This Cheap, Easy Scotch Tape Trick Will Give Your Old Makeup Palettes New Life

The Internet has made all kinds of information easily accessible. Now we all know that Ryan Seacrest is 5'8". We also know how to fix our makeup palettes if they ever crack or crumble—although doing anything with powder can get a little complicated. It's just a fussy medium: Not only do you need rubbing alcohol on hand—vodka probably won't work, although we haven't tried—but it takes some time to wet it, mix it, set it, and then let it dry in the sun.

That's why we're all about this new hack, which both cleans and repairs the surface of any powder in your makeup stash in just 10 seconds. Why, you're probably asking, would your powder need repair? Well, when you use your brush to pick up eyeshadow, swoosh it around your eyes, and then press that brush back into the powder, your brush is incidentally transferring the oils from your skin to your pan. These oils can mix with the powder, which eventually hardens into small, raised patches on the surface and creates a film. This makes it tough to pick up pigment with your brush. It also sounds like a recipe for a breakout to us, especially if you're dealing with powder foundation.

Then you tear it off, taking that oily-residue film with it. It's the same satisfaction of waxing, but with fewer tears—and, obviously, with makeup palettes that are suddenly like new. We're going to file this under: "Wow, we should've thought of this sooner." Still, at least someone did. And with your fresh pan of powder newly revealed, you might just find that that smoky eye is a million times easier to pull off.