Sorting the Stash

There was a time where my makeup collection boasted a healthy amount old lip glosses, clumpy glitter nail polishes and multi coloured eye shadow sets. Often when looking for beauty inspiration I was left with the feeling of clutter and waste. So over the few months of I have taken the journey of whittling my collection to almost half. Yes, half! Not only is my collection more organized, but I can now thoroughly say my collection boasts only my favourite products.  So if you were planning on skimming your collection here are my top tips to doing so.

Get Rid of Old Products

Besides lacking in quality old products can cause irritations, infections and a handful of other problems. So throw those questionable products out people! A couple of things to spot when identifying an old product are a change of scent, a decrease in quality or an alteration in colour. Spare yourself an eye infection and the discomfort and toss these products.

Pass it along!

Sometimes we end up with unflattering lipsticks, unused eye shadow pallets and a slew of nail polishes we just don’t fancy anymore. So over the past few months I have made an effort to give more beauty products to friends and family. I find this the best way to cut back on clutter and make someone’s day too.  

The method to my madness is just this:

If I love it – it goes in my vanity or makeup bag for everyday use

If I hate it or if the product is defective- it goes to the trash

If the product is decent- I usually keep it in my over flow drawers. If I don’t reach for it in a couple of months I pass it along to a friend, family or my mom.

Say Bye to Broken Product

Now this won’t apply to all but personally if I have a broken product I won’t use it. For example this beautiful Le Metier eye shadow pallet sat in my collection, yes it was beautiful and yes it was pigmented. However, because it was broken I just didn’t reach for it. Save your clothes, carpet and furniture the agony and toss these broken products aside.

Return If You Can

I know return policies vary from store to store and from country to country, so I know this isn’t the easiest thing to follow. However I feel if you’re genuinely unsatisfied with a product try to return it. The trick to returns is being honest I find sales staff can be extremely helpful if your truthfully and honest. Likewise if you’re trying to return a 2 year old foundation that’s gone off these women have no mercy or time for your games. The worst case scenario is sales associate might say no, but best case scenario is you get or money back or a return it for a product that you will thoroughly enjoy using.  

Gone are the days of neon pink eye shadows, sparkly blue bases and orange foundations. I can now finally say my makeup stash boasts only the things I really, really love. Have you decluttered your collection? What are some of your favourite tips?