Yes, girl, I’m a beauty snoop. 🙂 Just call me Harriet the Spy of makeup, although I wouldn’t go so far as to call myself a nosy Nellie… It’s fairly innocent. I’d say that I just have a healthy curiosity.
Sometimes, and I can’t believe I’m admitting this because now nobody will ever invite me over, when I go into somebody’s bathroom, I’ll smell the perfumes and colognes if they’re on the counter, try a lotion if I haven’t used it before, and sometimes — OK, all the time — I’ll open up medicine cabinets just to see what’s in there.
I have found some embarrassing things doing that, but you know…of course I never say anything about it.
On a recent weekend trip with my girlfriends Cindy and Jen I noticed Cindy’s little bag of beauty things on the counter… It was see-through, so it wasn’t like I opened the bag… I just picked it up and peered into it. There were very Cindy things in there, practical things, because she’s not a makeup girl. Like there was floss, Band-Aids, and I think there might have been a small bottle of lotion, but I can’t be sure about that last one.
So, yes, I’m a beauty snoop… There, I said it to the world! 🙂
How about you? Are you a beauty snoop? Do you ever spy in other people’s makeup bags or medicine cabinets?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. TGIF!
I looooooove to see what other people have in their beauty bags and medicine cabinets! Back in the 90’s, I bought my first issue of Allure magazine and it had an amazing “get ready with me” type article that highlighted about five women’s morning routines focused on skincare and beauty. I must have ready that article a million times and I still regret throwing that issue away without tearing it out. I want to read it again so bad! It was fascinating to read about what products they were using and how they were using them. Now we have Youtube for all that 🙂
Me too girl. I want to see what shampoo you use, your skincare… I’m beauty nosy!
I laughed SO HARD when I saw that photo of you on my feed!
I am sometimes a beauty snoop…not always though…but I never would use someone else’s stuff. I might open a medicine cabinet, maybe, but I would never open a zippered bag, for example. I value my own privacy and others’.
I would not be happy if someone used my lotions, esp my face lotions and eye cream they are rather expensive. (I use Rodan + Fields) And I don’t want other peoples’ fingers in my personal care products.
As a market research, focus group moderator and ethnographer, that’s what I do for a living! Not only is it fun, it is informative. I love to know what brands and products people buy and why 🙂
That sounds like such a fun job! It must be really interesting.
all the time.how else besides youtube will i learn about new products. lol
Hmm, I think the only time I’ve ever done this is with one of my Aunts – she worked for Dior, and always had drawers & drawers of makeup, skincare & perfume. Teenage me was so envious! These days though, if I see someone wearing a killer shade of lippie, or a pale girl like me rocking some nice makeup, I tend to just compliment them & ask what they’re wearing.
Yes and I am not ashamed.
It depends if I know the people I’m visiting very well or not at all – I *might* peer into cabinets at friends’ and family’s places, but will only look around and have a look at stuff that lies around in the bathroom if I don’t know people well. I love to do that when I’m visiting my best friend because we’ll definitely chat about beauty products at some point or other! Also, when I’m home visiting I love to look at my mum’s stuff and she loves to peek into mine! Not too long ago I’d ask her for recommendations, and nowadays she’ll ask me.
I do this all the time, and I assume so many people do this to, so I make sure to go through my bathroom before I have someone over to make sure nothing embarrassing is left in there…
I agree totally! Get on the front foot by assuming people will be looking in your own cabinet…
I love seeing what beauty products other people use! If they are sitting out in the open. I would ask if I could try it but wouldn’t use something without permission. But I’d never look in anyone’s medicine cabinet. I’m not a snoop. I feel that’s an invasion of privacy.
Should add that I’m a RN. So I’m used to adhering to medical privacy laws.
I don’t look into medicine cabinets but I did look at my roommates makeup just ’cause I was curious. She was from England but she really didn’t have any European products
http://natalyepronio.com
Hahaha!! Love it! The only person’s cabinets I check out are my grandma’s bathroom vanity & her shelves of perfumes & I haven’t even done that for several years. My grandma used to buy Clinique eyeshadows & liners & Coty loose powder & she still uses a variety of pink & red lipsticks from Revlon. The majority of my friends use little or no makeup (which astounds me but to each their own). I have one friend who buys all her skincare at Whole Foods & when I spent the weekend at her place, she gave me a “tour” of her vanity & told me to help myself! I can’t remember exactly what she had but as she has dry skin versus my oily skin, I’m not sure if any of them would’ve been beneficial. Other than being organic, that is.
I always want to snoop, but I don’t. I hate it when people do that to me. Plus I’d be embarrassed if I were caught.
I like reading/watching blog/vlog posts for “what’s in my bag,” “what’s in my makeup bag,” “what’s in my travel bag,” instead.
I’d never use someone else’s stuff w/o permission. That’s just disrespectful, and kind of gross for face and lip stuff. I guess hand lotion isn’t too bad, if it’s a close friend or family member who wouldn’t mind.
I’m a total beauty snoop, I love looking at other people’s stuff. I remember in middle school, after PE, some popular girls wanted to look in my makeup bag and I impressed them with a couple products I had! I think one was a stack of colorful lip glosses I ordered from a Delia’s catalogue haha! Also, I love watching YouTubers give tours of their beauty collections/rooms!
I love this article! I once was not only a snoop, but also a burglar…I stole a cream sample from my Mom! These days, I only snoop at what is visible…on counters, showers, etc. It takes huge restraint not to open cabinets tho!
Yeah, I am like Lauren, I’ll look around at what is visible but I won’t open cabinets unless I have some excuse for doing so. (People can hear you opening cabinets, after all!)
I love to people watch and wonder about their lives, so snooping when I get the opportunity is a given. I will never go as far as opening anyone’s makeup bag (without permission), but I do enjoy opening medicine cabinets. Once at my sister’s older house, there was a trick to keeping her medicine cabinet closed, and I didn’t know that trick. So any time I snooped, she knew.
Always! 🙂 I just can’t help it! My friends already know it but they don’t mind
I LOVE seeing others’ stashes, but force myself to respect privacy. If I’m at someone’s house and they’ve left their makeup on the counter, I will very carefully, and without touching, look at every item. But I force myself not to open anything to snoop (like a medicine cabinet), despite the burning desire. It has to be laid out. 😉
Totally, but only if I know the person well, and I don’t test any items. I’ve checked my brother’s cabinets to see if I could suggest improvements on his skin care, my sister’s makeup stash (we use the same color foundation), and my mom’s when I’m visiting. My college roommate had the most intriguing palettes in cute decorative tins (she was British). My BFF had a stash of much-loved lipsticks and nubby eye pencils, which I used to check out before I was really into makeup. (Totally okay, because that girl would always check my underwear drawer!) Last time I visited her, I snuck in her cabinets and replaced some of her favorite products as a surprise. She was psyched to discover a new bottle of Paul Mitchell root lift!
I’d take a look but not touch if the item or clear makeup bag was lying out in the open. Otherwise, I wouldn’t snoop.