Lots of hair and skincare empties to kick off the year:

I should mention here that I have to wash my hair every day or else it gets really limp. I have started to skip one day a week – typically Sundays when it doesn’t matter if I just tie my hair back – I honestly don’t think my hair / scalp is any better for skipping the one day of washing. Anyway, onto the empties.

Head & Shoulders Shampoo Dry Scalp Care with Almond Oil – $8 for 400ml (drugstores)
I always have a bottle of H&S on rotation come Fall time since my scalp gets super itchy and prone to dryness and flakes. This almond oil version was just ok – I still prefer the green apple version for both the scent and how bouncy it makes my hair.
Stash worthiness: 7/10     Repurchase: No

Clear Scalp & Hair Beauty Therapy Damage and Color Repair Deep Nourishing Treatment Mask – $10 for 180ml (drugstores)
I love this stuff! But I suspect it is being discontinued because I scored a few tubes on clearance. Just so typical! It’s a rich cream conditioner that I massage into my scalp focusing on the crown and temple area – leave on for 3 minutes and rinse out. This mask helps relief the itch and tightness without weighing my hair down. It smells really nice too.
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: Yes (unsure if discontinued)

Arrojo Curl Definer – $22 for 150ml (salons & salon supplies)
I scored a few tubes of this from the local barber supply store for only $4.99 each. Originally I only bought 1 tube, then discovered that I really like it, so I ran back the next week to get the rest they had left. It’s a similar product to my beloved Curl Keeper – it provides slightly less hold than the Curl Keeper though.
Stash worthiness: 8/10     Repurchase: Yes (if I can find it on discount!)

Tresemme Perfectly (un)done sea salt spray – $10 for 200ml (drugstores)
I wasn’t a fan of this – didn’t provide much structure to the hair. I had to spray about 20 spritzes into my hair to get any body. It felt like it was a very diluted version of a texturizing spray. Since I had to spray more than normal, I went through this bottle super quickly. I got this for free so I really shouldn’t complain.
Stash worthiness: 5/10     Repurchase: No

Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Stress Control 3-in-1 Hydrating Acne Treatment – $15 for 59ml (drugstores… who knows anymore)
I used this ages ago and forgot about it, and decided to give it another try last year because it had such rave reviews on Beautypedia.  It’s a great hydrating gel – I like it more than the oft-hyped La Roche Posay Effaclar K – both of them I use as a preventative maintenance on my t-zone, especially my chin where I get hormonal breakouts.  I find the Neutrogena to be more hydrating, and it’s a much better value.  I’ve read that this product is discontinued in the US, but still available in Canada, although I’ve not seen it on store shelves lately. I have one unopened tube in my stash.
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: Yes (still unsure if it’s truly discontinued)

Mary Kay TimeWise Even Complexion Essence – $45 for 29ml (Mary Kay reps and online)
This has a 4 star rating on the Beautipedia, which is the primary reason why I got it. For me, it was a nice serum but I didn’t see noticeable results. The key ingredient in this serum is niacinamide which is supposed to help diminish discolouration – I noticed no reduction on my hyperpigmentation or freckles (my lifelong battle!). I did go through this serum rather quickly – maybe I need to try another tube to see results?
Stash worthiness: 7/10     Repurchase: Maybe

Beyond Belief ABH Intensive Repair Treatment – ~$8 for 53ml (Sally Beauty Supply)
This is such an old product. Beyond Belief is the private label brand of Sally Beauty Supply. Way back before Paula’s Choice chemical exfoliants were all the rage, the Beyond Belief the only game in town. And it was a fantastic product – combining AHA and BHA into a single serum. It left my skin clear of clogged pores and looking glowy. But of course, like everything good, they decided to play around with the product range – the current Beyond Belief products are a pale comparison to the former glory days!
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: No (discontinued – are you noticing a theme here?)

Shiseido Bio-Performance Advanced Super Revitalizing Cream – $92 for 50ml (department stores)
This is not cheap, but it’s my HG winter nighttime face cream. It’s rich without being overly oily. It’s hydrating and softening on my skin, and I don’t break out or get clogged pores with it. This jar lasts me a long time because I only use it during Fall and Winter months. I’ll never be without this unless they change the formula, or if the price becomes prohibitive.
Stash worthiness: 10/10     Repurchase: Yes

Shiseido Facial Cotton – $11 for 165pcs (drugstores and department stores)
Not much else to say about these pillowy cotton goodness except that I wish they were cheaper.
Stash worthiness: 10/10     Repurchase: Yes

TheFaceShop Multi 5 Layer Cotton Pads – $5 for 80pcs (TheFaceShop)
I use these cotton pads for one thing only: cleaning up eye shadow fall-out when I do my eye makeup. They’re lint-free and perfectly sized for the job. I do my eye makeup first before foundation, so it’s easy to just pour a bit of micellar water onto these and wipe the under eye area clean. A box of these lasts me forever since I use each layer separately, and I cut them in half as well (80 x 5 x 2 = 400pcs).
Stash worthiness: 10/10     Repurchase: Yes

Rougier Glycerin – $6 for 100ml (drugstores)
I use this pure glycerin to make my own Zoya “Remove+” which is essentially acetone with a dash of glycerin. I add about a tbsp of this into a 200ml bottle of acetone-based nail polish remover and shake it up. Works like a charm.
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: Yes

Kibio Suncare Face Lotion SPF 50 – $22 for 40ml
I’m an idiot and this unopened bottle of sunscreen is already expired before I had a chance to use it. Kids, let this be a lesson to you about hoarding beauty items.  I didn’t even like this – very greasy.
Stash worthiness: 6/10     Repurchase: No

Cake Milk Made Velveteen Hand Cream – $18 for 100ml (Sephora and online)
I LOVE the scent of this! It smells like a mixture of Rockets candies (I think Americans call them Smarties) and marshmallows. The formula is fantastic too – rich but not greasy and absorbs quickly. I wish it was more readily available and less expensive!
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: Yes

Haken Essential Fragrance Cuticle Oil in Cranberry – $7 for 15ml (Sally Beauty Supply)
I’ve had this bottle forever. I use it every single week on my cuticles after my manicure. But last week, I opened the bottle and the oil had gone off! So weird how something could be fine one week and spoiled by the next. Ah well, RIP Cranberry cuticle oil, you were a good pal. I got this on clearance from Sally Beauty Supply. I have an unopened bottle from the same brand but in a melon scent.
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: No

Maybelline Age Rewind Erase Dark Circles Treatment Concealer in Neutralizer and Medium – $12 for 6ml (drugstores)
These are HG under eye concealers for me. I’m not able to find a perfect match in the shade range offered, but I’ve found that mixing 2 parts Neutralizer and 1 part Medium gets me a good match. There’s quite a lot of product contained in those tubes – they last me about 8 months with daily use. I have no issues with the packaging since I just dab the product onto my ring finger and apply to my face that way. Someone made a great comment about the sponge applicator on these – when you think about it, there’s really no difference between this versus a concealer with a doe-foot applicator.
Stash worthiness: 9/10     Repurchase: Yes

Jack Black Intense Lip Therapy Lip Balm in Lemon & Chamomile – $8.50 for 7g (Sephora)
I know there are die-hard Jack Black fans and I’m just not one of them. I don’t find this to be that hydrating and it doesn’t seem to last very long on my lips either. The only things I liked about this was; it’s not super glossy – I liked using this to apply over lipstick to add some slip but no shine. And, it also smelled nice.
Stash worthiness: 5/10     Repurchase: No

Maybelline Eye Studio Master Drama in Bold Brown – $12 for 0.28g (drugstores)
This is a pretty good liner for the lower lash line (I primarily use pencil liners on the lower lash line – I use liquid or gel liners for my upper lash line). It stays well if I use powder eye shadow on top – on its own, it does tend to fade a bit. I also find that automatic pencils seem to get used up really quickly and this was no exception.
Stash worthiness: 7/10     Repurchase: No

CoverGirl Flamed Out mascara – $10 for 11ml (drugstores)
Bah, what a letdown. I had a really difficult time applying this mascara onto my lashes – the weirdo hourglass wand shape was utterly useless. The formula was a clumpy goopy mess that refused to build any length. It was also a flaky nightmare. It was like CoverGirl wrote down all the traits of a bad mascara and aimed to create it. The only saving grace was that it didn’t smudge and was fairly easy to remove at night.
Stash worthiness: 3/10     Repurchase: No

L’Oreal Bare Naturale mascara (discontinued)
Another tube bites the dust. I did a review on this HG, but discontinued mascara. This mascara saved the CoverGirl Flame Out Mascara by providing the much needed length and separation when I layered it on top. I think I have 4 of these precious tubes of mascaras left in my stash. *sigh*
Stash worthiness: 10/10     Repurchase: 😥

bareMinerals Locked & Coated Waterproof Lash Topcoat – $15 for 7.5ml (Sephora)
I did a comparison post of this product against the Clarins Double Fix’ Mascara topcoat, and I preferred the Clarins more. I’ll be going back to the Clarins even though it’s more expensive, it just works better. The biggest issue I had with the bareMinerals was the brush design: the bristles were so short they could not get into the lashes to coat them with the topcoat. I had to really press the wand against my lashes to try to get product onto them.
Stash worthiness: 6/10     Repurchase: No

Samples

Clinique Rinse-off Foaming Cleanser
This is a no-frills cleaner that’s better suited for oily or combo skin – I found it to be quite stripping to the skin.  I would not purchase this in full size.
Kiehl’s Soy Milk & Honey Body Polish
This is actually unused. My SO received this in a loot bag and was quite pleased to give it to me. However, when I turned it over to read the ingredients, I noticed that it contains those microbeads (polyethylene) that choke the fishies. So it’s going in the bin instead of being rinsed down the drain.
Burt’s Bees Rosewater & Glycerin Toner
By the name alone, this toner sounds like it would be gentle, but alas, it is not. It has heavy on the alcohol content and I used this to wipe my underarms as a refresher. 😛

21 full and 3 sample-sized products to kick off the new year! 😀  Reminder: today is the FINAL day to enter my Favourite Things Giveaway – don’t miss out! ⭐