Makeup Products: When To Save And When To Splurge

Ladies and gentlemen, before we start, please do me a favor and calculate your everyday makeup worth in total. That would include the products you use every morning to get ready for school/work/fun. Don’t worry; I’ll give you 5 minutes, starting NOW.

So... How much did you get? Was it surprisingly more or less than expected? After looking through my every day makeup bag including around 12 pieces, I figured that it sums up to be $354, excluding the products I’ve used up, skin care products, and fragrances. I wasn’t surprised at the number; in fact,the ladies at Buzzfeed have proven that many of us are guilty of spending a liiiil bit too much in the makeup department. If you clicked on this article, chances are, you understand what it feels like walking out of Sephora with bags full of products and heart full of guilt. Yet, it’s so irresistible, so satisfying, so empowering! It doesn’t feel like buying, but almost like you’re picking up pieces of yourself from the Sephora aisles, and bring it home where it truly belongs.

I have to admit, I'm not proud of my habit. Is there a way for me to cut down my spending yet still get to feed my obsession for high-end make up? In other words, which products should I refrain from buying in order to splurge on something else?

Save!

Here are a few products, that in my humble opinion, doesn't require much spending on. You can either skip these completely in your makeup routine, or buy their drugstore versions.

Mascara: Although my all time favorite mascara would be Too Faced's Better Than Sex ($23), I wouldn't want to spend on a high-end wand that would dry out in a couple of months. Fact is, you should replace your mascara every three months to keep your eyes from being infected with all the bacteria. For this reason, throwing out a $7.99 mascara would be less painful.

Wax eyeliner: If you're just looking for a basic black eyeliner - please consider looking through many drugstore options out there. Black eyeliner is such a popular makeup piece that almost every brand would offer this product, so you have a great variety to choose from!

Brow pencil: The same applies for brow pencil, especially when your brow routine requires multiple different product (brow pencil, powder, gel, who knows what else!)

Makeup brush and sponge: Drugstore brushes should serve their purposes just fine. (Make sure the bristles are soft enough!) Many of the brush sets also conveniently go on sale very often at Ulta. For make up sponges, there have been tons of videos made to prove that there are only a few minor differences between drugstore sponges and their high-end counterparts.

Moisturizer: This actually has more to do with which moisturizer your face is happy with, but generally drugstore moisturizers tend to do the job.

Faux lashes: "Cheap" faux lashes are already pretty expensive - who would want to splurge on high-end ones? After all, you're only making a few uses out of a pair, and pretty much like mascaras - the less they cost, the easier it is for us to let go off.

Lip balm, lipstick, and lipgloss: I'm actually on the fence with lip products, and decided to put it in the Save category, for a simple reason that you can never have enough lippies! It could be expensive if you're a major fan of lip products and own many different shades in many different finishes. Drugstores and online retailers like Colour Pop Cosmetics offer wide ranges of lip products without charging you

Splurge

Primer: In order for your makeup to stay all day, priming is a must! Once you're willing to spend on this extra step, why not spending a bit more to get a much better result? (High-end primer has been noticed to perform better, especially when in use with more expensive foundation.) Besides, you only a little amount of primer each time, a splurge on this product would be worth it since it lasts forever!

Foundation: Even though there are many good drugstore foundations out there, I still lean over the more expensive options, mainly because there are more shades and finishes for me to choose from. I also own only one foundation until it runs out, and like primer, foundation usually lasts a long time.

Eyeshadow: Eyeshadow is usually not just about the color, but also the formula that makes or breaks. High-end eyeshadows are usually more pigmented, hence you could go on all day without worrying whether your eyes are fading or smudging.

Face powder: The worst thing about applying face powder is that you might go overboard and make your whole face powdery and cakey. I have found high-end products to be a bit more forgiving, which helps your makeup appear more seamless and natural.

Bronzer: Bronzer is always a tricky product - you don't want one that appears too orangy or muddy on your skin. You also don't want your bronzer to appear patchy and uneven at the end of the day, and at the same time, you might want your bronzer to appear as "natural" as possible. I'd suggest staying on the safe side and splurge on a high-end bronzer that would give you the perfect sun kiss appearance. No sweat!

Blush: Applying blush could be a bit tricky for many of us, as we don't want to look like a clown with bright red cheeks. This is why it's better for blushes to be buildable. While drugstores offer a great selection of blushes, they tend to be too powdery and pigmented. With a more expensive blush, you have more control in building up the color, hence avoiding the clown look.

Those are a few of my suggestions, hoping you'd still find makeup enjoyable while keeping it more budget-friendly. Please feel free to try out different options until you find your holy-grail products, but just keep in mind that saving is possible! Have fun and good luck!