As you might already know I moved out from my family home properly in May and throughout the past couple of months, I've been living out of a small makeup bag. I do have an area for my makeup to live which is awesome but there is nowhere enough room to store everything I have [beauty blogger woes] and I'm currently waiting on a dressing table to be upcycled. So only having a small makeup bag to hand I've had about a 1/6 of my makeup collection with me and it's been quite the learning experience.

IT TEACHES YOU WHAT YOU REALLY USE

I've always known that I'm not the type of beauty lover that slathers on millions of items in a morning and can happily get away with about 8 products. Not having all of my stash with me I can't easily reach for other items in case I need it and to be honest I've not missed it all that much. Now I know what I truly use and that's so useful to help me make better choices in the future when I buy beauty products. And as I am fortunate enough to have products sent to me for review purposes I have some things in my collection that I probably wouldn't have picked up off my own back [even though I always end up loving the majority of things I try]. Which again is something that can help me make better decisions as it has opened my eyes to things that I now use on a daily basis that I might not have gone for otherwise.

IT MAKES YOU USE THINGS TILL THE END

When it comes to skin care I've stopped flipping back and forth with products and 90% of the time stick with an item till the end. But when it comes to makeup it does allow you to change things up as many times as you please and really you don't have to stay dedicated to an item. Which is wonderful because you can always try new things and explore different types of products but it does mean that it's hard to use products up. Only having a set amount of items has meant that I've started to really use things up and there are a lot of things in my collection that needed to be used up and now I've finally managed to work through them because I've not had other things to choose from. I used to be such a sucker for wandering around Boots and Space NK picking up new things to try and that is what gave me a real buzz but now I get the same feeling when I use things up. My mindset when it comes to beauty has completely changed over the years from when I used to want hundreds of products now I'd rather have a smaller carefully curated collection filled with things that I really love not items that are hanging around just in case I do come around to them eventually.

IT'S THE BEST THING FOR A BIG DECLUTTER

Because I'm going to be moving things over from my old bedroom and my marble topped dresser to my new space it means I can have a proper thorough declutter. And because I've not had everything around me for so long I know I'm going to be seeing things that I absolutely love and will want to keep but I need to be as ruthless as I can and pass things along to the ladies around me that I'm not using as much. Even though my new dressing table has really deep drawers it would be so easy to stack up items but I want to cut things down so nothing is going to waste and I can really get use out of everything that I own. So there will more than likely be a post coming up on all the things that I've culled from my collection.

THE PRODUCTS THAT HAVE REMAINED IN MY MAKEUP BAG FOR THE PAST TWO MONTHS

Now I've rambled on about why I've actually really enjoyed not having a huge amount of products at my disposal here are the items that haven't left my makeup bag in the past two months;

Primer
Foundation
Corrector
Concealer
Powder
Mineral Foundation
Blush
Eyeshadow primer
Eyeshadow palette
Brow gel
Mascara
Lipstick

PRIMER

TOO FACED HANGOVER PRIMER: I've been dabbling in quite a few primers over the Summer but the main one I've been using is the Too Faced Hangover Primer. It's just so kind and nourishing to the skin whilst creating a lovely base for foundation and I'll be sad to see it finally finished up.

FOUNDATION

MAKE UP FOREVER HD FOUNDATION*: A really amazing full coverage base that leaves a natural but flawless finish on the skin.

TARTE AMAZONIAN CLAY FOUNDATION & RAINFOREST OF THE SEA FOUNDATION*: The Amazonian clay foundation is a full coverage thick cream base that covers absolutely everything but maintains a somewhat natural finish on the skin. And the Rainforest of The foundation gives an awesome amount of coverage considering how lightweight it is.

MILANI PERFECT & COVER FOUNDATION*: A budget base that performs in a similar way to a high-end item. It provides a flawless veil of coverage and can do the job of two products in one and the gel formulation is lovely to use.

CONCEALER & CORRECTOR

NIP & FAB GREEN COLOUR CORRECTOR*: With a small amount of this it can take away all the redness in the skin making spots much easier to concealer.

NARS CREAMY CONCEALER*: A thick concealer that covers up absolutely everything with caking up on the skin and wears beautifully throughout the day.

BOURJOIS INSTANT RADIANT RADIANCE CONCEALER*: A lightweight illuminating concealer to go under the eyes to help correct any dark tones as well as conceal.

POWDER & MINERAL FOUNDATION

MAC MINERALIZE SKIN FINISH NATURAL: This is the only powder I've really used over the past couple of months because I've been desperately trying to use it up. It's a wonderful powder that adds a small amount of coverage to the skin and mattifies the complexion but doesn't make it look too powdery.

BAREMINERALS ORIGINAL FOUNDATION*: A mineral foundation that feels absolutely wonderful on the skin and in combination with your base of choice provides the most flawless finish that looks soft on delicate on the complexion.

BLUSH

STILA CONVERTIBLE COLOUR COLOUR IN PEONY*: One of my all time favourite formulations when it comes to blush. So easy to use and adds such a beautiful glossy sheen to the skin that stays put even in the summer months.

INIKA BAKED MINERAL ILLUMINISOR*: A powder blush that adds a pretty wash of the colour to the cheek but also acts like a highlight too. As well as slightly sculpting due to the slightly dirty pink tone.

EYESHADOW PRIMER & PALETTE & MASCARA & BROW PRODUCTS

TOO FACED CHAMPAGNE SHADOW INSURANCE: This never ever leaves my makeup bag and with the tiny amount you need to use I doubt it will for a few years. It neutralises the lid, creates an even base and adds the prettiest wash of champagne to the eye.

MAC CUSTOM PALETTE: There have been a few palettes I've been using but it's mainly been this Mac palette that I put together years ago. It contains a pretty champagne shimmer and a shade that I use through my brows so it's absolutely perfect for everyday use.

MAYBELLINE LASH SENSATIONAL*: A wonderful budget mascara that doesn't budge and it adds curl, lift, separation and volume with ease.

YSL BROW COUTURE*: The best brow product I've used in years, it stops my sad brow syndrome as well as filling in any sparse areas.

Are you a makeup bag or a dressing table type of girl?

The Best Beauty Lessons I Learnt From Only Having A Small Makeup Bag For Over 2 Months