Hey All!
I know I promised that the next post would be one about mascara but I felt that one about quality makeup should come first.
In this instance I'm not talking about how the makeup goes on your skin. I'm talking about the actual ingredients in the makeup. One of the biggest problems in the makeup industry is forgery. High end makeup brands are often targets for scam artists. And scam artists NEVER have your best interests in mind. They definitely are after money and they do NOT care about your health!
I love that we live in a global technological age where we can be informed shoppers. I love a good deal as much as the next gal or guy. And I'll be the first to admit that I've been scammed. I'm always looking for a good deal because makeup can be really expensive. Who legitimately wants to pay wholesale on a bottle of foundation that can run up near $75? What about palette's of eyeshadow around $60??
Nuts!
I recently did a makeup walk-thru with my husband and he nearly had kittens when he did a mental math tally of my makeup collection. His response, "Well this should last you a couple of years!"
"Uh...some may last several months but some you have to replace due to safety reasons." I had to explain that all makeup has an expiration date. Some, granted, have a much smaller expiration window and rightfully so. Mascara is the number 1! Ladies...if you have mascara over 3 months old, throw it out. You are playing Russian Roulette with your eyes. And you do not want those beautiful peepers to weep infection and become crusted over. And you DEFINITELY do not want to risk your eyesight! Here is a great link. (You can take an MD's word for it)
So back to shopping and expensive products. There are Apps left and right to help you be a savvy shopper. I have several that I use consistently. There are several websites that I use to save money. And I get some incredible deals. I recently got a kickass Coach in near new condition for $45. SCHWWING! Steal. Love it! I love saving money.
On the same token several months ago I was so super jazzed about snatching up Urban Decay's Naked Palette 2 at $20. Score! That's $30 cheaper than Sephora, Ulta and Urban Decay's website. It was way cheaper than Amazon too! I caught it off one of those Apps and even saw it on Bonanza.com where people sell stuff. Like an online flea market such as Depop, Top Hatter etc. (I also saw this on one of them too)
I got it in and it looked exactly like Maesin's. It had all the same colors. It was labeled the same. The only apparent difference to the naked eye, without touching the colors, was that the metal to the palette didn't feel the same, it was much thinner. The tin was a muted, washed out shade. The "real" one is pretty solid with a vibrant color. And the smudger/applicator was pretty crappy quality. I dismissed the applicator because, in general, most applicators that come with makeup tend to not be the greatest. (Most. Not all)
I couldn't wait to put it on. I did all the right skin prep. I put on my lotion and primer and started to sweep on color. It started to crumble and the shade barely showed up! Absolutely no pigment. I had to rub the color with my finger several times and swatch it on my inner arm to even get a good swipe.
I read through the ingredients and compared them to my other Naked Palette's and while it seemed to be the same...I knew it wasn't. Time for homework. After reading and watching several experts, I realized the truth. If it seems to good to be true in the makeup world...it probably is. I had a fake. And it was even worse because it was an eyeshadow.
Eye product fakes are the most dangerous. They are near a soft, porous entrance to your body covered by only a small membrane. The people that make these makeup don't care about your health. A recent study by the Staffordshire Scientific Services (They were analyzing 10 products bought online. Only 2 were real.) The ingredients found: high levels of copper, lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium and dirt.
Yep not only dirt but deadly ingredients that could endanger your life. The problem is that this is a very wide spread problem. The trick is to buy from trusted sites. And I hate to say but EBay is not a trusted site.
So what can you do? As I mentioned, develop a great relationship with products. The more you know the brands you love, and the type of product you love, the better you know how to spot a fake. Some of the top brands that get fakes are: MAC, Urban Decay, Benefit, Younique, tarte. These are mid-range in expense and are what predominately run the makeup market so these are easy targets. High end stuff like Charlotte Tilbury, Chanel etc are not as replicated due to the complexity of their product design and their packaging design. (Hard to replicate shimmering beads in a glass bottle)
If you are shopping online look at reviews. I know that on eBay there are some sellers that pedal fake crap that have rave reviews. That's because they have some ignorant people that don't know their butt from a hole in the ground. You are NOT going to find a pot of MAC eyeshadow for $5. If you do then it is either used (used eyeshadow is dangerous...that's like sharing a tube of mascara with someone with eye herpes) or it is a fake.
If you can, look at packaging. Forgeries never look as good as the real thing. They are out to make a buck and spending the money on packaging cuts into the bottom line. If you receive your product and it looks cheap...send it back. If you cannot get a refund then report them. Leave negative feedback. Protect your fellow makeup enthusiast! We have to stick together to protect each other for makeup scam artists out to make a quick buck at the expense of our health.
One last note. I've mentioned pigmentation a couple times now in a past blog and in this one. Forgeries and cheap makeup both have this in common. Cheap eyeshadow can often be just as bad for you as a forgery. It can have a lot of "filler" that is no muy bueno! Always just caution on anything that you put on your face. Take some time and do a little research. Ask around. You do a carfax on your car...do a makeup fax on your makeup.
Kisses my Kats and Kittens and you be the beauty in the mirror!
No comments:
Post a Comment