makeup I regret not buying
- Missy
- Apr 22, 2020
- 6 min read
It occasionally happens that I pick up a cream highlighter, wonky eyeliner or lipstick in a shade that really doesn't work for me and feel a little regret for the waste of it all. In fact, I have a little black makeup case full of products that I poke around in every once in a while and hope that I end up liking after all. Spoiler; as beauty products expire they're less likely to have the intended effect, so I'm never really happy with them. I just struggle to say goodbye to things- and they'll make a great blog post when I'm reunited with them after the pandemic. Regardless, this is not that kind of blog post. I thought it would be fun to look back on beauty products that were limited edition or just aren't being manufactured anymore that I either couldn't afford at the time or just didn't know about but I get serious FOMO over, even now.
Urban Decay Naked palette
Released in 2010, the Naked palette was revolutionary in the beauty industry. Created to suit every person and skin tone, to accompany any outfit or occasion, this warm-toned neutral palette could be manipulated to create light daytime looks, while still being flexible enough to morphe into something more dramatic for the evening. At 16, a €50 palette wasn't something that I could possibly afford- and as a black-loving Goth anything short of midnight grey didn't fit into my aesthetic.
Add the fact that I'd have had to barter with leprechauns for it to get to me in rural Ireland with what few magic beans I had left, it just wasn't feasible.
As it is, how my more fashion-conscious cousins got their hands on it I'll never understand. Though I got more interested in makeup in 2015, I never got around to buying it- with so many new and interesting products (most of which I couldn't afford anyway), why look back? Alas, the palette was discontinued in 2018 with over 30 million units sold. A decade on, and the original Naked is the neutral staple that launched a new beauty trend that is still evolving to this day, it's thematic formula visible in the top-selling eyeshadow palettes still available. Though I have so many neutral brown palettes, having a piece of makeup history would be nice.
MAC matte lipstick in Love U Back
One of the most popular MAC lipstick shades, Love U Back is still very much available to purchase- but not to me. MAC is, alas, not cruelty free, which means that I can't financially support the company or its morals. I put it in the list of products I regret not buying because, up until I had a deeper look into the ethics, a MAC lipstick was high on the I'm Actually A Grownup list. When I was younger, MAC was a high-end brand that only princesses can afford, or people who work in an office and have to wear red lipstick to walk in the door. As I've grown up and more interested in makeup, there's still that attraction towards the brand, but with the knowledge I now have it's buh-bye to MAC.
Unless they become cruelty free. Please MAC?
ColourPop Crème De La Crème highlight palette
Get ready, there's going to be a lot of ColourPop. To clarify; I've only ordered from ColourPop twice, and they were both in 2020 so I have missed a lot. You could say that ColourPop is my biggest discovery of the year, and it's definitely my most favourite makeup brand- I just cant get enough. If you don't know, ColourPop is infamous for releasing products on the regular, and it's pretty important to keep up with what's new. This means that a lot of products aren't permanent- even things that I've had me eye on since my last haul in January have disappeared from my wishlist. So going through ColourPop's history definitely makes me feel like I've missed out; they're just so good with colour story, packaging and formula, it's a pity that I don't have them all! [Within reason!]
I so wish I'd been in the loop when the Crème De La Crème highlight palette was released! I don't (yet) have any face palettes or highlighters from ColourPop, and I love this French theme, it matches mine so well! I will admit that I do love a crazy highlight on most occasions and these are a lot more subtle than I would normally have in my collection, but knowing ColourPop it would have been very appropriately priced and worth the investment. And again, with a French twist- how chic!
ColourPop Gimme Butterflies palette
I have a problem with butterflies. By that I mean if there's a butterfly on it I absolutely have to have it. It's actually one of the reasons that I bought the ColourPop Flutter By palette in my last haul (review here!) and thank goodness I did- spoiler; it's my favourite! Which is why it's such a pity that I wasn't able to purchase the Gimme Butterflies palette. The colour story is a bit all over the place, but I definitely don't have a lot of these shades. Unfortunately, it was only ever available in Ulta (which we don't have here in Europe) so it was never meant to be. But if it had, oh how wonderful it could have been!
ColourPop UR A QT palette
Another Ulta exclusive that I couldn't get my hands on, the UR A QT palette would have been such a wonderful accompaniment to my Flutter By palette (obviously it's a purple-themed palette). I remember being so excited when it was revealed on Trendmood and hunting for it on the ColourPop website, only to be disappointed when I read the fine print. I think that it's about time that ColourPop have a warehouse here in Europe!
KVD Lolita Por Vida palette
This is a palette that I absolutely could not wait to purchase. I have a monthly 'big palette' allowance (within reason and before the pandemic), and I was so looking forward to adding this to my collection. Admittedly, I already have the actual KVD Lolita palette that I play around with on the occasion, so it's not a palette that I absolutely need to fill a space in my collection, but it brings me so much joy and offers so many makeup looks from that single palette that having some more similarly-themed shadows would have been a nice bonus. Alas, I wasn't quick enough to snap it up, and by the time that I was prepared to invest it had been discontinued. A mistake that I'll hopefully never make again.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Master Palette By Mario
I really wonder what rock I was living under for the majority of the history of Anastasia Beverly Hills. Somehow for the longest time I managed to be completely oblivious to one of the hottest makeup brands of the late 2010s and I really don't know how. Because of my complete ignorance of the beauty industry (and somehow the revolutionary Modern Renaissance) I completely missed out on the Master Palette By Mario because it was very much not on my makeup radar. A collaboration with professional makeup artist Mario Dedivanovic, the vision behind Kim Kardashian's makeup looks, the quality of the eyeshadows are supposed to be sensational. With matte and metallic finishes in gold, chocolate browns and slate, this would be a great companion to the Anastasia Beverly Hills Soft Glam palette (thankfully permanent and currently on my wishlist). I've only heard good things about this palette, whether that's the formula, pigmentation or colour story, and I'd have loved to see it for myself. Oh well, I'd better start my ABH eyeshadow collection first!
What do you regret not buying- I'm sure that there's something that still hurts every time you think about it?! I do think it's important to point out that these are just makeup products, and at the end of the day I only have my collection for fun- at the end of the day it won't kill me not to have them. Besides, it gives me an excuse to find dupes!
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