We moved house in the middle of last year so as to be closer to the hubby’s work. In preparation for this, I ended up chucking endless amounts of clothes, kitchenware, skincare, and of course makeup.
We are only two people living in a studio, we don’t collect things of any kind, I in fact pride myself on my minimalist lifestyle – and yet, the amount of stuff we had accumulated! It was rather shocking. Anyone feel shocked everytime they move?!
Here’s what I chucked or used up in the runup to our big move:
Essence Cream Highlighters in Prismatic Hololighter and 3D Dewylook
Golly, these were such let downs. Both of these were super soft and I found application tricky, as they tended to remove foundation whenever I would try and blend them into skin. They also would never dry down nor settle on skin. Now, I prefer dewy finishes by default, but I do like my cheek products to adhere, too, and go smoothly over existing foundation.
The 3D Dewylook is basically Vaseline in stick form. It removed any base product I tried it with, and just made me look sweaty rather than highlighted.
The Prismatic Hololighter, while undoubtedly pretty, removed base makeup too. I tried mixing it with foundation and then dabbing it over foundation, but that just dulled the effect of the holo highlight, basically rendering the point of the highlighter pointless.
I did not in fact use up either and ended up chucking them long before using them up.
Woodbury – Extrasia Eyeliner in Pink Beige
Last year, I was trying to experiment with my makeup a little during quarantine. My default is a glowy foundation, black cat eyeliner, lashings of mascara, combed through eye brows and highlighted cheeks; if I want to go really crazy, I might apply some nude lipstick or gloss.
I decided that I wanted to try colouring in my waterline with a white or flesh coloured eyeliner for a more wide awake look, and settled for this one. However, I found it hard to draw lines with this one, be it on my waterline or on my upper lash line. The pigment just would not transfer from the stick to my eyes. For a while, I would mash the eyeliner between thumb and index finger and use it as a cream eyeshadow/primer, but sometimes my lids would look slightly streaky.
I also chucked this one before finishing it up.
Heroine – Long & Curl Mascara in Brown and Black
I have really come to love these Heroine mascaras! They often go on sale for ₩10,000 or less, are super pigmented, stay on and on, and make lashes look naturally fluffy, voluminous, and long. They hold a curl! The only downside is that you need a bi phase eye make up remover – micellar water or water based cleansers won’t cut it. Oil cleansers might do the trick but I’d still recommend a separate eye makeup remover as these mascaras just stay on an on.
Personally, I prefer black over brown. When I was a teen, I’d always hear that brown mascaras were better for blondes as they supposedly looked less harsh and more natural, but I find the black one much, much cuter on myself.
Maybelline Hypersharp Eyeliners in Burgundy, Khaki, Blue and Black
As mentioned above, I have a signature make up look that I always fall back on. Colourful eyeliner, for me, is an easy way to add colour into my routine – I just cannot do blushes or colourful eye shadow looks, as I find that they tend to look loud and garish on me personally.
I loved these eyeliners as they went on easily despite being very pigmented; they stayed on all day and the colours were just beautiful. The black was a proper black, the green was an understated khaki that veered into green-grey once on the lids, the burgundy shade was a deep, wine-y cherry red when applied, and the blue shade was the most vibrant, beautiful colour of all that really made an impact.
I would happily repurchase any of these, though I cannot see them in the shops right this minute. Especially with the rona going round, eye makeup has taken centre stage and these eyeliners made it easy.
Pony Effect Unlimited Cream Shadow in Future Proof
This is a beige glittery-shimmery cream eye shadow. Supposedly, these stay on and on but I find that the staying power of it is really not great at all. It blends out a little chunkily, too. I recommend layering or mixing this with some sort of powder or eye primer, and use it sparingly, as it tends to gather in chunks if you use too much. Thankfully, powders and primers dim the sparkle of this shadow, which I find much too glittery for my personal liking.
I will continue using it but the formula is not my favourite. These do not hold a candle to other cream eyeshadows such as my favourite, Maybelline’s Colour Tattoo Shadows.
Essence lipsticks & glosses, Revlon Fire & Ice, Sampar Lip Oil, Wet & Wild lipsticks
Do you ever look at your makeup… the shades you buy and the shades you actually use… and then you start seeing a pattern?
In my head I am this cool chick who wears extravagant lip colours, but it’s not what I am in real life. Reds, blues, dark browns and purples just really don’t go with my complexion and colouring. Sometimes you have to face the facts.
In real life, I like and wear transparent lip glosses and neutral, MLBB, pink-brown-beige, tea rose shades. So basically, everything outside of that range had to go because I just was not using it. If you want my thoughts on any of these in particular, let me know.
Dejavu Fiberwig Mascara & Lasting Fine Brush Liquid Eyeliner
I got these as a set which I considered a great deal at the time in terms of value for money. Sadly, I would have been better off with my Heroine mascara and Hypersharp liners (see above). Both of these flaked and smeared on my lids despite me priming them. Take my words with a grain of salt though, as I have been using eyeliners and mascara since I was 15 (so 17 years ago now! lol!). My standards might be simply a bit too high at this point.
Eyecrown – Aurora Fixer & Etude – Keep my Brows Fixer
I mentioned this Eyecrown bad boy briefly in my Best of 2020 post, but since it is technically an empty, let me mention it again over here. I really like brushing my eyebrows – sometimes I’ll use eyebrow pencils for a more defined look – but I always like to set my eyebrows in place, pencilled in or not. I have some pictures of myself where I look good… except for my brows, which look wonky and out of place as some strands are all over the place! I don’t want to repeat such instances and that’s where fixers like these two come in handy.
I liked the Etude one too and it is in fact much better value for money. I am planning in trying it one more time once I finish my current Aurora fixer because I like the finer brush better on the Etude House wand. However, I will have to say I like Aurora’s formula as it is quite a stronghold fixer without being a tad crunchy like Etude House.
Brow Lash Ex Waterstrong liquid eyeliner in Black
Wow, just wow. I do not remember the last time I used a liquid eyeliner this bad. First off, the nib is huge – I am talking 2000s scene kid huge. Getting a fine line is nigh impossible. I guess I could excuse that – with what the rona and face masks and all, it’s ok to go a little heavier on the eye makeup – but what’s worse is that this one starts smudging immediately as you draw it on. I did not even know eyeliners could migrate and travel this fast, it’s almost as if it was designed that way. The skin around my eyes is pretty taut and tight, and yet the pigment migrated from my upper lid down to my lower lids in what can only be described as an emo half moon. Huge pass.
Essence Eyebrow Pencil in Strawberry Blonde
Honestly, when it comes to eyebrow pencils, my expectations are kind of low. This one went on ok, blended ok when brushed through – its only drawback was that the shade was just much too warm for my neutral (?) skin tone.
・Final Thoughts:・
It’s always good to let go of stuff – ideally, through using things up – and Marie Kondo’ing everything in your life that’s not serving you well. It also tells you what not to buy, and where you might be overspending. By sharing these empties and discards, I hope I was able to help you make better purchase decisions for yourself.
© 2020 The Empties Diaries All Rights Reserved
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