April-June 2014 Empties

Whoops, I totally thought I'd be doing empties every month, but we just don't finish things that quickly! I didn't keep all the bottles since January, of course, as that would've meant we'd only have half our apartment left to live in, haha. Here are a few of the products that we finished in the past two or three months.

Pantene Aqualight Rinse Shampoo

I don't really have a preference in terms of shampoo other than the fact that there are some shampoos that make my scalp a little bit itchier than others. I should probably look more into what shampoos will help deal with dry scalp, which is different than dandruff because that's when your scalp gets flaky. For some reason, the clear shampoos in clear bottles mentally make me feel better! I couponed for a bunch of different brands of shampoo, so once one bottle is finished, I switch it for a different brand. I read that it's good to do that because your hair gets too used to one type when used for a long time.

Garnier Fructis Pure Clean Shampoo

The same stuff I said above could apply to this shampoo too because it was clear. Clear shampoo in clear bottles make me happy, haha. I do have to wash my hair almost every day unless I didn't go out that day and know for sure I won't go out the next day. However, I still feel dirty and slightly greasy on the second day and really can't wait to wash it.

Opti-Free Replenish Contact Lens Solution

The last time I went to the eye doctor, I told him that my eyes are always getting dry with my contacts and feeling a little uncomfortable after the first few days of wear. He told me that it would be best for me to switch to daily contacts for better eye health and less dryness. That has definitely been a great change for me. That means I don't have to clean my contacts (uh, not that I really took the time to clea them that well ... does anyone?) or use lens solution for my case. However, if I only wear a pair for a few hours for like, errands or something, I reuse them again. Because of that, along with the rare occasions when I need to moisten the contact again or if there was an eyelash causing me to remove the contact to clean before putting back in, I still use solution. I don't really have a preference anymore, so I just have Opti-Free because my parents bought the double packs from Costco. They do have expiration dates on them, so this is one thing where you can't stock up on!

Softsoap Advanced Clean Hand Soap

Living in an apartment means that we only have two sinks, but that also means we only have two places to have soap! I have a ton of Bath & Body Works soaps from exchanging a body care set that I got from a student a few years ago. I also purchased a few of the Sicilian Lemon ones that I've mentioned before during the winter 2013-2014 semi-annual sale. That means I still have plenty of foaming soap left, but we only use it in the kitchen. I'll talk more about it down below since I have 4 finished bottles. In the bathroom, however, I still use Softsoap. These are the refill bottles my parents picked up for us at Costco where you get two at a time. The reason why I still use this in the bathroom is because I wash my hands before I brush my teeth, and I really don't like scents since I use my left hand for the water. It's also nice to have a different soap option at our place throughout the day because the foaming soap from BBW is definitely drying if used a thousand times in a day.

Colgate Total Advanced Pro-Shield Mouthwash in Wintermint Rush

Colgate mouthwash is so much better than Listerine or Crest! It doesn't burn the way Listerine does or leave a strange aftertaste the way Crest does. I'm glad I couponed for these bottles of Colgate because we are stocked with all 3 flavors for free or close to free from CVS. The Wintermint Rush was the purple one. We have the green one in the bathroom now, which I think is spearmint, so that'll be the next flavor.

Herbal Essences Body Envy Shampoo

This is a HUGE bottle from Costco! It was in the shower for quite some time. I think we used one of the other shampoos at the same time since I was getting bored. I'm glad it's done because such a large bottle is a huge commitment, haha.

Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Tuscan Vineyard 

This was a scent chosen by Howard because he loves grape things. I love fresh grapes, but anything that's grape-flavored kind of grosses me out a bit. It might be from my childhood of taking Dimetapp. Though the medicine was definitely a good-tasting medicine, from that point on, I associated anything grape with medicine even if it actually tasted good! I don't like grape juice, and the only time I have it is for communion, haha. I don't like grape jelly or grape candy. This foaming soap definitely fell under the category! If I liked grape, I'm sure I would enjoy this because Howard liked it! This scent seemed to last a lot longer on my hands than the other soaps we've tried. Personally, I wouldn't purchase it again. If we did get it again, I'd have to have two soaps out because it's not worth it for me to use since I don't enjoy it.

Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Sicilian Lemon

I wrote about this already in my January 2014 Empties post that you can find via the link at the bottom of this post. I really am super happy that I have a few backups of this scent since I don't think they'll have it again. I didn't see it at the semi-annual sale currently going on.

Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Peach Bellini

Anything peach-scented from BBW is really pleasant! Howard especially likes it. Like Tuscan Vineyard and Sicilian Lemon, it just works perfectly in the kitchen. 

Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Ocean Pearl

This was definitely my LEAST favorite foaming soap that I've ever used. I remember smelling this collection in the store and liking it, but when we actually used it, I found it too strong. I also had this in the bathroom along with the Softsoap, and I kind of had to force myself to use it to finish it. After a quick Google search, I found the scent notes since it's no longer available for purchase. It's listed as having the following scents: pink grapefruit, watery white freesia and blue water accord. I really enjoy grapefruit scents (though I don't actually like grapefruit!), but it might've been the floral notes that I didn't enjoy. I don't even know what blue water accord is. This is one that I would NOT purchase again even if it were only $0.25!

(See January 2014 Empties)

January 2014 Empties

I follow a page on Facebook called "B&BW Sistas" because sometimes it's easier to get BBW news from them than the main page where people spend a lot of time complaining. One of the things they do on this fan page is showcase their "empties" of products at the end of each month to show what items were finished. With all the goodies that consumers buy, it's easy to feel more like a hoarder! I know I won't be finishing many of my BBW products quickly because as I've mentioned before, I switch scents pretty much every single day. What can I say? I really like variety! But I figured this would be a good opportunity to show what we finished and maybe give my opinion on the products too.

 Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Kitchen Lemon 

I purchased this one a LONG time ago when I exchanged a Christmas gift from a student for merchandise credit. Howard and I highly enjoyed this one in the kitchen. The scent is just purely lemon, so it smells clean and fresh and doesn't clash with whatever you're cooking. There are other scents that I really would not want to smell when I'm cooking or eating food. There are some on the fan page who dislike it because it's "boring," but I was upset when it was finished. However, now that we've tried Sicilian Lemon, I'd much rather have that one as it has the fresh lemon scent but smells like it's a fizzy drink. Both Howard and I love using it to wash our hands.

Bath & Body Works Gentle Foaming Hand Soap in Kitchen Mandarin

I was expecting this to be similar to the lemon, but I didn't enjoy it as much. I would still suggest using it in the kitchen because it worked with the regular food scents. However, there were times that I thought it was a little bit strong. Maybe it was the thyme that I wasn't a fan of smelling. I wouldn't discourage anyone from purchasing it, but I personally wouldn't get it again when there are others that are much more pleasant.

Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash Pink Grapefruit Facial Cleanser

I've been using Neutrogena facial cleanser for many years now. The orange one was actually my regular, but when I took advantage of a CVS Neutrogena deal, I decided to get the grapefruit scented one after using the scrub at my cousin's house and liking the scent. After using this one bottle though, I'm ready to switch back to the orange one. Near the end, my face started drying out too much. If I didn't put lotion on right after, my skin would feel too tight and would start peeling after a while. I also have to say that it stinks that this bottle is smaller than the orange ones I purchased recently yet costs more. At least it does last a good amount of time. Just be sure you use that lotion!

Colgate Total Advanced Pro-Shield Mouthwash in Peppermint Blast

I didn't use mouthwash too often years ago because Listerine always made my mouth burn. I learned to like it, but at times when I wasn't feeling the greatest, I didn't really want such a strong flavor. Then my parents started purchasing Crest, but I'm not too big of a fan of that either. I got this small bottle of Colgate as a free sample in the mail and actually enjoyed the fact that it didn't burn but still made my breath feel fresher for longer. Thankfully, I had couponed for the big bottles and the medium bottles at CVS and got them close to free if not entirely free thanks to ExtraBucks. I personally would highly recommend Colgate mouthwash over Listerine and Crest.

I wonder what we'll finish in the month of February!