One burning question most of us had at some point is that how many of the make-up products we own are still in a condition to use. During the pandemic when most of our make-up products were untouched for a while, making us pick them up right where we left them off, once the world started opening up again.
Have you ever wondered if your favorite shade of coral lipstick has lived its life and should have been discarded three months ago? Or that foundation you barely used but have bought a while back is still good to use?
Using expired make-up products would create health problems due to the toxins they release. It is not as easy or obvious a lot of times to determine their expiry status even. It is a problem universally faced and we are here to help you figure out which of the products you own need a quick replacement.
Concealers and Foundations
If the consistency thickens or the oils rise, it’s time to consider to stop using your foundation. Using it with such a consistency will create an inconsistent and uneven finish.
In order to determine if your concealers and foundations are usable, check if they are oil based or water based. Since oil is a natural preservative, oil-based products stay intact for up to 18 months, in contrast with water-based products which are good to use for about 12 months.
Tips to protect
- Avoid touching your make-up products by your hand to keep bacteria at bay
- Clean the application tools frequently
- Store in a cool and dry place
- Shake the liquid before use to mix the oils, make-up particles and purified water together
Face-powder, bronzer and blusher
Oils will cling to your brush and using the same brush to apply powder will often create a thin layer of dull grey film, which is a warning sign. The average lifetime of powders is 18 months. Although it is not as quick for bacteria to grow in powders like they could in make-up containing oil contents, experts’ advice to look out for products with chamomile, aloe and green tea extracts for presence of oils.
Tips to protect
- Keeping the lid open would change the color due to oxidation. Try to keep the lid shut mostly
- Avoid using greasy concealers before you apply the powder on top of it, to ensure the oil in the concealers won’t transfer to the powders
- Keep the brushes clean after every use
Mascara
Mascara is often the product that we most love. And yet, the one that has a short life. 3-6 months is the average time you could use it depending upon the frequency of the usage.
In addition to our eyelashes containing bacteria that are often transferred to the mascara tube after application, wet surfaces in itself foster bacteria making it all the more difficult for the preservation of this product.
Tips to protect
- Keep the lid closed to ensure air doesn’t crop in
- Don’t pump the wand, which would cause air to accumulate and dry the liquid out sooner.
- Instead, draw it out with a gentle twist against the tube’s walls
- Add a few drops of baby oil to revive dried out mascara
Lipsticks and lip glosses
Due to the addition of natural preservatives such as essential oils and parabens, Lipsticks are designed to have a long enough shelf life, as much as up to 18 months. However, after an year, they would start to chalk up or break down.
Tips to protect
- Store in a cold place like a refrigerator, which would slow down the breakdown of ingredients
- Avoid applying lipstick right after having your meals which would fester bacteria otherwise
Eye-liner
Good news for the folks who need an eye-liner to complete their look and treat it as one of their top-most go-to products. Eye-liner is perhaps that one make-up product which outlive complexion based products like foundation etc. They can be used up to 3 years, provided the formula used in these products are sustaining. The average life-time is still greater than other products, averaging between 3 months and 3 years.
Using a pencil eye-liner would be lasting since sharpening it would remove the bacteria accumulated. In contrast, liquid eyeliners are more prone in comparison. However, there are a range of eye-liners in the market that are manufactured with bacteria prone formula that are increasing the average life of even liquid eye-liners.
Tips to protect
- Clean the tip after each use to reduce festering of germs
- If you use a pencil eye-liner, sanitize your sharpener by dabbing alcohol using a cotton on the razor
Make-up brushes
This is a tricky one. Although brushes seem to be made for a long term usage, we suggest that these have to be seen as a long-term investment as well, which is why choosing an appropriate make-up brush is important. However, when the brush bristles start falling out, you would know it is a sign for you to replace it.
Tips to protect
- Wash brushes frequently – Once every two weeks at the least
- For eye-brushes, we recommend spot cleaning after every use to avoid any infections
- Add a few drops of olive oil and soap to warm water, before swirling your brushes in this solution and rinse thoroughly for cleaning it up well.
Other make-up tips
- Something that we do not give that big an importance is the make-up bag. Wash it regularly to remove the remnants of make-up stuck to it, that festers bacteria
- Get rid of lipsticks if you have used them before getting an infection such as a cold sore
- Wash your hands thoroughly before and after applying make-up to ensure you do not contaminate your make-up products
- It’s better to let go than keep using products the moment you see them smell or look funny
- We recommend you to stick a small label on your make-up products and label them with the date they were purchased for you to know when to discard them
Thank you! Always wondered about the old foundation and lipsticks. Please also give tips on dealing with the heart break of throwing untouched make-up products 😛
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