For every raspberry cut crease that goes viral on the 'Gram, 15 warm-toned palettes fall from makeup heaven.

With social media trends hijacking the beauty industry, makeup has certainly evolved since my pre-teen Lip Smacker days. (I can still remember the faint smell of the Coca-Cola flavor.) Makeup is no longer just makeup, in case you didn't notice. It's art for your face, a visionary palette of colors, textures, and vibrant hues that make your grandmother blush. A highlighter with crushed crystals in it? It exists. A metallic liquid lipstick for a red vampy vibe? It exists. A facial serum that grants you immortality and permanently blemish-free skin…that doesn't exist, but boy are skincare brands trying.

For every raspberry cut crease that goes viral on the 'Gram, 15 warm-toned palettes fall from makeup heaven. The biggest problem for a makeup junkie these days is choosing where to start, what brands to try, what formulas to use, and what to avoid at all costs. It's a little-known secret that most beauty stores sample their products upon request. I know right? Talk about missed connections. I've been a Sephora junkie for some time and have never thought to ask for foundation or skincare samples. Silly me. My go-to counter has swindled me for too long. I'm on a quest to sample as many products as I can or, at least, as many products my sensitive skin can handle, testing everything from the good to the bad (and hopefully there's no bad). Follow my sample journey to see what goodies await in the makeup kingdom.

What will you test out this week? Maybe we should make it a contest and see how many samples you can get before getting kicked out. I mean, five is tough to beat. Freebies are fun, but getting blackballed from your go-to counter isn't, so choose wisely.

The winner this week is, of course, Natasha Denona, a makeup goddess who's adorned my cheeks with crushed crystals. Someone fan me—I'm swooning. Check back next week to see what other goodies I pick up…for free, duh.

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