empties v1
#55 on my list of 101 things in 1001 days was to finish 15 lotions/perfumes/sprays. I kept the empty bottles in my bathroom. and as weird as this is… since then, I have been keeping all of my empty bottles. I felt like a crazy person until I saw this post on Carly’s blog.
When I decided to be intentional about actually using the products I had (crazy, right) I also decided to stop over-purchasing things I didn’t need but wanted to buy just because they were on sale. and then a few months ago I realized that I tend to collect, not use, my Birchbox samples and I’ve been trying to break that habit as well.
So now. The Empties I have been collecting
Tis The Season & Sweet Orange Pumpkin Bath & Body Works foaming hand soap
There’s a Bath & Body Works outlet on the way to camp, so I tend to stock up on hand soaps when they’re on sale. One of those things you’ll always be using up and needing to repurchase. Sometimes the things that are really on sale are past seasons scents. I’ve been smelling fall and Christmas for the past few months.
Replace? Always.
Softsoap Vitality hand soap
It was on sale. The others had run out.
Replace? No thanks. I like the foaming kind better.
Victoria’s Secret Pink 2-in-1 Body Wash & Scrub, Warm and Cozy
One of my FAVORITE smells OF ALL TIME. I don’t even know if this product exists anymore. I liked the scrubby bead things, but mostly I loved THE SMELL! It is exactly what it says it is… warm and cozy.
Replace? Sure, if it still is around.
St. Ives Triple Butters Hydrating Body Wash in Creamy Coconut
The smell wasn’t as coconutty as I’d been hoping and it seemed pretty generic for a body wash.
Replace? Probably not.
Sarah Jessica Parker Lovely perfume
My stepmom bought this for me the first time I went to the Philippines….. back in 2002. I LOOOVED this smell. Really soft and delicate. It lasted for a very long time because I rarely used perfume for awhile there.
Replace? No. It had it’s time and place.
Betsey Johnson perfume
Oh gosh. I love this smell. so much. It’s really fruity and fun. I used to try it on every time I was at a department store and finally realized I could actually own a bottle of it for a decent price thanks to Marshalls.
Replace? Already did.
Mary-Kate and Ashley perfume: NY
Okay, this is a super old perfume. It was the pink one, I think NY. I used to buy the MK&A gift sets the day after Christmas because they were HALF OFF of Mary-Kate and Ashley stuff, and I loved everything they did. Unfortunately because I used to be so bad at consistently using products, they would stick around… forever. But I FINALLY used this one up. It was really girly and soft and now I’m left with the blue one.. which used to be my favorite one. sigh.
Replace? Isn’t even a thing anymore! But the answer would’ve been no anyways.
The Body Shop Soft Hand Kind Hearts Hand Cream
When I lived in SoCal I did a lot of dishes. Like.. a lot. My hands got really dry and cracked, so I bought this hand cream to keep in my purse. Plus it was attached to some charity or something so I felt like it was a really good cause.
Replace? No.
Victoria’s Secret My Desire body spray
Sometimes for Christmas and birthday presents people give me body spray gift sets. Which doesn’t help my smelly stuff collecting, because then there are SO MANY OPTIONS. This little bottle was one of those. The really sad part is that I honestly have no idea what this smelled like.
Replace? No.
Bath & Body Works Dance Til You Drop Hand Sanitzer
Remember that Bath & Body Works outlet I was talking about earlier? They sell these 5/$5, so I stock up when I can.
Replace? No.
Dove Dry Shampoo
At the end of last summer I stopped using shampoo and started doing the “no poo” method, which is basically just baking soda and an apple cider vinegar rinse. I don’t wash my hair every time I take a shower, and soooometimes it needs a bit of a pick-me-up. I’ve always been excited about the idea of dry shampoo and this was the first one I picked up. I really love it – it’s very light and doesn’t make my hair feel all coarse.
Replace? Definitely.
Bain de Terre passion flower COLOR PRESERVING CONDITIONER
This was one of my Birchbox samples. Please note the irony of the aforementioned description and this little bottle. I don’t really use shampoo. I used this maybe once every two weeks. I can’t remember anything about it because I didn’t use it consistently.
Replace? No.
Beauty Protector Protect & Shampoo and Beauty Protector Protect & Condition
…HOWEVER. HOWEVER! This is some of the best smelling stuff EVER. These were Birchbox samples as well, and awhile ago I got a dentangler by the same brand and I cannot get over the smell. It smells so wonderful. SO WONDERFUL!
Replace? No. BUT IT SMELLS SO GOOD!
Derma E Refining Vitamin A and Glycolic Scrub
Once when I was replacing my favorite BB Cream from Birchbox, I decided to check the freebie store and this scrub was in there. I decided to try it and was blown away when I got a FULL SIZED PRODUCT! I was kind of on the fence about it until one day I was strolling through Whole Foods window shopping for boyfriends and I noticed that they sold this there. For like $12. I went home and started using it…. aaaand loved it. The scrubby beads aren’t too harsh and the smell is nice and fresh. I usually use my weird cinnamon/honey/nutmeg/baking soda/coconut oil wash in the evening and use this in the morning.
Replace? For sure. I already have.
Benefit Moisture Prep Toning Lotion
Another Birchbox sample. Look I have no real idea what this product is for. I used it after my toner and before my moisturizer because I figured out that it was pre-moisturizer, but I could never tell the difference. The smell was great and I felt fancy having extra steps in my beauty routine, but I couldn’t see any real difference when I used this.
Replace? No.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Eye Glam Shadow Duo
More things I’ve had for over 10 years. Looooved this, especially once I started using makeup more recently in the past few years. One part of it was lighter tan and shimmery and then there was a darker tan. I loved mixing the two together so it was kinda shimmery and perfect.
Replace? At first I was gonna say no because they stopped selling it at Wal-Mart and THEN I FOUND THIS ON E-BAY SO IDK!
Also included was an empty nail polish remover bottle, two things of lemon juice (I use it every day!) and toothpaste, but I thought those things were a little too boring to put you through talking about.
Have you used any of these products?? What are things you consistently replace?
