At Glossier HQ, we’re no stranger to sharing what we’re stocking our makeup bags with, but this year, we decided to take a more solution-oriented approach. The concept was simple: we asked our colleagues about their makeup bags—what they liked about their current one and what they might be looking for in a new one—and in turn, we agreed to play fairy godmother to their product storage woes and hook everyone up with an upgraded, dream makeup bag. A good deal, right? Especially if you consider how everyone had an issue with the old bags they were working with. Some didn’t have enough space, others had too few compartments. Most were covered in makeup dust. So, we ditched those old bags and moved their contents into new, superiorly organized houses. Welcome to Extreme Makeover: Makeup Bags Edition! May our upgrades inspire some upgrades of your own.
A Handle-With-Care Solution For Precious Cargo
The owner: Rachel Nam, UX Researcher
The bag: a LeSportsac pouch that’s bigger than it looks
The problem: glass-bottled skincare needs more padding protection
The upgrade: a Paravel See-All Vanity Case in Domino Black
Rachel’s Bag Before:
“My at-home bag is mostly a skincare bag. I’ve got The Ordinary’s Niacinamide Serum, Caudalie’s Radiance Serum, Origins Mega-Bright SPF mixed with a couple pumps of their Mega-Mushroom Moisturizer… are you noticing a theme here? Beyond everything being oil-free, all of my products are in glass containers. I love my LeSportsac bag because it reminds me of my mom. (She got it for me on a trip to Hawaii.) And while it fits so much it’s basically magic, what I really needed was a bag that would provide better protection for my skincare investments. This new one, from Paravel, is sturdy enough to keep my beauty products safe, and is maximized for efficiency. It has a handle so I don’t knock everything around in transit, an easy-to-access zip top, and 360-degree clear panels to get a good look at my suite of products before I open it. I love it.”
Rachel’s Bag After:
A New Home For Makeup That’s Outgrown Its Old One
The owner: Karsten McVay, Legal Operations Manager
The bag: a black nylon pouch from Barneys (RIP)
The problem: there’s just not enough room for everything
The upgrade: a Cuyana Travel Case in Sapphire
Karsten’s Bag Before:
“I’ve been known to lecture friends and family on the merits of sunscreen (sorry!), so my makeup bag always has an SPF… or four. Right now, there’s Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen and a mini Supergoop Setting Mist, but in the summer I’ll add Sun Bum’s Clear Zinc to use at my desk and Mineral Stick for roadside reapplication. After all that sunscreen, I barely have enough room for makeup—this bag from Barneys fits the essentials, but I wished I had more room to carry my favorite Tarte bronzer and big bronzer brush. There’s room for it all in my new Cuyana travel case, which is also compact enough to take back and forth from work with ease. The biggest perk? It’s nice to look at.”
Karsten’s Bag After:
A Bag That Keeps You Organized, Not The Other Way Around
The owner: Angelo Mathews, Coordinator of First Impressions
The bag: a flat, silver pouch from TwelveInc
The problem: not enough pockets
The upgrade: the Miles Leather Dopp Kit from Italic
Angelo’s Bag Before:
“My philosophy, in makeup bags and in life, is just to keep it simple. I like my beauty routine to be as clean, polished, and minimal as possible. But in my current bag, I’m always digging for something I need. I’ll go in for Laura Mercier’s Setting Powder in Medium Deep and come out with my Nars Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation. When I want Tom Ford’s Boys & Girls Lipstick in Christopher, I end up with Glossier Play Niteshine in Molten Umber. I need to be ready to GO in the morning, and my products are sabotaging my efforts. Or… is it my bag? My new one has one large compartment, two inner pockets, and a bonus outer pocket to allow for even more space. Plus, there’s so much room for my products to breathe, they might even be having their own self-actualized lives when the zipper’s closed.”
Angelo’s Bag After:
Extra Length For The Beauty Tool Obsessee
The owner: Catherine Rose, Lead Skincare Developer
The bag: an Elemis gift-with-purchase that’s gotten the job done
The problem: makeup brushes get messy when they’re just thrown in
The upgrade: Minor History’s The Kiss Case in Cherry
Catherine’s Bag Before:
“I don’t tend to wear makeup during the week, as my job entails testing product formulas most days and nights. But when I do wear makeup, I always bring my makeup bag to freshen it up throughout the day. And for me, that means a lot of brushes. They help me keep my products edited down and multifunctional, even when they weren’t designed to be. Here’s a good example: I like to apply Glossier’s Stretch Concealer in G10 with a foundation brush wherever I need evening out. But my makeup brushes all have either long, decorative handles or big, chunky ones that literally don’t fit into any makeup bag I’ve ever owned. They’re the biggest inconvenience to store. Until now! This new case is long enough to be makeup-brush-friendly and compact enough to be throw-in-my-bag-friendly. Plus, it’s virtually impossible to lose this poppy red pouch.”
Catherine’s Bag After:
One Bag That Does The Work Of Two
The owner: Halah AlQahtani, People + Organization Development Lead
The bag: one’s Philip Lim, the other’s from Cath Kidston
The problem: a makeup bag that’s actually two makeup bags
The upgrade: Caraa’s Travel Kit in Buttermilk
Halah’s Bag Before:
“So, technically I have two bags: one for my skincare, and a second, smaller bag for my makeup. Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser, Kiehl’s Creme De Corps, and my all-time favorite sunscreen from Elta MD don’t fit in the small bag, but once I’ve filled up the first bag with that stuff, there’s no room for my Cloud Paint and Nars Powermatte Lip Pigments! And never mind my Clarins hand cream and Body Musk from Abdul Samad AlQurashi, which smells like a warm hug in a 30mL glass bottle. I know that two bags is one too many, but I haven’t been able to consolidate without losing easy access to the things I use daily. My new cloud-like Caraa bag does the most in the best way possible. It’s got pockets upon pockets upon pockets, and is so fluffy and durable that I’m tempted to use it as a pillow during particularly long days.”
Halah’s Bag After:
A Bag For Realistic “Minimalists”
The owner: Lisa Balducci, Packaging Production Manager
The bag: a vendor sample chosen out of convenience
The problem: a bare-bones bag leaves little room for imagination
The upgrade: Want Les Essentials Kenyatta Dopp Kit in Sunset/Navy
Lisa’s Bag Before:
“My skin is very sensitive, so for me, less is always more. The craziest I get with my face is probably a dab of some Origins Super Spot Remover Acne Treatment Gel on rough skin days, or a little bit of oomph via Cloud Paint in Beam and a few swipes of Lash Slick. But just because I try to keep my skincare and makeup routines simple, doesn’t mean I want my makeup bag to be. The one I’m using now is a nondescript, basic pouch that I got as a sample from a prior job. Its practicality is what attracted me in the first place, but these days I’ve been yearning for some compartments, or zippers, or really anything different. My new bag is still minimalist, but in a realistic way. Its pocket is what keeps it grounded: A place for that scrunchie, lipstick, or errant fragrance sample I’ve been saving for weeks. Nothing more than what I really need.”
Lisa’s Bag After:
The Lateral-Move Upgrade
The owner: Sam Sonntag, Senior Designer
The bag: a small pink-and-blue smiley print Baggu pouch
The problem: great for minimalists, not so much for packrats
The upgrade: Baggu’s Checkerboard Travel Pouch, a good idea sized up
Sam’s Bag Before:
“My bag remains at home unless I plan on going to the gym from work, and it’s always stocked with the bare minimum: skincare, deodorant, and hair wax. But then… I end up throwing in everything else I put on that morning, because you never know—and because the bare minimum just feels too bare. So, an ideal makeup bag would have room for my Comme des Garcons Play Green, RMS Signature Set, and Kevyn Aucoin Eyelash Curler, too. I loved that my makeup bag had a bright pattern, opened from the top, and was machine-washable when it inevitably got gross. But I always felt like the material was about to rip, and I’d always lose things at the bottom of it. It turns out, the solution was a pouch within a pouch. The bigger one is ideal for larger products that can stand on their own, and the little one is for the small stuff that’s no less important. Plus, it’s still in the Baggu family, which means it’s still got all the good stuff I liked about my old bag.”
Sam’s Bag After:
Photos via ITG