Project Pan 17 Update #5 and Other Products

With the swap over this month from one type of job to a completely different one I wasn't sure how much I was going to get through and, as expected, there hasn't been a huge difference in most of the products.

Apart from one and that is the Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack, which is now finished.  I thought I had a little more to go and, as I'm only now wearing makeup on the weekends, I thought it was going to be a while before it went.  However, when I was putting it on last week the last part of the eyeline fell out and landed on the floor.  So, I'm calling it done.  It is a good dark colour and is really easy to apply, but the staying power isn't as good as I remember (thought that could be due to the age of it) and it's on the grey area list on Logical Harmony so I'm not going to get anymore of their products for now.

I have been able to get a bit more use on my eyeshadows.  I've now used around half of the Coconut About Me and The Body Shop purple eyeshadow which I used more of this month.  The eyeshadow in Sea Shell has also finally shown some actual movement with the pan being much larger than before and I'm going to carry on using this over the year.  There's also been a lot more movement in Sable as I am now using it as an undereye powder and a base shadow on my eyelids.  I'm not expecting a lot more movement in these shadows for the next while as I want to get some more use out of my Urban Decay Naked 1 palette for the next couple of months.  One thing I have decided to do is to get rid of the gold shade from my H&M palette (middle of the very right column).  This is because I have golds in my Urban Decay palettes that are much better quality and are less powdery, with much better staying power.  It is unlikely that I will ever reach for this (H&M is also in the grey areas of Logical Harmony) so I might as well get rid of it.

You can't really see any movement in my Urban Decay and it'll be interesting to see how much I get through over the next few months, but it may be that I need to do a 'Pan that Palette' on this palette specifically next year.

I've actually been quite enjoying wearing the Barry M nail varnish in Cyan this week, mainly because blue is my favourite colour, so it hasn't been too much of a chore.  My use has been pretty consistent, but I have noticed that the formula has begun to get a little thicker now so we'll see how it goes over the next month.  Barry M is a cruelty free company, but I want to look at more natural nail polishes in the future so I probably won't buy this again.

There is much more progress showing on the Barbara Day eye primer (again at the top) so it looks like there is finally some actual movement in this.  I will keep using it throughout the year, but it is very unlikely that I will finish this by the end of the year.

As before, there is no obvious change in my MUA powder foundation in Shade 4 and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre 48.  I'll be amazed if I hit pan on either of these by the end of the year.

I didn't manage to finish the Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum by the end of this month, but it is very near to being finished.  I will carry on putting this on every day but, as it won't be as much as before, it'll probably take a couple more months before this is completely finished.

The other product is the Soap and Glory Thick & Fast Super Volume Mascara in Super Jet Black.  I was actually quite disappointed with this product as I was expecting thicker lashes which lasted.  Unfortunately, while it did make my lashes a little thicker it also flaked everywhere and I was constantly having to clean it up carefully (it smudged a lot across my skin when I tried to move it) throughout the day.  I got around this by putting a waterproof mascara over the top, but I'd rather not have to do that.  This and the fact that whether or not Soap and Glory is cruelty free is a grey area I won't buy this again.

To see my previous posts on my 2017 Project Pan:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1
• Project Pan Update #2
• Project Pan Update #3
• Project Pan Update #4

Project Pan 17 Update #4 and Other Products

 This month has been a little more successful than I thought it was going to be.

Let's start with the product I'm most happy about finally finishing and that's the Wella System Professional Polish Cream.  This product does help a bit with frizziness and smells nice, but it isn't as good as the oils I usually use and is not cruelty free so I won't be getting it again.  I am happy that this has finally gone, but it is a reminder to not buy something, just because.

I've also used up the NYX Butter Gloss in Creme Brulee.  I didn't manage to get absolutely all the product out of the container, but I did take out the stopper so that I could get as much as possible.  It's not really my colour (I seem to have been going through a pink phase for some reason), but the texture and smell were nice.  It is a good product, but I won't buy it again as I'm not a lip gloss type of girl.  There is also the whole are they, aren't they when it comes to cruelty free.  I've moved on to some of the other lipsticks that I have and am hoping to use another two products by the end of the year, which should take the number down to 4.

The eyeshadows are doing well.  Now that I'm doing a type of brown, smokey eye The Body Shop eyeshadow in Coconut About Me is moving along a lot quicker.  I've also been using Sea Shell on my eye as well as a highlighter and this has helped move it along, but obviously hasn't helped with two purple eyeshadows which have been put on the back burner for this month.  I had watched a YouTube channel by MakeUp Geek about covering up undereye circles which recommends using an eyeshadow as the powder rather than your usual face powder.  So I've been using the Natural Collection eyeshadow in Sable for this and have now managed to hit pan.  The rest have remained the same.

The smokey eye look has also helped me work through Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack.  I am much more hopeful that this will be finished by the end of the year, but, as I won't be wearing as much makeup come the end of May, things will slow down on that front quite a lot.  However, good progress with this one so I'm happy.

I'm now using the Barry M nail varnish in Cyan as my main nail varnish.  All the Barry M varnishes I've had have always been liquidy but very pigmented, which means you don't need a lot to get the colour.  This, of course, means there's not as much progress as I would hope, but I still managed to get through a fair amount this month.  Even though I won't be wearing face makeup on a day to day basis I will still be wearing nail varnish, so I'm hopeful that I will still be able to get through them all this year.  I wasn't sure about this colour, if I'm honest, but since I've been wearing it on a daily basis I have to admit I actually really like it and it does go well with my skin tone.

I'm finally seeing some progress in the Barbara Day eye primer (just at the top).  I think this one is going to take a very long time to use up and I'm definitely not going to get it finished by the end of the year.  However, I'm not actually that bothered about that.  It's quite a good eye primer, especially for my oily eyes, and is the last one I have so if it takes a couple of years that's fine.

As before the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4 and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre 48 are showing no real change.  Slow and steady with these.

As for the Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum I am getting through it and might actually have it finished by the time I start my new job.  I will keep using it at my new job (if it's not finished), but not to the extent.  It will definitely be finished by the end of the year.

As for other product, I've been testing the Neal's Yard Wild Rose Moisturising SPF30.  It smells really nice and I was able to put it all over my face, including over my eyelids, without having any reaction to it.  However, I found it a bit too thick to use.  Even with warming it up in my hands first I still felt like it was pulling on my face.  It also didn't feel like it was very moisturising and, in fact, my skin seemed to get drier quicker when I was using this.  The outer packaging doesn't really hold up to constant use either, but the things that means the most to me is what's inside and I don't think I'll get this one again.

To see my previous posts on my 2017 Project Pan:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1
• Project Pan Update #2
• Project Pan Update #3

Project Pan 17 Update #3 and no other products this time.

I wasn't sure how many of the products I was going to be able to get through this month, if any, so I wasn't expected this month to be a particularly successful one.  This is especially true as I wasn't wearing any makeup in the last week of March.  That being said, there is one product that I am getting rid of and a couple where I am very close to finishing.

The product that I'm getting rid of is the Max Factor Glossfinity nail polish in Raspberry Blush.  This is the polish that I've been concentrating on over the last 3 months and, though it isn't completely finished, it has become so thick it is now too difficult to use.  The colour is quite nice, but isn't one I would normally go for and, of course, Max Factor is not cruelty free so I won't be buying this one again.  It also didn't last particularly long with all the typing I do.

There has been the same steady progress in the three shadows I have been concentrating on this month, which are The Body Shop purple eyeshadow, The Body Shop shadow in Coconut About Me, and the Natural Collection shadow in Sea Shell.  Even though I have been using Sea Shell every day that I've been wearing makeup as a highlight I haven't seen as much progress as I would have expected, so I'm going to concentrate on it more over the next month.  These are all from companies that are cruelty free, but as I'm trying to downsize everything I own it's unlikely I will buy these again.

There has been more progress this month on the Soap and Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack than in the past (even with missing a week) and I'm expecting to see even more over the next month.  It is a good product, but doesn't seem to have as much staying power in my waterline as I remembered it used to - or maybe my eyes are just more watery at the moment.

I have made a lot more progress in the NYX Butter Gloss in Creme Brulee then I was actually expecting and you can see right through parts of it so I am expecting it to be finished by the end of the upcoming month.  However, I'm not holding my breath as I've found in the past the products I thought were almost finished lasted for ages.  This is a very nice product and very easy to apply.  NYX is also cruelty free, but I won't buy this again as I have realised I'm really not a lip gloss/ butter gloss type of girl.

The Wella System Professional Polish Cream is another product that is very close to being finished.  I've been remembering to apply this to be hair on a regular basis this month and I think I only have another weeks worth or product in here, as long as I carry on remembering to apply it as before.  With regular use I can now definitely say that, while it does help a little with frizz, it's definitely more to do with the products I am using to clean my hair rather than this item in particular.

As before, and despite using them on a daily basis, there is no obvious progress in the Barbara Day eye primer, the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4, and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre 48.  The blush is obviously getting old as I am regularly having to scratch off the top layer that has hardened, but this doesn't seem to have increased the progress by any significant amount.  I will keep using them and hope to at least reach pan by the end of the year.

There is no significant progress in the Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum.  Thankfully I do really like the scent of this, in fact it's known as my signature scent, so using it on a daily basis has not been a problem.  This will definitely be a product that lasts until the end of the year, but I'm happy to keep using it until then.

I haven't finished any additional products this month and actually that's a good thing as the reason is because I have now gotten rid of practically all the additional products I used to have.  A couple of items may appear here and there, but these should now be few and far between.

To see my previous posts on my 2017 Project Pan:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1
• Project Pan Update #2

Project Pan 17 Update #2 and Other Products

I have to admit that I really thought that this month was going to be one of those months where I didn't finish anything.  So I'm very happy that I have managed to get rid of one product as least.

And that product is the Bourjois Color Boost in Orange Punch.  I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this product.  The colour was lovely and very vibrant, but it was a little too glossy for me and didn't have a very long staying power (even when drinking through a straw).  I also had to wear my Urban Decay lip liner in Ozone to make sure that it didn't migrate into the very fine lines I have around my mouth.  But it you like glossy, lip balm like products I think you would like this.  I actually didn't use the NYX Butter Gloss this month at all as I didn't notice any further change in the products smell.  It will be what I'm using in March though.  While I've been trying to up date my information on products that are cruelty free I have found that, while Bourjois is meant to still be cruelty free itself, it does sell products in China.  So I won't buy anymore products from them.

As with the eyeshadows before, I have been concentrating on using up the pink / purple shadow from the H&M palette, the purple Body Shop shadow I can't remember the name of and the Body Shop shadow in Coconut About Me, with the Natural Collection shadow in Sea Shell as a highlighter.  The progress has been steady and I will keep using all of them except the purple H&M shadow throughout March as I start wearing a more smokey look to go with the NYX Butter Gloss.  I've stopped working on the Natural Collection shadow in Sable for now as I've been using the H&M shadow as a base shadow.

There's not much I can say about the Barbara Day eye primer, the MUA powder foundation in Shade 4, and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre 48 as, despite wearing all these products on a daily basis, there is no evident progress.  I'm hoping at some point one of these will suprise, but for now I'll just keep plodding along.  I'm not sure about Barbara Day and can't really find much information about it, but MUA is cruelty free (though it is in the grey area section in Logical Harmony so I will keep an eye on that).

The progress on the Soap & Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack has been very similar to that during January.  At this rate it will definitely be finished by the end of the year, but I'm hoping to see more progress during March as I change my make up look to that with a smokey eye.  Soap & Glory is cruelty free according to their website, but is in the grey area on Logical Harmony's cruelty free page. Will keep looking on this as well.

My progress on the Wella System Professional Polish Cream has been much better this year than lasts and carrying it in my bag to apply whenever I remember is probably what has been helping.  It is an old product and does help at reducing the amount of frizzy, but other than that I don't notice a huge difference in my hair and the oils I would normally use are much more effective.  It is so close to being finished though, so I will keep going.  Wella is not cruelty free and I won't buy their products again.

As last month I've been just wearing the Max Factor Glossfinity nail polish in Raspberry Blush.  I usually have to reapply this every three days as it doesn't seem to last the admin work much longer.  Theoretically I should have been further down than this, but, as before, I don't always want to wear polish.  Must do better this month.  The colour is nice, but I won't buy this again as Max Factor is not cruelty free.

The Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum is also a product I've been using on a daily basis, but as the scent is such a strong, long lasting one I don't have to reapply at any point so the progress is slow.  I am hoping to get this finished by the end of the year, but I won't hold my breath.  I still can't find if Jean Paul Gaultier is cruelty free but will keep searching.

The last products aren't in any specific project, but are items that I've been working on as a general downsizing of all my products.  The first is one of my favourite moisturisers, The Body Shop's Body Butter in Smoky Poppy.  I succumbed last year and brought another two when they went on sale, and this is the last one.  The body butter is great for my dry skin and I love the smelly, just the right amount of lightness and sweetness.  Unfortunately they don't make this anymore or I probably would have continued buying this and part of me wished I'd brought even more.  I am now just down to using my shea butter as a body moisturiser.  It's very oily, but is exactly what my dry skin needs and that's now just one body moisturiser.  I also used up the last of my Dr Organic Organic Virgin Coconut Oil lip balm.  This was one that I used during the day as it had SPF.  It was very effective at keeping my lips soft and doesn't seem to have any ingredients that actually dry out my skin.  The only thing that I didn't like about this was the slightly odd taste it left in my mouth.  According to their packaging Dr Organic does not test on animals and is in the pending section on Logical Harmony.

It seems to be the month of using up the back ups of the same products.  A little while ago I wanted to try Bioderma Micellar Water that everyone is talking about and brought a double pack off Amazon.  This is the last one and while it did a very good job at removing my make up without hurting my eyes I won't be buying this again as Bioderma is not cruelty free.  Lastly is the Desert Essence Tropical Breeze Deodorant.  This was one of the deodorant's that a friend of mine sent to me from Canada to help me try and find a more natural deodorant.  Unfortunately this wasn't very effective, I usually had to reapply it at around lunch time and, as before, the tea tree smells too similar to my natural smell, which I find disconcerting.  I couldn't use it on a daily basis as it became less effective after each day and I had a reaction to it.  There isn't any biocarb in it so it must have been the corn starch.  So, back to looking for another natural deodorant.

To see my previous posts on my 2017 Project Pan:

• Introduction
• Project Pan Update #1

Project Pan 17 Update #1 and Other Products

This month I did a lot better that I was expecting.  I knew I was near the end of some products, but I didn't realise how close I actually was.  So, let's start with the products I've used up......

The first is the Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray (missing it's top - I have no idea where that went).  While this was travel size it still lasted a very long time and it was very effective at making my makeup last all day rather than slipping off my face around lunch time.  Urban Decay is also cruelty free (but their parent company isn't) so if you want to try a setting spray I'd definitely give this one a try, just remember to shake it.  However, I'm not that bothered about keeping my makeup lasting that long, so I won't actually be buying this or any setting spray in the future.

I also finished the last of my Faith In Nature Replenishing Aloe Vera Eye Gels.  I remember loving this product when I first started using it many, many years ago, but now it doesn't feel moisturising enough.  It could be the age of the product I have now, but it's most likely that I know need something much more moisturising now that I'm in my 30s.  You can't get this product anymore any way, but I do really like Faith In Nature products so I will probably have a look at other eye products they have when I finally need to.  Faith In Nature is also a cruelty free company.

This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray came as part of a tester box and I was interested in using it as I do have issues sleeping.  Theoretically it should have worked, but I'm not sure I noticed any real difference to say for certain.  I also couldn't spray it onto the part of the pillow I actually lay my face on as I was allergic to it, so I was spraying it on the underside of the pillow.  As far as I can tell This Works is cruelty free and it could work on people whose brains are a little less active.

The last product I've used up is the e.l.f. High Definition Undereye Setting Powder in Sheer.  While this is meant to be just an undereye setting powder I have read reviews that have said that it is just their face powder in a smaller container, so I've been using it as an all over powder and it's been pretty good at that for the price.  I think it would be good under the eyes as well, but I have such dry skin under there at the moment that no powder is working and I don't think I can give a fair opinion on it.  E.l.f. is cruelty free, but I would just get the face powder instead of buying the undereye setting powder and use it for everything.

I have been mainly concentrating on 4 of the eyeshadow I have put on my project pan: the Natural Collection shadow in Sable, the pink / purple shadow from the H&M palette, the purple Body Shop shadow and the Body Shop shadow in Coconut About You.  You can definitely see increasing pan on three of these and I'm hoping to get through the two purple colours in the next couple of months.  I have also been using the Natural Collection shadow in Sea Shell as a highlight on my eyes and cheekbones, but there isn't any obvious change on this eyeshadow as yet.  There isn't much movement on the Urban Decay palette, but that should hopefully start later on in the year.

I've been using the Barbara Day eye primer on a daily basis, but it's very difficult to see what progress there has been.  I might try the trick I've seen people use when they put the container in hot water the make the product fall to the bottom. However, this product is very thick and it might not work.  I probably won't know until it's right at the end.

The Soap & Glory Smoulder Kohl Waterproof Eyeliner in Superblack is a great eyeliner and I forgot how much I like using it, which is just as well as I'm using it on a daily basis.  It's also taking a very long time to get through, which means it probably wasn't a good idea to put it in a project pan.  But there is still progress and I think I should be able finish it by the end of the year. 

I've been predominantly concentrating on the Bourjois Colour Boost this month and have made quite a lot of progress.  However, this hasn't been as much as it could be as I have been using the NYX butter gloss since I noticed a slight change in the smell.  I don't think it's off yet, but it will be getting there.  As with the eye primer, it's difficult to see where I am with the butter gloss.

It looks like I'm finally working my way through the Wella System Professional Polish Cream.  I've worked out that the trick with this product is to put it in my bag and then I can just add it when my hair gets a bit frizzy, which is a lot at the moment. 

I didn't mark my Jean Paul Gaultier Eau De Parfum as I couldn't take marking the bottle - it's so pretty.  But I've definitely got quite far as you can now see it between the lace of the corset section. It should only be another couple of months before this is gone.

I've only been concentrating on the Max Factor Glossfinity nail polish in Raspberry Blush this month and there has been some progress, but probably not as much as it could be. I think the main issue is, as before, I seem to have gotten out of wearing varnish and I forget to put it on.  I am still hoping to get through all these polishes though, lovely manicured fingers crossed.

The last two products here are the Makeup Academy (MUA) foundation in shade 4, that I use for contouring, and the Bourjois blush in Ceidre.  There isn't too much obvious progress on these, but I am using them on a daily basis.  The blush is definitely old though as it looks like I going to have to scratch the top layer off to be able to keep using it.

As for products that aren't part of my project pan, I finished the e.l.f. Daily Hydration Moisturizer with spf 15 and stopped using the Lavera Intense Volumising Mascara in Black.  The moisturizer was good and I liked that it had spf.  It also worked very well as a base for my makeup, but is wasn't moisturizing enough for my skin at this time of year and I had to use another moisturizer first.  I really wanted the Lavera mascara to work, especially as I can get it locally.  Unfortunately, this not only smudged around my eyes, but it also stung my eyes a little bit when I removed it.  I've been using it with a layer of a waterproof mascara over the top, but it time to try something else that doesn't sting.

So that's it for now.  I don't think there'll be any products gone next month, but I'm glad to have used up what I have already.