The Shelf Life Of Your Makeup.. The Truth Behind Expiration Dates

 Did you know that makeup has an expiration date? You need to be very wary before touching that clearance rack at the drug store, makeup is on sale for a reason.. Because it’s going to expire soon! I have prepared for you a handy little chart of makeup and its expiration times.

Makeup Type	Expiration	Additional Notes
Powder Blush	12-18 Months	If your blush is drying out, becoming hard, or loses pigmentation, its time to throw it away!
Concealer	12-18 Months	Long shelf life, but honestly who wouldn’t use it up? It’s a makeup staple!
Cream Blush	12 Months	If it starts to get watery, or has a funny smell, throw it away or be punished with clogged pores!
Face Powder	2 Years	This is why powder is always worth the money! Long shelf life, and long lasting.
Pencil Eyeliner Lip liner	3 Years	Be wary of bacteria; sharpen this on a regular basis if you’re going to keep it for that long.
Eyeshadow	3 Years	Like blush, it’ll become dry, cracked, and harvests bacteria from brush use.
Makeup Brushes	1-2 Years	They’ll last if you clean them at least once a week. See my previous blog post about brush upkeep for more info.
Foundation	Water-Based 12 Months Oil-Based 18 Months	To preserve water-based longer, if it becomes dry add in a little alcohol-free toner and shake it up. To preserve oil-based, just shake it up, the oil will naturally separate over time.
Lipstick	Anywhere between 1 to 4 years	If your lipstick smells or applies bad, throw it out. You can also preserve your lipstick in the fridge to maintain a longer shelf life!
Nail Polish	1-2 Years	To preserve the life of your nail polish longer, shake once or twice a month. And open and close the lid to maintain the colour!
Mascara	3-4 Months	This spoils the quickest, because we are constantly dipping the brush in the product. This exposes the product to air, which in turn, will dry it out quicker.

I hope this helps! Let me know of any other requests that you would like to see on my page by sending me a tweet! 

DIY Sugar Lip Scrub

Are your lips dry, and chapstick just isn’t cutting it? It’s a known fact that when your lips are chapped, lip products don’t apply evenly. I wanted to share with you a quick DIY lip scrub made of sugar that will help smooth out your pout and the best part, it’s totally inexpensive!

Sugar is amazing for our lips because of its exfoliating abilities. You can buy lip scrubs that contain sugar from stores like Lush, but this is much cheaper because most of us have the ingredients right in our kitchen!

DIY SUGAR LIP SCRUB 

Here’s what you’ll need:

- 1 teaspoon of Sugar (I would suggest using a course sugar, such as "Sugar in the Raw", it'll scrub a lot better than fine sugars)

- Extra Virgin Olive Oil

- Vaseline

- Peppermint Oil (this is completely optional, I just like to add it for a little flavour) 

- Small bowl or container for storage/mixing

- Spoon 

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, mix together 1 teaspoon of sugar and add in a few drops of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. If you add too much oil its okay, just add more sugar. The consistency should be thick!

2. Add in about a dime-sized amount of Vaseline into the mixture. 

3. Mash ingredients together with a spoon. 

4. Add a couple drops of peppermint oil for some flavour. Peppermint will stimulate blood flow to the lips, making them appear fuller. 

5. Once mixture is complete, rub the scrub onto your lips for about 60 seconds and wipe off the excess. 

6. After the scrub, follow up with your favourite lip balm or salve to protect that pout!

You can definitely double or triple up the batch and put it in a container for storage. I would suggest putting the mixture in the fridge, and I wouldn’t keep it in there for more than a week.

I’ve also created a twitter for this blog! You can find us now at (@gr8northbeauty), but you can still drop be a line on my personal twitter (@peachplumpears). The twitter will keep you up to date on upcoming reviews, beauty tip of the day, or any coupon codes that I hear about in the beauty community, so please subscribe!

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