What worked for me in my yearlong No Buy

 

I waited to post about this just to make sure I would go the distance. The longest I've ever gone without shopping is 54 days & when I'd crossed more than double that number I knew something fundamental had changed in me. 

Start with why

Why do you want less stuff? Because it's visually more appealing. Because you are sick of tracking expiration dates. You have no clue what you have in your stash. All of the above & more. This is the most important step. And definitely the backbone on which your No Buy rests. It's also helpful to make a list and go through them once everyday (more if temptation strikes)

Put all your stuff in one place 

UI was doing the classic hoarder thing where apart from my dedicated skincare drawer, I had a small pile in my bathroom, an extra drawer in my kid's bedroom & some more stuff at my mom's house. It doesn't seem like much until I put everything in one place. It was staggering to see how much I had accumulated.

Use your stuff 

Make a schedule. I've been using up so much after I made a dedicated beauty routine. I'm not talking about your regular skincare routine but all the extras like facials, manis, pedis etc. I actually look forward to these tiny oasis of me-time /selfcare + it's so relaxing. 

Watch / read about other people's No Buys 

It helps to feel like you are not alone + you can definitely pick up a few tips from people who have done multiple years of No Buy(I'm in awe!) 

Make a wishlist 

Sure you have more than enough products right now but there will come a time when a newly launched product will call out to you. I have saved all haul videos from my favourite youtubers (the FOMO is real you guys) until I can watch them without breaking my No Buy. Several products have made it to my wishlist but I don't feel the need to buy them immediately. 

Stop tracking your empties 

I've been diligently tracking my empties since 2015 but it didn't really matter since I never stopped buying new products. Like you can out eat any exercise regime, you can out buy any empties project. In the process of accumulating more empties I was mindlessly using products, even things that did not work for me. Even products that broke me out like crazy. I stopped, took a step back and only used products that I liked or ones that worked for me. I still have a pile of empties with me but they are not as many as I used to finish up back in the day. 

Have a goal

For me the goal in skincare is to have only 2 products in every category. I know it might seem excessive to some people but you have no idea how big of a deal this is for me. Makeup is slightly more tricky since there are products that I only use a couple of times in a year (like a berry lipstick for fall/winter) but I love having these in my stash. For now I'm sticking to fitting all my makeup in 1 drawer(I'm managing, just about) Nothing like playing a little makeup tetris eh? 

Almost 6 months down. I hope I can continue like this. Fingers crossed. 

NOTW Week 49

 

Hey all, I picked up this polish because it looked nice & neon in the bottle. Was I wrong! 

A couple of disclaimers - I had sacrificed 2 nails at the altar of Deepavali deep cleaning, I was mad that someone thought it fit to name this shade Dazzling Red (I mean seriously, this is the 3rd misnamed polish from this brand. Who is responsible for this? + Can I have that job?), I had used 2 polishes from this brand before - 1 good, 1 bad so I probably should have known better eh? 

Anyway, like they say "Hindsight is 20/20". I'm wearing shade S14 Dazzling Red which happens to be orange IRL (go figure!) It is super sheer and I can only use it as a topper. I had to use 4 coats here to get a semblance of colour. It's a beautiful iridescent pale orange with sparse gold glitter & if it were more pigmented would look pretty. As it stands I don't think I'll be reaching out for this one. 

I bought a set of 5 11ml bottles for INR 300 from Flipkart. Stay away, you have been warned. 

NOTW Week 48

Hey all, Beromt makes some of the most innovative and affordable nail polishes. I'm wearing one coat of 7007 Black Cloacked (which is a black nail polish that goes opaque in a single coat) topped by a coat of 902 Unicorn Horn. It's a stunning dual chrome flakie nail polish with green, blue and purple coloured flakies. The colour shifts from green to purple/blue. Depending on the base colour the flakies change colour & sometimes are not visible. I have tried these with various bases but I feel these pop best with black. 

I love the fact that these are of super thin consistency & even the flakies are super slim. You can easily build up the flakies by sponge dabbing without any chunkiness. 

A full set with a black polish and 3 flakie toppers of 8 ml each retail for INR 500 + shipping. You can buy from Amazon or Beromt. 

NOTW Week 47

 

I know I've been MIA from a while now. It's not that I'm not painting my nails, it's just that life is repeatedly getting in the way. Picking up right where I left.

I'm wearing one coat of #6 Azure Allure from SQ Metallic Lust range. It's a beautiful shimmery teal. I love this polish, it goes on opaque in a single swipe & stays put for at least 5 days. I'm pretty sure I have all the colours from this range in my wishlist. My year long shopping ban (which incidentally is going strong) is the only thing stopping me from buying them.

A single 6ml bottle retails for INR 90 & as always I picked it up @50 % off. Totally worth the money. Cheers. 

Announcement - No Buy Year

 

Starting a No Buy Year because the amount of stuff I have is truly embarrassing. Once upon a time all the makeup I owned fit comfortably in a single pouch. I only had one of each item (definitely not multiples like now) & some products like primers & highlighters just didn't exist. The same could be said for my skincare pouch too. Only a few items & all of them in use currently. Now I am using products I bought a whole year back because that is the amount of backlog I have. I am sick & tired of maintaining an elaborate excel sheet with detailed info. It's almost like a race against time where I'm constantly trying to finish products before they expire. And as a result of so much stuff I have to let go of products that I'm truly excited to try & continue using what I was excited about say, a year back.

Makeup & skincare along with clothes are my problem areas. I don't over-buy anything else. In the past year I've not stepped out of the house & hence not shopped. In fact I only had 2 new pieces of clothing in the whole of last year & both of them were gifts. I'm mortified to admit that I still have brand new clothes that I've not even worn in my closet. After the year that's been 2020 I've come to realise that I don't need so much stuff. I can live comfortably on way less. Less stress, less maintenance & less time spent cleaning all of this. It seemed difficult at the start but as time went on I actually didn't miss shopping for clothes at all. I want to replicate the same thing for makeup and skincare as well. 

June was my birthday month and I have gone a wee bit overboard with my shopping. Friends and family know that I love makeup & skincare and those generally form the bulk of my gifts. I'm not depriving myself of anything, just trying to use up things before they go bad. God only knows what possessed me to "save" makeup for a special occasion! And all that time the makeup sat on my vanity & died a quiet death. 

I've gone through several No Buys over the years but I feel I've had the wrong approach. I used to think it was like a short term diet where you deprive yourself & then go on an all out binge session. This is more like a lifestyle change. You use your things & only buy when you are about to run out(radical, I know) Baby steps ( don't judge me) 

As with everything else, let's start with the rules

1. I can only buy replacements of products when I'm down to my last bottle of said item. Now since I routinely buy bulk-sized products last bottle obviously doesn't mean last 1 litre bottle. It means when I'm down to the last 100 ml for shampoos, lotions, cleansing milks etc. It means even tinier bottles for nail polish removers etc

2. Schedule in an at home facial every fortnight so I can actually use the products I bought anticipating some quality me time. Also I shop less when I'm more relaxed & not holding tension on my face especially my jawline. The same goes for other grooming I do at home - manicures, pedicures, facial and body hair removal. Pencil them in so you actually prioritise them.

3. Declutter everything expired, what you don't like, what doesn't work for you or shades that you are less than thrilled about. I did this & pared down my lipsticks from 80 to 30. I feel so much lighter as does my makeup drawer.

4. Practice my makeup every chance I get. Not only will I finally make a dent in the mountain of products I'm holding on to, it will also improve my makeup game.

5. Watch & read content from others who have successfully done No Buys. Nothing like some motivation. I've saved No Buy related content by Whitney Hedrick & Personal Philosophy Project channels. 

This is not a rule as such but since I will have a lot of free time that was previously spent shopping, it does make sense to plan how I will utilise it. I plan to restart learning French & the keyboard. I have finished a couple of levels in both but just gave up midway. Wish me luck! 

Lips n Tips #1

 Not something I do regularly but sometimes I like to match my nails to my lips. I found 2 lip shades that match my pink nails from last week. I'm wearing shade #33 from Volo cosmetics on my nails 

Option 1 - Miss Claire Butter Lip Balm in #07 Panna Cotta. 

INR 150 for 4 gm

Very moisturizing & stays on my lips for a good 3-4 hours when I don't snack. With meals this one obviously doesn't stay put. The colour payoff is medium and can be built up. I like using it as is for a barely there look. Oh & like all Miss Claire products this one smells like vanilla cupcakes. Love!

Option 2 - Half n Half Super Matte Lipstick #2 Heaux. 

INR 130 for 3.6 gm

Comfortable matte formula that does not crease on my lips. Most mattes tend to exaggerate the lines on my lips. Stays put for an impressive 5 hours on my lips. With meals it fades evenly & doesn't look patchy.

Cheers

Two-toned Liquid Eyeshadow Palette Review

 I came across this gorgeous two-toned liquid eyeshadow palette a while back & was intrigued enough to buy it. It claimed to be from this brand called Global Innovations. I had never heard of them but it did not deter me. Unfortunately when I got the product it had Huda Beauty printed on the product. Like why? As far as I know Huda does not have a product like this. Why would you want to give credit to them? As well as an idea for further launches. I think Natasha Denona has a multi-chrome liquid eyeshadow & those are truly beautiful.

The palette is made of a gorgeous pale pink cardboard with a magnetic flap. I love how it closes with a snap. Inside it are housed the 12 eyeshadows in a thick layer of foam. The whole palette feels very heavy even though the eyeshadows by themselves are almost weightless. Each liquid eyeshadow weighs 6 ml. These mix pearl & shimmer and are ideal for parties etc. 

INR 650 for 72 ml

Listing down the shades here. I know they are not in order. They are sequential according to the picture (bottom - up) 

ES 01 silver & dark pink, mixes to form mauve

ES 02 lilac & purple, mixes to form lavender

ES 03 silver & turquoise, mixes to form pale blue

ES 04 silver & grey, mixes to form silver

ES 05 baby pink & dull bronze, mixes to form baby pink with sheen

ES 11 gold & copper. Dual tone most prominent in this one

ES 07 Silver & copper, forms a pale gold

ES 08 Medium pink & dark pink, forms grape colour

ES 09 pale pink & violet, forms a blue based purple

ES 10 silver & bronze, forms a dull bronze

ES 06 silver white & pale gold, mixes to form a pale gold. Dual tone is visible

ES 12 copper & bronze, pretty copper. Dual tone prominent in this one as well

This is a great idea. As with everything new there is obviously a learning curve associated with it. Once you remove the doe-foot applicator, you have to swipe in a single motion & not go over and over again on the same area. It takes some getting used to. If you are impatient like me you can blend them together & it still does look good that way. 

A minor gripe, these are not waterproof. But once they set they don't crease. Considering the price I'm pretty happy with the purchase. 

A couple of pointers. Make sure you prime your lids before using these. Also for the love of God DO NOT BLINK before the eyeshadow sets. 

Yays

Gorgeous jewel tones

Doesn't crease or budge once set

Budget friendly 

Nays

Not waterproof 

The colours suit cooler skin tones more

April 2021 Empties

 Time for another round of empties

Clean and Clear Blackhead Clearing Daily Scrub

INR 120 for 80g

This one lasted forever. I've taken to cutting open tubes of late & when I did, I discovered that there was enough product to last me  a long time. Pretty OK product. I have one more tube of this. 

Alps Goodness Papaya Face Mask

INR 99 for 29g

Thank God this one finished. I always buy products with papaya & then can't stand the scent of synthetic papaya. I think I have one more face mask from Alps Goodness 

O'range Rose & Chamomile Shower Gel

INR 135 for 250 ml

Loving these shower gels from grofers. I picked up a lot of these recently. Never running out of it. 

Vaseline Cocoa Glow Moisturizing Cream

INR 230 for 250 ml

I have several half finished creams lying around. Trying to finish using all of them. This one's OK for summer. Does not work for me in winters 

Fiama Body Lotion X2

30 ml each

Still using these. Bottomless pit, I tell you 

Decluttering my lipsticks this month

ADS Long lasting lipstick X5

Awesome lipsticks. Only throwing away because they are pretty old

Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick #120 Cutting Edge

Dupe of MAC Rebel. Love it!

Blue Heaven Artisto Velvet Matte Lipstick #410

Blue Heaven Splash Lip Colour #306 Pink Rush

Blue Heaven Gossip Matte Lipstick #12

All of these are extremely drying. I haven't tried them more than twice. Never purchasing ever again.

Elle 18 Matte Color Pops in P26 Prom Pink & P21 Pink Kiss

Amazing. I wish these came in smaller quantities. Who can finish using 4.3 gm of product in 2 years?

ADS Velvet Matte Lipstick

This is part of a set. No names /numbers, absolutely nothing written on it. This piece arrived damaged & I've never used it.

ADS Minion Matte Lipstick #10

Just bought for the packaging. Okayish 

TYA Matte Lipstick #11

Amazingly pigmented. Pretty decent 

Insight Ultra-thin Second Skin Long Wear Foundation

 

One thing I've consistently been disappointed with while buying affordable makeup is definitely foundation. For some reason it's manufactured in only 3 shades & all of them seem to be designed for far eastern skin complexions. I'm pretty fair but even then nothing seems to suit. I should know - I have tried every single one of them. 

Recently while browsing amazon I came across this Insight Ultra-thin Second Skin Long Wear Foundation. The shade seemed to match & I bought Shade 04 Warm Nude. It comes in a glass bottle with a plastic dropper (yay! I've had enough of those plastic wands) & the bottle is housed in a cardboard box with all details mentioned on it. A 20 ml bottle retails for INR 160. Expires in January 2024.

It feels utterly weightless when you apply it & it gives a nice, satin finish. The coverage is sheer-medium & you can build it up with a second layer. Although that would affect the whole "Ultra-thin" claim. The finish is not matte & your skin appears to have a slight sheen to it. Apt for summers when you don't want too much on your skin. This particular shade oxidises on my skin after about an hour (Drat! Just when you get a perfect match) It just gets one shade deeper but doesn't look too bad. Oh! & it's not waterproof as claimed. 

Yays

Ultra-thin, they actually mean it. I've never used anything this light weight before 

Gives a nice satin effect with sheer - medium coverage 

Love the bottle design 

Affordable 

Nays

This shade oxidises on my skin. Not sure about other shades or other skins for that matter. 

Eraser Soap Review

 Having oily, acne-prone skin; I'm always on the look out for products that will help combat it. About a month before Deepavali, I was breaking out like crazy. And I couldn't seem to single out the cause. If felt like everything aggravated my skin. At my wits end I finally reached out to Eraser soap. Truth be told I wasn't expecting much.

INR 65 for 75g 

Eraser Anti-acne & Pimple Soap comes packaged in a cardboard box with the soap inside it. All the details regarding it are printed on the outer cardboard box. It's manufactured by Ipsa Labs.

As with all ayurvedic products in India, the product gets away with mentioning only the key ingredients. Which is Cinnamon Bark extract and it form 1% of the composition. The remaining 99% disappears into the mysterious Base QS. Cinnamon Bark Extract's properties are antimicrobial, antioxidant, astringent, emollient, humectant, skin conditioning, skin protecting & perfuming. 

The product claims to act against bacterial proliferation, inhibit inflammation, regulate sebum production, check formation of free fatty acids & protect skin from free radicals. 

The TFM content of the soap is 70% which puts in Grade 2 soaps according to the Bureau of Indian Standards. Probably not the best thing to put on your skin but since I'll rinse it off in less than 2 minutes it shouldn't matter. 

The soap is oval shaped & cream in colour. It's scent reminds me of baby soap - very soothing, barely there scent. It lathers very well & feels like a foaming face wash on my skin. It's also extremely drying & sucks up all the moisture in my skin. (Definitely not for dry skin type) The directions of usage want you to wash your face 2-3 times with this. I used it once a day at night because of the drying nature of the product. I figured it was okay as I would be going in with my skincare less than a minute after washing my face.

After a week of usage I noticed that my existing acne dried out but it did not stop new ones from appearing. At the end of 2 weeks, I was still getting pimples but they would go away sooner. 3 weeks is when I hit the jackpot of a completely acne-free face. I'm pretty happy with the product & I'm continuing to use it. Also, a little goes a long way. It's lasted forever & a half for me. Way longer than any face wash.

I was so happy with the results that I bought a backup & a different variant which claims to remove acne marks. Fingers crossed.

Yays

Stands true to claims. Acne actually did reduce.

Affordable

Nays

No idea about what goes into it... Not that I'm a chemist who can decipher why each ingredient exists.

Grade 2 soap & hence a little harsh for facial skin.

I'm baffled with the claim of checking formation of free fatty acids. They are important for healthy cell function as well as for improving the look & feel of the skin. Why would you claim that your product will do away with it altogether?

Overall, a pretty decent product. Go for it if you suffer from recurring bouts of acne. Cheers! 

March 2021 Empties

 Hi all. Here I am with my monthly empties again. I'm cutting short my No Buy this month & I couldn't be happier. I seem to do better on a Low Buy comparatively. With an all out No Buy I'm attracted to things I wouldn't even be interested in before. Human psychology is intriguing, at the very least. 

NY Bae SkinFIDENT Serum Radiant As Show Stopper

These are poorly formulated, don't do much for me. Just trying to finish what I've already bought. Still 3 of these to go through. Sigh! 

My Nail Enamel in Clear 9ml

I picked this up from More & I'm pretty happy with it. Will probably be buying after we start stepping out like normal again. 

Alps Goodness Charcoal Detoxifying Face Mask 29gm 

Pretty decent. This has got to be my favourite from this range. Not repurchasing. 

Aqua Shui Moisturiser

Sample. Glad it's gone. 

L'Oréal Pro keratin Liss Unlimited Shampoo 1.5 litres

I'm a big advocate of buying regular products in HUGE sizes. Not only is the cost lower, you will also be cutting down on the plastic pollution. Been using this from close to 2 years now. Love it to bits. The only reason I'm not repurchasing is because there's a lot of fake stuff floating online. Will buy once I'm able to go out again. 

Declutter & Spring cleaning 

ELF Palette

One of my first palettes. Got a lot of use out of it. One of the reasons I buy cheaper makeup is so that I can get rid of it when it expires without guilt. I'm terrible about throwing away stuff & an over-thinker to boot. 

Essence Shimmer Brick

This was the first highlighter I ever bought. Love using it underneath my blush & as eyeshadow too. Will be replacing this soon.

Are you decluttering this spring? 

and Feb Empties 2021

 Like I mentioned last time February's flew by so quickly that I didn't even post my empties. Here I am with empties from Jan & Feb

Alps Goodness Shea Butter Shower Gel

200 ml

Decent enough. I'm not digging the scent. Will probably be buying a different variant in future. 

Gram flour

500 gm

I'm a huge believer in the power of washing my face with gram flour ever since it helped control a bout of adult acne 10 years ago. Since then I've incorporated it into my skincare routine. Sometimes I wash my face with a mixture of gram flour and fuller's earth; other times I just like to use it on it's own. Either way I get through this quickly. Will be repurchasing forever. 

Tulips Cotton Pads 50 pieces

Since the past 6 months I've been using super soft flannels to cleanse my face instead of cotton & this pack of 50 cotton rounds lasted forever & a half for me. Pretty decent. 

NY Bae Nail Lacquer Remover

30 ml

Average nail polish remover. Nothing exciting. 

Fiama Shampoo 30 ml

Fiama Body Lotion 30 ml

Why are these not getting done with? God knows I've been using these a lot. Trying to get rid of all minis from hotels etc

February 

Liril Berry Blast Body Wash

250 ml

I hated this one. Smells super sweet & I constantly felt like I was lathering up with mixed fruit jam! Never again 

Good Vibes Havana Mango Hydrating Gel

Good Vibes Aloe Vera Gel

10 ml each

I'm so glad I had the sense to buy the smallest size available for these gels. They are okay, definitely not the best & I will not be repurchasing when I finally finish all of them. Why in hell did I buy so many! 

Alps Goodness Cucumber Soothing Face Mask

29 gm

I like to use a clay mask every other day in summer. Like all of Purplle's in house brands, these are pretty average. I like the fact that they have tiny sizes available. Even if you don't like the product you will not be stuck with it forever. 1 down, 3 more to go

Maliao Rose Gold Elixir Face Serum

15 ml

Where do I begin with this one? As you can probably tell, this is a dupe of Farsali Rose Gold Elixir. When have I ever not liked a dupe & so bought this immediately. Its a bright yellow oil with gold flakes (really? At 200 bucks!). This is one of my pet peeves - why use gold/silver flakes in skincare? I strongly believe that it will aggravate acne. I used this on my neck since it was too heavy for my face. Smells like oil with no discernable scent & it stains. Who would add colorants to a leave on skin product? Stay away. 

Fiama Body Lotion 30 ml

Random Hotel Body Lotion

Seemingly endless supply.

Discards

Profusion Eyeshadow Palette

Bought this ages ago & loved it initially. Haven't reached for it in a long time

Lip balm

Super waxy, does not moisturise & smells of castor oil. Into the bin. 

Habit tracker for New Year Resolutions

 Since I had a couple of makeup resolutions this year I decided to use a habit tracker. Normally I don't have patience with sitting & colouring different blocks every single day. I did the only thing I could & moved it to my phone & replaced the colours with smilies. So much easier 

Sunscreen - This was the easiest thing for me. I've used sunscreen every single day since I was 15 & this just felt like getting back to routine. All I had to do was keep my sunscreen up front so I didn't have to hunt for it. 23/31 days

Eyeliner - I struggled with this one initially but now I can draw a neat line, close to my upper lash line in under a minute. 23/31 days

Blush - I used my cream & liquid blushes this month as they will be the first to expire. I'm surprised by how easy this was to master. In just a few days I went from clown cheeks to barely there I'm blushing from within glow. Practice does make perfect after all. 19/31 days

No Buy - The hardest thing for me. I steered clear of all shopping apps & was repeating "I have enough" like a mantra. It did help that I made a makeup inventory at the end of last year. It's easy to lull yourself with 'I don't have that many just a few here & there' but it does make a difference when you see them all together. However I saw a couple of good deals while I was ordering groceries & I really struggled with letting them go. I always stock up on face wash and body washes when they are on sale & this felt like wasting a good opportunity. (You can take the girl out of India but you can't take the Indianess out of the girl) It's taken an iron will & the realization that I have enough to last forever to stop stocking up. 31/31 days

I will be adding using an eyelash curler to these in February. Baby steps. How are your resolutions doing? 

Monthly Empties - December 2020

 Last empties of the year or the first first empties post of the new year; depending on how you look at it 

Lacto Calamine 60 ml

I've been using this from forever. It's a life saver for people with oily skin. The only thing I don't like is the packaging... a lot of the product gets stuck at the shoulder (?!) of the bottle. Already have several backups. 

Maybelline Super Fresh Compact 8g

I cannot tell you how happy I am to finally finish this one. It seemed to last forever & a half! 

Vayam Eladi Moisture Restoring Night Cream 30g

Vayam is an in-house brand of Purplle & they are hell bent on copying all of Kama Ayurveda's products. When have I ever not loved a dupe? I bought this immediately to test. It's a nice, rich cream which absorbs easily & dries to a matte finish. As I have oily skin, I used this only on my neck for added moisture. The problem for me is the strong smell of Elaichi.. I constantly feel like I'm applying kheer. If you can tolerate the smell of cardamom go for it. The product is great 

Good Vibes Argan Facial Oil with Silver Leaves 10 ml

After a great experience using GV Rosehip Serum I used this one with great hopes. It's thicker than the Rosehip Serum and smells like oil (meh!). It's a transparent oil with silver leaf. Silver leaf seems a bit extra - I'm not sure it adds anything to the oil other than make it aesthetically pleasing. In any case, how much silver can you possibly put in a product that costs less than 200 bucks? Again I used this only on my neck as I felt it was heavy for my oily skin + I was scared the silver leaf would aggravate acne on my face. 

Nivea Roll on Deodorant 50 ml

I don't know how many of these I bought but I seem to have an endless supply. Good enough but bored now... Looking for a change 

Pond's Cold Cream 7g

I like to use this as my first cleanse as it can melt sunscreen and makeup with great ease. 

Tresemme Shampoo sachets 7. 5ml

Finally done with sachets 

Fiama Shampoo 30 ml 

Fiama Conditioner 30 ml

These seem to be multiplying where I left them. Every time I open the drawer there seems to be more than the last time. At least I'll not run out of shampoo and conditioner during my No Buy. 

How's the new year treating you?