After neglecting to clean my room for nearly a month, imagine my shock when I found a bag (truthfully, two bags and a box) full of samples and free stuff I have yet to try out. Between being a part of HerCampus and taking advantage of Sephora giving you free sample sized products as a VIB Rewards member, I’ve become a bit of a hoarder. I decided to take advantage of cleaning out my room to try out some of these samples and give you guys a little review on stuff worth getting in full size.
(Not all products shown were used)
Morning
The first product I tried out was Julep’s Love Your Bare Face Hydrating Cleansing Oil. I know what you’re thinking- cleaning my OILY face with OIL? It turns out that oily skin is a response to your skin trying to overproduce oils to maintain hydrated skin, so by using oils, sometimes you can lessen your skin’s natural production of oil.
Anyways, this Sephora sample comes in a small little glass container. It doesn’t seem like a lot, but honestly, I have been using this product for the past two weeks and I’ve barely gotten to half of it, so I definitely think the sample size itself is great. This cleansing oil is pretty easy to use. It always leaves my face so smooth and soft, and I love the little citrus-y smell the oil gives off.
In the shower, I tried out Garnier Fructis 1 Minute Treatment Smoothing Treatment with Avocado Extract. I love using deep conditioners and hair treatments because they’re such an easy way to take care of dry and damaged hair. I love the smell of this mask treatment but was kind of disappointed that while my hair came out really soft, it was still a little frizzy. However, my curls did come out nice, even with the frizz, so I’ll take it. However, I will say that by far my favorite mask form Garnier was the banana one, so if I were to recommend a hair mask to get the full-size product, I’d opt for the banana mask instead.
Another Garnier product coming up! I also used the Garnier SkinActive Soothing Facial Mist, which is made with rose water and has no parabens, silicones or sulfates. Fun fact: I was not planning on using this product, but I ended up finding out I was going to be late for an interview and had to run from one side of campus to the other to get there on time. I just so happened to have the face mist near my bag, so I took it and spritzed my face, hoping that even without makeup on, it would mask my sweatiness and make me look good and not like I was just running for my life. The little container it comes in doesn’t do a good job of actually spraying you, but the facial mist actually made my skin look really nice, smooth and not oily, which is something I desperately need. Touching my face, later on, it felt so smooth.
Night
To get my moisturizer and any dirt of the day off my face, I used Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water. I realize it looks like I’m reviewing all Garnier products, but HerCampus really blessed it with Garnier goodies! First things first, I hate the bottle. Am I supposed to squeeze it? It’s difficult to tell if any of the water is coming out. Other than that, it’s a pretty good cleansing water. My skin is fairly sensitive, and this didn’t irritate it. However, I think I prefer my usual witch hazel toner.
I decided to use a face mask tonight, so I tried out the White Marble Dual Phase Vitamin C Peel. I thought it was an actual peel mask, so I was so excited to try it out. Instead, this is a two-part face mask; the first phase is the face peel, which smelled like oranges. It felt more of an exfoliating mask, but I loved it…until I used the step 2 activator. It was a clear liquid that smelled horrible. It smelled so bad, I almost didn’t put it on my face. I thought it would burn me or something. After a minute of rubbing it in, I rinsed off the mask. Wasn’t too impressed to be quite honest. If it had just been the first part, I might have considered getting the full size, but I’m not a fan of the full product.
Now, last but not least, I used Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate before bed. This is a mix of several essential oils that are meant to be used overnight to replenish skin and help it feel and look better in the morning. Oh my God, did it smell and feel amazing. This elixir, as they called it, was so soft and smooth and not at all oily. I rubbed it in my face, and could hardly tell I was putting anything on. My skin already looks like its glowing without even having to go to sleep yet. This is definitely a product I am getting the full size of the minute it runs out.
Hopefully, this inspires you guys to clean your room and try out all the stuff you got lying around! You never know what you’ll end up loving (or hating).
None of this is sponsored, and the opinions are 100% my own.
All products are linked (to full size, not samples)