Happy JUNE everyone! I'm well aware this post is coming out about a month late, but I didn't want to simply skip this part of the process, because tracking and analyzing these habits are really important. Despite the late upload, I hope you get something out of my insights into month 3 of the no-buy challenge!

April Spend & Replenishment Budget

It's been over three months and while I admit, I have a lot of products to go through, the challenge doesn't seem that trying yet. I've been very good at working through my stash and have started using underutilized things in my collection, like some eyeshadow palettes that are decidedly underloved! This is the month however, that I've started to feel some guilt towards the amount of 'wasted' product in my collection. Expired mascara, foundation, concealer, lipstick. Stuff I bought but how many times did I actually use it? I hate waste and this challenge has brought me to realize how much I have that I simply don't use.

That did, however, make April fairly easy with regards to the spending side of things. The only thing I bought was a leave-in conditioner spray to help deal with the frayed, crispy ends of my coloured hair. Since my hair has been bleached and redyed over and over, sometimes I get really cronchy ends and the Milk Shake Leave In Conditioner (about $20-25 depending on your salon) literally smells like a treat and keeps my hair soft. Totally worth it.

Last month I mentioned a mini-challenge to start churning through perfume samples and it's slow-moving, but it's going! I found some I LOVE, like Prada Candy (which still has a bunch, I think I'll exhaust it in May) and some I truly dislike after one spritz like CK Euphoria. My next challenge is to go through my lipstick collection with the same decisiveness. I have a LOT of stuff I don't reach for and it's time to say goodbye.

I don't have that many empties this month, but my lipstick purge which will be another post, will probably have a LOT more tossed items. Stay tuned!

April Empties

Lancome Genifique Youth Activating Concentrate - When I think about this serum, I'm reminded of the 2006 movie Friends with Money. There is an entire sub-plot about Jennifer Aniston's character and how, while she seems ok with her working class gig as a maid, really covets the same high-end skincare she bought when she was working as a teacher. So she goes out of her way to get sample after sample of one moisturizer because she just can't afford it or justify it. That's how I feel with Lancome Genifique. My skin absolutely loves it, and responds well to it, but I just CAN'T JUSTIFY THE COST. So if you see any samples, let me know ;)

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% - I know The Ordinary is going through SOME VERY WEIRD THINGS RIGHT NOW (this Elle article has a good timeline until late April and a quick browse through Reddit can catch you up). But I'm torn because the Niacinamide does some very good things for my skin. I spent most of May without it, and REGRET EVERYTHING. I want to rebuy it but I feel super torn since the founder is clearly not a great person. Halp.

Quo Beauty Blender - Back before I got very serious about my love for the Real Techniques beauty blender, I would purchase any blender when it went on sale. Quo was one of them. But honestly, it's not the same. It's too soft, it absorbs WAY too much product, and tears rather easily. Mine is in several pieces because I was trying to clean it recently and tore off a significant chunk with my nail and just got mad and RIPPED it apart. It was very satisfying.

Quo by Orly Ultra-Dry Top Coat Back when I used to be unable to go ONE DAY with bare nails, this was one of my favourite topcoats. This was a partnership WAY BACK with Quo and Orly and I hoarded a few of these top coats. This is my last one and I'm fairly certain they don't exist any more? Maybe I'm wrong. Seche Vite is also great, but this was one of my nail staples for years.

Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Hydrating I'm a huge fan of Smashbox primer, but this one was a dud. It smelled weird from the get-go and while I understand the need for a hydrating primer, it was a hassle to work with. Not all my foundations meshed well with it, so I could only use this with a few of my looks and the smell was just weird. Will definitely not repurchase.

Folle de Joie Perfume- I think I got this perfume from either Sephora or a beauty box and I'M SHOCKED it took me so long to get around to it. It's a citrusy, floral musk with a surprisng depth. It wasn't an all-day kind of perfume, but the fragrance would linger. When I looked it up, it has very similar note to other perfumes I enjoy, like Roses de Chloe and Marc Jacobs Daisy.

April Tosses

Neutrogena Hydro-Boost Gel Cream- No no no no no. I tend to stay away from gel creams but I received this for review from Chickadvisor and this cream just HATED my serum. It actually felt painfully tingle. When I removed the serum and just applied the gel cream alone, my skin was not getting enough hydration. AND IT PULLED. It did not like being applied under makeup. I have no time for this. Bye!

CK Euphoria - I worked an event a few years ago where CK was the sponsor and I went home with samples of of a variety of their perfumes. While I enjoy smelling their fragrances on others, I've never really enjoyed them myself. Euphoria has TOO much of a woodsy/mahogany scent for me to enjoy wearing. It's too obvious, not as complex as I usually like. (Says the girl who enjoys Tom Ford fragrances, go figure!)

Lipsticks - Yves Rocher Corail Doux, Clinique A Different Grape, Maybelline Plum Perfect, Burt's Bees Fuchsia Flood will all be reviewed in my upcoming lipstick purge post!

And that's it! If you're on a no-buy like me, how's it going?