(I started writing this as an Instagram post, but I can type only so much text with my thumbs on a tiny keyboard before I have to move to the laptop. I’m old.)

The end of the year has awakened the destashing impulse in quite a few makeup people I follow online. It makes sense: we’re all sick of 2018’s bullshit at this point, and we want to start the new year with as little bullshit as possible in our lives and on our makeup shelves. In that spirit, here’s a quick no-frills post about five lip products that just aren’t doing it for me anymore. As I did last year, I’ve been keeping a record of how often I wear each of my lipsticks, so I’ll note the number of wears per shade as well. Excuse the not-great late-afternoon winter light in the photos.

L-R: Revlon Fierce, Milani The Ultimatte, NYX Oatmeal Raisin, Wet n Wild Rebel Rose, NYX Stone Fox.

L-R: Fierce, The Ultimatte, Oatmeal Raisin, Rebel Rose, Stone Fox.

1. Revlon Matte Balm in Fierce (reviewed here): 6 wears in 2018

This is a very ’90s reddish brown that would look amazing on redheads, blue-eyed folks, and people of a warmer complexion than mine. On me, it looks…eh. Not hideous, but not great. In 2019, we’re no longer going to settle for “not great.” I’ve worn it six times this year, but I had to force myself to wear it and would rather have been wearing something else. If I want that mid-’90s earth-toned vibe, I have Sephora Coral Sunset and Urban Decay Lawbreaker, both of which suit me better.

2. Milani Amore Matte Lip Creme in The Ultimatte (reviewed here): 1 wear in 2018

This is a gorgeous, flattering dark metallic plum, but like Milani’s other liquid lipsticks, it’s so drying. In other words, it’s practically unwearable in the winter, the season when I most often want a lip this dark. I have plenty of vampy lipsticks that don’t dry out my lips, so this one has to go.

3. NYX Intense Butter Gloss in Oatmeal Raisin: 0 wears in 2018

This is what I call a DRIP: a Depression-Related Impulse Purchase. I knew perfectly well from my experience with Spice Cake three and a half freaking years ago that the opaque Intense Butter Glosses didn’t suit my tastes. I like sheer glosses in neutral colors, not opaque glosses in vivid colors. I don’t like worrying that my gloss has migrated to my chin or hair. And yet, for some reason known only to the particular combination of chemicals in my brain on that particular day, I decided that ordering another Intense Butter Gloss in an even deeper shade was a great idea. It wasn’t. To add insult to injury, the gloss came from the Macy’s warehouse wrapped in a Geico ad. Classy.

4. Wet n Wild Liquid Catsuit in Rebel Rose: 6 wears in 2018

This is a great shade and formula, but it’s not drying down fully anymore, even when dabbed on in a very thin layer. And it’s only about a year old! Thus have I learned for the nth time that liquid lipsticks go bad really quickly and I should probably stop buying them (but will I…?). My Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Backtalk is basically the same shade as Rebel Rose, and the Comfort Matte formula looks smoother on my lips than any liquid matte formula does.

5. NYX Liquid Suede in Stone Fox (reviewed here): 0 wears in 2018

This deep teal-gray is a weirdly flattering color for me, but I just don’t wear colors this crazy except on Halloween, and my designated Halloween lipstick is now Wet n Wild Shady Witch. Most of us are guilty of purchasing makeup for our fantasy selves, and my fantasy self is apparently a sea witch, which is kind of ironic because I can barely swim.

That leaves me with 42 lipsticks and eight glosses, which is more than enough for healthy variety. My boyfriend’s parents are giving me a Sephora gift card for Christmas, and I’m planning to use it on the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dirty Mind. After that, though, I’m putting myself on a no-buy on lip products for at least the first few months of 2019.

Tomorrow I’m heading to San Francisco for the first time in a year and a half, and I’ll be back to the blog before long with my favorite beauty products of 2018!