Update: Tax Season 2015 and Project Pan!

Hey Gang! I hope your holidays were lovely. It's about time for me to start Tax Season 2015 so (as you might already know) I won't be posting all that regularly through April 15th. If you don't know, I work for H&R Block as a tax preparer and I get really slammed and work lots of overtime to meet the needs of my clients. 

Tax Season requires me to make some adjustments one of which being switching to gel nails; they hold up much longer and help to prevent breaks. I use CND's Shellac and will post photos of my Shellac manicures during tax season; just remember it won't be all that frequent. I also recently stumbled upon Project Pan and thought this would be a great way to streamline my makeup routine as well as purge a few items from my stash.

I first found out about Project Pan from Anya Marie on YouTube when she was doing the Finish 6 by Christmas Challenge.

What is it: Project Pan 101 (Watch this video for a great intro from Amber F)

I will be participating in two different Project Pan Challenges: 

Finish 7 by Spring (Ends March 20th)

Finish 5 by Cino De Mayo (Ends May 5th, obviously)

My 7 Products to Finish by March 20th:

- Freeman Feeling Beautiful Body Salt Scrub with Guava and Vitamin C: Bought this last spring and I never reach for it. Time to use it up! It's a very chunky salt scrub great for elbows, knees, and heels. It's best used with a very small amount of water otherwise it dissipates too quickly. It smells fruity and tropical. The 6.0 fl. oz. tube is almost full. I will attempt to use it 2x a week as directed.

- Freeman Bare Foot Lemon + Sage Foot Balm: I bought this with the the salt scrub and the bizarre texture made me push this to the back of my bathroom cabinet. It's a cross between a gel and a balm. It doesn't moisturize as well as the Dragon Fruit Foot Lotion (which I recently tried and it's fantastic) but there is no denying my feet are super soft after using it. I slather it on generously before bed and then put on socks to let it soak in overnight. The 5.3 fl. oz. tube is almost full. I will use when my feet are dry, which more than likely will be often since it is winter. I just ordered a scale from Amazon so I can weigh these since I can't see through the tube.

- LUSH Carrot Soap: I bought this last easter but only used it twice before I forgot about it. I'm not a fan of solid bar soaps so thats probably why but it's time to use it up! This soap features sicilian lemon oil, fruity buchu oil, coco butter, and carrot oil. It smells kind of like a cantalope; very fresh. I'd say I've got 85% of it left.

- Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter: I just had to have this last spring and while I have definitly used it I also forgot about it, especially lately. This is one of those great highlighters that you can use in the corner of your eyes, on your brow bone, along the center of your nose, on your cupid's bow, etc. Plus it's not sparkly (I hate sparkly highlighters; they highlight my acne scars) so this is a perfect highlighter for me. It applies nice and silky and is easy to blend.

- ULTA Minerals Powder Foundation in Fair 01: I bought this in early 2014; bought two and this is the 2nd one. This used to be my favorite foundation powder but I got the It Cosmetics Pressed Powder and forgot about this one. Time to re-evaluate it and how it performs for me now. I typically prefer mineral formulations; for some reason it seems to work better for my acne-prone, oily skin. This is pretty much a full 9 gram container.

- Too Faced, Be Merry Be Bright Bronzer in Spice: I did a ton of After-Christmas shopping from Too Faced in 2013. I love the bronzer in the Be Merry Palette but because it is in this palette I forget about it. Unfortunently it looks like Too Faced doesn't sell this particular bonzer on its own but I want to try the Milk Chocolate Bronzer. I need to use this one up before I buy a new one. Spice is the most effortless bronzer I haver ever used, it's not too dark or too light and it blends wonderfully. Also, it is 100% matte. As you can see I've already hit pan but I still have a lot to go...

- NOW FOODS, Quercetin With Bromelain: One of my clients gave this to me last tax season because I was being hit pretty hard by seasonal allergies. This is a supplement that supports healthy histamine levels and helps manage seasonal discomfort. I took it for about a week and I did see an improvement. Again, I forgot about it. I plan on taking this to see if I can avoid my seasonal allergies this tax season. I have 98 capsules left in the bottle.

Updates to occur once a month on (or around) the 20th of each month. 

My 5 Products to Finish by May 5th:

- Wet n Wild Megalast Lipstick in Purty Persimmon: I have an obsession with these Megalast lipsticks; I own 17 of them. Purty Persimmon is one of the 1st ones I bought earlier in the year and I love the color; it's a red-orange coral that is very wearable. Because I have so many of these I don't give this particular shade the love it deserves so I'm going to make this one of my Project Pan products. I'm including a good amount of lip products in this section because I have a serious excess of them and because depending on what you are wearing you need a few different lippies to choose from. Just incase you don't already know, matte finish lipsticks are my favorite. 

- Milani Brilliant Shine Lip Gloss in Mai-Tai 02: Another brand that I have gone a little lip crazy for is Milani; I love their lip products. I'm not much of a gloss girl but somedays you just need a gloss over your lippie (like when your lips are have a dry moment). Mai Tai is a gorgeous orange bronze with a golden sheen; so pretty and unique. I will use this over Purty Persimmon as needed. I bought this in early spring 2014.

- Milani Color Statement Lipstick in Fruit Punch: This is just a really great pink lipstick that gets lost in my sea of lippies. Easy to apply, creamy, opaque, and really brightens things up. I've only had this in my stash for a short time but I have lots of other Milani Color Statement Lipsticks that wouldn't work for tax season so I went with this one. I have the matching lip liner as well but I can also use a transparent lip liner; it looks great either way. It's creamier than a matte but still has great lasting power. I also want to pick up some of the new mattes Milani will be releasing in 2015... 

- Too Faced, La Creme Lip Cream in Believe: This was purchased with the Be Merry Be Bright set After-Christmas in 2013; it was part of the All I Want For Christmas kit. This is a very emolient formula that leans on the sheer side; and that's why I don't wear it too often but there are days when the idea of a matte or super opaque color is out of the question. This is a nice, neutral mauve that will be good to reach for. 

- Bath and Body Works Fragrance Mist in Tokyo Lotus & Apple Blossom: I bought this on clearance just before I found out that Bath & Body Works was no longer cruelty free. I thought about tossing it out but I love the smell of Apple Blossom and I figure why waste money. I would love to buy the next Fortune Cookie Soap Box which looks like it will have a perfume oil in it so I will use this one up and then reward myself!

Updates to occur once a month on (or around) the 5th of each month. (Skipping January since thats only 6 days from now)

(Don't kill me if I run behind on my updates in February & April; those are my roughest months)

I will be using these products daily but will give myself one day per week to deviate so I don't get burned out. Typically during tax season I don't buy much makeup but I don't want to put myself on a No-Buy because in all honesty it would probably make me want to buy more so I'm just aiming for a Low-Buy. If I end up hating a product I'm not gonna force myself to keep using it; I will let you know why in my updates. There is also a Pan THAT Palette Challenge but I don't feel my palettes are in excess; besides, I love using all my palettes in various looks and I like to mix them up. My biggest focus will be lip products because I feel that is where I have a serious excess. You could also say I have an excess of nail polish! Bwa Ha Ha! Please, THAT will never change! I'm good with that but my makeup is another story, I need to keep it in check.

Is this your first time hearing about Project Pan? Are you interested in Project Panning? Have you ever participated in any Project Pan Challenges?