Dupe me baby one more time

As soon as Chanel bring out their latest nail varnish colour of the season, or Mac create a particularly delicious eyeshadow shade, the Beauty Blog world goes crazy trying to find a dupe for it.

A dupe for the uninitiated is shorthand for duplicate - and it just means a colour as close to the original as possible.

Finding dupes works well in tw0 ways. Firstly you may be able to get the look for less - find a Chanel shade that's available on the Rimmel stands for example. Secondly, it might stop you from buying an identical shade if you've already got it. If you're anything like me you'll always go for similiar shades and colours and end up with dozens of eyeshadows that are all basically the same .

The NYX brand that Kirstie has written about is often flagged as having many shades that are dupes for Mac eyeshadows and lipsticks, Barry M make it their life's work to dupe Chanel shades, while E.L.F. have lots of products that are dead ringers for Nars.

What do you think? Have you been caught up with the duping craze, or are you just not that interested and prefer to buy the original?

Do tell!