spending

How I Save on Beauty Products

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Reigning in my Beauty Spending

I’m acknowledging that I’m fortunate to be in a place where I can spend money on what many would deem a completely frivolous hobby.

Actually Use the Damn Samples

Raise your hand if you’ve ever had a drawer or bin full of sample products that went neglected for ages! So many retailers do free samples with purchase, not to mention Gift With Purchase (GWP) promotions. I’d toss them in a centralized location with the intention of using them when the occasion arose (traveling, feeling adventurous, etc) – but even the products I already knew I liked went unused. Stupid! I had accumulated 10 sample tubes of mascara at one point, then found myself replenishing my (favorite) drugstore one. Why?! I had at least six months (realistically more) of product there, even assuming I disliked half of them!

Granted, not all samples are going to be appropriate for you. Foil packs of foundation, for instance – I have what feels like a thousand and none are right for me. But the ones you will use? Use them!

  • Pre-pack a travel beauty bag. One less thing to check off the travel to-do list.
  • If you have a desk or locker at work, stash some samples there. Future you (or a teammate!) will thank you.

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Reigning In my Beauty Spending

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Reigning in my Beauty Spending

I’ve talked before about my No Buy and my slips. It’s been a while since I last talked about beauty budgets and spending as a general topic, and it occurred to me last week that I haven’t been doing a good job tracking my spending in the last year. Shame on me.

Now that I’m pursuing orthodontic treatment, I really need to get and keep my shit together. Although I have done a poor job (read: zero effort made) at tracking this spending, there are some areas I can immediately identify as opportunities to save. Writing this post, frankly, was eye-opening and upsetting.

Salon Nail Services

I don’t get my nails done often (perhaps 3-4x/year) because I’m frequently disappointed. I get pedicures more often than manicures, but even then I’m often left with disappointment. I have the tools to execute a DIY pedicure quite nicely, and in fact did so last week. When I sat down and paid it some thought, the nicest thing about a salon pedicure (for me) is the massage. A five-minute foot-and-leg massage isn’t worth $25-50 plus tip to me.

Annual Savings: We’ll call it $120.

Haircuts

So far, I’ve gotten highlights twice. Each time, I got a haircut at the salon because it was convenient…to the tune of $40 for the cut on top of my color. My super-simple cut isn’t worth $40. I have had this cut successfully executed at inexpensive chain salons to the tune of $15.

Getting a haircut once every quarter for $15 ends up being cheaper than twice a year at $40. Better yet, they sometimes have coupons – so realistically two of the four cuts I get per year end up being $10.

Annual Savings: $30 – assuming I actually get it cut quarterly, more if I go longer.

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