10 Beauty Products I Can and Cannot Finish

With brighter days now that it's spring time over here, I feel more motivated to clean out my drawers and tidy up my room to help liven up the atmosphere while the sun shines through. It's no wonder they call it 'spring clean'! Cleaning my drawers allowed me to find all sorts of items that I had forgotten about and also made me realise how often I use the makeup and skincare products that I have. In these past couple of months I was able to finish a number of products and I had thought about writing another 'empties' post but why do that when I can do something a little different... talk about the products that I know I can finish and those that I just cannot!   Let's start with the 10 items that I can finish, and here's proof:  

Not all 10 items shown, only my recent empties - more can be seen in my previous empties post

1. Liquid eyeliner Easy peasy Japanese-y! Liquid eyeliners are my one true love. I tend to feel incomplete without that single line above my top lashes - the one thing that I think makes the most difference compared to not wearing any makeup. Happy to go without the rest but liquid eyeliner, I need youuuuu, and lots of you. I finish these off really quickly, not only because I use them almost daily but because the pen ones only have around 6 mL.   2. Eye makeup removers and wipes Without these in my life, would I even bother applying makeup? Using regular face cleansers aren't enough when it comes to removing waterproof eye makeup for instance. I need the good stuff that gently and effectively removes all traces of makeup. I've gone through bottles and packets of these and I'm always keen to stock up whenever there are sales. Besides using facial wipes to remove my face makeup, I use them to spot-clean my brushes too.   3. Cotton pads, tips To assist with the removal of makeup, of course. They're also great for fixing up any mistakes :)   4. Lip balms I apply lip balm at least 3-4 times a day, and times that the amount of days in a year... yep that's how much I use lip balm - basically, a lot. It's as though my lips depend on it because a day without lip balm = chaos. I get dry, cracked, flaky lips, a nightmare for some. I don't have a favourite brand but I generally stock up on Maybelline Baby Lips and Nivea ones.   5. Body lotion, hand cream For someone who has dry skin, moisturising creams are a godsend. Need I say more? I feel so uneasy when my hands, elbows, knees feel drier than a desert. I guess everyone would but even that feeling I get after drying my hands from washing them makes me feel uncomfortable unless I apply hand cream straight away. Weird, right?   6. Foundation and BB Cream Medium-coverage ones especially! A big confidence booster when my blemishes are covered to a point where it doesn't look too obvious or caked-on. I've gone through a couple in my lifetime and the ones I have now are starting to finish up too.   7. Concealer These typically come in small tubes and when there are plenty of blemishes to cover, it's all gone before I know it.   8. Face and body wash The only way to really remove dirt within the skin and exfoliate is to use face and body wash. When they're used daily, I can't see how they CAN'T be finished.   9. Shampoo and Conditioner Reasons why I can finish these products: Water on its own won't cut it, the greasiness will still prevail. Conditioner keeps my hair in top condition :D   10. Perfume and deodorant I'm aware that it can be quite rare for people to finish a bottle of perfume but trust me, it's possible. As seen in my empties post, I finished a 50mL bottle of perfume and I have gone through many aerosol cans of deodorant. Not because I stink (or maybe I do *sniffs*), it's because I was once obsessed with spraying on lots of deodorant as a teenager. It made me feel cool and grown-up, okay.     Now moving onto the ones that I cannot, let me show you my current collection of each:  

1. Lipstick/gloss/pencil  

  Impossible to finish any of these no matter how hard I try. Actually to be honest, I've hardly tried. I'm reaching for lip balms these days, tinted lip balms to be more precise. My mum on the other hand doesn't use lip balm as she never has dry lips! Hence she's able to go through many tubes of lipstick. There was a phase where I was really into using lipglosses and then that died out. Everything else I just use occasionally since none of the above help with my dry lips :( I don't think I have that many lip products but it's not like my collection is getting any smaller (and I kinda want it to so I can feel less guilty about buying more).     2. Blush  

  I've never hit pan on any of them let alone finish any! Plus I rarely use blush due to my naturally flushed cheeks. Only on special occasions and photos for my blog. Whenever I do though, I only sweep a tiny bit. The blushes themselves are pretty to look at and have photogenic packaging (that Physicians Formula heart one in particular!) and as a result of my lack of use, they ain't going anywhere. Looks like they're stuck in my drawers unless I decide to give them away or something.     3. Pressed or translucent powder and bronzer  

  I know many girls out there rely on face powders to set their makeup however I'm the complete opposite. With dry skin that's prone to flaking, I don't feel the need for powder, in fact I find that powder tends to enhance my dry areas and so I'd rather use a setting spray or blotting sheets when my face needs mattifying. For contouring I use the bronzers and contour palette and just like blushes, I sweep a very small amount. My bad for not showing a picture of them all opened - I swear they'd all look pretty close to brand new. Best example is that Rimmel Bronzer with a clear lid that still has the star pattern on the pan.     4. Pencil eyeliner and brow pencil/products  

  Close to impossible for me to finish these, I can use the same ones for decades. Sharpening them decreases their size a little but no matter how much I use them, I can't seem to make them decrease to a size that deems them unusable or 'finished'. Same thing goes to my colouring pencils that I used as a child, which I still have by the way.     5. Nail polish  

  They dry up on me before I get the chance to finish the whole bottle. And besides, the brush applicator doesn't even reach the bottom for you to finish entirely. I can chuck out old ones and replace them with new ones but to be completely done with a bottle of nail polish? Uh...     6. Eyeshadow  

  Ah eyeshadow, another photogenic beauty product that I seldom use. I'm always so tempted to buy new ones for their pretty packaging/colours whenever I go shopping and then when I think about my collection, temptation is no where to be found. I haven't hit pan on any eyeshadows and I haven't finished any single one let alone a duo, a quad or a palette. Don't even get me started on my 88 shadow palette that I've had for years... which almost looks brand new.    Just this week I bought more eyeshadow palettes... what. What happened to no temptation, Jen?

... Yeah about that... review to come!

  7. Hair spritz and serums

 

  You can only spray so much out of a x mL bottle. For me, getting through one bottle takes forever, same with serums where you only need a couple of pumps of product. It's unfortunate that I get lazy using these sometimes :/     8. Primers for face, eyeshadow and lashes  

  Don't know why these are never-ending for me when I use them ALL THE TIME! I've had a backup eyeshadow primer for a few years now... and I'm no where near the end of my current one. I forgot to include my lip primer in the above photo, whoops.     9. Mascara  

  I have never finished a whole tube of mascara. Yes, the formula goes funky or dried up but there's still product on the wand which can be used, thus doesn't technically count as being finished... you know what I mean?     10. Many packet items i.e. samples and face masks  

These are just my samples. I have about the same amount of face masks

  Samples and face masks themselves are easy to finish but I can't finish many samples and face masks, like when I have an overload of them! Sometimes I'm too scared to use samples for my face 'cause there's no expiry/manufacture date on them which isn't helpful for knowing how old or new they are! I have really sensitive skin too and to me it's not worth taking the risk. Same with using face masks where I could get an allergic reaction from them anytime. The only difference here is that they have a manufacture and expiry date which I tend to forget about anyway. There are times where I feel like putting on a sheet mask so I go to look for them in my drawers, then I see that many of them have already past their expiry date! It feels like such a waste when I have to chuck them out :(   So, now that you've seen what I can and cannot finish, I'd like to ask you a questjen or two:

Which beauty products can you finish? 

Which can't you finish?

I wonder if there's anything similar or different~

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Disclaimer: Most products were purchased with my own money, some were provided or gifted. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies in this post.

My Top 5 Tinted Lip Balms

Right now I'm crazy about tinted lip balms. Lip balms which have hydrating and moisturising properties and leave a hint of colour on my lips is like my all-in-one product, my go-to product for everyday use and I make sure to always bring one with me. I find that wearing bold-coloured lipsticks, especially during the day can be a bit much when I'm opting for a natural look and can be a little drying after a while. And while clear lip balm helps to soften and smooth dry lips the best, it doesn't do a lot for my overall look in terms of enhancing my natural lip colour! This is exactly why I'll be needing and using tinted lip balms for a lifetime.

Even when I'm wearing lipstick out, the colour tends to fade and my lips become a bit dry so I want to re-moisturise my lips and at the same time, add colour without having to use two different products. I will always stay loyal to clear lip balms and repairing balms like Blistex, Carmex, Burt's Bees etc. because tinted lip balms cannot replace regular lip balms or lipsticks. They're simply a substitute for when my lips are in mint condition. In no particular order, here are my 5 favourite types of lip balms:


1. Maybelline Baby Lips - Color and Glow

L-R: Cherry Kiss, Pink Lolita, Baby Pink, Pink Blast

I know I'll be using these for pretty much the rest of my life (that's if they don't become discontinued)! I love the scent of these and I've collected as many as I can of them in Australia. The colours vary slightly as seen in these swatches:

They remind me a lot of my childhood where I was obsessed with those 'Lip Smackers' - the packaging closely resembles those which brings back lots of memories. They're really easy to identify based on their colours and designs on the tube. I found that the 'Color' ones predominantly give off a nice colour to the lips whereas the 'Glow' ones with the silver packaging give more of a stain which lasts for a great number of hours.

A negative would be that I haven't found them to be as hydrating as other brands of lip balm and I feel as though the clear versions of the Baby Lips are a tad more moisturising, probably because there's no colour component, hence a slightly different formula overall. Another would be that the balm itself is likely to get stuck when twisting up or down. Not all of mine are like that but for the ones that are, it can be annoying to have to physically push it back down.

2. Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturising Lip Colour Balm*

05 Chunky Cherry

I've raved about this before in my February Favourites post earlier this year and I'm still as obsessed with it as I was back then. Gotta love these crayon-like chubby sticks which are so easy to apply. The colour is sheer when applied on the lips and only looks pigmented on paper due to its texture. I'd say that this one is the most moisturising out of the five tinted lip balms. It's the priciest one out of them all too but it's definitely worth it.

3. The Face Shop Lovely ME:EX Happy Chu Lip

PK101

This is my latest purchase of a tinted lip balm. The shade on my lips is like a bright red-pink and it goes on nice and smoothly. The scent is very fruity and smells very artificial which is not really for me however I still make use of this product for its moisturising properties. I have trouble with the twist tube where the balm gets stuck so I have to push it down myself. Twisting it up is fine, just twisting down doesn't seem to work properly.

4. Etude House Shini Star Lip Balm

#5 Guava T

This is actually discontinued (it was limited edition) but I thought I'd mention it here anyway, since I like it a lot. I included this in my HK haul post and I definitely wish I had bought more when I could've. It smells amaaazing and the pink tint is too pretty. I noticed that Etude House has some similar ones called Dear Girls which also look very cute. I admit that I prefer tube lip products over tins and tubs however for me it comes down to how well the lip balm works for my lips :)

The consistency for this is smooth and glossy, just like a lip gloss so it gives a really nice wet look with a hint of colour. I rarely use lipglosses on their own because many aren't long-lasting, nor do they nourish my lips but with this glossy lip balm, it seems to give me supple lips. I can't say that it can do the same for everyone as I feel that with extremely chapped lips, a different texture and formula of lip balm may do a better job.

5. Innisfree 98% Natural Tint Balm

#2 Camellia Pink

This Innisfree lip balm, hands down, lasts the longest out of the five. A lip balm that leaves a pretty pink tint and smells like sour skittles (I'm a fan!). It has a thick consistency which some may like and some may not, depending on one's personal preference. I would prefer it to glide on a little smoother so that it can accommodate for dry lips. Because of this, I don't see it as a repair and care type of lip balm but more a lip balm to help prevent the dryness on well-conditioned lips. If my lips are dry already, I wouldn't pick this as my first choice. The packaging is appealing yet sturdy and I have no real issues with the lip balm itself.

My questjen to you:

Do you use tinted lip balms?

I'm on the lookout for any others out there that tick the boxes of being moisturising, hydrating and has long-lasting colour. Would love to hear any of your recommendations~

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Disclaimer: Products were purchased by me unless marked with a * which has been provided for consideration, with no obligation to share or review. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies mentioned in this post. All opinions stated by me are 100% honest with no bias. See more at http://www.questjen.com/p/disclaimer.html for full disclaimer.

February Favourites ♥

Wow, it's already March! A new season has begun and another month has gone 'bye' (pun intended). I've decided to share my favourites from February, however I have many favourite products, including the ones from my 10 favourite products of 2012 (still loving those!) and from my recent hauls there have been products which turned out to be some of my favourites of all time. What I'll be sharing in this post are the products that I haven't showcased/mentioned on here before. This is a great time for me to do just that!

In no particular order, here are my favourites items from February 2014:

kikki.K 2014 Weekly Cute Diary: Small

Of course, this isn't all to it but this particular page is cool, and no I don't have it empty! At the time I took the picture it was

Reasons for purchasing:

I need a diary to keep me organised as it helps me to document my plans, deadlines and give me all sorts of reminders. In 2012 I had one just like this but bigger and when I used my diary last year (which was great but not designed this way), I really started to miss the colourfulness of my previous diary! I'm a sucker for cute/pretty designs, hence I repurchased this diary for 2014. 

Reasons for favourite-ing:

The size is perfect for my bag and every time I pick it up and use it, it makes me feel happy from just seeing all of the decorations on the pages. I like how there is a removable notebook and a sheet of stickers inside. Despite it being more on the pricey side in comparison to other diaries, I don't feel that tempted to purchase a different sort. I feel that it's worth the money :)

OPI Mariah Carey Minis 3 Pack

'Silent Stars Go By'

Believe it or not but I had never bought OPI nail polish before until I bought this set. I have one full-sized OPI nail polish from the first ABC (beauty conference) goodie bag which was a bit too dark for my liking ('Lincoln Park After Dark') and I found the formula and lasting power to be similar to my Essie nail polishes I had purchased from blog sales. Plus I rarelyyyy get the chance to wear nail polishes due to my work regulations.

Reasons for purchasing:

I went shopping for a friend's birthday gift and found myself looking in the OPI section. This 3 pack was discounted to just $12 (RRP $17.95) and although I didn't exactly need new nail polish, I thought to myself, "oh, I might as well buy it since it's on sale!" and these shades are perfect for me! I love pinks and purples for nail polish, they're the shades that I wear the most :) I was also keen to try to Liquid Sand range which gives a textured matte finish as seen on blog reviews I've read.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I am a fan of glittery nail polish, especially ones that brush on nicely and last long. OPI nail polishes are definitely high quality (who doesn't agree with me?) and I am really happy to add these to my nail polish collection. And since I'm not much of a nail polish-wearer (I so would be if I could be!), having these mini sizes is best in case one/all dry out as I'd hate to have to chuck a full bottle away if I only used it a couple of times. I like having variety and minis are good enough for me :D

Ego Sunsense SPF 50+ Moisturising Face

Reasons for purchasing:

This brand was recommended to me by a friend when I was looking for a new moisturiser for my face that can give me high SPF protection. Usually when I go out I use BB Cream which gives me coverage and sun protection but some days I prefer to let me skin breathe and wear something more lightweight. It was under $10 which to me is fair for a 100 mL product and I was happy to pay that much to try it out.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

During February's heatwave, I needed something that could help soothe the dryness of my skin from the deadly sun and protect it from getting burnt. As cheesy as this sounds, this was my saviour!! Light, non-greasy, suitable for my sensitive/dry skin and can be used as a base for my makeup which I did a couple of times. Some of my foundations have none or little SPF protection, thus having this applied underneath solves that problem. I like the packaging because it makes it easy to carry around with me.

 The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Make Me Star Waterproof Gel Liner

L-R: 06 Celebrity, 04 Disco Purple, 05 Sky Fever, 08 Moon Silver, Indigo Blue. Smudge tip at the bottom

Reasons for purchasing:

These purchases were from my massive The Face Shop haul that I didn't get around to sharing as a post (In total, 21 products purchased). Sadly the shop in my city had to close and so they were forced to clear out all of their stock. I hadn't purchased any products from The Face Shop before because there was never anything that caught my eye or attention. However when I visited during their closing down sales, these coloured eyeliner pencils had me intrigued and as a result I bought 5 different colours, $3.30 each (RRP $16.50 each instore). I wanted to try using different eyeliner colours besides the usual black that I use.

Endorsed by one of my favourite SNSD girls, Seohyun!

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I love the way these eyeliners glide on and the gel consistency is quite smooth compared to an ordinary Kohl pencil which can sometimes drag along the skin and not leave a nice, crisp line. I can use them on my upper and lower lash line and also as eyeshadow with the smudge tip. I need more waterproof pencil eyeliners too! Most of the ones I have don't last very long or end up smudging really easily. Damn, I wish I could have purchased all of the colours but there was very limited stock. I could always buy them online.

The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Stick Eyes

L-R: 03 Violet, 07 Dark Purple, 06 Dark Brown

Reasons for purchasing:

More from The Face Shop haul! Eyeshadow sticks like these are so easy to use and they seem to be very popular for Asian brand cosmetics. It makes applying eyeshadow very quick compared to using eyeshadow palettes with a brush/sponge applicator. I don't have many of these eyeshadow/shimmer sticks and since they were only $2.60 each (RRP $13 instore), they were an absolute steal so I grabbed these colours out of the limited selection.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

They glide on nicely over my thin eyelids without any pulling and tugging and I'm happy with how the colours look on me. No sharpening is required - all that's needed to do is twist the bottom like a lipstick. Also these are handy to put in your handbag for touch-ups :)

 The Face Shop Lovely Me:Ex Design My Eyebrow (Auto)
Brown, Dark Brown and Black Brown

Automatic pencil on one end, spoolie aka mascara brush on the other

Reasons for purchasing:

The Face Shop normally sells these for $11 each instore and with the sale they went down to $2.20 each! It's a must for me to fill in my brows unless I'm just going to uni/work and I thought that this would be a good investment. They last for 24 months after opening - that gives me two years to be done with them and I'm pretty sure I can do that, even while having all opened at the same time and alternating between them. And you might be wondering why I purchased 3 different shades... well, it was hard to pick just one when there's so many shades of brown and I'm not a natural brunette but I'm always dyeing my hair brown, sometimes light and sometimes dark. So for that reason, I felt that it was best for me to get 3 different browns to match however my hair looks I suppose, hehe. Also buying 3 is still cheaper than buying 1 for its RRP.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

These are my first automatic eyebrow pencils and I think I prefer them a little more than eyebrow pencils that need sharpening. The triangular shape works well with the direction of the hairs on the brow, depending on how it's angled. I found that this type of design and application gives a more natural look and I don't have to worry about my brows looking too harsh as the colour is build-able and you can choose to keep it really natural/faint or bold. Having a spoolie on the end is always handy for blending.

Face cleansers and scrubs

L-R: Innisfree The Minimum Facial Cleanser for Sensitive Skin,
The Face Shop Pore Minimiser Scrub,
Australian Pure Beauty Sensitive Face Scrub

I've been trying a range of cleansers for my sensitive skin and seeing whether they work well and don't irritate my skin. These 3 cleansers/scrubs have been the stand out products for me so far and I've been alternating between them each day, but mostly sticking with the cleanser as my go-to because it's the most gentle out of the 3.

Reasons for purchasing:

Innisfree: This was from my recent Sasa haul which I also didn't get around to sharing. I did a search for sensitive skin cleansers and this popped up so I decided to give it a try, plus it was only $6 USD. Since it's a fragrance-free foam, I figured that it would be very gentle with its light, airy texture.

The Face Shop: Purchased for the sake of the sale again and I have pretty big pores that I want to minimise. Even with products that say 'for all skin types', I still feel sceptical and hesitant to try the product because I in the past I have had skin reactions to products that say just that. But I bought it and tried it anyway - RRP $17.70 instore, bought for $7.

Australian Pure Beauty: N/A. A product from the ABC 2013 goodie bag :)

Reasons for favourite-ing:

Innisfree: It cleans my face well for something so gentle and I get no irritations. I like the pump dispenser as it's good for keeping the amount used consistent and 1 pump is enough for me. I would recommend this if you need a cleanser and have sensitive skin, or even if you don't have sensitive skin.

The Face Shop: It smells really nice and the blue micro beads don't feel harsh on my skin. It has a clear, gel-like consistency and it didn't irritate my skin - in fact it made my skin feel super smooth and I reckon my pores did become smaller! I won't hesitate to reach for this again.

Australian Pure Beauty: This one is a very grainy, sand-like and thick scrub where for me, a little goes a long way. I use about a pea size for my whole face and my skin feels smooth and refreshed afterwards. If this had been a product saying 'for all skin types' and I saw the texture of the scrub... I would have been very concerned about using it but since it says 'sensitive', I felt relaxed about giving it a try. Wording, packaging and appearance can have such a huge effect on one's perception, expectation and psychological thoughts.

 Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturising Lip Colour Balm in Chunky Cherry

Reasons for purchasing:

N/A. It was from quite a while ago, from an ABC goodie bag. And I had only recently started using it.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

It's like a lip balm with colour and I am obsessed with using tinted/coloured lip balms because I love the colour pay-off and having my lips nice and moisturised is what I need more than want! I can't use drying, mattefying lipsticks, I know I'll have that habit of licking my lips every few minutes or so. It may look great for some but it surely won't feel great for me. I think the reason why I've had it for a while and haven't used it is because of the colour - I'm more of a pinks/neutrals lipstick wearer however I am starting to really like red lippies all of a sudden. And it may look very red from the tube but the application is sheer. It's sooooo moisturising and it would be nice to have more of these type of lip crayons/balms ^_^

 Guinot One-Step Cleansing Water Face and Eyes

Reasons for purchasing:

N/A. From last year's ABC goodie bag.

Reasons for favourite-ing:

I haven't gotten into the Micellar Water Cleanser craze yet because most are quite up there in terms of pricing and I feel that average cleansers with water under $10 do enough for me. I always need to wash my face after removing my makeup anyway. But that doesn't stop me from being curious about Micellar Waters and wanting to try them. I'm not too sure if this product is classified as one because it doesn't say so on the bottle like most of them do. However the directions of use at the back of the bottle seems to indicate that it does work like one because it says, "pour on a cotton pad, then cleanse the entire face".

Here are the lovely swatches from the products mentioned in this post

The remains after one swipe of a cotton pad with the Guinot product

(The waterproof gel eyeliner remains! How good are they?!)

I would say that this cleansing water is really gentle and effective for face makeup more than eye makeup that's waterproof. Of course it can remove waterproof eye makeup too but it would require a bit of rubbing and/or more product. This doesn't put me off using the product or making it a favourite... I see it more as a toner than a cleanser and I'm happy to use this product to remove my face makeup :) The scent is gorgeous (think flowers) and surprisingly doesn't irritate my skin. I still like it even though there could be better products out there.

And that's a wrap!!! I always plan to have short and simple posts but I get very carried away when talking about things I LOVE and end up making these posts go on and on! Well it's over now, finally haha.

An easy questjen of the week:

February favourites - what are some of yours?

Keen to find out what people are liking/disliking!

Disclaimer: Products mentioned in this post were purchased by me unless stated otherwise. This is not a sponsored post, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies acknowledged. All opinions are stated by me with 100% honesty with no bias. 

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