Professional and At-Home products differ, so I was curious to see what this mask does for my heat damaged limp hair. Will do a separate review for this.

Nature's Gate Hemp Conditioner - It's the first Sulphate-Free hair product that I used. This, along with the shampoo from the same line, yielded good results. The fragrance was a turnoff though, but the conditioner works good. A review to follow, soon!

Hairstyling with heat and humidity has bittersweet effect. While the luscious locks look awesome, it is hard to maintain them :-/ This trio has been a good helping aide. 

Batiste Dry Shampoo (Blush) - My first dry shampoo purchase (half of this I ended in the first usage because I didn't know how to control it) :-P and this has gained my trust with a few criticisms (which are personal).

Toni & Guy Iron-It Heat Defence Spray - It was a Farid's purchase with no official launch in Pakistan. I was skeptical about its heat defence capabilities. It does make the hair soft though! 

Palmer's Olive Spray Oil - I have been reconnected to "oiling" with the easy spray oil formula. It's supposed to be used as a serum or a leave-in conditioner, but I have been using it as a pre-shampoo treatment which eliminates the need of using a conditioner. I have bad hair, so even if my word doesn't hold any significance in this category - my dear friend Fatima uses this regularly as her HG pre-shampoo oil for over 4-5 years and she has lovely luscious locks of long hair (MashaAllah). Have yet to find something like this. *I am looking at you Moroccan Oil*

Dove Triple Moisturising Body Wash - It's a regular body wash which did make my skin noticeably smooth.

Iceberg Effusion EDT - A gift which was dearly loved and worn every day. It's been finished for quite a while, now I keep it as a souvenir <3

Benefit B-Spot EDP - Back in the day when little miss Bia was unaware of the awesomeness of Benefit Cosmetics, a friend of Dad's offered some yummilicious Benefit goodies to be as a gift. This EDP is no longer available on the Benefit US website now, but I hope it makes a comeback. Would definitely repurchase - or, atleast, nudge the "perfume-gifters" in the right direction :-P

Caresse Nail Polish Remover - A standard cheap(er) local drugstore nail polish remover. 

Rivaj UK Waxing Strips - My HG waxing strips - way better than the versions of Veet and Nair ones I've used. These make at-home maintenance easy for me <3

I had to divide the "face" items into three different pictures. You can tell where my priorities are. :-D Off to the description:

Garnier BB Cream Miracle Skin Perfector - This is different from the Garnier BB Cream launched in Pakistan. I hope I can do a comparison post soon to share how that's like, but this has been one of my go-to "tinted moisturizer" kinda. 

Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque - How can someone explain drugstore perfection? I'd continue to use this all my life, I guess :-P

The Body Shop Lip Exfoliator - I haven't had much luck with lip exfoliator, but will definitely be doing a comparison post between this and the ELF one. 

Merle Norman Delicate Balance Toner & Cleanser - The toner tingles on my skin (Bravo for its SOOTHING properties, then) and the cleanser also does a mediocre job. One of the beauty product disappointments of 2013.

The Body Shop Seaweed Mattifying Day Cream - I tried the deluxe size kit and then got the full size from my friend (Thanks, Fatima, your loss has been my gain :-D). It quenches my skin really well. Review coming soon.

The Body Shop Seaweed Night Treatment - In Summers, this was a good "serum" to apply on my skin at night. It does perform well in conjunction with the TBS Seaweed Day Cream.

Olay Regenerist Microsculpting Cream - Have reviewed it tho-ro-ly here. It's a definite repurchase for me, but after a while.

Pond's Pure White Facial Foam - People who have read a few posts on my blog can tell that I am a self-proclaimed brand ambassador for this. I'm on my 3rd tube and this is the proof :-D

The Body Shop Seaweed Pore Cleansing Facial Exfoliator - Can't give much away, but it is one of the good ones, I tell you. 

The Body Shop Seaweed Facial Wash - Lovely! Summer Staple! Again, a review post is coming soooon.

The Body Shop Vitamin C Microdermabrasion - Near-HG exfoliator reviewed here. It is in its dying-breath zone and I'm contemplating whether to repurchase right now, or wait for any offer to present itself :-P

So, there you had a peek at my empties. Now some of these will grace the dustbin - much to my Mom's approval - while others will find a nook in my serial-hoarder-souvenir cabinet. ^_^

Cheers,

Bia