The Ultimate Project Pan Guide
Photo by Alicia Michelle.
There’s something about a well-loved beauty collection.
A collection filled with fingerprints and visible pans and half-empty bottles, owned by someone who knows themselves, shops mindfully, and thinks critically about consumerism.
That collection could be yours.
And that person could be you.
All you have to do is start a project pan.
What is project pan?
Project pan is the conscious, deliberate practice of “hitting pan” on, or finishing, your makeup products. In a world where you’re constantly encouraged to consume, project pan encourages the opposite, to stop consuming and enjoy what you already have.
Why should you try it?
As an offshoot of minimalism, project pan helps you save money and reduce waste. It also frees you from the paradox of choice and makes you feel more satisfied (there’s something about using up products – it’s addicting, in a good way).
Some empties and well-loved favorites in my collection. Photo by Alicia Michelle.
How long does it take to finish makeup?
It only takes a few seconds to whip out that plastic and acquire a new makeup item, and that’s where the beauty industry gets you.
Depending on product size or type, makeup can take between 3 months to 3 years to finish.
To use a case study from someone who’s better at math than I am, the folks at Birchbox performed a lipstick test to determine how much product is used per application. Their finding? The average lipstick consumer uses 0.008g per application. When the amount in a standard tube of MAC lipstick (3g) is divided by 0.008g, you’re looking at 375 swipes per tube. And when applied 3 times a day every day, 375 swipes gives you roughly 6 months of use.
When the same logic is applied to other items in your makeup collection, the results can be truly Lovecraftian (figures taken from Twindly):
MAC Single Eyeshadow (1.3g). 1000 swatches per pan. 2+ years of use if applied every day.
Clinique Cheek Pop Blush (3.5g). The average user applies 1g of blush per year. 3.5 years of use if applied every day.
Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r foundation (32 ml). 180 pumps per bottle. Half a year of use if applied every day.
Tarte Tape Shape Concealer (10 ml). 250 swipes per tube, may vary depending on application technique. Roughly 8 months of use if applied every day.
5 tips for a successful project pan
1. Start Small
Skincare and small perfumes are easy to finish quickly. Photo by Alicia Michelle.
As demonstrated earlier, some cosmetic products take literal years to finish.
For beginner project panners, such a long time period can be daunting; to prevent demotivation, start by working on small products you know you’ll finish after a few months, such as skincare, lip gloss, or mascara.
From there, gradually work your way up to cream products, such as cream blush and highlighters, and small powder products, such as eyeshadow. As you progress (and you will progress), use your momentum to propel you into tackling the cosmetic big boys – your large pressed powders, perfumes, and bullet lipsticks.
To ensure a wide variety of products get used, some pan aficionados like to challenge themselves and get creative while doing so. Check out my 10 Project Pan Ideas for 2021 post for further reading.
Don’t forget to rotate!
If you have a large makeup collection with multiple items in the same category, experiment with rotating your products every month. This helps prevent boredom and ensures everything gets used equally.
2. Stay Disciplined
The secret to a successful project pan lies in staying disciplined about your shopping habits.
You can’t finish products if you keep acquiring new ones – keep your eyes on the panning prize by abstaining from buying new things. Reduce temptation by unsubscribing from beauty emails, blocking online storefronts, and deleting saved credit card information. Challenge yourself to a no-buy period and set daily reminders for it on your personal calendar.
3. Join a Community
Project pan can be a lonely road, especially when “Buy! Buy! Buy!” is screamed at you from every corner.
Thankfully, online communities exist, communities full of fellow panning enthusiasts and makeup minimalists:
r/PanPorn. An online community devoted to panning and reviewing finished products.
r/ProjectPan. A smaller online community specializing in panned palettes.
r/MakeupRehab. A friendly community for those who wish to become more mindful about shopping.
4. Celebrate Panning Milestones
To further break up panning monotony, try dividing your projects up with milestone markers. Take pictures of your progress. Create a panning log, where you detail how long it took you to reach a panning milestone, what you think of a product, and whether or not you plan to repurchase. Some panning milestones to celebrate are:
Pro Tip
Can’t get enough of a lip gloss or liquid concealer and want to extend its life? Remove the tube’s stopper to reveal months’ worth of extra product.
Creating “dips” in your cream and powder products
Seeing visible pan
Increasing the visible pan’s size
Completely finishing a product
5. Don’t Force It
Some big panning projects - the perfume took me 2 years to finish! Photo by Alicia Michelle.
“Hate panning” is a frequent topic in online panning communities, where makeup enthusiasts challenge themselves to finishing a disliked product. While this method minimizes waste, I personally believe that makeup should always be pleasurable.
If something stops feeling good, don’t be afraid to declutter it. Understand that sometimes you grow out of a product. Sometimes your skin changes and an item no longer works for you. Sometimes a perfume triggers painful memories…
To use a personal example, I decluttered nearly all of my makeup while I recovered from my eating disorder and slowly acquired a new collection. Though well-loved, my old collection, full of dark lipsticks and dull eyeshadows, reflected a dark period in my life, a chapter I was happy to leave behind.
If your products are gently used, consider donating them to a local women’s shelter or to an international charity. When donating, don’t forget to review the organization’s criteria and sanitize any qualifying contributions with alcohol.
Before decluttering a product from your collection, thank it for giving you joy during the time you used it.
