Minimalism // Makeup I am Throwing Out + Why

As a teenager, I have succumbed to the craze of purchasing newly released makeup products and spending a countless amount of time and money on products that will inevitably either expire or wash down the sink at the end of the day. I didn't process how ridiculous my spending habits were for makeup until my boyfriend told me "For someone with a lot of makeup, you don't wear it that often".

And it made me realise that it was true. For the longest time I have been spending every single paycheck on a new makeup item or a makeup item that happened to be on sale; basically wasting my money on the short-lived sense of euphoria you get when obtaining something new. I then realised that I could not even open several of my drawers, now home to a plethora of products that will last me my whole lifetime.

The big problem with this addiction is makeup items do not have a long shelf life. I felt so stupid because the other day I only just realised that on the back of most products, it will state a number of months it will last for. Because I am weird, I don't tend to believe too much in the idea that some products can only last 6 months. It may be a marketing gimmick I don't know, but hey if something goes wrong I can always just throw it out, right?

My mum is who I look up to when it comes to makeup. She owns a scarce amount, and it makes sense as she barely wears it; as I do too. And it drove me insane when I counted all my makeup products:

Look for this symbol to see if your
makeup is out of date

- 12 foundations
- 8 concealers
- 4 primers
- 2 mists
- 5 powders
- 10 eyebrow products
- 15 mascaras
- 11 eyeliners
- 4 sunscreens
- 23 lipsticks
- 41 liquid lipsticks
- 10 highlighters
- 2 bronzers
- 24 palettes (face and eye palettes)
- 6 blushers
- 6 lipliners
- 2 lip balms (I counted in my makeup drawer, I must have over a dozen more in my bags)
- 4 sponges
- 35 single eyeshadows
- 15 pairs of eyelashes
- 5 eyelash glues
- 49 nail polishes
- 3 eye primers
- 1 lip gloss

297 products. That is excessive. Keep in mind that most of these products have passed their use-by date. And since going through all my makeup, I came across products that I absolutely hated or that were ancient. I will show them below:

From left to right: 1) Essence Sheer & Shine Lipstick in 'All About Cupcake'
2) Lancôme L'Absolu Rouge in '76'
3) Revlon Colourburst Lip Butter in '080 Strawberry Shortcake
4) Maxfactor Solid Gloss
5) ELF Lip Lacquer in 'Natural'
6) Ulta3 Colour Me Pretty Lipstick Crayon in 'Pretty Nude'
7) ELF Luscious Liquid Lipstick in Cherry Tart
8) Australis Velour Lip Cream in 'Rio-D'
9) Australis Colour Inject Lipstick in 'Lick the Icing'
10) Unbranded black eyeliner
11) Designer Brands eyeliner in '631 Black'
12) Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Eyeliner in 'Blackest Black'

I may as well list the reasons why I am eliminating these products without a second chance (left to right according to image above):

1) The Essence Sheer & Shine lipstick has a very plastic chemical smell to it, masked poorly with a slight vanilla scent. I absolutely hate badly scented products and it is disappointing because Essence is one of my beloved brands. The colour is also too pink which I dislike. I bought this product on a whim because their matte lipsticks were out of stock (they always are but I recently snagged one). Retails for $4.10.

2) The Lancôme lipstick is a glittery orange mess and extremely unwearable with my pale complexion. Also, it is very ancient because I think I got it from my mum in one of those Myer gift bag sets (you know when you spend over $x amount and get a free goodie bag? Yeah that). Retails for $40.

3) Remember the Revlon Colourburst hype? Oh those were the days. This shade again is too pink, and I don't like a glossy formula that has a tint to it. I would much rather wear a lip balm instead as it looks the same. Plus I think I bought this 5 years ago... Discontinued, used to be $17.99 but retails on eBay from $5 to $30. (Anyone want to purchase mine?)

4) This Maxfactor solid gloss thing has lasted for AGES and its time to let it go. It gives your lips a very wet look but I don't even know if you can still buy this as it again came from my mother's collection (sorry mum). Discontinued. Could not even find an image online!

5) I bought this ELF lip lacquer a few weeks ago and it makes me quite literally want to throw up. It has an insanely sugary sweet smell and taste to it, and I mistook it for a liquid lipstick so I was shocked to see that it was actually a gloss. As goes with all my other ELF products, I don't like the brand. I am lucky that the items are cheap but the whole hype surrounding the brand is totally fake. The only good product I own from them is the baked highlighter in 'Moonlight Pearls'. I thought I hated it at first but it turns out the surface is coated with something that prevents the pigment from coming through. If you give the surface a good rub, the thin top layer rubs off and it finally gives you pigment yay! Retails for $6.

6) There seems to be a trend with me disliking a lot of glossy lip products. I bought this Ulta3 lip crayon on a whim at a checkout. And quite frankly, every item I had ever purchased at a checkout never gets used. I never reach for this product and I don't like how the coloured glossy effect accentuates my often chapped lips. Retails for $4.95.

7) Again with the ELF products, this liquid lipstick (its actually a gloss) gives me the same problem as the last one. It is too sweet. And that is a lot coming from a sweet tooth. I also bought this at the time when ELF first came to Kmart, and that was a long time ago so in the bin it goes. Retails for $5.

8) I wanted to see what the hype was about with the Australis velour lips. I grabbed a really fluorescent orange shade for some unbeknownst reason and behold! Another item in my makeup collection that I never touched. It is a repetitive pattern. Something new comes out > I run to the stores to snatch one > all the good shades are sold out > reaches for an alternative shade or formula > hates it. I do own another shade 'Paree' which is too light, but I use it when I contour my lips so it is still useable. However this shade, I just can not work with. Retails for $10.49

Photo credit: sleepandwater
I am in love with her blog!

9) This Australis Colour Inject Lipstick is completely unwearable for me. It is a fluorescent pink shade that can not be diluted or mixed with any other lipstick shades I own. The formula is very nice, it does not have any offensive smells, but my recent preferences have been liquid lipsticks and very matte formulas (hence why I own 41 liquid lipsticks). Retails for $13.95.

10) I am shocked that this is still in my collection. Growing up into a teen I had an obsession with buying magazines (which I have recently thrown out into recycling except for my Frankie magazines). I would probably cry if I added the prices up but it was an estimated $400+ spent on paper. Each magazine would only last me a few days as they are quick to flick through and although I did obtain fashion trends and makeup trends from them, nowadays everyone gets their advice online. Anyway, I got this eyeliner for free in a Dolly magazine and I think I must've used it once or twice. I'm not too big on eyeliner and this one was horrible anyway. Unavailable for purchase.

11) I would also not recommend this Designer Brands eyeliner in Black. It is very sheer and not creamy at all, and the price is hefty compared to the Essence eyeliners which I love, and the Essence ones are only $2! Retails for $5.99.

12) I think I received this Maybelline Gel Eyeliner for free as part of a magazine offer, which is always good considering I didn't pay a cent. I honestly did not know how to use gel eyeliner and hated it. I did make a good dent in the product, but that was about it. In recent years, I have finally learnt to apply gel eyeliner (using a fine flat detail brush) but this eyeliner became too old and crusty. I tried reviving it with my Daiso mascara drops (which I need to do a review for, this product is amazing and only $2.80!) but the formula is too thick to revive. I didn't repurchase this product because I recently made a MAC order and purchased a Pro Longwear Fluidline in 'Blacktrack'. However, if you're in the market for a good cheap black eyeliner I would highly recommend this. Retails for $16.95.

Total money spent on products I am throwing out (not including products I received for free) = $68.47.

That amount actually isn't too bad, but at the same time these products weren't used to their full extent which therefore makes it such a waste of money. I can't stress enough how reading reviews can help you make economic decisions. It is quite depressing also because I tend not to wear lip products too often as I am always eating and rubbing my face and what not. Makeup does make me happy sometimes when I buy it and apply it, but when a product does not perform well it becomes such a waste. And as I have grown up, I have realised my preferences which before I did not know of. I fed so much into hypes that it took me years to find out what products I like and don't like.

My overall intentions with becoming a bit more minimalist are to get rid of items in my life that are excessive and that do not make me happy. I don't really intend to go all out by eliminating all my possessions, it is more of a gradual process to see how I can realistically eliminate products I just do not need and don't use. I have so much respect for minimalists who even get rid of all their furniture and sleep on the floor. I have researched many videos and have started to read books on minimalism and the most important thing I learnt was that minimalists come in all different shapes and sizes. And to me, I think that is beautiful.

Thanks for reading! Please let me know if you have owned any of these products or if you have recently cleared your makeup collection too. I'd love to hear from you guys!

- Amanda.S