Ladies, it’s time for a fresh beauty start! I know a lot of us are tackling those home projects {check out my recent post about how to use social distancing time more productively!} that we didn’t normally have time for, and one I just started tackling is organizing my beauty collection. We all know it’s something we need to do but kind of put off, at least I sure do! It can be time-consuming and hard to decide what to keep or get rid of, but once it’s done it sure feels so good to declutter!! Keep reading to see my tips on minimizing and organizing your beauty collection.
How To Minimize and Organize Your Beauty Collection
I’ve been taking this time at home to really go through my skin, hair, and makeup products. Over the years, I’ve collected so many products and didn’t really have an effective system for storing them! I wanted to be able to easily find what I am looking for, and have my everyday essentials ready to grab. There are so many great storage options out there that are not only functional, but that are actually really nice pieces that you could easily leave out for display with some of your nicer items. There are even storage pieces that hold your hot styling tools and pieces that have extra benefits like this vanity organizer with a magnetic strip to keep all your bobby pins and hair clips on, so high tech!!
As for makeup, there are a lot of really nice organizers with a ton of drawers to separate makeup by use. If you want to keep your everyday essentials out on your counter or vanity, there are organizers like this tabletop vanity mirror and gorgeous gold lipstick holder, both are from Anthropologie and so cute!
What do you do with that eyeshadow palette you’ve had for years? Or that giant bottle of hairspray you only grab here and there but have had forever? Well, while organizing my beauty products, I got to thinking about how long I should even be keeping them. Beauty products have an expiration date and keeping them longer than they suggest can actually pose some health risks. Something really interesting I found was that beauty products contain a POA number (Period After Opening), typically found on the back label, this article shows where you can spot it! This POA number may say something like 12M, which means it has a shelf life of 12 months. So good to know, right?! I definitely found some eyeshadows that I’ve had for 4+ years so that was a good push to throw them away.
So how long can you keep your products? According to an article I found on Marie Claire each product has a general timeline that is good to know. All of your powder products generally have an 18-month timeline, things like face powder and blush stay good for over a year. Liquid foundations don’t last quite as long; water-based foundations typically last 12 months while an oil-based foundation lasts about 18 months. Lipsticks do not last as long as you may think, either. They’re packed with preservatives to keep bacteria to a minimum, but after 12 to 18 months those preservatives begin to break down and are no longer effective. It’s always so sad to throw away favorite lipsticks but they end up smelling and once I spotted what I assumed to be white mold. Eek!
On to mascara, these have the shortest lifespan, as they are recommended to be replaced every 3 to 6 months to prevent harmful bacteria that can be seriously toxic. Definitely something to think about since mascara is applied so close to our eyes. As for hair products, it can be a little trickier to determine what it’s time to say goodbye to. Products that contain aerosol usually can last a couple of years, especially if stored in a cool and dry place, however if the product starts to smell funny it’s time to go. For your liquid hair products, you should check to see if the product has changed color, it smells funny, or if the formula has curdled or been altered in any way!
Shop Storage Organizers
Have you been tackling home organization projects lately? What was the #1 project on your list??
xox
All images sourced here.
