Comparing Collections

2014 YouTube was my introduction to the makeup world. That was a special time for YouTube. It was when everyone felt like your friend. Sponsorships and PR happened, but they weren't as well known as they are now. It seemed like buying everything in a collection was the norm.

You needed to have at least one in each category to be considered a true beauty lover, and the more categories you could come up with the more "in" it felt you were. It wasn't enough to just have a few blushes that worked for you. You needed something hot pink, soft pink, plum, nude, peachy pink. You needed them to be matte and shimmery, drugstore and high end.

Before watching YouTube, the only makeup collection I had ever seen was a family member's that easily fit into a single makeup bag. On YouTube though people had huge collections of makeup. And it wasn't just one person either; lots of people had these collections, and they were still buying more every month. Surely, this had to be the norm for those interested in makeup. Or so I thought.

It would take a few years to realize this wasn't the case. Plenty of people who wore makeup had small collections. But after so long of comparing my small correction to the big ones on YouTube, it was only natural for me to compare mine to the minimalistic ones on Reddit.

Whichever way it went, it was not a healthy relationship to have with stuff. What someone else owns shouldn't factor into how much I have or even want. It's not about who has the most or even the least. Or at least it shouldn't be. Makeup collections are such a personal thing. Not every color works for every person, and not every formula works for every person either.

So why do I still watch collection videos from my favorite YouTubers? I no longer seek them out, but if they show up in my subscription feed, I'm usually at least watch the beginning. Is it human nature to just be curious of others? Is there still some part of me that aspires to have what someone else does? I'm not really sure.