It’s January, we’re all pretty broke and with payday still a while away, new makeup’s an extravagance that’s just going to have to wait. However, newer isn’t always better, a point proven by Lisa Eldridge’s new makeup tutorial.
Called the ‘Buy Nothing’ tutorial, it’s inspired by Lisa’s feeling of overwhelm at the sheer volume of new products launching at the moment. All very similar, there isn’t much that makes one stand out from the other and the market’s becoming quite saturated as a result. While she explains that she embraces newness if the product’s better than what she’s used before or if there’s something particularly unique about it, there’s a lot to be said for maximising what you have and not wasting your money on duplicates of an item that may already be in your makeup bag.
With an emphasis on reviving and reusing, Lisa’s product picks range from classics that aren’t available any more to those deemed ‘best in class’. She also provides her top tips for getting the most out of old products and how to give them an extra lease of life. Here are some of our favourites.
1. Mix foundations to colour match if your skin tone changes through the seasons. They can be from different brands too as they’re generally just mixtures of silicone and water.
2. Re-pot your concealers . To get every scrape out of an old tube of concealer, cut it open, take out the product and put it into a clear Muji pot to be re-used or mixed with a newer one for a more exact match, to make it last longer and meet differing coverage needs.
3. Face powders rarely change radically, so there’s no need to buy new ones regularly.
4. Dry makeup like powder eyeshadows keep for much longer than wet makeup (like mascaras ), provided that clean makeup brushes are used, you’re the only one using them and you’re generally exercising good hygiene. Liquids go off more quickly as they come into contact with air or oils in the skin. There may be more juice left in your favourite eyeshadow palette than you think.