Expiration Dates - When to keep and when to toss old makeup ?

[Mk's Beauty Shop]

lol in 50 years time i'll be saying to the kids "i brought this eye shadow in 2005"
they'll be so amazed
hahaha

 

[dancingellecat]

^

.....

 

[gsquared]

LOL

I'm like most of you guys...I generally dump my mascaras in 3-6 months but I"ve had my eyeshadows for AGES!. I don't understand why..cos I don't wear eyeshadow much..but i love buying it.

Just wondering...how are we to know when makeup expires? I know for some department store brands they tell you the recommended use by date..but for drugstore brands...there is no such expiry date listed...

 

[litchickuk]

i have to say i like to keep things for as long as i can but as soon as they start to smell weird theyre gone, especially lipsticks even though i dont wear them that often! Mascara is something I top up quite regularly as its nasty to have something so close to eye thats gone a bit manky!

 

[Mathilda_Fashion]

I don't look at expiration dates. If the products works so.. i use them It dosen't kill me

 

[Becky_da_da_da]

I usually use it all up before it goes horrible or clumpy anyway

 

[m4ryb3ar]

i usually have back up products in case i run out, so i normally have at least one tube of mascara in my drawer that is still in its' package. i use up my mascara pretty quickly, probably go through a new one every other month. could my mascara go bad if ive never opened it? speaking in terms of 4-6 months or so. i didnt even notice that cosmetics had expiration dates on them lol

 

[vee]

hmm, 3 months for mascara is news to me; every one has told me one month.
i replace mine almost every month anyway - there was some video awhile back on those microscopic bugs that eat skin and clothes etc, and the brief coverage of the bugs that lived in mascara and eyelashes was so horrifying!!!
...i just can't use it for more than a month and not want to tear out my eyelashes in fear they looked so disgusting.

 

[Lara_L]

i tell myself it doesnt really matter for powder. my new hg is a shimmer dust that i forgot about, then discovered in the back of the cupboard and remember buying about eight years ago.

 

[adorefaith]

ive never thought much about this.....i only buy what i use.....and i tend to use it all up before it approaches its expiry date.........

 

[tortoisie]

I have the same issues.
But I have gotten an eye infection before from old mascara, and now I learnt my lesson

Maybe it sounds nosy, but I really what to know what happened, because I don't want it to happen to me or anyone else.

How old was the mascara?

 

[Deleted member 36123]

I do for mascara and lipglosses because I heard bacteria breeds very quickly in these and can infect your eyes/mouth ahh!

 

[mellowdrama]

No. I actually like my mascara better after it's dried out and old. Never had an eye infection from it. I have had to throw out rancid lipstick--an ancient tube of vamp which I never wore. And I regularly buy and eventually throw out foundation because I just can't bear wearing the stuff. Eyeshadows keep forever, pencils keep forever, powder blushes, as well.

 

[susie_bubble]

Only with mascara.....coz it gets really dry and flaky but actually most of my make-up don't even expiration dates....... especially my Japanese and Korean branded stuff......

 

[fashionlives]

i've got so many different makeup products that i only use like 1/20th of each product every year is it bad for the skin if i skill use it after 2 years or more?!

 

[pinksatin]

This thread makes me feel better. I don't follow expiration dates on cosmetics either. The only time I toss something is if it's empty, dried up, an ugly impulse buy that I know I'll never use, it's a poor quality that looks bad, or it actually shows signs of expiration (which has like almost never happened). Even if a pressed eyeshadow shatters into loose powder I keep it and use it that way. I have never had an infection of the face or eyes by not following the dates of expiration so I don't think I'll change. Also, I try to buy quality make-up and it's more expensive. If I bought cheap stuff that looked like crap on my face I wouldn't mind tossing it every few months. But then I also wouldn't want to wear it in the first place.

 

[modelbehavior228]

There is a little symbol on the back of makeup that looks like a small simple jar illustration with the lid half off along with a number. My foundation has the symbol and the number 36, meaning it will last 36 months after opening before it expires. That is what the numbers mean, how many months after opening it will be good.

 

[tigerrouge]

I chuck my mascaras when they cease to go on well. That means some products get chucked after six weeks (and never bought again) while others - like my Chanel ones - I'll use until they're done, which might take 4-5 weeks. I reduce wastage by only having one mascara on the go. Ideally, I prefer to use travel-size samples, as they are also portable.

Liquid eyeliner I am scrupulous about, because it's even closer to your eyes than mascara. As soon as it starts to look 'stale' I get rid of it. Two-three months. Pencil eyeliners, I am religious about freshening by sharpening and sealing into their lids.

Nail varnish, I chuck it when it separates, though I do have 'double standards' - I either buy totally cheap stuff for the mad colours (from Barry M) or one must-have shade every season from Chanel, in which case, I keep the latter sometimes simply because the product looks great, and never go back to using it.

Lipsticks and lip gloss, I'm afraid I don't chuck out much, but I don't suffer from cold sores, so I don't feel that they're that unclean, as long as they're confined to my own mouth.

Eyeshadows. God, I have some antiques. Somehow, I never associate pressed powder eyeshadows with anything that could 'go off'. I see it as largely inert stuff.

So a mixed bag there, with the old and the new.

 

[Ms. GA Peach]

I have my "everyday make-up" and then I have my specail occassion make-up which has to last a long time because it doesn't get used near as often. I've never noticed any of my cosmetics going bad, but if I get an eye infection or if anything seems to irritate my skin for any reason I throw it out immediately. And I NEVER share my cosmetics with anyone. Once I was at a club and I was applying some lipstick. Some girl I had never met comes up and says, "hey! I know you are going to let me borrow some of that." I just handed it to her, and when she handed it back to me, I threw it right in the trash. Ewww! Who would want to use a stranger's lipstick?

 

[Ksanochka Vanmra]

I ignore expiring dates completely too, and I'm not that obsessed about mascara. I keep everything clean and in good conditions, I clean all my brushes two or three times every week, and I've never had any problems with that, so I'll continue this way (until something goes wrong).

And yes, I agree. All that months stuff is useless for me because most of the time I don't remember when I bought things