Hello, my lovelies!
January is almost gone and it's time for an "Empties" post!
I haven't shared with you my skincare and makeup "empties" since the beginning of September 2018, so I have lots and lots of products to talk about! However, not to bore you to death, I think I will split it for you and keep it to 9 products this time.
Without further ado, I suggest that we take a closer look at the products I've recently finished up!

My "Empties" post series is consistent with my resolution of committing to consuming more responsibly. Use up the products that I bought before buying new ones, as well as evaluating what I'm using by reviewing it and deciding whether to repurchase or not. By the way, helping you decide on your own purchase.



Clarins Pure Melt Cleansing Gel with Marula Oil


As I already talk about this cleanser here, I'll keep this short. It was my favourite makeup remover/cleanser of the year 2018. Why? I find it super efficient and much gentler on my skin than most cleansers. The texture is pleasant and in my experience, the packaging is super practical for me who was wearing super long nails most of the time. How does it work?
Well, you apply a small amount on to your DRY face, you massage gently to warm up the product which turns into
oil that will cleanse your skin and dissolve your makeup. Finally, you rinse with water and the oil turns into milk that takes away all impurities from your face. The result is a clean, smooth, soft skin, without feeling dry or tight. I will repurchase it! In fact, I already have.


The Pro Hygiene Collection Brush cleaner 

This is an antibacterial sanitizer for natural and synthetic brushes. It is very practical as it comes with a spray pump and allows you to spot clean your brushes immediately after use and let it ready to be used again in a few minutes. It doesn't smell weird as other similar products, it doesn't leave a residue on the brushes as other similar products, either. It is actually very efficient and it is quite mild on the brushes I must say none of my brushes got damaged or lost quality by using this cleanser. It helps remove makeup, dirt and kills 99.9% of bacteria. BUT there is ONE thing that got on my nerves THE PACKAGING: the head of the pump doesn't stand the durability of the product! I use this every other day and it lasted me for almost a year, in the time, the pump system got damaged and I had to put it in another container. It was terribly annoying! I promised myself I wasn't going to repurchase it just for that fact. That being said, I tried other similar products that were TERRIBLE! So now I'd like to repurchase it, and it seems to be sold out everywhere!!

Benton Snail Bee High content Essence

For those of you who don't know about Korean skincare, Benton is a Korean brand containing peptides similar to those found in bee venom (not actual bee venom) and snail mucin (yes, actual snail secretion). It is an essence, which has a watery/gel-like consistency, sinks in almost immediately and it is supposed to be used after your toner and before other serums or creams.
Where do I start? I LOVE this product to pieces! It makes my skin look brighter, smoother, younger, simply amazing! It is also quite budget friendly, I will definitely repurchase this soon. Check my whole review here to know more about it!

Kiko Sublime Youth mask

I got this mask of the Italian Beauty brand somewhen last year when I walked into their store in Biel and noticed they didn't only have makeup, but also skin care. I was really excited to try out this mask which seemed good for my age (39) as it contains retinol and claims to be "Intensive antioxidant". It has a lovely texture and it is really pleasant to wear. But hen I take off the products from my face, I see no change to my skin what so ever. Ok, it does look moisturised like after I would have applied a nice moisturizer. That is all. So I haven't really finished this tube, it's still halfway through, but I have other products to try and this is just a waste of time. I wouldn't recommend it.


REFICIS Sublimessence Beautifying Quenching Potion*

This Quenching Potion is a serum from a wonderful luxury skincare local brand and I'm in love with it. I used this serum in my morning and night routines for about 3 months and my skin was in its best state ever! It's vegan, it's local, it's natural, it's efficient, it's a pleasure to use, what else could you ask for? I have written a full review on it here, and I've also ranked the product in my top ten skincare from 2018 here.


Tia'm My Signature C Source 20%

I have already reviewed this product before (here) and it finished somewhen around September! This 30ml tube lasted me for about six months. This is a Serum with a high concentration of Vitamine C, which is actually an acid. It helps your skin be brighter, diminishes dark spots, makes the skin smoother and more moisturized. It works divinely on my skin! I wouldn't use this serum all year round though, because it is not recommended to be used and expose the skin to sunlight then. So definitely not to be used on summer. Also, it is not adviceble to combine with other acids (AHA, BHA) so I decided not to repurchase it right now. I will probably use it again next winter!




Cosmonatura Aloe Argan restructuring face cream

Ok, this cream, PEOPLE THIS CREAM!! You would never believe how/where/when I got to discover this cream. So I was on vacation in Mallorca, doing some shopping in a mall in a small village when I spotted this brand "Cosmonatura" (which apparently is a Spanish brand, from Barcelona). Well, reading the ingredients labels I couldn't believe my eyes, and the price tag was super affordable. This cream, has an excellent composition, unfortunately I destroyed the packaging before taking a picture to the list, but what you wouldn't believe is that this is not a water based cream. The base of this cream is aloe juice. My skin loves Aloe! This simple, yet amazing cream lasted me for about 8 months (was it 10?) because it contains 120ml (that's more than double than regular face creams). It leaves my skin so nice, soft, smooth, plumped! It cost me around 15€, yes that's it... so I think we have here an excellent example of local brands which make excellent products super affordable and don't get the hype they DESERVE. Always remember, the price tag in worldwide renown skin brand is half for the product, half for marketing and distribution. So if you have the chance to travel abroad and you know how to read an ingredient list for cosmetics: do not hesitate to try local brands!! You will be surprised!! (Of course, I'll be haunting the internet up and down to find this cream again! and you should do too!). You can visit the website of Cosmonatura brand here.

Catrice Camouflage Cream Wake Up Effect

I have already reviewed this product before (here) and it finally finished! This small  5ml pot lasted me for about ONE year, and it cost me around 5 € (can't really remember but it was cheap).This worked magic concealing my dark melasma! You can see an example on the review I mentioned, where I apply it and you can see the difference. Unfortunately, Catrice discontinues their good products with an annoying frequency, so this is not longer available. Luckily for me, the good skincare products I've been using for the past year have dinimshed my melasma to almost nothing. I still have a couple of spots, but they are visible only under strange light circumstances. You might want to check if this product is still available in your country!


Chanel "Le Volume" mascara 

I don't know why, but I got this "Le volume" mascara at some poitn last year (I think it was very discounted) and thought to try it. Why did I? I honestly don't see any remarkable difference with some of the best drugstore mascaras. It doesn't clump, it does give volume and it is very black. IT does not give legth though and it is very expensive for what it is. Won't buy it again.



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I hope these mini-reviews have been somehow useful to you. I am happy that I am sticking to my resolution of reviewing the products I use up this year as well.
Do not hesitate to leave me a comment or a question if you need more information or if you have suggestions for me!

Love,
Nati


*The products marked with (*) have been sent to me as press samples. This article is not sponsored, it may contain affiliate links. All opinions are my own and 100% honest.