Earlier this week I killed some time on YouTube watching Kimberly Clark’s anti-haul videos (first one here). If you don’t have the time or desire to watch a 25 minute video, what it boils down to is a drag queen going through a list of much-hyped beauty products, why she’s not going to buy them, and why maybe you shouldn’t either.
This is pretty timely for me, because as I look towards moving to Seattle, I really have to cut down on my makeup spending. Besides, there’s really not a lot of room left for new products in my makeup storage, so I’m starting to be a lot more picky about what I actually buy. It’s hard though, because I really enjoy watching makeup videos on YouTube on my lunch break, and it seems like there’s this constant “This is the best liquid lipstick formula ever” (I go and buy two or three colors) “No wait guys, this is the best!” and so on and so on. Everything is the next must-have, better than the one that released last month… And it really is a monthly basis. Remember when it was a big deal when Urban Decay dropped a new palette? Now it seems like they release 3-4 a year, at a minimum.
In the past, I was terrible. I’d buy a palette because it had one or two pretty shades of green. But now I have a series of questions I ask myself before I buy new makeup.
“Do I need it?” Look, if I’m out of foundation or mascara, I need to replace it before my next performance. No questions asked. If I need it, I can buy it.
“Why do I want to buy this?” Sometimes I want to buy something because I’m bored. Sometimes it’s just pretty and shiny. Other times a product would be a really good match for a new costume. Frequently, I want to buy it so I can see if it’s really as cool as people are saying, and review it here. I only get to indulge in those first two reasons if I just got some birthday money or there’s a big Sephora sale or it’s cheap.
“How often will I wear this?” If I have given myself permission to buy makeup just for fun but I can’t decide what to buy, I try to choose the product I’m likely to wear more often. A weird color of lipstick won’t get a lot of use, but a versatile highlighter might.
“Am I sure I don’t have something similar already?” If I’m looking to try a new formula of lipstick or eye shadow, I have to be really careful to make sure I’m not buying a color almost identical to what I already have, because I tend to drift towards similar shades time and again. And along those lines — really how many blushes or highlighters do I really need? Minor shade variations don’t make that much of a difference.
“Do I really have to buy it right now?” Sometimes if an item is limited edition or being discontinued, there’s not a lot of time to dwell on a decision. But often if there’s no urgency, and I don’t give in to the desire to buy it right away because some vlogger said it was cool, I realize later that I didn’t want it that badly.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m going to keep buying makeup! But I’m hoping that if I keep asking myself these questions, I won’t end up with the same shade of lipstick in six different formulas, and enough palettes to fill a closet.