Use It Or Lose It 001

One of the major problems with being a person who's into "the makeup thing" is that you end up accumulating a lot of stuff. Have you ever noticed how long it actually takes to use up a single pan of eyeshadow or bottle of perfume? But there's always something new to try, some new formula or shade that promises perfection in a bottle, and I'm as susceptible to marketing claims and hype as the next guy. Because I'm already perilously close to being categorized as an actual hoarder, I've started to try to buy things with the "one comes in, one goes out" rule in mind (which is, of course, easier said than done). Not to mention, it is at least moderately important to keep things like expiration dates in mind. Nothing lasts forever. So, because I'm terrible at sticking to my own rules, I've decided to keep myself accountable by creating a list every month of the products that I intend to use up by month's end. The remnants get trashed (which I know sounds wasteful, but the lists are going to be comprised of products that are nearing their use-by dates, so don't give me any of your lip, Internet). Even though we're already a quarter of the way through the month, there's no time like the present, so here's my Use It or Lose It list for November:

Benefit Posietint. This stuff garnered a lot of attention when it launched a few years ago. I bought it because I went through a phase where I thought pink everything suited me. In my now somewhat-more-advanced age, I've come to realize that Pepto shades don't actually do that much for me... thankfully, this one is sheer enough that I'm not going to feel like a complete goober using it every day for the rest of the month in order to get my money's worth.

With Love... Hilary Duff. I've had this since I was dating my ex, and we broke up in 2007. I mean, it's a different bottle! But come the new year, I'll have had this scent in my arsenal for at least seven years, and I just feel like Hilary Duff would want me to move on already.

Spearmint Mentha Lip Shine from Bath and Body Works. Luckily, I have this in a weensy mini-tube, so it won't be hard to use this one up. I'm just not all about spearmint. It's too sweet. Go peppermint or go home.

Annabelle Smoothliner in Brownie. Canadian beauty aficionados rave about Annabelle Smoothliners. Not me. Chalk it up to my still-oily-even-in-my-third-decade skin, or perhaps the formula's just a li'l too smooth, but this stuff smears halfway down my cheeks every time I use it.

Now I feel like I'm really working toward something. You gotta have goals in life!