Being a Financially Responsible Skincare Fanatic

BUY ALL THE THINGS, BABY, IT’S A SALE. Just kidding. The temptation is real, but buying everything all the time isn’t realistic. So how do you walk the line between splurgey skincare fun times and “omg I have to make this smidge of moisturizer last two weeks”?

1. Pick a fun but realistic budget. Most of us aren’t made of money but DO want to splurge, so make it something that you can financially handle without feeling hamstrung. Usually you want this to be a particular amount per month, quarter or year.
2. Artificially limit your collection. Don’t have on hand more than three of each type of product. E.g. one spf 30, one spf 50, one water-resistant spf. Serums are a possible exception to this, but you definitely don’t need too many retinols, exfoliating acids, etc. Also set yourself artificial limits for what you can have in-use at any one time. e.g. If it doesn’t fit in the go-bag, it doesn’t go in the routine
3. Prioritize what you want vs need. Replacing an empty moisturizer is an emergency, picking a seventh serum is just a want. Figure out what you really need in your routine.
4. Research and shrink your wishlist. Find joy in the research and ELIMINATION of products that you might have wanted, instead of feeling like you want to buy everything, buying them and not using them. Can you potential get a mini until you know what you really want to use?
5. Wait two weeks before buying a new product, assuming you’re shopping online. This ensures that you’ll still want it (and not some other product) by the time you hit buy, and hopefully by the time it arrives. This also lets you better plan for sales.