Well here's the final instalment of my Finish 5 by Cinco de Mayo Challenge! I've been late photographing and posting this due to my laptop crashing twice and having to be sent to PC World to be fixed, as well as a long bout of RSI (Repetitive strain injury in my hands) which is why I was forced on a blogging break these past 3 weeks. So here in the photos are the five products I chose to use up and my progress.
May 5th The Finish
January 21st The Beginning
Sleek Oil Free Crème to Powder Foundation
Since I don't wear make up everyday anymore, foundations lasts me a long time (which is great for my bank balance!) As I was applying Sleek's foundation with a damp Real Techniques Expert face brush and later a damp Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge I used less product that I would have if I'd used the provided dry sponge in the compact. The Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge actually used more product that the expert face brush and also gave a better, even finish. This is almost pretty much done- with only a few more applications left.
No 7 Eye shadow Palette Gold eye shadow
I've almost used up most of the gold eye shadow. I found as the pan got bigger the eye shadow became more fragile and would crumble and move so that it got trapped in the hinges of the palette, which is why there is a lot less than in April's finish 5 update. I love wearing the gold as my no makeup make up look. Although I didn't finish the eye shadow by May 5th, I'm almost done and will keep going.
E.L.F Cream Blush and bronzer Duo (Blusher)
Revlon Super lustrous lip gloss
I have been using this but not as often as I wanted to since it's quite sticky which is off-putting to wear in hot weather. It has a nice peach glossiness and some sparkle to it. It's hard to see how much I've used up. Stood on it's end I've used about a finger- probably just over 1cm. Apart from matte lip lacquer I've decided to stop buying any more lip glosses as I have loads that I don't wear anymore since I've been getting into lipstick.
No 7 Stay Perfect Eye Mousse in Fudge
This is something I was confident I'd finish, but I was concentrating using up the gold eye shadow (as well as road testing other eye shadow for the blog) and I forgot about this! It is small enough that I can use it up over the next couple of months.
So I pretty much failed on my Finish 5 by Cinco de Mayo Challenge but I have enjoyed it and found it useful and fairly satisfying. It's been useful to actually have a go at finishing products and having an idea of how long things take to finish (which was longer than I expected.)
What I've learnt
Start small! I think if you don't wear make up everyday products will take longer to use up. I overestimated how much I would use and I think if it's your first time doing such a challenge I'd use smaller sized products such as samples or mini sizes.
Choose just a few products to use up. Since this was Finish 5 by Cinco de Mayo I had to choose five products, but again as I don't wear make up every day, I'm going to choose fewer products in the the future such as three or four. I'm glad I didn't choose Finish 7 by spring as there's no way I would have completed it!
The type of Products. Think about the type of product that you use a lot and let that guide you. Obviously if you have loads of eye liner that you never wear but want to use up then go for it. Some products do seem to take ages though- such as lip gloss. I've never actually finished a lip gloss (only thrown it out after having the flu or if it smells odd ) and I think wand applicator ones have more product and are so much harder to finish than lip glosses in squeeze tubes.
Are Deadlines useful?
Deadlines give you motivation and push you to keep using products and if you plan to reward yourself at the end (by perhaps buying more make up!) then they can be useful as there's an end in sight. By documenting your progress publicly (such as posting on a blog, instagram etc) you feel bound to your word and that you must see it through.
The Project Pan community
Although Finish 5 by Cinco de Mayo wasn't one of the most popular project pan projects (I think because Cinco De Mayo isn't a well known festival over in the UK at least compared to the USA/Spain) I did manage to find about 8 or so people doing the project on instagram which was great as they were doing the same thing to the same deadline and I also found a couple of other long term project panners who are very supportive and nice. I think instagram is the best way to show your progress, get encouragement and find other project panners because it's so visual and supportive rather than listing stuff on a no picture feed on reddit.
Would I do this again?
Yes. My makeup collection has expanded since I started blogging and I've become aware of using up liquid and cream products (that have a shorter shelf life than powder) much more often so that they don't go to waste and you get the most use and enjoyment out of them. I also think Finish projects are better than Project pan as you don't actually end up finishing products if you just stop as soon as you hit pan. The gold eye shadow took years to hit pan and its taken me months to finish the whole thing. Finishing products mean you actually use it up rather than have loads of half filled products everywhere.
I do want to do this again so that I actually start using up products but I'd probably do it without a set time limit and will probably post my progress on instagram.
How are your experiences with project pan type challenges? Let me know in the comments.
