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

[kerry-jane88]

Thanks[@]PixieDancer[/@]I had a must swatch in person rule, but Im thinking once it's on my lips it's going to look different than all these hand swatches anyway and how different will it look compared to what I already have? Probably not a lot and if I'm honest with myself how often do I reach for nudes anyway!? and [@]tirurit[/@] I want to shop smarter so it just seems a waste that I'd be buying something that I don't even want half of. I don't know what the UK price will be but lip bags were £32 last year. Thinking I should probably save my money for something with a bit more oompfh and pick up the lip pencil when I want?

 

[Ajigglin]

Boy do I feel you on the glosses! I am allowing myself NONE until I make a serious dent in my huge stash!  I wanted that red CSG SOOOOOO badly... but NO NO NO! A Lustre nude??? I say skip. Lustre = sheer, so no matter how potentially "unique" the nude color (if that's even possible) it will still be pretty sheer and look like most other sheer nudes. I say skip and just get the lip pencil if you find it's a must have on its own.  HTH.

I'm with you on the no more gloss. It's been easy to let go of those, surprisingly.

 

[CrimsonQuill157]

I picked up Tribalist from the holiday collection. Also bought Pander Me, but I had told myself that if it was still in stock by the time that collection launched, I'd get it, so I don't feel too bad.

 

[mel33t]

I picked up Tribalist from the holiday collection. Also bought Pander Me, but I had told myself that if it was still in stock by the time that collection launched, I'd get it, so I don't feel too bad.

Let me know how you like Tribalist - that's the one I'm interested in!

 

[PixieDancer]

I did REALLY well with the new Holiday Collection launch! Ended up skipping ALL the lippies and glosses and blushes! HUGE accomplishment!
I have taken that mini pigment set OFF my list as well. Nothing SUPER unique there, and just not necessary in my huge collection.

I limited myself to a couple of the Pressed Pigments that I KNOW I'll use for stage/work, as that's how I use the ones I have already. They work really well for my stage makeup and are much easier to travel with than looses pigments and glitters. Plus, I can write them off since it's a work/performance expense. I also only got the unique duo-chrome affect colors that I don't have dupes for already. So other than those, I skipped everything else! This is honestly a HUGE milestone for me!! In past years, the Holiday Collections always seem to destroy any goals of low-buying! I feel really good that a big box of makeup isn't coming to my house that I'd feel guilty about within 30 days! Think I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of staple, quality booties that I know I'll get a few seasons of wear out of. MUCH better distribution of the makeup funds!

 

[Audrey C]

The MAC holiday collection is a skip for me. I haven't been following the thread and didn't even bother going to the site when I got the email today. I need absolutely nothing.

It's time to BTM for me yet again, so I think I'll replace the Kinda Sexy that I actually finished recently. While I don't care for mattes and satins now as a general rule, I do like layering a gloss over them and I really like this shade for that purpose. I have a couple of stubby lip pencils that will soon need replacing (Absolutely It, Nice n' Spice) but I think I can make it to the holidays. I know I'll get gift cards from a family member so these can wait.

Still on track for no makeup spending until next year.

 

[shellygrrl]

Way to go, Pixie and Audrey! :cheer:

 

[PixieDancer]

The MAC holiday collection is a skip for me. I haven't been following the thread and didn't even bother going to the site when I got the email today. I need absolutely nothing.

It's time to BTM for me yet again, so I think I'll replace the Kinda Sexy that I actually finished recently. While I don't care for mattes and satins now as a general rule, I do like layering a gloss over them and I really like this shade for that purpose. I have a couple of stubby lip pencils that will soon need replacing (Absolutely It, Nice n' Spice) but I think I can make it to the holidays. I know I'll get gift cards from a family member so these can wait.

Still on track for no makeup spending until next year.

Yayayyayayayayaaaaaaaa YOU!

Quote: Originally Posted by shellygrrl

Way to go, Pixie and Audrey!

Thanks babe!

 

[Ajigglin]

I did REALLY well with the new Holiday Collection launch! Ended up skipping ALL the lippies and glosses and blushes! HUGE accomplishment! I have taken that mini pigment set OFF my list as well.  Nothing SUPER unique there, and just not necessary in my huge collection. I limited myself to a couple of the Pressed Pigments that I KNOW I'll use for stage/work, as that's how I use the ones I have already.  They work really well for my stage makeup and are much easier to travel with than looses pigments and glitters.  Plus, I can write them off since it's a work/performance expense.  I also only got the unique duo-chrome affect colors that I don't have dupes for already.  So other than those, I skipped everything else!  This is honestly a HUGE milestone for me!!  In past years, the Holiday Collections always seem to destroy any goals of low-buying!  I feel really good that a big box of makeup isn't coming to my house that I'd feel guilty about within 30 days!  Think I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of staple, quality booties that I know I'll get a few seasons of wear out of.  MUCH better distribution of the makeup funds!

The MAC holiday collection is a skip for me. I haven't been following the thread and didn't even bother going to the site when I got the email today. I need absolutely nothing. It's time to BTM for me yet again, so I think I'll replace the Kinda Sexy that I actually finished recently. While I don't care for mattes and satins now as a general rule, I do like layering a gloss over them and I really like this shade for that purpose. I have a couple of stubby lip pencils that will soon need replacing (Absolutely It, Nice n' Spice) but I think I can make it to the holidays. I know I'll get gift cards from a family member so these can wait.  Still on track for no makeup spending until next year. :encore:

Nice work, you two!!! Look how far we've come from the beginning of this year. Hell, even from Alluring Aquatics! Team Low-Buy is winning.

 

[PixieDancer]

Look how far we've come from the beginning of this year. Hell, even from Alluring Aquatics! Team Low-Buy is winning.

It seems like everyone on here has really pulled it together! We are set to finish this year STRONG!! I'm super duper proud!!
Team Low-Buy IS winning!! Yay US!

 

[Buffy89]

Hello everybody, I must admit that I'm a long time reader, but now I finally had to join. For quite a few months, I've noticed that my collection is simply too large, containing too many products I simlpy don't use/cannot use in my everyday routine. Although I like wearing rather unconventional clothes (well, in comparison to my colleagues) and I surely love a smokey eye during daytime, there are soooo many things I own that just sit in the drawer and get old (bright lipsticks are my major weakness). Lately, I've even had a horrible argument with my mom (who is super important to me and whose opinion I highly respect...we're almost like Lorelai and Rory sometimes) about my overspending on makeup. I'm still going to university and although I have a job, I'm kinda dependent on my parents when it comes to rent/tutition fees/etc. So basically, I really don't want to disappoint my mom by buying even more senseless stuff.
I mostly buy LE items by MAC and it always felt as if I simply HAD TO get a few items from each collection, no matter how useful/dupeable they were. My biggest downfall was spending more than 300 Euros on A Novel Romance (plus products by other brands in that month), that's simply ridiculous.
I've always been a "collector" kinda girl, and I surely do buy things as an outlet for stress/sadness/etc.

Well, I KNOW that my stash is super big and I'm kinda bored by some of the old stuff in in (simply don't like some colors since my style has changed since, like, 2010). Plus, on low-buy I could easily save some money to go on some nice vacation.

In the last two weeks, I've read almost this whole thread, and now I think it's time to get involved in here
MAC's holiday collection is gonna launch soon, and before my eye-opening argument, I had simply wanted EVERYTHING and I guess I would have spent hundreds of Euros again. Now, I plan to buy about two items so won't feel like missing out, but to be honest, I don't need any new stuff (except staples such as foundation/powder).

Oh, and please excuse my clumsy English, I rarely get a chance to speak/write in English so I guess this is a nice way to practice my skills

edit: too many typos!

 

[charlotte366]

It seems like everyone on here has really pulled it together! We are set to finish this year STRONG!! I'm super duper proud!!
Team Low-Buy IS winning!! Yay US!

It is indeed winning! I have scrapped everything off my holiday list aside from the hourglass blush palette, its now available for pre-order in the UK so thats what I am doing today. I am skipping NARS and MAC holiday and I am working hard on project pan till the end of the year and actually enjoying seeing things getting used up.

I reached for my hourglass ambient powder palette this morning, It was love! This thread has been soo good for me this year it makes me think before I purchase and I have realised that i want a smaller collection of well edited products that I reach for, use and love. By the time the end of the year reaches us I should be in a good position to move forward.

 

[lyseD]

Hello everybody, I must admit that I'm a long time reader, but now I finally had to join. For quite a few months, I've noticed that my collection is simply too large, containing too many products I simlpy don't use/cannot use in my everyday routine. Although I like wearing rather unconventional clothes (well, in comparison to my colleagues) and I surely love a smokey eye during daytime, there are soooo many things I own that just sit in the drawer and get old (bright lipsticks are my major weakness). Lately, I've even had a horrible argument with my mom (who is super important to me and whose opinion I highly respect...we're almost like Lorelai and Rory sometimes) about my overspending on makeup. I'm still going to university and although I have a job, I'm kinda dependent on my parents when it comes to rent/tutition fees/etc. So basically, I really don't want to disappoint my mom by buying even more senseless stuff.
I mostly buy LE items by MAC and it always felt as if I simply HAD TO get a few items from each collection, no matter how useful/dupeable they were. My biggest downfall was spending more than 300 Euros on A Novel Romance (plus products by other brands in that month), that's simply ridiculous.
I've always been a "collector" kinda girl, and I surely do buy things as an outlet for stress/sadness/etc.

Well, I KNOW that my stash is super big and I'm kinda bored by some of the old stuff in in (simply don't like some colors since my style has changed since, like, 2010). Plus, on low-buy I could easily save some money to go on some nice vacation.

In the last two weeks, I've read almost this whole thread, and now I think it's time to get involved in here
MAC's holiday collection is gonna launch soon, and before my eye-opening argument, I had simply wanted EVERYTHING and I guess I would have spent hundreds of Euros again. Now, I plan to buy about two items so won't feel like missing out, but to be honest, I don't need any new stuff (except staples such as foundation/powder).

Oh, and please excuse my clumsy English, I rarely get a chance to speak/write in English so I guess this is a nice way to practice my skills

edit: too many typos!

Amazingly written. Can't imagine if I tried to write in another language.

 

[veronikawithak]

Had to share a milestone with you all. Yesterday I finished my first full sized lipgloss EVER - a Cremesheen Glass in Deelight that I purchased this April. Every other lipgloss I've had I ended up tossing after a year because lipglosses are one of those products I like to be fresh.. but this one I used right to the last drop!

One of my goals this year was to see how many products I could finish so I know what my ideal size should be based on how much turnover I have. It's looking like I go through about 4 lipsticks and 4 glosses per year. Considering that my preferred turnover time for lipglosses is 1 year and for lipsticks is 2 years, my ideal size should be 4 lipglosses and 8 lipsticks. Right now I have about 6 lipglosses and 25+ lipsticks (plus several minis) so I have some work to do over the next year. Of course there will be a few I don't completely use up, so I'm okay with having some random items like darker lipsticks that I'll B2M before they're completely finished, but with everyday products those are the numbers I'd like to work towards!

I also checked in with my spreadsheet for my quarterly review and I've really cut down on my spending BIG TIME in the latter half of the year! I'll do a full breakdown in 2 months, but let's just say it's looking GOOD!

 

[lyseD]

Had to share a milestone with you all. Yesterday I finished my first full sized lipgloss EVER - a Cremesheen Glass in Deelight that I purchased this April. Every other lipgloss I've had I ended up tossing after a year because lipglosses are one of those products I like to be fresh.. but this one I used right to the last drop!

One of my goals this year was to see how many products I could finish so I know what my ideal size should be based on how much turnover I have. It's looking like I go through about 4 lipsticks and 4 glosses per year. Considering that my preferred turnover time for lipglosses is 1 year and for lipsticks is 2 years, my ideal size should be 4 lipglosses and 8 lipsticks. Right now I have about 6 lipglosses and 25+ lipsticks (plus several minis) so I have some work to do over the next year. Of course there will be a few I don't completely use up, so I'm okay with having some random items like darker lipsticks that I'll B2M before they're completely finished, but with everyday products those are the numbers I'd like to work towards!

I also checked in with my spreadsheet for my quarterly review and I've really cut down on my spending BIG TIME in the latter half of the year! I'll do a full breakdown in 2 months, but let's just say it's looking GOOD!

I just picked up Deelight last week.

 

[veronikawithak]

Quote: Originally Posted by lyseD
I just picked up Deelight last week.



Nice! Hope you enjoy it. It was one of my favorites and a really good color for me.. I'll consider repurchasing once I go through my others.

 

[jennyap]

Peeks in bashfully - hi everyone! I'm ashamed to say it's 4 months since I last posted in here. 4 months! Some of that I was on vacation (2 fantastic weeks in Italy), I had no internet access at home for 4 weeks, and I've been super busy at work, but still poor form LOL. Just quoting/responding to a few random posts from the last however many pages I've caught up with today, then I'll update y'all on my own progress. @CrimsonQuill157 - hope you're doing ok Quote:Originally Posted by PixieDancer

I know what you mean about the Muji drawers looking "excessive" but for me, it helps to be able to see and quickly locate what I want to use. They have helped me (literally) visualize what I have. All I have to do before I hoard buy more makeup is look at those bad boys and it slows me down really fast!!
I try not to hide any of my makeup anymore... that kept me in denial way too long! It was "out of sight, out of mind" for me.



I'm very much a out of sight out of mind girl. I have too much to have or be comfortable with it out on display, so I do the best I can. I have virtually all my makeup in the top drawer of my dresser, and that space is my limit. I know for myself that I won't look in more than one place, so if it wont fit in that drawer, I can't keep it. Quote:Originally Posted by Audrey C

I have some empties in the MAC 15 pans, but with this addition I have about 140 eyeshadows. Clearly excessive. Even worse, I use all but my more colourful Inglot palette very regularly so there's nothing I care to trim.



I know where you're coming from, but if you're using everything regularly that's way better than having lots and only using a few. Quote:Originally Posted by veronikawithak

@kerry-jane88 such a great idea to post strengths/weaknesses.. I was thinking about them as I read it but never thought to share.

Expensive = high quality: I'm on the fence with this one. I've purchased some expensive things and have been really impressed with the quality difference, and other times I look at something from an expensive brand and pass because it feels cheap. I think I'm fairly balanced here.

Social proof: I don't have as big of a problem with who is marketing things as I do with how the overall campaign looks. I see an image and don't think as often as I should about what that product will actually translate to in my life. I need to do better with stripping things of their context, but it's not too bad.

Scarcity: This is my major problem! Gift with purchase, promo codes, free shipping, LE.. Yeah. They use these techniques because they work! I've been getting better, but this is probably the biggest thing I need to work in. If I didn't want the product in the first place, I'm not getting a deal on it.

Sunk costs: I'm good here. Once I know something isn't working I can't get it out of my life fast enough.



Love this. My take: Expensive = high quality: joining you on the fence. I don't consider myself particularly price sensitive, I'm happy to pay a higher price for a better product, but I'm not a snob about it either. Probably do fall into this trap on occasion but it's not a major problem for me Social proof: exactly the same as you, it's the overall image rather than individual faces that sell to me Scarcity: Used to be a problem, but I'm much stronger here now. I do still take advantage of offers, but only to buy things I would have got anyway, so I turn them to my benefit. No point paying shipping on 2 orders if you can combine them into 1 and get free shipping! Sunk costs: undoubtedly my biggest weakness. My parents have always been pack rats - and a visit to them earlier this month confirmed that Dad at least is borderline hoarder these days - and I'm the same. Really struggle letting things go, and there's definitely a strong emotional component to that. It's something my DH and I have both been working on over the last couple of years (he loves 'stuff' too!), and I'm getting better, but with consumables like MU I still have a real hard time. I don't have anyone to give gently used products too, and I hate the thought of them just being thrown away. Quote:Originally Posted by veronikawithak


Haha don't we all!

I've been mostly "window shopping" lately.. (snip) It's a weird feeling, but I'm gradually training myself to appreciate things without needing to OWN them.



I know this won't work for everyone, but as I've become more resolute I've really been enjoying YouTube hauls as a way of living vicariously through others. I get to see pretty new products, experience a bit of excitement, and at the end be happy I've seen it and then turn back to my own stash. Quote:Originally Posted by Yazmin

I need to do a full-on home purge, and not just makeup, and it's overwhelming just thinking about it. I thinking I may need to use some vacation days in order to do this so that I have a day just to rest before I start tackling it all. I've been working so much that the last thing I want to do when I get home is taking on this huge project.



Yup, same here. We want to do quite a lot of work to our house over the next few years, but there's all this stuff in the way. Definitely trying to move to a more minimalist aesthetic than we've managed up to now. Quote:Originally Posted by PixieDancer

I did REALLY well with the new Holiday Collection launch! Ended up skipping ALL the lippies and glosses and blushes! HUGE accomplishment!
I have taken that mini pigment set OFF my list as well. Nothing SUPER unique there, and just not necessary in my huge collection.

I limited myself to a couple of the Pressed Pigments that I KNOW I'll use for stage/work, as that's how I use the ones I have already. They work really well for my stage makeup and are much easier to travel with than looses pigments and glitters. Plus, I can write them off since it's a work/performance expense. I also only got the unique duo-chrome affect colors that I don't have dupes for already. So other than those, I skipped everything else! This is honestly a HUGE milestone for me!! In past years, the Holiday Collections always seem to destroy any goals of low-buying! I feel really good that a big box of makeup isn't coming to my house that I'd feel guilty about within 30 days! Think I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of staple, quality booties that I know I'll get a few seasons of wear out of. MUCH better distribution of the makeup funds!



Yay Pixie, this is awesome, go girl!

 

[MissTania]

No, you're completely right. I need to just.. stop. Completely. Thanks for the bluntness, it's been needed.

I appreciate it!
If you are stuck at home a lot due to your ill health, it might be nice to brighten up your home environment and create some positive energy.

I posted a while back about a vase I purchased from a UK company, LSA international, and I have filled it with some affordable roses twice now and it has really brightened up my room. The long term satisfaction from that purchase has been much higher than my make-up items truth be told.

Quote: Originally Posted by FuuHouhouji

@MissTania@jennifae I think is very sweet of you to send that makeup to your relatives. I'm sure those girls are gonna love it and put it to good use.

Thanks, she has a dramatic style of make-up so I know she will have so much fun with it and create many beautiful looks!

 

[jennyap]

Ok, so now me. In general I think am still on target to stay within my limit for the year. I have definitely NOT stuck to individual category or collection limits, but overall I'm fairly happy with the progress I've made. I think I've got better at determining which are the things I'll really use vs the ones I want to love. My purchases since I was last here (which will sound like a lot all in one go!) Moody Blooms: Artistic Licence e/s Deep Fixation e/s Black Ivy fluidline Lorde: Pure Heroine l/s 15 x Neutral Cool palette (my birthday gift to myself, and I even got it at 10% off!) A Novel Romance: (a great collection for my colouring/tastes, I thought I'd be even worse off than this given the length of my original list) Yield to Love l/s Myself l/s A Passionate Quest quad Reckless Desire l/g Fun Ending blush Artificial Wilderness: Marsh e/s Natural Wilderness e/s Breaking Ground CCB Next to Skin blush Pink Cult blush Matte Lip: Pander Me Fashion Revival Drugstore: (a moment of weakness!) Sleek Arabian Nights e/s palette Rimmel Apocalips Lip Velvet OMG, it really does seem a lot! Definitely some collections where I bought quite a few items. OTOH, I skipped some completely, particularly the Simpsons. Looking forward, my overall target was to buy no more than 60 items. I know that's way more than some people, but in 2013 I bought over 90 Mac items from LE collections, some perm products, quite a few Dior and Urban Decay, occasional other high end products AND drugstore on top. I don't have a full count, but it has to be at least 120, so this year's target was at most half of last year. I'm currently at 50, which means I have to stick to a max of 10 from the rest of the year. My wishlist is slightly longer than that, but with enough caveats that I don't think I'll have difficulty keeping to 10 unless something really surprises me. RHPS - FrankNFurter l/s (but see also below) Prabal - Ultramarine Pink (BUT only if it is really amazing, I'm mainly lemming it for the packaging and just not quite ready to let go yet. It is my kind of colour tho) Heirloom Mix - Salon Rouge l/s - hoping to see swatches before RHPS launches here on Thurs to see how close a dupe it is for FNF. If they're close, I'll just get one of them. Sparks of Romance - big maybe. Might be too bright a red for me No Faux Pas - subject to swatches against potential dupes. Very much my kind of colour which means I'll wear it but also that I probably already have something close. Sweet Sentiment MB - another big maybe. Thinking of getting rid of my one mineralise blush (Sweet Samba) but because I was never thrilled with the colour - mine was predominantly brown - I've not used that enough to assess how I feel about the formula. (skipping the glosses - some pretty ones but I have too many - and PPs, just not interested) Keepsakes - Viva Glam RiRi bag. I want both, and I held off buying in the hope there would be a holiday set so v happy with this one! Objects of Affection - All the pigment sets are potentially in the mix except the blue one. I've been using my piggies more lately, and I know I'll never use a full jar, so these are a great way to buy. I'll probably limit myself to 2 in the end. Lightness of Being - Lightscapade MSF - been on my wishlist for a while Force of Nature MES Leap MES - both of these look super pretty, but I'd probably just get one and I might be going off MES in any case, I don't think the recent ones have been as good. Need to make sure I don't buy just for the pattern! Please Yourself MB - but again have to be sure whether I will use the formula So that's 14 things on the wishlist, but I could easily see that going as low as 7 in the end. In which case I might allow myself to get one l/s from the Ultimate collection, and one of the duo l/s from Dior. Next year I'm planning to go much lower again. I have definitely overbought on lip products this year (26 so far!!) so I need to be much stricter on that. I don't think I'll react well to a no-buy generally but for glosses it's essential, and I will only allow myself 6 lipsticks other than B2M. I'm thinking of setting an annual limit overall of 24 items (including the 6 l/s) so 2 a month on average. It will be a challenge, but I need it, and I'm in a much better place to be able to do it thanks to this thread. Also still purging slowly. I have a few lippies I need to test out now we're in fall, but I think I'll end up letting most of them go. From a girl who used to only wear MLBB shades, I've got used to brights and they're now my favourites, but never really come round to liking vampy/dark shades on me, so I've barely touched the Punk Couture products that I had to have a year ago. I wouldn't even consider them now, that's progress I think

 

[jennyap]

On another note, those of you who have done a proper inventory, would anyone be willing to share? My Mac products are well documented, but I haven't got a proper handle on what else I've got, so I want to revamp my spreadsheets and not really sure how to lay it out, so I'd love to see how someone else has done it.