Monthly Empties: February, March & April 2015 & A Personal Update

Somehow I managed to turn it into quarterly empties again, but work and personal life has definitely taken a toll on my time! I just got engaged! ^_^  Even though it's only been a month, so much has already happened. We've taken the plunge and already made an offer for our new home! Hopefully everything will work out so we can move forward and onto home decor. So exciting!

With a new home in the horizon, I really need to start downsizing on everything I own, not only on makeup/skincare but also on clothing and bags and shoes. I'll be posting a lot of items on my Poshmark (@mellie_closet) and on Ebay. Check it out if you're interested, mention my blog and I'll offer 10% discount!

Now I'm really on a mission to empty out more products, there should be more products going into these posts.

February 2015 Monthly Empties 

February we have mostly skincare and samples used up!

Monthly Empties: January 2015

We're off to a very good start for 2015! January called for an end to a lot of products including very rarely seen makeup items! Brace yourself, this is going to be a long ride (on in our case - post =D ).

January 2015 Empties - this Glossybox was definitely overflowing this month

Let's go through the makeup/color items first since I barely ever show any.

Monthly Empties: A Quick Log

It seems a little pointless reviewing products from so long ago, but I had kept all the pictures taken from each month's empties. So here's a comprehensive list for logging purposes. This way you can see how often and how quickly some of these products get used up!


April 2014 Empties

Apr 2014 Empties

• Diorsnow D-NA Control White Reveal Day Essence (discontinued - still available here)
• Shiseido Superieur Lifting CE Emulsion (discontinued - still available here)
• Clinique Rinse off Eye Makeup Solvent  (a gwp staple)
• Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Balancing Softener (a gwp staple)
• Victoria's Secret Hand Cream with Shea Butter in Warm Embrace (discontinued - still available here)
• My Beauty Diary - Black Pearl Mask

Monthly Empties: 1st Qtr 2014

Time to share what has been showing up in my Glossybox at the end of the month. Sadly it really has turned into quarterly empties post, but I'm working on it!

January 2014 Monthly Empty

January of 2014 was a pretty boring month. Only 3 items emptied out, but I finally finished my Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Moisturizing Emulsion (and yes this is the old packaging so you know how long it's been sticking around!)

Monthly Empties: 4Q 2013

Sad to say that my monthly empties turned into a quarterly empties post! I just haven't been able to finish enough products I suppose, which is not good as I've accumulated so much more products this quarter. ::raises fist to Sephora VIB sales::

First up is the Oct 2013 empties. I can probably even nickname this the toner empties month.

Oct 2013 Monthly Empties

Beauty Haul - Sephora, Bobbi Brown, Ulta October 2013

October! So many sales!!! I have been holding back (somewhat) the whole year, but this month, everything is pretty much out the door.

Sephora had a true Friends and Family sale where coupon codes were only offered to those who recieved a code from a sales associate. Very happy that one of Youtube guru, Hollyannaeree's subscribers were offering her other subbies with unique codes and I was one of the lucky ones. =)

I realized I had to take advantage of it way before the normal VIB sale starts because my wishlist items will just be flying out of my shopping cart! (Not that I didn't spend a fortune during this weekend's VIB sale. Haul to come when those purchases finally come in!).

Sephora Friends & Family Sale Oct 2013

Monthly Empties: Aug & Sep 2013

My long awaited monthly empties! There's so many products to show for Aug and Sep, ironically, there's probably only 2 items for Oct that I see so far. I guess I used up things quick for the summer time.

Aug 2013 Empties

End of Summer 2013 - Beauty Haul

I haven't been hauling as much as I used to now. Trying to have some more self control on spending and not splurge just because it's a good deal or there's a gift with purchase. You will notice that this haul post is filled with products that are new on the market and intrigued me enough to buy.

Shiseido Benefique Haul

Shiseido has a new line of skincare, Benefique. This line launched in US earlier in the year and is only available at Shiseido boutiques (no department store counters). Don't confused this with the other Shiseido line Ibuki that also just launched this year which IS available at department store counters and Sephora. I bought the Benefique NT Emulsion II (150mL) which is a lotion for dry/combination skin types for $45. Review coming soon!

Beauty Haul - Summer 2013

Time for another haul post, I haven't been posting any hauls for a while now but that definitely does NOT mean I haven't been shopping.

Estee Lauder - Beautiful Eyes Set

I bought the Estee Lauder Beautiful Eyes Skincare set for $65 at Macy's during their Estee Lauder GWP event. The set is still available and comes with a full size Resilience Lift firming and sculpting eye cream. I've been looking for a worthy eye cream, I've tried so many and still haven't found a "holy grail". I'm almost done with it, am loving it so far, full review should be coming up soon. The GWP was really nice, not only did it come with a Lilly Pulitzer desinged eyeshadow palette and cosmetic case set, it included a Time Zone face and eye cream as well.

I've made another order at Cosme-de.com! I'm surprise that this company doesn't get more attention then Sasa.com, their shipping to the U.S. arrived in a week! I made the purchase mainly because of the Shiseido Tsubaki Water. The set was $11 at Cosme-de.com, I've used the red and gold Shiseido Tsubaki lines, and really love the red line. Hoping this would work out just as well. =)

The only annoying thing about ordering from cosme-de.com is that when you order final sale items, you have to order a number of other items to checkout. So I picked out a bunch of final sale items as well: My Beauty Diary masks, Etude House gradient nail polish set and blush and The Face Shop cleansing water. If you follow me on instagram, you'll see a swatch of this cute set. =)

Last up is my new Glossybox June 2013, the American Beauty Box. Yup, I fell for it again! Even with the horrible customer service I faced with my first GlossyBox, I decided to cave in after seeing it curated by Dallas Shaw which included a full size tarte cosmetics lipstick. The box was a specially designed by Dallas Shaw and looks so pretty!. This box was supposed to be the June box, but I didn't receive it till June 30! It was unfortunate that there were so many issues with these GlossyBox, but this box was really beautiful. It includes a set of Oscar De La Renta perfumes, a tarte lipstick, a Philips B hair shampoo, a c Booth's facial mist and a Sparitual nail polish. I loved that this box included department store brands. Hopefully review & swatches will be up soon.

That's it for my hauls, I'm already shopping at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale to haul some beauty goodies. Anybody else shopped the sale yet? What did you get?

Review: Qiora Balancing Lotion

Before I start talking about the qiora Balancing Lotion, I want to give a quick background of the brand. qiora is part of the large Japanese Shiseido brand. It is not part of the skincare line that most of you in the United States knows about Shiseido. qiora has a smaller product line and is only sold at select stores. It is often seen as a higher end than the Shiseido skincare line like White Lucent and Beneficiance because it is far more pricier.

I bought a few products from qiora out of desperation when I was going through a long period of breakouts due to work stress. I was very fortunate to have very little experience with acne breakouts through my teen years and it was never a problem for me. But this past year, I was so stressed out by work and my relationship, I experienced the worst outbreaks ever that just won't leave me alone. I went to a Shiseido boutique store considering purchasing from their Pureness line but the sales representative actually recommended me to try out qiora instead (far more expensive, but quality and price are directly proportional right?).

I bought the qiora Face Cleanse and Moisture Balance also, which I'll review later. Here's some things I've noted about the Balancing Lotion.

Stock photo from qiora.com for qiora Balancing Lotion

qiora Balancing Lotion Facts

Taiwan/Japan Trip Beauty Haul

Back to the home sweet home, though I do miss those 2 countries already. Definitely will be going back, everybody was so polite! How come people in NYC isn't like that? =P

Did quite a lot of shopping in those 2 major cities (Taipei and Tokyo). Everything was so pretty/cute/cheap! Yes even in Tokyo! Now I realize how much people jack up the prices on Asia-imported beauty online stores.

 

Beauty Haul from Taipei/Tokyo

Here's my beauty haul from the 2 countries. I actually didn't get a lot, nothing was too appealing to me. But I definitely saw BB creams everywhere! Most pharamacies in Taipei had a special beauty section just on BB creams alone. I didn't find any Kevin Beautymaker products! Grr.. that was one of my planned must-buys. Sigh. It's ok, next time. ;)

1. Rosette Hello Kitty Collagen Face Wash (500 yen = ~$5.00) - Found this at Tokyo's RanKing RanQueen (they sell the top 3 products of various item types). This face wash was voted #2 face wash in Tokyo. =)  Plus it was so cute! I tried checking some US based beauty websites and they are selling this exact face wash for US $12!
   
   
   
   
    
   Rosette Hello Kitty Collagen Wash
2. Shiseido Majolica Majorca Honey Pump Gloss Neo (NT 150 = ~$5.00) - During my studio picture shoot (yes, I took them in Taipei!) my makeup artist was putting on this beautiful lip gloss on me, so I had to go get one for myself. It's in a nude beige color. Very nice lip gloss, not sticky at all. <3<3<3 I saw this selling here for US $15! (crazy)
   
   
   
   
    
   Shiseido Majorca Majolica Honey Pump Lip Gloss
   
   
3. Laniege Water Sleeping Pack_EX (NT 798 = ~$20.00) - Saw this at the Taipei International Airport's Duty Free shop, I've been wanting to try this brand out after seeing Bubzbeauty Youtube channel. A more detailed review to follow later (I know, I owe many), worth the money!
   
   
   
   
   
    Laneige Water Sleeping Pack_EX
   
   
4. L'egere Whitening Anti Dark Circle Eye Roller Pen (NT 300 = ~$10.00) - Saw this in the Queen show and I wanted to try it out. Can't reallly find L'egere products here in the US, but Taiwan's very big with them.
   
   
   
   
   
    L'egere Whitening Anti Dark Circles Eye Roller
   
   

Got a few beauty magazines. Yesasia really jacks up the price on the magazines. The Japanese Beauty magazines I saw in Tokyo like Nonno was only 698 yen (~US $8.00)! I can't read Japanese, so I got the magazines that gave out the best goodies. Most of the beauty/fashion magazines give out bags! =) Got 2 really cute ones, bags that is.

 

Japan Beauty & Fashion Magazine

The With Magazine even shows you how to use the bag!

Though the Taiwanese magazine I wanted most is the Queen Magazine, I couldn't find it anywhere, except the really old editions =T  Oh wellz, Yesasia it is! The Japanese magazines I picked up were mostly fashion magazines, the Taiwanese ones had more beauty and makeup how-tos.

 

Taiwanese Magazines w/ celebrities I know

 

Taiwanese Makeup How-To

Winter Necessities! The Beauty Post~

Part 2 of my Winter Necessities blog. This time it's about the beauty products that I can't do without during the dry winter season.

The thing that irritates me most about winter is the dry weather. Kinda like an oxymoron when I think about it. Winter is all about cold and snow yet why is it so dry?! First thing I do before I change in the morning is applying mucho lotion on my legs and back. My skin gets rashy and irritated very easily when it's cold out. Aveeno's Skin Relief Moisturizing Lotion was my fav this year. My skin remains silky smooth all day till I shower. Best of all it's not greasy and it's very light.

 

Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturizing Lotion

Of course my all time favorite beauty line is still the more Asian skin suitable Shiseido. I've used it ever since I was in high school! >.< almost 10 years ago...... Shiseido's White Lucent line have kept dark spots and uneven skin tone away from my face. My winter favs: Shiseido White Lucent Brightening Eye Treatment and Shiseido's The Skincare Multi-Energizing Cream. The cream works best for winter, locking in moisture. Although it tends to make my face a bit greasy looking. The brightening eye treatment's a MUST-HAVE for me to treat my @_@ dark circles.

 

Shiseido's White Lucent Brightening Eye Treatment & The Skincare Multi-Energizing Cream

Last but not least, wearing those extra layers of clothing can cover up your natural scent leaving you smelling more like your laundry detergent than you. I like to sprinkle a mist of a light perfume to have a little twist. My favorite in winter: Bath & Body Works' Eau De Toilette in Freshwater Cucumber.

 

Eeyore's Favorite Scent

Beautify winter!