Elle's On A No Buy

 It's only been two days since I officially started my no buy.

I have been on the Sephora website three times. Watched about 10 makeup hauls. And read countless reviews on products I have no interest in purchasing.

WHY?

I have enough makeup. No amount of makeup is going to make me feel better about myself.
I'm not going to look like a Supermodel because I buy a new foundation. A new eyeshadow palette is not going to make my eyes larger. A new lipstick isn't going to make my teeth straight.

So why do I want to believe it will? That I will find the perfect products and my life will be forever changed?

There is no hair product that will give me thicker hair.

                                            Have you seen my Influenster unboxing? 

There is no skin product that will thin my face. No brow product to give me flawless eyebrows.

So many of us search for these 'unicorn' products to change our world. No product can do that. But we can change ourselves. We can change our attitudes and behaviors and begin to believe in ourselves.

So that's it for now. I'm beginning to believe.

Attempting a No Buy (for real this time!)

I need to do a no buy.

A real no buy. Not one where I keep making excuses and find reasons to buy new items. But a financially motivated no buy with real, firm goals in place.

Financially, I need to take a purchasing hiatus. I am still on maternity leave, which means my pay is currently less than half of what it normally is, and will be until I return to work in September.

I have a large furniture payment due in September.

And...Wait for it... I'm going to IMATS in Toronto, which is October 1-2.

So buying things I don't REALLY need, like the Sweet Peach palette above, has to stop.

And I am prepared to do so.

So starting now, the month of my birthday, and after a few 'treat yo self' treats from Sephora. I vow to begin my Beauty No Buy.

Wish me luck!

Project 100 Pan: ALL MAKEUP (INTRO)

I've finally done it.










I've gone mad.

No, not quite. But I am taking on a massive Project Pan challenge- a Project 100 Pan. That's no typo! 100 makeup items.

Now, they are not all full-size items. That would be a whole different kind of madness. In fact, most of the items in this Project Pan are "deluxe size" items.. But as anyone who has used these sized items before can tell you, it can take weeks (if not months) to finish something of that size!

One of my goals with my makeup collection is to have a majority of full-size items. This is mostly for aesthetic reasons. I just like the way full-size products look. But deluxe products have their benefits. They are frequently available as samples, gift-with-purchases, gift sets, and more. A great way to try a product (or two or ten!) for a fraction of the cost of the retail item.


I'm also counting individual pans as separate items. So for example, I have a contour palette in this challenge. That is 6 different pans of face powder. So each pan counts as one item, as opposed to counting the palette as a whole as one item. 

I've also decided to give myself little "prizes" at the end of finishing certain categories. I will have all of those listed with my full product list.

Interested in knowing what I've chosen?

Makeup Inventory 2016

Tallying up all the products in your makeup stash can be terrifying- truly.

It can be easy to deny the amount you have ("it's not that much!") when you are an addict. And there are always excuses.

But when you sit down and surround yourself with nearly 200 lipsticks, over 20 liquid foundations, almost 50 powder blushes...Well, things become a lot more clear.

My name is Elle, and I'm a Makeup Addict.

Here are my numbers...

Project 20 Pan ROULETTE: intro

I was a little crazy when I thought of this project!

This project involves writing categories down on little slips of paper, and then drawing them at random. The category chosen is how you will make the choice of which item to pan.

One of my panning mottos for 2016 is definitely GO BIG OR GO HOME!

The full list of all 60 categories can be found below. Have fun if you decide to try this too!

Project 10 Pan UPDATE!

Missed my INTRO to this Project Pan? Check out the video!

One month into this Project, and I've finished one product and made some decent progress on the rest!

Keep reading for more info on the products in this Project, as well as the video update!

Advice for Project Panning!

Project Panning is oh so rewarding.

For those that are brand new to the concept- Project Panning can mean different things to different people. Essentially, Project Panning is a challenge using makeup (or other beauty products) in an attempt to finish them.

You may have already stumbled across a Project 10 Pan, a Project 20 Pan, or even seasonal challenges like Finish 6 by Christmas.

If you are interested in joining in- DO IT! If you are unsure how to start, I have some questions to help guide you.

If you are already doing a Project Pan, but need a little help going further, I hope my questions and advice can be of some assistance!

I have been participating in Project Pans and other various "use it up" challenges since 2013.

For the list of questions, read on...

Pan That Palette: Where do we go from here?

Panning (aka completely finishing an entire palette) is quite the challenge. And as you reach more milestones and goals, and see those shiny empty pans, you have to be a bit creative.

Long gone are the highlight shade/s, the lid colors, the blending shades. So what do you do? Reach for other palettes and shadows in your stash!

In my latest video, I swatch and discuss the shadows and liners I will be using to finish up my Naked palette from Urban Decay. With only 5 shadows left to finish up, they need a lot of help!

Check out the video on YouTube.

And don't forget to dive into the rest of this post to see the full list of products shown!