How to Scale Down a Stash? (going back to college...)

[VeganChick]

I'm moving back to college on Monday and I know I should scale down on the amount of makeup I take with me. I typically only use basic stuff (and the same products) on a daily basis. I can tell which products I should absolutely bring (like the blushes and eyeshadows that I use occasionally and love). And I can tell which products I definitely should leave at home (like the pinkish-brown blush that makes my skin look dirty). It's the stuff that I may or may not use that's giving me trouble. Like the 4 or 5 different foundations or the 5 or 6 concealers. Or 50 tubes of lipgloss or 10 dark lipsticks (I rarely wear dark colors).

How do you decide what to bring and what to leave behind when you want more than your daily bag, but less than your entire stash?

Oh, and none of these products are real high end, so it wouldn't be like leaving behind something that might cost $30 a pop if it went bad. And the only backups I have are the foundation I use everyday (I'm 2/3 of the way through my opened bottle) and a couple unopened extras of black eyeliner pencils.

And would it help if I posted my stash for you to dig through?

 

[kimmy]

do you go out when you're living at school?

if so, you might want to keep in mind that you're probably going to want a more dramatic look for going out than what you're wearing in the day to your classes, so don't forget that stuff.

 

[lablonde]

I would only bring the stuff that's reallly looking good on your skin. And that you can combine with other cosmetic. So foundation, lipliner, lipstick, a good blush, some different e/s, mascara, eyeliner. Don't forget the most important thing and that is cleaning products.

 

[Kiss and Makeup]

I remember those days

I sacrificed sheos for makeup though, and I came up with clever ways to store what I had. Cases = my savior!

If you rarely wear dark lipsticks, I'd only bring the one or two that look good on you. If you have any dupes of the lipglosses (a lot of shades are really close) I'd only bring the ones that don't have dupes/one of the dupes.

When I go through my makeup and clean out/donate to my less cosmetically blessed friends, I ask myself "why do I have 4 of the same eyeshadows?" or in your case foundations. Do you *really* need all 5 of them? Are any of them old enough to be thrown away? Can they be left behind? When was the last time you used it?

And remember, if none of your stuff is high end, it's easy to replace. Walmarts/Targets are everywhere.

 

[swaly]

If I were going anywhere long-term, I'd bring my entire makeup collection. I don't keep anything that looks outright bad on me in my collection (I either throw it out or pass it on to more compatibly complected friends), and even my most obscure items, I would like the comfort of having them at hand when the moment calls.

On a shorter trip, of course, I'd bring probably some palettes and a couple of key items (gel eyeliner, brow pencil, foundation) and pack as light-light-light as possible.