Unwanted Beauty: What To Do With Products That Don’t Work For You

It’s inevitable: You’re going to get a beauty product and be like, meh. Instead of having that product languish in your bathroom, adding to the clutter, ignored and unloved, do something useful with it! Here, we offer 4 things you can do with your unwanted beauty.

Let me set the scene. You’ve finally got a coveted box of skincare delivered and you’re ready to dive in. You’ve done the research, read the reviews, and you know that you’re just going to LOVE what you’ve bought. You’ve even planned what kind of flat lay you’re going to do for the ’gram. (Or maybe that’s just me.)

But then the worst thing happens. You slowly start trying out new products and some of them just aren’t working out for you. Not that they make you break out or anything, but maybe you don’t like the texture, or the scent, or the color, or it just doesn’t really seem to be making much of a difference at all. I’ve been there!

The thing is, not every product is going to work for everyone. Someone’s holy grail is someone else’s major fail (aka the Su:m37 Rose Cleansing Stick). Sometimes sh—t just doesn’t work for you — nothing wrong with that! Everyone raves about Sunday Riley’s Good Genes, and it was just meh for me.

You might be thinking, “well, that’s a lot of damn money down the drain,” but not so fast, my dear. I know that money is sacred and no one likes to waste it, so I’ve come up with a few ways to ensure that you can still get your money’s worth and/or make someone else’s day with your unwanted beauty.

1. Use it on the rest of your body

The skin on our face isn’t the only place that needs love and attention. The rest of your body does, too! And who says you can’t use an essence or a serum on your body? I mean, if we’re being honest here, using something like a Swanicoco essence or a bee venom serum on your body sounds luxurious AF.

I love to use oil cleansers that I don’t like on my face to shave with, and all of those harsh pH cleansers that I used to love are now some one of favorite body cleansers. Your feet need a lot of attention too, especially now that spring is around the corner and it’s nearly pedicure season, so if there are any old products you weren’t that impressed with, use them on your feet.

2. Clean your brushes

When I come across a cleanser that has a too-high pH or I’m just not really feeling all that much, it goes in my makeup brush cleansing pile. I try to wash my brushes regularly, and a lot of my discarded cleansers really do a good job of getting them squeaky clean.

3. Donate them!

Instead of throwing out perfectly fine products, you can donate them to your local women’s shelter, homeless shelter, or high school. Sadly, there are a lot of people who cannot afford personal items like skincare, and donating your gently used or unopened products would really help those in need.

4. Host a skincare swap

If you have a bunch of skincare-loving friends (and if you don’t, find some, girrrlllll), host a skincare swap at your place. Buy some wine, have some snacks, and invite everyone over. Each person can bring five or more items that they want to swap, and BOOM. You get new skincare, and you don’t have to worry about wasting your precious coins.

What do you do with unwanted beauty products you’re not feeling that much? Let us know in the comments!