I've loved products since I was a little kid. My grandmother would buy Avon tchotchkes by the truckload for my mom and myself. I had hundreds of plastic pins that held solid perfumes. My first really memorable lip gloss was shaped like a chocolate chip cookie. It held a dark brown chocolate flavored gloss and a tan cookie flavored gloss. It tasted terrible but I loved it. In those more innocent times, my mom could park me in the cosmetics aisle and I would be entertained for ages by making sure that all the lipsticks were in the correct color slots (ahhh, bless Revlon for their lipstick displays).
For my first dance in 5th grade, my mom gave me an Avon compact that had six different eyeshadows, mascara, lipstick and blush. Out of the house, I was not allowed to wear anything but the two palest eyeshadow colors (a light purple and an ivory) and I could wear all the Maybelline Kissing Slicks I wanted. In my house, that compact was used to educate myself in different makeup techniques. I owe a lot to my mom for teaching me about 'Less is more' - even though I do love to indulge in the MORE now and then - especially when I was a pre-teen.
The '8os were a blissful time for the product-obsessed. Everything was BIG! Full faces were de rigueur (mascara, shadows, heavy blush, lips, foundation, cover-up). I started experimenting with color thanks to the Cover Girl eyeshadow quads, and the new Max Factor compacts that you could fill with different shadow pans. I would wear emerald green shadow on my lid and bright yellow shadow from the crease up to the brow bone and black eyeliner on the insides of my eyes. I was sooo cool. (Insert sarcastic eyeroll.) I practically bathed in Love's Baby Soft and Love's Baby Soft Lemon. I owned many different colored hairsprays, hair mascaras (remember L'oreal Zazu?) AND hair glitter. I was always about the accents, though - never a full head of hot pink or blue. I swore by Clearasil, Seabreeze, and Noxema to get rid of all the makeup - even though I was never really acne-prone. At 15, I got my first perm, which led to buying every curl enhancing product on the market. At 17, I was desperate to change my hair color and used my 'farm girl' halloween costume as the brilliant excuse to become a red-head. I pouted when my best friend's mom wouldn't let me buy the gorgeous L'oreal Preference Medium Auburn because it was semi-permanent. She made me buy Clairol Loving Care Light Auburn so it would wash out. Everyone was shocked at how good the red hair looked, so I rocked varying shades of red (strawberry blonde to burgundy) for the next 13 years.
At 18, I got a job working as the unofficial 'cosmetics merchandiser' for a chain drugstore. I was a cashier, but also responsible for setting up and maintaining all of those plastic displays (a.k.a pre-packs) that companies use to advertise their newest products. I spent more than half my weekly paycheck in the cosmetics, skin care and hair care aisles. I bought deep-conditioning packs like crazy (even though my super-fine hair didn't really need it). I was completely hooked on L'oreal Studio Pumping curls (used to amp up my spiral perm) and I bought every shampoo and conditioner we sold at least once. I began using moisturizer with SPF in it when I was 19 (smart move on my part, even though I bought it purely because it was new). I experimented with AHAs in my early twenties (not that anyone that age needed it). Working there, I also read every fashion magazine I could get my hands on, a habit I've never broken since.
Now, as I struggle to turn my obsession into a full-time job, I continue exploring new products and services. Every Saturday around my birthday is spent shopping at Sephora with my girlfriends. I am constantly on the lookout for new things to try and new places to go. Someday it will become clear, but I'm certainly enjoying the journey!
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