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Temptalia Asks You - Can you have too much makeup?

Can you have too much makeup? Or is it never enough?

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It really just depends on what you’re going for. Practically, of course! But if you’re collecting or it’s a hobby… not so much.
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38 Comments

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Natasha Avatar

If you’re not a makeup artist and only use the makeup on yourself, YES.
Nobody needs a hugeeeee amount of makeup if they are just using it on themselves. Cosmetics products DO go bad, so if you have a large collection and use it JUST on YOURSELF, then the things that DON’T get used 24/7 will go bad and you’ll just have to throw them out.. Really cream products. But powder products go bad too over a period of time.

Heather Avatar

I personally disagree, but that’s just me. I’ve had products for 10+ years that have not “gone bad” at all. I don’t get sick or any kind of bad reaction to them either. Again, just my personal experience though.

Ingrid Avatar

My great aunt still has makeup she bought 16 years ago. She still wears it It’s all super high end stuff. My little cousins play dress up and use it. I’ve looked at all of it. The containers are so beautiful. There doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with it except the colors are ugly. My great aunt likes bright colors.

Catherine Avatar

At the moment I’m sort of limiting myself by my bathroom drawer which I keep all my makeup in by necessity. Though, I don’t think I ever want to get to the point that I can’t keep all my makeup in it… I guess I just can’t really see the point in keeping stuff I don’t use. And clutter drives me insane, lol…

The Makeup Blogette Avatar

I think the logical answer to this question is YES, one can have too much makeup.

But when new makeup collections keep launching every other week, and all sense of logic and self-restraint fly out of your mind, and soon you find that your drawers or vanity table is overflowing with lots of makeup. 🙂

Beth Avatar

I must admit, I have seen some people’s collections which are insane but I figure if it makes ya happy, why not?

I rationalise my spending by using my friends as a frame of reference. They’ll go out drinking each weekend and spend £30-ish each night. I don’t do that because I think its a waste of money. I’d rather spend the money on make up because its something I can keep and use more than once – even if eventually things go off.

Katie Avatar

I agree with christine that if it’s your hobby, why not collect as much as you want? It’s no different than spending money on collecting beseball cards, or model airplanes (dorky examples, i know :).

HoneyBrown1976 Avatar

I disagree. It is not like collecting model airplanes or baseball cards. They appreciate and gain value over time; whereas, makeup depreciates as soon as you open it.

You can have too much, in my opinion.

Jennifer Avatar

it’s my obsession (plus hobby) so i can never have too much, especially blushes and palettes! <3
but i do realize practically they are too much i would probably don’t need to buy in a life time!

jojoba Avatar

i think yes and i think i am having too much at the moment and trying hard to size it down. i don’t like keeping too much despite that i try a lot of products. i am thinking about a giveaway for my readers but not sure where to go about as i never enter any contest myself. perhaps, i should just randomly pick out a person and send her some goodies.

so yes, it can be too much even if you are a collecter. i now feeling the pinch when i opened up my MUFE Star Powder Collection. i don’t even want them all now even though i use and collect them. it bugs me to see so much makeup…

oh, well…

Natalie Avatar

Oh jojoba, I would love to help you and take some (I don’t want to be greedy 🙂 of stuff from your great collection. I drooled over your MUFE Star powders and you should feel good having them all! 😀

Lipstickrules Avatar

Yes, I have makeup that will last me two lifetimes probably but I keep going. It is a total obsession. I do realize that I’m more of a collector than anything and it doesn’t keep like say, baseball cards. So am I throwing money away? Probably to an extent. It does make me happy and I’m now making a greater effort to cycle through and use everything I have through Project 10 pan.

Kimberleigh Avatar

I am struggling with this right now. A few weeks ago I threw away a ton of make-up that was probably 3 years or more old. It hurt but at the same time, I had not been using it. Right now, the only thing that I don’t have an insane amount of is lipstick. So I am building a lipstick collection. Plus thanks to your must have lipstick series, it has helped narrow down some colors that I am going to try. 😉 But as far as eyeshadows, I have an insane amount of eyeshadows and blush.

samaya Avatar

yeah..i have too much makeup…obviously considering the fact that i use soo less, not even frequently….i know its waste of money…but then i kinda gift them way before they expire….just to avoid guilt of my makeup being unused…

Virginia Avatar

I think makeup is something that’s meant to be used, so I’d say everything you don’t use is probably too much, especially since cosmetics go bad after a while (that’s in my eyes the one major problem in ‘collecting’ cosmetics)

Natalie Avatar

Too much makeup and I am proud of it! 😀 Sure, things might go bad, but then I still keep them, because they look great in my collection. People collect stamps, I collect makeups!

Isabel Avatar

never!! seriously my friends are like you have a ridiculous amount of makeup but i love it, it makes me happy and i love having a ton of options!!

tremorviolet Avatar

It’s really varies by person. Some people think having more than two pairs of shoes is an extravagence. If your babies are going hungry ’cause you’re spending it all on MAC, then, yeah, you have too much make-up. But if it’s how you choose to spend your discretionary money and it’s a hobby you enjoy, then who cares? I spend a lot less on make-up than a lot of guys spend on video games or electronic or computer equipments or mountain biking or a number of other expensive hobbies.

Angela Avatar

Yes, I definitely think there’s such thing as having *too much* makeup. I think if you’re an average person that uses an average amount of makeup (even on a daily basis) there’s a finite amount of makeup you’re going to go through. Personally I love to spend my money on collecting *tools* and new types of product, rather than hoarding eyeshadows and lipsticks that I will never use.

But I know myself well enough to know that I’m not the type of person who *collects* things just to have them, because I always get to a point where I feel the need to purge unused/unwanted items. So I usually restrain myself to things that I feel I’ll use on a regular basis. When I want to try new things, I usually wait for sales that include things I know I’ll use plus things I can try a few times to see if I like it.

kat Avatar

Yes. Unless you’re a makeup artist there’s a point where you just own too much! After a while you really are just getting doupes of colours. Plus, we all have our go-to shades and it may not be worth it to get into depth for the other colours. As some above have mentioned, products DO go bad. Some products, like eyeshadows, seem to last a really long time! Others, like mascara, are bad in a few months (MA’s recommend replacement every 3 months but I usually get 6 months of wear out of a product before I need to trade it in for a new one!)

That said, if it’s your hobby then there are lot unhealither things you can spend your money on. Makeup is fun, so if you enjoy it then it’s your thing and that’s fine! But that’s just a question of needing something versus wanting something. Some people collect stamps; others lipsticks. To each their own!

Diana Avatar

Never!!!!

Well…maybe…

My credit card tends to be pretty critical of dupes. I will not purchase a pure dupe, but I do have a bad habit of buying shades that are similar but different bases (i.e. I have to shimmery “sand” colors where one is pink based and one is beige based). This lets me mix and match.

Stacey Avatar

I used to think not.. but I often feel overwhelmed for choice by my collection. I don’t really buy glosses or lip products anymore because I know they will turn before I finish them completely, but I still buy powder products. Now on my spreadsheet I write the date next to a product when I’ve used it just so I can give some love to my less used items 🙂

tini Avatar

i used to think you ould never have too much until i filled a whole drawer and went to put away a new haul and there was no room. i found a lot of products still in the wrappers at the bottom.

Ingrid Avatar

There is no such thing as too much makeup. Tammy Faye Baker is my idol. I have a huge collection and I’m going to wear it all at the same time every single day. ;-D

Tiffany Avatar

No I personally can never have enough makeup. I’m always tempted to buy more even though I have not used all of the ones I already have. I seriously have an addiction lol.

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