The Boring part of FI

We just started in the endeavor of FI. I mean JUST started. For the last two weeks it has been a process of weeding out expenses that we don’t need (Cough….ipsy…. cough), and items that we can give up (Soda, I’m looking at you). One thing that I was personally waffling with was Skincare. I have Rosacea, and if you know anything about it – you know that it royally sucks. In light of this fact, I have been hesitant to move to cheaper skincare – read, refusing to. However, I have also been quite hesitant to purchase the next round of $100 face moisturizer and serum. I am not high maintenance by any means (I wear makeup maybe twice a year!), but it is quite nice to not have my face burn when even water touches it. After waffling for weeks, I discovered a couple options that hopefully meet the quality of my expensive skincare preference, and the spirit of frugality of our new FI journey. After all, $100 in skincare means I have to work 5 hours longer before I retire………

1. Did you know that there are websites for the sole purpose of comparing ingredients in skincare products? No joke! I ran my skincare through both Skin Skool Beauty and Skin Sort. After comparing the ingredients in thousands of different skincare products, they gave me a few choices that offered the same ingredients as my preferred skincare. I chose a few that ranked the highest in comparison and looked up prices and reviews for the suggested products. Instead of spending $100 this month on skincare, I spent $25 – a 75% savings! (and I get to retire 3 hours earlier than I would have!)
2. Can’t live without your skincare? Try this tried and true online shopping hack. Navigate to different websites that sell your skincare and place the items you want in your shopping cart. Walk Away. Yes, you read that right. Leave it. Ignore it. Many retailers will send you an email asking if you forgot what you have in your shopping cart – and a good deal of them will accompany that with an offer of some kind of discount.
3. Poshmark or Ebay. Personally, this isn’t my jam – but many report great success with this route. If you are not familiar with either of these retailers, people are able to list various items in various states of use (Ranging from New With Tags (NWT), to halfway used) for purchase. You can score some pretty decent discounts if you are open to the roulette. I don’t recommend purchasing partly used skincare or skin products, but this is an option that is out there.
4. Every month, Marie Claire lists the Promo Codes that are currently active and skin product retailers. Keep a good eye on this list and wait for your Brand to pop up! Skincare Promo Codes (marieclaire.com)

There are websites out there that offer drastic discounts on brand name skincare. I would caution you to beware of these websites as there have been reports of counterfeit products being sold through them. Do your due diligence, research the websites and you should be fine!

Overall, I was fairly encouraged by the options that are out there. Remember – being frugal doesn’t mean doing without! Do you have any hacks that you use for lowering your skincare prices? Post in the comments below and we will update our list!!