Emily Johnson

I like to avoid Mercari when possible for a few reasons one of those reasons is everything is grossly overpriced. I’m not really a fan of people that are buying at cost and selling the items at five times the amount. I respect the hustle. I understand this is a career of sorts for some people and making a few dollars off an item is fine by me but when you’re out there paying $10 for something and proceeding to charge $60 that’s just pure greed. Stanley x Love Shack Fancy is a great example. I believe the cups were $50 each and around the time of release before anyone even got their hands on them we had Mercari sellers listing them for $200-$250 per cup. Come on, guys! Jeez.

My second issue with Mercari is their awful customer service or at least the customer service I’ve gotten. If something gets lost or arrives broken good luck getting your money back. Their customer service team is awful. It takes days to get a reply back and trying to explain to them something was broken or lost is a task. I’ve had both happen to me. Once the item was delivered god knows where but not to me. They even had a photo of some else’s doormat where the item was left. I never got refunded because they told me, well, it was delivered. Thanks so much but that isn’t my house. The second time the item arrived broke and it was another case of, Oops! Sorry! That’s your problem. I never got refunded for that either. E-bay is WAY more supportive on the buyer side of the fence. Mercari, not so much.

But I admit sometimes I do fish around Mercari if I have some sort of intense lemming or FOMO for an item I can’t find or I missed out on. I’m not sure how long that’ll be for though as they just rolled out yet another fee increase which is for both buyers and sellers. I don’t sell anything but I am a buyer and buyers will pay a flat 3.6% buyer protection for on the complete price of an item. This is comical considering their track record with actually helping me with the two cases I told you above. If you sell the flat fee is now 10% off on a complete itemed.

This post might not apply to you if you aren’t a FOMO kind of person. But I do occasionally get FOMO for a makeup item (or even other items) or occasionally and item will sell out and I can’t find it so away I go to Mercari to see if I can score it. In that case, you might want o read below for the info about their upcoming price changes.

Here’s the entire Mercari Seller and Buyer Fee Increase info which start on January 6th, 2025.

Sellers will pay a flat 10% selling fee on the completed item price and buyer-paid shipping
Buyers will pay a flat 3.6% Buyer Protection fee on the completed item price and buyer-paid shipping
No additional payment processing fee for either buyers or sellers

Will there be a direct deposit charge?
No, ACH direct deposit withdrawals are free. There’s a $2 fee only for rejected withdrawal transactions. You’re limited to one ACH direct deposit withdrawal per day.
For faster payouts, you can choose Instant Pay for $3, with funds available in about 30 minutes. Learn more about Instant Pay here.

I made a direct deposit request on January 5, will I still pay $2 for my withdrawal?
Yes, a $2 ACH fee will apply to direct deposit requests made before January 6, 2025.

What is Buyer Protection?
We want you to shop confidently. Buyer Protection reflects:

Worry-free shopping: Get what you ordered or a refund, if eligible
Trusted transactions: We securely process and release payments upon rating
24/7 Customer support: Easily get help through app, web or phone

What is Seller Protection?
Mercari is designed to help sellers succeed, so you can sell and get paid with confidence. Seller Protection reflects:

Free and easy listing: Listing is free, simple, and designed to help you succeed.
Hassle-free shipping: Enjoy discounted rates with Shipping Protection up to $200, if eligible.
Trusted transactions: Payments are securely processed and released upon rating

Do I need to update my listings?
No. The new fee structure will automatically apply to new and updated listings starting the week of January 6. Existing listings may take a week or more to reflect the new fee structure automatically.

You can view the selling fee details at any time in the editing screen.

To support this transition, you can choose to increase your listing prices in bulk so you can earn the same amount. Depending on how many listings you have, the update can take several hours or days.

Match your current earnings:
Can I automatically increase my prices in bulk to help ensure my earnings stay the same?
Yes, to help maintain your current earnings after the new fee structure is implemented, you have the option to automatically increase your listing prices in bulk.

If you opt in before January 6, 2025, we will schedule a price increase for your listings to align with the new fee structure. This update is entirely optional and can be chosen before the new fees take effect. The scheduled listing price updates will begin during the week of January 6, 2025. Depending on how many listings you have, the update can take several hours or days.

If I opt in, can I still update my listings before the automatic price increase?
Yes. Please note that if you update the details of an item on your own before the opt-in feature updates it, the new fee structure will apply. Prices for items edited after the fee structure change will not be automatically updated, so you will need to adjust the prices manually while editing the item.

When can I opt in?
You can now opt in anytime before January 6, 2025 to schedule a bulk listing price increase. Download the latest version of the Mercari app to try it out (iOS | Android)

Applying the new fee structure:
What if my item is canceled?
If your item is canceled and relisted after the fee structure change, the new fee structure will apply immediately to the relisted item.

What if I have an offer in progress?
We will start updating existing listings during the week of January 6, 2025 including pending offers.

If an offer is made on a listing that hasn’t yet been updated to the new fee structure, the previous fee structure will apply when the offer is accepted.

If the existing offer is updated with the new fee structure, it will automatically be canceled.

I think some of my listings will have negative earnings. What should I do?
We plan to notify sellers if they have listings at risk of negative earnings.

To avoid negative earnings, increase the price of your impacted listings by at least 10%. You can do this manually or by opting in to the automatic process (see “Match your current earnings” section above).

Listings with negative earnings under the updated fee structure will be deactivated automatically.

Most of it does apply to sellers but if you are a buyer beware of their new pricing before laying down cash on an item as anything you buy will have that 3.6% fee tacked into the final cost.

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About the Muse

Isabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

Lush Snow Fairy Two-Tone Shower Gel is a new, limited-edition formulation of Lush Cosmetics’ iconic Snow Fairy Shower Gel that everyone eagerly looks forward to purchasing during the Holiday season! Don’t quote me but I believe there are FIVE variations of Snow Fairy that launched with the Lush Christmas 2024 Collection. I’ve already reviewed Snow Fairy Shampoo and the Snow Fairy Milkshake formulas!

I’m normally all about Snow Fairy. It’s a beautifully fruity sweet cocktail that I look forward to every year but I do think Lush went a little too crazy this year and I question if I need all these formulas. But I did want to try them so here we are.

Lush Snow Fairy Two-Tone Shower Gel is available in three sizes that vary in price from $13 all the way up to $41 in price. Two-Tone is actually a few bucks more than the regular Snow Fairy formula and I did compare the ingredients below for you to see what may be different and as far as I can see there isn’t a lot of difference aside from Two-Tone not having a few ingredients like Glycerine and Sodium Cocoamphoacetate. This version does include Carrageenan which is extracted from seaweed and gives the formula a thinner, gel-like consistency. I’m not if that’s what ticked the price up but I did compare the two formulas below for you.

I actually prefer the regular version of the new Milkshake formula as those are not only thicker but they smell fruiter. I think Two-Tone smells a bit powder like Lush Rock Star and has a bit more of a powdery sweetness to it. You really can’t tell the difference unless you’re really thinking concentrating on it but I do think the original and milkshake version smell a bit brighter, sweeter, and fruiter.

I’m not really into the consistency of this. It’s very runny, has a bi-phase like consistency in the bottle, and for the most part it looks clear when you squeeze it out. It’s supposed to have some sort of pink to peach color shift but the entire idea just made me scratch my head and mutter to myself, “Why?” I’m just not getting the point of it.

It does create a nice mound of lather but I think the original formula produces richer, thicker, and more dense lather. This has a lighter lather and feels less moisturizing. It is strongly scented though and that scent does last outside of the shower.

I absolutely love Lush Snow Fairy and I’ve been purchasing for 15 or more years now but I’m not really sold out needing so many variations of one shower gel! I wish Lush put energy into creating other items scented like it versus five different shower gels. The good news is they did do a Snow Fairy Body Scrub and a Snow Fairy Body Conditioner. But I’d have loved to see other items scented like this iconic product.

Lush Snow Fairy Two-Tone Shower Gel Ingredients:
Fair Trade Organic Aloe Vera Gel, Glycerine, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Propylene Glycol, Fragrance, Persian Lime Oil, Carrageenan Extract, Titanium Dioxide, Water, Synthetic Musk, Synthetic Fluorphlogopite, Tin Oxide, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, *Limonene, Red 33, Red 28, Red 21 Lake

Lush Snow Fairy Shower Gel Ingredients:
Glycerine, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Water, Fair Trade Organic Aloe Vera Gel, Fine Sea Salt, Calcium Lactate Gluconate, Lauryl Betaine, Fragrance, Lactic Acid, Persian Lime Oil, Titanium Dioxide, Synthetic Musk, Calcium Sodium Borosilicate, Tin Oxide, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, *Limonene, Red 4, Red 33

Lush Snow Fairy Two-Tone Shower Gel is available now! What do you think of this version?

As with most things the price of Rare Beauty is going up. Rare Beauty shared on their Instagram today that will will be a price increase starting January 1st. As per their notice to their fans the price increases will be anywhere from $1 to $2. It’s not a huge increase nor is it a surprising one but it is always disappointing to witness how high prices are going lately not only on makeup and beauty but also, on food and daily life necessities. We’re already seeing price increases from a variety of brands and I’ve already discussed and address it in two recently reviews I did of Milani’s newest Spring launches. It’s sort of shocking to see drugstore makeup with prices that are tiptoeing the line of $20 bucks.

I do appreciate Rare Beauty’s transparency in telling us about the price increase as it gives people a small window to stock up on favs. I’m not sure if that’s really necessary to do as some of their items are so damn pigmented they’ll likely last you a lifetime! But if there is some item you’re not willing to spend more on in the New Year or something you’re running low on now might be the time to grab it before it goes up! I knew the price increase news would be trickling in with brands soon but I actually thought I’d hear news about brands going out of business before the price increase news hit. Rare Beauty, I think, is one of the first brands to share news of a price increase for 2025. I’m actually sorting of sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for news to break on certain brands I think might not be around this coming year. I won’t mention names and the idea of sort of makes me sad but I can imagine you can think of at least one that I’m thinking of. I hope I’m terribly wrong but we’ll see what 2025 has in store for the beauty world.

I’ll keep you abreast of any other price changes I see. I suspect E.L.F. Cosmetics may make a similar story soon even though they very recently had an increase. I think the days of budget friendly pricing is behind us now and this is our new normal going forward!

Are you saddened about the Rare Beauty price increase?

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I’ve been loving on Kaleidos Space Age Highlighter in the shades Mars Melter for a few years now and I realized I never reviewed it. Today we redeem that! Let’s chat, swatch, and review this gorgeous highlighter and see what you think of it!

Kaleidos is a Chinese brand that had a viral moment a few years ago and one of the first items I had purchased from them was the Kaleidos Mars Melter Space Age Highlighter. This is unusual for me as I’m not a big highlighter kind of girl but I LOVE all shades peach, coral, or orange and this was a beautiful sparkly peachy coral shade that I had to have. It sort of has a pink orangey shift in the sun! It’s stunning! Since that original purchase I hit pan on my Mars Melter and I’m now on my third pot. Again, unheard of for me! It is one of my favorite highlighters but also, I use it as an eyeshadow from time to time as well.

If you hate sparkle, glitter, etc…this isn’t for! Skip the review. But if you love it, well, grab a chair and sit down let’s chat. This is such sparkly joy. It’s def not your traditional highlighter formula as it’s essential a powdery glitter bomb. It comes housed in a tin compact with no mirror and it holds 0.10 oz of highlighter. A few years ago these were around $14 but they’ll set you back around $24 now but they are on sale with 15% off at yesstyle.com with code SANTA24.

The formula is quite thin and has a semi-sheer pay off which means you sadly, can’t use it as a blush. I’d love it so much more if it worked as a blush but sadly it’s a bit too sheer and a bit too sparkly to do so. I would recommend using it with a cream blush, liquid blush, or a stain but you can of course, use it with a powder. You want to make sure whatever blush you use is matte in finish though as this has plenty of sparkle all its own. It applies fairly easily and my skin isn’t textured so it does have a smooth finish but users beware it will accentuate dryness and textured skin. Prep well before application for the smoothest finish. The thing I like most about it is the fact it gives this wet, glistening effect which sadly you can’t see in my photos. I think the swatch looks really uneventful as well but it’s way prettier in person. It almost has that just misted makeup setting spray on my face look. It’s a beautiful shimmery wet sheen. It wears nicely for about seven hours but the sparkle does fade off a little as time passes. As I mentioned above I do use it as an eyeshadow from time to time as well. Typically I’ll apply a powder and use this on top as a little shimmery topcoat. It looks super pretty on top of orange, peach, or even brown or gold shadows!

Kaleidos Space Age Highlighter is a rather unique little highlighter! It’s not for everyone but if you love sparkly makeup you’ll adore this.

Kaleidos Space Age Highlighter is available now.

Where to buy

Yes Style