Beauty Empties - April 2025 (Algarve Home Edition)
As a self-confessed beauty junkie (and proud hoarder!), I’ve made it a personal mission to finish every product I own in my beauty apothecary before cracking open a new one. It’s a small but meaningful shift toward more sustainable habits, as Project Pan is more alive than ever before! It also gives me the chance to properly test what truly delivers over time. These monthly empties are my beauty truth serum: what I loved and will definitely repurchase, and what I’m happy to leave behind.
Check all past empties reviews:
Here are the 7 products I emptied in March, from my Algarve home:
HAIR
Moroccanoil Hydration Styling Cream
Yes, it's true, I speak about this product at every product review, it's one of my favourite hair creams ever. But as this is an honest article about what I have used, and I do use it every day, I go through one every other month or every quarter.
Verdict: I will always rebuy and stock it.
Olaplex Nº8 Bond Intense Moisture Mask
I really wanted to love this product as much as I love and use Nº3 but it did not happen for me. I love when a mask makes my hair feel silky as soon as I apply it and makes the detangling process easier but this was not it. The texture was a bit more "flour-y" than I expected and I felt the need to use a lot of product seeking for that smoother feel in my hair. That never came. I liked the packaging and how easy it was to get the product but it was just the composition in itself that did not work for me.
Verdict: I will not rebuy.
Jess
BODY
Palmolive Thermal Spa Mineral Massage Gentle Scrub Shower Gel
It's not a usual "beauty empties review" kind of product but if taking care of your body whilst showering is not an integral part of your skincare, I don't know what is. What I usually look for in my showers, other than cleaning my body, kicking my workday in the morning or relaxing in the evening, is moisturising and oiling it as I am not that great at applying body cream. I don't know why, I just tend to forget. So shower gels or oils have to do the double work for me. And this Palmolive Gentle Scrub not only feels like a dream, it really takes the day off of me. If I am not that good at applying body cream, let's not even talk about scrubbing my skin (my aesthetician always tells me to do before I go wax and I always lie to her that I will! yes, next time I won't forget!), so this product works as a 2-in-1 for me.
Verdict: I have bought several in the past and will continue to rebuy for that spa feel right at home.
Sefudun Shower Steamers - Tea Tree Scent
I discovered Shower Steamers a few weeks ago in a Tiktok video, where a woman was saying was she does on a daily basis to improve her wellness. I was immediately intrigued: a little shower bomb that, through aromatherapy, could improve how you are feeling after a long day or get you ready for sleep? I was in! I ordered a pack of Sefudun 16 Shower Steamers packed individually, with a total of 8 scents: Black Castor Oil, Lavender, Rosemary, Rose, Lemon, Eucalyptus, Peppermint and Tea Tree. I have tried the latter and it was magical. If you put your steamer right under the shower, it dissolved quickly but it you just get it a bit wet it will slowly really the most wonderful aroma. As I was careful not to wet mine much, it lasted for three showers. It was so so relaxing deep breathing that tea tree scent when showering after work whilst working from home a few days ago.
Verdict: I cannot wait to try the other scents!
Sefudun Shower Steamers
8 scents available: Black Castor Oil, Lavender, Rosemary, Rose, Lemon, Eucalyptus, Peppermint and Tea Tree (I bought the 8x2 pack)
SKINCARE
Pai Skincare Light Work Cleansing Oil
I was skeptical about removing my makeup with oil or balms in the past and have tried several products with varying degrees of success. And I can say Pai Skincare's Cleansing Oil is the best I have ever tried. I got this sample with a big purchase I did with Cult Beauty a few years ago - hence the branding being the old one! - and it was not the first product I wanted to grab from the pile. But then I used it to remove makeup and grime - and it turns into a milk cleanser if you add a bit of water to it - and it's the most successful I have been at not cleansing my face and then still finding makeup in my white face towel. Don't you hate it when that happens too? With Pai, this did not happen.
Verdict: I will be looking forward to buying a new bottle if I ever find this brand again. Also works amazingly with the next product...
Lumene Nordic Hydra Oat Milk Oil Cleanser
I have already written extensively about my love for Finnish brand Lumene and this is one of their star products for me. After removing my makeup with Micellar Water or the aforementioned Cleansing Oil, I like to finish the process with this cleanser. It was not a part of my evening skincare routine just because this product was in another house but that doesn't prevent how much I love it.
Verdict: I will rebuy a new bottle now that this one is over!
Jess
HOME
Algarve Candle Co Dark Honey & Smoked Wood Reed Diffuser
This mother and daughter brand from the Algarve is one of my favourite in the world in regards to home goods such as candles, reed diffuser, car diffusers and fragrance oils. They were the chosen brand to do unique branded candles we scent to the first subscribers of this website in early 2024. I have gone through countless itens from this brand and realised I don't speak about it as much as they deserve. It's not easy to empty a reed diffuser in itself, as it depends on how much you turn the sticks around and if the molecules travel in your house. Hence the advice of always putting reed diffuser in zones where people pass so they can feel it and carry a bit of that amazing scent with them as they walk through the house. It's also great to have in a bathroom for a permanent good scent. I loved this Dark Honey & Smoked Wood luxurious scent, as it was deep and woody. I also bought their Fresh Linen one in the past and I just adore the clean cotton feel it has.
Verdict: I have to buy a refill asap!
@thesignaturejess
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