So the single’s I’m talking about are the single use makeup items you may have purchased in the past, or on a regular basis. Eyeshadows in particular tend to add up to big bucks when it comes to buying single pans. Suppose you add 6 eyeshadows to your fall makeup wardrobe this year, how much money is that? Well, let’s do the math: Let’s go with NARS eyeshadows since I’m such a fan of his makeup: 6 new single NARS shadows at $22 each = $132 Ok, so we decide that buying singles isn’t such a good idea, and we opt for NARS duos: 6 NARS duo eyeshadows at $32 each = $192. Ouch, well that brings the price per shadow down to $16 each. Hmm, making sense yet? Or, I can buy a palette of NARS shadows or a combination palette: So, now I have cut my shadow cost in almost half from the duo. This palette equal $8.33 per shadow. Good deal! Or, you can go full hog and get the whole face palette (I recommend this option) Now these palettes I LOVE! I have all NARS palettes, except these two (new) and use them constantly in my professional kit. So let’s do the math again: 10 colors, two cheeks, 4 lips, 4 eyes = $7.50 per color. YAY! Okay, so we did the math on a prestige brand, let’s check out a drugstore brand. I recently picked up the following shadow kits: Revlon 4 shadow kit at $6.99 (I actually paid $2.49 for mine) as opposed to $4.99 for one. That is $1.74 per shadow. Good deal. Rimmel Quad for Smoky Eyes at $5.99 = $1.19 per shadow! And another brand I LOVE, Black Radiance. $3.99 for 4 shadows = $.99. A big WOOT! So when it comes to shopping for singles, my advice is to check out palettes. A few words of advice to remember though: Be sure the colors in the palette are user friendly. Just because you are getting 100 shadows for a couple bucks is not a great deal if you only use two of them. Remember that drugstore brands tend to have more filler to pigment content. So for women of color, this can mean that you may not have the “pay off ” in color when you apply your shadow. This is why I love NARS and Black Radiance brands. Keep shimmery colors to a minimum. Look for matte colors and leave the shimmer for the brow bone, the club or Halloween. I think about the money I have spent on makeup over the years and when I add it up, it’s kind of shocking. What has saved me is that fact that I can write it off on my taxes or charge my client a “kit fee” when it’s work related. But for the everyday woman feeding a makeup addiction, the dollars can seriously add up.