Clearing Out the Stash! Hints and Tips

Long time no post, eh?! To get back into my blogging groove I figured I'd post about something most of you lovely lot probably need to do - clear out your make-up stash. Now - before you get the pitch forks out and poise your hairspray cans behind lighters shouting 'Burn the traitor!', hear me out...
You are hoarding junk.
And you know you are! Old make-up can be grubby, unhygienic and unsafe - hanging on to it isn't a brilliant idea. Anything perfectly useable that you never reach for could be used by somebody else, too! Plus, a clear out is a perfect excuse to buy some fresh new products or you could do it simply to declutter - perfect :) Tips are under the cut!

[ Stuff for the bin, stuff to pass on and more stuff for the bin ]
Click below for tips on clearing out your stash!

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Skin Care, Body Care and Scent Storage in Uni Halls

It might sound daft (and it probably is) but when I was moving to uni, one of my main concerns was where I'd storage all of my smellies. Y'see, some halls have the luxury of an en suite bathroom for each bedroom, but, alas, mine do not. Storing everything in my bedroom was the only option, but I didn't want a jumble of messy boxes or loose product everywhere. Here's how I managed it...

My lower shelf stores scents, body butters, creams in tubs, cleanser and everyday facial moisturizers. All of my solid scents are kept in the gold organza bag, samples remain in their card sleeves and bigger bottles are tucked away - y'see how I don't own a single 'proper' perfume in full size?! I'm way too fussy to commit to any it seems!

Beside my lotions and potions are my nail varnishes, housed in a brown filigree box. I *think* the box is from IKEA, but you can get similar ones of different patterns from stores like Home Bargains for cheap, too.

Amid the CDs, hip flasks, origami balls and inflatable dinosaurs on my top shelf lie my hair colouring products. I utterly love Directions dyes, although getting the blue from my last dye job to fade is proving to be a pain in the rump!

To the right of my shelves, I have a free standing shelving unit which is awesome for storing some of your junk belongings. I have four of these IKEA boxes on the unit full of various things, but my favourite box is undoubtedly this one...

Fake tan, skin care, body care, hair care, bath care and some essentials such as toothpaste and face wipes. You can fit SO MUCH into these boxes, it's crazy. I also have an IKEA helmer for my make-up, but I've already posted about that. As you can see, I'm a fan of that Swedish wonderland for storage solutions!

My key tips for planning storage for your uni halls room are...
1. GO TO AN OPEN DAY. Seriously. How are you supposed to plan where to keep your stuff if you haven't even see what the rooms are like?!
2. Boxes are your friend. Check out bargain stores for cheap and cheerful options.
3. Find out if you have room under your bed for storage. I have an under bed box full of clothes, it's so useful!
4. Get a clothing hook rack for the back of your door - you'd be surprised how much room simply hanging your coat/ hoodie/ towels can save.

How do you store all of your goodies? Do you take up 90% of the space on the bathroom shelves, or stack it all away elsewhere?

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How I Store my Make-up...The IKEA Helmer

Way back when I moved to uni halls, I knew that I wouldn't be able to take my beloved red tool box with me. I needed something smaller and less...dominant for a smaller room. After seeing a few nail bloggers rambling on about how they needed more helmers (and not knowing what the heck a helmer was) a quick google search lead me to the perfect solution - the IKEA helmer.

I put it together pretty quickly and was amazed by how well I managed my first flat pack build haha :) The helmer comes with six drawers and some little paper tabs so you can label what is inside each and wheels so you can move it around your room with no problem. It was larger than I had imagined, but small enough to tuck away next to my wardrobe and fill what would otherwise have been a dead space.

In the first drawer I store loose and single eyeshadows alongside glitter pots. Drawer two slides open to reveal various eye and face palettes. The third drawer down is home to eyeliners, primers, bases, false lashes and random gems.

 The fourth drawer is of course my favourite - lip products! I don't even wear lip products any more (well, rarely) but they're still my fave make-up products. Drawer five is where all my skin stuff lives - foundations, powder, blush and so on. The most boring photo you'll probably find on this blog is drawer six - empties and random packaging that for some reason I can't part with.

Overall, a mega handy storage solution for a mere £24.99. I quite like that once I have my own lovely, big, spacious dressing table (a girl can dream) this helmer can be used for storing something MANLY (namely my tools and SFX kit) - you can't really say that about the cupcake/ rose/ fluffy pink boxes and drawers, can you?!

What do you use to store your make-up? Are you in need of a helmer?

REVIEW - Glam Storage Solutions Brush Roll

After being on a self imposed 'make-up no buy' (AKA the beast that is 'Project 10 Pan') and selling a few things on eBay, I thought I was due a treat. While doing my make-up one morning, I realised what an awful state my old brush roll had gotten into! I've have it for a few years and it had seen me through many, many make-up jobs but unfortunately it was made with a material that simply loved staining. Even when it had been washed (through the washing machine, the scrubbed with a brush), it still looked  dirty - gross! Five minutes later, I had placed an order with Glam Storage Solutions.

Ordered: 31st March

Arrived: 16th April

Price: $14.99 (approx £9.50)

Shipping to the UK (from USA) - $6 (approx. £3.80)

How beautiful?! I couldn't believe my luck when I spotted this. It's as if it was made specifically for me! Blue and brown are one of my favourite colour combinations, I love the damask print and how the turquoise fades to white in the pattern, the overlay to cover the brushes, the tie to keep everything together while travelling and that fact that it can be machine washed and ironed :)

I'm also pleased to report super neat hems, no fraying and a decent quality cotton which feels like it could undergo years of abuse use without falling to bits. There are enough slots for me to fit in the brushes I use daily and quite a few more, though there are about six of my brushes now without a home :S That's more to do with me hoarding brushes I don't use though, rather than the brush roll itself, of course!

Overall, I'm more than happy with my purchase - it's perfect for me and well worth the cash I parted with for it. If you're looking for something special to store your brushes in, I'd whole heartedly recommend Glam Storage Solutions.

What's in my Travel/ Daily Make-Up Bag?

Can I confess something? I've already lied. I don't HAVE a make-up bag. Well, not one that I use day to day since I don't take my make-up out with me for 'top ups' and have awesome make-up storage! However, I do have a funky (is it acceptable to say 'funky' if you're below the age of 40?) toiletry bag I use for my make-up when I travel...

[[ I love how garish this bag is! ]]

The bag was part of a Natural Collection gift set I got last year, but transforms into a make-up bag when I'm away from home. This is what I more or less use on a daily basis...

[[ Maybelline 'Falsies' mascara, UDPP, Kryolan liquid eyeliner, GOSH pencil eyeliner, MUA dark brown, Sassy Minerals 'Understated', MAC 'Scatterrays ]]

EYES SHADOW BASE - Urban Decay Primer Potion
EYESHADOW - Varies. Right now I'm loving MAC 'Scatterrays' pigment and Sassy Mineral 'Understated'
EYELINER - Kryolan liquid eyeliner (black), GOSH pencil eyeliner (black)
MASCARA - Maybelline 'Falsies' mascara
EYEBROWS - MUA dark brown eyeshadow

[[ Evil Shades 'Love Bites', The Balm 'Hot Mama', C2000 'Matt + Minerals', Sleek 'One' powder, Kryolan Ultra Foundation, Shu Uemura 'Under Base Mousse  ]]

BASE - Shu Uemura 'Under Base Mousse'
CONCEALER - Kryolan ultra foundation (cream)
FOUNDATION - Collection 2000 'Matt + Minerals'
POWDER - Sleek 'One' powder (I usually use Kryolan powder, but the lid slides off so it's bad for travel)
BLUSH - Varies. It's all about The Balm 'Hot Mama' and Evil Shades 'Love Bites' at the moment.

[[ Taxi London 'Mile End' gloss, Collection 2000 'Star' gloss, Clarins 'Sorbet' gloss, MAC 'Honeylove' lippy, Figs & Rouge lip balm ]]

LIP BALM - Figs & Rouge 'Rose' balm
LIPSTICK - Do you really need to ask?! MAC 'Honeylove', of course!
LIP GLOSS - Taxi London 'Mile End' gloss, Collection 2000 'Star' gloss, Clarins 'Sorbet' gloss

Wow. That seems like loads when you write it all out! How much is in your make-up bag?

(P.S) Can I ask somebody to do me a favour and measure the diameter of the pan of Rimmel Stay Matte powder? I have something I might be able to fit one into, but don't own one atm!

Make-up Storage in a Tiny Room...

I was talking to my mum yesterday about moving to uni. She likes to plan things WAY in advance and generally I leave it up to her since she's better organised than me! Then...

Mum - You know what the hardest decision will be, don't you?
Me - What?
Mum - What make-up you're going to take!
Me - All of it...
Mum - And where do you plan on keeping it all?

Good point mother, good point...

1. B&Q - Bigso 2 Drawer Chest - £13.48

2. NEXT - Apothecary Jar - £10

3. WHSmiths - Black Mesh Pen Pot - £4.08

4. IKEA - Propar Spice Jar with Lid - £1.28

5. IKEA - Helmer - £20

6. IKEA - Strikt 4 Piece Desk Set - £7.14

7. IKEA - Habol Box with Lid - £3.05

HERE is where I plan on keeping it all! Various boxes and doo-dads. It's going to crush my soul a little bit to have to leave behind my tool box make-up chest :'( As you might be able to guess, my colours of choice are cherry red and black since it will match my bedding. I LOVE the black storage boxes from IKEA! They are full of such random images, I could probably amuse myself for ages just looking at them all. Plus, at £3.05, it's not like I'll feel guilty if they get ruined or I fancy a change. I've got my eye on that helmer, too, though I'm not sure how big it is exactly - at that price, I'm guessing it's quite small. The apothecary jar from NEXT is gorgeous, but I'm not sure I could justify spending a tenner on it since I'll most likely smash it within 1 week...

Have you seen any decent storage ideas lately? Link me to your storage posts!

Make your own Customizable Magnetic Palette

Every time I've seen somebody buy a Z Palette or UNII Palette, the first thought in my head is, 'I could make that for less than a tenner.' I think they are absolutely ludicrously priced for what they are! The UNII palette is $29, which is roughly £18. Buying the large Z Palette in the UK will set you back around £16. No way am I paying that much for a plastic (or cardboard) box with a magnetic sheet in the bottom. No thanks. I'll make my own...

[[ Double sided customizable palette! How awesome?! ]]

Double sided fishing box - £3.99
A4 self adhesive magnetic sheet - £1.79
Postage for both items - £1.99
Total - £7.77

I bought everything from eBay, but you can find magnetic sheets at most craft stores and obviously the fishing box at fishing stores. The exact places I bought mine from are here for the fishing box and here for the sheet. Both arrived with no problems.

All you have to do is measure the INSIDE of the box, draw out the measurements on to the magnetic sheet, cut it out and stick it down. Done! There's your palette! Of course, then you can pop all your make-up pans into it...Might be worth noting that the Urban Decay Deluxe pans will not stick to the magnetic sheet, so I stuck some metal discs to the bottom of them.

[[ Neutral side ]]

[[ Bright side ]]

I then decided my Yaby and Ben Nye palettes looked a little glum. The Yaby palette is practically a magnet for grime, especially the insert - it doesn't wipe clean very well, same goes for the Ben Nye palette. I also managed to break the lid off my Ben Nye palette a while back, very annoying!

I pulled the inside of the Yaby palette out, popped the metal discs out (for future use) and stuck a magnetic sheet in the bottom. Then I removed all the Ben Nye colours and placed them in their new, cleaner home...

Considering the fly fishing box is double sided and I re-lined my Yaby palette, I basically got three custom palettes for £7.77. I think you'll agree that's pretty damn good and MUCH cheaper than buying pre-made ones!

What do you think? Do you own a Z palette? Will you be making your own?

How to Depot Urban Decay 'Book of Shadows' and 'Deluxe' Palettes

If you're anything like me, you hate daft, excessive, wasteful packaging - and those are the three words I'd use to describe the majority of Urban Decay palettes. I honestly can't believe I've only just gotten around to depotting them, because they have been graceless, cumbersome lumps in my make-up drawers for a while - sucking up room and being annoying. So anyway, this is how I depotted mine...

[[ Pretty single pans of Urban Decay eyeshadow! ]]

Read how under the jump!

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My Make-up Storage/ Stash

A few days ago I found myself on my hands and knees, scrubbing away at an industrial tool box. Well, it was a tool box in a former life, but now it's been my make-up box for about three years! My sister kept stealing my make-up (most annoying my MAC lippies, of which she still has at least three) so I did what any other teen would do - whined and moaned to my parents. My Dad took me out to his garage, pointed at a huge, unused, red tool box with a lock and said 'Will that do?' It was love at first sight and soon we were hauling it up three flights of stairs into my bedroom. The key was added to my key chain and my make-up was safe from the sister's sticky fingers. It has a few battle scars and never seems to buff up completely, but I couldn't imagine being without it now!

[[ Shiny! ]]

[[ Spacious! ]]

Click to read more, see more pics and perv on my make-up collection :)

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