You may be asking yourself “When should I throw away my eye makeup?”. Perhaps you are using it until it's dried out or runs out. But is this the correct way to know when to throw out old makeup? The answer is no. Here is a quick list of when you should replace your eye makeup.

Eye liner (pencil): A pencil liner can last up to 2 years with the proper maintenance. Be sure to sharpen often to keep bacteria from growing and keep out of humidity.

Eyeliner (liquid and gel): Liquid and gel eyeliner has a much shorter lifespan of about 3 months. It is important to throw away the product around this time because it can harbor bacteria that might cause a nasty infection. Also, who wants dry, clumpy liquid eyeliner?

Mascara: Mascara should be thrown out after 3 months. Just like liquid liner, mascara dries up quickly and can be the perfect host for bacteria.

Eye shadow (cream): Cream shadows should be pitched after about 6 months. The cream can hold onto bacteria from your fingers and brushes. Yuck!

Eyeshadow (powder): Shadows can last up to a year before you should consider throwing them out. However, if you see anything growing on the shadow, or if the shadow has “puffed up” you should throw it away immediately.

It is extremely important to throw away ANY eye makeup you have used during an infection or stye. The bacteria can stay in the makeup and cause recurring problems.

So now that you have gathered your old eye makeup to discard, here is an idea for old mascara wands. The Appalachian Wildlife Refuge is looking for mascara wand donations to their Wands For Wildlife program. All you need to do is clean the wands thoroughly, pack them up, and send them off with the forms on their website filled out. They only accept wands during the months of October and February. These wands are used to clean wild animals of bugs, eggs, etc. Think of all the baby animals you could be helping! To get started go to: https://www.appalachianwild.org/wands-for-wildlife.html