Over the last couple of years, social media has undoubtedly influenced me to purchase far too many beauty products, a behavior best described as overconsumption. I loved trying new makeup, body care products, perfume and whatever else influencers recommended.Â
However, over the summer, #underconsumption started to trend on TikTok. I became addicted, scrolling through video after video, learning how to make intentional, sustainable purchases and effectively get my money’s worth out of what I already owned. I started to implement five low-effort and accessible rules to use up the products I already had and become a responsible consumer:
1. Use Up Back Stock
I always wanted to stay on trend and get the latest products. Still, new releases came out so frequently that I never had time to finish the products I already had before I ran out to get the next best thing. So, at the start of the underconsumption journey, I vowed to not purchase any new products until I finished what I already had in that category. This has stopped the problem of over-purchasing, but it leaves the question of what to do with all the stuff I have already bought during my overconsumption era.Â
2. Track Product Usage
Once I finally started to use the products I had, I wanted to see how fast I went through them. I decided to track my usage to see how long each type of product took me to finish to inform my future purchases. To start, I held up my products to a light to see how far down the usage was in the packaging. I then added a Sharpie line at my progress and jotted down the data. I would check in every week to see how much of each product I used. My most eye-opening discovery was that I go through body lotion incredibly fast—about a bottle a month. I realized it makes more sense to buy budget-friendly drugstore lotions in the future, as high-end ones wouldn’t be cost-effective. On the flip side, shampoo takes me forever to finish, so I learned that a pricier option would be more worth it for me.
3. Swap with Friends
My purchasing had been so impulsive that I accumulated a lot of products that did not suit my needs. For example, I have an outrageous number of blushes that do not fit my complexion, perfumes that give me a headache and hair products not made for my texture. Instead of wasting these perfectly fine products by throwing them away, I texted my friends and asked if they wanted to hold a “swap party” with me. We all brought our unused products and went home with hidden treasures from our friends’ collections that we could use more effectively.Â
4. Find Other Uses
For those few products that were still stuck in my collection, I looked for alternative ways to get through them. Some of my most successful swaps were using lotion as shaving cream, highlighter as body glitter, perfume as room spray, and lipstick as blush. Although it took some experimenting to see how I could use my products, it was completely worth it. It saved me from buying even more since I could fill many categories with excess products so that nothing went to waste.
5. Get Every Last Drop
This was by far the most challenging rule I made in my underconsumption journey. I felt motivated to get through as many products as possible, but I was not doing so thoughtfully. There would still be more usable products left inside the containers. I decided to be more mindful and intentionally use every last drop of product before moving on to the next. For pump bottles, I turned them upside down to get everything that the pump could not reach. For squeeze tubes, I cut them open to scrape out the last drop. For stick formulas, I dug into the packaging once I hit the rim and found much more product. For jar packaging, I tried to clean the sides of the container to ensure nothing went to waste. These steps made these seemingly empty products last much longer, saving me money by delaying repurchases.Â
Although, at first, I was a little disappointed that I was stopping my extended shopping spree, I soon developed a new favorite habit: underconsumption. It is incredibly satisfying to completely finish products and track my usage. Following these rules, I have saved hundreds of dollars over the past few months. I highly recommend reflecting on your shopping habits and giving underconsumption a try. Not only does underconsumption save money, but it has also led me to live a more sustainable and intentional lifestyle and be more thoughtful about what I purchase in all aspects of my life. Though the journey has been challenging, and many products have tempted my wallet, I’m grateful I stuck to these rules and am better off because of them.