Massive Purge

~ stashy

You may recall that the primary objective of this blog originally was to reduce my beauty stash. ^^’ I had a three-pronged plan:
A) Stop buying more (No-Buy / Low-Buy)
B) Use up what I have (empties aka Trash Stash)
C) Get rid of items that I no longer use (Purges / declutters)

This post is focused on plan of attack C!  I’ve been meaning to post this since early 2017 for “Spring cleaning”, but never got my act together to gather all of the items.  No time like now, right?  😉 This post will mainly consist of photos and product names listed out. It would take too long to provide a description of every single item with an explanation why it is being decluttered. Just look:

I had to stand on a step ladder to take this photo! 😆

Hold onto your hats!

A few things to note. I’m a makeup hoarder and this is my way of letting go of things that I don’t reach for anymore.  My distinction between a purge / declutter versus my Trash Stash is that these products aren’t empty or broken.  These products might be ones that I really like but are old, or I have a better version of the same colour, or I just have too many of very similar things.

It may seem really wasteful to purge all of these and in some ways, yes, it is. I think of it this way – I bought the items over many years thinking I would use them but they didn’t work out, or I found something better later on. Beauty has always been a trial and error process, so no real loss overall to me since I got to enjoy them for a period of time.  I also tend to hang onto things for a long, LONG time, so many of these are simply too old to use any more.  And truth be told, some items I was holding onto in case I’d want to compare them against something for the blog.  It’s time to let go…

Eye Products


• Almay Bright Eyes Color Cream Shadow in Golden Gleam and Mocha Shimmer
• Too Faced Lock Down Shadow Insurance Primer in Jailbait
• LUSH Cream Eyeshadow in Sophisticated (review here)
• Almay Intense I-Color Liquid Shadow in #54 For Green Eyes
• Yves Rocher Cream Eyeshadows in Cuvre Rose and Aurore Doree
• Shiseido Shimmering Cream Eye Color in BR 709 Sable
• Anna Sui Creamy Eye Colour #02 (review here)
• e.l.f. Studio Long-Lasting Lustrous Eyeshadow in Gala

• MAC Paint Pots in Painterly, Utterly Becoming, Tailor Grey, Quite Natural, and Eclair (shown here)

• Quo Colour Rush Eye Shadow in Saddle
• Avon Extra Lasting Cream Eyeshadows in Totally Taupe and Forever Bronze
• Smashbox Limitless 15 Hour Wear Cream Shadow in Stone
• Maybelline Color Tattoo 24HR Cream Gel Eyeshadow in 80 Creamy Beige
• Shiseido Accentuating Cream Eyeliner in #2 Brown
• Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Custom Eye Enhancing Eyeliner
• MAC Fluidline in Avenue

• Wet n Wild Coloricon Kohl Eyeliner in Taupe of the Morning’ and Pretty in Mink (shown here)
• Sephora Jumbo Liner 12HR Wear in Kaki and Purple Glitter
• Annabelle Twist Up Retractable Eyeshadow Crayon in Taupe
• Quo Cooling Gel Shadow in 90º
• Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint for Eyes in 08 Curvaceous Coal
• Mary Kay Smoke & Shimmer Eye Wand in Enchanted Mauve
• Avon SuperShock Gel Eye Liner Pencil Intense Brown
• Prestige Total Intensity Eyeliner in Fierce Blue and Strong Slate
• Solone Gel Like Smudgy Pencil in ES-10 Gold
• Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color in Medium

• Clinique gwp palettes:
1) Donuts cover includes #06 Pink Chocolate, #03 Morning Java eye shadows, and #15 Smoldering Plum blush
2) Brushes cover includes #14 Strawberry Fudge duo eye shadow, and #20 Mocha Pink blush
3) Trio containing #06 Pink Chocolate, #2W Blushed, and #24 Angel Eyes

• Revlon Custom Eyes Palette in 020 Naturally Glamorous
• Ariposa eye shadow in Collection Mimosa (shown here)
• Bonne Bell Eye Shadow Box in Prom Queen
• Sonia Kashuk Eye on Neutral Shimmer Palette (tragedy! review here)
• Mary Kay @ Play Just for Eyes Trio
• Mary Kay @ Play Baked Eye Trio in On the Horizon
• Collection Eyes Uncovered Nude Palette

• e.l.f. Essential Beauty Book Eyes Set in Bronzed (depotted)
• Annabelle Single eyeshadow #225 Ivory (depotted)
• Coastal Scents Hot Pot (peach, pink and grey shades, no label – depotted)
• Jane EyeZing Single in Clubbing (depotted)
• Milani Eye Shadow Single in Storm and Mercury (depotted)

• Make Up For Ever matte eye shadows in 092 Purple, 033 Slate Grey, 099 Scarlet
• Kryolan eye shadows in Electric Blue, Yellow, Silver, gold
It pains me a little to purge these but what the heck am I doing with eye shadows in primary colours?

• Cargo Essential palette (depotted)
• Cargo Button eye shadows from Catwalk palette (depotted)
• Revlon Custom Eyes singles in Midnight Wine and Slate Grey

• Tony Moly Luxury Eye Shadow in GR01
• NYX Single Eyeshadow in ES04 Taupe
• H&M Beauty in High Impact Eye Color in Cocoa Mauve (review here)
• LA Splash Illuminating Eyeshadow in Exposed
• Essence Mono Eyeshadow in #58 Cappuccino Please, and #55 Shrimp Me Up
• Marcelle single eye shadow in Gris Jet Set
• L’Oreal Colour Riche Mono #207 Pain au Chocolat
• No 7 Stay Perfect Shadow in 10 wheatsheaf

• Lancome Color Design Five Shadow & Liner Palette in 501 Emerald Boudoir and 202 Sienna Sultry
• Pixi Shade Quartette Shades of Taupe
• bareMinerals READY eyeshadow 2.0 in The Phenomenon (Azure Iris and Golden Iris – shown here)
• Clarins Ombre Minérale Mono Eyeshadow in #08 Taupe

• Cargo Color Palette in London and Bermuda
• Estee Lauder Pure Color 5 Colour Eyeshadow Palette in Posh Petals
• Estee Lauder Pure Color Duo in Shells

• Yves Rocher Quad Eyeshadow Sumptuous Colour in Sophisticated Pink and Incandescent Brown
• Stila It Girl Palette 2 (Eve, Kitten, Americano)
• Clinique All About Shadow Quad in 01 Teddy Bear

Lip Products


• Tokidoki Roulette Gloss Trio in Adieu, Lion Pappa, and Bruttino
• Tokidoki Gelato Lip Balm Stain in Skeletrina, Donutella, and Ciao Ciao (shown here)
• Mary Kay @ Play Triple Layer Tinted Balm in Pink Again and Atomic red

• Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in 027 Juicy Papaya, 010 Pink Truffle, 035 Candy Apple, 075 Lollipop, and 063 Wild Watermelon.

• Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics All-Star Mini Lip Tar kit (this was from 2013 – I never even opened this and it’s dried out now)

• Physicians Formula Happy Booster Lipstick in I ♥ Nude
• Maybelline Dr. Rescue Medicate Lip Balm in Berry Soft
• Palladio Tinted Lip Balm in Rosey and Bronzy Pink
• Wet n Wild Natural Blend Lip Shimmer in Spice

• CoverGirl Lip Perfection in Heavenly and Delight
• Prestige Love & Kisses Lipstick in Kiss Me
• L’Oreal Colour Riche Caresse in Sunset Angora and Cherry Tulle

• Vasanti Tinted Lipbalm in Bahamas
• Sephora Izak Satin Kiss Twin Lipstick in Coquette
• Quo Velvet Kiss Lipstick in #11
• Guerlain Kiss Kiss in 540 Envie de Beige (I have absolutely no clue where this lipstick came from – it’s completely untouched too)
• Clarins Rouge Eclat #08 Coral Pink
• Clarins Rouge Prodige in #120 Fusion Red

• Rimmel Lasting Finish in Birthday Suit
• Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Moss in #8, #14, #17
• Rimmel Moisture Renew in Nude Delight

• Mary Kay Creme Lipstick in Give Joy
• Mary Kay True Dimensions Lipstick in Tuscan Rose
• Lise Watier Rouge Gourmand Lipstick in Biscotti
• Revlon ColorBurst lipstick in Soft Nude
• Wet n Wild MegaLast Lip Color in Mocha-licious (shown here)

• Lise Watier Virtual Lip Liner
• Too Faced Lip Injection Power Plumping Lip Gloss
• Labello Velvet Rose lip balm
• O’slee Lip Balm Total Solution
• Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in 01 Rose, 02 Apricot, and 03 Nude

• BITE Beauty Lush Fruit Lip Gloss in Currant, Strawberry, and Rambutan (review here)
• Revlon Super Lustrous Lipgloss in #150 Peach Petal and #180 Pink Pop
• Revlon ColorBurst Lipgloss in Sunbaked
• Paula’s Choice Liquid Lipsticks in Festive Rose
• Stila Sparkle Luxe Gloss in Fairy Dust

• Rimmel Apocalips in Aurora
• Absolute Velvet Lippie in AVL21 Fatale
• Bonne Bell Lip Lacquer in Mai Tai
• Palladio Plum ‘n’ Shine in Mauvey
• Buxom Full-On Lip Polish in Dolly
• Rimmel Oh My Gloss in #150 Glossaholic

• Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Honey, Charm, Romantic, and Rendezvous
• CoverGirl Lip Perfection Jumbo Gloss Balm in Coral Twist
• Clinique Chubby Stick Intense in Woppin’ Watermelon, Curviest Caramel, and Mightiest Maraschino

• Bath & Body Works Tutti Dolci Sweet Lemon Buttercup Lip Balm
• EOS Smooth Sphere Lip Balms in St. Bart’s Sunrise (Pink Grapefruit), Indian Summer (Orange Blossom), and Coconut cream (shown here)
• Korres Lip Butters in Jasmine, Wild Rose, and Pomegranate
• Anna Sui Lip Rouge Pot #001
• Anna Sui Moisturizing Lip Color #02 (review here)

• MAC Siss Satin Lipstick
• MAC Twig Satin Lipstick
• MAC Cosmo Amplified Lipstick (I love this but it’s gone off recently)

My friend gave me that tube of MAC Siss just to showcase on the blog so here it is! (Thanks G! 😉 ) Recall in this TBT post where I talked about the old packaging for Twig. Now I have all 3 generations of MAC lipstick tubes to show!  That tube of Siss lipstick has got to be close to 20 years old and Twig is probably 12 years old… o_O  Sadly, Siss is a discontinued shade, but both Twig and Cosmo are still readily available (but only in the black bullet tube).

MAC Limited Edition


I added a special section to highlight my limited edition MAC lip items with special packaging. I was foolish to buy lip products as keepsakes – unlike powder products, they do go bad. I opened my Disney lip balms and almost gagged – they smelled sour, instead of the sweet vanilla scent that they originally had.  I figured I’d give them a nice send-off here:

• Tinted Lip Conditioner in Coquettish Clarice, Miss Bunny, and Tempting Tillie (these were from the 2005 Disney Tint Toons collection)
• Tinted Lip Conditioner in Popster (2009 Hello Kitty collection)

• Lipgelee in Resort Life (2010 Venomous Villains collection)
• Lipglass in Mimmy and Loves Candy (2009 Hello Kitty collection)
• Lipglass in Wicked Ways (unused! In original packaging from 2010 Venomous Villains collection)
I don’t even like MAC Lipglass – they’re so sticky! But slap on a LE sticker, I’m all over them… 🙄

• Lipstick in Peachstock (2010 Give Me Liberty of London)
• Lipstick in Cute-Ster (2009 Hello Kitty collection)
• Lipstick in Most Popular (unused! In original packaging from 2009 Hello Kitty collection)

I’m Back to MAC-ing these! I want to see the SA’s face when I give these to him. 😛

Cheek Products


• Smashbox Soft Lights Duo in Split / Second
• Smasbox Blush Rush in Passion and Radiance
• Smasbox Blush in (Smashing) Aperature
• H&M Beauty Pure Radiance Powder Blusher in Deep Brown (shown here)
• Jemma Kidd Blushwear Creme Cheek Colour in #03 Pawpaw (shown here)
• Ben Nye Powder Cheek Rouge in DR-22 Nectar Peach

• Lancaster Infinite Bronze Kaleidoscope
• Mark Good Glowing Custom Pick Powder Blush in After Glo and Cameo Glo
• Bourjois Little Round Pot Blush in #32 Ambre d’or
• Essence Silky Touch Blush #60 Life’s a Cherry
• Flower Beauty Transforming Touch Powder to Creme Blush in Tickled Pink (shown here)

Foundations and Concealers


• MAC Face & Body Foundation in C2
• Make Up For Ever Face & Body in #20 Ivory
• Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation in 6.5 and 7.5

• Caryl Baker Mineral Matte Cream to Powder Makeup in Organza
• Milani Minerals Mousse Foundation in Nude Buff
• Paula’s Choice Resist Anti-Aging Serum Foundation in Level 2
• Revlon ColorStay Whipped Creme makeup Foundation in #250 Medium Beige

• H&M All-Day Liquid in Cool Beige
• Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Treatment Makeup in #260 Buff Chamois
• Vichy DermaBlend Ultra Corrective Cream Stick Foundation SPF30 in #12 Opal
• Becca Compact Concealer in Tahini
• Mary Kay Perfecting Concealer in Deep Ivory and Light Beige (shown here)
• Shu Uemura Point Cealer in Medium Light Beige (shown here)
• L.A. Colors Concealer in Light
• Marcelle BB Cream-to-Powder in Light to Medium

Skincare

• THREE Balancing Cleansing Oil (review here)
• The Body Shop Hemp Hand Protector – this smells so bad, ew o_O
• Alverde Lid-Schatten-Basis (shown here)
• Shu Uemura Eye Prime (shown here)
• Pulanna Bio-Gold Essence
• CoverGirl TruMagic Skin Perfector

Brushes

Didn’t need the step ladder for this shot!


• The Body Shop Blusher Kabuki by Leona Lewis
• The Body Shop Sun Lustre Brush
• Quo Kabuki Brush
• Ecotools Bamboo Finishing Kabuki

• Illamasqua Contour Brush
• Sonia Kashuk Synthetic Angled Foundation Brush
• Lise Watier Angle Blush Brush (LE from 2013 India Gold collection)
• Cargo Magic Brush
• Shiseido Perfect Foundation Brush
• Sephora Contoured Eyelash Comb – this thing is utter rubbish. The spacing of the teeth are too far apart to comb out any mascara clumps

• e.l.f. Studio Stipple Brush
• Coastal Scents Tapered Duo Fiber BR-247
• Ecotools Finishing Brush
• Japonesque dual fiber travel
• Lilique Blusher
• Lilique Powder
• Everyday Minerals Long Handled Kabuki
• The Body Shop Blusher Retractable Blusher Brush (shown here)

• TiGi Cosmetics Powder Brush
• No name Powder brush
• Sephora Powder Brush (faux leather wrapped handle from some LE collection)
• Dali Blush Brush
• Lise Watier Blush Brush
• Zhuoerya Blush Brush

• MAC 109 Small Contour Brush
• Sedona Lace Dome Contour FB 05
• No name Blush / Contour brush
• Blue Angle Blush Brush #24
• No name dual ended blush and eye shadow brush

• Nars Yachiyo Kabuki Brush
• Nars No.21 Kabuki Ita Brush and AliExpress dupe (see these 2 compared here)

• Ecotools Airbrush Concealer
• No Name Concealer brush
• No Name Lid Color brush
• Spa Resource Eye Contour
• Coastal Scents C415 Deluxe Sable Shader
• No Name Crease
• Coastal Scents C200 Deluxe Crease
• Joe Fresh Crease brush
• Abbamart Bubinga Natural Eyeshadow Brush Small F-034
• Coastal Scents Synthetic Deluxe Crease BR-104 x2
• Coastal Scents Pro Blending Fluff BR-250 (shown here)
• Mineral Essence Angle Shadow

• Real Techniques Pointed Foundation brush (from Core Collection)
• Ecotools by Alicia Silverstone Mini Face brush
• The Body Shop Concealer Brush
• Everyday Minerals Eye Kabuki
• Everyday Minerals Dome Blending Eye Brush
• Real Techniques Deluxe Crease brush (from Starter Kit)
• Ecotools Eye Shading
• Ecotools Highlight (from bamboo mineral 5pc brush set)
• Ecotools Angled Shadow
• Ecotools Blend brush
• Everyday Minerals Eye Kabuki Junior
• e.l.f. Essential Blending Eye Brush

• No Name Angled Shade & Liner (silver)
• Vera Mona dual ended eye shadow brush
• Revlon Angle and Smudge
• Smashbox Double Exposure brush
• Posh Smokey & Eye Shadow x2
• Posh Brow & Fine Liner
• Posh Brow & Smudge
• Posh Angle Smudge
• Posh Round Smudge
• Posh Smudge
I just don’t care for dual ended brushes – in theory they’re useful but I can’t store them properly

• Annabelle Brow Brush / Lash Comb
• Blue Brow Brush
• Real Techniques Brow brush (from Eye Starter Kit)
• Mary Kay Angle Liner
• Ecotools Flat Eyeliner
• Joe Fresh Flat Liner brush
• Faux Squirrel 1827 Wave Angle by Dynasty (art brush)
• Sable Hair Round #2 (art brush)
• Windsor & Newton #136 (art brush)
• Nobel 168R (art brush)
• Real Techniques Silicone Liner brush
• Blue Crease Brush
• Essence of Beauty Crease
• Sally Hansen Lip Brush
• Keli 736 Spoolie
• Sonia Kashuk Eyeliner (from Out of the Wood 4pc set)
• Lilique Angled Eyeliner

Perfumes


• G of The Sea Harajuku Lovers (I won this as part of a basket of beauty goodies in a Shoppers Drug Mart charity raffle… they gave me a tester! 😆 )
• Tokyo Milk Dark Wisdom No 26 (review here)
• Tocca Cleopatra rollerball
• The Body Shop Honeymania

• Philosophy Inner Grace
• Bourjois Glamour Fantasy

Nail Polish


• Essie Penny Talk
• Essie Just Stitched, Comfy in Cashmere, and Coat Couture (these abominations are part of the Cashmere Mattes that I reviewed here)

• Essie Power Lunch, Room With a View, Starter Wife, Soho Nude, and Chips no Potatoes
I can’t even tell these apart, so I had to take  a photo of the labels for reference. 😆

• Essie Cafe Forgot
• China Glaze Ooh La La Pink and Ooh La La Peach Pearl
• Nicole by OPI Sheer Fun and Blush of Adrenaline

• Revlon Cotton Candy (scented)
• NYX Laura
• Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Bamboo Shoot
• Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Shall We Dance?

• Pandora’s Polish Bunny Rabbit
• Color Club Nomadic nude
• Claire’s Grey Matte
• Orly Sheer White Tips
• L’Oreal The Magic Top Coats The Holographic

• Essie Delhi Dance (shown here)
• Quo by Orly in Cotton Candy
• Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear in Almond Crunch
• Organic Farm OR02 and PK13

• Wet n’ Wild Black Creme
• Cheeky Monkey in 50 Shades
• Essie Starry Starry Night (I renamed this Tarry Tarry Night – awful formula and an insult to the legend of the original)
• Zoya Yasmeen

• Bonne Belle Key West
• Color Club Gift of Sparkle
• Essence A Lovely Secret, You Belong To Me, and Where Is The Party?

• Essie minis in Pink a Boo, Hard to Get, Hi Maintenance, Mademoiselle (this is my HG sheer pink polish! I have a couple of full sized bottles), and Looking For Love
I have a new policy for myself: no more mini polishes – shown here with the full size bottle of Penny Talk for scale

• Essie minis in Cat Walk, Really Red, Jag U Are, Wild Thing, and Swing Velvet
• Bourjois 1863 (mini)
• The New Black (no label, mini)

And here’s LEGO Ralph Wiggum for scale. 😛

• Sally Girl minis in Coconut, Grape, Splurge, Over You, and Epic
• OPI mini in Number One Nemesis and The World is Not Enough (I own this in the full size, reviewed here)

You made it to the (almost) end! ⭐ Here’s the total:

Tally:

• 95 Eye Products
• 90 Lip Products
• 13 Cheek Products
• 17 Foundations / Concealers
• 6 Skincare
• 83 Brushes
• 6 Perfumes
• 55 Nail Polishes

Total of 365 items purged! 😀

I swear I didn’t manipulate the numbers to get exactly 365 items – ie. one per day for the year – it was just a coincidence! 😆 For this particular declutter, I focused primarily on lip and foundation products since liquid makeup items have shorter lifespan.  I would have done a more thorough purging especially with the nail polishes (I have a ton more that needs to go – I want to whittle my nail polish collection by half – right now I’m at 800 nail polishes! 😮 ) but, I lost steam… culling my makeup stash takes a toll and requires a certain mental state! 😥

Lessons Learned?

So have I actually learned anything from all this makeup decluttering? Hmm maybe a few things:
1) Just because I like a formula, it doesn’t mean I need to buy every single shade offered
2) Limited edition is a farce – no product is really a once-in-a-lifetime, they always come back in some form or another
3) Pretty packaging alone is not a valid reason to buy makeup
4) Related to #2 and #3: Makeup is not for collecting, it is for using
5) Just because something is discounted / on sale, it doesn’t mean that it’s a deal!

Notice that I didn’t say I won’t ever buy another taupe eye shadow again, or another MLBB lipstick, or another nail polish… I’m not delusional! 😆

Aside from slimming down my stash, another positive outcome of this exercise was rediscovering some less visible gems! When I was sorting through my collection to decide what to purge and what to keep, I found some items I’d completely forgotten about! 😳

I’ve done a few of these beauty product purges on the blog – check them out if you enjoy these types of posts:
• Miscellaneous Makeup Purge (July 2016)
• Lip Product Purge (February 2016)
• Foundation and Concealer Purge (February 2016)
• The Purge: Makeup Edition (September 2015)
• Bonus: The 12 Days of Purge-mas

Feel free to ask me about any particular item if you want more details about why I’m purging it.  Have you used any of these items shown? And what about you, are there items in your beauty stash that you have too many of, or you’re hanging onto for some reason, that you probably need to get rid of? 😉

82 thoughts on “Massive Purge”

    1. I’m REALLY torn about getting rid of those MAC LE… but it wasn’t like I was displaying them. I was certainly not actually using them.
      But yes, all those Paint Pots! I liked the formula on all of them except for Tailor Grey – for some reason that one faded and creased on me.

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  4. Wow you had Eclair by MAC! I wanted that so badly but it was all sold out. Great purge! It’s good to sort through it all and find expired, old, gross products that just need to go. Had a look at your matte Essie blog post. I own one of those shades but never actually wore it. I only get suckered into limited edition eye palletes and Catrice/ Essence stuff. Never really got the MAC LE hypes.

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    1. I love Eclair Paint Pot! Probably my 2nd favourite Paint Pot from MAC, ever (first being Groundwork). But, the consistency of my pot is getting rather dry. I used it one last time last week and it just doesn’t perform like it used to!
      I’ve learned probably over the past couple of years that I waste a lot of money and energy on LE stuff – I was THAT person who would line up on release day for the store to open to get what I had my eye on. I haven’t followed MAC LEs in quite sometime now. *pat on the back*

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      1. Good for you! I never lived close enough to a MAC store to be able to do that. I guess that helped too.

        Tip: if your paint pots start to dry out. Use a toothpick and stir it all together. This will redistribute the moisture in the product and it will be creamy again. It’s how I revived my paint pot in Painterly. Unless it smells funky, then of course toss it.

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  6. I love what you said about limited edition. The packaging is always so tempting, but there’s always other things in the line that are just as good! It’s also hard when you’re a blogger…I’m always leery about showing discontinued items!

    Great post as always!
    xo Lauren

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    1. Thanks! I feel like limited edition stuff has gotten so out of hand! As consumers, we need to wise up to their games. Hopefully people realize that special packaging is just a distraction from the products inside. Don’t get me wrong, there are some gems that are LE… but people should scrutinize more.

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  7. OMG! This post made me itch to go home and clear out my stash! You have some awesome products you are letting go of but you are right, makeup is for using! I have to ask though, what did you do with all of it? Did you throw away everything or pass it down to a sister/friend??

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    1. I do hope this post inspires people to sort through what they have that they might not use any more!

      Oh I should have mentioned in my post but it was getting rather long… all the liquid products like foundation and lip stuff will be thrown out (except for the Back to MAC stuff) and I will try to sort through the powder products to see if my sister / friends might want them. I’m definitely going to pass the brushes on!

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    1. I know, I’m easily influenced by social media! *SHEEP*
      But, I will say that I have followed LE collections less and less now. I used to be one of those people who would camp outside MAC store before they open on launch day to get LE collections. I’m embarrassed for myself right now. 😳

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  9. Holy moly, this is a serious purge!

    “It pains me a little to purge these but what the heck am I doing with eye shadows in primary colours?” LOL this killed me. But ugh, the idea of getting rid of those expensive shadows hurts. The idea of getting rid of ALL of this makeup hurts – all the money spent on the products! But it is a necessary evil.

    You have a Guerlain lipstick that you can’t remember where it’s from, and it’s untouched? Girl. Giiiiirl. I think all of those MAC products is enough (or almost enough) to get you two free products! 365 out, 2 in, haha.

    I like your lessons learned, they are all so true! Pretty packaging is my weak spot when it comes to purchases. Only in the last two years or so have I truly been able to look past the packaging to decide whether or not I will actually get use out of the product itself – but it still gets me sometimes. I’ve never really been a makeup collector per se (your purge alone is probably 3 times the size of my entire collection hehehe), but my struggle is being reasonable about what I think I’ll actually use. No, I can’t realistically use up fifteen 12-pan eye palettes, or twenty highlighters, or thirty blushes – stop buying!!

    Do you think overall in your 3 years of blogging, you have decreased your stash from when you first started?

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    1. I don’t think I could bear to add up how much money all of these items cost! 😮
      Seriously, I must have bumped my head re: Guerlain lipstick. The only plausible explanation I can think of is that one of my friends swapped me it and I completely forgot. I bet you that I was “saving it” because it was a fancy lipstick. In fact, it doesn’t smell off at all but I know it has to be OLD.

      I actually think I have enough empties for 4 items from MAC! 😀 I had a couple of empty skincare containers I’d stashed away. 🙂 Time for a visit!

      I still am such a sucker for packaging! I bet if you strip away packaging and really compare all the LE releases, we’d realize how not special the products are.

      Blushes is another area that I need to really go through my collection to cull some. I have more than 150 blushes right now! It’s so ridiculous, I know it!

      Good question – overall, yes my stash has diminished. But certain categories have increased especially nail polishes! I also suspect eye shadows and blushes have gone up. 😳 For sure lip products have gone down.

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  10. Oh my gosh! That is quite the purge. I keep meaning to do this with my ‘shit makeup’ there’s something about then that makes me want to keep hold of them whilst in reality I never reach for some stuff – I mean what need to I have for a chalky AF Sex and the City eyeshadow palette?! You’ve made me itchy to get on with it though that must have felt so satisfying. Did any of it get passed on or did it all get chucked for good?

    Out of interest why are you chucking the Clarins lip perfectors? Because they’ve gone bad or just not keen? Had them on my list to try!

    800 polishes – crikey! My last add up was 300 and that was a good couple of years ago. I have definitely been better over the past few years, mainly due to a lack of space more than anything – but when we move I do plan a purge of them!

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    1. Problem is, I wouldn’t say these things I’m purging are crap – many of them I really like, in fact! But I just don’t reach for them due to the volume of my collection. I don’t tend to keep crap makeup around long… Case in point, the Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector – I love them! But I have 4 tubes of them and they all basically look the same on my lips (milky nudey colour) so I’m getting rid of the 3 oldest tubes in my stash (they are still perfectly fine, not turned). I highly recommend getting ONE if you’ve been curious – they are lovely.

      I’ll be tossing all of the liquid / gel stuff like lipsticks, foundations, liners, and cream shadows. But I will sort through the eye shadows, blushes and brushes to see if I can find a home for them. My friend are probably reading this post now and putting dibs on what they want! 😆

      I made a promise to myself that I refuse to buy more storage bins for my nail polish. Since early 2016, the number of bottles of nail polishes have far exceeded the bins… they sit inside plastic bags in my bedroom for now!

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  12. After looking at this, I need to so some (more) purging myself. It’ll be bittersweet getting rid of more than half of my EOS collection *sigh*, but it is what it is. So easy to go overboard with the lip balm/lip color category for me. I need to exercise more self restraint! 😛

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    1. The EOS spoil so quickly, I’ve found! And I think I’ve fallen out of love with them now. The new set I got at Christmas was so disappointing – the Peppermint Mocha sucked in terms of both flavour and formula. The one that I did like was the Ginger one! No exaggeration but right now at my desk I’m looking at 11 lip balms sitting in front me… 😳

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  14. I started decluttering some stuff I haven’t touched in ages too. But I threw some of it away before I thought maybe I should do a declutter post. WHOOPS! But I got more to go through so I’ll just have to remember to put it aside for photos before tossing.

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    1. You don’t know how difficult it was for me to not chuck stuff over the many months… I had this bag sitting in a corner that I would keep adding to. It was an eyesore.

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      1. I can imagine. It takes for my empties box to be severely overflowing before I decide to do an empties post. And it gets filled up almost immediately again after. 😂

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  15. Excuse me while I pick my mouth up from the floor from the shock! 😛

    I love the Rimmel gloss in the shade Glossaholic! Seeing your Pink Truffle lip butter from Revlon reminded me I have the shade and to test it out myself to see if I want to keep it 😉

    SO. MANY. BRUSHES.

    Can you Back To MAC products that aren’t empty?

    The Bourjois Glamour Fantasy bottle is cute, I had no idea Bourjois did fragrance. What was the scent of this one?

    Lots of those nail polishes separated bad 😦 800 polishes, you could start your own salon!

    You have done so well sorting through all of these products. Can I ask how you dispose of them?

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    1. Yes, you can Back to MAC items that aren’t empty – I’ve done it tons.

      I was drawn to the Bourjois perfumes initially because of the bottles! I picked up 2 of them – the Fantasy one is a sour cherry and raspberry fruity smell but with patchouli… I should have known better, the patchouli scent is overpowering and I’m not keen on it. The other Bourjois one I picked up has the same bottle shape but in blue, called Glamour Chic and it’ more of a powdery vanilla scent which I do like, and have kept in my rotation. I also own yet another Bourjois perfume, which was part of their original lineup from the 1920s, called Soir de Paris and it’s a soft violet scent – it’s so lovely!

      Yup those polishes are OLD! I still remember buying them. And you can see, I used many of them quite a bit.

      I sorted through all of these items into 2 piles – pass onto my friends or toss. The ones that I toss (mainly liquid products like lipsticks / gloss and foundations), I recycle as much as I can but lots of makeup packaging are made of mixed materials and our recycling facilities won’t accept them. Many of the eye shadows and brushes I am passing to my friends if they want them.

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      1. That’s useful to know about the Back To MAC items.

        The blue bottle of Bourjois perfume with a vanilla scent sounds nice, as does the violet. I’m not sure I’ve smelt violet before.

        I bet your friends and family will be grateful 🙂

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  17. What a purge this was!! 😮 I will have to catch up with your other purges~ Out of interest, do you feel that you shop any better after purging? Your makeup storage must be quite awesome. Mine is quite minimal which means I can’t hoard too many products.

    I had no idea Leona Lewis and The Body Shop ever came out with a product together? That is so random to me. 😅 When I saw the lipstick packaging for Siss, I was a bit baffled but it made sense that it was like 20 years old. It’s practically vintage. 😂 But awesome to basically see the evolution of MAC in this post!

    I say that it was a good call on the nail polishes – they look really OLD and some are badly separated. Could see a pattern for the types of colours you like though, which is interesting. 😛 But 800 polishes!? I think I own about 30-40 and already that is more than I will ever need.

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    1. Yes, I do feel that I shop better after a purge because I notice a pattern of what I tend to buy, not use, and toss out – so I make an effort to not repeat those pitfalls!
      I keep my makeup in a closet in my spare bedroom – it takes up quite a bit of space, as you can imagine. I’m really trying to contain things so they don’t spread further…

      I just googled it, the Leona Lewis + Body Shop was back in 2013! I bought that brush during a clearance sale… it’s really cute but I have too many brushes similar to it.

      My friend wants that Siss lipstick back! She says it has a lot of memories… (and they call me the hoarder!) 😆

      For sure those polishes are old, but just because they’re separated, it doesn’t mean that they’re not usable. I shook those bottles up and they were fine. If I really wanted, I could have added a drop or two or nail polish thinner and they would be like new. I mainly got rid of those ones because I have sooooo many similar shades! 😳

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  18. With GWP, giftsets, warehouse sales, subscription boxes, Shoppers Drug Mart Optimum points, Winners, and sale products, it all adds up. Fortunately my Avon lady moved, and I have never really gotten into online shopping. I have found out the hard way that products do go bad e.g., fragrance goes off, lotions and liquid makeup separate, cream makeup and mascara dry out, the oils in lip products and hair conditioner go
    rancid, and some products just evaporate if left too long. My new strategy is to shop my stash; allow more time to do a full makeup/ skincare routine, thus using up more products, and focus on using a few specific products in order to get to the empty stage. In reality, it is almost impossible to empty a makeup product unless it is used daily.

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    1. You’re so right! It’s so easy to accumulate items and suddenly you’re in a race against time to try to finish the items that you’ve opened. I also got into a bad habit of buying backups of products – which is so silly since I can’t even finish up the original product to begin with. I bet if I stuck to shopping my stash only, I would not have to buy new products for years and years (maybe except for foundation). I do tend to use up foundations, concealers, eyeliners and mascaras.

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  19. Wow that’s a lot of makeup! I can only wonder what your collection looks like, considering this probably isn’t even half of it… so many brushes you’re getting rid of especially! How many do you actually have left? I wonder 😄

    Love, Charline | Charline Has a Blog

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    1. I have a LOT of brushes and I keep buying more out of curiosity! I actually recently bought more brushes again… 😳 I’m going to switch over my brushes to higher end ones – likely mainly from Japan since I’ve really enjoyed the ones I got so far. (I just did a count on my tracking spreadsheet, I have over 300 brushes…)

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    1. It really was mentally taxing! I did this in phases but when I was sorting through to take photos and writing up the post, I was tempted to keep some of the items (especially the limited edition packaging) but nope… it’s really time to get them out of my life! I do feel relieved. 🙂

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  21. Oh my goodness! I saw your Instagram and cam immediately here! Have you made a good dent in your makeup stash?

    I need to live by your 4th point…

    Ive started giving my makeup away, even the stuff I absolutely wanted to hold on to, because it’s not doing anyone any favours letting them go old. Plus I make room for new stuff, haha!

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    1. Someone else asked me what percentage of my total makeup collection does this purge represent.. I’d say about 10%! 😳 I really need to sort through my nail polishes and my blushes. I got rid of a paltry 13 blushes when I’m sitting with over 150 blushes! 😳 I want to get that number down to 50… and that’s really still too many!

      I’ve set aside the items that are going to be re-homed! My friends are happy… 😉

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  22. lipgloss only exists as a memento mori to remind us all things must die. I am convinced of that. smae goes for Eos lip balms, I chucked one out this month as well.
    Great post! Only the Estee Lauder 5 pan palette makes me sad to see it go.

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    1. I swear I’m not going to buy lip gloss for 2018! I just know that I won’t use them…
      I’ve now fallen out of love with EOS – I received a set for Christmas and I was so disappointed by them – not hydrating at all!
      Don’t worry, I’m going to re-home that EL palette – it’s a great palette but I just don’t reach for it.

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  23. Holy purge. I’m too much of a hoarder so I just keep them all in a drawer 😅😅😅 I did that with the packaging for a while too but then I ran out of space. Also I cannot believe you’re purging an untouched Guerlain lippie, was it expired?

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    1. I’m trying to break my habit of keeping packaging as well! It’s such an odd thing to save… even before I had a blog, I’d keep packaging – why!? 😕
      The Guerlain lipstick didn’t smell off to me – there was no scent. I do suspect that it’s old so I actually tossed it in the garbage… 😮 I know!

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  24. I’ve said it before but… Oh! My! God! (in Janice’s voice)
    Massive purge… no kidding!

    Sad to see those Tokidoki lip balms go…

    Glad to hear you discovered a few gems when you played with, errr, went though your stash. 😉

    I can’t believe they gave you a tester when you won that charity raffle. 😀 I hope it wasn’t a part used bottle!

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    1. I don’t use the term “massive” lightly! 😛

      Oh there were MANY things that I was sad to see go… the Tokidoki, the Disney stuff… I also have some other Hello Kitty stuff that could be tossed but I am hanging onto them for a little while longer…

      One of the forgotten gems I found was an Illamasqua blush duo – it’s so pretty but I completely forgot I owned it! 😳

      The perfume tester was brand new – I guess the store was sent them from the manufacturer and didn’t need them any more so they threw it into the prize basket? I recalled in that same prize, I received the Nina Ricci L’Air du Temps perfume as well. The bottle is magnificent but the perfume didn’t agree with me – I gave it to a friend who loves that fragrance.

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  25. Pingback: Hauluary 2018 – Post-Holiday Sales | stash matters

  26. I was unable to hold onto my hat and my heart had just went bust. OMG… I need to visit you in CA.

    The MAC peachstock and twig lippies are practical everyday colour. I’m so surprised that it didn’t make it to your empty.

    Wow, you really hated that THREE oil you scored in Japan. You did mention how badly it performed. lol that passive rant was so funny

    My heart can’t take it~~~these type of posts are too stressful (faint) 😛 clearly your no buy / low buy is not working out *LOL* (love & hugs)

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    1. I hope your heart is OK! 😉

      MAC Peachstock is quite similar to the Bite lipstick in Honeycomb! I was really bummed out that mine with the special Liberty of London tube went bad so quickly – less than 2 years the smell was off. Twig is a little bit too dark to wear daily but it’s a really wearable shade.

      Yes that THREE oil is so useless. I resent it. And I resent all those bloggers who raved about it! Those liars!

      I’m drafting a post to show how my collection has grown or shrunk since I’ve had my blog… let’s see the truth of whether I purged more or hauled more… 😛

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    1. Yes it’s a relief to get these out of my life!
      For sure I’ll give you a call if the Guerlains are culled… but that probably won’t be happening…

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  28. Wow this is a lot! But so inspiring! I’m definitely learning the idea of not having to buy every single shade – still working on that a lot though. As I get more products, I’m definitely also learning that if I don’t absolutely love something, I can give it away. I need to go through my collection – I definitely won’t get rid of this many objects. But these posts were strangely calming and wonderful to look at!

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  29. Pingback: Accountability Summary (+ Makeup Inventory) | stash matters

      1. I’m pretty sure some of them have aLready expired.. And on my Last visit, my dermaroLogist specificaLLy said “don’t use those Korean sheets now” 😔

        But maybe I can stiLL use the Japanese sheet masks 😁

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          1. Not sure why he saod that, but I think he just doesn’t want other stuffs to.. interfere with his program..? 🤔
            I stiLL use masks from Leaders whenever I’m traveLing, and there’s nothing wrong happening

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  31. Those button shadows are so cute! Also the Hello Kitty Lip Conditioners were my FAV, I wish they would re-release those again because as much as I want to use mine again it’s been YEARS so they don’t have that delicious scent and I assume taste, I’m too scared to find out lol!

    I’m seriously considering porting my old makeup reviews from my old blog on to my new one for reference lol!

    I need to do a serious purge like this! So many things I held on to when I moved from CA to FL 5 years ago and never even used! And some things I was “saving to the right time” afraid it would expire too quickly and now years later I never used it and it still expired! UGH! Makeup is so weird sometimes! But I’m awful at letting things go…. some day!

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    1. The button shadows came from this Cargo palette (when Cargo used to be carried at Sephora here in Canada):

      I wished the MAC tinted lip conditioners were a permanent product!

      I’m similar to you as well – I hoard and don’t use makeup for AGES. Don’t really know what I’m waiting for? I’ve totally kept items unopened for years and they expired without ever being used – that is MORE sad than using something and it expired. I hope you’ll be able to tackle your collection one day!

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  32. Pingback: Stashy’s Hoarder Stash Giveaway! | stash matters

  33. I can tell that you love your nail polishes a lot, you can see its been used so many times that you almost finish a bottle. 365 items is insane!

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  35. Wow this is impressive! Dang, 800 polishes though. I can see how you’d need a decluttering break. I agree with all the lessons you learned but esp with 4. I heard someone outside of YouTube use the word “collection” for makeup the other day and I looked at him funny cause it sounded like such a strange concept dispite the fact that we use/hear the word all the time in blog/vlogs. Collecting makeup is like collecting fruit… it’s stupid. Of course there is nothing wrong with variety and enjoying stuff but like you said we don’t need all the things cause we like a formula or its on sale etc etc. Great post! Loved the added message!!!

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    1. It IS silly that we call our makeup a collection… I honestly don’t know how we started on that trend and it needs to stop! Good analogy about collection fruit. I know part of the reason for my growing collection has to do with blogging, especially after my no-buy year. Hopefully I can keep with the momentum of decluttering what I don’t use and be smarter about what I buy. 🙂

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  36. Pingback: Saved from the Declutter – Helpless Whilst Drying

  37. My sister really wants the Sephora Powder Brush (faux leather wrapped handle from some LE collection). Do you know what brand that brush is?

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