How often do you clean out your makeup?  If I’m completely honest, it’s not a regular occurrence for me. I develop weird emotional attachments to my makeup which means letting it go is something I massively struggle with. If you read my New Year’s Beauty Commandment post you’ll know that I want to make much more of an effort to bin makeup products past their dates. While some products that have gone off may develop a funny smell, the product may separate or the formula is no longer as great as it once was, there are times when identifying whether something has gone off or not is much more difficult.

In a desperate bid to become less of a makeup hoarder, I thought I’d make destashing a bit more fun and turn it into a series of blog posts, beginning with my foundations. Now, I’m a base lover, meaning foundations and concealers are my drug of choice in the makeup world. I just can’t get enough of trying new foundations and it shows when it came to cleaning out my stash. 

So how do I know when to bin the products?

Other than keeping an eye on the formula and making sure it’s not starting to smell funny, many products have a jar symbol on their package with a number inside, symbolising how long you should keep it for. Unlike food, beauty products aren’t legally required to have a ‘use-by’ date which means you’re responsible for keep track of how long it’s been since opening the product. I personally keep it pretty general. For example, if I opened a mascara today, I’d know around June  or early summer I’d need to be thinking of buy a new one.

3 Months
Mascara

One Year
Cream Eyeshadows
Cream Blush
Liquid/Cream Foundations
Liquid/Cream Concealers

Two Years
Eyeshadows (Powder)
Eyeliner Pencils
Lipsticks
Lip Pencils
Face Powders (Blush, Bronzer, Powder Foundations, etc.)

Make sure to get full use of your products by replace the lids properly and storing the product in a cool, dry place, away from direct sunlight.

In a desperate bid to become less of a makeup hoarder, I thought I’d make destashing a bit more fun and turn it into a series of blog posts, beginning with my foundations. Now, I’m a base lover, meaning foundations and concealers are my drug of choice in the makeup world. I just can’t get enough of trying new foundations and it shows when it came to cleaning out my stash.

Foundations that made the cut

L’oreal Infallible
I’ve already written and made videos about this foundation so it’s no secret that I love this foundation. In fact, I think it’s safe to say it’s my favourite drugstore foundation. If you have oily skin and are looking for a long lasting, full coverage matte finish foundation, then this one is definitely for you.

Revlon Colourstay
Again, I’ve written multiple posts about this foundation and it’s definitely up there in my top picks from the drugstore. It’s medium-full coverage and is going to be great for any oily skin gals out there. However, if you have quite large pores, you’ll need to pair this foundation up with a good silicone based primer.

Mica Bella Powder Foundation
I’m not a massive lover of powder foundations as I find it makes my face look a bit dull and flat, however, I’m a big fan of this one by MICA Beauty. It’s a loose powder that offers a light but buildable coverage and contains a very subtle shimmer so you don’t look completely flat and dull.

Estee Lauder Doublewear
This is THE foundation of all foundations for me. It’s a product that is medium coverage but easily can be built up to full coverage, offers a semi-matte finish and lasts all night long. Seriously, no touch up’s required.

Chanel All-in-one Healthy Glow Fluid
While it’s not really a foundation and definitely lends itself more to the tinted moisturiser family. It is a product I find myself reaching for a whole lot. If you want a very small amount of coverage and a product that offers a simple healthy glow, you’ll love this one.

Maybelline Fit Me Anti-Shine Stick
While I don’t like this product for all over the face, I’m obsessed with using a slightly darker shade to contour. It’s a light coverage cream foundation that blends out a dream offering you a really naturally healthy looking face.

Foundations I had to let go

Bourjois Healthy Mix
You may have seen me mention this product in my top 5 drugstore foundations and while my feelings for this product haven’t changed it is definitely time I throw this one out and repurchase a new one.

Collection Lasting Perfection
Collection is a brand I’m very split on. Some products I love and consider holy grail products and others just do absolutely nothing for me. This foundation I was again very split on. It’s full coverage, it lasts a long time and offers a matte finish. However, you do need to set it well with powder as it remains ‘tacky’ for a long time and it oxidizes quite badly making picking the colour for you is really hard.

Bare Minerals
As I mentioned above, I’m not a lover of powder foundations and unfortunately, this one didn’t blow me away. It offered a light coverage but found it clung to any dry spots on my face and disappeared  almost completely in my oily t-zone.

ELF Flawless Finish
This is another product I love. Sadly it’s long past it’s expiration date and as a result, I have to let it go. While I really like the product, I don’t actually see myself repurchasing this one. Not because it’s not good, but I simply don’t see it as a product I can’t live without.

Anovia BB Cream
Okay, this one I just don’t like. The colour selection is extremely poor and even the light shade is surprisingly dark, plus it just doesn’t blend into the skin. I’ve tried sponges, brushes and my fingers and it just sits on top of the skin and looks streaky and won’t blend. Not good.

Helen E Cosmetics Skin Smoother
I don’t have much of a problem with this product, I just don’t think it actually does much. It’s one shade that alters itself to match your specific skin tone, which would be pretty cool if you could actually see any major difference.

Rimmel Wake Me Up Foundation
Again, this is a product I featured on my top 5 drugstore foundations and like the previously products, my opinion hasn’t changed, it’s simply well overdue being replaced.

When was the last time you guys did a makeup clean out? What foundations do you struggle to let go of?

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