Resolution "LOW-BUY" 2014! Who wants to play?

[PixieDancer]

Quote: Originally Posted by veronikawithak
@PixieDancer I'm so glad to hear that you're working through things. It's never easy, but facing your emotions will be worth it over time. Overhauling your closet is a great way of redirecting the energy that would usually be spent on shopping too. Your posts always make me feel so empowered and inspired! I'm really glad this thread is back on track too. It's always been a kind of haven or safe space to express opinions that aren't so mainstream on Specktra and I'm forever grateful to you for all that you've put into it. I don't know where I'd be right now without it or you (probably at MAC/Sephora or living in a cardboard box somewhere).

We've missed you!!


Thaks so much doll! I am "working through things"... slowly but surely! I feel things in a big way, so I don't expect that to be limited to only good feelings. But I am happy that I have been touched in my life in such beautiful ways to make me feel the loss. Once those traumatic feelings pass, I will have the wonderful memories to hold onto forever. We can all only hope to affect lives that way. What a testament to a life!

I'm so happy you've been doing so great! I think we all had each other a little worried during the AA fiasco! LOL But you have stepped up and moved forward... you are such an Angel for keeping everyone on track in here. I feel ok about taking some time off from time to time and know you all are in such good hands and take care of each other!

 

[veronikawithak]

Thaks so much doll! I am "working through things"... slowly but surely! I feel things in a big way, so I don't expect that to be limited to only good feelings. But I am happy that I have been touched in my life in such beautiful ways to make me feel the loss. Once those traumatic feelings pass, I will have the wonderful memories to hold onto forever. We can all only hope to affect lives that way. What a testament to a life!

I'm so happy you've been doing so great! I think we all had each other a little worried during the AA fiasco! LOL But you have stepped up and moved forward... you are such an Angel for keeping everyone on track in here. I feel ok about taking some time off from time to time and know you all are in such good hands and take care of each other!

"Working through things" was the best way I could think to put it. I've been through some major losses in my life too and there's really nothing to say that could possibly express the magnitude and scope of emotions. Your comment about memories being a testament to a life brought tears to my eyes.. such a truthful and powerful statement.

Cheers to moving on from the haul that shall not be named.

PS. Your new avi..

GORGEOUS woman.. inside & out!!

 

[PixieDancer]

"Working through things" was the best way I could think to put it. I've been through some major losses in my life too and there's really nothing to say that could possibly express the magnitude and scope of emotions. Your comment about memories being a testament to a life brought tears to my eyes.. such a truthful and powerful statement.

Cheers to moving on from the haul that shall not be named.

PS. Your new avi..

GORGEOUS woman.. inside & out!!

It was a great way to put it... because that's all you can do.

And I LOL'd @ "the haul that shall not be named" Hey... at least you found some great gems in that haul. Using them means it was worth it!

Thanks for the avi love... I had to stop being a sad princess at some point! HeeHee wink

 

[veronikawithak]

It was a great way to put it... because that's all you can do.

And I LOL'd @ "the haul that shall not be named" Hey... at least you found some great gems in that haul. Using them means it was worth it!

Thanks for the avi love... I had to stop being a sad princess at some point! HeeHee wink

Yes.. very true..

I did find some great gems.. wearing Lorelei today actually! I have to confess I entertained the idea of buying another Siren Song in store when I was grabbing my things from Moody Blooms a couple weeks ago.. just for a second when I saw that they still had it. Then I smacked my own hand away and gave myself a major talking to

(I already have 2 backups - although I am probably 1/4 of the way through it!).
Sad princess is beautiful too, but I'm happy to see glamorous pinup princess again!

 

[Maris Crane]

Do y'all like the Rockateur blush? I feel like I can't trust the majority of online reviews since most received it free. But I am thinking if getting that blush the next time I have 20% off at Ulta.

It's lovely! I would certainly reccommend it. Very nice neutral blush. I don't find it too shimmery at all either - I can wear it with a highlighter without feeling like it goes overboard.

 

[PixieDancer]

Yes.. very true..

I did find some great gems.. wearing Lorelei today actually! I have to confess I entertained the idea of buying another Siren Song in store when I was grabbing my things from Moody Blooms a couple weeks ago.. just for a second when I saw that they still had it. Then I smacked my own hand away and gave myself a major talking to

(I already have 2 backups - although I am probably 1/4 of the way through it!).
Sad princess is beautiful too, but I'm happy to see glamorous pinup princess again!

Good job talking yourself down... as lovely as SS is for many... those shades in MAC Lustres come out pretty often. I think you'll be fine with your 2 BU's... not to mention you certainly have other lippies you'll be wearing too. If SS was the only .lipstick you wore everyday, that would be a different story! LOL

You sure made my day with the luv!! xoxo

 

[shellygrrl]

All the hugs for Pixie! :hug: My FOTD pretty much amounted to no-makeup makeup. Heh. * It Cosmetics YSBB CC Cream - Fair * MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer - NW15 * BareMinerals Flawless Definition Mascara - Black * NYC Smooth Skin Loose Powder - Translucent * MAC MSF - Light Year * NYX MegaShine Lipgloss - Nude Pink

 

[mel33t]

NEVER feel stupid for posting something that you need to get off your chest. It's part of the process! Denial is the enemy. You are facing the reality of your own unique situation. Comparing yours to anyone else's is futile. Everyone has their own demons and areas of weakness. Having an inventory is very important! You're doing FANTASTIC at just taking those steps... they can be overwhelming and scary! but necessary to move forward!

And for the record... NO... my numbers are NOT like yours... mine are MUCH BIGGER! So know you're in good company and we are all in this crazy "game" together!
I'm VERY happy and proud of your efforts! GOOD JOB sweetie!

Quote: Originally Posted by burghchick


No need to feel nervous and stupid! I'm sure other people have similar amounts and it doesn't bother them at all. I haven't counted my eye products yet, but I'm sure I've got more eye liners than you. I have A LOT of eye pencils, and then gel liners, too. I suspect my single eye shadows are close to your number. I haven't been big into buying eye shadow palettes, so I only have 3 UD ones and some MAC ones that I filled up over the years. I don't think I've ever gotten rid of an eye shadow from a good brand, either, though.
I think it's important to think of things other than just the amount, too. I have always had trouble throwing things away because I come from a family that didn't have much money and thought it was frivolous to throw away good things. It's very hard to break that way of thinking. I'll throw out mascara and gloss (after a few years as far as gloss). Any other product I keep unless I don't like it or it was a freebie that I don't use.
So I think it's important to think of how long you've had things and if they were bought by you or free, etc. For me this low-buy isn't so much about how many I have, but if I'm spending money unwisely. So if I know what I have, hopefully I won't buy dupes. And I won't just keep buying without thinking about whether I'll use it.
What's too much for one person might be fine for another. Keep that in mind and don't beat yourself up, Mel33t. It doesn't help anything. How much make-up you have has nothing to do with how good of a person you are.

Thank you guys for your kind words and support
I don't think it's so much the numbers but my own voice in my head going "And think how much money you could have saved?" or something along those lines. Also, any of us coming on here and posting our inventories, our shopping problems, our struggles with not buying any makeup for a month takes an insane amount of courage and after some thought I think it was only naturally of me to feel nervous about it. I realized just how lucky we are to have this awesome group of people to support us!!

 

[mel33t]

It was a great way to put it... because that's all you can do.

And I LOL'd @ "the haul that shall not be named" Hey... at least you found some great gems in that haul. Using them means it was worth it!

Thanks for the avi love... I had to stop being a sad princess at some point! HeeHee wink

I second that comment, you are gorgeous girl!!

 

[PixieDancer]

I second that comment, you are gorgeous girl!!

 

[ARmakeupjunkie]

I had about 4 Sephora girls approach me the other day.. you cannot shop in peace there. Part of the reason I like shopping online. And I have to laugh going into MAC a few days after collection releases.. they always want to tell me about it and I'm like yes I knew about that before most of you did because I spend way too much time creeping online. Just let me spend my money alone.

You ain't never lied! Earbuds and music cranked up won't even keep them away!

 

[mel33t]

So onto week two of this rotating palette challenge and I'm using The BALM's Nude Tude palette. Overall this palette has amazing quality eyeshadows and there are some beautiful shades, but you can't use it on its own. That's a big no no for me. My eye makeup doesn't look very well blended today, I just used the palette sans a blending color and I could've really done with some Naked or Naked2 crease color. I know it wouldn't be hard to just use this palette and let's say Naked Basics, but I believe that defeats the purpose of an eyeshadow palette, you're supposed to have everything you need. I'm still going to use it for the rest of the week, but as of right now its not looking so good for this palette. On a random note, I had an unopened tube of mascara, so now I have four because I tossed one that was used and the new one is the Revlon Bold Lacquer, the new one... Its awful. Just an FYI.

 

[Alysse011]

I know it wouldn't be hard to just use this palette and let's say Naked Basics, but I believe that defeats the purpose of an eyeshadow palette, you're supposed to have everything you need. I'm still going to use it for the rest of the week, but as of right now its not looking so good for this palette.

Way to stick with your challenge. I did something similar a couple of months ago and it ended up helping me purge some palettes. To be honesty, I probably need to let go of even more. But eyeshadows are my "thing" so...baby steps :bigthumb:

 

[kerry-jane88]

So RE sales and discounts being a big trigger for me,
I'll just explore here what I've realised:
If a retailer has a sale, more often than not i'll go into the store or onto the website of course looking for a bargain
but more often than the sale ends up dictating what im buying rather than what i would actually buy off of my general wishlist.
this has always made no sense to me really, why buy 2 or 3 of something because it's cheaper when it's not what you really want?

I've had great success with making a MAC collections wishlist and making myself whittle it down too,
I've bought hardly any LE mac this year and i know that staying strong through the launches with my wishlist has helped a lot

so i'm thinking i should apply this structure to other areas of my beauty stash
like skincare, bodycare and other brands i like like bobbi brown and estee lauder.

i think that's how we all end up with massive stashes isn't it really,
we see a product and think ooh that could work for me!
but like a lot of you are saying, i want to be using stuff that's my favourite and stuff that works for me and not against me

So i did an enexpected purge yesterday,
i got rid of most of the things i had that were 'old' mostly over 5 years and such
i gave up on using my mac nude rose and vg cyndi lippies as they were freaking me out coz theyd gone a bit funky so they went in the b2m pile
i made myself bin shadows ive pretty much never used or havent used in a long time

some items, like my bobbi brown nude on nude palette, used to be staples for me and the thought of ever getting rid of it seemed ridiculous
then i thought about how many times ive used it in teh past year? not so much
just because something used to be a staple doesnt mean i owe it anything now
even after i cleaned it up, the palette was still looking a little manky
so i went on a dupe discovery
i use the dark brown shade mahogany for my eyebrows: well mac brun and showstopper will do just as well, plus ive not been using my monsters bride palette containing brun at all
taupe shade cement had no exact dupes but i have so mny shades similar im not going to notice when theyre actually on my eye
the heather mauve shade i dont really wear unless im doing a full makeup, plus i have similar in my marc jacobs palette
and id used up the navajo shade anyway so the palette was missing a light shade

to make sure i dont miss it ive done the 'put it away in a box' thing
i can always fish it out if i miss it
i also boxed five blushes and i gave away two palettes

GO ME!

 

[veronikawithak]

So RE sales and discounts being a big trigger for me,
I'll just explore here what I've realised:
If a retailer has a sale, more often than not i'll go into the store or onto the website of course looking for a bargain
but more often than the sale ends up dictating what im buying rather than what i would actually buy off of my general wishlist.
this has always made no sense to me really, why buy 2 or 3 of something because it's cheaper when it's not what you really want?

I've had great success with making a MAC collections wishlist and making myself whittle it down too,
I've bought hardly any LE mac this year and i know that staying strong through the launches with my wishlist has helped a lot

so i'm thinking i should apply this structure to other areas of my beauty stash
like skincare, bodycare and other brands i like like bobbi brown and estee lauder.

i think that's how we all end up with massive stashes isn't it really,
we see a product and think ooh that could work for me!
but like a lot of you are saying, i want to be using stuff that's my favourite and stuff that works for me and not against me

So i did an enexpected purge yesterday,
i got rid of most of the things i had that were 'old' mostly over 5 years and such
i gave up on using my mac nude rose and vg cyndi lippies as they were freaking me out coz theyd gone a bit funky so they went in the b2m pile
i made myself bin shadows ive pretty much never used or havent used in a long time

some items, like my bobbi brown nude on nude palette, used to be staples for me and the thought of ever getting rid of it seemed ridiculous
then i thought about how many times ive used it in teh past year? not so much
just because something used to be a staple doesnt mean i owe it anything now
even after i cleaned it up, the palette was still looking a little manky
so i went on a dupe discovery
i use the dark brown shade mahogany for my eyebrows: well mac brun and showstopper will do just as well, plus ive not been using my monsters bride palette containing brun at all
taupe shade cement had no exact dupes but i have so mny shades similar im not going to notice when theyre actually on my eye
the heather mauve shade i dont really wear unless im doing a full makeup, plus i have similar in my marc jacobs palette
and id used up the navajo shade anyway so the palette was missing a light shade

to make sure i dont miss it ive done the 'put it away in a box' thing
i can always fish it out if i miss it
i also boxed five blushes and i gave away two palettes

GO ME!

GO YOU is right!!!

I'm so proud!!! Sounds like you really had a MAJOR breakthrough yesterday. Good for you girl!!

I get that way with discounts too.. especially on drugstore lip products. In fact, I'm putting myself on a drugstore items ban because everything I've picked up (on sale, of course) has gone in the trash after a few uses (except mascaras.. I love drugstore mascaras so they're exempted). Those Shoppers Optimum points have got me good a few times too.. it's hard to pass up a "buy 2, get 1500 points" promotion. The only one I haven't regretted is when I stocked up on mascara.

That's awesome that you were able to let so many things go.. including your once coveted Bobbi Brown palette!! Finding dupes in your collection and noticing that you already finished the highlight shade was a smart process! I totally agree that items that used to be staples are hard to give up. But you change so much over time, it makes sense that your makeup tastes will change too! I used to LOVE the Benefit They're Real mascara.. like obsession level. I got one recently and I can't stand it.. I hate the brush, the formula, the way it clumps together.. and I'm sitting there thinking "I must have piled this stuff on until I had tarantula lashes.. why didn't any of my friends say anything to me?" lol. I do love their Bad Gal though.

Speaking of mascaras.. Too Faced Better Than Sex.. wtf. I hear it hyped up everywhere on YouTube so I was excited to try a sample size of it. It flakes so bad on me though! Like little black flakes of mascara under my eyes every time I put it on and throughout the day too. Anyone else have this problem? I wonder if mine was just a bad one?

 

[Alysse011]

GO YOU is right!!! :cheer: I'm so proud!!! Sounds like you really had a MAJOR breakthrough yesterday. Good for you girl!! I get that way with discounts too.. especially on drugstore lip products. In fact, I'm putting myself on a drugstore items ban because everything I've picked up (on sale, of course) has gone in the trash after a few uses (except mascaras.. I love drugstore mascaras so they're exempted). Those Shoppers Optimum points have got me good a few times too.. it's hard to pass up a "buy 2, get 1500 points" promotion. The only one I haven't regretted is when I stocked up on mascara. That's awesome that you were able to let so many things go.. including your once coveted Bobbi Brown palette!! Finding dupes in your collection and noticing that you already finished the highlight shade was a smart process! I totally agree that items that used to be staples are hard to give up. But you change so much over time, it makes sense that your makeup tastes will change too! I used to LOVE the Benefit They're Real mascara.. like obsession level. I got one recently and I can't stand it.. I hate the brush, the formula, the way it clumps together.. and I'm sitting there thinking "I must have piled this stuff on until I had tarantula lashes.. why didn't any of my friends say anything to me?" lol. I do love their Bad Gal though. Speaking of mascaras.. Too Faced Better Than Sex.. wtf. I hear it hyped up everywhere on YouTube so I was excited to try a sample size of it. It flakes so bad on me though! Like little black flakes of mascara under my eyes every time I put it on and throughout the day too. Anyone else have this problem? I wonder if mine was just a bad one?

I'm with y'all on having trouble getting rid of products that were once staples. Like my Naked palette. I was obsessed with it and now I just can't with the straight up glitter. I have to remind myself that it makes zero sense to have that kind of loyalty to an object I haven't used in a year. I didn't like Better Than Sex either, but it didn't flake on me. I just wasn't a fan. As for They're Real - loathe lol. That wand is a torture device! I had sore eyelids for days!

 

[mel33t]

@kerry-jane88 awesome job!! That's great that you found dupes and got rid of things that were old regardless of the pretty packaging or collection of the item. Really proud of you!! @veronikawothak They're Real is They're Worst. I hate everything about that mascara. Too Faced is okay, it does flake but the effect is worth it I think. Personally my favorite is Dior Show Iconic Curl...omg, its heaven for my lashes. But not for my wallet

 

[Sandy072]

So onto week two of this rotating palette challenge and I'm using The BALM's Nude Tude palette. Overall this palette has amazing quality eyeshadows and there are some beautiful shades, but you can't use it on its own. That's a big no no for me. My eye makeup doesn't look very well blended today, I just used the palette sans a blending color and I could've really done with some Naked or Naked2 crease color. I know it wouldn't be hard to just use this palette and let's say Naked Basics, but I believe that defeats the purpose of an eyeshadow palette, you're supposed to have everything you need. I'm still going to use it for the rest of the week, but as of right now its not looking so good for this palette. On a random note, I had an unopened tube of mascara, so now I have four because I tossed one that was used and the new one is the Revlon Bold Lacquer, the new one... Its awful. Just an FYI.

I also have nude tude and neglect it.. Probably for the same reason you mentioned.

So RE sales and discounts being a big trigger for me, I'll just explore here what I've realised: If a retailer has a sale, more often than not i'll go into the store or onto the website of course looking for a bargain but more often than the sale ends up dictating what im buying rather than what i would actually buy off of my general wishlist. this has always made no sense to me really, why buy 2 or 3 of something because it's cheaper when it's not what you really want? I've had great success with making a MAC collections wishlist and making myself whittle it down too, I've bought hardly any LE mac this year and i know that staying strong through the launches with my wishlist has helped a lot so i'm thinking i should apply this structure to other areas of my beauty stash like skincare, bodycare and other brands i like like bobbi brown and estee lauder. i think that's how we all end up with massive stashes isn't it really, we see a product and think ooh that could work for me! but like a lot of you are saying, i want to be using stuff that's my favourite and stuff that works for me and not against me So i did an enexpected purge yesterday, i got rid of most of the things i had that were 'old' mostly over 5 years and such i gave up on using my mac nude rose and vg cyndi lippies as they were freaking me out coz theyd gone a bit funky so they went in the b2m pile i made myself bin shadows ive pretty much never used or havent used in a long time some items, like my bobbi brown nude on nude palette, used to be staples for me and the thought of ever getting rid of it seemed ridiculous then i thought about how many times ive used it in teh past year? not so much just because something used to be a staple doesnt mean i owe it anything now even after i cleaned it up, the palette was still looking a little manky so i went on a dupe discovery i use the dark brown shade mahogany for my eyebrows: well mac brun and showstopper will do just as well, plus ive not been using my monsters bride palette containing brun at all taupe shade cement had no exact dupes but i have so mny shades similar im not going to notice when theyre actually on my eye the heather mauve shade i dont really wear unless im doing a full makeup, plus i have similar in my marc jacobs palette and id used up the navajo shade anyway so the palette was missing a light shade to make sure i dont miss it ive done the 'put it away in a box' thing i can always fish it out if i miss it i also boxed five blushes and i gave away two palettes GO ME!

Great job! Do you feel like you have so much more room now?!?

 

[kerry-jane88]

Thanks ladies! I feel like I stumbled on a big block for a lot of us: Letting go of stuff we used to like/love/covet but just don't use anymore. I don't own the naked palettes but in a similar way it's like me and my Bobbi brown palette it aan be hard to convince yourself it's ok to get rid of an item item you probably used to use daily! Like veronika said, our tastes change, so im not going to clutch onto something I used as a teenager but havent in the past few years. I gave my shu uemura tsomuri chisato planet cat palette to my lil sis as even though I was obsessed with how cute it is, I probably used it once a year. Im going to do the one in, two out method too, but in a general sense rather than category specific, like if I get a new blush but don't feel like I can get rid of one or two of my existing ones, then I could say purge an eyeshadow or a lipstick. This should keep me stricter about what I bring into my circle of shineys!

 

[kerry-jane88]

I also have nude tude and neglect it.. Probably for the same reason you mentioned. Great job! Do you feel like you have so much more room now?!?

Yes I can see everything better and I feel like im on a good track with my stash I'll try uploading pics of my progress in the next few weeks but my fone is properly broke and won't let me right now. Oh I forgot to add I gave all of my primers away (bar my two mac natural radiance as they are light a light luminizer on me) asyou know what, I dont like primers so I don't need any do I