So I have a million things to review and I feel like a lot of people are waiting for me to comment on the most recent Lime Crime episode. That would be her video of how she "makes" eyeshadows (or "colours" as she says) and her video calling me a big fat pants-on-fire liar.
What do I think?
Short answer: Bollocks.
Long answer: Watch this space.
Yes, I'll be posting it. However, I have a few reviews from press samples to do first, and I don't want my blog to become nothing but anti-Lime Crime. So it'll be going up when I've got this other stuff that I also want to write about out of the way. And it'll be a big one, with help from you guys.
But for right now?
It's bonfire night, everyone; tonight the fireworks are outside.
38 comments:
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY
5 November 2009 18:59normal bloging
Zoe
I know, right? If I post everytime the girl does something stupid I'll never get anything done.
5 November 2009 18:59I can attest to your pants being on fire, hottie, but you're certainly no liar.
5 November 2009 19:45Happy Bonfire night, kitten. <3
Have fun at the fireworks! I so forgot that today is Bonfire night, I need to go to a pub and see if they will be celebrating.
5 November 2009 19:57Someone should make a separate blog documenting as much of Lime Crime's scams so the personal blogs can move on to other topics. I'd do it, but I dunno if I've been around long enough to talk about her pre-makeup shenanigans.
5 November 2009 21:32P.S. Does anyone think it's the epitome of irony that Xenia is the Greek goddess of hospitality?
Have fun celebrating!
5 November 2009 22:07I'll be raising a glass to you ;)
*hug*
Hello! I just found your blog after some research on LC. I used to be a fan and hadn't even heard about the rumors until she posted that video about the rumors. She seemed like she had something to hide, so I looked into it. I'm glad to have found your blog because it definitely fits me better than the Unicorn fairy bullshit she was spewing. I used to really admire her, but now I have no idea why. Can't wait to start reading more from this blog though!
5 November 2009 23:02I'll admit, I found your blog through this LD mess, but reading back through your post I've become more than excited(I'm twitching like a damn chihuahua) about the new reviews. As for someone's idea to have someone officially make a blog to follow Doh and her scams, I'm totally in favor of it and would consider taking up the keyboard but the fact that though I've followed her since I was like 14(loser, I know) I was blind to her "dark side" until just after her big clearance sale, right around the time stuff about her dupes was surfacing more. Hopefully someone does it, the people on top of this mess have plenty of better things to write about.
5 November 2009 23:53you really sound like a high school bitch, you sound like you're personally attacking the other girl. What's that about?? Do you produce your own make up range? I wonder how many 'scoops' you've done on big brands like MAC etc? Did you ever factor production costs, packaging costs, advertising costs, website costs, time, effort, research into how the make up is priced? Plus, why shouldn't she make a profit?! Are you really telling me you would do the same but at exactly what it cost you and wouldn't want to make some money? Jog on, you sound like a really childish, jealous, nasty bitch. Maybe you should be pleased for someone else's success rather than just slag them off, its quite pathetic and immature. Karma is a funny thing.
6 November 2009 00:07And you write like a grammar school child, Boutique.
6 November 2009 00:26No, Ana doesn't produce her own makeup range, but she also doesn't repackage and then resell someone else's marked up. Obviously you were absent for the ethics lesson.
Karma is a funny thing, isn't it? I mean, who would have figured a girl who deceived people for personal gain would actually gain detractors?
Re: TheBoutique
6 November 2009 00:33hello, this is pot paging kettle.
no one said LC should charge exactly what she pays for her repackaged goods. they just want her to admit that they're repackaged. when $12 will get you enough TKB eyeshadow to fill 500+ LC jars, that's more than covering costs and making a little profit... that's like paying $1000 for a plate of waffles and not even getting a diamond encrusted napkin to tuck in to your collar.
but maybe that went over your little pointed, um, excuse me, ~*enlightened*~ head :)
Yeah, TheBoutique, of the two of us I sound like I'm in high school.
6 November 2009 00:53If you'd read the topics fully, or perhaps the responses to them, you'd perhaps realise that the issue we have with Lime Crime is that they're simply taking mica directly from the wholesaler (the colours match exactly to the naked eye, the ingredients match exactly), not even bothering to mix them to change the colour, or to add any kind of product to make it adhere to the eyelid better, and simply whacking it into a smaller jar, labeling it and charging over 4000% more.
Should she make a profit? No. Why? Because she's not doing anything. She's not making anything new, she's not even mixing colours, she's simply selling exactly the same thing for over 40x more and lying about it.
Do I have a problem with that? Yes, you bet your ass I do.
Production costs? $4 an ounce. Packaging? PR? Marketing? No one can doubt she spends a lot on these, considering that's all her company is. Even so, I don't think these costs equate to 40x the cost of raw materials, and we shouldn't be expected to pay it, anyway - considering we're not buying anything new, and we're certainly not buying what was advertised.
I don't think you understand what personal attacks are. Personal attacks, for instance, would be you calling me a nasty bitch. I haven't said a single personal thing about Xenia, despite plentiful ammunition.
Me? I wouldn't do the same. I wouldn't sell repackaged make-up at all. I have these pesky little morals which would prevent me from doing so. Me not being pleased for her success isn't petty, I simply don't want to endorse a con artist.
Anastasia is supportive and friends with people that actually create their own makeup, unlike Xenia who just repackages basic mica she buys from a wholesaler.
6 November 2009 00:55If another company can turn a profit selling an ounce for four dollars, it's obvious that her price is exorbitant. Even other mineral makeup companies don't price their goods that expensively, including the ones that put effort into their goods. Hell, even MAC isn't as expensive in the end.
Perhaps you didn't catch this, but there is no way to refute the fact that her eyeshadows are nothing other than pure mica. She showed us that herself when she supposedly mixed her "original color." She put in nothing to make her mica into a true shadow that will stick and last. If she had honestly, truly done research, she would have known that.
Important, Logical Part!!!!
No lab set out to make eyeshadows is going to use just mica. That, in itself, proves that her "How I Make Eyeshadows" video is fake. If she had a lab truly making her eyeshadows, they would include a base. Since she doesn't include a base in her mix, the color is not what it what it actually would be if it had been formulated in a lab. That means that either
A) She has no clue what her mythical lab does to formulate her eyeshadows, and thus is not involved.
or
B) She made the whole thing up to cover her ass.
Plus, anyone with a smidgen of color theory knows that you don't use black to make a color darker. A chemist in a makeup lab would know that, once again proving that she's either uninformed or making it up. A chemist is also totally unnecessary when mixing micas. Is she really going to pay for someone with that title when it's unnecessary?
So, to recap!
1) A chemist would not formulate an eyeshadow sans base.
2) A chemist trained to make makeup (and thus is familiar with color theory) would not use black to darken a color.
3) A chemist is utterly
unnecessary to mix micas.
If there is a chemist, poor Xenia is being had. But there probably is no chemist.
If there is no chemist, there probably is no lab.
If there IS a lab, she has no idea what it is they are doing, as she shows us with her video.
But there probably isn't.
If there is no lab, she made up the video to try and cover her bottom.
::steps away from the blackboard::
Sorry for the long comment!
She doesn't even know the formula for what is her own colour. You can't sell something as a permanent line and just mix the colour by eye, you need to write down how you did it the first time and stick to it.
6 November 2009 01:00Nevermind that TKB have been in business for years longer than she has and their products pre-date hers. Or that she's using the same--
Nope. Nevermind. I'm not going to get into it yet.
But thank you for making the point about black. Indeed, you don't darken colours with black, you use the opposite colour. Using black just makes it all dull. Anyone who did art in school should know that.
I'm glad you'll be back to your usual posting.
6 November 2009 01:32I'm actually glad she posted the twilight video.
Really, while she likes to call us haters, and she probably thinks I hate her a lot, since I decided to go around posting links, I don't hate Xenia or Lime Crime. I felt fooled and wanted an explanation.
(Even so, I feel pretty much disappointed she did scams before.)
But bothers me that she haven't answered when people e-mailed her.
It bothers me that she made a "Lime Crime is here to stay" video, saying about people hating her and telling lies and stuff when it does not tell the whole story. I wish she'd come and respond to the people that made the questions.
I'm pretty much tired of all the Lime Crime discussion and I'm glad we'll see your normal posts, 'cause I like them pretty much.
I'm not reading a thing about Lime Crime anymore and, after I get my order (the one I did before finding your blog), the company will vanish from my world.
yay for more reviews!
6 November 2009 01:43as much as i love reading about your incites into LC and the repackaging scam it just would be a bit of a shame to see your fantastic blog to turn into a LimeCrime hate circuit.
cant wait to see your reviews.
x
I admit I didn't watch all the way through her eyeshadow video, but I sincerely hope that's NOT how she makes eyeshadows. Besides the complaints that have already been made, girl needs to wear some gloves (and preferably a hair net and safety glasses, too)! Maybe that's what you pay for with the extra 12 bucks: an eye infection.
6 November 2009 04:26ugh, yes. the ocd in me was screaming:
6 November 2009 04:46"what! she's not using gloves! that spoon she's using is dirty! she's not getting a separate spoon for the different colors! she just touched everything and breathed everything with human hands and her human breath and if she sends it to a lab for real she will spread her germs! what if she's sick? what if she sneezed? what else did she touch besides the powders and the camera? did she wash her hands? augh!"
LOL. Tea, you actually nearly made me pee my pants laughing at that.
6 November 2009 05:17Yay for fireworks! it's guyfawkes at the mo here in new zealand but im too poor to buy some for myself :( the little pyro in me is crying
I wish she would have "remade" Circus or Shoe Addict. Twilight just seemed like the logical choice to "create" because it's the one of 2, it seems, that has something extra in it (like Dragon Scales did, Twilight has the iridescent sheen to it. Maybe I'm wrong) Whatever, still fake, she can't make a video of her "remaking" her glitters that she repackaged and sold for $12 a pop either.
6 November 2009 06:25Someone really needs to make a video swatching Lime Crime vs TKB. With lots of pics. Then nobody can deny it.
I was all for Lime Crime until I realized I got ripped off and so did many other people. She can make her little pity videos, but I'll still never buy from her again.
I do love how her boohoo video is working against her though. Keep it up Xenis! :D
I decided to e-mail Xenia yesterday. I told her that if she is being honest she should know some more stuff about answering costumers e-mail's.
6 November 2009 10:29Somebody will make the swatches someday.
If she is just repackaging she can make as many videos as she wants, people will make swatches and prove it....
Still, she tried to answer. I'm a lot more relaxed.
I'm going to buy stuff from aromaleigh and many other stores that I'm sure are honest and won't doubt so easily.
Decided to end this talking to her.
I wonder what kind of products you are going to review! ^^
I'm waiting for samples from aromaleigh... if my blog was not a poetry/texts blog, I'd make a review there too.... I'm so excited about it!
When I see Internet drama kicking off I need to see both sides of it, which is why as a subscriber to Doe Deere's blog, I googled a bit and found yours.
6 November 2009 12:09Personally, I have no idea who's right and who's wrong, I make it my business to take both sides of any Online drama with a pinch of salt until there's enough real, hard evidence to convince me either way. As regards LC cosmetics, I purchased a couple of eyeshadows, I like them, and Dragon Scales in particular is unlike any colour I've personally seen by any other brand. I think their real USP is that by buying their colours you can re-create the looks shown in the tutorials exactly with minimum research.
Shady business practices or lack thereof aside (and I must admit that even as a fan of the blog, the "it's illegal" thing really bugs me too), I really like your blog and having read some of your previous, non-LC-related posts I'm looking forward to reading more and have added you to my regular feeds. I also 100% appreciate your "geek chic" philosophy!
Hey. I found your blog a few weeks back when I was doing some research into mineral eyeshadows (I'm new to this whole make up thing, and I like your blog because it's so down to earth when it comes to describing products, but very passionate when it comes to describing quality). That was the first I had heard about LC, and the associated drama has kept me occupied when nothing else was happening.
6 November 2009 12:45But I'll be happy to read some more makeup reviews from you. Sometimes it looks like the whole online makeup community revolves around LC and this repackaging scandal.
P.S. Thanks for the Aion review; you saved me money I can spend on makeup! (Or maybe the Dark Fall game series, hmm...) I play on a PvP WoW server since all the RL folks I know & like play there, but I frickin' hate it. I get why other people enjoy content that's centered on being a dick to strangers, but it's not my cuppa tea.
6 November 2009 17:09I really wish Xenia would stop doing silly things so that we could move on to other and better things as I'm pretty tired of all the drama. I understand she wants to defend her company, but that video is a joke!
6 November 2009 21:33All I could think of while watching it was the fact that she was using the same dirty spoon for all the colors and not wearing gloves! That's totally unhygienic. And I find it hilarious that she didn't know how to make a color that she has supposed to be invented. If you make your own colors, you should write down what you used, not mixing a few shades in a plastic bag, send it to a mysterious lab and expect the chemists to come up with a perfect match! That's just ridiculuos. As someone that makes a living out of scamming people, you'd think she would do some research before posting a video so that it looks a bit more real.
And even if that is the way she makes shadows (which isn't as she just repackages them), I still wouldn't buy from her cos she obviosuly doesn't have a clue about what she is doing!
But I'm glad that normal blogging will resume soon and I can't wait to read your reviews.
Re. the video on how her eye shadows are supposedly conceived... I'm pretty sure she claims that she's just demonstrating how she "invents" the colors, and that it's reeeeeally all done on a larger scale in a lab somewhere. However...
7 November 2009 04:30Am I the only one who has noticed the fact that her "how to" video is a complete rip off of TKB's video on how to match existing colors?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVTcidHMA20&feature=player_embedded
Note that this video is actually embedded on the pages *of colors she blatantly repackaged* - namely the "POP!" colors.
http://www.tkbtrading.com/item.php?item_id=489&category_id=12
*blink*
I mean, what on earth made her think that copying the TKB video would be a good idea? And what is her video supposed to even prove anyway? If she invented that color, wouldn't she already know the exact formula? I'm very confused as to what her demonstrating the process of how to dupe a color she allegedly already created is supposed to mean.
P.S. the post production in her new promo shots... in a word, is terrible.
Annnnnd that's all I have to add!
Woot! I actually blogged something NON=Xenu today.
7 November 2009 05:03Then I discovered that the latest missive to Team Candyfuture was to STOP telling people to Google and try to hand out business cards instead. I wonder why anyone would want them to stop Googling them?
But, I'll refrain from that angry rant and post something NON-Xenu again tomorrow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nccNupgAHtw&feature=player_embedded
7 November 2009 13:28THIS is how someone makes eyeshadow! o.o
What's your take on the Mefi discussion (which I started more generally) which seems to posit that the Mutiny is not much more than astroturfing?
8 November 2009 20:54http://www.metafilter.com/86474/Makeup-and-mutinies
I disagree, Tiara.
8 November 2009 21:04The lady who started the mutiny has been accused of being jealous of Xenia (we can... just skip that one, can't we? It's the whole "those kids aren't picking on you because your bowl haircut looks stupid, they're picking on you because they're jealous THEIR mums wouldn't LET them have a bowl cut" thing), of doing it to further her own business (she hasn't given herself the badge, she hasn't linked to her company on the mutiny website) and of leading a witchhunt.
The way I see it is that a lot of companies in the industry as pissed off that companies like Lime Crime who simply sell nothing but repackaged mica are essentially selling ingredients rather than products at a ridiculous (over 4000%) mark-up. It gives the entire industry a bad name, and given the kind of professional operation the leader's company runs (she doesn't grab mica and mix it together to make a colour, she actually understands what the ingredients are and makes a formula which will work) they're all pretty frustrated with amateur attempts at ripping people off.
As I understand it, the point of the Mutiny is to:
a) Set a new standard in the MMU industry which companies can aspire to.
b) Reward companies for meeting this standard and being unique and artisanal.
c) Inform potential customers of where they can buy products that are unique and have actually had a modicum of effort go into their creation.
d) Help to re-direct customers to these companies rather than repackagers, thereby encouraging more companies to try making their own stuff.
I think the Mutiny is probably the only positive thing to come out of this giant snarly ball of drama.
I just watched Xenia's two most recent vids and i don't buy it. I'm really not the type of person who is jealous or who would bash someone (especially for no reason). I know there's a lot of "hate" on the internet, but reading these threads and others like them online, i do not feel that you guys are haters either. Just people who do not want to be duped.
9 November 2009 17:49That said, all these discussions have really made me want to buy TBK and start making my own stuff for my own personal use. Yay!
I also came across this blog with the whole LC drama, and i think if anything is Full of Bullshit it's you.
18 November 2009 20:58You seem like you have nothing else to do then sit around and google her. You must think of her more.
I have seen LC grow. I knew of LC before i actually "knew" Doedeere...If people spend their time actually doing something more productive then putting people's hard work down, then maybe ur ass would be in a better place, but right now ur just a 22yr old blogger who has nothing else to do then write about CRAP you fall upon the internet.
I think it is also pretty sad that people who once read her blog has now turned away because of reading others people's post. MAKE -up ur own minds and judgement based on what you REASEACRHED yourself and not what someone wrote...which most of it is from the same people who are going around copying and pasting.
PaintHead.
18 November 2009 21:44Well, I've found some time in-between my frequent Lime Crime googles to explain to you why you're an idiot. Of course, I expect most of this to go entirely over your head, but let's give it a go anyway, shall we?
"I also came across this blog with the whole LC drama, and i[sic] think if anything is Full of Bullshit[sic] it's you.
You seem like you have nothing else to do then[sic] sit around and google her. You must think of her more."
I don't believe I called anything "full of bullshit" (with or without inappropriate capitalisation) so I'm not sure what your lead-in was there, but all right. Clearly the fact that I posted saying I have a great many things to post about shows that I have nothing to do all day but google her, does it? Yes, I suppose full to-do lists often indicate having nothing to do.
And-- sorry, "think of her more" than... what?
"I have seen LC grow. I knew of LC before i[sic] actually "knew" Doedeere[sic]..."
You know her personally, but curiously, don't know that her handle is two words?
"If people spend their time actually doing something more productive then[sic] putting people's hard work down,"
In order to have gotten this far, it must surely have occurred to you that I write a blog which gets over 1000 hits a day and have written almost 200 posts, of which only 6 reference Lime Crime, right? In addition, if you took a glance at my profile you'd see that I'm also a 3rd year University student.
Oh, I'm sorry you said "people" i.e. not me? So-- if other people spend their time doing other things, I'll benefit from it? I'll be sure to pass that along, then.
"then maybe ur[sic] ass would be in a better place, but right now ur[sic] just a 22yr[sic] old blogger"
Wow. So other people not putting others down would make me older?
"who has nothing else to do then[sic] write about CRAP you fall upon[sic] the internet."
So as previously mentioned I have quite a bit to do. But I write about crap I... fall upon the internet? You mean I write about things I fall upon? Like laminate flooring?
"I think it is also pretty sad that people who once read her blog has[sic] now turned away because of reading others[sic] people's post[sic]."
OK, so people shouldn't read posts written by others about Lime Crime and allow those outside posts to influence their decisions...
"MAKE -up[sic] ur[sic] own minds and judgement based on what you REASEACRHED[sic] yourself and not what someone wrote"
...How precisely do you suggest people do their "reaseacrh" then, if not by reading what others outside of Doe Deere's blog have written on the subject? Should they camp outside her Unicorn factory with binoculars?
"...which most of it[sic] is from the same people who are going around copying and pasting."
Given that my original Lime Crime post sparked the recent controversy, if that were true, I'd be the only one posting it. Given that I'm not, there are obviously more people posting their own experiences, and thus the people posting are not the same, but rather, growing in number.
Thanks for stopping by.
I was going to stay out of this, but Anastasia, if you're going to call people idiots for sticking up for what and who they believe in and then do very little besides correct their spelling and grammar to back that up, I personally am convinced that you don't have anything better to do, which, I have to say, does not improve my perception of your integrity and reliability. I may be only one, but I am a Lime Crime customer because, whether she repackages or not, Xenia promotes both a revision of the world (in which I believe) and the confidence to be different and let your light shine.
21 November 2009 04:20Rickey
That really isn't why I called PaintHead an idiot, Rickey, and I'm confused as to why you'd tell me I seem to have baited your involvement as if that would mean something to me.
21 November 2009 05:21As I mentioned previously, six out of almost two hundred posts reference Lime Crime. And I have nothing better to do, or post about? None of my recent posts have been Lime Crime related, despite learning of them threatening a blogger friend of mine with litigation for her posts and forcing her to display a pre-written apology.
Xenia's promotion of this world is, in my opinion, nothing more brand image and wonderful PR. It's a great brand when it engages with the consumers the way it does. My problem with it starts when there's nothing behind the brand promise to back it up - her product aren't different if they're simply wholesale ingredients, they're exactly the same as every other repackager out there.
You are not the only Lime Crime customer although you are the first to have posted a well-reasoned argument here and remain polite, so I salute you for that. You, and everyone else, is of course welcome to shop wherever you like.
Rickey, if you glean confidence from Doe's marketing onslaught, good for you. Personally, it all feels scripted and contrived to me, kinda like Disney World. It's all candy-coated rainbows on the surface, but wander too far off the path they've laid out for you and it gets ugly and mundane real quick. I also remember some of the evil things she said on LJ under both her own account and numerous sock puppet aliases; I just can't reconcile that bile and her current sunshine-y image. But like I said, if you buy into it, go ahead. Just understand that $12 per eyeshadow is paying for an image, not a unique product. (Side note: my dad worked at Disney World when it was being built; he painted a lot of the murals in It's a Small World. The company supposedly provided quarters for the workers, but it turned out to be a campsite nearby. The buses that transported the workers to the construction site had blacked-out windows so no one could see the "ethnics and hippies" Walt had hired. Happiest place on Earth, eh?)
22 November 2009 00:08The issue with Lime Crime is that she essentially plagiarized. No one has any huge problem with Xenia repackaging, just like no one would have a problem if you used properly cited quotes in an essay. However, she proclaimed she had a unique product that she painstakingly formulated by hand. That's like copy-pasting someone else's work entirely and claiming it as your own. Slapping a unicorn sticker on the title page doesn't make it anymore original.
If you'd taken the time to read through Anastasia's archives, you'd see that she, too, was initially excited to get her Lime Crime order. Her first review even said the eyeshadow was decent in itself, but it didn't live up to hype or the price tag. If Xenia wants to send out her flying monkeys--sorry, Futurettes--over a lackluster review, she should grow a thicker skin... maybe she can make armor out of all the extra cash she's got from marking up her product. (Also, I don't think this would've blown so far out of proportion if she didn't have a history of acting cagey when people have legitimate questions about her sketchy actions. Personally, I still want to know which shelter she donated that raffle money to.) You can't blame Anastasia for not liking the product, nor can you blame her for feeling cheated, or expressing her opinion on her own blog.
<3 Photosynthesia
(I really do need to pick one screenname and stick with it.)
Oh, and PaintHead, I looked over blog. Based on the number of Doe Deere Polyvore collages you've created, I'm pretty sure nothing in the universe will dissuade you from loving Lime Crime. No matter how many pats on the head Xenia gives you for posting here, nothing gives you the right to post such a vitriolic, ad hominem slur (at least not without using spellcheck first). It cheapens yourself and your argument. Plus, if Xenia is really all about glee like she says, would she really condone such unnecessary rudeness?
22 November 2009 00:08My experience with Lime Crime, just in case anyone was wondering: A friend of mine purchased Lime Crime's Empress when they were on sale at Shanalogic. I have TKB's Grape Pop. I also have access to a stereoscopic microscope. I prepared 6 identical Petri dishes, 3 with samples of Empress, 3 with Grape Pop. I would've made more, but I was limited by sample size. I had a lab monitor hand me plates at random (so I wouldn't know which I was getting) to look at under the scope. I couldn't see any friggin' difference. Then, I did a 7th plate with a sample of each side by side. Once again, no discernible difference. If I could get my hands on additional product without lining Xenia's pockets, I'd like to run this assay again, and I'd love to get other people to see if they can spot a difference. I wish I had been able to photograph my process and results... for some reason it didn't occur to me when I was doing it. Unfortunately, my friend has since used her Empress in an art project; she didn't want to throw it out, but she sure didn't want to use it anymore, either!
22 November 2009 00:10(Sorry for the length. I get worked up pretty easily when I'm supposed to be doing schoolwork!)
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