Update on Project UIOLI

I'm halfway through Project Use It Or Lose It (the two week mark), so I thought I'd do a bit of an update. I have to admit, this past week I haven't been wearing much makeup as I've been sleeping badly and getting up late, so for a few days it was just tinted moisturiser and a swipe of mascara. However, on the days I have worn makeup I have stuck faithfully to only using the items from Project UIOLI.

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)...

Tag: My 11 Most Reached For Products

 
This was a tag I stole from Jade's video, but she tagged anyone who wanted to do it, so I'm doing it!

It wasn't too hard to pick 11 items, as I've been pretty much using the same stuff over and over lately. I have moved right away from my usual greens, purples and pinks and embraced neutral/nude eyeshadows. There are several reasons for this, including the fact that I'm getting on a bit and my eyelids are more hooded than they used to be (boo-urns), but mainly because it's still dark when I'm getting ready in the mornings and the lighting in my house is shite - everywhere. I just don't have the light I need to be able to apply coloured eyeshadows carefully enough. If I'm a bit half-arsed with neutrals (as I often am), it's not really noticeable.

Anyway, blah blah blah - on to my list. I haven't included any skincare or perfumes as I chop and change those a lot and don't have any real go to favourites at the moment.

Milani HD Advanced Lip Color

The Milani Advanced Lip Color appears to be a pretty blatant attempt at duping the Dior Serum de Rouge lipsticks, which personally, I have no issue with. I can't speak to the difference in quality though, as I've never tried the Serum de Rouge, and it's doubtful I ever will.

Cherry Culture Haul

I fell off the wagon of my No Buy recently when I discovered that with my Cherry Culture reward points, I could get this little lot at about 1/3 off the price. Which - uh - just goes to show how much I've shopped at Cherry Culture...

I'm swatching my NYX lip products on the weekend, so most of this will be included. I'll do the Milani ones some time soon too.

Now I'm back on the wagon! No, really.

Milani Shadow Wear Quad in Exotic Berries

Some time last year I finally let go of my makeup snobbery and realised I could get a lot more bang for my buck if I tried some drugstore products instead of shelling out $70+ on a Chanel quad, hence my first Cherry Culture order, which included a Milani Shadow Wear Quad in Exotic Berries.

At the time, I loved it, and wore it several times before it was shoved aside for newer, shinier things. It's always the way with me, I'm so easily distracted.

Swatches: NYX, NARS, Milani

Here are the swatches from the previous post's haul stuff.

First, blushes. From left: Milani Mai Tai, Milani Luminous, NYX Natural, NYX Peach.

And because I forgot to include it in the photo above, NARS Crazed. I can't get over how pigmented this is. I've been practicing with the biggest, fluffiest brush I have putting it on with a really light hand. Still haven't quite got it right, yet. Gorgeous colour, though.

 Lip glosses and lipliners. From left: NYX Mega Shine Gloss in La La, Crystal Soda, Tea Rose, Gold Pink. NARS lip glosses in Harlow, Gothika. NYX Lipliners in Citrine, Dolly Pink and Tangerine.

NYX Tinted Lip Spa in Copacobana and Spirit, and NYX Round Lipstick in Chloe.

NYX Single Eyeshadows, swatched over NYX white eye base. From left: Ocean Frost, Morocco, Deep Purple, Red Bean Pie, Beauty Queen, Sparkle Cedar, Golden.

And NYX Slim Eye Pencils in Sapphire and Emerald City.

NARS Eyeshadows in Edie, Fathom and Baby Girl.

Now, these next ones I bought because I saw swatches of them where they looked like a beautiful sparkly dark black-ish purple and green. When I got them and swatched them on my arm, I just had two different shades of black with a bit of glitter in them, which was kind of annoying. I have been playing around with bases and I think I've figured out how to use them, though the green one (Night Clubbing) still doesn't show in the photo - the third swatch of that one is much more green in real life.

First of all, here is Night Clubbing, from left with no base, NYX white eye base, and NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Horse Radish.

Secondly (and in this picture you can really see the difference), here is Night Fever, from left with no base, NYX white eye base, and NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil in Oyster (a very light frosty pink).

Pretty!

Final haul for 2009.

I received some of the last of my orders this week (still waiting for a couple - Shop Craze is taking FOREVER, starting to wonder if it's been lost), and these are my last for at least the next three months, as per my resolution post. Such pretty things - I'll do some swatching later when I've had a shower.

First up, taking advantage of the Cherry Culture 20% off Christmas sale:

Then the Nonpareil 20% off Christmas sale:

Recently I made an exciting discovery - Strawberrynet now has some NARS products! This is a brand I've always wanted to try, but it's hard to get hold of in Australia, and the one site I know of that does sell it charges ridiculous prices ($62 for a blush - I don't think so). The Strawberrynet prices are about half of this site's, so I had to take advantage of that. I know the eye colours look quite similar in the photograph, but they're not really.

These are the Everyday Minerals eyeshadows that I have already swatched. I wish they would stop coming out with all of these lovely colours - I thought I was done with this lot! I have some more coming too - Makeup BFF J got me this for Christmas.

And finally, some more BPAL imps, because one can never have too many perfumes:

So, still to come: BPAL Christmas present haul from The Photographer (come onnnnnn), a small order from Smart Poppy (just a couple of lip and eyebrow pencils), the hopefully-not-missing Shop Craze order of NYX eyeshadows and lipsticks, a couple of small decants from The Perfumed Court, and my share of a group order from ELF. And then I'm done-diddily-done. *sob*