2018 Skincare Goals: Reforming, Refocusing

Throughout my life, I’ve noticed that once I find something I enjoy, I really get into it, perhaps tending to going overboard. I’ve gone in phases about what the obsession is: shoes, candles, clothes, skincare. (To be clear, I don’t put myself into debt or anything. I just collect whatever I’m into at the time.) In the past, with shoes, candles, and clothes, it hasn’t been a huge problem because they don’t really “go bad.” Skincare, however…

Well, let’s just say that I realized keeping my skincare obsession turned up to an 11 was not going to end well if I didn’t curb my shopping soon. As of late, my stash had really gotten out of control: as it turns out, while Instagram is great for forming community, it’s awful for my wallet. I hate wasting things, so I realized I had to reform some of the bad shopping habits I’d fallen into.

The first thing I decided is that I would not purchase skincare in all of 2018!

I know, I’m as scared as you.

I’m allowing myself to repurchase staples in my routine or a type of product that I run out of but that’s it. No new products.  It’s only been 20 days, and so far, so good!

The second thing I chose to do, thanks to my friend Shereen, is to display all of the skincare I own that has a 2018 expiration date so I know what I have to finish, and to remind myself why I’m not buying anything.

This is a totally reasonable amount of stuff to finish this year. 

I ended up loving this idea! Skincare products are often beautifully packaged, so why not take advantage of that?

The third thing I’ve committed to is not finishing up a product that isn’t working for me. Instead, I’m going to continue passing them along to friends who would like to try them.

That way, they can also try products, and I can move on to trying other items in my stash. It’s a win-win.

Along with these goals, I’ve also decided to refocus my skincare hobby back to the self-care portion. My skin is looking and feeling a lot better than it was a year ago, so I want to re-prioritize how my routine can help me mentally. My skincare routine is relaxing, time set aside just for me. I love that self-care aspect, and I want to keep it in the forefront of my experience.

I’ll keep you updated as to how I’m doing on the no buy, and don’t worry, I still have plenty of new skincare products to keep providing you with reviews!

In the meantime, if you find yourself getting serious FOMO from all the shiny new products constantly showing up on social media, I wanted to share some tips about how you can avoid finding yourself in a similar situation. Some of these I have done (to okayish results) while others I have seen others do:

1. Limit yourself to one back up or new product per category you use, keeping the “one empty, one newbie” pattern of only opening a new product once one is empty.
2. If you decide to buy more than you can currently use, keep a spreadsheet of your purchases. The moment it arrives, log the item and the expiration date so you can keep track.
3. Alternately, if you have space, display your products! (I prefer this method, since I have a spreadsheet, but I realized that have issues with out of sight, out of mind. Haha.)
4. Keep a wish list and prune it according to research on a product’s ingredients and effectiveness. I’ve decided that after my no buy, I’m going to make a wish list over the course of each month, then wait a month and revisit it, then make my purchasing decisions from there.
5. Stay away from Instagram, Reddit, etc. (Hahaha)

 

So, as I start thinking about blog content for 2018, I’d love to hear from you about what you’d like to see. In addition to reviews, are there any other topics you’d like me to cover? Questions you’d like to have me answer? Let me know in the comments!