Makeup organization
Ever have those days where your life slowly sucks out your soul, bit by bit, leaving you like a hollow version of yourself??
Well, that's been this past month for me.
So I don't have any recipes because the one thing I cooked this month I forgot to take pictures of. And I need to start blogging to feel like myself again.
So today, I went through my old photos to see what I haven't blogged about. I managed to find these pictures of my makeup organization project- and nothing says Jackie like anal organization. (Did you see my spice organization post? Or all the other "Project Organizations" I have [scroll to the bottom of this page.] Yea, I'm that type of person.)
I used to have my makeup in this cheapo, 3 drawer plastic thing and some random box a makeup kit I bought came in. Although my makeup was already nice and organized (yea!), it was definitely an eyesore (boooo!). I figure now that I'm out of college and over the age of 30, I should really get rid of all plastic organizers that are out in plain sight.
So first thing I did was go on a mission to find a suitable box. While at the Container Store I was this close to buying a jewelry organizer (with drawers) for my makeup, which was basically a leather version of my plastic drawers (found here). Although I liked the look of it, I'd probably have to buy 2 because they were a bit on the smaller side, which would make it a total of $50! Bleh, no thank you. So I kept looking, and I managed to spy this box:
Something about it just called out to me. I loved the linen look. The sections were deep, and could hold even my largest makeup set. And it was large and wide. But best of all, the whole thing was less than $25. SOLD!!
When I got home I immediately emptied out my plastic box and got rid of all my really old makeup. (I know you're supposed to throw out eyeshadows too, but come on. They're just powder. I basically keep those forever, and just throw away lipsticks that get too old.)
Then I lined the bottom of the box with some clear contact paper (for easy cleanup with spilled powders and such), and starting putting things in. Eventually, it magically came together.
First thing I realized was that I actually needed 4 sections (or the large section at right became unwieldy). So to solve that problem that I covered cardboard in neutral-colored paper and taped it down to the bottom of the box. Viola! Four sections.
Then I started organizing my makeup by eyes, face, and lips. All eyeshadows and primers went into 2 squares (with the lower right square containing all my "kits"); all my lipsticks and glosses/chapstick went into the upper-right hand corner square; and my foundation/bronzer/blush went into the lower left-hand corner.
To maximize your space and reduce the number of items that are resting on top of each other, you may want to put your eyeshadows and blushes on their sides. For my bareMinerals this wasn't a problem (see lower left square), because their clear bottoms allowed me to see their shades. However, this becomes an issue with eyeshadows that are in opaque containers (see upper left).
Solution? Take a piece of paper, rub a bit of your eyeshadow on it, then tape it to the side of the eyeshadow (1 piece on each side so you can see it no matter how you put your eye shadow back in its proper spot).
The shade doesn't come out perfect on the paper, but I have so few eyeshadows that I know them all. So all I need to do is see a bit of the paper and I immediately know if it's the one I want to use.
So next time you're digging through your makeup and sick of not being able to find what you need, think about all the wonderful ways in which you too can bring order and simplicity to your life!
Yours in embracing her inner OCD,
Jacqueline
So I don't have any recipes because the one thing I cooked this month I forgot to take pictures of. And I need to start blogging to feel like myself again.
So today, I went through my old photos to see what I haven't blogged about. I managed to find these pictures of my makeup organization project- and nothing says Jackie like anal organization. (Did you see my spice organization post? Or all the other "Project Organizations" I have [scroll to the bottom of this page.] Yea, I'm that type of person.)
I used to have my makeup in this cheapo, 3 drawer plastic thing and some random box a makeup kit I bought came in. Although my makeup was already nice and organized (yea!), it was definitely an eyesore (boooo!). I figure now that I'm out of college and over the age of 30, I should really get rid of all plastic organizers that are out in plain sight.
So first thing I did was go on a mission to find a suitable box. While at the Container Store I was this close to buying a jewelry organizer (with drawers) for my makeup, which was basically a leather version of my plastic drawers (found here). Although I liked the look of it, I'd probably have to buy 2 because they were a bit on the smaller side, which would make it a total of $50! Bleh, no thank you. So I kept looking, and I managed to spy this box:
Bristol 3-Section Valet Box, from The Container Store
Something about it just called out to me. I loved the linen look. The sections were deep, and could hold even my largest makeup set. And it was large and wide. But best of all, the whole thing was less than $25. SOLD!!
When I got home I immediately emptied out my plastic box and got rid of all my really old makeup. (I know you're supposed to throw out eyeshadows too, but come on. They're just powder. I basically keep those forever, and just throw away lipsticks that get too old.)
Then I lined the bottom of the box with some clear contact paper (for easy cleanup with spilled powders and such), and starting putting things in. Eventually, it magically came together.
Organization makes me HAPPY!
Amazingly everything fitting so perfectly was not planned at all.
But somehow, every single piece of makeup that I owned fit perfectly into this single box.
But somehow, every single piece of makeup that I owned fit perfectly into this single box.
Then I started organizing my makeup by eyes, face, and lips. All eyeshadows and primers went into 2 squares (with the lower right square containing all my "kits"); all my lipsticks and glosses/chapstick went into the upper-right hand corner square; and my foundation/bronzer/blush went into the lower left-hand corner.
To maximize your space and reduce the number of items that are resting on top of each other, you may want to put your eyeshadows and blushes on their sides. For my bareMinerals this wasn't a problem (see lower left square), because their clear bottoms allowed me to see their shades. However, this becomes an issue with eyeshadows that are in opaque containers (see upper left).
Solution? Take a piece of paper, rub a bit of your eyeshadow on it, then tape it to the side of the eyeshadow (1 piece on each side so you can see it no matter how you put your eye shadow back in its proper spot).
Utilizing the most of a small space.
So next time you're digging through your makeup and sick of not being able to find what you need, think about all the wonderful ways in which you too can bring order and simplicity to your life!
My makeup station, which rests on top of my shoe shelf (see the whole thing here)
Jacqueline
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