Operation Use It Up

Here's the batch of products that I managed to use up this month.

1. Paula's Choice Targeted Acne Relief Toner: This fragrance-free, colorant-free toner contains 2% salicylic acid for combating acne. It didn't sting my skin and it worked very well for me in terms of keeping large, cystic acne at bay although I still get whiteheads and blackheads. Will definitely re-purchase!


2. Vidal Sassoon Treatment: This rinse-off deep conditioning hair treatment left my hair soft and easy to manage, although it did not make any significant improvement in the dry condition of my color-treated hair.

3. Dove Nourishing Oil Care Express Treatment Conditioner: I found this to be more hydrating than the Vidal Sassoon Treatment and it helped to tame the frizziness without weighing my hair down. It was also intriguing in the way that it always squeezed out of the tube with a golden "ribbon" of treatment cream.

4. Bliss Ingrown Eliminating Pads: This contains 6% glycolic acid and 2% salicylic acid to help prevent ingrowns, plus lavender oil and green tea to soothe the skin. Sadly, these overpriced pads did not seem to make any difference in the rate at which I get ingrown hairs on my legs.

5. La Roche-Posay Physiological Micellar Solution: This gentle non-oily lotion helps to remove light makeup without any oily residue but it does not remove waterproof mascara well.

6. Eye makeup removers by Etude House and RMK: Both bi-phase removers worked well to remove waterproof mascaras without stinging the eyes.

7. Jurlique Rosewater Balancing Mist: Horribly expensive but I adore the rose scent, which works wonders as a mood-lifter and for relieving dry, parched skin. The rose scent also lingers for quite awhile but without being overly cloying.

8. Shu Uemura Cleansing Oil Premium A/I: This whisks off all traces of makeup in a jiffy but I prefer the lighter formula of the Fresh Gentle Cleansing Oil (pink).

9. Perricone MD Firming Facial Toner: This paraben-free, non-drying toner is supposed to help restores skin’s natural pH balance and delivers anti-aging, skin firming benefits thanks to ingredients like DMAE and alpha lipoic acid, an anti-inflammatory antioxidant. I liked how it left my skin feeling refreshed without any tightness, but I didn't notice any significant skin firming effect.

10. Sephora Smooth Nail Polish Remover: Very affordable and works well to remove most nail polishes quickly, although glitter polishes require more soaking time.