Favorites!

Currently I am waiting for the remainder of my face to peel off, thanks to getting a Perfect Peel, but I wanted to show a few of my favorite things as of late!

 It's no surprise that Witch Baby Soap would be in here. This is the Widow Body Oil and it smells divine. For a while, we had the matching bar of soap in the shower so everyone was smelling great! I wish I would have gotten the full size of this, but I have so many other oils to get through, it's smarter that I bought the half size.

 Also, this past month, I actually dropped my phone into my pool while we were cleaning the leaves out of it, so I had to get a new one. So that means I got to get a new phone case! How amazing is this wood etched one from Engraver's Dungeon on Etsy? I am in love. It also arrived super fast!

 Before November started, I had placed an order with Lush and finally decided to try the infamous Sleepy Body Lotion. They ended up delivering both my order and another woman's order to me, and it turns out, we had a lot of the same items in our packages! She also had this lotion, so now I have two. Which I am SO happy about. This lotion is AMAZING. It smells incredible and maybe it's a placebo effect, but I swear it helps me fall asleep.

And lastly, I really have been loving mustardy, grungy, kinda poopy colored eyeshadows lately! They really look great with my hair color and they're just so good and autumny and weird.


What have you been loving lately?

Still alive! Empties - July to October 2018

Hey! I'm back!

So much has changed this past year, a few trips, our house is amazing and I have graduated from the Aveda Institute in pursuit of my Esthetician License.

But anywho, I wanted my first posting to be something I love - my empties!

This year I mentally attempted to just document my empties quarterly..... and didn't post anything anywhere. Haha! So I'm back and here are my 3rd quarter empties.

• Kat Von D Lock It Setting Spray - It's good but not the greatest for oil control
• Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Trooper - Oldie but a goodie
• Murad Invisiblur Perfecting Shield - I LOVE this stuff. Great SPF, great primer
• Dior Diorshow Maximizer Mascara Primer - One of my favorite mascara primers
• Illamasqua Matte Primer - This was alright, but not the best oil control. Was nice and light though
• Benefit Porefessional Agent Zero Shine Powder - I love this stuff too, didn't like the tint on it but it was good for oil control & pore minimizing.
• Elf Double Sided Mascara in Clear - Hated. Cheap price for a cheap product. I thought it would be good since I like having 2 brow gels, one for blue brows and one for natural colored brows. I couldn't even finish it. 
• Benefit Porefessional Primer (deluxe & sample size) - Love this stuff too, I always get samples if I can find them.
• Smashbox Primer Water - I also love this primer! It's always tempting to buy more but I'm holding off for now.
• Nars Bronzing Powder in Laguna - This sample was perfect, got a couple uses. 
• Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original - One of my favorites!
• Milk Makeup Kush Mascara - Loved the packaging, pretty meh mascara for me. I feel like it dried out WAY too fast for me and started flaking. I'd probably like it better in a sample, to be honest.
• Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow in Taupe - IT'S EMPTY GUYS. That was such a great feeling as someone who wants to get into the panning community! Would repurchase, trying to use a bit more of my KVD brow pomade first.
• Charlotte Tilbury Lip Cheat in Pillowtalk - One of my favorite lip liners ever. Such a great color.
• Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Diffused Light - Another favorite, just bought a new one!

• CosRX Acne Pimple Master Patches - I love these things! I get mine from Amazon
• Sunday Riley UFO Face Oil - This stuff was nice, I'd try it again.
• Origins GinZing Moisturizer - nice and light weight, would be nice to have again in the spring
• GlamGlow Mud Mask - Got a sample, still LOVE it.
• Amore Pacific Moisture Bound Moisturizer - This was nice, the fragrance was a love/hate thing
• Mahalo Skincare The Bean Mask & The Unveil Cleansing Balm - I LOVE LOVE LOVE this mask, seriously I'm wearing it again as I type. Because I bought another one. I cannot live without this mask. The cleansing balm was alright, I think if I need one around the time I make another order, I would buy again.
• Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Creme - I like this stuff, if I can get a sample, I'll take it.
• The Beauty Chef Inner Beauty Boost Collagen - This stuff was alright, it tasted SUPER berry-y and I like the stuff I'm currently using a lot better.
• Tarte Tarteguard SPF - Nice little sample of a decent SPF
• Paula's Choice Exfoliant - I can't remember if it was an AHA or BHA but it was nice to have a sample
• Fresh Lotus Face Cream - Decent, probably would never purchase
• MAC Cleanse Off Oil - Nice, again always get a sample of it.
• Pretty Animalz by Masque Bar Panda Calming Sheet Mask - Nice, would pick up if needed
• TonyMoly Pore Care (red wine) & Anti-Aging (pumpkin) Sheet Masks - I love TonyMoly masks! I adore the  red wine pore care one.

• L'Oreal EverPure Color Care Conditioner - Was nice, might repurchase
• OGX Sparkling Cider Shampoo - this smelled nice, wasn't the best. 
• Aveda Color Conserve Shampoo & Conditioner - Not my favorite scent, but I do like this line
• Aveda Rosemary Mint Shampoo & Conditioner - More of a husband empty, but I LOVE this scent so I'll use it when I'm about to get my hair colored again, since it's a little stripping.
• Moroccan Oil - One of my favorite oils, smells so so so good
• Cascadia Soapery Hemp & Lemon Conditioner - got this at a hotel a while ago, it was alright
• Lush Daddy-O Shampoo - this was hella old, but still smelled good. Had it probably at the end of my blonde life, but it worked alright for my purple and blue hair
• Drybar Detox Dry Shampoo - Almost empty...... the pump stopped working!
• Olaplex No. 3 Hair Perfector - I use this to help my hair between bleachings, it also smells so good

• Hempz Body Lotion in White Peppermint & Vanilla - This is the only hempz scent I can stand without getting a headache and I miss it! it took me forever to use up but I do miss it.
• Shea Moisture African Black Soap Body Wash - This isn't quite as good as the bar version of black soap (like the legit black soap) but I did like this. The scent is great also! Makes your skin so soft.
• Gold Bond Body Powder - Good stuff for boob sweat
• Rodan & Fields Body Microdermabrasion Stick - I used to love this but it's not my favorite anymore
• Lush Beautiful Shower Gel - This is nice, I love the peachy scent but it actually takes forever to wash off.
• The Body Shop Tea Tree Body Wash - I love this stuff, but it's hard to find at my local Ulta. It's not always in stock, but I love this for after working out and especially on my body acne. 

• Witch Baby Soap Frog's Breath Body Scrub - This is so good, a Halloween scent, bought a couple full sizes!
• Witch Baby Soap Melanie Body Scrub - this is such an amazing peach scent! It's been renamed to Rest In Peach and is now permanent!
• Bath & Body Works Champagne Apple & Honey Body Scrub - This was nice, but it's not as scrubby as it could be. Super oily
• Witch Baby Soap Heartbreak Hotel Body Scrub - This was super bubble gum scented and it did take me a while to use because sometimes the shimmery body scrubs are a bit of a pain. I use them mostly on my legs.
• The Body Shop Honeymania Exfoliating Cream Body Scrub - I'm not a huge honey person but this scent wasn't bad at all. Also the formula was awesome! Super scrubby yet super creamy & moisturizing!!!!
• Witch Baby Soap Peace Love & Witchcraft Body Scrub - Another great sample of a great body scrub
• Witch Baby Soap Witch's Cocoa Body Scrub - Can you tell how obsessed with Witch Baby Soap I am?! This smelled like the holiday season, a little rich at times, but I'm glad I could use it up before it expired.

•  Witch Baby Soap Charity, September Moon, Lady Ganja & Secret Order Bath Bombs - Charity is always a great one to buy, as the proceeds go to select charities. The September moon was amazing and was exclusive to the Fall Spell Box Subscription. Lady Ganja was great also, and if it ever comes back for a throwback, I will order it! and Secret Order was just a gorgeous color and amazing scent!!!
• Dr. Teal's Pink Himalayan Mineral Soak - This was pretty good. The scent was a little sweet but it mixed well with most of my other bath products
• sMelly Soaps Spearmint & Eucalyptus Bath Bomb - this was a gift for me from my bestie and I am not sure this girl even makes these anymore. But it was a great bath bomb, very moisturizing and the scent reminded me of spearmint gum, which is my favorite.

• Bath & Body Works White Pumpkin Peppercorn Hand Wash - This stuff smelled so good.
• Farmhouse Liquid Soap in Lemon (or lime, whatever) Verbena -  Was a good kitchen soap
• Bath & Body Works Trick Or Treat Foaming Hand Soap - I always love the Halloween bottles!
• Bath & Body Works Bright Autumn Day Hand Soap - smells super good!
• Witch Baby Soap The Sun, Sorcerer's Hand, Wheel of Fortune, Blood & Milk and Dragon's Blood Bar Soaps - Almost all winners scent wise, the sun wasn't my favorite. I LOVE wheel of fortune so much I wish I would have gotten back ups. This is also mine & my husband's favorite bar soap.....

• Bath & Body Works Wallflower Plug Ins in Marshmallow Fireside & Mystery Scent - I'm just using up my Wallflowers because they've been getting on my nerves lately and I just am starting to get freaked out by them being around. I'll usually take some breaks between scents
• Bath & Body Works Strawberry Mimosa Candle - This smelled awesome!!!

• Listerine Cool Mint Mouth Wash - again more  of a husband empty, but I used it sometimes
• Beauty Blender Liquid Cleanser - a sample, it's good
• Sensodyne Pronamel Toothpaste - i love it
• Up & Up Cotton Rounds (2) - what I use at my makeup desk
• Shiseido Facial Cottons - I use these for my skincare, always a repurchase
• Colgate Total Whitening Toothpaste - another mostly husband empty
• Q-tips! - the best ones

Well, there ya go...... another empties!

Also I made a separate instagram account for my  makeup/skincare posts if you'd like to check it out and give me a follow!

amara.d.artistry

hoping to get back into the swing of things!

Empties - Oct 2017

Uffda another late post. Happy New Year's Eve! haha, these are my October empties.

First off - I used 12 bath bombs. I didn't include a photo because they're awful photos hahaha

I love getting samples of the Porefessional Primer from Benefit. I really tried to give the Becca Ever Matte Primer a chance but I hated it. Not sure if it was too old or just shitty anyways. It was time to get rid of my two Clinique Chubby Lash Mascaras in [I think] Black Honey and Portly Plum but they were both beautiful!!! I'd definitely repurchase if I can find them. I forever love the Marc Jacobs Velvet Noir Mascara. I brought this Dior Diorshow Mascara to London with me but it was nearly dried out! That sucked but I made it work for week. This BrowGal Brow Gel by Tonya Crooks was amazing. I need to buy another! The Wet N Wild Lash Primer was pretty good especially for the price! 

 

 Used up some Up & Up Cotton Rounds, Personna Eyebrow Shapers, Q-tips, Colgate Total Toothpaste and some Anna Sui Blotting Papers. They were alright, I just honestly wanted the compact that held the papers.

 I used up Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Toner; I liked it, it was basic but good. Also this MAC Fast Response Eye Cream was nice. Took forever to use up though! Another Bioderma Sensibio Micellar Water. My favorite!
I still love the GlamGlow Super Mud Mask, but I have yet to repurchase it. I ended up using up my Lush Herbalism Face/Body Wash quick because I hated it and used it on my shoulders. I LOVE Lush's Dark Angels though. I don't mind using a quick swipe of micellar water after a shower when I use this. Another pack of Neutrogena Makeup Remover Wipes.. a travel staple for me. Also this I Dew Care Pure to the Pore Mask I got from Ulta in a variety pack.

 I was really sad to see this Witch Baby Soap Midnight Mass Bath Potion go but it can't last forever. I also was sad to learn earlier this year that this line of body care from Victoria's Secret was discontinued. The Shea scent is my favorite and so of course it had to go! I used up this Smoothing Scrub Wash in the Shea scent. Wasn't super scrubby but the smell is just so good.

Very exciting to use up a body oil even if it's a baby one! haha this is the Hallowmas Body Oil from Witch Baby Soap. One of their best scents ever! This body oil had orange glitter in it that stayed on the body pretty decently. This Body Shop Body Scrub in Spiced Apple was nice. I found these little guys at TJ Maxx so I bought a ton of them. Tree Hut also has amazing scrubs! This Passion Fruit & Guava one smelled amazing. Also from Witch Baby Soap [can you tell I LOVE LOVE LOVE THEM?!] was the Graveyard Body Scrub. This was super floral but it mellowed out on my skin after the shower so it mixed well with some of my perfumes. This was such a creamy lovely scrub. I have a huge back stock of scrubs from them.

 As far as soaps go, we went through Ghoul Friend from B&BW. I think this was a berry type of scent? I always get the Halloween soaps!!!! Also  from B&BW was Winter White Woods. I wanna say I actually bought this because my cousin had it in her bathroom and it smelled so good! The bottle says it's white birch, juniper and vanilla. It was kind of complex but so yummy!

And surprise! More Witch Baby Soap... the Wheel of Fortune bar soap and the Beast bar soap. Wheel of Fortune smelled so good I bought almost everything I could in that scent. Beast was also nice. It was a 'man' soap so it smelled like good cologne. My husband LOVES Witch Baby's bar soaps.

 I've been really slow on burning up my candle collection. Not sure why, I'm just not feelin them lately. But this Black Cherry Merlot candle from B&BW smelled yummy. I know it's a fave for a lot of people. Also from B&BW are these two Wallflowers in Pumpkin Apple and a mystery scent I didn't have a tag for! I burned up this Pumpkin Spice candle from Target that I won at my bestie's bachelorette weekend. It kinda sucked but what do you expect from that fun dollar section at Target?

As for hair care, we tried to use up a bunch of stuff before moving. My husband loves Rosemary Mint Shampoo & Conditioner from Aveda so we usually buy the big ones. He takes a while to go through them, hence the nasty bottles. I'm tossing the Aveda Hair Potion because it went bad, but I bought a new one! I love this stuff. I used up two Macadamia Hair Masques because they're amazing.

This L'Oreal Color Vibrancy Conditioner was pretty nice, I loved the smell. In a recent Fab Fit Fun box, I received this dp Hue ACV Rinse [pretty much just Apple Cider Vinegar in a bottle] and holyyyyy shit I loved this! It actually worked as my only wash some mornings and left my hair so silky and bled my purple way less than even most hair care lines for colored hair.

I used up Klorane's Dry Shampoo which is one of my favorites. Also in the dry shampoo range was from Lush, the No Drought Dry Shampoo which is my for real number 1 dry shampoo. Forever repurchasing!!!!


Anywho, even though I say this every post..... I am hoping to do better with my blog in the new year!!

Have a safe and happy new year folks!

Finish 17 in '17 #3

Hi! Another late update for this project, but not as late as I thought it would be.

So here are my empties from this latest round. As always, there are a ton of marks from when I wanted to do other updates that just never got posted.

I really liked the Kat von D Featherweight Primer. I think I would repurchase once I get my primer count down. I finished my Sexy Mama Powder by The Balm. Would not repurchase. And I finished the Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Corrector in Light Pink. It doesn't look empty but it is SCRAPED out thanks to those awesome baby beauty spatulas. Would repurchase probably next year.

So getting 3 more things off of my list feels great!

Still chuggin on these guys but I honestly think I'm going to declutter that stupid lip liner. I HATE IT so much. I'm happy with how much I've used but I cringe when I use it lately.

 Barely noticable progress on my cuticle oil, but I am using it! Also almost done with my Kat von D Foundation! I hope you can see the line up in the roses. I love using up a foundation. This Murad Rapid Age Spot and Pigment Lightening Serum is a newbie. It's not my favorite but I don't want to return it so I'm gonna use it up.

 This blush will just never go away! Haha, but spoiler alert, I hit pan on it the other day and I nearly squealed. Still so proud of myself for hitting pan in a Dip Brow!!!! Not much progress on the Colourpop Gel liner but, I'm not giving up yet. YET.

 Also, this powder has some progress but not a ton. Still can't tell how close I am to using up Lovecraft, but I don't mind if it hangs on for a long while ;] . Some progress on the liquid highlighter but I just forget to use it sometimes before I set my face.

Happy with my progress on the lotion, and I find myself trying to not use it but that's a bad mindset. So hopefully soon I can have that used up. I also added this Mario Badescu Facial Spray with Aloe, Green Tea and Cucumber. I LOVE this spray. Also throwing in this L'Oreal Extraordinary Oil just to get it out. And adding in Victoria's Secret Love Spell Body Mist. I love this scent. I always pick some up because it reminds me of when I started dating my husband.

So still 17 items! Happy that I've finished off 5 products now!

Empties - July '17

Uffda, another long blog break.

Trying to be better [as always] about uploading!

Here are my empties from [probably late June and] July.

Forever Witch Baby Soap products!  
Magic Beach bar soap was amazing.  
Love Sugar Scrub was nice, but not the best scrub I've used from them. Also I used up a sample of Kat Von D's Saint perfume. I like it.

Bioderma which is my favorite micellar water.
Too Faced Shadow Insurance - it was good. I just used this when I used up my UD Primer Potion.
Murad Invisiblur Perfecting Shield - I loved this stuff! Blurs well and has SPF, so I ordered a full size.
Neutrogena Makeup Remover Wipes - a traveling staple. 

B&BW Vanilla Bean Noel hand soap - smelled super yummy!
B&BW Very Merry Meringue - oh my god this smelled so good, I wanted to drink it. If you've ever had Perkins' lemon meringue pie, this is a soap version.
White Barn Cinnamon Spiced Vanilla Candle - YUM. I wanted to keep the jar so bad but I have so many and I don't use them.
B&BW Chestnut & Birch, Snowflakes & Citrus Wallflowers - both very nice. Chestnut & Birch was a little manly which I like.

So many bath bombs! They're all from Witch Baby Soap and all smell wonderful. The boxed one is also Witch Baby and it's the Magic Beach scent. Also from WBS is this Red Salt I would just throw in my bath from time to time.
Mullein & Sparrow French Lavender Body Oil - I got this in a Fab Fit Fun box and I loved it! Want to try more things from this brand. 

 Used up some Q tips.... fancy.
Up & Up brand cotton rounds, Shopko cotton rounds & my favorite Shiseido facial cottons. The best.
Vitafusion Biotin gummies - taste so good, I get them on Amazon.
Soft Touch Foot Peel Mask - my bestie gave this to me. It definitely worked! So weird. And addicting.

Finally used up this Joico Violet Conditioner. It wasn't the best.
Biolage Hydra Source Hair Mask - I loved this!
Ouidad Omega 3 Mask - meh.... did not love. Had to re-wash with shampoo after using this.
Fortune Cookie Soap Tame the Beast Hair Detangling Spray - Smelled nice, worked alright.
Herbal Essences Coconut Milk Shampoo & Conditioner - This smelled so yummy!

Finish 17 in '17 Update 2 [hella late]

Hiyoooo - I have another update for my Finish 2017. It's super late, but it's here. haha

I have replaced a couple items so far. Also I had planned to throw up another update already, so there's already another mark before these ones.

 First off, YAY I finished this nail polish! I still had a little left on the bottom, we all know how hard it is to get everything out of these mini bottles! So awesome! 1 out of 17 done!

Not too much progress on my Mac Prep & Prime Lip and on the Tarte Univeral Lip Liner. I'm trying to use it up! Lypsyl is slow but I do use it a lot! Then, to add another product in after the polish, I added the Jordana Continuous Almond Eye Pencil. I love this thing. I think this is my 2nd one? Not the last for sure.

Still chugging along on my Mac x Kelly Osbourne Blush in Cheeky Bugger. I've got a decent dip going! Just waiting to hit pan!  Not a ton of progress on the Sexy Mama Powder by the Balm, but some! Almost done with my Maybelline Better Skin Powder! [ps I re-pressed it]

 Another view of the blush. Tried to get the dip!

 Another replacement product is this Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid in Pink. [again, notice the two marks.... planned to do another update that never went up.] I'm replacing the perfume oil with this. Was just not getting used....at all. Pretty confident I can use this up soon. Again, Lovecraft by KVD is hard to tell progress on, but I use it almost daily! The FCS Cuticle Oil is going well.... kinda. haha hard to get progress marks on! Also I did have progress on the Neutral Set powder but none lately.

 Also chuggin along on the Hempz lotion.... I will finish it this year! I'm so bad with using up lotion.

 More progress on the KVD Primer and Foundation!

 and YAY PAN ON ABH DIPBROW YAS. I've never gotten this far on a DipBrow! Getting a bit tired of this Colourpop Liner, but I do try to use it as often as I can!!!!

And finally, another replacement. This is replacing the Erno Lanzlo Cleansing Oil because I cannot find it. At all. Anywhere.
This is a Temptu liquid highlighter I got in either an Ipsy or Birch Box. I like it but I never reach for it. But I have been loving it lately.

Anywho, that's it! I'll probably not put up another update until the end of June/early July.

Pan That Palette '17 Update 2

Hiii it's been a minute since I've regularly updated.
I did have an update for last month, but in photos, it's so hard to tell my progress so I decided to just skip posting that one and post this one!

Even then, it doesn't look like I've made much progress, but I swear I use this palette almost every day I wear makeup!

Compared to when I started!


Hoping to hit pan in Primavera and Cyprus Umber soon!