When Good Makeup Goes Bad!

There are some quite frankly, scary revelations about old makeup in the news today with scientists urging you to throw out your old makeup immediately. As if we needed an excuse to buy more!

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Beauty retailer Escentual.com teamed up with scientists from the London Metropolitan University to carry out some research on 5 everyday makeup products and the results they found were astounding.

We know we’ve been guilty of this in the past, there are some makeup products that you love but you just wouldn’t use everyday, so you end up keeping them stored away safely in your makeup bag for that special occasion or night out and before you know it you’re a proud owner of a 3 year old lipstick! However, this could be causing a lot more danger than you would think. 

The research, which centred around a foundation, lipstick, blusher, mascara and lip gloss revealed that 4 out of 5 of the products tested positive for traces of deadly bacteria that can even cause meningitis. Some makeup products included in the research were only 4 months out of date yet lab tests not only revealed traces of bacteria that can make you seriously ill but also bacteria that can cause skin problems like acne. So you’re putting your gorgeous, healthy skin in jeopardy too!

So, how do you know when you need to be replacing those makeup products? Well, we have the perfect little guide for you to go by, featuring the maximum amount of time you have with your beloved makeup before they need to be ditched. It is key to take note of the expiry dates but also to make sure you are thoroughly cleaning your brushes to avoid spreading more bacteria.

Image - Cindywongofficial.com

Most people also don’t realise that like food, some makeup products also display expiry dates on their packaging (we can see you all searching frantically now). The PAO (period after opening) icon above, is the logo you should be looking for, and it will display a number followed by the letter ‘m’, which refers to the amount of months you can keep your product for after opening. So for example, a PAO logo that displays a 6m means it will expire 6 months after opening and that's when you should get rid.

To raise awareness, Escentual.com are holding what they are calling a Makeup Amnesty until September 11th to encourage more people to throw away their old makeup. Just for throwing out your out of date products you can receive a £5 voucher to redeem at Escentual.com against a spend of £20 or more as well as prizes for most creative video. To get involved all you have to do is film a short video of yourself getting rid of your expired makeup and post it on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter tagging the image using @Escentual and #MakeupAmnesty.

Now there's definitely no need to panic but we definitely recommend setting some time apart this weekend to go through your makeup collection and throw out anything that has expired or even that you just don't use anymore. Your health and skin will thank you for it, and you will be rewarded with new makeup! It's a win-win! 

Find out more about the #MakeupAmnesty, how you can get some money back and hopefully win here at Escentual.com