Pigment Jar Label info??

[TheCollector]

Hi all.

This week, while cleaning out some old pigments, I found many jars that now I wonder about the authenticity now that I know how to spot them.

I bought most of them at the Mac Pro shop, and a few from ebay, but I cant remember which is which. And this was several years ago, when I don't think there were many fakes on ebay.

One think I noticed - the labels on the bottom of the jars -- where they have the typed batch code - some that I am almost certain I purchased at the pro store, the batch code is typed with the same font/size as the color name . I thought this was a sign of a fake? Or has mac ever done them like this?

Let me go take some pictures and I'll post them later.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[panda0410]

Yes this has happened... some of the older pigments like Coco Beach, Lovely Lily (1st release) and earlier batches of Vanilla, Melon & Rose were also printed like that. But I have seen counterfeits with the SAME labelling so that isnt the only thing to look for, keep that in mind

 

[TheCollector]

Quote:

Originally Posted by panda0410 Yes this has happened... some of the older pigments like Coco Beach, Lovely Lily (1st release) and earlier batches of Vanilla, Melon & Rose were also printed like that. But I have seen counterfeits with the SAME labelling so that isnt the only thing to look for, keep that in mind

Thank you! That fits with some of the ones I found. Here is a pic of what I'm talking about.

How do these look to anyone??

The majority of these I purchased myself from Mac Pro, but can't remember which ones for sure. Any other info on fonts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[TheCollector]

I forgot to ask - has anyone seen one like the 'frost' above, and what does "9D261" mean??

 

[angi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheCollector I forgot to ask - has anyone seen one like the 'frost' above, and what does "9D261" mean??

I have a tan pigment like this, it's a pre 2000 batch code. I'm not sure how the production codes worked though.

 

[TISH1124]

I don't have a pigment with a number like the Frost but I have a Old Paint that is like that...I have many like the Vanilla

 

[TheCollector]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TISH1127 I don't have a pigment with a number like the Frost but I have a Old Paint that is like that...I have many like the Vanilla

You mean with the 'AB' ?? What does that mean?

Yeah, I mean you can tell these are mostly from '05. The Vanilla pigment actually looks fake to me. It has that weird screw top noise I've heard people talking about on here and dark font.... But I really think I bought most of them myself from Mac. Do any of these look fishy to anyone?? I can post extra pics if needed.

thanks for the help!

 

[TISH1124]

Ohhh you know what I was speaking of the Font...and I thought that read A8 not AB sorry.....None of mine have a letter in the middle...I have 05 piggies but they don't have a letter in the second place

 

[Makeup Emporium]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheCollector You mean with the 'AB' ?? What does that mean?

The AB5 batch code simply means that the batch was produced in November of 2005. The last digit is the year and the second last digit is the month. Since it only goes up to 9 with September (ie A95) that means A is October (ie AA5), B is November (ie AB5) and C is December (ie AC5).

Can't really tell from just the batch codes whether any are fake or not.

 

[TheCollector]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Makeup Emporium The AB5 batch code simply means that the batch was produced in November of 2005. The last digit is the year and the second last digit is the month. Since it only goes up to 9 with September (ie A95) that means A is October (ie AA5), B is November (ie AB5) and C is December (ie AC5). Can't really tell from just the batch codes whether any are fake or not.

Ahhhh, thank you!!

Does anyone know what the fake pigment market was like back in '05??

 

[TISH1124]

Not sure how helpful this is...but I found this online

MORE VERY IMPORTANT INFO ON FULL SIZE PIGMENTS: The color label on the bottom of the jar can be clear OR silver (they are always black on the BOX). THE COLOR LABEL ON THE BOTTOM OF THE JAR MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE A NUMBER ALONG WITH THE COLOR NAME!! MOST will have a number (i.e. A36, B23, etc.), in the same type of print as the color, however, some WILL appear to have been almost typed on or added later. The reason for this is because approx. in 2005, there was an error in the printing of these labels & the numbers were omitted!! MAC did discover their error, so they did add the number (i.e. A23, etc.) to those color labels they already had printed but many pigments were already in the stores without the color number. I have been selling pigments for at least 5 years and sold samples for awhile, but haven't for the past 2 years and still have many of the empty jars. I compared these older pigment jars, (some are still current colors and some are discontinued), with the new jars I purchased from MAC and I found several (about 1 year old) without the number on the color label, so it's not just the discontinued colors without the numbers. So, for pigments, the color number missing OR looking like it's been typed on, does NOT mean they are fakes, as I heard one person claim (the newer limited edition colors, have many of the numbers on the color label that look typed on)!! Again, the fakes do NOT even have a color label on the bottom of the jar (AGAIN, please read the update on the new fakes as this is no longer true on the new ones).

 

[angi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheCollector Ahhhh, thank you!! Does anyone know what the fake pigment market was like back in '05??

From my recollection, I started buying pigments from ebay in 2005. I brought about 10 before a MAC counter opened near me, and even now to my slightly more trained eye they're all genuine.

I think fakes were around in 2005, but they weren't anywhere near as close to the fakes you see today.

My lovely lily and coco beach printing is exactly like that, they threw me off when I got them as I suspected they might be fake, but I compared them to some of the pigments I got from MAC direct, and I have pigments like melon and rose with the same printing.

 

[BellaItalia1969]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheCollector You mean with the 'AB' ?? What does that mean? Yeah, I mean you can tell these are mostly from '05. The Vanilla pigment actually looks fake to me. It has that weird screw top noise I've heard people talking about on here and dark font.... But I really think I bought most of them myself from Mac. Do any of these look fishy to anyone?? I can post extra pics if needed. thanks for the help!

Hiya Collector,
Here is a piccy of mine Vanilla,compere it...if you wish,I did buy @Mac counter so it is 100%genuine...
Hope that helps

One of mine pigments Dark Soul,looked little bit different than the rest mainly the plastic jar(not lid) was more shiny but i concluded that these are made by machines so maybe slight variations will occur...

 

[TISH1124]

^^ I think the concern is the letters hers has 2 letters and a number ...not the font

EX: AA8 vs A38

 

[TheCollector]

wow, this has been so helpful! Thank you so much!!

I feel better now, I was worried that all these I had used so many times might not be the real thing, that was based solely on the font. Its good to know i'm safe.

But what about the Vanilla. It has that weird scratchy screw top ??

I remember somewhere someone talking about that. Is that definitely a bad sign??

 

[TISH1124]

That Vanilla with the AB lot code & scratchy cap is still throwing me somewhat....maybe Panda will pop in with advice

 

[angi]

The AB batch code is completely normal.

In terms of the scratchy top, it would be difficult to determine from this alone. It has been discussed as a feature of fakes, but I've also had a few genuine pigments like this. Do the other features of the jar match up to your genuine pigments/ do you still have the box for the vanilla?

 

[panda0410]

Quote:

Originally Posted by angi I have a tan pigment like this, it's a pre 2000 batch code. I'm not sure how the production codes worked though.

The frost is fine - all pre 2000 pigments had 5 digit batch codes and I havent seen a fake one of those yet

Quote:

Originally Posted by TISH1127 Not sure how helpful this is...but I found this online MORE VERY IMPORTANT INFO ON FULL SIZE PIGMENTS: The color label on the bottom of the jar can be clear OR silver (they are always black on the BOX). THE COLOR LABEL ON THE BOTTOM OF THE JAR MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE A NUMBER ALONG WITH THE COLOR NAME!! MOST will have a number (i.e. A36, B23, etc.), in the same type of print as the color, however, some WILL appear to have been almost typed on or added later. The reason for this is because approx. in 2005, there was an error in the printing of these labels & the numbers were omitted!! MAC did discover their error, so they did add the number (i.e. A23, etc.) to those color labels they already had printed but many pigments were already in the stores without the color number. I have been selling pigments for at least 5 years and sold samples for awhile, but haven't for the past 2 years and still have many of the empty jars. I compared these older pigment jars, (some are still current colors and some are discontinued), with the new jars I purchased from MAC and I found several (about 1 year old) without the number on the color label, so it's not just the discontinued colors without the numbers. So, for pigments, the color number missing OR looking like it's been typed on, does NOT mean they are fakes, as I heard one person claim (the newer limited edition colors, have many of the numbers on the color label that look typed on)!! Again, the fakes do NOT even have a color label on the bottom of the jar (AGAIN, please read the update on the new fakes as this is no longer true on the new ones).

Wasnt just 2005 - a lot of the LE colours and reg colours issued in new collections also have the stamped numbers in the base labels

The Vanilla looks fine to me pending a closer look at the base of the jar for the insignias which cant really be seen here. The only thing I note is that stamped batch codes are *usually* (but NOT always) printed above the colour name. I'd prob have a closer look at that pigment just to be sure if I could

 

[1165Cheryl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TISH1124 Not sure how helpful this is...but I found this online MORE VERY IMPORTANT INFO ON FULL SIZE PIGMENTS: The color label on the bottom of the jar can be clear OR silver (they are always black on the BOX). THE COLOR LABEL ON THE BOTTOM OF THE JAR MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE A NUMBER ALONG WITH THE COLOR NAME!! MOST will have a number (i.e. A36, B23, etc.), in the same type of print as the color, however, some WILL appear to have been almost typed on or added later. The reason for this is because approx. in 2005, there was an error in the printing of these labels & the numbers were omitted!! MAC did discover their error, so they did add the number (i.e. A23, etc.) to those color labels they already had printed but many pigments were already in the stores without the color number. I have been selling pigments for at least 5 years and sold samples for awhile, but haven't for the past 2 years and still have many of the empty jars. I compared these older pigment jars, (some are still current colors and some are discontinued), with the new jars I purchased from MAC and I found several (about 1 year old) without the number on the color label, so it's not just the discontinued colors without the numbers. So, for pigments, the color number missing OR looking like it's been typed on, does NOT mean they are fakes, as I heard one person claim (the newer limited edition colors, have many of the numbers on the color label that look typed on)!! Again, the fakes do NOT even have a color label on the bottom of the jar (AGAIN, please read the update on the new fakes as this is no longer true on the new ones).

The above is very true, I check each and every jar I get in direct and it's amazing how a sticker color, font thickness, ect on the batch numbers & color names can change. It depends on the color, the type of pigment, the year and any problems they had during manufacturing on the certain bottle, sticker or banch run. I've gotten many in were 1 letter will be very dark and the rest light. Things in the past that people would say was a sign on a fake can actually be normal things that happen at MAC. Now some things like the lid shape, ect are standard but even those I've seen where there is a line one the edge of the lid due to manufacturing. Basically not all jars, stickers look the same and the guidlines we used when the fakes first came out needed to be updated. Exception for acourse the obvious fakes...