My First Empties

Every time I see someone else do an empties post, most often my friend Lizzy, I think "I should do that", then pretty much immediately forget until the next time I see one. But today is a historic day: I remembered to snap a photo before I put some recently emptied containers into the recycling bin (or the trash in one case since I couldn't find any indication it was something my community would accept in the bin).



Starting from the left, there's Eucerin Calming Body Wash Daily Shower Oil. I didn't buy this; Mr. Karen brought it home from one of his visits to his parents' house. I guess they tried it and didn't like it, which doesn't surprise me since I didn't like it, either. I generally use a mild soap in the shower anyway, so this didn't seem loads more gentle, and it wasn't moisturizing enough that I felt like I could skip my post-shower lotion in this Michigan winter, so it didn't save me any time, but mostly I didn't like the smell. It's fragrance-free, so has no masking agents or pleasant scents added, which meant it smelled like its ingredients, which include oils like soybean and castor, so basically there I am in my shower getting a whiff of something that reminded me of my frying pan on those rare occasions when I cook. That's not something I associate with being clean and fresh, for sure, so I haven't replaced this.



The Ion Color Defense Sulfate Free Shampoo was the thing I picked as my free product when I renewed my Sally Beauty card. I did like the smell of this, sort of like grapefruit, which although I don't like to eat, I do find refreshing to smell. It was just okay at cleaning my hair and leaving it feeling nice when it dried, though, so I don't plan to buy more. I did like the scent, though, so maybe I'll look at some reviews and see if there's some trick to using this that I just didn't know about—diluting with water first or massaging into my scalp more or something.



Unlike the first two products, it was not my first time trying the Bikini Zone Anti-Bumps Shave Gel. It's one of my staples; I keep it in the shower and use it for all my shaving, not just my "bikini zone". I like the product and the packaging—no metal can of shave cream to knock over accidentally and make a huge clang in the morning, a time when clanging should be kept to a minimum. I failed to snap a shot of the ingredients on the empty, but here they are from my backup:



When I used up this tube of the Bikini Zone, I decided to try something similar from a store brand, figuring I could save a little money. Thus the CVS Bikini Smooth Shave Gel came into my shower. It's clearly targeted at being a Bikini Zone replacement, with the same product color and similar package design. I'm not sure why they felt it necessary to put "for women" on the CVS one; seems to me if a man wants to shave his bikini area there's no reason he couldn't use this stuff.



I should have turned the packages over in the store and compared the ingredients, though, since unlike a lot of store brand equivalents, the CVS shave gel is not an exact match for the name brand in everything but packaging and price.



I might have still bought the CVS knowing the ingredients were different but having that in my head fact would have made me less surprised when it proved to not be as suitable for me as the name brand. It's a little thicker in consistency than the Bikini Zone, which wasn't an issue. The problem came when I tried the CVS on my most sensitive areas and felt a slight burning sensation. That does not happen with the Bikini Zone. Apparently the CVS has something in it which does not agree with my lady parts. It's now relegated to leg shaving duty, and I'm back to the Bikini Zone for everything else. I'll save money somewhere else.