How To Organize Your Makeup Collection

When was the last time you went through your makeup collection and did a deep clean? Whether it’s a cleanout for the new year or just another item on your spring cleaning checklist, going through your makeup collection and getting it in order is something you should do at least once a year. And you might find that it’s actually fun to organize makeup— you get to look through your collection and find treasures you forgot about! Here are some tips to help you get started organizing your makeup collection.

Less Is More

The first thing to do when organizing your makeup collection is to go through and discard any expired products. Cosmetics don’t last forever, even high quality products! Most makeup has a shelf life of about one to two years. Any older than that, and you may have a product that won’t apply correctly… or worse, even be dangerous. This is especially true of lip products and anything that goes near your eyes. 

If your makeup doesn’t have an expiration date on it, or you can’t quite remember when you bought it, try giving it a good sniff. If it smells sharp or rancid or has a chunky or clumpy texture, you should throw it away. This also goes for your nail polish, which will definitely change texture as it ages. If you really love the packaging, you can carefully and thoroughly wash it out and keep it around for decoration, or you might even be able to upcycle it and create something useful! 

After you’ve thrown out any expired products, take a look at your collection and think about what you use regularly, what you use occasionally, and what you use rarely or never use. You might find that a classic red lipstick is your go-to for daily wear, and that you have a few things that you wear maybe once a month or for special occasions. You’ll definitely want to keep those if they’re still safe to use. But what do you do with those products you just aren’t in love with?

For products you never wear, especially products you don’t like, don’t feel bad about tossing them! But if you have in-date products that you haven’t opened or are very gently used (like a lipstick you wore once), you can actually donate these items! There are several organizations that will take your unused products, sanitize them, and give them to people in need. Makeup is a little luxury that can really help someone feel more comfortable and confident!

Your brushes aren’t immune to spring cleaning, either. You should focus on having the right brushes to create any makeup look you like, and make sure that the brushes you do keep are high quality. If you’re at the other end of the spectrum and only have one or two brushes, you might want to invest in a good makeup brush set. This will help you when you’re putting looks together!

Makeup Storage

If you keep your makeup in the bathroom, you really should move it somewhere else. Why? Because the heat and humidity of the bathroom will damage your collection over time. Even if your beauty area is primarily in front of the bathroom mirror, storing it elsewhere will keep your makeup looking great for a longer time. 

Whether you use a tote, a bag, a train case, or another storage method, you should make sure that your product cases are clean before you put them away.  For your brushes, you should make sure that you’re storing them vertically with the brush head up, or else in a brush roll. You should also check your brushes for loose fibers; as brushes age, they start to shed. Like everything else, brushes do have a lifespan, and if your brush is shedding too much, it might be time to say goodbye.

For your most frequently used products, you might find it useful to have them displayed where you can easily find them every day. It might be easier for you to keep your favorite lipsticks in a lipstick organizer on top of your dresser or bedside table, along with your go-to lip balm.

Keep It Clean

Before putting your makeup back in its storage, clean the case or drawer by giving it a good scrub! You should also take the opportunity to clean your makeup brushes with some gentle soap and warm water. Go through your makeup and clean it up, too— if there are smudges on your lipstick tubes or fuzz on your cake mascara, gently clean those off so that everything is tidy and in the best shape possible before you use it again. 

Once you’ve cleaned up your collection, it’s time to neatly organize it. At Bésame, we like to do this by decade, but you can do it by color, style, type of makeup— whatever works best for you! Tell us in the comments: How do you like to organize your makeup?