Final project pan 2021 update

For my final blog post of 2021 – which feels crazy to say – I’m going to be sharing my final project pan update for the year, discussing which makeup products I’ve managed to finish.

At the start of this year, I outlined 21 products that I wanted to use up by the end of 2021. As I don’t wear makeup every day, this was a very ambitious target, but it’s always good to challenge yourself and re-evaluate throughout the year. I’ve shared 3 different project pan progress reports throughout the year, which you can check out here.

Last year, I participated in The Project Panner Tag, which taught me about my makeup habits and which products I struggle to finish in my project pans. For example, I’ve found that powder cheek products and eyeshadow palettes are particularly difficult to use up, so I’ll bear this in mind for any future project pans I do.

For those of you who don’t know what a project pan is, it’s where you aim to ‘hit pan’ on a select number of makeup products. It’s designed to help you be mindful of your makeup spending habits and use the products you own. ‘Hitting pan’ means finishing or almost finishing an eyeshadow, blusher or pressed powder. Being able to see the bottom of the case that houses the product shows that you have used the shade a lot. Although ‘hitting pan’ refers to powder products, a project pan extends to any makeup item.

So just how well did I do with this year’s project pan? Keep on reading to see which products I managed to finish, and which ones I couldn’t quite use up. Spoiler alert: I finished up more makeup products this year than I did in 2020, so I’m dead chuffed.

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Products I’ve finished – 8

• Lancôme Hypnôse Mascara in Noir Hypnotic – £27 I used this mascara up towards the start of this year’s project pan
• Kat Von D Tattoo Liner – £17 I’m happy I used this liquid eyeliner up, as it’d been in my collection for a while
• Colourpop All Star Matte Setting Spray – £8 This setting spray has been finished for a while
• Glossier Boy Brow – £14 I got through Boy Brow quite quickly, as I use it for every makeup look I do
• Sephora lip liner to go in shade 15 – £4.40 This lip liner got so tiny that I physically couldn’t use it
• Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer – £28 I used this primer up faster than anticipated
• NYX Cosmetics Soft Matte Lip Cream in Cannes – £6 I finally used this lipstick up
• Maybelline Fit Me Matte & Poreless Foundation – £6 Although I like this foundation, I’m glad I finished it, as there are other foundations in my collection that I prefer

Products I’ve nearly finished – 2

• Maybelline Lasting Drama Light Eyeliner Pencil – £4.80 This white kohl liner is getting close to being unusable due to its very small size. I’m surprised I didn’t finish this eyeliner in 2021
• Tarte Cosmetics Shape Tape Concealer – £23 This concealer is now very dry, so although I’m still getting use out of it, I don’t see it lasting me much longer at all. Maybe 15 more uses

Remaining project pan 2021 products – 11

• Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise in Champagne – £22 I’ve actually used this cream eyeshadow a lot this year, but the pot was very full when I started it, so it was an ambitious target for me to finish it in 2021
• KKW Beauty Crème Contour Stick – £13 This creamy contour stick is pretty easy to make progress on due to the silky texture. I didn’t manage to finish it this year, but I’m pleased with my progress
• L’Oreal Paris Telescopic Mascara – £11 Putting 2 mascaras in this year’s project pan was pretty ambitious, but I’ve been using this one constantly since finishing my Lancône one, so I’m sure I can use this one up in 2022
• Giorgio Armani Power Fabric Foundation – £43 This bottle is maybe half full now. In the latter half of this year, I focused on finishing my Maybelline foundation, so the progress has been slower. I’m hopeful I can use this one up next year

• Urban Decay Naked Eyeshadow Palette – £43 I actually managed to hit pan on one of the shades in this eyeshadow palette (far left), but it was unrealistic for me to think I could use this palette up in 2021
• RCMA No-Color Powder – £11.75 I’ve used nearly half of this translucent powder, which I’m happy with. It’s taking me ages to use this up, so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to finish it up in 2022
• ICONIC London Illuminator – £30 Despite mixing these highlighter drops in with my foundation a lot this year, I didn’t manage to finish the liquid highlighter up. It’s such a pigmented product, so there’s only so much I can use in one go
• Soleil Tan de Chanel – £40 I’d technically ‘hit pan’ on this bronzer ages ago. I’ve used so much of it up now, but there’s still quite a lot of product left

• Tarteist Lip Bling – £18 It was silly of me to think I could use up this full gloss in the space of a year, as it’s very shimmery, so I wouldn’t say it’s that wearable. I’ve hardly made any progress with this one at all
• Essence Matt Touch Blush Peach Me Up – £1 Powder cheek products are hard to use up, but I’ve managed to use up a fair amount of this peachy blusher this year, so I’m pretty pleased with the progress
• Jeffree Star Cosmetics Velour Liquid Lipstick in Christmas Cookie – £16 There’s still a lot of product left in this lipstick. I definitely should’ve made more effort to finish this liquid lipstick in 2021

Final thoughts on my project pan 2021

Overall, I’m very happy with my project pan 2021. I managed to use up more products than last year, with a couple more that are almost finished too.

I’ve learned that trying to finish up 21 products this year was 100% too excessive for me. I don’t wear makeup every day, reserving it only for the weekends. Next year, I’m going to set a target of using up 10 makeup products, as this would be far more realistic and only 2 products off the amount I finished this year. I need to be wary of eyeshadow palettes, powder cheek products, and lipsticks, as these categories seem to be particularly challenging to finish.

For next year’s project pan, I’ll be rolling over several makeup products that I didn’t use up in this blog post, alongside some other products that I believe I can finish in 2022. So stay tuned for my project pan 2022 post in the very near future.

I’m happy with the number of makeup products I’ve finished this year and feel happier knowing that I’m actively trying to reduce my makeup collection. I’ve definitely limited my makeup purchasing this year too, so I’d say 2021 has been a successful year.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you’ll continue reading my blog in 2022 and beyond. Have a wonderful New Year everyone!

Sarah Sarsby is the owner of A Woman's Confidence. With over 6 years' experience of writing in the fields of beauty and lifestyle, Sarah is passionate about all things content, makeup, skincare, wellness, and lifestyle. She has oily skin, is obsessed with lip gloss, and loves cookie dough.