Many skincare products are not bad. They are simply not suited to the rhythm of life we were living at the time. This writing begins with branded skincare products that sat unused for years, eventually expiring. It is a reflection on waste, habits, and the quiet weight of good intentions - and the starting point of learning how to build a simple, sustainable skincare routine.

閱讀中文版：〈那些年，被放到過期的保養品：一段關於浪費、心意與習慣的回顧〉

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The Expired, Unused Skincare Products:

A Reflection on Waste, intention, and habits

Gifts From a Close Relative

It is hard to remember when I first started using skincare, but I clearly remember a close relative who often gifted me branded skincare products. From my early twenties to my late twenties, for nearly a decade, those products appeared regularly in my life until the day the relative passed away.

What had been gifted was rarely one single item.

More often, it was a full set: toner, serum, lotion, cream, eye cream – one bottle after another. Sometimes, she would also include makeup from the same brand, such as eyeliner or lipstick.

The gifts were practical, generous, and full of care.

Bottles That Sat Until They Expired.

Most of the time, however, those skincare and makeup products expired before they were ever finished. During the early days of decluttering, I often found myself unable to throw them away – even when the products were clearly expired.

On one hand, it felt wasteful. They were expensive and high-end products. On the other hand, they carried memories of the closed relative. Discarding the gifts felt like discarding this relative’s final gesture of care.

Why Were the Skincare Products Never Finished?

I kept asking myself the same question: Why did these products always end up unused until expiration

At that time, I did not have a daily skincare routine. Even when I was resolved to “take skin care seriously,” the effort usually faded after a short while.

Looking back now, it makes sense. For someone without an established skincare routine, still learning about their own skin type, starting with a fully loaded and multi-step regimen was already too much. Morning and night routines with many steps – even when I followed the instructions and reminded myself daily – never truly fit into my life. The practice felt forced, disconnected from my actual pace.

There was also discomfort. I could not tell whether the products were unsuitable for my skin, or whether my skin simply did not need so many layers. Sometimes, my skin felt clogged or itchy. Occasionally, small rashes appeared. At times, there was redness and discomfort. Over time, skincare stopped being self-care. It became pressure.

So the bottles were placed back in the drawers and on the shelves, left there again and again, until most of them expired. Every time I threw away expired skincare, I blamed myself.

“Why cannot I not finish anything”

“Am I just lazy?”

“Am I failing to appreciate someone else’s kindness?”

Yet, the pattern persisted.

The next time new products arrived, everything repeated itself.

It Was Not A Lack of Willpower.

Only later did I realize: What I thought was a lack of willpower was actually a mismatch. I was using methods that did not fit my lifestyle and expecting myself to maintain them anyway.

The problem was not effort.

The problem was the approach.

I slowly came to understand this: “If something is complicated from the very beginning, requires constant mental effort, and causes physical discomfort, it will never last. “

No matter how expensive or well-reviewed the product is, no matter how determined the intention, if it cannot blend into daily life, it will eventually become an unformed habit – and an expired object.

Awareness Begins With Wastes

The cycle of awareness, starting with waste, closely mirrors how I later came to understand minimalism or decluttering. It is not that we do not need things. Often, they simply do not suit us. For me, “empty bottles” do not begin with finishing a product. They begin with awareness of waste.

Real skincare does not start with buying more products. It starts with honest questions:

What were my habits before?

How did those habits quietly lead to waste?

Letting GO is Also a Form of Carae

From the awareness of waste, I slowly established and progressed to a routine that could integrate into my day-to-day life, one I could maintain, one that eventually allowed me to finish skincare products for the first time.

Perhaps that, too, was a way of saying goodbye to the care that I once received from this closed relative; this time with a grateful heart.

In the next post, I will write about how I began establishing my skincare habit – slowly and simply.

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閱讀中文版：〈那些年，被放到過期的保養品：一段關於浪費、心意與習慣的回顧〉

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