Project Pan - Slowly but Surely

For probably the last year I've been getting into the habit of switching out my make-up on a weekly basis. Typically every Sunday night I sit on my bed and spread out all of my make-up to decide what I'm going to wear that week. It's actually become something I look forward to doing as a way to cap off the weekend, get ready for the new week and occasionally finally make up my mind on a product and actually throw it away!

Usually there are 2 or 3 things that make it in the rotation every week, such as whatever mascara I'm using, my eyebrow pencil and a certain eye shadow primer which I'll get to in a minute...but for the most part it's all different. That's sort of my rule when doing this every week; each week every product (except for the above 3) has to be different from the previous week. The goal for doing this every week was to get through what I already own and as a side benefit it's been saving me a little money in the process because I'm constantly having to stretch my will power against buying new things until I finish something else.

I can't say it's fool-proof (my will power isn't THAT strong) but so far it's been going well. So I thought it might be fun to show 10 things that I'm working on this week - I can't guarantee that by the end of this week any of them will look any more used but it makes me feel productive, OK?!

Nars bronzer in 'Laguna'

By now everyone is familiar with this cult-favourite I'm sure, this bronzer is probably now associated with the word "Laguna" more often than the actual beach. This was actually my first Nars purchase because like a lemming I perked up when this promised a certain beachy-bronze glow. Unfortunately for me this is more of an Oompa-Loompa at the beach glow - NOT THE SAME. I can't wear this as a bronzer or a contour, it's too intense - but my plan is to use this up as an eye shadow crease colour instead. I find it's much more useful this way even though it will take me a dog's age to get through.

Laura Mercier oil-free foundation primer

I received a deluxe sample of this primer in it's original form (The one with oil? That sounds gross...) and it worked like a dream! So when I decided to buy the full-size I opted instead for the oil-free version because that's always better, right? WRONG. For an oil-free product this stuff is SLICK on me. It's shine-city in a matter of hours. There's not much to say really other than I don't like this formulation. Perhaps in the future I'll pick up the original primer but once I'm finished with this I think I'll move on to Rimmel's new primer.

Maybelline Baby Lips Dr. Rescue in 'Coral Crave'

I really liked the original Baby Lips in the blue packaging so last Winter I thought what could be better, right? Baby Lips with a stronger formula for the colder months! I've been painfully working my way through this ever since. I don't find that it's any better than the original, it feels like water on the lips. The staying power is weak and the "menthol" smell really gets to me. The colour is nice but it's not enough for me to buy it again.

MAC Prep + Prime eye shadow primer in 'Light'

I've been working on finishing this for what feels like forever. If you like this product then it's certainly worth the cost since it'll last you a long ass time. For me this primer is just OK, which pains me to say since I include it in my weekly rotation every week just to use it up. I would say that my eye shadow does last longer when I use it but not by much. The texture of this is weird, I prefer sticky eye shadow primers (such as Urban Decay's Primer Potion) and this one feels strange, like a matte mousse, if that makes sense.

MAC eyeshadows in 'Bisque' and 'Patina'

I like these two eye shadows. 'Bisque' was actually my first MAC eye shadow I ever bought so it's bitter-sweet to have gone through so much of it in a way. On the other hand, I bought 'Bisque' 3-4 years ago and I still haven't finished it so I don't know what that says. It's a beige-y cream matte colour that works with lots of looks. 'Patina' is also really pretty, it says its a frost but to me it's more of a satin finish (Why does MAC always do that?). Anyway, it's a nice crease colour but I don't find it packs much of a punch. If you're looking for a subtle crease colour this is a good option.

Covergirl Clean Pressed Powder in 'Ivory'

You can tell this is old just by the packaging. This powder is OK, it's not particularly long-lasting or mattifying. My problem is the colour, I chose 'Ivory' when I really should have gone a shade darker. I'm planning on finishing this up by using it as an under-eye setting powder.

Revlon Lip Butters in 'Pink Lemonade', 'Sugar Frosting' and 'Creamsicle'

Remember when these were EVERYWHERE? I happily jumped on this bandwagon, I even stalked multiple drug stores to find the elusive 'Peach Parfait' shade - which turned out to be the worst one of all with massive glitter chunks! Anyway, these 3 colours aren't bad, out of the 3 'Sugar Frosting' is my least favourite with 'Pink Lemonade' being the least offensive. It's the formula that gets me. Are they a tinted lip balm? They aren't that moisturising. Are they a sheer lipstick? Definitely not. They're sticky as hell and don't get me started if you have any dryness to your lips because they cling like a mother. You almost have to use a lip balm before you use these which sort of defeats the purpose, right? Either way, I can't wait to finish these!

So those we're my 10 products that I need to be out of my collection ASAP. My fiancé also took photos of them which is something that I've never tried on this blog before so we'll see how they work out!