The Beauty Habit We're All Guilty Of

If you’re a beauty gal you’re probably guilty of one of two things: you hoard beauty products; which means you don’t use them all, and you don’t get rid of them when you should. Sound like you? You’re not alone. A recent study conducted by Poshly surveyed over 4,000 women and concluded that: “More than 80% of women know makeup has expiration dates and have problems with old product, but still don’t discard them because they forget, feel guilty about the money they spent on it, or worry they may need it later.” And, the average consumer between the ages of 25 and 50, 75% don’t routinely finish their makeup—not just before it expires, but at all.

If you’re like me, at any given point in time, you may have anywhere between 1-3 lipsticks in your purse in addition to the surplus of lipsticks that you have at home. In an earlier article, Confessions of a Beauty Junkie, we learned that women spend an average of $15,000 on makeup over the course of a lifetime— how much of that 15K is going to waste if you’re hoarding lipsticks, mascaras, skincare and hair care products that you never really completely use? The answer: a lot! So, here are three easy tips to save big and tidy up your hoarding habit.

1. Clean up shop! If you come across lipsticks that you’ve had for longer than you can remember, or you’re saving the last bit of color of that red lipstick that was discontinued in the 90’s, it’s time to part ways. Find out if you’re keeping your products for too long, here.

2. Size does matter! If you get past cleaning up shop, and you realize that you’ve depleted almost your entire beauty stock and all of the lipsticks you tossed were barely used, you may want to consider downsizing. Beauty company, Stowaway Cosmetics has put an end to your wasted-beauty woes. Their “right-sized” products give you all the color you want in a size that allows you to finish by the time they expire. No muss, no fuss! Plus, their products are also super hydrating!

3. Sign up for the Essence BeautyBox! Drop your habit of binge buying products that you may not actually like, and let us curate a selection of high end products that are sure to become favorites in your hair and beauty wardrobe. Sign up, here!

Are you guilty of wasting beauty products? Tell us how you avoid hoarding in the comments below!