Products' Expiry Dates

How fast do you finish your skincare products and makeup? Do you check when their expiry dates are? Do you often open them and take your own sweet time to use them. Or sometimes just leave them hanging there for months or years and not finishing them. Actually this sounds a lot like me. Last time I used to take my time to finish a skincare or makeup product because I will be very stingy to use it. Trying to maximize the life of it so that I don’t have to buy it too often.

Only until recently, after reading more on beauty materials, I realize that there is a shelf time for an unopened and a different shelf time for an open product. What do I mean? It means even when you do not open a product, it will eventually still expire. Most products will either specify its manufacture or expiry date on their packaging. Generally a product will expire within three years of it manufactured date if no expiry date is provided.


However, once you open a product then it becomes a different story. Take a look at the picture on the right, have you ever notice the first logo on the right? Any idea what it stands for? It has been there for years and I did not notice it. Until recently, I realized its real meaning. It is an indicator of the month(s) that a product must finish once it is opened. After the period, it must be discarded (e.g. based on product in the picture, if I started using it on 23rd May 2009 so by 22 May 2010, I must finish it).

Anyway try not to keep skincare products for too long. Don’t advise to stock up your skincare products. I know it is always easier to say than doing it. I myself always tend to buy too much especially in sales. However try to visualize that it is a pack of food, you will always try to get the pack that has the furthest expiry date and try to finish it as soon as possible. You will not eat a pack of expired food. So same thing for skincare products. Do take note. Cheers.