Skincare is the PITS (Part Two)

This quarantine, pandemic era has gone on for a long enough time to start an experiment I didn't think would be possible: going DEODORANT FREE!

Yes, that's right, I have been NOT USING any deodorant sticks on my armpits, natural or not.

It was part experiment, part I never leave the house, part I don't sweat because it was the end of winter, part no one is going to see or smell me, part my sister does this already so why can't I?

Instead of applying deodorant to these delicate pits, I make sure to moisturize with scented lotion. I find that citrusy scents are better than warm musky lotion scents.

Main questions/takeaways:

• It is now summer! Do you smell?
• Yes, but I find it no more so than when I wore natural deodorant. I feel bad about the plastic containers of Native in my beauty supply, but I really am feeling better without it.
• SO wait, what is happening?
• I don't put on deodorant. Instead I make sure to put apply scented lotion to my armpits and make sure they have time to dry.
• Does the lotion make your pits more damp?
• I find that I am more used to my "natural scent" and though the lotion does moisturize, the usually sweating that I do make it seem no different. They are sticky, usually, from sweating anyway.
• Did you put on scented lotion today?
• No, I sweated a bit when I cleaned house this morning, but I don't feel like I smell. I really got to stick my nose in my armpit to check. But I will moisturize my pits before leaving the house later today.
• Do you think you'll go back to wearing deodorant?
• Honestly, maybe I didn't even break this no-deodorant streak when I went to a wedding. I think I will just make myself smell good with lotion, and call it a day.
• However, I am considering using the last stick of normal chemical deodorant on my inner thighs, as the chub rub is real and I cannot walk the way I used to because they get so inflamed and so easily.
• Why do you prefer citrus smelling lotions?
• I actually started my transition by using up a remainder of my Bath and Body Works Peach Ultra Shea Body Cream, and there's something tangy about this smell that I think works well with my natural odor. However, when I use Vera Wang's Embrace lotion, which is more floral and musky, I find that I can get wafts of when I do smell myself. Therefore, I think there is something in my chemical balance that is tangy and goes well with a fruity, citrusy, tangy scent. Like it's going to compliment the lotion rather than stick out awkwardly.  

Will answer more questions, that my friends usually ask, when I remember.

Finding out you have expensive tastes

Thank you Sephora, for spoiling me with samples of Drunk Elephant, Tatcha, and more.

I know I've done a favorites list (and update the Empties Masterpost when I remember), but this is where I wonder... do I want to buy what I like the most, even if it hurts me a bit more? What am I willing to spend the money on and what "favorites" do I have that is simply settling?

Samples that I loved, but don't want to purchase:

1. Beste™ No. 9 Jelly Cleanser - Drunk Elephant. Honestly, wouldn't have thought twice about this if it weren't for some sample Sephora passed down. It's light, smells lightly of melon, and somehow makes the dots on my nose look clean and fresh--fresher than a clay mask. However, I hate it's packaging. I feel like I can't access that last final drop of product I want to use so badly.
2. La Mer: Well, not really a sample, but my friend got us a jar with her employee discount... and wow, this is a lot for something I like to slap liberally on my face. Haven't found a moisturizer I loved that isn't only good for winters.
3. Korres Greek Yoghurt Foaming Cream Cleanser: Another sample that I love, but for $26 can't go around buying so I can just rinse it down the drain, literally. Still second to Drunk Elephant though hahah.

Things I do spend my money on:

1. SK-II. Alas, it's just funny smelly water, but I feel like if I spend money on anything, I am glad it is a $150 bottle of fermented water that lasts me about 9 months. (Thank you duty-free Asia. I will make my every-other-year Asia pilgrimage just to get you at duty-free.)
2. Missha Time Revolution line's Clear Toner: There are cheaper toners. There are different toners. When I find this toner online for under $18 I buy several bottles of it. Not a single regret. The only regret I have is trying something new and then pushing myself to finish a bottle of product I don't really like.
3. su:m37 Rose Cleansing stick: This will contradict the next section, but this cleanser is the perfect travel cleanser... if it's in stock. It's hard and gets harder to find, but I won't pay more than $23 for this.
4. One good essence/amouple/facial oil. Using a CosRx 96 snail essence, not feeling it. Using an Ordinary (day) facial oil, not feeling it (rosehip makes me face smell like fish oil, yuck). But using Kiehl's Midnight Recovery oil? LOVING IT. Got it at 30% off, and it was still too expensive, but I do enjoy myself. Quality over quantity, you know? (postscript, I think this Midnight Recovery gives my face small bumps, aka closed comedones, and I have to return this product.)

Things I do not want to spend money on:

1. Cleansers: It goes down the drain! I have a hard time rationalizing spending $30 on Beste, when I can get Good Morning Gel for $10 or less. (Both 5 oz sizes, too.)
2. Sheet Masks: One time use, one time fun, too much waste. Think of all the waste that isn't going to break down because you did the one sheet mask a day "hack." It's too much for me to deal with and I am trying to just use up what I have (and I have way too much!).
3. The Ordinary: Maybe this will get some flack, but The Ordinary....is really just that.. ordinary. I have made my way through so many bottles and items... and come up disappointed. The price is so good and I would be overjoyed if they worked better than their slightly more expensive counterparts! But... they don't. Invest in better facial oils, do your due diligence, it's worth it.
4. Moisturizers over $20. I love a good moisturizer, don't get me wrong. I slap the stuff on my face like it actually all gets soaked it (it doesn't). However, when I go through a pot of moisturizer a month.... anything over $20 dollars makes me hurt. I got a LARGE Bosica Cactus Jelly something or other, which basically makes me feel like I am slapping on overpriced aloe on my face... but the Costco sized jar lasted me three to four months, so I consider that $30 well spent. However, most creams do not come in Costco like containers, so, I cannot possibly afford to spend that much, and have a range of $10-$20 creams, the $20 creams tend to be heavier and are saved for winter time, when dry skin is dire. 
5. Deodorants: Since March 2020, when quarantine started, I decided to wean myself off the "natural" deodorants I have been using for the last few years. I went from men's Axe, to Native, to La Maison, and hated Primal Pits, Schmidt's, and some other big name "natural" deodorants. Yes, I do smell myself and my B.O., but no more than when I was wearing natural deodorant. And guess what? I'm feeling ok about it, and just wash my pits like I wash my hands if I really feel the need. It's great. My favorite thing to do is instead put aloe (just because it is anti-bacterial) or citrusy smelling lotion. My pits are smooth (also, thanks to laser I don't have to shave) and the citrusy smell really cuts into the sour B.O. smell--if any.
6. Kiehl's Avocado Eye Cream: Kiehl's loves samples. Even more, they love 30-somethings who are freaking out about aging. Thus, it's overpriced and way too small of a jar to rationalize buying. Thanks, but no thanks. I'll buy something else of yours that costs too much.
7. Fresh's Soy Cleanser: Thanks for a million travel sizes squeeze tubes of this cleanser. It is a great morning cleanser, as it's really gentle, but feels like rubbing my face with nicely scented congealed water in the evenings. Doesn't get any dirt off, just rubs it around with less friction than water. It's great! But I'm never going to buy this for myself at that price point.
8. Tatcha's Moisturizer: Something makes me want to say that there are people out there who loves this water cream. It feels and acts the same as a $10 Korean moisturizer. In fact, it is so unremarkable that I hope I never waste my money on something from this company again. Just, get something affordable and Korean. It doesn't last long enough to make it worth it's price point.

Things I am sad do not exist anymore:

1. Goodal gentle (or deep) cleansing foam. Got at a sale through Club Clio as the line is no longer being made. My sister and I both loved the stuff, and went through it as if it weren't discontinued. We still talk about it to this day, and it's been years since a bottle has graced our shelves. Can't even find an image on Google when I tried.
2. Skinfood Bitter Greens Soothing Clay Mask: Got it at TJ Maxx and it cost me $7 and still provides me with so much enough clay to make me happy. It does not exist anymore, and it hardly compares to the small pot of Kiehl's I'm using on the interim.
3. Holika Holika's Gudetama skincare line: It's cute, cheap, and makes me smile. I used the all in one lazy whatever and the lazy oil to foam cleanser. They're nice, thanks for the collab, Holika Holika.