Financially speaking, makeup¹ can be a burden. One item might not break the bank, but the combined cost of everything you might find in a woman’s makeup bag—foundation, blush, mascara, eye liner, eye shadow, and so on—quickly adds up. By one estimate, a woman in the US will spend an average of $15,000 on makeup in her lifetime.

化妆品在是我们经济上一个负担。一款化妆品可能不会让你破产，但是把一个女人化妆包里所有的化妆品加起来——粉底，腮红，睫毛膏，眼线笔等等——费用就很多了。据估计，美国女性一生在化妆品上的平均花费就有1.5万美元。

The kicker is, the ingredients in these products often account for no more than 15% of the cost, according to Randy Schueller, a cosmetic² chemist who has been in the beauty business for more than 30 years and is co-founder of The Beauty Brains, a website devoted³ to debunking⁴ cosmetic myths through science.

从事美妆领域30多年的化妆品专家、同时也是The Beauty Brains网站的联合创始人兰迪 ·舒尔勒说：让人糟心的是，化妆品里原料只占不到售价的15％。The Beauty Brains网站致力于通过科学的方式揭露化妆品的秘密。

Mainly what people are paying for is marketing⁵, packaging, and brand prestige. That’s why lipstick⁶, for example, which is mostly wax, oil, and pigments⁷, routinely costs more than $20 a tube at a department store makeup counter.

人们花钱主要买的是市场、包装和品牌形象。打个比方，这就是为什么成分主要是蜡、油和和着色剂的口红一般在商场柜台上要卖20美元一支。

Where the makeup is sold matters, too. It’s a form of marketing in itself, which is evident when you consider the difference between upscale brands carried at retailers⁸ such as Sephora and Ulta and mass-market brands sold at drugstores.

卖化妆品的地方也很重要。地点本身就是营销的一种形式，这在你思考丝芙兰和ULTA等商家卖的高档品牌、与在普通药店卖的大众品牌的区别时，这种营销就变得很明显。

Quality in the cosmetics⁹ business can vary greatly, depending on the ingredients used and the way the makeup is manufactured. Schueller offers the example of powdered cosmetics, such as pressed eye shadow and blush. The cheaper manufacturing method uses a hammer mill, which breaks the makeup into small particles but can leave clumps¹⁰. Another method uses a jet mill, which Schueller says breaks the makeup into finer particles, creating a smoother, more even finish.

在化妆品行业里，质量的区别也很大，这取决于使用的成分以及化妆品制作的方式。舒尔勒举了眼影和腮红等粉装化妆品的例子。廉价的制作方式就是用锤磨机，把化妆品弄成小颗粒，但是会留下小碎块。而另一种方法就是用气流粉碎机，舒尔勒称这种粉碎机能把化妆品磨成更细小的颗粒，做成更加光滑，更加平整的成品。

What should a consumer do? Know what you’re looking for. But don’t assume that more expensive means better. More than anything else, what the price of makeup simply reflects is the price that you’re willing to pay for it.

那消费者应该做些什么呢？要明确你想要的是什么。但不要以为价钱高东西就越好。撑死了讲，化妆品的价格只是说明你愿意付的那个价格而已。