Project 10 Pan...It's on!

Hi. My name is Power Femme. I am a makeup addict. I bought my last beauty product this afternoon. I am six hours sober.

Project 10 Pan, cold turkey.  Goodbye Sephora...at least for a little while.

To be frank, I have not been living within my means lately. As a graduate student living off of a meager stipend and student loans, I have minimal room left in my budget for beauty products after I take care of necessities. Yet as a makeup junkie, I find it hard to resist making both big and little splurges. I have recently rewarded myself for jobs well done at school with Sephora shopping trips. Additionally, my frugal side can't pass up a good deal- as I wander the aisles of CVS, I tell myself that such and such product is only a couple bucks and throw it in my basket.  But those couple bucks quickly amount to a whole lot of bucks that I don't have.

And to be honest, sometimes buying makeup makes me feel guilty. As I drive home with my latest haul and pass by the local homeless woman on the corner begging for change, I feel like a big fat idiot. While I am thankful for the blessed and privilege life that I lead, it is silly to creep further into credit card debt for a cute eyeshadow as others struggle to cover the bare necessities. I have come to realize that I have not been prioritizing my money, or my life, very well.

I love makeup and beauty products, but let's be real here. I can't give my landlord nail polish for rent. I can't trade in bronzer for my school books. And lipstick doesn't make for a very appetizing dinner. Beyond the necessities, I do have other needs, plans, and interests outside of looking fly. For instance, my partner and I are saving up money to move out of state in a few months; my car needs a few hundred bucks worth of repairs; and as an foodie and novice cook, I would love to invest in quality kitchenware.

In the spirit of Spring Cleaning, I am embarking upon the infamous Project 10 Pan. For those who are unfamiliar, Project 10 Pan is a self-imposed ban on purchasing makeup until you have finished up 10 products. Beauty fiends, depending on their level of dedication, practice this differently: for some, simply hitting pan on a product is good enough, while others completely use up a product for it to count.  In addition, some people solely count makeup products, while others include other beauty related items, such as hair, skin care, and bath products. Since there seems to be some variation in how it is practiced, I have devised my own project policies.

Power Femme's Project 10 Pan Rules
-For a product to count, it must be completely used up.
-All beauty relatedness products are included. I will also be trying to use up my hair, skin, and bath products such as face wash, nail polish, fragrances, lotions, and so on.
-Sample sized (1-3 use) products do not count. However, deluxe and travel sized products (like those your cash in your Beauty Insider points at Sephora for or those that come in Birchbox) do indeed count. I am including deluxe and travel sized products because I have a ton of them cluttering up my makeup collection.
-I cannot buy a beauty related product until I have finished 10 products. The only exceptions are for hygiene necessities. For instance, if I run out of my favorite eyeshadow, I cannot repurchase. However, if I run completely out of my stock of face washes, I can repurchase.
-I will accept beauty product gifts.

This is indeed going to be challenging. However, I have certainly encountered larger struggles in my life as a queer feminist woman from a working class background with physically disabled parents. I have encountered more severe hardship, and I will survive. Project 10 Pan will help me clear out my bomb-shelter supply's worth of beauty related products, save up some much needed cash, and take a small step back from the beauty industry that is so easy to become consumed by. Also, this project will push me to use up products that I plan to replace with more natural or organic alternatives.

Of course, I will post updates about my Project 10 Pan adventures along the way. But just because I am participation in Project 10 Pan doesn't mean that my newborn blog will be abandoned. I still have a few online orders from Hautelook that I have yet to receive, a Birchbox that should arrive at my door any day, and several recent purchases that I would like to haul and review. Furthermore, there are a few (dare I say it) think pieces in the works, as well as future nail art posts and tutorials.

Bring it on, Project 10 Pan!

Posted in Beauty Industry , Project 10 Pan