Beauty

[AussieLuvr]

How long do you keep makeup before tossing it?

I was cleaning out my makeup and found some brand new, un-used Mary Kay lipsticks, lip primers, lip pencils, eyeliner pencils and eyelid primers.

I bought it all at a Mary Kay party about ten years ago. Some are slightly used and some are not used at all.

If I use a tissue to wipe the surface of the lipsticks, they seem OK. But I'm not sure if it's a good idea to use lipstick that is so old.

I have a "makeup addiction" (ha ha) and am prone to buying products that I don't necessarily need more of, so I have a lot of much newer product - a lot of which I've purchased on QVC.

So it's not like I NEED the older lipsticks, eyeliner pencils, lip primers, lip pencils, etc.

[PinkyPetunia]

With old lipstick I do the sniff test.  The can smell racid when they go bad.  If it smells ok I think it's ok to use.  Same goes for your other products.

I also have a large horde of cosmetics and often go back to items I haven't used in years.  None of us "need" cosmetics but we sure want and enjoy them.

[Imaoldhippie]

Just last night I got out an older lipstick and the smell was very rancid.  I tossed it.  It was not nearly 10 yrs old.  Best advise...........WHEN IN DOUBT THROW IT OUT!

[LindaSal]

I bet you can find something regarding this on You Tube.   While I don't know the actual answer to your question I think most brands keep pretty well if they are unopened.  When we buy makeup we don't know how long ago it was made or how long it has been in inventory.  Ten years is a long time but if you open it and it seems okay, I would use it for awhile anyway.  Try to buy less.....I don't use a lot of makeup so that's easy for me to say. 

[Shanus]

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wrote:

How long do you keep makeup before tossing it?

I was cleaning out my makeup and found some brand new, un-used Mary Kay lipsticks, lip primers, lip pencils, eyeliner pencils and eyelid primers.

I bought it all at a Mary Kay party about ten years ago. Some are slightly used and some are not used at all.

If I use a tissue to wipe the surface of the lipsticks, they seem OK. But I'm not sure if it's a good idea to use lipstick that is so old.

I have a "makeup addiction" (ha ha) and am prone to buying products that I don't necessarily need more of, so I have a lot of much newer product - a lot of which I've purchased on QVC.

So it's not like I NEED the older lipsticks, eyeliner pencils, lip primers, lip pencils, etc.

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@AussieLuvr  10 yrs. is too long to keep any cosmetic product...open or not...even if kept in a dark, dry area. Any oils in the product will be rancid or settle by then (even if it smells OK). It isn’t worth the bacteria contamination in the product to keep it.

Now that products are trying to use less parabens, perservatives, etc., you have to be even more careful about tossing cosmetics after their shelf life.

[Shanus]

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wrote:

With old lipstick I do the sniff test.  The can smell racid when they go bad.  If it smells ok I think it's ok to use.  Same goes for your other products.

I also have a large horde of cosmetics and often go back to items I haven't used in years.  None of us "need" cosmetics but we sure want and enjoy them.

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@PinkyPetunia  Smell test is not accurate. You can’t smell bacteria.

[SilleeMee]

I go by a general rule-of-thumb like this for opened products:

- mascara / liquid liner - 3 mo

- cream or liquid anything - 12 mo

- powder anything - 2 years, often times longer depending on what it is

- body lotions / washes / poos / conditioners - 3 to 4 years

Unopened products I toss after 4 years and sometimes after 3 years. I store many unopened products in the fridge. This will prolong shelf life but for how long is not generally known. 

[Peaches McPhee]

What I do is probably not recommended by anyone other than me. I keep things for as long as they continue to work.  So, I have eye shadows that are 20+ years old and lipsticks about 10.  

[Nonametoday]

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wrote:

I go by a general rule-of-thumb like this for opened products:

- mascara / liquid liner - 3 mo

- cream or liquid anything - 12 mo

- powder anything - 2 years, often times longer depending on what it is

- body lotions / washes / poos / conditioners - 3 to 4 years

Unopened products I toss after 4 years and sometimes after 3 years. I store many unopened products in the fridge. This will prolong shelf life but for how long is not generally known. 

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That is basically what my ophthalmologist and dermatologist told me, except about the powder.  That is also 12 months.

[AussieLuvr]

I have it in a little pile. I was ready to toss it, then I had the idea of posting the question here. I think I'm probably going to take your advice, but I WILL look at some YT videos per another poster.

I am not crazy about using older cosmetics for two reasons:

1. Any lip product is going to end up being at least partially "consumed", as it wears off and some of it goes into your mouth and gets swallowed. I'm not crazy about having ten-year-old cosmetics and dyes in my system.

2. I am wrestling with getting some pretty severe dry eye under control after medically-needed eyelid surgery in December. I have to cleanse my water line and put drops in my eyes several times a day. It's not really a great idea for me to use ANY eye makeup right now, but I'm particularly cautious about using old products that may flake and get into my eyes.