going the the bathroom or dressing room after lfting so that they lose sight of you

walking around the store a bunch of time so that you hit a blind spot and they lose sight of you (generally speaking without continuous sight they can’t stop you)

avoiding the tag sensor thingies when leaving a store

walking past an employee trying to stop you/ not consenting to a bag check

big puffy jackets hiding lumps

dump stuff at your car between stores if at a mall

crouching over an shelf to make a blind spot

avoiding isles with employees

stop posting your exact amounts $ from 🧬

stop posting screenshots of your customer service chats

stop posting the exact items you got in your order

stop posting emails the company sent you

remove your exif data

never use your real name

never reuse a username you use somewhere else

never post any pets or family members

never. post. your face.

dont mention any other accounts you have anywhere on the net

switch up your typing style / vague any locations

blocking people wont stop people from seeing your info on a site with no private account features

bonnie came up with this great idea. the hook fits perfectly into the space below, and you can barely see it even when you look directly into the case. i recommend this, so that if you ever get caught, they wouldnt bother to look in here. (just make sure the gum is still in it!

Sales associates taking clothes into fitting rooms:

If we ask to take ur clothes into the fitting room ALWAYS say yes the first time and don’t hide anything in them (aka double hanging) bc then we’ll be sus

Just let us take that first group of clothes, bc if we ask you a second time just say smth like “no I’m still deciding if I want these”

Letting us take the first group of clothes,even if it’s a small number, puts so much more trust into you from an employees pov

From there you can grab just a shit ton of clothes (not a crazy amount but you get it) and just go into ur room. From there since you have quite a few clothes to “try on” they won’t bother you rly.

Taking off tags in a quiet store:

If you find yourself in a dead silent store or a store that has quieter music in fitting rooms (most stores do this so we can hear you removing tags) either ft a lifting friend who is outside and do random “do you like this” or “does this make me look pale” talk or record yourself talking and edit it so your voice is a little deeper and also edit the FaceTime connecting sound to make it more believable.

1. TIMING

timing is everything-i either try to go either an hour before closing when the SAs are tired and lazy from wanting to go home or right at busy times like on Saturdays when everyone is out. Some people function better when lifting with crowds while others like privacy-know which one you function best at and go then. I would recommend 5-10 minutes in a location. Make a list of what you want before so you don’t get greedy which is so easy in seph0ra. Having a plan is also the best way to get in and out fast. I usually get 1-2 items…3 if I’m feeling bold. Know your limit and how much you can handle in x amount of time you allot yourself. If you hang around for longer than 10 minutes you will get serviced more and people will take more note of you since people usually spend 7-13 minutes in a seph0ra at my location at least. I always aim to be in the low average of shoppers.

2. APPERANCE

look somewhat put together, you don’t need to have a full on glam look but have some makeup on so the SAs don’t swarm you and think you know nothing about makeup then never leave your side. WEAR LONG SLEEVES. long sleeves are literally a godsend in Seph0ra. They make everything so much easier to conceal which I will go into further depth about later. Obviously don’t be in dirty sweatpants or something, my go to ‘fuck up seph0ra’ fit is a long comfy sweater/sweatshirt with leggings and a baseball cap and a bag of course. I usually use other shopping bags that are dark and you cannot see through for larger items.

3. BROWSING

When browsing for products always check for tags, if needed open the packaging if an SA asks just say you bought one but it was damaged blah blah blah… they will get bored and leave you alone. I always test products on myself in the mirrors even if I already know it’s mine, testing makeup looks less suspicious than someone grabbing something without examination or testing it on themselves. Swatch it, put in on your face, shop like REAL people do, pretend you’re debating whether to spend $40 on a fucking lipstick. When testing the product look around you in the mirror. Are there people around you? Can you use them to your advantage? where all the SAs? Are there cameras above you? How many cameras? Always keep your eyes open when browsing.

4. CONCEALING

For smaller items like lipstick, concealer sticks, whatever can fit up a sleeve comfortably just slide it up your sleeve. Take two of the same product, examine one with one hand while you slide the other one up your other sleeve FAST. I recommend ALWAYS moving when you do this, turning corners, going from standing to crouching to look at something else. After you have concealed the first item return the second one. An easy fool proof way is also reaching DEEP into a display where you hands cannot be seen then sliding it up your arm if you’re a bit more nervous. For eyeshadow palettes use the drop method once PERFECTED at home. I mean practiced and practiced and practiced. There are also blind spots which you should be concealing in at all times if possible. There probably are 1-2 blind spots at my location, but you can make your own by crouching, using people, walking, etc.

5. HOW TO WIN WITH SAs

SAs are trained to monitor what you are holding. So whenever possible don’t try to make lots of contact with them while not looking like you’re avoiding them. Fake a phone call if you feel overwhelmed and need to get to a part of the store fast. “Hey mom…. you want what? Another hair mask? Let me look at the options.” little things like this can help if you feel anxious, take time to regroup, conceal, dump, or whatever you need while on the phone. Don’t wanna fake a call? Google a random product to take a second to breathe. If needed fake a phone to get out. Ask SAs to help you test something. I ask an SA to help me match a foundation and just chat a little and compliment their makeup or whatever, i feel like if one SA approves you they all turn a blind eye. If an SA offers you a bag that’s literally their job, it doesn’t mean you’ve been sussed unless you get a weird vibe fro them, but I’ve been offered a bag so many times after they give me a product they’ve tested on me.

So Christmas has just passed. You probably went crazy, panic-lifting tons of presents, then chilled out over the few holiday days. Now big Boxing Day/New Years sales are up, stores are going to be BUSY. Lifting could be easy. Here’s some stuff to keep in mind.

1. Order of importance; so I’m not going to preach to only lift what you need, because that’s blurry territory. But take the time to list what you need and get those items before more luxury items- pressure will be off and you don’t have to focus on it anymore, you can lift freely. In short, try to get food and basic stuff before pricey skincare and excess clothes and makeup.

2. Disguise; make subtle changes to yourself. This can be hard to pull off so observe your usual style, what you’d pull out of your closet and put on your face and do to your hair on any normal shopping day. Change everything you can. Clip the bangs up, dot freckles on, wear the contact lenses over the glasses or vice versa. Wear the pale jeans and nude boots over the black cargos and combat boots and goth coat. I hate to say it being a goth girl at heart, but individuality and alternativity (is that a word?) doesn’t have a place in lifting. It will get you caught very fast. Get as close to looking like just another kind and agreeable yet kind of spoilt and rich average gal/dude. Be wary of looking too rich somewhere more expensive, though - they may see dollar signs and harass you for a sale.

3. Your rights; NOBODY except loss prevention and police can stop you, and nobody but police can search your bag without permission. Stay calm, cool and polite. Collected. You understand why they stop people, shoplifting does happen and you’ve seen it a few times - but you don’t really get it. You have a job and work hard and spend your hard earned money here. Be co operative but know your right to privacy. Don’t let them dance around the topic, ask politely if there’s a problem. If you have a bad feeling then get out of there, say no thank you to the request for a bag check, if it comes to it then say you don’t like being accused of something. Hell, even pull the ‘you’re a forty something year old guy, I’m a young lady, I feel threatened, I heard about that pr!m@rk nonce security guard scandal you know!!!’ card if you must. But never, ever fall for their shit. Don’t get taken to a back room and wait for police to show up. Get out of there.

4. Organisation; carefully think before you head out to lift what you’re going to do with your haul items. Do you have a car to drop goods in between stores? A big bag? I recently started tightly folding up plastic reusable bags in my purse and it’s been AMAZING. It’s eco friendly, it just makes you look like a nice conscious shopper, and it’s extra room. Loads of it. Practice at home folding up or squeezing in the type of things you’ll be lifting, make sure you can pull off a type of conceal before you do it. As long as everything looks alright, your bags aren’t lumpy and misshapen and merchandise isn’t spilling out everywhere, you’re golden.

5. Awareness; it does no good to be inconsolably paranoid while lifting but do assume every camera is being watched closely, you are being observed, plainclothes LP are here somewhere, any shoppers that see you conceal or have suspicion will rat you out, workers are aware of lifting activity and are communicating and most of all assume everyone in the damn shop is aware you are there. You cannot sneak a whole human in and out of a store! You’re there and that’s okay, take up the necessary space. You’re just a shopper and it’s okay to take interest in everything, talk on the phone, have normal conversations and laugh with a friend you’re with. You are a normal person, you don’t turn into an alien when you lift though it may feel like it.

This is how antis find us.

THIS. @liftingdown puts it much better than I, just adding my 2 cents. Doing something like this goes against the 1îftëR code. IMO it’s the same as hitting a Mom & Pop local store.