The purge // THE 2017 MAKEUP CLEAR OUT
I have taken my makeup collection down to probably 1/4 of its size... and I am ever so slightly traumatized.
I filled a cloth tote bag up to the brim with the items I'm leaving behind (soon be up for donation to friends and colleagues), and it must weigh close to 10 lbs. As I stare it, all I see are dollar signs whizzing past my embarrassed face. This is most certainly a place of privilege, to have spent significant time cutting down my makeup collection. Since being a collector (and sometimes even a hoarder) is in my DNA, it's hard for me to part with things. But here are 3 mantras I'm repeating on my transition to less products, happier, healthier Ivy.
- Things are just things. That may sound like a redundant and obvious statement to make, but it's really important for me to continually remind myself of it. If someone asked me what I would grab if my house was on fire (knock on wood), I would never answer "My Marc Jacobs lipsticks." I've had million things in my lifetime to date, and I'll probably have a million more. But when it comes down to it, they don't make me who I am, and they don't really rate that high in the hierarchy of my life.
- Less is more. Another often overused statement, that just happens to be super applicable here. Just because I might have less objects, doesn't mean I actually have "less." If I can decrease the time spent sifting through piles of products in the morning deciding what to use, and instead have a clean vanity that holds only a few great, green, beautiful things... then isn't that "more?" So the idea here isn't for me to replace the mass amount of makeup I acquired with an equally mass amount of natural products. It's to keep less, and be happier about it. I already feel better just looking at less stuff.
- There will always be more. It's super easy for me (like many other beauty hounds I am sure) to get caught up in the hype, whether it's a new product release or a special edition of yet another highlighter. If I see "limited quantities, get this now before it's gone forever," I immediately feel my hand reach for my wallet. BAD! Very BAD! That's marketing doing it's job, but I don't have to let myself be susceptible to it. Because there will always be more. There will always be something. Learning to tell the difference between choice and addiction will be a major key 🔑 for me.
You can bet I'll keep you posted on how I'm sticking to these mantras, and any new ones that come up along the way.
