Does Makeup Expire?
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Just like food, makeup does expire! It is important to pay attention to how long you have had any single makeup item for, but not all makeup has the same length of safe use. What is different about makeup expiration as compared to food, is that the expiration is X months AFTER the product has been opened. There is not a “Best if Used By” date for makeup.
What there should be on your products or their packaging, is the symbol telling you how many months after opening the product it is good for. It looks like this:
The container with a # and M equals the amount of months after opening the product.
This may say 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24 etc. on it. Sometimes the symbol is on the product itself, and sometimes it is only on the packaging.
Why is this important?
There are a few key reasons to toss that old makeup and not use it on your face after it has used up its shelf life. When you use makeup, it comes in contact with your skin which exposes it to bacteria. Things like mascara are particularly prone to this and pose a serious issue if bacteria grows in that small dark tube and then can infect your eyes. Products that have oils in them can also grow bacteria over time or turn rancid. Using these products multiple times on your skin can cause breakouts or infections, leaving you struggling to regain your beautiful skin.
When in doubt, it’s best to throw it out! You do not want to use a product that causes you more harm than good. Using quality makeup also helps keep the skin young by having better ingredients in it to prevent things like dryness, breakouts, and even aging. If you are going to put a foundation on your skin everyday, you should really opt for ones that aid in your skins health and offer sun protection as well.
A great way to check is to actually smell the product. Yes- if you take a wiff and it just makes you cringe, you should toss it! If you see any separation in the liquids or oil based products, it’s time to go. Things like mascara and liquid eye liners tend to dry up and get flakey which means it’s time for a new one. You may notice with things like eye shadow or blush, they just do not hold up on your face like they used to. Although these may still be safe to use longer than the rest of the products, it is going to be annoying when you feel like you need to reapply midday.
One factor that you may not have heard spoken much about, is how you are applying the product and how often you are cleaning your applicators. If you tend to never clean your brushes, then the products will not last as long on the safe side as the bacteria builds up. Some products like pressed powder, come with their own applicator that sits on the product itself when not in use. This definitely needs to be tossed after it’s recommended life span has been met, as the applicator touches your skin and fingers then sits on the product- yuk!
So what are the general dates for which types of products?
We created this handy chart to give you an idea. Remember, anything liquid will be less than it’s equivalent in powder form!
We like to use a Sharpie to mark things like mascara when we open them to help know when the life is up!
Having beautiful radiant skin is something completely attainable but making sure you are taking care of your skin with great products to cleanse and great makeup products is a must! Plus you really do need to be drinking lots of water each day 😉