Good morning ladies and gents! And, welcome to the first post of 2017. I thought what would be a better way to start the year than taking stock of all the expired products in your shelf.
Wish you all a very Happy New Year. May it make all your dreams come true!
Okay, what I am going to confess is a cardinal sin. I do use expired products, even the food items sometimes. I am not very cautious with the dates! Well, most of the times. It is not negligence but a will born out of not wasting anything, especially if I know it would not go bad in the specified time. When was the last time wheat flour went bad just because I could not finish it in 3 months? Right?
Same applies to expired products in skin and hair care section. Of course, there are categories of products which should be discarded after their expiry dates and some can be safely used beyond them. You should just know how to choose the correct ones. So, let me mention a few products I use unabashedly even if they expire.
Hair Oils or generally Oils of any kind for Skin, Hair or Cooking
Oils are generally not considered to be expired products even beyond their before use date. Unless they become rancid, they are good to use.
I tend to store my oils properly so they never get rancid till I finish the oil. Same goes to cooking oil category and cleansing oils as well but not if they are not pure oils, mind you.
Essential Oils
Now, essential oils are a different. They are highly concentrated and potent and they need to be stored very carefully. Exposure to air or light can destroy their beneficial properties though the oils may not get rancid. So, I keep them in the darkest corner of my shelf and make sure they do not get exposed to light when I am using it.
Since we need only a few drops each time, the essential oils last a lifetime. Also, I make sure I do not buy a lot of them at one go. When you are mixing more than 2-3 essential oils, you should make sure that these oils actually complement and blend well with each other. So, check that out and then buy your stock.
So, expired product? Nah, no worries 🙂
Handmade Soaps
Again, they are cured and made from products which do not go bad so they do not expire.
I like to stock on soaps. Have you seen the Kama soaps which seem to be quite interesting and huge but then they are expensive as well!!!
Bathing Powder or Natural Dry Powders
You have loads of such products these days. As long as they are dry, it is fine! You can use it any time. Same goes to dry clay masks which need to be mixed with liquids.
Other Expired Products
So, what about face washes, lip balms, face moisturizers, serums, shampoos and conditioners and hair spas, etc. I have to say that I have used conditioners since they do not really touch the scalp and get washed off. But, other expired products, not so much. I prefer not to use expired active skin care. You never know what will go wrong. Same goes for shampoos. After all, you are cleansing your scalp with it.
And, I will stress the importance of having the freshest stock of sunscreen here. Sunscreen formulas degrade as they age so make sure you finish your sunscreen before getting the next tube and always use it well before the expiry date. Do not let it stay in your shelf for more than 6 months!!
Of course, it is great to use products within the stipulated time but sometimes it is just not possible to do that. So, if you have expired products at home especially in these categories, you can use them safely till you finish them.
So, what do you say? Do you agree that it is fine to use expired products with a little caution? Share you opinions in the comments section. Looking forward to hearing from you!
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