Three Tiers of Storage

As you know, I have a variety of cosmetics.

So in order to keep everything organized and under control, I had to come up with a way to keep it all, but make it accessable. So, I devised my three tier storage system. Tier one is make-up that I use every day (Nars Orgasm blush, Bobbi Brown face powder, MAC lipstick and Stila eyeshadow are a few of my faves) and it all resides in a container in the front of my make-up drawer - so it's right there at my fingertips.

Tier two make-up is housed in a bin in the back of the make-up drawer and it's stuff that I like and use sometimes, but not every day. For example, my MAC Fiction eyeshadow is a deep green and great for a rockin' smoky eye over drinks at Tigertail, but that look just seems out of place (and dare I say, "trampy") at a Thursday afternoon staff meeting.

The third and bottom tier of make-up is the stuff that I tried and didn't like all that much but couldn't or didn't return (Lip Venom - ouch!), samples (lots of Clinique GWP mascara up in here), impulse stuff that I bought at Walgreen's (Jane blush), or costume make-up that I might use again (hello black lipstick and Ardell false eyelashes/glue!). This make-up lives in a cosmetics bag under the sink in the bathroom.

It's a great system and helps me get ready faster in the morning because everything I need is easy to grab in a hurry. I sometimes rotate items between the first two tiers, depending on my mood. Stuff that ends up in the make-up bag under the sink is rarely resurrected, though (except for on Halloween, my favorite holiday). And, of course, I'm always adding new items (I've got my eye on some Anastasia brow powder and a new Lorac foundation, as I type this.)

So, how do you store your make-up?