I decided to start 2014 by sorting through my bodycare / skincare products, because:
1. I knew I had a load
2. I wanted to shop my stash
3. I'd actually started this by some months ago, tipping all of my products into a massive bag (having decanted a few products into mini cases for my holiday - I still haven't finished all of those up, so just shows how little I use!!)
4. Turns out this makes finding products very hard
5. Nice to start a new year by ending some procrastination... that said I started this at 11am, got fed up / flabbergasted by how many products I was basically wading through and stopped until about 9pm.
So I'm writing about it as I go along. Forgive the lack of editing! .. read more to see what happens
As it happens, I recently went bonkers in the Asos post-Xmas sale (nothing much worth reporting on though, somehow) and ended up with piles of clear plastic bags which the items come individually packed in. .. ... ... it just occurred to me that I need to look at the Zara sale... FOCUS!!!!
Anyhow, as I lifted items out of the giant bag, I separated them into product type and put each type into a bag. I could have labelled them to make it easier, but alas, I did not. Here is what I've ended up midway - there is still some stuff to go through from random drawers at this point...
From left to right: sun creams and sun care, bath gel etc, facial exfoliants, hand wash, eyelashes (should be with the makeup but there you go)
From left to right: shower gel, face wash/cleanser, face masks, toner/astringent, conditioner/hair masks
From left to right: hand cream, body cream, dry shampoo, shampoo, day creams
From left to right: Body scrub, foot care, night cream, miscellaneous, sleepy products, non-wash cleansers/makeup removers
From left to right: perfumes/sprays, hair care, nail products, spot fighting artillery
See, I wasn't kidding when I said I had a lot - too much I know. Some stuff needs to be thrown out, but I wanted to keep them in the bag so I had an idea of how much space they would need however I chose to organise them. Some things would need further space - for example I've got a massive philosophy order on it's way from somewhere in Phoenix, mostly consisting of bath/shower/shampoo gel things.
By the time all of the pictures were taken and uploaded and every other little thing added to it's relevant bag, it was near 10pm. And I really wanted to finish this today, before 2 January. New resolution - finish every 1-day-or-less task on the day I start it.
So I decided not to bother with nail products yet - I think that needs a good specialised system - and not to bother with haircare because that's sort of got a home already, just a bit overflowing. While I'm at it I can forget the perfumes and scents because I can just put them on my dressing table for now, I'll be sure to use them that way. The sleepy products neatly fit into a little box some of the products came in, and I like how my non-wash cleansers fit into one basket so that'll stay as it is. I can just come home after a day or night out, reach in for whatever I fancy and take something out and replace it with ease. That way those old but not unusable neutrogena exfoliating pads in that big box will be used up. And therefore we can disregard almost the whole last picture and right half of the one above it for the purpose of this post. And just like that I'm a third of my way through - happy times!
Having put those boxes away, I think hand a gander of what I had in terms of storage space and how it would work. The sink unit was the natural home for the hand washes, and my vanity mirror drawer seemed like the obvious choice for spot fighters - easy reach but not in clear view. They're hardly chic little vials. I would take whatever necessary spot fighter partners from the other sections and add to the same drawer (moisturiser, face wash etc). I also threw a few regular use products in there, particularly hair things. Some others went in a little glass .. fruit bowl type thing on my dressing table and daily use washes etc were in my bathroom immediately - but that was just the beginning.
Rushing through...
I used this lovely soap and glory cosmetics holdall thing for my face and hand products, separating each type of product one with a smaller cosmetics bag (do you recognise any of them?):
I used the cardboard lining of that bag to home my body lotions, body scrubs and feet products with an old box side to section off everything for now. I have loads of cosmetic bags but I wanted to keep some for cosmetics! On the top there I chucked in some gel socks and gloves.
And then the bulkier things live in an old crisp packet box which I covered in fabric years and years ago - it's due a tidy up but that's a project for another day, unless I get rid of it when I move (within the next 12 months). Again, I used old box sections to separate shampoo from conditioner and then the rest of the box is actually reserved for the 5 giant philosophy shower gels. Until then, it houses the rest of the shower gels, the bath stuff, the sun stuff, the dry shampoo, the eyelashes... a few shower puffs as well. I know it looks like a mess but when that stuff is out and rehoused, trust me it's neat underneath. I have a whole metal train case, so don't worry, I can find space. Oh yeah there's a pencil case there with travel sized shower gels, and an old clinque case with travel shampoos and conditioners, mixed.
So that's my first day of 2014. Well, the organisation part of it. Any suggestions? I said I can find space but really, I'm pushed. I've just squeezed these boxes under he dressing table but I'd rather keep that space open so there's more leg room and it opens out the room. So so slightly!
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