Do beauty blogs help you save money or inspire you to splurge? For better or for worse?
They help me save money, I would say, but I’m not exactly the typical blog reader!
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inspire me to splurge
inspire me to splurge, for sure
you helped me save A LOT of money =D my SO <3 your blog for that! your dupes & honest reviews make my shopping much effective & regret free .. Thanks <3
Both! It’s like at home shopping, I see new things, some I like and some not so much. I think blogs and YT has made me a better more informed shopper overall.
Is it weird to say both?
I tend to splurge on higher end items but I buy less on collections. Blogs are great for window shopping and budgeting!
I feel like they are my enablers and saviors when it comes to buying beauty products 😛
inspire to spurgle definitely. Its hard to think you can’t have one eyeshadow and one lipstick if someone buys the whole collection eventhough their circumstances may be different to yours. You are surrounded by people whose passion is make up . LOVE blogs though!
Both. Swatches can make me want something I wasn’t originally interested in, or save me from buying something that wouldn’t work for me. I usually have to order beauty products online because I can’t find them in stores where I live, so this blog has been extremely helpful.
both– so it balances out pretty well, except I’m usually happier with my purchases whether it’s a pass, a steal or a splurge
THEY MAKE ME SPLURGE………..if beauty blogs were not there..i would not have knwn so many things and hence not have felt like buying them….
They inspire to splurge, but at the same time splurge rationally.
Splurge, but that’s okay. I wouldn’t visit these blogs if I wanted to pinch pennies!
I’m a beauty blogger myself, and I’d have to say they inspire me to splurge- there’s definitely a “keeping up with the Joneses” effect to being part of the BB community. Everyone gets so excited about a product or brand, and I just feel like I’m missing out on something big if I don’t try it too.
Having said that, I’ve also held back on many an item I might have purchased after seeing online swatches or reviews…maybe in the end it all evens out?
Definetly inspire to splurge!
Both!
me too! 🙂
Inspires me to splurge after doing some research which could help me save money!
Inspire me to splurge definitely
Pretty sure they cost me hundreds of dollars in lemming every year ^.^
Splurge. I must NOT BUY ANYMORE MAKE-UP! (repeats 50 times)
It’s both 🙂
Splurge, DEFINITELY!
(but I’m not complaining)
Inspire me to splurge but also guide me to get the right products (n_n)
they inspire me to spent my money 😛
I watch a tutorial or see swatches from products and i’m like ”i’ve got to have this…i don’t have anything like that”
Even though dupes are so easy to find! they may look different in the pot but on the eye (for eyeshadows) they’re all the same lol
Absolutely they inspire me to spend more money. But I’m sure to buy much better products!
They inpsire me to splurge, but I have impulse control issues anyway and if I saw the product in the store would probably have snatched it up anyway!
I splurge more because I see pics and read about all the new pretties out there.
Inspire me to save. I’ve been deterred by swatches and reviews a bit more often than I’ve been encouraged by them, which is a good thing!
They help me to save a LOT of money. I do not know how much money MAC ‘lost’ on me due to temptalia.com 😀 Usually, when I see the promo pictures, I am head over heels for a new collection, but as soon as I see some of Christine’s amazing swatches, the exitement cools considerably. I am thinking: ‘Oh, got something like this shade already’, or ‘Christine says it is quite sheer/does not apply nicely’ or ‘all right, the color is way too warm for me’. The blog actually saves me a lot of time too, since when I do not like Christine’s swatches, I never even bother to go to the counter to swatch it for myself. That was the case for Cham Pale for example – I was excited about the quad but when I saw it (and read that it had TWO permanent shades in it) I was glad to skip it.
On very few occasions, you inspire me to splurge, too – as with the Chanel Enigma Quad of last fall. Though I have to admit it turned out to be the most amazing quad I own.
So: thank you so much Christine!!!!
My pleasure 😀
SPLURGE 😀
definetley help me to save money…
I’d say more than anything that beauty blogs introduce me to new brands and yeah, therefore splurge.
inspires me to splurge X_X
It’s a bit of both for me. You inspire me to buy nice things, but at the same time you’re saving me money because I’m not buying things that don’t work/look awful etc.
Both, but inspires me to splurge much more
A little bit of both. If I find a shade I like I’ll research a bit for pictures, reviews and dupes. If I find a good enough dupe, I’ll go for it. I usually go to Makeup and Beauty Blog for swatch references since she’s got my skintone 🙂 (If we were the same color, I bet my makeup stash would be bursting at the seams. Your swatches are always pretty and everything you put on looks good on you!)
Happy new year Christine!
Thanks, Iliana! Happy new year!
i only read your blog.. so i have to say you inspire me to splurge!! 🙂
everytime you review a new mac collection i want to get way more stuff that i’ve planned!!
it depends ^^ via temptalia I save money because of the dupe comparisons and other things and I can see pictures of the products etc.
via yt videos I definitely splurge money. ^^
both 🙂
I save on stuff that’s not worth my money – when I can’t see something for myself but I can read a negative review. But it also inspires me to splurge… 😀
I follow over 200 blogs via bloglovin, so I really am someone that reads blogs everyday, and I think I’m just going to go help me save money.
The bad reviews will make sure I DON’T buy a product: Money saved.
The good reviews will make sure I choose the right product, and don’t waste a shit load of money on products that won’t work: Money saved.
If I’m honest they inspire me to splurge more than anything else…
Ah it depends, beauty blogs basically help me choose what I really want in the collection so I can tone down what I want to buy. So I guess it helps me save money
Def splurge, I am tempted to get more things! In addition running my own youtube channel just makes me a whole lot worst.haha but it’s worth it (:
Splurge, for sure. Especially when there’s a buzz going on for a certain product, so beauty blogs are not good for my wallet! 🙂
Can I say both? 😀
Beauty blogs let me know -and want- products I would have never considered if i hadn’t read about. At the same time, they gave me useful infos about these products which lead me to a careful shopping: I focus on few products, and so I save money 🙂
Christine and the Muse have certainly twisted my arm more than once to buy pretty makeup I don’t need! 🙂
When I first started reading beauty blogs I’d run out and get pretty much whatever was being raved about. I quickly realized some of those “reviews” had to have been paid reviews. I’m much more selective not only about what I buy now but also about the blogs I read.
splurge 🙁
Sometimes I splurge, but many times I save after I see the product. I am sort of new to the beauty blog thing, so what exactly is the typical blog reader? Thanks!
Both! LOL I read a lot of beautyblogs and if a lot of beautybloggers are positive about a product I must have it. But If a view are negative I definitely not gonna buy the product.
Both. There are times when I think I am convinced I need a product (or vice versa) and a review on a beauty blog will change my mind.
I think a bit of both to be quite honest haha
Sometimes, you (since you are the only beauty blog I visit haha) review something I had never thought of purchasing and I am hooked. And because your reviews are always honest, if you don’t rate a product highly, I usually stay away from it.
And btw, every time I have splurged because of a review, I have always loved the product. Never once been disappointed.
Phew!
Splurge, definitely. But I make less mistakes because I’m more informed. Hooray!
Both. It makes me want things, sure. It also helps me though. By seeing product swatches and descriptions, I can see what doesn’t work for me and take it off my wishlist.
inspire me to splurge but not buy everything I originally wanted! 🙂
Splurge, splurge, splurge!!!
splurge !
I def splurge waaaay more now that I visit beauty blogs.
God, that is so hard to answer!Well, I have definitely spent tons more money since I started reading your blog! You are just good at your craft and when I see how pretty something looks on here I have to have it!BUT at the same time, you have helped me save tons with your beauty deal updates and many times I will want something but then read one of your reviews and see its not that great an item so it saves me the money I would have spent on it. So either way, Im inspired!Lol
Splurge! Splurge! Splurge!
Mostly, I splurge, but with the onslaught of MAC collections, the blgs help me save b/c they tell of dupes and repromotes.
Actually I’m not much of a blog reader either. I stumbled accidentally over temptalia when I was looking for a review of MAC’s Rebel lipstick. Ever since I have visited this site regularly. I would not say that it actually makes me splurge because I have to be carful with my money (student). But before I knew temptalia I bought definitely less beauty products.
Inspire me to splurge!
I would say both; they save me money from buying things I might have thought looked good in the pan or tube but swatch badly, and they also inspire me to splurge on items I might not otherwise have heard about.
Inspire me to splurge. I wouldnt normally buy this much makeup because i wouldnt be in the know about upcoming collections and products w/o reading beauty blogs. Plus, when products get good reviews, it tempts me even more. Haha.
They do both! Reviews prevent me from buying products that might not really work well for me; however, they open your eyes to many other great prods which increases spending. Overall, net net, SPLURGE!
Both! I get to see the most interesting items that I didn’t know about but it helps me also spend less by toning down how much I wanted. For example with all the MAC collections, everything sounds so nice and I end up with a list a mile long, but then I see swatches and reviews and invariably my list shrinks down to a few items.
Mostly splurge, butsave, too. Before getting hooked on Temptalia and 3 other blog that I frequent, I hardly bought makeup and nail polish compared to now. Maaaaybe a product or two every other month. Now, I haul frequently – both DS and HE, too. My wallet cries. I would never have learned of all the collections and releases and even the existance of some of my fave goodies, if it wasn’t for the beauty blogosphere. BUT, I am getting more wise to what not to buy, as well. So, yes, my wallet cries, but it forgives me just in time for the next “in-thing!”
Oh definetly SPLURGE! haha but at least i know what products I want due to this blog! No on the spot buys! (:
Mmm, I would say both. The give me a better idea of the product I’m interested in, so it makes it easier to pass on things I was wondering/debating about.
However, sometimes they introduce me to products that I normally would have passed up, like the Clarisonic Mia. But generally it’s more passing because a lot of blogs tell of dupes for a product.
They inspire me to SPEND. If it wasn’t for this site, i wouldn’t know about all of those MAC collections (at first I thought they only had 3 collections, a spring, summer, fall… and then well holiday) I didn’t know they make about 20/year. It can help you save $$ too because blogs can tell you whats worth buying or not.
Either the case, I always still check out the items in person, I never buy online. The pictures are not always exactly what you see on screen. (sephora website especially). I am picky about my colors, so if its even the slightest shade off from hat it really is in person, then I don’t want it.
Splurge!
Inspires me to splurge! I am coveting the Make Up Forever Flash Palette now because of this blog!
Although judging from the ingredients it’s nothing but pure food colouring pigments in an oil, beeswax, and clay binder — Maybe I’ll try and make a few of the colours myself!
Both. If I see a bad review on your site of something that I had previously wanted, I cross it off my list. But when I go on blogs and see so many gorgeous pictures of new collections, I get excited and go out and buy the things that stand out to me. I also will buy things I had not previously planned to (Naked Palette) if they get an outstanding review. In general, I think I spend more because of beauty blogs and Youtube.
Both! They inspire me to splurge, because without them I wouldn’t know about most of the collections and new products in the first place! But after that, they do help me save, because I can pare down my wish list once I see swatches/comparisons/etc. But overall I’d say I spend way more money on makeup than I would if I’d never discovered beauty blogs!
Both. I definitely depend on your blog to filter the new exciting stuff from the stuff I don’t need.
Both because I learn about launches but I feel more informed before I step into a store. It also helps me skip collex that don’t interest me. Your swatches and reviews are super helpful!
definitely spend!
I’d say beauty blogs help me save money on things that are otherwise not very good, and inspire me to splurge on things that are!
The dupe list totally helps! And I’m always peeling my eyes for drugstore products for good reviews so yes it does save money
Both. Reading beauty blogs alerts me to new things that I would otherwise not be aware of. At the same time, swatches and reviews help me to avoid things I definitely don’t need/want.
They inspire me to splurge but also educate me on buying the right products too!
well temptalia helps me save a boatload of time and money… but in general all the hype about some products just makes me spend, spend, spend! i would say it inspires me to shop smart. i hardly ever get things i dont like anymore!
Thats a good question. Honestly….neither. I certainly don’t save money, but now I’m much more of a educated shopper. I always look for reviews and swatches before I buy now. I test it out myself. Then I will decide to buy. I just won’t buy anything now. I also try to limit myself certainly. I’m much more happy with my purchases now since I know that they will work for me.
Blogs definitely help me save! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been all over the promo pics of something and then I see actual swatches or dupes and it makes me realize that I don’t actually like the product. They also help me pick through collections so I can buy that one shadow I really love, rather than some random shades of the new formula shades.
SPLURGE SPLURGE SPLURGE!
🙁
I think a little of both! I have deff saved money by knowing is a product will work for me, before i purchase it. But they also show me lots of stuff I want and then go out and buy haha.
Definitely splurge. I’ve been following beauty blogs since about August and my makeup stash has grown 500%! LOL! My poor wallet! The swatches and reviews help tremendously though.
Definitely make me splurge. Before i became an avid blog reader i had no more than 10 pieces of makeup and now i have a hard time finding a place to store my collection
Kinda both, I guess? They help me decide carefully what I want and what I can skip.
This one definitely helps me save.
Definitely splurge! I wouldn’t even know about half the brands and collections if I hadn’t been following beauty blogs! :S
Haha probably splurge! But that’s ok. I would never know about certain things if it weren’t for beauty blogs!
inspire me to splurge
I’d have to say a little bit of both. Blogs have definitely saved me from spending money on something that maybe wasn’t as great as it seemed. But they have also shown me a lot of things I may never have even know existed that I then went out and bought. 🙂
I would say mainly both. In one way the splurging has helped my make up collection really fast. But the saving part is when there are dupeable items.
Inspire me to splurge and spend a lot of money! Absolutely not save money!
A little bit of both. Sometimes I splurge on products I was not aware of previously, but for the most part, seeing someone else test drive a product I’m considering helps me make a decision on whether to buy, or helps me narrow the field of possible candidates. In that sense, it saves me money I don’t spend on things I’d have to replace.
I can pretty much control myself when it comes to cosmetics and finances. I have to eat and bills to pay. Blogs help me choose products wisely and control impulse buying.
Help me save $ for sure! Now I don’t buy and then find out that a product sucks. I also save $ checking out makeupalley.
They Save me money because I don’t end up with tons of mu that I dont like and that doesnt look good on me. I shop online and I end up buying less than if I’m in the store.
I would have to say that it usually causes me to splurge. There are several product that may be on my wishlist but when I see a great review and swatch of the product…I just can’t seem to resist. I’m getting a little bit better though.
I find it helps me to save money… Whatever I want or am in the market for… I’m going to get it anyway so if I happen to find a great cleanser or something being raved about, I’m only interested if I’ve been on the lookout for a new cleanser. Finding tips on great products helps steer me in the direction of what will work instead of wasting money on tons of products that do not.
I normally don’t buy and use a lot of makeup (I’m still in my 20s and I like to keep my look more natural. For my color makeup, I’m usually content with my Too Faced neutral eye palettes and a couple blushes from Clinique. Beauty blogs exposed me to a lot of beauty products out there where I normally don’t bother looking when I’m at the mall (those MUA intimidates me with the heavy makeup they wear and those pushy sales tactics). But in addition to that, beauty blogs also allow me the opportunity to shop around, make informed decisions before buying certain products.
Both! Sometimes they inspire me to splurge (mostly pretty pictures and positive reviews) and sometimes they help me save money (mostly negative reviews, or when items appear similar to things I already have). I feel better informed since I started reading beauty blogs, especially Temptalia with all the extensive swatching and comparing 🙂
splurge and a lot haha
I’d say both, im not one to splurge on makeup but if I see a palette reviewed and it looks like something I would like im more likely to buy iT. but they have also helped me save. I pretty much wont buy anything if I can’t find a review on yt or a blog because i just dont trust the website that sells the product. They have deffinatly helped for the better becuase im alot more informed about makeup
Inspire me to splurge!!!
They inspire me to splurge but since I learn so much about the products, I realize what I need and don’t need.
Your blog is the only beauty blog I like to read because your reviews are very honest and the pics shown are great quality. I would say your blog has helped save a lot of money so far mostly on MAC collections since you do reviews before the collections come out so I have to write down what I want to get and save time and money. =)
But your blog also inspires to splurge lol – I have to say, my beauty wishlist has been growing dramatically since I’ve been reading your blog lol. ^__^
Absolutely both!
Sometimes I get sucked into buying stuff from how your swatches look. They all seem to look beautiful on you! There are also times when I decide to skip on collections (mainly mac) when I see that the products look gorg on you but probably not so great on me ^^. I would have to say that beauty blogs inspire me to think more thoroughly before buying a product but they also inspire a wish to own it.
Well, both. Blogs sometimes help me rethink lemmings I’ve been having (like a color that looked pretty in the pan but went on really sheer, things like that) but I would have never looked twice at many of the things I now own if I didn’t read about them in a blog first.
Definitely splurgeee! I wouldn’t have discovered so many products without beauty blogs.
Splurge. However, while I buy more, I actually get things I use.
they make me Spend more, because i find moooore beautiful colors
totally do both, they make me want to buy products i wouldnt have known about or that are recommended but save me making bad purchases that ill regret!
Splurge! & I spend too much as it is 😉
They do both for me, it depends on the review. Reading reviews has saved me money especially when it’s from someone who I have gotten to know through their blog so I know where they are coming from and I trust their opinions. If I get to see and hear how something I was planning on spending money on is not pigmented at all or it fades or creases like crazy, I know I can skip it. Also, seeing swatches and reading reviews has brought things to my attention that I hadn’t thought of buying until the review so that can cause me to spend money.
This is my go to channel for anything related to beauty and although I feel you inspire me to want to splurge you help me to make a better choice because of your reviews on the product.
Splurge, definitely — but I’ve gotten much more discerning when it comes to spending money on makeup. It’s only been a bit over a year that I’ve been reading beauty blogs and getting back into makeup, but most of the stuff I had was low-quality and annoying to use.
splurge for sure!
it inspires me to save money for sure. because i’ll here about all these new products and look at the pictures on the company’s website and be like i want that, that, that, that, that, and that. then i’ll go onto your website and watch and read your reviews and swatches and hear how you like it and if its worth it. so yeaah 🙂 helps me save money. and also i havent got lots of money so it’ll give me an idea on what are must haves.
Definitely SAVE 🙂
Both! It makes it easier for me to shop, and to figure out if the product/items is worth it or not. I also love how I get to know the upcoming collections, so that I have a better control of my economy and know when to save and when to splurge! 🙂
Leaning more towards splurge!
Without BB I’d have never known about lots of products. However, thanks to BBs, YT, and MakeupAlley reviews, I am able to learn more about a product before buying and hating it….so it saves me in that regard (but still splurging haha)
inspire me to splurge but with a wiser thought
(I can read the reviews and see the swatches first, if it’s not into my heart content, then I won’t buy it)
In some cases, they help me to save money (hypothetical example: I’ve pre-decided on 10 things I want from a collection, but upon reading reviews and seeing swatches it goes down to 6 things I want) but the NET result is that I end up spending more because of all the products I see that I never would have heard of or would have wanted if I hadn’t read the blog.
It inspires me to splurge but also I feel like it helps me from splurging on things I would later regret. It’s like a double edged sword.
They save my money since I can see “accurate” color swatches, read the review of product which prevents me from buying products that maybe just OK or that would not work for me.
DEFINITELY helps me save. I can look at things ahead of time and decide if I really need them or not. When I just go to a counter with out a plan I want to buy EVERYTHING!!
That’s the great thing about blogs(particularly this one), they do both! I have definitely saved money because if there is a product that I am curious about I will check out the site and see Christine’s swatches and read everybody’s reviews and advice. Without the dupe list, there are definitely times that if it weren’t for the blog I would have been suckered into something that I already have or at least have a close match to. The blog also inspires me to splurge because I am much more likely to try something that I was just “ify” about before if I know that it got great reviews. I have found some of my beauty staples from the blog and what’s not to love about finding a product that will be a rebuy in the future?!? Thanks to this blog I found my favorite concealer that I had been searching for over years!! (Benefit erase paste.) I love this blog.
DEFINITELY make me splurge. There is so much stuff I wouldn’t even know about (Naked Palette, 24/7 anniversary set, any brand nail-polish collections that go fast) if it weren’t for blogs. I also probably wouldn’t get MAC stuff as soon as it came out for fear of it selling out. I would probably just meander into stores and not even be aware of hot stuff that’s already gone.
Blogs help me splurge within my means. So I say both.
Splurge for sure – just the mere exposure to so much makeup makes me want to buy!
I guess they do both. It depends of the product 🙂
i would say both. splurge because i read about all these good products that i must try but also save because i can find out if it’s worth it or not before i spend my money on it
I would say save. Temptalia is mainly the only blog I visit (outside of say, a YT guru’s) b/c everything you put up Christine, is so in-depth and your swatches are really good AND you actually answer questions people have about the products. I know that if I’m interested in a product I can looks it up here (usually MAC stuff :P) and know I’ll find a good swatch of it, I’ll get to see what the product looks like and whether it’s worth checking out, because we all know how accurate MAC’s swatches/pics sometimes are >. > Plus I’m kind of inspired to go through my collection and see if I have anything that matches your swatches so I don’t have to go out and buy unnecessary dupes for things I already have. I also have to add, that buy saving me a trip to the MAC store or Sephora/ another dept store (e.g. Macy’s/Bloomies), I also save $4.50 on transit, and that adds up. 😛
OH, since starting my own, it’s been NOTHING but splurge. but before, when i just read your blog and Kandee Johnson’s? i’d spend about 1/6 of what i spend now. it’s an addiction, i tell you!!