Make-Up Organization

I'm not usually one to purchase or even wear a lot of make-up, but after hoarding...ahem...collecting make-up for the wedding (DIY), I now have an unruly collection housed, well, overflowing to be more accurate in a tacky whimsical turquoise Caboodle from the late 1980s. While the Caboodle is actually pretty sturdy, I seem to have lost the two trays for it over the years.

Look at that clutter!
Oy vey!

In typical me fashion, I hit Google full force looking for options. Aside from the train cases that stores like Sephora and Ulta sell -- many of which have mixed reviews or just aren't large enough -- and the uber-expensive (and unwieldingly large) cases that pros use, I came across the option of using a tackle box as a make-up case. Ingenius! (If you're so inclined, Caboodles STILL exist.) After more Googling, I still wasn't sure which type or brand of tackle box would work best for me.

After some investigative research at the local sporting goods store (note: don't even bother with Target since their camping section stinks), it appears that there are 2 common brands of tackle boxes on the market: Flambeau and Plano.

Contender 1: Plano "Magnum Hip Roof Six Tray"

Note the 2 drink holders on the top. Claaaaaassssy. Flambeau has a similar/nearly identical model, which also has 6 trays (3 on each side) that articulate out (through a cantilever). I haven't determined if they are exactly identical and hope to report back on that later. I saw the Flambeau version for around $20-some dollars and the Plano one (at Dick's Sporting Goods) was a little bit more.

Contender 2: Plano "1374 / 4-By Rack"

Apologies for the hazy/fuzzy photos; these are from my phone. The 4-drawer tackle box has 4 enclosed "drawers" that pull out in addition to a few compartments, one built into the top of the lid and another more spacious/functional one underneath the lid. This one was a little more (something in the low $30s) than the previous tackle box.

Thoughts on Each Design

6 Tray Tackle Box

Originally, I put all my make-up in the 6-tray tackle box to 1) see if everything fit. (It did.) 2) give it a trial run. The best part of this design is that you can store an amazing amount of stuff in a small amount of space. This is useful for day-to-day use and cramped living/storage quarters, I think, since you can simply swing the arms out to reveal all your make-up but quickly store it back into what amounts to well under 2 cubic feet of space. I managed to store larger eyeshadow palettes in the base compartment (read: bottom of the tackle box), but I had a few of these and taking out the one that I want could be slightly annoying since they were stacked a few deep. The tackle compartments in the trays were actually decently sized. Most of them worked with the items I had, though I wish that they had made a few larger compartments (the larger compartments that you see on the left/white trays). This could have been a great organizer had it not been for a couple of things. Perhaps my make-up is too heavy -- I suspect it is not -- but the articulating arms kept popping out of the joints/supports, making the trays fall over to the side. One side was particularly bad. Maybe the one I bought was a dud but I do think it could have been better constructed. The arms themselves are made of plastic with plastic connectors that swivel around in a plastic housing. While I realize this may be a nice feature for actual fishermen and fisherwomen and the salty waters they may encounter, this makes for a less durable make-up case. I'm planning on checking out if the Flambeau version is similarly constructed, and if it is (and appears to suffer from the same fatal flaw), I'll be giving this a pass.

4-By Drawer Tackle Box

Since the 6-tray system failed spectacularly (the droopy trays just looked oppressed by my make-up), I ended up storing my make-up in the 4-drawer tackle box. It offers plenty of "clean" storage but at what I consider a cost of convenience. What I mean by "clean" is that it looks pretty elegant. Well, elegant for a tackle box anyway. If I didn't know what Plano was and saw one of these contraptions, I'd probably ask, "Hey, where'd you get that interesting organizer?"

Each of the drawers is made of transparent plastic and so it's easy to tell what items are contained where. However, despite the ample amount of storage, it's a bit annoying to use since you need to slide out the drawer you want, open said drawer, use whatever it is you wanted, and then lock the drawer and slide it back into the tackle box. Yes, this doesn't sound that annoying but it sort of is if you're used to just grabbing something and putting it back with minimal hassle. Depending on how you organize and apply your make-up, you could end up with 4 of these large plastic containers surrounding you.

The drawers also each come with 2 compartments that are already sectioned off within the drawer and plastic organizers that you can break-off to create smaller compartments. While this is a nice feature, I sort of wish that the entirety of the space could have been customized by the user.

Summary

My ideal solution would probably be a sturdier, and dare I foolishly hope for prettier, 6-tray tackle box, but since this doesn't appear to exist, I've settled for the 4-drawer system. Both offer a lot of storage: 6-trays and 4-drawers might be more than enough for what the average person owns. (What can I say? I have accumulation tendencies.) So I don't think that space will be an issue. The price difference is pretty negligible as well. I think the biggest quality that will lead to a preference for one over the other is whether you value convenience (and efficient space consumption) over sleekness.