I think we all understand that while talking about our perfumes, the use of the word “collection” is somewhat a stretch: it is a collection in terms of being an assembly of items of the same type, probably even systematically arranged. But since the objects of the collection, perfumes, are being used (no matter how infrequently) and also can spoil, the “collection” part is a figure of speech rather than a literally meaning. Today’s question should be considered in this context.
Saturday Question #203:
Do You “Collect” Anything (Besides Perfume)?
As it is hopefully clear from the introduction, the question is not about collecting art, baseball cards or vintage Hermes scarves. A “fair game” would be something that is/can be used up, which you’re buying in excess of regular use/consumption. Food, drinks, bath and body products, socks, ties, pens, paperclips, umbrellas, etc., etc. – I hope you got the idea.
If you have photos of your collections somewhere online and can share, please do.
My Answer
I LOVE lipsticks. It has been a while since I posted about them, but for a non-beauty-centric blog, the number of posts on the topic of lipsticks is quite telling: Lipstick Extravaganza, Lipstick Queen’s Mixed Metaphor, Sunday Self-care, Episode 6: Read My Lip… Care Choices, The (Last?) Two Queens, (Pillow) Talking myself into buying perfume, They had me at “Hello” – and now “Goodbye”, Frog Prince(ss)’s Kiss, Black Lace in Tropics, and more, but I’ll stop here.
A couple of years ago, I decided to sort all lipsticks I had at that time by color, take pictures of them and swatches, and have those photos with me every time I think of buying another one while at a counter. These are pictures of almost complete “collection” of my lipsticks back then.
I use lipsticks, lip balms, lip veils and other lip products daily. So, since these pictures were taken, I used up some of the lipsticks I had. Lock-down and not shopping as often somewhat helped to slow down my acquisitions, but still, I bought more than I finished (I think – I’m afraid to count).
Undina's Looking Glass 
I think DH would say food. No couple need both a chest freezer & a fridge/freezer. Both the freezers are kept fullish, meaning when the fridge is empty of all but milk & condiments for cooking we can get a homemade ready meal out. I enjoy batch cooking so always cook enough to freeze another dinner for 1 or 2.
What I say is eyeshadow palettes. I’ve collected for years & now I find my hooded eyes can only really be made up with pencils & shadow sticks.
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we also have a double freezers, you are not the only one. we have a big alottment garden and bake our own bread, so we need the storage.
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I bake sourdough & freeze it too. Our little veg & fruit section does produce gluts at time & they often end up in the garage freezer. I’d like a bigger section but DH likes his lawns
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I’ve never had more than a single fridge, and until recently when my MIL moved in with us, it was enough, even during the pandemic when we used to shop once every couple of weeks. But these days I wish I had space for an additional freezer.
I have my share of eye shadow pallets that I love buying but rarely use, but those are in a relatively more reasonable quantity.
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I hate waste so things get cooked & frozen
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In my case, shower gels and bar soaps. Also, body butters, body creams, and candles. The amount has become embarrassing.
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I would be worried about creams: those have a tendency to spoil, probably worse than perfumes. But shower gels and soaps keep well.
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I just had a massive purge of the ridiculous excess of lotions, shower gels and body products two weeks ago, the visual clutter was killing me and constantly reminded me I have too much. I also threw out a dozen hoarded lipsticks that I will never use. I’d throw the rest out too but for the moment I don’t need the space for something else so I haven’t. Same with excess eyeshadows and face powders. I use only a few, as my makeup routine has radically minimalized since the pandemic.
I still have too many shoes, handbags, tshirts and jewelry. Oh and books and ceramic tea bowls/cups. I am a collector at heart, which I want to change but am not having luck eradicating that aspect of myself. I would love to be a minimalist as I hate clutter, but at the same time I enjoy my nice things.
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I don’t even want to be a minimalist, but I would love to be able to use and enjoy properly things I have, which is hard to do when you don’t remember what exactly you have or can’t find it! ;)
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I definitely went through a phase, when I started wearing actual makeup (vs the occasional mascara and swipe of blush) of collecting makeup of all varieties. Because I wear thick lensed glasses, eyeshadow palettes were big – I enjoyed the artistic side of doing eye makeup for a while. Now that I don’t go off to a job every morning (most of my photography work is at night) I ended up donating as much of my makeup as I could to Project Beauty Share, and kept only what I really loved and wore. I also have a few too many candles and an overstock of skin care items but the makeup was the biggest offender.
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I have more skincare items than is reasonable since there is only that much you can use simultaneously without risking skin irritation ;) But I’m trying to use what I have in some systemic way. I’m trying :)
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Hmm… not really. I have small, self-limiting “collections” of a particular series of sunglasses and another of handbags, which I expect to last me a lifetime so I don’t consider them disposable even though I use them regularly. Since you mentioned ties, I have a thing for decorative zippers so if I encounter more ties that have zippers on them, I might add them to my “collection” of… two. LOL.
You have quite the impressive collection of lipsticks for sure!
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Thank you! I’m not too upset about my lipstick collection because I have just a couple items that I bought but don’t like much and a couple I got as a part of a set or a GWP, and they aren’t my favorites. But all other lipsticks I like, and several of them I repurchased more than once.
It would be interesting to see your tie “collection.”
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I’m afraid I do collect quite a bit, it kind of happens when I like something. But I’ll only admit to my collection of moomin mugs, and I also have quite the collection of Agatha Christie vintage paperbacks 😁
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Books don’t count! Those belong to the category of items that are supposed to be collected and can be enjoyed repeatedly.
How many mugs are we talking about?
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Those lipsticks are gorgeous! I love lipsticks, too. But my main collecting focus, aside from perfume, is fashion dolls. I wanted to be a fashion designer when I was young, so I love all the mini haute couture looks on the Silkstone Barbies and the Fashion Royalty dolls. I post photos of them on Insta from time to time. I love the mini jewelry, ball gowns and suits. My dolls live the glam life I’ll never have. :-)
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I’m fascinated by your collection and enjoy seeing your IG posts.
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Snap on the lipsticks. Most of mine are reds. A few pinks and neutrals. Soap bars. And minis of just about anything – skincare, hair care, gels, lotions. Oh dear, I need another clear out ☺️
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I’m partial to everything mini! But I’m trying to use whatever I have.
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Errr, I have to fess up to my part in the shot-glass collection.
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HA! Undina. the answer is yes.
For years I collected dinner sets. Now I’ve kept three. For daily we use the Royal Doulton Morning Star set. Mum & Dad got it for their wedding and when they both died I collected enough for 30 places with all the accessories. I know but sounds a lot but we regularly fill our 12 seater dining table and almost everything gets used regularly.
There’s also a 20 seater Wedgewood Amherst and a pure white Noritake that was the daily for a few years. The rest were given as gifts to friends and to charity when we moved from the house.
I also collected Aynsley Harvest Gold and have vases, a tea set, every kind of bowl and bit.
The latest thing is pins that go on my backpack. I popped a few on and now they have become an easy thing for people to buy me on travels or when they see a particularly good one. So while I’m not collecting them, the collection is growing.
I have to keep an eye on myself because there are definite hoarder tendencies.
Portia xx
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Your collections are unexpected and unusual :) I would love to see them.
I have a favorite designer – Michael Aram, and I have a lot of items by him – my dinnerware, vases, serving utensils, etc.
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Going to check it out now…
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WOW! Michael Aram does lovely stuff Undina. I can see becoming a collector of his work would be super satisfying.
Forgot to add I also collect all the postcards people send. There are a couple of big boxes of them now and every so often I sit down and take a trip through memory lane.
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I have an embarrassment of riches in the shower gel and soap department. I am trying not to add anymore but I am always attracted to them, probably due to some type of soap magnet.
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I’m curious: where do you buy soaps? I like soaps, but I rarely come across those that would tempt me.
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As luck would have it, both Whole Foods and Wegmans have very attractive displays of soap by weight. They don’t waft scents but once you pick up the colorful bars, 😱.
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Yeah, I too have a lot of both soap and shower gel Hajusuuri.
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I am a collector of many things, but it seems like perfumes are the only item that fits the criterion, and gets used up. I have my old stamp collection, which people remind me from time to time that they are still valid postage in case I’m in need of a stamp. 😉
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I remember my father not being thrilled (to say the least) when I used some of his precious stamps on the letters to my friend. ;)
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I can appreciate that.
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Besides perfumes, the only other thing I “collect” that fits the criteria is lotion – hand cream, body cream, body lotion, body butters. I’ve been on a mission for years to find the “perfect” one where I like the way it absorbs and I like the scent thru the entirety of the bottle. There’s at least 2-3 on the coffee table at both my house and my vSOs house, 2-3 travel size in the purse, 3-4 on my nightstand at my house, 4-5 on the headboard at my vSO house, 2-3 by the kitchen sink at my house and not to mention the unopened ones in the cabinets at both houses. I’ve been trying to be good about not buying anymore and to give away the ones that I no longer like (either I’ve tired of the scent or it doesn’t absorb the way I’d like it to). I also have a collection of salt and pepper shakers (double digits on the # of sets I own).
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If you haven’t tried it yet, I recommend Clinique Body Butter. It comes in a jar and a squeeze tube. It’s unscented so you can layer it with the perfume of your choice.
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Both topics – hand creams and salt/pepper shakers – are close to my heart. I would be extremely interested to learn your top 3 favorites in hand creams :)
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Here’s the top three that I’ve found/liked well enough to continue to buy replacements.
Infinite Aloe’s Everyday Hero Complete Skin Care Original Scent. For me, it’s a light enough scent so that it doesn’t conflict with whatever perfume I decide to wear for the day. I’ve tried the unscented version, which I don’t like. To me it smells like plain oatmeal. Most unscented lotions I find tend to smell like the plastic packaging they come in. Came across Infinite Aloe at a conference many years ago and bought a multi jar pack. I’ve since bought a few packs over the years, mainly at Costco when they have someone there promoting the product,
The Coconut Hut’s Cocoa Cabana Whipped Body Souffle in Kaanapali Shores scent. The Coconut Hut has an online presence, but they are also at a lot of the local art and wine festivals (Think I’ve seen them at both San Carlos and Millbrae’s – the last jar I bought was at Pacifica’s Fog Fest.
Bath and Body Works Eucalyptus and Spearmint in both the body cream and hand cream version. The hand cream is a nice purse size.
Most everything else I’ve tried ends up as ok enough to finish off the current bottle but not buy again; or if I decide I don’t like it enough to finish it, I’ll pass it on to someone else if there’s enough left in the jar/bottle to pass on, if not then I just end up tossing it out.
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i love lipsticks and eyeshadow palettes and also use kbeauty a lot, so i always order a big package at stylevana, so i have a drawer of cosmetics to use up. but they often get used as gifts for friends, if i need something quickly
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I think I stopped buying palettes for a while: I use eye shadows maybe 2-3 times per month, so what I have now could serve me and the next generation, and I don’t have any space left in the designated drawer :)
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I do collect other things but they’re not used up like perfume. I guess the closest thing for me would be plants, since they don’t last forever. Roses, hellebores, hostas, Japanese maples — I have enough of those in different varieties that they may qualify as “collections”!
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My grandmother “collected” different cultivars and varietals of plants (fruit trees, flowers, vegetables), so I know how it is! And unlike other “collections” mentioned here, yours might actually grow on its own! :)
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I love your lippie collection! Other than perfume, I collect lipsticks (and cat fuzz).
In the last few years, Smiski glow in the dark figurines intrigued me, I have 13 so far.
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I learned something new today! :) I haven’t heard about those figures before.
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Also lipsticks!, though I have nowhere near as many as you. And I don’t collect them consciously, I just can’t bear to throw old ones away. Then I would definitely add wool and books and mugs. ;) I have crazy amounts of all three.
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