Products I Want to Use Up - 2014 - Update

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

I've been meaning to do an update on the list of products I've been trying to use up, and I finally got around to taking the pictures for it. If you want to see my original post, you can find it here.

Here's what I've finished:

• Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer
• Hard Candy Concealer Pencil
• Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil in CIA
• ELF shadow from the Day to Night Palette (white with gold shimmer)
• Stila Lip Glaze in Splendor
• Chapstick Lip Balm in Cake Batter
• Silk Naturals blush sample in Candie 
• Silk Naturals blush sample in Tart Light
• Stila Smudge Stick in Anglefish

I did a lot better than I thought. I had forgotten how many items I actually finished since I tend to add a new product when something gets finished. 

Now for the things that I'm still working on and the new things that I've added to my list.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Balancing Foundation in Fair - It's hard to tell because of the opaque tube, but I've made a lot of progress on this foundation. It's the one I've been using every day. I'm guessing I have less than a month left in the tube.

Nars Sheer Matte Foundation in Siberia - Since I've been using the Tarte foundation, I haven't really made progress on this one.

bareMinerals Prime Time Foundation Primer - This is my last foundation primer sample, so I want to use it up before starting in on my full size primers.

Benefit Erase Paste in Fair - I'm really excited to say that I've hit the bottom of the jar on this one. It'll probably still last for quite a while, but I'm still happy to see some progress.

Tarte Park Avenue Princess Bronzer - This is so close to gone. After I took this picture, I broke up what was left and put it in an empty loose minerals jar. It's making it easier to get to the last of the product.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Concealer in Fair - I'd like to get this concealer out of my collection because it separates in the tube. I was honestly quite disappointed with this concealer. I end up squeezing some into a clean jar so I can use a brush to mix it together.

Too Faced Wrinkle Injection Extreme Wrinkle Filler - I haven't made as much progress with this as I should. I still forget to use it more often than not.

Milani eye shadow in French Vanilla (largest pan) - The amount of pan showing on this has gotten a lot bigger. It's still going to take a long time to finish, but I don't mind using it, so that doesn't bother me.

Everyday Minerals eye shadow in Funnel Cake (darker brown) - There's a little more pan showing, but I tend to forget to use this one when I grab a palette with a crease color in it.

Silk Naturals eye shadow in Shantung (smallest pan) - This is an old gift with purchase shade. I picked it because it is such a small pan. I'm hoping it won't take too long to finish.

Everyday Minerals eye shadow in Driftwood (lighter brown) - I haven't really made any visible progress with this shadow.

Everyday Minerals eye shadow mix of Good China and Queen Anne's Lace - I pulled this shadow out because it is an easy lid shade. There's a speck of pan showing.

Tarte fRxtion Lip Scrub and Balm - This is getting to the point where it is a little annoying. I already had a bit of the exfoliator break off, which is something I expected. I don't think this will stay usable for much longer before the bulk of it breaks off.

Sassy blush sample in Cosmopolitan and Silk Naturals Mineral Glow in Crinoline - In hindsight, these weren't the best choices for the spring and summer season. I'm gravitating towards brighter blushes at the moment.  These would take me a while to finish anyway, so we'll see how it goes.

Tarte double-ended lip liner - I keep forgetting to use this before I run out the door in the morning, so my progress has been minimal.

Stila eye liners in Stargazer, Oscar Fish, Tetra, and Moray - Oscar Fish (the brown one) is actually gone. I finished it between the time that I took these pictures and the time I got around to writing this post. These drive me crazy because I can't check to see how much is left in them. They don't roll back down once they are scrolled up.

Urban Decay 24/7 eye liners in Whiskey and Rockstar - I've been focusing on the Stila liners, so I haven't really made any progress with these.

Stila Smudge Crayon mini in Smoke - I added this to my list, tried it once, and I might end up abandoning it. The shade is a bit too dark for me to regularly use as a shadow base, but I think it is too light to use as a liner. We'll see.

Stila Smudge Pot in Kitten - This is ambitious. I haven't even made a dent in this yet. The color is much easier than Smoke to use as a shadow base.

bareMinerals Prime Time Eye Shadow Primer sample - I'm liking this eye shadow primer. I've maybe got a week or two left of it before I go back to my standard Urban Decay Primer Potion.

Sassy eye shadow in Embellish - This is a small eye shadow sample that I've already made a bit of a dent in, so I'd like to finish it off. Like the Stila Smudge Crayon, it's a bit darker than what I normally wear during that day, so I'll be mixing it with other colors to make it more wearable for me.

Jordana LipShine in Banana Cream and Sugar Cookie - I love the scent of these, and I like the feel of them too. Sadly, the colors just aren't flattering on my lips. I'm going to try and use them up on the weekends and when I'm just hanging out around the house.

ELF Studio Translucent Mattifying Powder - I bought this a long time ago thinking I would use it for touch-ups during the day. I haven't been using it, so I pulled it out of my purse to use in the morning when I'm getting ready. I scraped this powder out of the pan after this picture so I could mix it with the other powders that I have and like more. 

I'm pretty proud of what I've finished and the progress I've made on the items that I haven't finished yet. I hope to keep the momentum going throughout the rest of this year. 

Are you trying to finish any products? 

Disclaimer: All products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

CVS Haul! Physicians Formula and Milani Deals!

Disclosure: All items mentioned in this post were purchase by me. All opinions are my own. 

I was really hopeful at the beginning of last week when I stopped into my CVS and saw that they had slots opened up for the new Physicians Formula products that just came out. With Physicians Formula 40% off this week and an emailed coupon for $2 off of a $10 beauty purchase, I was all set to pick something up. At the time, they only had the Nude Wear blush in Natural and the Nude Wear bronzer out, so I waited.

Later in the week, I got an email coupon for $4 off of $20. I stopped in on Thursday to see if the new stuff was out yet. When I scanned my card in store, I got a coupon for $3 off of a $10 Milani purchase and a $5 off of a $12 Physicians Formula purchase. Yes!!! Still no more new Physicians Formula items though.

When Friday rolled around, I asked one of the CVS workers when they would be stocking the new Physicians Formula items, and she said they might be getting them in over the next few days. *sigh*

I did get a little bit lucky though because my CVS had added one of the new Milani matte baked blushes to the display between my trip on Thursday and my trip on Friday.

Here's a look at my haul:

Here's the breakdown on my deal.

The Physicians Formula Nude Wear blush was originally $13.29, so the 40% off price was $7.97. The bronzer was $15.29, and the sale price was $9.17. The Milani blush was $8.79.

My total prior to coupons was $25.93. I then used the $5 off Physicians Formula, the $3 off Milani (the blush rang up for less than I was expecting, so I don't know how this coupon still worked, but it did), the $4 off of $20, and the $2 off of $10.

My final total before tax was $11.93 (with tax it was $13.33). Without any coupons or discounts, I would have paid $37.37 before tax, so I saved $25.44.

These particular deals aren't still available, but keep your eyes peeled and make sure and scan your CVS ExtraCare card every time you go in. You never know what deals might come your way.

Have you gotten any good deals lately? Have you tried any of the new Physicians Formula items? Are there any that I need to get when my CVS finally gets them in stock?

Disclosure: All items mentioned in this post were purchase by me. All opinions are my own. 

Products I Want to Use Up - 2014

Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

Last year I did a couple of posts about products I wanted to use up. It went okay. Looking back, I thought I had done more updates than I actually did.

I'm going to try it again this year.

When I went through and picked out the products that I plan on working on, there were a couple of things I looked at. Some of the products were chosen because they are products in which I've already made a big dent. I also chose products that were getting old.

Another motivation for doing this is to get rid of some of the products I own that aren't cruelty-free.

Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Balancing Foundation in Fair - I've had this for a really long time, and you can see in the picture that I've used a lot of it, so I'd like to go ahead a finish this off.

Nars Sheer Matte in Siberia - This foundation is in the same boat. I've had it for a while, and it is about half gone, so I want to try and finish this one too. I know using up both will take a while.

Hourglass Mineral Veil Primer - I have several full-sized primers in my collection, so I decided to use up all of my mini sizes. This is the last mini size that I have. It's hard to see in the picture, but it is about half gone already.
 

Benefit Erase Paste in Fair - Benefit isn't a cruelty-free company, so I'd like to get this gone. I would guess I have about a third of this left.

Tarte Park Ave Princess Bronzer - I have a lot of bronzers, so I'm taking the same approach that I took with my primers. I'm using up my mini ones first. I'm just about to hit pan on this one.

Hard Candy Concealer Pencil - This little pencil came with the Glamoflage Concealer, which I threw out a long time ago. I've been using this to clean up the edges of my lips. I can't sharpen it anymore, so it should be finished in the next week or so.

Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencil in CIA - I've had this for a long time, and it seems like it is drying out a little bit. It's crumbled a couple of times when I've tried to sharpen it. I've really like it though, and I might repurchase it once I work through some other concealers first.

Too Faced Wrinkle Injection Extreme Wrinkle Filler - I got this in a swap a long time ago, and I tend to forget to use it.

Milani Eye Shadow in French Vanilla (largest pan) - I need to work my way through my extra matte browbone shades. Wet n Wild's Brulee is my absolute favorite, so I'd like to clear the clutter and stick with that one in the future.

ELF Shadow from the Day to Night Palette (triangular pan) - I pulled this out as a shadow to use up a while ago because the pan is relatively small. It's a cream with gold shimmer that I can use on the inner corners of my eyes nearly every day.

Everyday Minerals Eye Shadow in Funnel Cake (darker brown) - I have a ton of mineral eye shadows that I've pressed, and I don't use them often enough. I pulled this out because it is an easy crease shade. It does have some shimmer, but it doesn't show when applied.

Everyday Minerals Eye Shadow in Driftwood (lighter brown) - Another pressed mineral eye shadow. Again, I chose it because it is an easy color to use.

Stila Lip Glaze in Splendor - I was really sad when it came out that Stila is no longer cruelty-free. This is an easy gloss to throw on, so I hope I can finish it relatively quickly.

Chapstick Lip Balm in Cake Batter - Chapstick isn't cruelty-free either, so this will be living in my pants pockets until it is gone. I have another Chapstick balm to go through after this one.

Tarte fRxtion Lip Scrub and Balm - Another old product. The darker side is the sugar scrub, and the white side is the balm. I have a feeling this will break off before I can finish it.

Silk Naturals Blush Samples in Candie and Tart Light - I have a lot of mineral blush samples sitting around, so I pulled out a couple to work on. 

Tarte Double-Ended Lip Liner - I got this at the same time that I got the lip scrub. The colors are okay, but I'm much more likely to swipe on a balm or gloss.

Stila Smudgestick Eye Liners - Again, with Stila's change in cruelty-free status, I'd like to clear out what I can. Eye liners are easier to go through than powder products, and these colors are pretty easy to wear, so I'm going to try and wear them as much as possible to finish them off.

Urban Decay 24/7 Liner Pencils in Whiskey and Rockstar - It should be pretty obvious why these made the list. They are nearly gone to begin with, so I might as well use them up.

Those are all the things that I specifically pulled to use up. I've already mentioned that I'm working on my stash of lotions too. I didn't add in any pictures of them because I'm going through them relatively quickly using them twice a day on my arms and legs.

Are you trying to use anything up in the new year?

Disclaimer: All of the products mentioned in this post were purchased by me. All opinions are my own. 

Milani Powder Eye Shadows - Review and Swatches

While doing some shopping for a Secret Santa gift exchange on CVS.com, I couldn't help but throw in a few of the new Milani Powder Eye Shadows into the order for myself. I got mine on sale, and I don't remember how much I paid for them, but they are currently selling for $5.99 on Milani's website.

I picked up four colors: French Vanilla, Pearl, Gold Dust, and Caramel Brown.

Clockwise from the top: Gold Dust, Caramel Brown, Pearl, French Vanilla

 French Vanilla

 French Vanilla is a matte, cream shade that makes a nice highlight color. It is a little bit lighter and not quite as opaque as my beloved Brulee by Wet n Wild.

Pearl

Pearl is about what you'd expect in terms of color. It's somewhere between Urban Decay's Virgin and Sin. Sadly, this one doesn't seem to have very good color payoff. The second picture above was what happened when I pressed too hard trying to get a decent swatch.

Gold Dust

Saldy, Gold Dust arrived in the condition you see in the first picture. Thankfully, cracked powders are a somewhat easy fix. I pushed the loose pieces back to where they broke off from, poured rubbing alcohol over the whole shadow, and lightly pressed over it with a paper towel. A shadow that is completely shattered needs a firmer pressing, typically with something like a coin to help give even pressure.

As for the performance of the shadow, it's pretty sheer. It's a nice color for what it is, but don't expect it to apply like Urban Decay's Half Baked.

Caramel Brown

I think this is my favorite of the four shades I got. It's a gorgeous golden brown color that applies nicely and has good pigmentation. 

Swatches

Left to Right: French Vanilla, Pearl, Gold Dust, Caramel Brown

Overall, these shadows are decent, with French Vanilla and Caramel Brown being better than the other two. Because of my experiences with Gold Dust coming slightly cracked and Pearl cracking with a bit too much pressure, I would be hesitant to travel with these shadows.

Have you tried the Milani Powder Shadows yet? What was your impression of them?