Hey guys. It’s the beginning of 2019 and the cliches of ‘new year new me’ are starting all over again. Not that anything wrong with that but usually those resolutions don’t last and for that reason, I do not participate in them. However, there is one goal that I want to achieve for 2019 and that is my ‘Low Buy’ challenge. Read more if you want to know why!

WHY
The idea that formed this blog post originated from a post by JasmineTalksBeauty on her Low Buy challenge. I have seen a few bloggers do this and it is a post that made me start thinking about certain habits that I have when it comes to makeup and most of all, how expensive it is. Makeup is expensive. All the new releases, repurchases and general cravings have plummeted my bank account. After reading Jasmine’s post, I decided to add up how much money I have spent on makeup and skincare in 2018. Holy crap.

Can I just say that I was expecting a high number, considering how much my collection has grown in a year but I was also not expecting it to be over 4 numbers? I have spent approximately €1100 on makeup in 2018. Just a moment of silence, please. I was in shock and I still am. I do want to mention that I work as a student at the weekends and my job pays fairly well and I do save the majority of the money that comes in. Nonetheless, I am about to become 20 and I have to think of the future and things that will have to be bought and paid for when the time comes. As much as I love makeup, this is not worth it. Of course, not everything about it is negative. I have a bunch of makeup that I love and adore and sometimes it did cost quite a pretty penny. It’s more the number of products that I buy that has to decrease.

I think a huge benefit from doing this challenge is the fact that I will have to work with what I got and be more mindful of what I buy. I will be able to invest more time into certain products and hopefully pan or even empty them. It is a good way to get more use out of a product instead of letting it go to waste. Which will also mean that I have more time to create looks or try/review products and hopefully create more and better content without feeling overwhelmed.

RULES
I will have to choose between two options each month. I primarily limit myself to three products each month or a limited total of €40 each month, which is optional. As Jasmine said, the limited value is for brands such as Colourpop whose products are very cheap and makes sense because of the added cost of international shipping and customs. Buying multiple (more than three) products from those brands is financially more interesting than buying three.

If I do not buy three products in a month, I have the option to carry them forward to the next month but this is not obligated to do so or necessary in my case. It comes in handy for travelling (such as my trip to Dublin in February). However, I will not be doing the same thing with the €40. I will not carry the value forward to the next month.

The limited quantity or value also includes repurchases, which I thought was an interesting idea because it encourages you to empty products in your existing collection. I have a lot of concealers which are rotting away because I love my Catrice one so much. This challenge might encourage me to start using the others more.

I’m very interested to see how this challenge will affect my makeup use and my mindfulness of buying products. I will, of course, update you over the course of my journey and I might even start doing an ‘Empties’ series, haha.
Are you planning on doing a ‘Low Buy’?
Lots of love and see you next time!