January No-Buy: Why and How!

Well, it’s officially January 2018 which means that I’ve got to keep the word I promised to myself: you ain’t buying crap this month! Lol!

I was putting away some of my Black Friday/Cyber Monday / Sale items one day in December and I felt overwhelmed. I had nowhere to put my stuff! I currently House my makeup products in two 4-drawer chests, my lipsticks up on our vanity & some more makeup on top of my chests. There is absolutely no way my husband would let me buy additional storage.

I wanted to cry when I literally couldn’t fit my stuff anywhere, so I decluttered some stuff that I gave to my family to make room for those products (aka-there still is no room for more stuff). That’s when I decided that this year I *really* want to try to maintain a low buy.

I’ve said it before but I always break this and go crazy buying a lot of stuff. I’ll admit that some of the reason is because I’d like to provide my thoughts to people but the other half is solely to have it. I’m not one to collect- I use everything I buy but at this point I’ll never finish anything.

So here are some thoughts I jotted down about my personal makeup collection:

• I have more than 50 eyeshadow palettes in my collection. At this point there can’t possibly be a shade I don’t already have in my collection. Why do I want new palettes? Probably because the color schemes are arranged differently which makes them more appealing. I’m going to have to SERIOUSLY think about what comes out and compare to stuff I already have.
• I have 40 blushes —- and I continue to reach for the same 5 or 6. That is crazy, considering I enjoy buying blush, but when i look at my stash it’s clear I have very few favorites that I reach for.
• I have decluttered 100s of lipstick- I promise hundreds!! (I was a lipstick hoarder at one point) and I STILL feel overwhelmed with my collection. It seems as though new lipsticks crawl into my collection at night because no matter how much I declutter I still have a lot.
• Do I really need that many bronzers, primers, highlighters?! No I do not. I picked up both ABH Aurora and MoonChild Palettes and the KVD Alchemist palette which are versatile. After that, they all tend to look the same. Bronzers: I bought a gazillion new releases this year as well as primers.

I’ve also taken some steps to decrease my urge to spend:

• Deleted the trendmood app. This app is dangerous if you’re on a no/low-buy. Basically they send you a notification every time New Makeup is released. It’s great for when you really want something and are worried it might sell out, but for me, this app will be deleted for the month of January.
• I will also delete my Nordstrom, Macy’s, etc, apps that might also tempt me into getting something this month
• I have laid out a drawer specifically with items I haven’t opened yet/things I got for Christmas so that when I am tempted I can just reach for a new product in this drawer.
• I will focus on the Octoly website in order to receive products. It’s a really cool website that allows bloggers/IG/you tubers to apply to review makeup! I am excited to get back to that.
• I’ve purchased a notebook to keep track of things I used, things I didn’t really enjoy, etc. in order to really see what I’m loving in my collection. This will also help me clear out items I’m just not feeling anymore.

I have made some exceptions to my no-buy which include: eyebrow pencils. I only own one: Anastasia Brow Definer. I’m not really into eyebrows so I literally only use one. Makeup remover wipes: I got some for Christmas but I know I’ll run out and I won’t limit myself to buying those. Brush cleaners: because mine is running low. Basically, things I have very little of.

This was a longer post than I expected but I am super excited about it! We’ll see how it goes! Are you going on a low/no buy?! Are you going to be more conscious of things you want this year?! Let me know!

Thanks for reading! Until next time…

Denise R.