You know what is the worst thing about hoarding lots of makeup and beauty products?

Having to throw them away after a while because they have reached their expiry date. It is just too painful to throw away  a product on which you have spent your hard earned money! ? But it is always a safe bet to stop using expired stuff as it can cause bad reaction on your skin. So what can you do with all your expired makeup or skincare products that are taking a huge chunk of space in your drawers? Just reuse them! Yup, it is possible to reuse some of them and today with this post, you will learn how to do that.

How To Reuse Expired Makeup And Beauty Products

Reuse Expired Nail Paints

OK, technically, nail paints are not makeup products, but expired / dried out nail paints are something which we all girls have somewhere lying around in our homes. What we don’t know is that those nails paints can be used in multiple ways even if they have been expired or dried out. I personally have used dried out clear nail paints as glue. The coloured ones can be used to decorate items like earrings, vases, keys, phone covers / cases, cables, earphones, etc.

Reuse Expired Lip Balm

Lip balms – especially sheer lip balms have many uses. You can use expired lip balms to heal cracked heels (they most probably would not cause any reaction over there). If your jeans’ or bag’s zipper is stuck, you can use the lip balm to lubricate the zipper teeth and make it move smoothly! Sheer lip balm can also be used on dry cuticles to moisturize them.

Reuse Expired Eyeshadows or Pigments

Expired Eyeshadows (or those ones which you find too sheer or chalky!) and pigments can be reused to create customized nail paints. Just mix them with a clear nail paint and there you have it – your own shade of nail paint. 🙂 They can also be used for crafts, once they are mixed with water, they can work as water colour!

Reuse Expired Lipsticks

It is almost impossible to finish a whole lipstick before its expiration date – even if you use it daily! Expired lipsticks can be reused for crafts, just like crayons. You can also colour your canvas shoes with them, but the colour will be temporary. The same can be done with cream eyeliners, blushes and eyeshadows.

If your lipstick has expired only a month or two back, you can make a tinted lip balm with it by melting it with beeswax and coconut oil! Don’t reuse it in this way if the lipstick has grown mold in it.

By the way, if you are not aware of makeup expiry dates, you may check out my post – Complete Guide To Makeup Expiration Dates & Tips To Extend Their Shelf Life!

Reuse Expired Talcum Powder

You will find at least one talcum powder in every Indian girl’s stash. I don’t use them, but my mom does. She keeps on buying them again and again so we have quite a lot of expired talcum powder at home. One day I found a very good use of them. Since I live in a jungle, my home gets invaded by ants all the time. Till now, We have tried every possible thing to get rid of them. I cannot stand the smell of insect repellent, so what I do is, I take (expired / unusable) talcum powder and sprinkle it on the areas infested with ants. They die on the spot within seconds. Ah, what a great way to die – bloody ants! ? I have also used deos, perfumes and hair sprays to kill them. #SorryNotSorry ?

Reuse Expired Body Lotion

Expired body lotion or moisturizer can be used on leather shoes, boots or bags to make them look shiny, new and polished. Do not use whitening ones on the leather though because I have heard that they can interfere with the leather’s colour!

Reuse Expired Toners

Toners generally contain alcohol and hence, they can be used on mirrors, tiles and other such household items to clean them. I believe that you can do the same with hair sprays as well!

Reuse Expired Face Wash, Face Cleanser or Shower Gel

And lastly, expired face wash, cleanser or shower gel can be used to wash delicate lingerie or clean gold / silver ornaments. They too can be used to clean the tiles, basins and other such things.

 

So guys.. From now on, before you throw away an expired makeup or beauty product, use your creativity and think about the various ways you can reuse it! I hope this post will help you to reuse the expired products that you already have in your stash. If it did, then please do share this post with your friends! And let me know if you want a part two of this post. 🙂