It may be a little early for Spring cleaning, but I have been in a mood to just clean out and minimize everything I own, including my makeup and closet. You may have heard of the “KonMari” method, which advises you to only hold onto things that bring you joy. I really love this concept and I recently did it with my closet, and I now plan on doing it with my makeup.

Let’s start with lipsticks. When you are getting ready, do you open up several lipstick shades looking for the right one? This happens to me every time, and I waste my time going through a fuchsia, a dark burgundy or a red, while I’m just looking for a pretty nude. I do love all my makeup, but I realized I really only use about 10% of it. I know what you are thinking, “what if one day I am in the mood to wear my red lipstick?” I am not asking you to get rid of everything, but merely suggesting you only keep things you truly love and see yourself using. There are so many times that I have watched beauty bloggers rave about a drug store lipstick or eyeshadow etc., and I run out to buy it, only to find that I am not crazy about it compared to my high-end products. Not to say that all high-end products are better, but just keep what you love and actually use. Give the rest to a friend or a relative that will actually use them, and it will bring them joy. Speaking of sharing lipsticks, make sure to clean and disinfect your lipsticks regularly.  Sometimes we put on lipstick after we eat or while we have a cold, and the germs on there could be pretty nasty. Not to worry! All you need to do is wipe off the top layer of lipstick with a tissue, spray a little alcohol on the tissue, and then wipe again. So, what’s the magic number of lipsticks you should keep? I am challenging myself to only keep 10. You can do it! Oh, and this is a great excuse to buy new ones, but ones you actually love and truly plan to use!

Aline Agopian