Anyway, even though I like beauty products I go through them insanely slowly (see: unshowered). All the stuff here I probably had for years past its use-by date. I personally think that the use-by date is a plot by the manufacturers to make you throw out perfectly good stuff and buy new ones. However, I also hate waste and eat old food and use grubby old eyedrops that make my eyes sting, so I might not be the best authority on the subject. Anyway. I didn't actually buy any of the products above with the exception of the face wash sample which was 1,000,000 years old anyway and I probably bought in high school. Most of them are things various family members left behind in the bathroom at my grandma's old house. I am trying to have a cleaner, more "green" and natural routine so as I use up old products at my snail's pace, I will replace them with more natural and organic products as budget allows.
Estee Lauder eye makeup remover:
Honestly I am new to eye makeup remover. I wear mascara some/most days and liner maybe twice a month so it's not really a high priority. I think I used to use lotion on a q-tip before I got this little bottle. I guess this got the job done without feeling too oily like the other one I have, Clinique makeup remover (which I have a sample size of and also did not buy.) To me it feels wasteful to use all those cotton balls or q-tips. I might go full-rich-hippie and buy these reusable ones? Or the muslin cloth that came with this Boots cleaning cream from Target (which I bought because of online advice like this), or one of those microfiber cloths? When I finish the Clinique, I think I'll go with coconut oil like the entire internet says to do. I've tried it when I was traveling and it gets the job done and it's cheap and simple.
Mary Kay Time Wise Day Solution SPF 25
You know this crap is old because I can't even find the SPF 25 version online, in the bottle that looks like this one. Mary Kay in her wisdom has upgraded to SPF 35. I also have a bunch of those stashed waiting to get used up. I am aware that sunscreen stops working after it's been sitting around too long and this may be useless. However it is also my understanding that being in an opaque bottle with a squirt dispenser is ideal storage as light and bacteria don't get in there as fast to bring ruin. Whatever, I used this up and I didn't get a sunburn on my face the whole time. This tended to get tiny dried up bits in the dispenser opening that would then get on your face and not rub in, but it was also old as the hills so that could have been it. This gets the Good Housekeeping seal of approval for whatever that's worth? I feel like some minimal effort towards protecting my "milk bottle white" skin from the sun is required. Before maybe last year I never used lotion in the morning, or SPF unless I was going to be outside a lot, so a combination product is key. I know it's not quite as effective, but I am not about to put two things on my face when I can't even manage breakfast without being late for work. However I hugely prefer the Yes to Carrots lotion with SPF that I bought because of this review or a similar one.
Moroccan Oil Hydrating Conditioner
My cousin left this in the shower at my grandma's house and I swiped it. Sorry. I do not use many salon brands so I wanted to try it out. This was slightly better than bog standard conditioner. I wouldn't pay full price, but it was nice. There wasn't much of this left by the time I found it and I go through a lot of conditioner because I have long, thick, dry hair so I didn't use this more than a few times. It had a really thick consistency (unless that was just because it was the old bottom of the bottle?) that I like a lot.
Neutrogena Active Sport Transparent Sunblock Gel SPF 30
I actively (see what I did there) hated this stuff but I used it up anyway! It's a clear gel that makes horrible sounds when you squeeze it out, it smells overwhelmingly of rubbing alcohol, and it kinda balls up on your skin if there's too much in one place or you keep rubbing. If you reapply at the beach and you're already dirty and sweaty, it's even nastier. I love the beach and I hate spending money, so that's the only reason I finished this off. Ugh. Thank God it's out of my life.
Neutrogena Oil Free Acne wash sample
Like I said I have had this since the dawn of time. It lasted forever because I mostly used it on trips as I don't like using hotel bar soap on my face. I have moved on from foaming oil-free face wash, because I have dry skin with no oil to speak of, but I think this worked ok for me when I was younger and oilier. The packaging is annoying because there's no dispenser under the cap so you just squeeze it and WAY too much comes out. I think I still have about half of a full-size bottle of this or a very similar product, so I may save it for the summer.
What is with all these Neutrogena products? I had no idea I had so many. Maybe they call to me and my family members (from whom I steal all my products) in a subliminal appeal to clean reasonably-priced Nordic values. This is slightly less drying than the foaming cleanser even though the tingly menthol is supposed to be somewhat irritating. I actually really liked using this. I like the tingly feeling, and I like using a thick cream cleanser that doesn't leave a greasy film (looking at you, Clinique cream cleanser.) I felt like my skin stayed in good shape when I was using this on the regular. Apologies for the picture, I guess the ink on the packaging started to deteriorate when I mauled the bottom of the tube trying to get out the last drops. I don't think I actually ever bought this but I won't because I want something with simpler ingredients and don't need things with potential irritants targeted at oily skin.
