Lipstick Storage Woes

Hey guys, just wanted to do a quick post so here it comes:

My first love is lipstick and so of course i've accumulated lots of them. About 2 years ago when I had now started getting into lipstick I stumbled across these great acrylic 12 lipstick storage containers. When I say stumble I mean I popped into a small boutique in a Mall in Port of Spain and saw them at the great cost of $60 TT (or $40, I really can't remember). I bought one and the following day I returned and bought the other.

From that day onward i've always wished that they had more because I quickly outgrew the storage capacity. I had managed to convince myself that I would find a store selling these storage containers  at such great prices and there was in fact a point where nobody was selling them at all. I would usually browse online for similar products but I always felt that they were way too expensive compared to the steal of a deal I got that day.

Let's fast forward to the present day where I finally took the plunge and had my mom order me a 24 lipstick holder storage container off Amazon as one of my birthday presents. At $8.99 US I thought that it would have been a great deal. Of course though Customs totally screwed me over and I found myself paying $85 TT in shipping and customs duties when I shipped it via my Skybox.

The biggest kicker of all was that this product was extremely disappointing. Below I'll review the both products mentions.

Acrylic 12 Lipstick Holder

What I loved most about this product was the fact that it was a dedicated lipstick holder. It didn't have any of the larger spaces for other products and so when in use it gave my lipstick storage a very sleek look. The quality is amazing with the acrylic being thick and clean cut with stylish edges. I really really love this product and I remain on the lookout for a few more.

Empty!

Filled with lipsticks!

Close up- hopefully you can see the edges and thickness of the material!

Acrylic 24 Lipstick Holder 

This product actually ended up costing $135 TT which was waaaay more than I had intended to spend. What's even worse is the fact that it isn't even worth the money. It's smaller than anticipated and arrived in a cheap thin white cardboard box. The product itself is cut cleanly but with no sort of design. It looks so basic and CHEAP! Plain talk bad manners! Additionally, the actual slots for lipsticks can only hold my MAC lipsticks and are actually smaller than the slots in the holder discussed above. I feel like i've been ripped off. The only slight saving grace of this product is the fact that it takes up less space and so it may be more efficient in that regard. Of course these are just my opinions and I may have had higher expectations based on the holders I already owned.

What I saw on opening the box! :( 

Didn't seem to get any better!

Filled with lippies!

Below I've added a picture of the  two products side by side so that you can see for yourself!

You can see which one holds my heart!

Acrylic lipstick holders can be bought in Trinidad from Simple Spaces Ltd. which is an actual store located in St. James as well as from the online store Makeup Haven. The images provided by these sellers seem to be of a better quality and of course the prices are much better! It's been a lesson learnt in terms of hoping to find a product much cheaper on Amazon (although this is the first time that this has failed me). Hopefully you guys find this review helpful!

I've noticed a lot of you guys reading but not commenting. :( Feel free to leave your thoughts and let me know if you have seen the lipstick holders in other places in TT. Take care!

PS. When I speak about acrylic lipstick holders here I'm referring to the ones that provide spaces for lipstick only. There are a few other places that sell the acrylic cosmetic holders.