How to avoid buying duplicates?

[user79]

Quote:

Originally Posted by THE ANTHEM i just know what i have. my collection isn't very big though. usually if there's a colour i like but it seems even similar to one i already have, i just don't get it...because i HATE getting two different e/s colours and they turn out to be almost exactly the same

exactly the same for me.

 

[Dianora]

Is the MAC file system individual to each store, or do all stores access one database?

I just remember what I have off the top of my head, and usually avoid purchasing colors that are too similar (I only ran into this when Heat/Element and Goldmine/In Living Pink ended up being too similar to justify keeping both). It's too bad I don't have as good of a memory when it comes to clothes, I'm forever buying shirts that I end up being too similar to something I already own!

 

[a914butterfly]

i have a pretty good memory of everything i have. but i look at it this way, if something is so nice or beautiful and i really like it enought that i would make a mistake of have more than 1, than it's worth it.

 

[m4dswine]

I have a pretty good memory, but in the past a trip to MAC has been a big occasion (not had a nearby store)... so I have made a list of my wants and I take my book.

I am going to have to make a list in Excel or something, although I can remember pretty much all the MU i own... I make lists like noones business though, its almost a hobby... I like sitting down with my book (I have a book of ideas, sketches, notes and stuff) and making a list of all my MU.

I have absolutely NO life!

 

[BlahWah]

I remember everything I have, usually because I don't make big purchases and just before I buy almost any item, I'm thinking about it tons so it sticks in my head! The happiness of getting an item and the disappointment of missing out on one helps me remember what I have... sounds kind of pathetic tho... maybe I should go do those lists, it sounds more grounded... *opens Excel*

 

[Loraelai]

Sorry if I update this thread 5 years after it was opened, but I was wondering: how do you avoid buying dupes from different brands?
I mean: how can you be sure that you don't already own a similar colour to the one you're willing to buy even if from a different brand?
I am a student and I don't work and since I already spend a lot of money on clothes I would like to avoid certain situations.
As for nail polishes I only own 80 or so: I have applied a thin coat of lacquer on sellotape and then sticked the latter on a paper sheet and whenever I know that I'm going shopping I bring it with me. That way I am able to avoid buying similar colours to the ones I already own.
But as for eyeshadow? And blush? Do you have any idea?
I was considering the idea of bringing my palettes with me, but I am afraid that it would be extreme and that the MUAs/other clients would laugh at me. Any advice?

 

[lmcmullen]

I try to only get one of anything, even across brands, and I generally do it from memory.

Where I have the biggest problem is with certain colors that I really like - like gray eyeshadows and MLBB lipsticks. I tend to buy dupes by accident of those since I'm always looking for the absolute perfect one of them.

 

[Loraelai]

So you all go by memory, I assume.
Uhm, that's actually my problem. I was considering doing another list of swatches from my eyeshadow and blush collection. Do you think that could work?

 

[noniek]

My collections getting larger lately, so I write down all of it for my future reference. This way won't buy the same color.

 

[EndingStart]

Hahaha man I hope someday soon my collection is large enough that I forget what I own!

 

[SUMM3RxBABii]

I never buy duplicates unless it's something I KNOW I really love and know for sure I'l def. be using it. Try to find similar colors and experiment, rather than having the same of everything.

 

[altered]

I use Beauty Case. It's a free iPhone app. Makes it easier to check when I'm in a store.

 

[mauratien]

I can remember everything in my mind!

 

[Ladyluscious]

I know most of what I own by heart, but I keep everything in an Excel spreadsheet, because my collection is starting to get huge. Its all nice and organized!

this is what I do.......

 

[EOTD-Fanny]

I know what I have.