How to Spring Clean Your Makeup and Personal Care Products
So fresh and so clean, clean…it’s almost time for Spring Cleaning?
With the milder temps, fresh air, and sunshine right around the corner, it is great to start thinking about areas in your life that might require some Spring cleaning as you move out of winter and into a fresh start for the spring and summer months. Many people focus on cleaning out different rooms of their homes and prepping their yards for the new season, but often the skincare and makeup drawers get forgotten. These cabinets and drawers are areas you access morning and night, and although you may be pretty neat, these areas, too, will eventually need to be cleaned out. Cleaning out our beauty products is not only important for sanitary reasons, but also to help alleviate any daily stress that may be brought on by extra clutter and mess.
So, you realize that you need to take a little time to organize your skincare and makeup products, but you might be wondering, where do I start?
First, take inventory and assess what you got - take out all of your beauty products from bathroom drawers, makeup bags, purses, cabinets and any other container they may be hiding in. Put them all together on one clean, solid surface, so you can clearly see everything you own. Then separate your products into categories i.e., haircare, skin care, makeup, etc., followed by subcategories i.e., eye shadows, lipsticks/glosses, concealers, lotions, etc.
Once you have everything in one spot and better organized, it is time to dive in to really determine what you should keep and what has overstayed its welcome.
Here are a few useful tips to help you purge and streamline your products:
One rule that many people find helpful to follow - if you have not touched a product in at least two years, then it is probably time to let it go! In addition, if you have kept a product for longer than two years from the purchase date, whether opened or unopened, you need to get rid of it. When a product is opened and air hits the formula, certain ingredients start to oxidize and degrade.
Look at the quality of what is left of the product. Has it changed in texture, consistency, or color? If it has then it’s time to go. Anything that has deteriorated in quality will not apply as evenly or as well and will have a negative impact on proper hygiene.
Another obvious tool you can use to assess whether it is time to say goodbye to your personal care products is by checking the expiration date on the packaging. Easy enough, but something many of us forget to do. Expired makeup can lead to inflammations, redness, bumps, a rash, or even blisters and swelling of the skin. Your makeup can be the perfect home to germs and bacteria, which can cause acne and other issues.
If you can not find an obvious expiration date, this list are general rules to follow when determining when to throw away your skin care and beauty products:
Liquid Foundation and Concealer: after 6 months to 18 months, toss liquid and cream formulas six months after opening, especially if you use your fingers to apply. Powder formulas last longer, around 18 months. If you notice your liquid foundation or concealer separating or changing color or your powder formula turning dry and chalky, ditch them.
Cream Makeup: after 6 months to 1 year
Lipstick: after 1 - 2 years, if your lip product changes to a different texture, it’s time to throw it out! Remember to keep your favorites in a cool, dry place to make them last longer. Keep an eye on your lip gloss and any lip product in jars—both of which are exposed to the elements more often than lipstick in a tube. Avoid spreading bacteria by not sharing lipstick with your friends, as tempting as it may be to have them try your favorite shade.
Powder Makeup: after 2 years, powder cosmetics have a longer shelf life and will last you around a full two years.
Blush and Bronzer: 1 – 2 years, cream formulas are past their prime after one year, and powder formulas, which contain zero or very little water, expire after two. If you use a brush to apply, make sure you clean it at least once a week. Oils from your face can cling to bristles and transfer to the product.
Eyeliner: after 3 months (liquid); after 2 years (pencil, keep your brow pencils and eyeliner away from steamy bathrooms and other places where they might get damp to extend their life. Pencils are usually fine since they are always being sharpened. Also remember, with all eye products, do not share them with others to avoid infections and other problems.
Mascara: after 3 months, this is a very important one to remember. Make sure that you are consistently replacing old mascara to prevent eye infections. Never share your mascara with others, and throw it out if you notice it clumping or smelling weird.
Eye Shadow: after 1 – 2 years, follow the same guidelines for blush and bronzer, but pay close attention to eye shadows since they come into daily contact with a mucus membrane—where there’s more opportunity for bacteria to contaminate the product. If you’ve had an eye infection, like pinkeye, germs may have contaminated your products before you even noticed any symptoms. You may want to be extra vigilant to avoid developing another infection.
Face Moisturizer: after 6 months (tub); after 1 year (pump)
Sunscreen: 1 – 2 years, most sunscreen products will have an expiration date printed on the packaging. Just remember that bringing your sunscreen along to the beach or pool, where it’s exposed to the sun for long periods of time, may shorten its shelf life.
Skincare: 6 months- 1 year, products that contain water (or aloe) need to contain preservatives to prevent microbial growth. (Some companies claim not to use preservatives, even in water-based products, which is likely untrue.) Even with preservatives and especially without them, we recommend that you toss skin care products that are approaching a year on your shelf. The best way to dispose of unused product is to empty it into the garbage (not down the drain) and recycle the container.
Nail Polish: after 1 year
Perfume: after 8 to 10 years
Brushes: 2 – 5 years, if cleaned regularly and stored properly—propped upright, so bristles aren’t flattened or distorted—brushes can last for years. But once you notice bristles fraying or falling out, it’s time to invest in a new set.
After you have purged items based on deterioration in quality and expiration dates, it is now time to look for multiples of products. If you have five similar gold eyeshadows or eight pink lipsticks, maybe it is time to cut down to your 2 - 3 favorites of similar colors/products. Only keep those that you reach for most often. If you have eight pink shades and only reach for a couple, it’s time to purge some items.
Once you have taken each of these tips into consideration and executed your purge, you should be left with skincare and beauty products that are not only your favorite and most used items, but additionally are in great condition and quality in color and performance. Finally, it is time to put these remaining items neatly away so that you will be prepared for a fresh, clean start to the new Spring season.
Now that you have reorganized your beauty care items, and you know everything in your arsenal is of top quality and efficacy, you can think of possibly adding a few new “wish list” items to your well-earned organized drawers. Although cleaning and organizing can be an avoided project, it is often worth it to take the time to purge in order to make room for the fun new items. And who doesn’t love new makeup?! Remember to try to stay on top of your organization and expired items by setting aside time every 3 - 6 months to review your inventory. A lot of products expire every 3 - 6 months, so this will help you remember to throw out products before they go bad. The real danger to using old and expired products comes from the molecules in your makeup breaking down and turning into something else. Just keep in mind that there is not one beauty product that will never expire, so eventually everything will need to be replaced in order to stay sanitary, keep your skin safe, and provide you with the best performance results.
I love the feeling after a good cleaning, and I can’t wait to “spring” forward into the next season with a fresh start.
