A French Christmas

We’ve all opened a moisturizer or applied a lip gloss and had that feeling that something doesn’t look quite right. The color has changed, the consistency is off, or you actually find your skin being irritated after you apply it. But you can’t bear to throw it away!  The jar is still half-full, or it’s your favorite lipstick, and even though your intuition is telling you something’s off, you dismiss that thought.  Surely it’s better to keep using this product until it’s finished instead of wasting it?  So, do makeup products actually have an expiry date? How do you know if your beauty products have gone bad? Do unopened makeup products expire? How can you check the expiry dates of your products? And is there any harm in using an expired product? All great questions, and we’ll be answering them all in this article! Here’s everything you need to know about makeup expiry dates.  How long do beauty products last? There is no definitive blanket answer, but here’s a general guide for how long different types of beauty products last. Makeup that you use around your eyes Mascaras and liquid liners have the shortest shelf life and will generally last between three and six months before they need replacing. It’s really important you adhere to this to avoid any nasty eye infections. Pencil eyeliners have a longer shelf life and can last up to a year. Sharpening your liners regularly will shave off any bacteria that has built up and help you avoid eye infections.  Liquid foundation Water-based foundations can last up to a year while oil-based foundations have a slightly longer shelf-life lasting up to 18 months. Moisturizers Depending on how fresh the ingredients are, moisturizers can last between six months to a year after being opened.  Eye creams, face masks & serums These will all last between six months and a year. Lip products A solid lipstick texture will last between one and two years, while liquid lipstick and lip gloss will generally last between six months to a year. A lip liner can last up to a year and should be regularly sharpened the same way as an eyeliner. Cream-based makeup Cream concealers and blushes can usually last between six months to a year. Powder products Bronzers, powder blushes, powder foundations, and setting powder can all last up to two years.  Nail polish Nail polish will last indefinitely if it’s unopened. But once opened, it will usually have a shelf life of two years. Around this time (or sooner) certain ingredients will begin to evaporate which will cause it to thicken.  Makeup brushes Brushes can last a long time as long as they’re properly looked after. That means washing them every month to remove bacteria and build up.  How to check the expiry date of cosmetics The best way to figure out if a beauty product is expired is to use your common sense.  Ask yourself the following questions: Does it look right? Does it smell right? Has the texture changed? And check the expiration date—every tube or jar will have this clearly written on it.  What you’re looking for is the “period after opening” number. This will be written as “6M” or “12M” on the product somewhere. This essentially tells you how long you can use this product safely after you open it.  Usually, it will be fairly obvious if a product has gone off. For example, mascara will clog. Pencils will dry out. Creams and moisturizers will change in consistency or color and may even change in smell.  What to do with expired beauty products: If in doubt, throw it out!  Do unopened makeup products expire, or is this just an urban myth? Most products on the market have a shelf life of over 30 months when left unopened. But this really depends on the product in question. As mentioned already, some products have active, unstable ingredients in them that go off quicker than other ingredients. So you’d be wise to still practice caution before going ahead and using any product that has been hanging around in your beauty drawer for a while.  How to extend the shelf life of your beauty products Did you know that the way you store your beauty products can actually extend their shelf life? Yes! So, are you storing and looking after them the right way? Here’s what NOT to do: Keep your makeup products somewhere humid (i.e. on a shelf in the bathroom) Keep them somewhere warm or in direct sunlight (on a windowsill) Dip dirty fingers, brushes, and sponges into your makeup pots Share your makeup with anyone else This will encourage bacteria and mold to thrive, and wreak havoc with formulas. Here’s what you should be doing to extend the life of your makeup: Keep your products somewhere cool, dark, and dry (not in the fridge though!) Clean your makeup tools regularly Use a tool to scoop out product instead of your fingers Wipe your lipstick after each use to remove bacteria Close lids and tops securely after using them Go for smaller product sizes if you find you’re not getting through them How to keep your beauty products organized As discussed, the period after opening symbol (PAO) is a great indication of how long a product will last before going bad. But sometimes, this will be located on a box and not on the actual product. On top of this, it’s difficult to remember when you bought and opened all your products! To stay on top of things, add a small sticker to each product with a date on it for when you probably need to throw it out and replace it.  Can I still use expired beauty products? What happens if you use expired makeup? You might think there’s no harm in using an expired product, but you’d be wrong. But the worst-case scenario is you can break out in spots, have an allergic reaction, or give yourself an infection.  A 2013 study found 70% of women used some type of expired product in their makeup routine—mostly eye makeup (mascara, eyeliner, eye shadow). The researchers sampled the eye makeup for contamination, and found that 67% of the products were contaminated!  Yikes. It’s really not worth the risk ladies. Set aside a budget for investing in makeup as and when you need it and release the guilt of throwing away a half-used product.  Need a handy reminder when it’s time to replace your makeup? Let’s be honest, life is hectic. In a perfect world, we’d all add expiry dates to our makeup products, and we’d always remember to replace them. But most of us have so much going on that best practices like this get forgotten. That’s why we’ve created a handy subscribe and save makeup subscription option for all our products. You’ll save money on our makeup, and we’ll deliver a replacement product automatically at the time increments you choose!    

We spend as much time pampering our “canvas” (i.e., our face) as we do painting it with makeup—it’s one of the main rules of French beauty, after all! That means we never skip moisturizer, and we always have a lip balm nearby.  However, there’s one more feature that deserves some special attention: the lashes!  We love the dramatic effect that mascara can have, but it turns out so much better when we can start out with strong, healthy lashes. When the lashes are well taken care of, they’re not as prone to falling or breaking. The longer they stay intact on the lash line, the thicker and longer they’ll grow.  To learn how to maintain your lashes so they’ll always look swell, keep reading our guide! We’ll give some must-know natural lash care tips and even touch on what you should look for in an eyelash serum and how to grow eyelashes.  Choose a gentle mascara Waterproof mascara is incredibly useful when you know it’s going to rain or if you want to turn heads at the pool. For day-to-day, however, easily washable mascara is much more gentle on your lashes.  This mostly has to do with removal—the more tugging and rubbing you have to do to get the mascara off, the more damage you’ll do to your lashes! Stick to a regular formula most of the time, and save that waterproof mascara for special days when you want to look glam in the water.  Use a primer before mascara A mascara primer is a wonderful product that gives your lashes extra protection and nourishment under mascara. Before mascara, the lash primer coats the lashes with a seal that’s made of a blend of waxes and emollients that nourishes the lashes while also adding a barrier between them and the mascara. As a bonus, it also helps build that initial length and volume, which saves you from having to repeat your coats.   Remove eye makeup every night Sleeping with eye makeup on is the biggest no-no. It’s awful for the health of your eyes, but it can also damage the lashes. When we sleep with mascara on, it dries out and causes clumping and tangling, especially if you tend to sleep with your face in the pillow. As a result, the lashes get weakened, so you’re likely to lose a few more of them than usual once morning comes.   Keep removal gentle  When it’s time to remove your makeup, use a gentle, oil-based makeup remover and a firm, non-shedding cotton pad. Take your time, and instead of rubbing over and over again, let the makeup remover really saturate your mascara before you start wiping it away. This will allow the mascara to break down and disappear completely with minimal stress to your lashes.  Don’t rub your eyes  Another important habit to break when it comes to eyelash care is rubbing your eyes. When we’re sleepy, it’s a common habit to rub our eyes without even noticing. Unfortunately, that added friction contributes to eyelash loss (and it can irritate the eyes). It’s perfectly normal to lose 2-5 lashes a day, but if you rub your eyes, you may lose even more than that! If you rub your eyes because they get itchy or dry, consider applying moisturizing eye drops. Your eyes will be happier, and so will your lashes! Otherwise, if it’s just a bad habit, breaking it will require some mindfulness, as with other bad habits.  Give your lashes a makeup break As much as we love the effect that mascara can have, it’s still worth taking a break from it every few days. There can be a correlation between excessive mascara use and increased eyelash loss, especially if the removal was too aggressive.  That’s why you should take a break from mascara for a day or two a week, ideally. During those days, give your lashes time to rest and rejuvenate, perhaps with the help of eyelash serum.  Use an eyelash serum Eyelash serums are essential if you’d like to truly nurture your lashes. There are two main kinds of eyelash serums out there: ones that nourish and strengthen the lashes and ones that help to grow them.   Nourishing serums You can use nourishing serums as part of your basic eyelash care routine. Much like hair serums, these lash serums are usually made with oils and plant extracts. They help to condition the lashes and to moisturize the skin along the lash line. They’re useful for keeping the lashes healthy and in-tact, and they’re ideal for daily use.  Products for lash growth  If you’re mainly concerned with how to grow your eyelashes, you need to search for a product specifically made to improve eyelash growth. There are a ton of different options out there, both natural and man-made, that are said to help grow the lashes.  There are many eyelash serums out there made with ingredients that have potential for improving hair growth. Some of these ingredients include prostaglandin analogs that directly impact the lash follicle. On the more gentle and natural side of things, certain peptides are said to promote hair growth as well as extracts from plants like clover and mung bean.  Bat your lashes!  When you show your lashes love, they’ll return it tenfold. Proper eyelash care isn’t necessarily hard or complicated—it’s just a matter of taking the occasional makeup break, being diligent about removing your mascara at night, and adding the occasional, helpful touches of eyelash serum and mascara primer. Even adopting just a few of these eyelash care tips will help you bat longer, fuller lashes.

There’s one handy makeup tool that we use almost every day, but don’t think about much. We’re talking about the eyelash curler! It’s an important tool that deserves all of the love. It gives the lashes the curl and lift that are so important for a fresh, open-eyed look.  But when’s the last time you’ve cleaned your eyelash curler?  We focus so much on cleaning our brushes and sponges, but the poor little eyelash curler is often left forgotten. However, it deserves the same regular scrubbing as the rest of your equipment. Today, we’ll explain why, and also give you a few tips on how to clean your eyelash curler.  Why should you clean your eyelash curler?   It’s important to be extra careful with any makeup item or tool that comes close to your eye. The lash line is prone to styes, and the eyes themselves are vulnerable to all kinds of dangerous infections.  For that reason, it’s imperative to remove makeup at the end of the day, to never use expired eye makeup, and to clean any tools that come close to the lash line—your eyelash curler is chief amongst them.  Most lash curlers are made of metal, an easy-to-clean material that is less likely to harbor bacteria. But the rubber pad at the base of the curler is tougher to clean, and grime and germs can get caught below it.  How to deep clean your eyelash curler Just like your makeup brushes, the best way to clean your eyelash curler is with soap and water. This will remove most pathogens and grime, not to mention the heavy buildup of mascara.   Since the eyelash curler is a metal tool, dish soap usually works best. It breaks down oils in makeup, and it doesn’t leave behind a residue the way shampoo or hand soap might. It can also be helpful to have a few cotton swabs on hand.  First, remove the rubber pad from your eyelash curler.  Place your lash curler under a running tap.  Next, soap it up with dish soap. Use your fingers to rub the soap into every crevice of your lash curler.  Then, with your curler still a little soapy, use a cotton swab to thoroughly dislodge any grime from the indent where the rubber pad normally sits.  Finally, rinse your lash curler of the soap.  Use a dry tissue or paper towel to dry it.  Next, give the rubber pad itself a quick scrub and check for any hairs that may be stuck beneath it. Once cleaned, dry it, and replace it in the indent.  How to disinfect your eyelash curler   Cleaning your eyelash curler is one thing, but you should also disinfect it on a regular basis. To disinfect your eyelash curler, you’ll want to use at least 70% alcohol, and you may also want to have a cotton pad or cotton swab on hand.  When you’re in a rush, just soak a cotton pad with alcohol and use it to wipe down the eyelash curler.  Then, use the cotton swab to clean out the indent where the rubber pad normally sits.  To take it even further, fill a small glass with alcohol. Plop the eyelash curler top down into the glass, as well as the rubber pad.  Leave both in there for 10 minutes.  Then, pull them out, and wipe them down with a dry cotton pad to help them dry.  Take this chance to disinfect other metal beauty tools, like your tweezers, nail clippers, or brow scissors.  How often should you clean your lash curler? You should clean your eyelash curler every time you clean your brushes, which hopefully means about once a week. Cleaning with soap and water is a little more labor-intensive, so you can do that just once every few months, but wiping your lash curler down with a wipe or with alcohol should happen on a weekly basis.  How to clean a heated eyelash curler    If you use a heated eyelash curler, it’s important to clean it carefully and thoroughly, without damaging its electric components. Since heated lash curlers are used after mascara, they tend to collect a lot of residue in the comb and need more frequent cleaning.  To remove the mascara remnants, carefully place the comb part of the curler under running water, to rinse away mascara and trapped lashes.  Be careful not to let any other parts of the tool come in contact with the water.  If the mascara is very persistent, use a cotton pad soaked in makeup remover to loosen it up first.  To actually sanitize your eyelash curler, spray it with alcohol and then let it air dry.  Other healthy lash tips   Aside from cleaning your eyelash curler regularly, we have a few more tips to help you keep your lashes healthy and thriving.  When curling your eyelashes, make sure to fully concentrate on what you’re doing, to avoid pinching yourself or losing lashes.  Avoid sharing your eyelash curler with others. If you do let someone else use it, make sure to sanitize it with alcohol both before and after handing it over.  When using a traditional curler, avoid eyelash curling after you’ve applied mascara, since this will dirty your curler and also increases the chances of damage to the lashes.   Pay close attention to the rubber pad. If it looks indented or starts to lose its shape, make sure to replace it.  With daily use, you will likely need to replace the pad after 3-6 months.  Another important part of keeping the eyes and lashes healthy is to remove your eye makeup thoroughly every night.  To improve the condition of your lashes, use a fortifying eyelash serum every evening as part of your beauty routine.  Never use mascara past its expiry date, and make sure to replace your tube every 3-6 months.  Cleaning your eyelash curler only takes a few moments, but it’s easy to forget. Don’t put off this important little chore. Do your eyes a favor, and go give your lash curler a scrub right now!