7 Uber-Expensive Beauty Products We Love To Sample

by Rika Nurrahmah | 4:40 pm, July 21st, 2010

You’re in a Sephora or a Bloomingdales when suddenly your eyes set on a very alluring, unpackaged face moisturizer. You smile faintly upon discovering an eye blinding “Try Me” sticker, cringe when the price tag screams $62 for the 2 oz. jar, and then look around to see if anyone will catch you committing the ultimate no-no: opening the jar and slathering it all over the face. You slyly close the jar and proceed on as if nothing happened — but deep down you feel the shame.

Why is it that shoppers feel the act of sampling erodes their status as the “refined consumer?” Is it because we fear the judgmental opinions of the girl who walks by carrying $200 worth of goods in her giant Sephora carrier? Will the sales associate tell us to scram?

Here’s our advice: throw that shame out the window and carpé diem! Fellow Styleite intern Justin Fenner and I freely indulge ourselves in Dean and Deluca’s Brooklyn Blackout cake samples — stressing the plural — and I can safely say that our mooching habits transfer well into the beauty counters. When we shamelessly sample, we sample hard — particularly on the 7 products pictured below. Click to see why.

Disclaimer: Practice safe sampling and use the cotton pads and sponges provided alongside the cosmetics.