I’ll be the first to admit, I have a bit of a makeup collection. Okay I lie, it’s pretty appalling how much there is. I try my best to maintain the size by donating / throwing out products I don’t plan to use anymore. I try and be more selective with my purchases, I often turn down companies trying to send me products. But as my role as the beauty blogger, reviewing the latest and newest products is just part of the job description.
One way to reduce the physical size of your collection is to depot some of your palettes. I’ve been doing this excessively lately with a ton of my collection, here is a shot of my “main” palette. It contains a bunch of neutral shades from Benefit and Bourjois, and it makes it very easy for me when I’m in a rush to just grab my Unii Palette and everything I need is already here! Shadows, blush and I use the darkest brown as a liner.
As a result, I’ve been able to clear out a lot more space and in effect “reduce the size” of my collection without having to actually throw out anything more 🙂
I’m obsessed with finding ways to optimise my space, learning about new storage methods etc, so if you have any other tips I would love to hear them 🙂
ooh, great post, must bookmark. any tips for mineral makeup? I’ve bought a fair few mineral shadows and they come in their own little containers, haven’t a clue what i can do to cut down on packaging..
Hmm! I know that pressed mineral makeup shouldn’t be a problem. You should be able to depot (I use heat or vodka) to depot it. But if it’s loose, one alternative is to press using vodka / alcohol, but if it’s loose I have yet to come up with a solution! I’ll work on it!
You forgot to mention how addictive depotting can be…
My secret shame….
never tried depotting. i thought about it to save space, but i’m so scared making a mess or ruin the products. i went through a few yt tutorials on this topic but i’m still scared.
I’d be lying if I didn’t tell that you that -will- damage some of your products in this process. Obviously the more often you do it the better you get at it, but there is always a risk of denting the pan so that the product can sit in it anymore, denting the actual product etc. You can use alcohol to repair powdered products and squish them back in the pan, but if you’ve also damaged the pan (I did this once with a blush, completely wreaked it) then you’ll need to buy a new one or throw out your product.
If you’re nervous but still are game to try this, only do it with products you are -no- scared to lose. Besides MAC eyeshadows, I’ve only depotted cheaper products, or products I’m not too scared about losing if I break them. I can’t ever imagine myself depotting say a Chanel eye shadow. Nope, I’d rather the inconvenience to maintain the life of my overly expensive eyeshadow thx! hehe
I need to get some Unii palettes I’m keeping my MAC shadows in one at the moment and I think it’s way more sturdy than actual MAC palettes. I need to get some more to depot things that are just too bulky and don’t get enough use. It’s nice to see everything arranged in front of you as well instead of going through a bunch of individial compacts.
Completely agree! Keep in mind however that the Unii palettes are a bit smaller than the MAC and Z Palette, but I’m such a sucker for packaging, it’s really sturdy and reminds me of Apple products lol
Really like this idea! Also, getting special makeup storage from Ikea may help to clear space. I find it really helpful as you can put EVERYTHING together and looks neat 🙂
xx
Ooh so true! I love shopping for storage 🙂 I’m nuts about keeping everything nice and organised~ I need to visit Ikea 😀
This post reminded me of all the poor palettes I have sitting in a drawer unused…. >__< I should buy a Unii or Z palette and depot the poor things! Maybe then they'll actually see the light of day, haha.
lol as much as I love being a beauty blogger, can’t help but think how much more space efficient my collection would be if I was just a normal user XDD;;;
I did this with all of my MAC shadows and blushes but I’m too scared to do it with the rest. I’ve got about 8 NARS blushes all in their individual containers that take up so much space. They’re all black so they look the same – I need a Unii or Z palette to organise them all but maybe I’m just too much of a sucker for pretty packaging…. I have a hard life lol
Exactly the same! So far I mainly de-pot cheaper products, or products I use all the time! But I can’t bring myself to depot Chanel or NARS because they are just so pretty 🙁 (and I’m terrified I’ll break them!)
Depotting still scares me. I have a few loose pans that I bought in that condition but so far a couple of them have already broken from lack of a palette to keep them in.
Aww, def get a palette to keep them safe! 🙂 And maybe try depotting some cheaper powder products that won’t give you a heart attack if you accidentally break it 🙂 It’s surprisingly addictive!
I’ve always thought there where basicly 3 ways to organize stuff: The esey-to-reach/use way, the decorative way and the space sawing way. I’m mostly into the last one, but other than depoding I don’t know much tips for makeup. I’m more focused on nailpolish, since I have more of that. But if you get more tips, be sure to post them in this blog, right?
I’m a big fan of finding ways to save space as well! I’m constantly trying to work out ways to store more in the little space I have for my collection! I will most definitely post any future ideas I get 🙂