on a superficial note

you are what you spend

Americans can spend quite a bit of money on their beauty routines. After seeing this, I was curious to see how much I spend each year on “beauty” so I made a list.*

Makeup
Illuminare Foundation Shade Sienna Sun (once or twice a year) - $30 - $60
Powder (once a year) - $10-$20 depending on the brand
NARS Blush Shade Mata Hari (once every 3 years)- $25 or $8/year
Revlon 12 Hour Eyeshadow in Berry Bloom (once every 2 years) - $8 or $4/year (The colour looks amazing but the pigmentation isn’t great. I may buy similar colours in MAC next time around. That would bring this up to $50 probably)
MAC Fluidline in black (once or twice a year) - $18 - $36
Nailpolish (once a year) - $5
Makeup brushes (I have enough for now, because I bought a whole bunch around wedding time, but let’s say one per year) - $10-$20

Makeup total: $85-$153/year or $7-$13/month.

Hygiene
Eyemakeup remover (once a year) - $10
Facewash – usually CVS rip-off of Cetaphil though I’m using Chinatown stuff right now (once a year) -$10
Bodywash - $15/ year (I’m a sucker for stuff that smells nice)
Deodorant - Tom's of Maine (once every two years) - $5 or $2.50/year
Toothpaste - $5/year
Floss - $5/year
Toothbrush – FREE. My dental hygienist always gives me lots of toothbrushes! I once got 4 toothbrushes on one of my visits!

Hygiene total: $47.50 annually or $4/month

Hair
Hair Elastics/Bobby pins/Claw clips (if only I didn’t lose them or break them so easily!) - $10-$15
Haircut (1-2 a year) - $50-$100
Shampoo/conditioner (My husband and I use the same stuff and even though I only wash my hair twice a week and he only washes his hair once a week, I feel like we are ALWAYS BUYING conditioner) – So maybe $20-$30/year just for me?

Hair total: $80-$145/year or $6.50-$12/month

Misc
Facial moisturizer/Sunscreen - $10/year
Sunscreen - $10/year
Random chapstick/lip balm purchases -$7/year
Regular moisturizer (I am finally trying not to buy the expensive smelly kinds) - $7/year
Eyebrow wax (once or twice a year) - $10-$20

Misc total: $44-$54/year or $3.50-$4.50/month

GRAND TOTAL: $256.50-$409.50/year or $21-$34/month.


It’s a large annual total but seems reasonable on a monthly basis and not bad compared to the others who were profiled by the photographer. The large expenses are haircuts, good foundation and eyeliner. I try to buy drugstore brand as often as possible and I try to keep things very minimal—I don’t buy perfume (it’s all about asking for free samples), hair product, shaving cream, mascara (it irritates my eyes), lipstick (it rubs off in about… 2 minutes off whatever I happen to be eating or drinking at the time), concealer, toner, spot treatment, primer etc… etc…

That being said, this list does not include impulse purchases and other things I probably forgot like hand soap, cotton balls etc. I’m not sure what that would add up to—it depends on the year-- but maybe anywhere between $30-$75/year.

In any case, the prospect of posting this blog entry is making me feel exposed. At work, we frequently say that looking at someone’s finances is like going through their underwear drawer. I suppose the same applies to one’s spending habits.


* Please excuse the brand names. I had a strange urge to shamelessly promote products that I really like. As a result of deciding to do my own makeup at my wedding, I spent about a month browsing beauty stores, buying and returning products. I proudly managed to mortify a Sephora associate by buying blush the day before the actual wedding. That being said, I probably won’t buy anything from Sephora anymore because I found out that they’re owned by LVMH conglomerate. In any case, if there’s a brand name listed, it’s because they’ve got me with the whole “I really like the product/brand” loyalty thing.