the limited edition compacts fans clamour to collect

I HAVE a great love for compacts generally. They’re chic, polite — the kind of accessory that would now be as outmoded as a hat, gloves and cigarette case if it weren’t for the fact that, as humans, we never tire of gazing at ourselves in the mirror. Mrs Estee Lauder loved them, too, and in 1963 she began producing collectable powder or perfume compacts — often designing them herself — to gift to dinner party guests and sell in small quantities to customers. Instead of the classic round compact, these were novelty items, inspired by everything from a perfectly formed seashell found on the beach at Lauder’s Florida home, to Victorian pillboxes brought back from her trips to Europe. The compacts caught the eye of collectors, and soon Estee Lauder began releasing new compacts each year, date stamping each and limiting designs to a single release, available while stocks lasted. It’s a rather pleasing tradition that survives to this day, long after Mrs Lauder’s passing. But the reason I so love Estee Lauder’s collectable compacts is that the thousands of collectors worldwide are simply my people. While some people collect stamps, or wine, or football cards, these people stalk eBay, antique fairs and junk shops for weird and rare compacts, then display them in glass cabinets purely for their own pleasure. These obsessive make-up collectors would understand why I have every special edition Stila eyeshadow palette since 1997; why I have approximately 370 rosy-beige lipsticks with barely a whisper of a difference between each, and why I’d sooner give away valuables than a shade from the YSL La Laque Couture nail polish back-catalogue. They’d understand why I cried when my Ultima II blusher cracked and why I can never throw out a perfume bottle. And so while I am not turned on by whimsical compacts, moulded and enamelled to look like ladybirds, teddy bears, zodiac signs, fairground carousels and the Leaning Tower of Pisa, I am comforted by the existence of those who are, and by Estee Lauder’s insistence on continuing to release new designs each year, and on ensuring that the correct refills of Lucidity powder or solid perfume remain available. They are elegant, somewhat eccentric items, with a sense of history and permanence in a wasteful and disposable culture. I like nerds. I love beauty nerds even more. And I admire Estee Lauder for looking after them.