UseItUpByApril - Finale

Hey there!

I decided in January that I'd dig through my makeup, beauty and bath stash and decide which products I'd try my hardest to use up by my birthday (UseItUpByApril post). I saw some other folks trying it and I thought it might be easy to do.

Nope. Not as easy as it looks. I even did an update post in March (UseItUpByApril - Update post). That should have given us a clue!

I apparently did not find enough random strangers to help me power through the Maybelline Baby Lips. I did finish 1 of them. The other is in my purse and about halfway finished. I used this at least once a day and it's still going strong (and the other 5 or 6 are still hanging around the house). That should be a testament that Maybelline Baby Lips products will last you a good, long time. But, I really think it's a testament that I have too many lip products in rotation.

In my update post I told you that I had used my Lancôme Bienfait Teinté once since the project started. Well, now I've used it twice. I have to say that in my defense...ummm...I don't know. I love it during the summer but I have really been going powder only and ALL of my foundation-like liquids have gotten almost no love. I have never been a huge fan of liquid foundation and I guess this BB Cream got caught up in that.

Well, the Make Up Forever HD Primer made it into the empties post. But, it made it in because it went super liquidy and rancid. Because I don't do much in the way of foundation, I don't worry too much about my powder wandering away. The Benefit Watts Up Soft Focus Highlighter is still in play. It gets used when I do my eyebrows and need them to be on point. I'll be honest...Sasquatch has been in the building this winter and my eyebrows have been untamed, hairy beasts. I'll do better next time, I promise.

ALL of the perfume samples have been sampled! And only 1 of them got to stay. Yep! Out of all of the perfume samples that have darkened my doorway, only one was good enough to stay and that one was only just good enough to stay. I didn't run out and buy anything. When the J'Adore runs out, it just runs out. I discovered that I like a sweet, sugary scent. I love my Pink Sugar Scents and my Body Fantasies Cotton Candy scent. That's about all I want on my body. Is that too childish for a 43 year old? I mean, I'm asking the question but there is a big, fat, "I don't care if it is" right at the end so feel free not to answer.

I touched the Coastal Scents Bright Eyed Brightener once this entire time. I just couldn't make it work. I really tried but it's way too bright and it creased like crap under my eye. This product is going in the Big Green Empties Bucket.

Two. That's how many of the eight shower gels that I used up. It's hard to use up shower gel when you have about 25 in various stages of use. It sounds excessive I know but you have to understand...I like bubble baths and shower gels! I like smelling good. Sometimes you change it up (like every day). This portion of the project was a big fail but it was a great smelling fail.

I have learned a lot though this project though. One, I have acquired (through samples, gifts or purchases) a lot of stuff that I don't like and still try to use it up. I can' keep doing that. If I don't like it, I just don't like it.

Two, I like bath stuff and I don't care who knows!

UseItUpByApril - Update

Hey There !

So in the very beginning of January I talked about all of the products that I wanted to use my birthday (April) #UseItUpByApril. I have so many things that I feel like I'll never finish that I wanted to make a real effort to use up certain products. My plan was to make sure that I showed preference and love to these particular items so that by April 16 (that magical day for both you and I), they would be empty.

Just for the record...this is hard!!

The first thing I wanted to use up were 2 of my many Maybelline Baby Lips lip balms. I mentioned that I have about 7 of them and I need them gone or I need more lips. So far, I finished one and I am working hard on the other. I know, that doesn't make sense but, I have one that I use at night, every night (Dr. Rescue in Just Peachy). It's not suitable for daytime! I have another in my purse (Quenched). If I take it out of my purse I'll lose it. I have another one in my makeup bag...you get the picture, right?

I have used my Lancôme Bienfait Teinté once since this project began. Yep, once. I just haven't been feeling it. I wore it a lot during the summer but this winter I just haven't done much in the way of liquid color. I think I might be thinking about bronzing up too much. Not sure.

I have a big surprise with either the Make Up Forever HD Primer or the Benefit Watts Up Soft Focus Highlighter. I can't tell you which, but one of these things will be in my empties.

You would be so proud of me as far as the perfume samples go! I think we're going to make it. I think I am going to use them all up by the due date! Score!

The  Coastal Scents Bright Eyed Eye Brightener. Well, see what happened was...I totally have not touched this. I'm going to have to work on it. It's just not something I remember. I'm going to put it and all the other stuff on a tray so that I can see them first thing.

The shower gels and body creams have been a big surprise. I thought that I'd have put a huge dent in them by now. I've dented them but not what I thought. It's interesting how very little you use in the way of shower gels. I have learned a valuable lesson -- you don't need half the bubbly crap that you buy!

Like I said, this is hard. I have tried to show favoritism to these items but when you have so much stuff, you tend to spread the love around. I'm down to the final month so I plan to go hard. Are you still taking bets as to what I'll use up and what I won't?

Yeah, me too.

#UseItUpByApril

Hey There!!

During the holiday season I have been watching a lot of YouTube videos -- I mean A LOT of videos. Because of all the YouTube surfing, I have come up on some really great new channels. One of the lovely ladies that I've been watching (ThriftyBeauty - if you aren't watching her, you are making poor life choices. She is great!) gave me a GREAT idea (i.e., challenge) for the new year. I'm going to use up some makeup.

Yeah, yeah, I know. That doesn't sound like much of a challenge but for me, it really is. I have many items that I've owned for quite a while and I either need to toss it or use it up. I've spent quite a bit of time last year accumulating random stuff and I haven't spent enough time USING that stuff up. So, by my birthday (April 16, mark it on your calendars peeps!) I am going to use up the following...

Am I the only person wondering how many random strangers do you have to let borrow your Maybelline Baby Lips lip balms before you use those suckers up? I have about 7 or so in different places and none of them ever seem to go away. My goal for mid April is to use up 2 of them and have them in my April's empties bin. Ladies at work, pucker up. We're going to have moist, supple lips by April!

I bought this Lancôme Bienfait Teinté BB cream last year. I like it but it's still hanging around. I keep thinking, if I like it so much, shouldn't it be gone by now? Exactly. I think this product will be a lot easier than others to use up. I have about half the container left.

I think that I got the Make Up Forever HD Primer and the Benefit Watts Up Soft Focus Highlighter samples at the same time. If that's the case, then I should have used them up by now. The primer has about half left (should be easy to accomplish) and the Watts Up is still pretty full (a more difficult task). I still have the primer because I fell in love with the Hourglass Veil Mineral primer and stopped using it. The Watts Up is still around because really, how much over the eye highlighter can you use? I'm not a huge fan of creamy highlighter but that's gonna have to change.

Do you see all of those perfume samples? Half of them have never even been tested. I'm going to test them all and use up the ones I like. The ones I don't like, I'll tell you all about it, in April. The next time you see that crystal bin, it's going to be empty! 

I ordered a Coastal Scents Bright Eyed Eye Brightener thinking that it would brighten the area under my eyes and make me look awake, brighter, younger, smarter. I discovered that liquids and creams under my eyes do one thing -- make me look older. When this didn't work under my eyes, I put it away and did nothing with it. Now, $4.95 later, I still have the product sitting on my counter. I need to find a use for it fast! I'm going to do some research and use this stuff up. Got any ideas?

And, it breaks my heart but I have waaaay too many bath gels and hand creams. It's out of control. What I tend to do is use a shower gel one day and then another the next day and yet another the next day. I never finish one because I keep rotating them. My goal is to use up 8 shower gels and 2 body creams by my birthday. If that means I smell the same everyday for the next 4 months, so be it. I really need to pare down what I have and be sensible about what I purchase from here on out.

Now don't go all crazy people. I'm not on a no-buy or anything. I'm just on a buy better. I'm going to remember what I have and not just buy all willy nilly to say that I have something. If there's something that I really want, I'm going to have to use something else up. I'm also going to shop my stash a lot more. Marsala is the new color of the year? Well, I gravitate towards that color in lippies anyway, so do I really need to buy EVERYTHING new that pops up? No. Will I purchase some new things in the line? Of course, but I will be very aware of what I already have.

Because I've learned how to use coupons and shop sales, I have a very nice makeup collection that didn't cost me a crazy amount of money. While it is a nice collection, I don't make use of it like I should. Well, that's going to change.

Stay tuned. I'll follow up with you nice people and let you know how it's going. I'll also try to remember to post some things on Instagram   #UseItUpByApril.