You guys think that's bad? Try being in the UK. Our tax is 20% atm. Every time I order from Sephora, shipping is only £3 but I end up with a massive tax/duties bill to pay. To make things worse, a lot of brands won't allow Sephora to ship to the UK (Smashbox, NARS, etc) so to get some things, you have to send the Sephora order to a forwarding company and then pay their fees and shipping on top of the tax you have to pay. I've found a general rule is that companies in the US will make UK pay the same "number" in price -- they just change the currency symbol. For instance if a lipstick at MAC is $15 in the US, it's £15 in the UK but current exchange after googling shows me that $15 USD is currently £9.42 GBP. Being in the UK is a rip off and I admit Europe has it even worse. I think what irks me most though is I'm a Canadian and have been here 10yrs so I know I could get it cheaper if I was back living in Canada. My Dad is also living right by Niagara Falls so I could just hop the boarder and get it even cheaper. Ohhhh to dream. :sigh: