Beauty Challenge -- Twelve Months of Beauty Inventory

[haleyvvvv]

[EDIT-Updated to not limit to a year, legacy posts for all years.]

A few years ago I was inspired by a challenge on Instagram and we did a makeup inventory. ✨❄️December 2022 Challenge - 12 Days of Makeup Inventory - Show Off and Catalog Your Collection!!❄️✨

I was a little behind on planning this year (job interviews, life, not being able to login to the BIC), so I thought we could make this a yearly challenge for 2024+ and broaden it across all beauty categories. 

Why participate?

• I know I went back to my posts to find "dupes" for things that were limited edition (Melt Pumpkin King, in my case).
• It's a good idea to look through your products every bit to review for quality and cleanliness.
• Curation is important.
• Knowing how much in your stash can help with your Low/No Buy or keeping an eye on your backups. 
• The fun of organizing your collection!!

Rules 

Please no negative comments about the size or contents of others' collections, this is a place to celebrate our collections. Self-reflection is always welcome though 💖. Please don't take this as an impetus to declutter (unless you want to!). 

I'm going to try to get a little contemplative with mine, to see if I would purchase again or not. But don't feel obligated to join that part!!

Timeline

• January - Face Primers, Nail Polish
• February - Foundations, Concealers, Cleansers and Mists
• March - Bronzers and Contours (singles), Serums and Treatments
• April - Blushes (singles), Moisturizer and Oils
• May - Highlighters (singles), Sheet Masks
• June - Face Palettes, Non-Sheet Masks, Tools (Brushes, etc.)
• July - Eye Primers, Single Eyeshadows (free standing or in custom palettes), Body Cleansers, Body Scrubs, Body Lotion, Body Glitter
• August - Eyeshadow Palettes, Shampoo, Conditioner
• September - Brow Products, Eyeliners, Mascaras, Hair Treatments 
• October - Lip Balms, Lip Liners, Lip Glosses, Perfume Samples
• November - Lipsticks, Travel Sized Perfumes
• December - Setting Powders, Setting Sprays, Full Sized Perfumes and Body Sprays

[PDXXXX]

O.K. I am loving this idea as I'm really trying to use what I have with things likeShop Your Stash Challenge: Winter 2026 ❄️ while weeding out the old and honing in on the gaps in my collection. So, thank you @haleyvvvv !

FIRST (DRUMROLL) PRIMERS:

Of these I probably use the Fenty Pro Filter (I really need to try the new formulation if anyone has feedback on it and am holding onto this bottle for dear life), MILK MAKEUP Cloud Glow Priming Foam With Brightening Turmeric (love, highly recommend if you're a red or sensitive skin type and am my second bottle now) and Iconic London Underglow Blurring Primer 0.91 oz/27 ml the most. I would also love it if more primers included SPF like the ciele prime & PROTECT SPF 30+ Smoothing Primer .

I've also included three sort of hybrid primer/thinners here. I think the ONE/SIZE by Patrick Starrr B12 Base Thinner Luminous Vitamin Pearl Boosting Serum 1 oz / 30 mL is amazing as someone who likes lighter coverage. I'll admit the Dior has not gotten a ton of action from me and might get cut. And, I've yet to try the rhode Mini Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence 2.2oz/65ml but am curious to see if it lives up to the hype.

SECOND, NAILS FROM A GIRL WHO MOSTLY DOES PEDIS ONLY:

This made me realize it is REALLY time to trash some of these as they are old/separating/expired.

Of these I'm keeping all but one red and then only the Deborah Lippmann "Tiny Dancer" shade which is the third from the left in the middle row. All in all I love Deborah Lippmann's shades so while it will not only be nice to clear out some space, this is a great reminder to grab a replacement of my beloved "Tiny Dancer" if it's still around and a fun excuse to see if she has any new shades I just have to have.

I'm looking forward to reading through everyone's posts. I'm also looking for primer recommendations for dry/sensitive skin so if you have any you love PUH-LEEZE I'd love to hear about them!

[Titian06]

Primers

Yea, I have a lot! 

- Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder -Universal Primer Universal Radiant. I use this late spring to early fall.

- Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer Value Size - 2 oz/ 60 mL  I use this the rest of the year.  I've been using this primer for many, many years.  DM is the only one to unseat it at least for part of the year.

 

Nail Polish (lots of stuff!)

Spoiler

Unworn (~120)
Left & center bins I plan to wear; right bin is questionable.

Swatch Sticks
I have to keep the swatch sticks in the closet because the cats chew on them, which breaks the.  The box on the left containe the swatches for the above nail polish.  The orange container holds some combos I'm interested in trying.  The rest of the individual containers hold swatches of my stamping polish (see below).

Worn (~500)
The drawers in the center contain the swatch sticks for my worn nail polishes.  The bin to the left contain the necessities for creating swatch sticks:  blank swatch sticks, label maker, extra cartridges, jars to dry the wet swatchs, quick dry top coat, etc.

Stamping
Three boxes stacked at right are stamping polish.  Two boxes stacked are the plates.  One box is cotton rounds/squares (the cats like to chew on the plastic bags and the cotton, hence, the box).  The box with blue contains stamping tools:  stampers, scrapers, graber claws for the cotton, etc.

Misc.
Top coats, base coats, treatments, cuticle oil, replacement brushes, nail glue, etc.

 

[haleyvvvv]

First of all, love your primers, @Titian06 !! Love your having these that work for you. The DM is a surprising fave for me (I didn't think I would like it since I have dry skin, but it's SO good).

And those nail polishes!! I love how organized they all are. 

[Titian06]

Thanks, @haleyvvvv !  I didn't plan to have so many nail polishes...it just sorta happened...🤣

[missjeanie]

@Titian06 Oh wow... to just see all those polishes I would be like a kid in a candy store!  

[Titian06]

@missjeanie - If your ever in the neighborhood, stop by! 😘

[Samtian]

@Titian06 WHOOOO that collection ❤️ 

[Titian06]

Thanks, @Samtian ! 💞

[Samtian]

@haleyvvvv Thanks for the challenge again this year. @itsfi Thanks for the reminder about primers!

I had forgotten about a little drawer I have that has samples in it. So I found some primers in there I didn't remember existed, and I've set them aside. In another drawer I have other various samples but most of those I have to research what they are so I'm not worrying about them. One of the DM balms is tinted and doesn't work with my skin so I use it now for eye shadow primer. 

Primers (mostly just face)-

Nail Polish- I have more floating in the great unknown of the house, but here are the once I recently went through.

[haleyvvvv]

Fabulous collection, @Samtian !! I'm sorry to hear that the tinted DM.balm doesn't work for you (is it a shade match issue or is the formula different?) 

And the polishes are so pretty; the yellow ones are especially catching my eyes

[missjeanie]

@Samtian Do you have a favourite primer in the bunch?

[itsfi]

"So I found some primers in there I didn't remember existed"

lolololol, if I had a $1 for everytime I said or thought that about a beauty product, including primers @Samtian ... 🤣 How do you like the Smashbox color correcting primer?

Oh, your nail polish collection - that Deborah Lippmann one is so pretty, love the shift on it. What a blast from the past with those Formula X polishes. This reminds me I still need to sort through and inventory my nail polish  collection.  

[Samtian]

@itsfi I like it well enough. I don't think it works as well as Dr. Jart but it doesn't separate so bonus for that. 

[Titian06]

@Samtian - You still have Sephora Formula X polishes! 💜

[Samtian]

@Titian06 

[itsfi]

January 2026 - Face Primers, Nail Polish

Face Primers

Face Primers (as of 1.1.2026)

13 total products*, all in varying sizes and stages of use. 

• ciele prime & PROTECT SPF 30+ Smoothing Primer is the newest full size in my collection. It's a nice primer; I tend to reach for it more in the warmer months if I'm not using my actual sunscreen as a primer.
• Dr. Jart+ Mini Cicapair Color Correcting Treatment SPF 30 15 mL/ .50 fl oz - not sure but the brand may have recently reformulated and repackaged this product. This is the old version. This is my last mini jar of the older version but I have several deluxe sample sizes of it so I should have plenty of time to test out the new version and/or find a suitable replacement if, in fact, it has been reformulated. 
• This is my second full size bottle of the DIOR Dior Forever Glow Veil Makeup Primer 1oz / 30ml. 
• I'm not sure if I've ever purchased a full size of the GUERLAIN Parure Gold 24K Radiance Primer 1.2 oz / 35 mL but I've gone through quite a few deluxe samples and really enjoy this product. It's similar (but different, but similar) to the YSL primer (see below) but more heavily fragranced and I want to say a slightly different consistency - well, one way to find out. I'll use them both sometime during the year to compare.
• Hourglass Nº 28™ Primer Serum was a HG for me about a decade ago when I was really struggling with very, very dry skin. My skin is more normal-to-dry in the fall and winter, sometimes leaning very dry so I like to keep a mini of this in my collection just in case my skin needs a little more oomph before I apply makeup. My skin can be sensitive but the essential oils in this did not cause any irritation; that said, your mileage may vary so if you do have sensitive skin or if you are sensitive to essential oils, please look over the INCI list carefully and definitely test the product before applying it all over your face.
• Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base Moisturizer & Primer with Vitamin C + Hyaluronic Acid 1.7 oz/... is a longstanding 🐐 winter primer for me. I don't know if the brand just renamed and repackaged the product or if there's a new formulation. In any event, I have a travel size and a couple of deluxe samples to work through first. 
• Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat Blur Face Primer Blur Primer Gold is a beautiful primer. I've gone through several promo gwp deluxe sized samples as well as a full size (years ago, maybe pre-BT/BIC?)
• Anna Sui Gel Foundation Primer has an ... interesting ... texture. It's bouncy and is one of those formulations where you can make a dent in it and then like a starfish, the part of the product that was disturbed, bounces back or regenerates itself as if nothing happened. Reminds me of the Klairs Freshly Juiced Vitamin E Mask. It's alright, I don't reach for it much. The brand repackaged and reformulated this product last year, possibly in 2024.
• On the fence about Gucci Hydrating Silk Priming Serum 1. My first few uses I was all on board and was a little worried about that given its price tag - Gucci gets enough of my $$$ as it is. But then the fragrance in this one came through very intensely on a few subsequent uses. It may have been that my senses were a little more heightened or sensitive during that period but I haven't picked it up since. I plan to give it another try this month and will decide after that whether this stays or goes.
• Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder - Tinted Primer & Foundation Universal for some reason does not work well on my skin. The tinted version however, wears beautifully. I have a few mini's of this one; one was decluttered a couple of years ago, some have been passed along or re-homed to others who appreciate it more than I do, and then there's one. My skin has changed from a couple of years ago so I'll give it another go. 
• REFY Glow and Sculpt Face Serum Primer with Niacinamide 1.4 oz / 40 mL has not been open and given how many primers I already have in use (and how many I enjoy out of this bunch), I'm inclined to either donate or give this away. I feel like it'll be better served by going to someone who will get more use out of it than I will. 
• TOM FORD Traceless Soft Matte Primer with Pore-Smoothing Effect 1 oz/ 30 mL is one I've been meaning to try. I've had my makeup done with this as the primer and liked how it performed, but that was also with a professional makeup artist doing my makeup. Will be interested to see how this fares; going to set it aside for use in a future makeup capsule.
• They're not joking when they say this ONE/SIZE by Patrick Starrr Secure The Sweat Waterproof Mattifying Primer 1 oz / 30 g grips makeup in place. Whoowhee! The problem I have with it is that it pills with quite a few of my base products, especially my skin tints, which makes up quite a bit of my foundation collection. I'm sure there's a foundation or two (or more) in my stash that this will play very nicely with; I just have to find it.

* Some of these products I have multiples of so I have more than 13 items but as far as different type of products, there are 13 in the primer category.

Okay, my plan is to cycle through these primers and see if there are any I can move along out of my collection. I'll come back to update this thread when I've made some headway in my testing. 

Nail Polish

I've pared down my collection quite a bit; it's not where it was pre-covid but it's much more manageable. I was in the middle of another declutter project with it when I got sidetracked (in part because I was looking (and looking and looking ...) for a box of polish I could have sworn I put somewhere in the garage before the remodel. 🤔 I want to find that, sort through and finish that declutter project first and then will come back to post about that collection. Stay tuned. 

Thank you @haleyvvvv! It was nice to retrieve all my primers last year from their various spaces. I've been trying to reorganize my collection and last year I started doing it by brand and putting them in makeup bags but that only works well for certain brands, so this has given me an opportunity to both revisit my organization plans and to do another round of assessing what stays and what gets donated / re-homed.

[missjeanie]

I was convinced I could do primers fairly easily @itsfi .  Then just reading your post alone I realized I have two of the ones you posted that I wasn't mentally adding to my numbers.... could be more challenging than initially anticipated!

[itsfi]

It’s like a good party @missjeanie. Other primers show up as they hear how much fun everyone is having. 😉 I have 2 to add to my list; one that is in my pan it challenge that I completely blanked on including here. 🤪

[Samtian]

@itsfi I second @haleyvvvv and love your notes. That is so funny about the DM balm, I wish the tinted version worked for me, but the Universal oh my hg so much hg!

[Titian06]

I'm with you, @Samtian !  I love the DM Universal balm!