Project 'Use It or Lose It'

I've done a bang up job of reducing my stash in the past few months by either selling, giving away or throwing out a ton of stuff. I don't own near as much as I did this time last year - in fact probably less than a quarter. Way less. However, I still have a tendency to just head to the same products over and over each day and there is quite a bit that is hovering around being ignored.

Therefore, I've decided to undertake what I call Project Use It or Lose It. For the next four weeks I am going to use only these products (as colour, still using my same foundations and concealers as always as I don't have any of those being particularly neglected). If after the four weeks is up I don't love the products, or I'm likely to shove them back in a drawer and forget them again, I'll get rid of them. If I do love them, they can go in the regular rotation and I'll make sure I use them. So here are my products for use for the next month (the links are to swatches and/or reviews if I have them)...

Milani Shadow Wear Quad in Exotic Berries. Despite saying in the review that I intended to put this one back into regular rotation, I'm pretty sure that's the last time I wore it, so it's been hanging around for a looooong while. When I first got this I wore it nearly every day. But the love faded, as it does. I'm so fickle. 

Jordana Eyeshadow in Pretty Peach. Not nearly as lairy as it looks - this is actually a really pretty, subtle matte peach. I think I've only ever used it once or twice and I'm not sure why because I really like it.

Bourjois Ombre Stretch in 06 Rose Etastique. It's the second from the left in the bottom picture in the link to swatches. This is another one I used to love to death but it was cast aside (that's a shadow, by the way, not a streak of grease or anything - it's very overcast here today).

Clinique Strawberry Fudge Duo. I have had this for years and I used it pretty faithfully up until around the time of that review. What is with that? Love it. Need to get back into it (again - shadow, not grease!).

NYX Runway Collection in Romance. Technically I bought this for Noodle Arms as it was a nice, neutral palette and she was just getting into a bit of dabbling with makeup at the time. But she swiped my Wet'n'Wild Fine Wink and that's all she ever uses, so I took this one back. And then rarely used it...

Chanel Les 4 Ombres in Garden Party. There was a time when this would get a regular run, despite the issues I discussed in my review, but it has been at least 6 months since I last touched this.

elf blushes in Shy, Innocence and Glow. I've had these forever and I definitely haven't touched them since I swatched them last a year ago for that elf collection post.

? Cream Blush in Radiant. This came in one of those Lust Have It boxes, and I've included it because I haven't used it and it doesn't really grab me, so I want to make myself try it and see what I think. I can't remember the brand and it's not written on there.

NYX Blushes in Terra Cotta (agh!) and Pinched. I never did get around to swatching my NYX blushes - must make a note to do that some time. I've never really worn these properly - they're kind of glittery and Pinched is a bit chalky and uneven, though both are quite pigmented for NYX blushes. These will be for the days when I'm feeling zazzy. And oh look, there's my dead Sigma brush. :-(

NYX Round Lipstick in Darling. Why do I keep forgetting I have this? I love it.

Stila High Shine Lipsticks in Sarah and Natasha. There was a time when I was so obsessed with Natasha it looked like it would be the first lipstick I ever actually finished in my life. But alas, like everything else it was pushed aside for something newer and shinier. Well, probably not shinier, because it's pretty damn shiny. I want to see if the magic is still there.

MAC Lipstick in Naked Paris. I'm not particularly a MAC fan and I don't own much of their brand - this is one of only two lipsticks I have (the other is Syrup, which I use regularly). I really like this one but it has sooo much spangle going on that I hardly ever wear it. Time to bust it out and see if I can make it work.

Sleek Lipsticks in Rose Petal and Organza. I bought these during their sale debacle last year, and even though they are really pretty, Sleek annoy me so much that I can rarely bring myself to use the products of theirs that I own. On the other hand, I ended up getting them for free (thanks to their sucktacular service which accidentally ended up going in my favour, unlike most other people), so I could never bring myself to sell them or anything. I'll have a crack at them and if I'm still annoyed I'll just give them away or pass them on to Noodles.

NYX Mega Shine Lip Gloss in Smokey Look. A recent purchase I bought on a whim after seeing a picture of someone somewhere wearing it and it looked really pretty. After I'd just culled pretty much all of my lip glosses...

elf Liquid Lipstick in Bark. As lip glosses go (these are totally not lipsticks), I quite like these, and I use the other three I have regularly. Poor old Bark has been forgotten for quite some time though - I think I've only ever used it a handful of times, and certainly not for a long while.

So there you have it - my face for the next month (not all at once... obviously). I'll report back at the end about what I'm using and what I'm losing.