The ever famous palette that started it all.
Hey there guys, it seems like my post about fake makeup from China have picked up a lot of readers. Hopefully it was informative enough for all of you. If you haven't read it yet, you can click this link to check it out:
My Makeup Story: A Fake Start
I'm going to talk about dupes first. Dupes are products that are similar, or in rare cases, completely identical to a certain popular brand's makeup line or single items. The 2 most obvious explanations of this are:
A. Riding on the bandwagon = Remember UD's Naked line? A lot of makeup companies have come up with their own versions of the Naked/Nude look because it was so popular. It's going to be cheaper, not an exact copy and might not be as long lasting but it gets the job done well enough and looks good while doing it.
and
B. Unintentional similarity = For example, someone bought a lipstick that reminded her of MAC's so she tells someone who owns one or uses the one she owns to compare, find the outcome is close enough, and VOILA! The cheaper one is a dupe of the branded one. This one is a very common occurrence in MUAs, makeup fans and makeup bloggers who intentionally hunt down cheaper options of certain products to use as substitutes. These products could have been produced years before or after their pricier counterparts and may have been manufactured in different countries, and may not have anything in common with those brands besides the resemblance to that item.
The NAKED palette dupe.
Fakes are a totally different story, 100% of the time they are created with the intent to deceive people into buying it, wittingly or unwittingly, instead of their original counterparts. They are straight up copies of popular brands, and badly made ones at that. Fakes are absolutely not OK at all. Not only do they steal customers but they also pose a legitimate threat to the buyers' health.
All of these workers are not paid well at all.
Fakes are created with no regard for health standards and proper procedures. More often than not, they contain illegal chemicals that harm the body and can cause life threatening diseases, allergies and cancer. The factories are unregulated so it's common for human feces, urine and other things to be accidentally or intentionally included in the mix.
The more people buy fakes, the faster they spread.
It is very important to note that if you find your favorite branded makeup being sold online or in bazaars at low prices that are too good to be true, all of the time they aren't. There are no such things as "factory rejects", "Singapore Made", "Class A" or other funny labels they put on those in an attempt to sell their crap. Never EVER buy fake makeup. Buying from such people only strengthens the illegal trade and brings harm to unwitting victims.
So there you have it, folks. The difference between "dupes" and fakes. I hope this was useful enough for all of you.
Have you ever tried any dupes for certain makeup brands/items? Which one is your favorite?
If you haven't used any dupes before then which product would you like to have a dupe for?
Please comment below and I'll try my best to answer and give you suggestions for dupes of your favorite makeup brands.
Sorry for the long post. Have a picture of my baby:
Such Majestic! Much Wowe!
