Beauty On Her Mind

Every once in awhile I like to take time to do a different type of post that may be related to beauty, but is not necessarily a product review or makeup look.  Today I was in a state of self-reflection, pondering how beauty-product saturated I've become in this glorious beauty realm.  I have definitely amped up my involvement in social networks like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and more recently Instagram over the past year, and I am willingly and consistently bombarded countless times a day with beauty advice, beauty products, makeup look ideas.. Let's not even step into the realm of fashion girls...because then my head just might explode!
Don't get me wrong here, I am still just excited as the next {beauty obsessed} girl about the latest and greatest beauty products out there.  And as a beauty blogger by hobby, of course I'd love to get my hands on all of it just for the glorious swatchfest/photo session/experimental experience of it all...but for me that has become part of the problem --I want to try so much!  My mind has been on massive overload as I try to remember each product that is suggested or mentioned or raved about every day.

When I think about which foundation product is on my next "must try" list, my mind becomes murky with a mess of:

{DiorChanelFitMeEsteeLauderYoungbloodBBCream}

Eyeliner is even worse: 

{YSLBobbiBrownLauraMercierUrbanDecayMaybellineChanelMAC}

Should I even start with skincare lines?  Or lipsticks?  Or even whole product lines that have not yet made it into my eager hands?  I will spare you and your eyes from having to endure more eye-straining lists as above, and just stop here. But in my state of reflection, I am curious about how others deal with the saturation that is all around them.  I'm even talking to those of you who do not beauty blog, because before I started this blog I was there, reading reviews and viewpoints & googling swatches to fuel my beauty-intrigued passion, and my must-have list grew and grew!  Do even beauty bloggers (by hobby) draw the line somewhere when trying out products and reviewing them? Are you just as overwhelmed as I am at times?  Of course there are  beauty bloggers who have been able to make a career of it with their hard work, beauty business brains, and determination whose livelihood depends on their product opinions and experiences. But to those who currently solely blog for the social, artistic and relational aspect of it all, how do you decide what to buy, try, or skip out on all together?


Here are my initial thoughts:


Keep A List.  Yes I am a list-girl and in recent years I've abandoned my paper-journal list writing and opted to type them out on the computer, but now I spend a lot more time on the computer and decided to purchase a journal a few months ago (pictured above) from Marshall's simply because it was pretty.  I really didn't know what to write down in it and so far it just has some scribbles about some ideas for new YouTube videos I want to make.  For now I am going to try and tame the product name-madness in my head, and jot down products that catch my eye or peak my interest, so I don't have any more meltdowns in the isles of Ulta trying to remember which NYX mascara it was recommended I try!  I think in this way I will be able to sift through the must-haves and the maybe-haves and then the don't-hafta-haves in a more organized manner.  I am hoping this will be a step in the right direction.


Prioritize.  So for months now I've been needing to find another skincare line that meets my current needs.  I have been using the Obagi Nu-Derm system now off and on for a year but now I feel like I have additional concerns and needs that I would like to focus on.  Hilariously enough even with reading a gazillion reviews I still haven't decided upon which one I would like to give a face test to.  My facial skincare is the most important to me, and so regardless of the price I need to pay (okay, caviar and solid gold treatments are wayyy out of this cheap-ass girl's budget for sure!) I feel as if I need to make that my focus right now.  So a new skincare line is my focus.  That I need to act upon.  Right now.  (If you are experiencing déjà vu like I am, you aren't going crazy...I've even blogged at myself in previous posts to try and make myself choose before - ha!)


Know When To Say When.  I've seen several girls recently like Amber from Lip Gloss and Flip Flops and others on Twitter who have started "Project 5-Pan" or various forms of it.  I admire this because this indicates they have realized their beauty collection has grown and some items are getting ignored that are actually great products that they want to show some love to, and the bonus is that at the end they will finally see the bottom of that pan!  Heck even I have to admit that the blush I bought just last week will probably last me until I'm 90 years old because of how pigmented it is...so what am I doing adding to my blush collection?? Lol ;)  Don't freak out here!  I do admire those who choose this, but I'm not one for that journey for now.  ;)  Along these lines, I think it is important to exercise a "know when to say when" mentality when you look at products.  I have already begun to implement this, for example, when I was looking at WetnWild polishes a couple weeks ago and had in my hand 3 very similar polishes my first thought was that I should just purchase them all.  Sure, they are only $2.99 each and hey that is a great deal, but then when I thought about it I realized I really didn't need them and then came to the conclusion that  maybe just the experience of one of these would make my life feel fulfilled somehow *cue angelic singing* --should I now confess to you the fact that trying to paint my nails for swatching on the blog stresses me out to no end?!? That totally didn't play a part in this decision- haha! ;)

So in conclusion, for now I will:

List

Prioritize

Say When

I would love to hear all of your beauty perspectives on this for sure!  How do you control the inner beauty beast, or do you allow her to roam free?  What are your ideas?

Now my only problem with my paper-journal list idea is that many ideas come to me in the shower.... Hmmm...

TMI?! ;)

As a final final note I would like to clarify that I although I have managed to make myself confused at  times,  I do not frown upon those who CAN try any and all products and at the same time also do not look down on those who choose to try out very few products!  It all depends on many factors which can include income, lifestyle, needs and even desires!  I am here to have fun and learn from others and at the same time express my own self... which I happen to enjoy quite a lot. ;)