Makeup Storage and Organization

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My very first makeup purchase was when I was 16. I was working as a hostess at a local Chili’s [I legitimately only applied there because I wanted free chips and salsa during my shift #noshame] and that first paycheck haaaaddd to be spent wisely. I drove up to our local mall with cash in hand and walked around the MAC counter. Now this clearly wasn’t my first makeup product to ever own! Up until that point, my mom purchased my makeup and always supervised it. We’d go get my makeup done at the Bobbi Brown counter at Neiman Marcus and we stuck to tinted moisturizer and mascara. And when she went to work in the mornings and I wanted to wear more makeup, I’d have to go sneak in her makeup bag. I had the whole James Bond process down. I put everything away neatly, so I thought she had no clue. Naturally, my face gave it away. My mother was a saint and never mentioned why I had uneven liquid eyeliner on my lids when I got home from school, but looking back at some high school photos I wish she had! haha!

I walked around the entire counter feeling #somature that I was about to buy whatever I wanted. What did I come home with? Mac eyeshadow in the shade Club. The girl behind the makeup counter was so nice and pretty and I was 16 and awkward and intimidated. I asked her what she had on her lids, she pointed to a shade that looked very Kim Kardashian dating Reggie Bush, and I told her I’d take it! The whole process lasted 5 minutes and it was an entire 5 minutes where I had no sense.

This is why my mother supervised my makeup purchases beforehand…

Here’s a swatch of Club so you can get the idea. It was a smokey, olive that wasn’t age appropriate in the slightest. And to top it off, I paired that sucker with my purple cheerleading uniform to football games. It was like a bad version of Barney I can’t even think about.

I’ve clearly made lots of makeup mistakes since then, and it’s always funny to look back! But the older I get, the more confident I am to stick with what I know I love. Sometimes I’ll get compliments from girlfriends when I wear red lipstick, but I know that’s because I don’t wear it every day. If I were to wear red lipstick everyday people would compliment when I wore a neutral shade. However, I’ve learned that just because I get a compliment doesn’t mean I need to go purchase 15 new shades of red lipstick. I’m no Gwen Stefani and I’ll never wear that every day, unless I want to stain my daughter’s clothing permanently from kissing her all over! Haha. Trust me, I’ve done it before and then come home and thought, “Why did I waste all of that money? This isn’t me.”

My mom is the perfect example of this! She wears a smokey, brown lid every single day! I mean she could be going to the gym or going to a dinner with my dad and her eyeshadow looks not only the same, but impeccable. It’s her signature, if you will, and I always associate it with her. Now I’m not saying I wear makeup to the gym [I don’t], but I love her confidence. She wears what she loves, no matter what, and I think that confidence makes her even more beautiful. I never think my mother is beautiful because of her makeup, I always think she is beautiful because she knows exactly who she is and she doesn’t let a trend or a comment change that!

So while I still enjoy running to Sephora or the Nordstrom beauty counter whenever I have the chance, I purchase items based on what feels most me. I remember purchasing that MAC eyeshadow because the girl behind the counter was wearing it and she looked great, so I thought I should follow suit. I’m still cringing inside at that day. So in the spirit of sharing products that make us feel most like ourselves, I thought I’d share how I store my makeup and what products fill my GLAMbox. You’ll probably see a lot of the same general hues, but it feels very me and I’m fine with that. 🙂

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I’ve stored my makeup in my GLAMbox for years and this is the GLAMpetite with a full lid! On the top section I keep three diptyque jars that I fill with my makeup brushes, lip liners, mascaras and tube lipsticks.

Makeup Brushes: This Post

Mascaras: Anastasia Clear Brow Gel, By Terry, Stila Huge Lash, Tarte Maneater, Maybelline Big Shot

Lip Liners [most used] & Shadow Sticks: Stila Pink Moscato, Mac Cherry, Chanel Natural, Anastasia Brow Pencil, By Terry Shadow Stick in Bronze Moon, Lancome White Eyeliner, Charlotte Tilbury Kohl Liner in Bedroom Black

Lipsticks: YSL #10, Kim K.W, Red Carpet Red, Very Victoria [PERFECT shade for work!], Bit of Bubbly, Dahhlinggg, Snob, Souffle, Cava, Blankety, Velvet Teddy, Saint Germain


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Artist Atelier Lip Balm, By Terry Balm, Nude Edition, MAC [limited edition Bianca B], LORAC Nymph, Laura Mercier Infatuation, Bite Sugarcane, Bare Minerals Bubbles

Kat Von D. Requiem, Anastasia Crush, Stila Bella, Stila Rosa, Stila Baci, Too Faced Star Child, Buxom Ella, Buxom Erin, Chanel 189, Marc Jacobs Moonglow, NYX Tokyo, NYX Sydney, Lollibalm, Dior Lip Maximizer, Maybelline Peach Buff

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The second drawer holds my face products! While I’m always one to purchase a new lipstick, I really don’t change up my face products all too much. I’m very loyal to my it Cosmetics foundation and I find that even when I purchase something else it never works! However, I do have two products that help with foundations that help extend their longevity. I use benefit Hoola Liquid Bronzer and Dandellion Liquid Blush when my foundations don’t fit my skin. If my foundation is too light and I have more color on my face like in the summer, I mix one drop of the Hoola Bronzer in my foundation and blend in with my beauty blender. This really sheers out my foundation and makes it fit for summer, while also giving my face a bronzed look that isn’t too over the top. If I ever forget to self tan my face, this trick fixes it as well! I use Dandellion Liquid Blush when I’m a little lighter and need my face to not feel so flat. This works as a blush and highlighter and I use the base of the beautyblender to dab it on my cheeks. Even if I have no color and my skin feels dull, this makes my face glow!

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Smashbox Primer Water [this is my favorite setting spray I’m out of], First Aid Beauty Coconut Primer, Smashbox Hydrating Primer, it Cosmetics Illuminating CC Cream [shade light], Nars Creamy Concealer [shade Chantilly], Tarte Shape Tape Concealer [prefer this over Nars, shade fair], Clé de Peau Beauté Concealer, benefit Dandellion, benefit Hoola, beautyblender, Hourglass Powder in Ethereal Light, Laura Mercier Candleglow Powder, it Cosmetics Confidence in a Compact Foundation, Smashbox Primer

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The bottom drawer holds my eyeshadow palettes, bronzers, blushes and highlighters. There is one palette not featured because I just got it right after this shoot and I love it! If you’re a fan of MAC eyeshadows go stalk the In the Flesh palette.

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Highlighters: MAC Soft & Gentle, Becca Opal

Blush: Sephora Tea Rose Tickle, Nars Orgasm, Nars Gina, Nars Nasissist Palette [my go-to palette], Sisley Petal Twist Blush

Bronzer: Too Faced Sweet Tea

Eyeshadow Palettes: Maybelline 24K Nudes, Viseart Minx, Anastasia Modern Renaissance, Nars Isolde, Mac Pan Palette [see shades here]


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I clean out my GLAMbox with this cleaner from the Container Store about once a month. I make sure to check expiration dates on the bottom of products and toss anything dirty or old. I found once I started to make sure I didn’t use things past their expiration dates I broke out MUCH less and and my products applied better.  I also use this cleanser to wash my brushes once a month. I wish I could lie and say I wash them every 2 weeks, but that just doesn’t happen over here at Hotel Hellman….

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It’s definitely not necessary [or probably normal] to have this much makeup! But because I test products for my job, I love that I can sort it all nicely and see what I need to test or use up. However, I’d love to know how you store your makeup! I’m always interested in organization ideas and new methods. How do you do it and do you have any cringe-worthy purchases like mine from high school?!

XOXOKatey-2

Photography by: Madison Katlin

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18 Comments

  1. Your makeup is so organised, and the drawers look great.

    Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
    http://charmainenyw.com

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  2. Ashton wrote:

    Love this post! I saw that you have both the IT cosmetics in the compact and the BB cream. Which do you prefer? I am currently using the BB cream!

    Thank you in Advance!

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
    • Katey wrote:

      Hi Ashton!

      So hard! I love them both! Haha. I will say the cushion is lighter coverage than the BB cream so I use cushion for days I don’t want as much makeup! 🙂

      Xo,

      Katey

      Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  3. Glamboxes are so chic! I love how organized you are with your makeup, I wish I could hire you to do my makeup everyday hah
    xx Tess | http://www.sequinsarethenewblack.com/statement-red-jumpsuit/

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  4. Brianna wrote:

    Hi Katey!

    I love your blog and congratulations for Baby Maxi – she’s precious!

    Do you have a coupon code for GLAMbox? I thought I saw one once and just wanted to be sure.

    Thank you!

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
    • Katey wrote:

      Hi Brianna!

      Thank you so much! Aw, I’m so sorry! I don’t have that right now it was just during the holidays!

      Thank you so much for reading!!

      xoxo,

      Katey

      Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  5. Maria wrote:

    Hi Katey,
    Love this post! And I’m pretty sure I bought that MAC eyeshadow back in the day. It was also a fail for me as I wore little to no makeup then. I’m not sure whether it’s just me but I can’t seem to find the link for your go to makeup brush cleaner.

    Maria

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
    • Katey wrote:

      Hi Maria!

      My apologies, it didn’t link! 🙁 Here you go! 🙂

      http://bit.ly/2nfTyZY

      xo,

      Katey

      Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  6. mary wrote:

    I love your beauty posts because they’re the perfect balance of practical and glam that us southern gals need! plus they’re always my go-to when I’m looking for a new nude/pale pink lip.

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  7. I need a glambox in my life! <3

    BlondieInTheCity.com

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  8. Madison Koehl wrote:

    If you run out of your Benefit Hoola liquid (or are just curious) IT Cosmetics makes a bronze version of their cc cream that I use to either a) make my foundation darker in the summer months or b) use as a liquid bronzer.

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  9. Nicole wrote:

    I love how organized your beauty products are! Mine are all shoved in my makeup bag ???? I think I definitely need to get this GlamBox!

    xoxo, Nicole
    http://blondeintheburbs.com

    Published 13 Mar 17Reply
  10. Lisa wrote:

    Makeup and organization are two of my favorite hobbies! This post is a MAJOR guilty pleasure!! Keep up the awesome work Katey 🙂

    Published 21 Mar 17Reply
  11. Chelsey wrote:

    Where do you keep all of your other makeup that you have but just don’t use as much? Cause Ive heard you talk about other products and I’m wondering if you have any type of organization for products that don’t make it into the glambox!

    Published 22 Mar 17Reply
    • Katey wrote:

      Hi Chelsey!

      This is all that I have and keep on hand. 🙂 If I’ve talked about other products I’ve either used them up or my family or friends have taken them. I do keep a box in my bathroom of products I’m testing from brands though! I keep that separate from my GLAMbox so I can be sure to test them separately.

      xoxo,

      Katey

      Published 22 Mar 17Reply
  12. Katie wrote:

    Love this post! Definitely gave me some ideas on how to organize my makeup!

    xoxo,
    Katie
    chicincarolina.blogspot.com

    Published 26 Mar 17Reply
  13. Anna wrote:

    Hi there! I’ve been coveting your GlamBox for awhile and am finally ready to buy one for myself! Just wondering though — what did you use to organize your lipsticks in the top section? Is that a GlamBox product too?

    Published 18 Apr 17Reply
    • Katey wrote:

      Hi Anna!

      Yes, it is! They also sell little lipstick holders at The Container Store! 🙂

      xo,

      Katey

      Published 19 Apr 17Reply