Shop Your Stash Challenge: Spring 2026 🦋

[itsfi]

Hey there BIC beauties! Spring is here! 🦋 The transition from winter to spring can serve as a time to refresh for many. Some do a deep clean and declutter of their homes; some swap out heavier cold weather fabrics for lighter ones, or heavier skincare products to lighter cleansers, toners, moisturizers, etc. Or, for some, it's about introducing, slowly, or all in one fell swoop, spring colors to their home decor and/or their  makeup and clothing options.

As we move towards longer, sunnier days and warmer weather, consider taking some time to look through your beauty collection to pick out a few items to focus on using this spring. It can be for a month, the entire spring season, or any amount of time in between. There are a host of ways to go about this challenge, including, but not limited to, some of the approaches mentioned here.   

You can start on the spring equinox (March 20, 2026), or on April 1 if the beginning of a month suits you better, or after you've shopped the upcoming spring savings event or completed the current Spring Beauty Challenge. Shopping your stash could mean using the new beauties you've picked up during either or both of those events. 

What Is "Shopping Your Stash"?

"Shopping your stash" is the practice of using / making the most of the beauty products in your existing collection. Check out the posts below for more info regarding:

• Why Shop Your Stash / Benefits of Shopping Your Stash; and
• How To Shop Your Stash. 

If you're interested in or looking to work on a year long project with the aim of using up / finishing or hitting pan on products check out the Pan It! - 2026 Challenge thread. For those wondering, what's the difference between "Shop Your Stash" and the Pan It! Challenge or project pan?, that's great question, because they do have some similarities to them. Everyone has their own approach to panning projects. I've briefly noted in the spoiler below how I look at each and how I approach both challenges.

Spoiler

• I use the Pan It! Challenge to work through products over the course of the year, with the aim of trying to use up the product, hit pan or to see how much I can get through in a year. The Pan It! Challenge has been great for accountability and encouragement. For myself, I have, in the past picked a smaller number of products to focus on panning during the year and the items I select are usually made in an effort to try to get myself into a routine of using them or reaching for something and being consistent with it. The monthly check-ins on that thread help me hold myself accountable, and let's face it, they often spur me to use one or more of the items I've set aside for the pan it! challenge before it's time to check in, which usually causes me to be better about using those items at the start of the next month. 
  
  
• The Shop Your Stash challenge, on the other hand, for me, at least, have a more seasonal approach to them, whether due to the product's functionality or because it's something I want to focus on for a particular period of time (but not the entire year). For instance, while there are no hard line rules on what shades to wear during a particular season, I am more likely to wear deeper tones or do a smokey eye more often in the winter season. In that vein, in an effort to help me actually use those types of products in my collection, I may identify 1 or 2 blush shades or eyeshadows to primarily rotate through during the winter months. That's not to say that I won't use other products or buy other items but my focus is to try to get as much use out of what I already have during that time period. 

[itsfi]

A quick update on my spring Shop Your Stash usage over the last 4-6 weeks. 

All done with these beauties 🙌!

These are works in progress, but have been seeing consistent use (even if not frequent use for some items) so far.

Spoiler

Skincare: 

• Finished the mini Tatcha The Clarifying Clay Mask and DRMTLGY G(OAT) Cleanser. 
  
  
• I have 1/4 of the tube left of #Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser for Gentle Daily Wash 3.38 oz/100 mL # and given that I'm washing my face more often these days, I should be able to get through it next month even if I'm using it sparingly each time.
  
  
• PinkWonder Tamanu Hero Ampoule has been getting some use here and there but I haven't reached for the Dr. Idriss The Depuffer Redness Reducing + Depuffing Roll-On Serum 1.35 oz at all and need to remedy that next month, which shouldn't be a problem given that puffiness and redness will be on hand. 😁

Makeup:

• Everything has been getting some usage, with the L'Oreal brow pen, the Gucci Hydrating Silk Priming Serum 1 and the SEPHORA COLLECTION Best Skin Ever 16 Hour Natural Finish Liquid Foundation (gratis)(mine is the original version from 2022/2023) being the items in this group I've reached for most often over the last four week.
  
  
• One of the things I love about Shop Your Stash is how it can help me rediscover products in my collection and how it can give me some much needed time to discover how a product might work best for me. That latter was the case this month with the ONE/SIZE by Patrick Starrr Secure The Sweat Waterproof Mattifying Primer 1 oz / 30 g. It's got a very specific function as far as primers go and will not be an all over the face primer for me - it works best on my nose and  around my mouth and chin - the oiliest of oily areas on my face. So far, it's worn well under the MAC Cosmetics Studio Radiance Serum-Powered 24HR Buildable Hydrating Foundation, sample of the Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez True to Myself Natural Matte Longwear Foundation ​ and NATASHA DENONA Hy-Glam Brightening & Hydrating Medium to Full Coverage Crease Proof Serum Concealer. 👍
  
  

Dark Spot Treatment:

• All in rotation, all working well so far, with the Topicals and Eadem items really offering up some great first impressions. More detailed thoughts on these beauties on the Fading away dark spots, sun spots, or post-acne hyperpigmentation  thread. 

Hair Care:

• RŌZ Mini Santa Lucia Heat Protectant Hair Styling Oil .5 oz / 15 ml has been used up. Yaaay! It got off to a rough start but I ended up really liking how it performed once I figured out how to best use it for my hair type (fine strands, but with a lot of strands, well, less than when I was younger but still a decent amount)
  
  
• Slowly remembering to reach for the dae Cactus Fruit 3-in-1 Styling Cream Original - this has a very specific use in my styling routine - I use just the teensiest bit and run it through the ends of my curls to give them a more piece-y, less uniform look. I wonder if I'll ever get through this mini size.
  
  
• Act+Acre 2% Stem Cell H-2 Grow Complex ™ Scalp Serum For Thicker-Looking Hair remains untouched. 😞 I know, I know; I'm just going to stand in the corner now. 🤣
  
  

Fragrance:

• This BORNTOSTANDOUT Fragrance Discovery Set took a backseat to other scents and the fact that my sense of smell was slightly compromised by allergies more often this month - it hasn't been as bad as in years past in terms of my sinuses <<knocks on wood>> but I decided to hold off just to keep my routine simpler. I'm moving this discovery set to the front of the queue.

Foils:

• ILIA Sunshift Weightless Silky Cream Bronzer with 12-hour Wear and ILIA Lightshift Weightless Silky Cream Highlighter with 12-hour Wear - we've got good news and bad news. Good news - all the highlighter and bronzer shades in the Ilia sample packet have been used. 👍 Bad news - I really like the bronzer. Ack! 💸 Better news - I being good with my low/no buy 👊 or, at least, making every effort to. 
• Will be aiming to rotate through the YSL and the Fenty lip sample packets more often over the next two months. I'll plan to make at least one shade my go-to shade for at least one day during each week. 🤞 
• The Natura Bissa Eye Cream sample has been added to a shelf in my medicine cabinet and will be (hopefully) incorporated into my morning skincare/makeup routine in May. With allergies in bloom (lol), now will be a good time to put it to the test. 

Overall, pretty good progress since the official start of spring. I still have a lot to work through. My main points of focus over the next month will be those lip sample packets, the hair serum, and the discovery set. 

[Kaycay]

hi everyone! this will be my first time doing this challenge and im excited! i have a lot of products that just sit in a drawer and i really wanted to be more intentional about using them this year!

I only have a few bits of makeup that i want to make a point of using

• Glossier Cloud Paint Plush Blush Billow 
• Glossier Cloud Paint Plush Blush Puff 
• Summer Fridays Blush Butter Balm Hydrating Cream Blush with Peptides Sweet Rosé - cool baby pink 
• LANEIGE JuicePop Box Hydrating & Lightweight Oil Lip Tint K-Pop Pink 

i thought i’d focus on picking a few softer coloured blushes and also try to figure out the best way to use the purple one! the lip product is the juicebox tint from laneige in k-pop. the brightness was way out of my comfort zone but i find it’s actually nice and just a pretty, perfect lip, pink when you put it on. I really like the formula as well.

My haircare collection is mainly about using up some nearly done products 

• OUAI Detangling and Frizz Fighting Leave In Conditioner 
• OUAI Hydrating Scalp Serum for Healthy, Fuller Looking Hair 2 oz / 60 mL 
• JVN Complete Blowout Styling Milk 3 oz / 90 mL 
• K&#233;rastase Nutritive 8H Magic Night Hair Serum for Dry Hair 3.04 oz / 90 ml 

i want to pick up the crown affair night serum and leave in conditioner during the sale so i want to finish up these, I really like the kerastase but the ouai leave in is kinda underwhelming to me and i know i really like the crown affair leave in so i’d rather have that in my collection. the ouai scalp serum is nice but i recently fell victim to viral marketing and got the genesis strengthening serum that i want test out so i gonna finish up these last bits of that and move on. The JVN is actually a pretty nice blowout serum but i’ve had it forever and i want to use it up haha.

Skincare is by far my biggest category but my plan is to work through these during the whole season not use them all at once. my goal here is consistency as i tend to be all over the map both with what skincare im using as well as with if i even use it at all.

 

• Tower 28 Beauty SOS Daily Hypochlorous Acid Spray for Breakouts & Redness 4 oz/ 120 mL 
• Summer Fridays Jet Lag Overnight Eye Serum for Fine Lines & Wrinkles with Gentle Retinol Blend 0.5 o... 
• Summer Fridays Jet Lag Skin Soothing Hydration Mist 1.7 oz/50 ml 
• Glow Recipe Prickly Pear Peptide Vegan Mucin Serum for Redness & Fine Lines 1.35 oz/40 mL 
• rhode Caffeine Reset Sculpting Cream Mask 1.7 oz/50 mL 
• IOPE XMD Stem III Clinical Recovery Serum PDRN Skincare for Anti-Aging 1.01 oz/30ml 
• IOPE Expert Retinol RX™ 2% Reti-Jection Serum for Wrinkles 1.01 oz/30ml 
• INNBEAUTY PROJECT Recharge Gel Cream Smoothing & Plumping Moisturizer 
• POV Drench It Priming Milk
• POV Drip It Glowing Skin Serum
• Numbuzin No. 3 Glowing Essence
• Numbuzin No. 9 NAD+  Bio Lifting Essence
• Peach & Lilly Power Cocktail Lactic Acid Serum
• Medicube 16% Azelaic Acid Serum
• Bubble Cloud Surf Moisturizer 

this is a mix of some new products I want to try out and some old stuff i want to finish. 
I picked two of my lighter moisturizers for the hopefully warmer weather that is coming up as well as some light but hydrating/glowy serums. To me warm weather is about dewy skin so that was my main focus when picking products. I also have a few newish/buzzy ingredients to test with the NAD essence, the PDRN serum, and the spicule infused retinol. I don’t really know/follow the influencer behind pov beauty but i will say i really like using those two products under my makeup, which i think was the goal of them so they succeeded i guess haha. and also i was once again influenced with the numbuzin no 3 essence iykyk hehe but so far its very nice.

im excited to see what the outcomes of this more focused routine will be! and to seeing what everyone else is choosing to use

[danielledanielle]

Yaaaaay! @Kaycay , welcome!  I'm oddly excited, so forgive that, I love seeing people's collections... Beautiful pics

[Kaycay]

i love seeing what other people have and are using too so i get you haha! thanks for the warm welcome 

[itsfi]

Ohhh wow @Kaycay, your shop your stash selections are fantastic! 😍 I spy a handful of products I've enjoyed using, and ones that have been well regarded by BIC, as well as a few items that I've wondered about or that find themselves in and out of my shopping cart. 🛒 

Yes, yes, yes to Numbuzin! 👍 Your makeup choices are giving fresh and fabulous spring feels. So happy you'll be joining us for the challenge and looking forward to hearing about your progressa and thoughts on your beauties this season! 

[Kaycay]

yay i'm glad to hear i've got some well loved picks! i'm really excited to have a few main blushes to work with, blush is a category i keep buying in but most of them stay untouched im hoping this will inspire a bit of a spark for actually using what i own. and i think im gonna try keeping my jet lag mist right on my night stand so that i actually reach for it though out the day my skin drys out so quickly especially with the up and down weather we've been having here so fingers crossed having it near by will help me stay a bit more hydrated.

[danielledanielle]

Spring Things

[itsfi]

Love seeing you use the good stuff @danielledanielle ❣️ Kudos to you for including a RB liquid blush in the mix - the phrase "a little goes a long way" was meant for that line of products. 

Oh, tell me you have a back up for the Ami Colé?! 😔

[danielledanielle]

Thank you!  Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez Soft Pinch Liquid Blush Virtue ... Yeah, this is going to be an effort.  I do like mixing it with foundation and using it as a base for other complexion/cheek products.  I hope I've met a debt, but I can't tell!  

And yes, definitely have an Ami Colé back up 🙃😔,@itsfi , I'm using this with other brow products so it lasts a little longer. 

[itsfi]

I mean, it could be worse with the RB; it could have been barely any product. Happy that's not the case @danielledanielle and her liquid products are really good bang for the buck, but I have to say, the mini's are a nice addition. Even those will last me for ages. 

Phew, on the Ami Colé. I waffle a lot on whether to use up the unopen items I have or to hold onto them. I have several already open and in use products from the brand so I don't need to make a final decision on that any time soon. lol. I stocked up on her lip oils and am good with the blush stick. The tinted moisturizer I'm going to try to use in the summer, to mix with untinted mineral sunscreens that leave a white cast on me. That pairing should get the TM shade to be a better match and help with the white cast from the SPF. 🤞 I'm using her brow pencil for when I am trying out clear brow gels / promades or doing a throwdown with a few of them, savoring it but also putting it to good use.. 

[Samtian]

Here are the palette's I'll be working on for "April". The colors used will be the "work friendly" ones...most likely lol. 

1. MUFE 3
2. TF Peanut Butter and Jelly
3. UD x Gwen
4. ABH Riviera
5. CP Sandstone

The - and x are colors I will not be using. - is "ok" and x is no likey. 

[itsfi]

Love how you're making your way through your eyeshadow palettes @Samtian! 😍 And how you are keeping track of the shades you like and don't care for. Looks like a super fun April for eye looks. Your work environs are the ultimate test conditions for whether a shadow will hold up!

[Samtian]

@itsfi Thank you! They really are haha. Not easy for sure. 

[itsfi]

Here go we. My product lineup for this spring's Shop Your Stash challenge.

SKINCARE

• Products:  2 cleansers + 2 serums and a clarifying mask that I have about 1/4 of the jar left.
• Goals: Get through as much of the cleansers and serums as I can. Use up the mask before the end of spring.

DRMTLGY (G)OAT Cleanser

#Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser for Gentle Daily Wash 3.38 oz/100 mL 

Tatcha The Clarifying Clay Mask

Pinkwonder Tamanu Hero Ampoule

Dr. Idriss The Depuffer Redness Reducing + Depuffing Roll-On Serum 1.35 oz *

MAKEUP

• Products: 2 primers, 1 foundation, 2 brow products, 1 lipstick and a highlighter/glow drops
• Goals: Rotate the brow products all summer long. Use up as much of the foundation, highlighter/glow drops and lipstick as I can with stretch goal of trying to get through half of what remains of the foundation. With respect to the primers, figure out the best usage for the One/Size; decide whether the Gucci primer stays or goes from my stash. 

Gucci Hydrating Silk Priming Serum 1 

ONE/SIZE by Patrick Starrr Mini Secure The Sweat Waterproof Mattifying Primer 0.33 oz / 10 mL 

SEPHORA COLLECTION Best Skin Ever 16 Hour Natural Finish Liquid Foundation (I have the original version) - a bottle was sent as gratis in 2022 (?) but this bottle is one I purchased myself after using that bottle

Typology Glow Drops T31 5% Vitamin C + Aloe Vera

Fenty Icon Lipstick sample card

Valentino Brow Trio Eyebrow Liner (I have the original version)

L'Oreal Paris Faux Brow Eyebrow Tint Double Brush Brow Pen - Dark Brunette (Ulta Beauty World)

DARK SPOT TREATMENTS

• Products: 3 different types of treatments meant to reduce the appearance of dark spots (or get rid of them altogether over time)
• Goals: Put these products to the test against various spots on my face, and vis-à-vis each other in a friendly pursuit of which spot treatment works best.

Topicals Faded Tranexamic Acid Dark Spot Patches for Hyperpigmentation 20 Patches/pack - these were included in a SEPHORiA 2026: Los Angeles swag bag but I had purchased a box myself when the product was first released (this is the box I purchased)

#Dr. Idriss Major Fade Hyper Serum Dark Spot + Hyperpigmentation Treatment with Niacinamide and Glycerin 2 x / .48 oz - also included in SEPHORiA 2026: Los Angeles swag bag and purchased by me at some point after the product was released

EADEM The Mark Advanced Targeted Dark Spot Concentrate with 5% Tranexamic Acid, 1% Alpha Arbutin & 1... - Eadem products have worked well on my skin and hoping this continues that streak. Wondering if this is intended to replace the brand's first product, the Dark Spot Serum.

HAIR CARE

• Products: 1 each of a hair serum, styling cream and styling oil
• Goals: Use up the styling cream and see if the styling oil is worth picking up in a full size; get into a consistent cadence with respect to the scalp serum

Act+Acre 2% Stem Cell H-2 Grow Complex ™ Scalp Serum For Thicker-Looking Hair *

dae Cactus Fruit 3-in-1 Styling Cream Original 

RŌZ Mini Santa Lucia Heat Protectant Hair Styling Oil .5 oz / 15 ml 

FRAGRANCE:

• Product: Fragrance Discovery Set 
• Goal: Go through the fragrances in this set

BORNTOSTANDOUT Fragrance Discovery Set - this brand was listed as one to try on my Beauty Goals for 2026 

FOILS

• Products: 2 cream bronzer samples, 2 highlighters, 4 lip glosses, and a tinted eye cream that I'll use as a eye-cream-and-color-corrector-in-one-before-my-under-eye-concealer in the mornings
• Goals: Use up the bronzer, highlighter and eye cream, and at least one of the lip items. Thoughts on the products will be posted to the Foil Challenge thread at the end of the month in which the product is used up.

ILIA Sunshift Weightless Silky Cream Bronzer with 12-hour Wear *

ILIA Lightshift Weightless Silky Cream Highlighter with 12-hour Wear *

Yves Saint Laurent YSL Candy Glaze Lip Gloss Stick #

Natura Bisse Diamond Cocoon Sheer Eye Cream *

Etcetera, etcetera:

• 30 products to make my way through this spring. 

• Unlike the winter edition, I don't plan on adding more items to the challenge throughout the season, unless there's a product or sample release that makes it worthwhile (e.g., 14 or 30 day supply of X where it would be a good fit to put it to a test in a given month). 

• I'll post a summary about product usage around the end of each month. With 30 items this season, I'll just touch on the products, if any, that I've finished that month or items over which I've made significant progress or that I've arrived at a notable conclusion over, such as, for example, "X isn't working for me at all so I'm going to remove it from my collection altogether." 

Products listed above with an asterisk (*) next to its name means it is the first time I am putting the item to use; all other products have been used in some form or fashion, either in my routine, for testing, or otherwise, leading up to the start of this spring edition of Shop Your Stash.

[heavyhedon]

@itsfi , love all the samples. I'd like to do that too. 

[itsfi]

Great to see you @heavyhedon. If you have some samples, foils or deluxe samples that you're looking to work through, jump on in. I found my stash of them piling up and rotating through a few here and there every so often helped. Last season I had some I did by months, others by the whole season; it just depended on what the product was. 

[heavyhedon]

@itsfi Slogging through them to choose now, LOL. 

[Samtian]

@itsfi Those are some exciting items! I like the idea of testing the dark spot correctors at the same time against each other. Can't wait to hear your thoughts on everything. 

[itsfi]

@Samtian, I think pitting them against one another at the same time will be a good way to see how they perform in general and compared to one another. I mean sure they'll be used on different dark spots but I think I can still get some good info about how well they perform this way.

[danielledanielle]

Low-key awaiting thoughts on this, too @itsfi