Expiration date on my beauty products? Not something that everyone thinks about, but eventually they all expire. Using expired products won’t make you sick, but it can cause break outs, irritation, or they just won’t work.
Most products put the expiration date on the bottle. When it comes sealed, the product expires 6 months or 12 months after opening. Here is my Fresh Soy Face Cleanser telling me it expires after 6 months (left) and my Kate Somerville Daily Moisturizer telling me it expires after 12 months (right). These labels look like this:
Then we have labels, like my LUSH Mask of Magnaminty, that tells me exactly what date it expires. Oops! I left that one in the closet and forgot about it!
Not just skin care products expire, so does cosmetics. See the label on my YSL Foundation, it too expires after 12 months of opening.
Many products don’t come with any direction on when they expire. Here is a good guide line:
Mascara: 6-8 Weeks
Lipgloss: 1 Year
Lipstick: 2 Years (if it’s dry and sticky, toss it sooner)
Liquid Anything (concealer, foundation, cream blush, etc): 1 Year
Powder Anything (eyeshadow, bronzer, pigment, etc): 2 years
Nail Polish: 2-3 Years
Fragrance: 8-10 Years
If you are switching up your products all the time don’t stick things under the sink or in the closet and forget about them. I call this the “graveyard” because it’s where products go to die. So stop rummaging thru your graveyard and finding old products and slathering them on your face. Most likely the good ingredients have gone bad and they are now filled with germs and bacteria – Yuck! Sorry :(
If you are someone who likes to switch it up all the time, try purchasing a sample or travel size. This will be enough product to last you 1-3 months, then you can get something new. This way you don’t feel like you are wasting your money by throwing products away.
Fresh offers a small size of my favorite cleanser, 1.7 oz for $15.
Comments
11 responses to “All Products Have an Expiration Date”
Hi Rachel,
Great post! Not to sound dumb but I never knew what those mini pics that look like jars with numbers in the middle of them stood for. Thank you for telling us!
What is your opinion on perfume? I get so torn about it because I hardly ever use up an entire bottle unless I am as Jaclyn would say “obsessed” with it. ;) My nose is not helping because they smell fine to me!
Thanks again Doll!
Gina
AH, you mentioned fragrance – 8-10 years hmmm. So I am not that crazy then!
Hi Gina,
I usually can’t wear a scent for that long. So I always buy the smallest bottle or the roller ball. That way I can use it for 6 months then move on to something else.
Thank you this is very helpful information.
I always wondered what that picture meant on the products.
I always wondered too!
What if u purchased it and you never opened it? Sorry I know it probably sounds kind of dumb. But wouldn’t that be the same if it was on the shelf at the store?
It expires 6 months or 12 months (whatever the label says) after it’s opened.
This is SO informative! Thank You!
Wow I just had to throw out so many old products! No wonder they weren’t working lol.. great tip!
I had no idea that skincare products have expiration dates on them! Now I have to go home and look through all of mine!
Hello!
Do you know what means the symbol after the Zip Code on Kate Somerville Daily Moisturizer product?
Regards,
Letícia