My Make-up Box

The last time I de-cluttered (again), I threw out almost 90% of my make-up products. All expired and barely used. What a waste.

I use make-up only when there is an occasion. Also, I am lazy to do it on a daily basis when I don’t really need to. Nevertheless, I felt necessary to own every eye shadow and lipstick and blusher shade – just in case. How silly. Everything expired before I even had a chance to apply it. I mean, how many special occasions are there in a year?

When I replenished my make-up collection I decided minimalism is the way to go. I like the nude and subtle look because I believe in applying make-up to enhance your features, not paint them. So, neutral earth colours it is.

This is a list of my entire make up collection and they do the job for me wonderfully:

1. Elianto BB Cream, natural shade number 02.
2. Maybelline Mineral power foundation powder.
3. Cover Girl TruConceal concealer.
4. Lo’real Infallible eyeliner in black. A thin line for a simple day look and smudged lines for a smokey evening look, with or without eyeshadow. Doubles up as an eyebrow pencil for me too – dabbing it along my brows and smudging it using the built-in smudger to blend into and shape my natural browline.
5. Maybelline Expert Wear eyeshadow in Natural Smokes. Can be either applied lightly in the day or used to build colours for a smokey eye finish in the evening.
6. Maybelline Falsies VolumExpress waterproof mascara. Because I have short and droopy eyelashes.
7. Sally Hansen lip gloss, one in nude and one in peach/pink.
8. Thin Lizzy 6 in 1 Professional Powder in Light as my blusher. When travelling, this is my blusher, eyeshadow and face sculptor/bronzer all in one. Love it.

When I bought my Thin Lizzy, it came as a set with a brown and black eye pencil and a clear lip gloss. Otherwise, I only have one of each essential makeup product. My makeup box is well equipped to create a few different looks for me. It is complete and minimalist. I am happy.

How many make-up products do you have and actually use?

All That Clutters

More than 2 years ago, I arrived in Auckland with only a laptop, a large suitcase and a hand-carry bag. I moved from one place to another for not once, twice nor thrice but 4 times! Each time I moved, I discover I have more and more stuff to carry. From one additional boxful of clothes and kitchen consumables to more shelves, storage chests….oh my gosh! I would’ve included the car too but I figured it doesn’t count since it lumps uncountable items to become one two carloads of stuff. The last time I moved, I can fit myself only into the third carload.

A very good friend once told me, “If you think you are poor, try moving and see.”

So scaringly true! Since moving to this current place that Terry and I are renting (we’re only renting a room by the way), we have added a queen-sized bed, one TV, one de-humidifier and one TV cabinet into the list. That is not the point. The room is very comfortably sized for us and it has a good-sized closet too. Somehow, random  items start to accumulate under the table, behind the door, beside the cabinet and pretty much all corners in the room every few days. I try to keep our room pleasant by de-cluttering every week. And as the weeks go by, I find the accumulation of clutter getting bigger and bigger and before I know it, I need additional space to store them!

Everything is packed to the brim – the closet, the drawers, the storage box, even my original luggage is full of stuff. I really have no idea where all these items appear from! I swear I haven’t been shopping for clothes or shoes or anything bulky for ages. Oh and let’s not get started with our shelf in the kitchen cabinet. The number of jars and bottles keep growing.  We occasionally sell items no longer needed on Trade Me (New Zealand’s online auction site) to try to get rid of clutter. So far we have sold a mini shelf, a TV aerial,  a printer, several electronic items, but still the de-cluterring process seem to be endless.

Alright, I agree that every little purchase counts and it accumulates to becoming clutter. It is almost impossible for me to keep track of the accumulation before I notice clutter under the table for example. Last week, Terry and I bought another 5-storey, 1.6-meter  high wooden shelf to organise our “clutter”. The shelf was full! Everything is organised at the moment but I knew it won’t be long until clutter starts appearing again. Perhaps I should try harder to adopt a minimalist lifestyle.

Sometimes I feel like it’s a dilemma because like everyone else, I long for the day when we can stop renting and have a place of our own. But if one room produces clutter to this extent, I can’t imagine what will be if we have a whole house to ourselves! I am aware of the fact that we need professional movers the next time we move, sighs. Now, if you excuse me, I have to clear up this little “hill” beside my bed.

Do you have a problem with clutter too?