Top Ten Under $10 - Drugstore Makeup Deals

Top Ten Under $10

A leave in conditioner/detangler and dry shampoo. These are the two I'm currently using. I don't have a particular favorite brand, however I think the drugstore brands do a great job overall and they're staples in my day-to-day life. 

Leave in Conditioner - With naturally curly, dry, color treated hair this helps prevent breakage and helps keep my hair moisturized.

Dry Shampoo - I doubt I need to sing its praises to anyone, but it's perfect to freshen up hair and add volume.

Rimmel Match Pefection Concealer fair/light

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lasting Finish Matte Lipstick 101

Rimmel Scandaleyes Kohl Kajal Eye Liner in 004 Taupe 

 Full review and swatches for these Rimmel products here!

Concealer - I have tried a fair amount of concealers and this one is great. Inexpensive, light-weight but full coverage, doubles as a highlighter. 

Lipstick - A high end lipstick masquerading in the drugstore. Love it.

Eyeliner - Both high-end and drugstore brands make oodles of great eye liners. For the drugstore this line of eye liners is fantastic! There are a ton of excellent eye liners at the drugstore though, and what sets this one apart it the shade. How often does a drugstore produce a quality shade like this? Not very often in my experience. Fifty perfectly fine black eyeliners, but very few nude or taupe shades. And Rimmel does both for under $4!!

Maybelline the Falsies Flared Mascara

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Beige (LE - Barely Branded is similar)

Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Eyeliner in Express 

Mascara - Another product that the drugstore has tons of offerings to choose from and many excellent ones. I love this one for the crazy big lashes (makes my eyes look freaky big) it gives me, the inexpensive price tag and the fact it doesn't damage my lashes.

Eye Shadow - How I doth love thee. Let me count the ways - but quickly, cause Shakespeare I ain't. The colors are amazing, the pigmentation is crazy, they last forever on your lids, they make great primers/bases for other eye shadows. 

Eye Liner - Long wearing, doesn't dry up (I've had mine for well over a year), easy to work with, great color and pigmentation.

Revlon Lip Butter in Sweet Tart 

L'Oreal Caresse Wet Shine Stain

Zoya Nail Polish in Maura

Lip Stick - Creamy, pigmented without ever getting into clown territory, doesn't wear off in the blink of an eye, great color range.

Lip Stain - Long wearing shine and color, not too difficult to work with, cute packaging. Not the best color range - limited and pretty basic, they lack the color complexity of the YSL lip stains, but for the price and what it does do, I'm a fan.

Nail Polish - I've tried high-end (Chanel, Butter London, etc) to the low (NYC, Sally Hansen, etc) and this is hands down my favorite nail polish. Long wearing, chip resistant, huge selection of colors, $8, shiny without a top coat, opaque in one coat. 

What are some of your favorite beauty items under $10? Let me know in the comments! I love to try out new things from the drugstores!

Best wishes,

Elisabeth 

Madcap Makeup Monday

Hey Everyone,

Welcome back to another week of Madcap Makeup Monday! This week I tried to break out some different products from what I've been using so you don't feel like you're reading the makeup blog equivalent of Groundhog Day! 

Wet and Wild Comfort Zone Palette- I used the cream shade as an inner corner highlight

Anastasia Eye Shadow Duo in Power Lunch

Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Light

NYC Smooth Skin Pressed Face Powder in 701A Translucent

Maybelline Baby Lips in Peppermint and Pink Punch

Burt's Bees Sun Protecting Lip Balm with Passion-fruit

Benefit Posie Tint

Clinique Lash Doubling Mascara

L'Oreal Colour Riche Caresse Wet Shine Stain, Rose On and On 184

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Beige 100 

Maybelline Gel Eye Liner in Expresso 

Maybelline Color Sensational Lipstick in 815 Glisten Up Pink 

Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess 

Too Faced Glamour to Go 2 - Full review and swatches here

Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer/Hightlighter in Fair/Light - Full review and swatches here

Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Black - Full review and swatches here

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lasting Finish Matte Lipstick in 101 - Full review and swatches here

Best Wishes,

Elisabeth 

Madcap Makeup Monday

Hey Everyone, how's your day going? I hope it's off to a better start than my week - I got a unidentified bug bite this weekend and have spent most of the past two days in bed asleep. Not exactly a burgeoning opportunity for glamorous makeup (or ahem, any at all), however the previous week I tried a few different looks and really enjoyed the results.

During the past week I broke out of the summertime rut with a pinup red lipstick look, in addition to several days of bright pink lips and a smoky green eye shadow look for this weekend. It was a nice change from the all-natural/sweet look I've been attempting lately. 

What have you been wearing lately? Let me know in the comments!

Best wishes,

Elisabeth <3

Madcap Makeup Monday

Madcap Monday Makeup 

Welcome to a new weekly blog post. Recently I have gone on an over-hauling of my behaviors. I am trying to lessen the desire to constantly need something new,to avoid having the things I already own pile up into an unused mess. I've been streamlining everything and my wardrobe, bathroom cabinets and makeup have not been left behind hence....Madcap Monday Makeup! Mad*cap adj : likely to do something mad or reckless : done for fun without thinking. 

Sounds like a good description right? 

I did not have a that large a makeup collection, but it was much larger than I needed. So far I've gotten rid of five or six (at least) one-gallon bags worth of makeup. 

I'm still buying makeup, but I'm trying to make sure it's something I truly want and not go shopping as frequently. And I'm trying to use up what I do have before buying more. Waste not want not! 

Which brings us to this post. I keep my most reached for makeup on my dresser and at the beginning of every week I go through to see what I reached for and store what I didn't use. It also gives me the opportunity to keep the space neat and make sure what is in my 'stash' gets used. Throughout the week I may grab something from my stash and add it to the box, and I try to make sure to pull a few things out while I'm storing others, just to make sure everything I have is getting used or gets moved on. 

This past week I did a lot of traveling and ended up keeping my looks pretty simple. However I am categorically unable to wear the exact same look twice. Ever.

So, even though I'm trying to go from ten blushes to three and fifteen mascaras to two - I avoid the same makeup.  

And after this monster intro -

The tri-section box I keep my makeup in. Exciting no?

Read My Lips:

First set of Swatches From L-R:

Maybelline Lipstick in Glisten Up Pink 815

Kate Moss for Rimmel Lipstick in 10

Kate Moss for Rimmel Matte Lipstick in 101

Kate Moss for Rimmel Matte Lipstick in 105

Maybelline Color Whisper in Orange Attitude

NARS Lip Gloss in Super Orgasm

Mrs. Fields Lip Balm in Cinnimon Sugar

Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm in Hibiscus

Second set of Swatches From L-R:

Sugar Rose Lip Balm 

Rimmel Stay Glossy Lip Gloss in Unlimited Gold 050

L'Oreal Colour Riche Color Caresse Wet Shine Stain in Endless Red 190

NARS Lip Gloss in Super Orgasm 

The Eyes Have It:

From L-R:

Stila the Natural Palette

Too Faced Liquif-Eye 

Too Faced Naked Eye

Too Faced Glamour to Go 

Too Faced Galaxy Glam Baked Eye-shadow in Deep Space

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Beige

BareMinerals Glimpse Loose Eye-shadow in Cupcake

Boots No.7 Eyeliner in Brown

Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Taupe 004

Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Black 001

Rimmel Scandaleyes Eyeliner in Turquoise 007

Too Faced Perfect Eyes Eyeliner in Perfect Storm

Boots No. 7 Eyeliner in Bronze

 Rimmel Lash Accelerator Mascara in Black

Maybelline the Flasies Flared in Black

Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Eyeliner in Expresso

Face to Face:

Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer in Park Avenue Princess

Tarte Amazonian Clay Bluch in Dollface

Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Light

Rimmel Perfect Match Concealer in Light/Fair

Sonia Kashuk Powder

Clean and Clear Blotting Sheets

Mirror

True Religion for Women Perfume

Bath and Body Works Wild Berry Tulips Body Spray

The Body Shop Vanilla and Tonka Bean

Abercrombie and Fitch 8 Perfume (Not a fan of the store-but I still like this scent!)

Boots Day Moisture Lotion with Rice Bran and Honey 

Weekly Beauty Bests

Weekly Beauty Bests

Summer is here (finally) so I've been working on keeping my makeup routine simple. About every day of June has had me wearing a "blogger bun" -  a massive contraption of hair piled precariously atop my head and some version of light eye, flirty lashes, glowy skin and bright, juicy lips. Not exactly an original look but pretty. 

I've been obsessed with the Stila 'The Natural  palette I got from Ulta recently and I've been using it daily for both day-time and evening looks. I will have a full review of it and the other products I mention up here soon. I'd love to do a quick tutorial on the look I've been wearing too - keep your eyes open! :)

What look/products have you been using and wearing??

The Shadows:

For the day, I've been taking Pure from the Stila Natural Palette and putting it all over my lid, Linen through the crease and Innocent in my outer third. I follow with my Pixi champagne shadow in my inner corner as a highlight. 

Stila The Natural - Eye shadow palette. Exclusively at Ulta

Don't let the melding with my skin tone fool you - they are gorgeous on the eye and pigmented without being overwhelming. 

Pixi Fairy Light Solo in No.2 Champagne Glow 

The Face:
I don't wear foundation so after I moisturize I apply Kat Von D's Tattoo Concealer on my blemishes and take Rimmel's Perfect Match Concealer to the dark circles under my eyes and in any areas I wish to highlight. It's an inexpensive version of YSL Touche Eclat.  

Rimmel Match Perfection Concealer and highlighter.  Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Light

The Coloring:
I'm pale. And it's not attractive on me. I have warm undertones and when I go pale I look like a Tim Burton movie extra (which I could totally live with honestly) but to keep from being confused with Beetlejuice I use Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer and Blush to prevent ghostly comparisons. 

Tarte Amazonian Clay Bronzer in Park Ave Princess and Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush in Dollface.

 The Lashes:

My two favorite drugstore mascaras. For a more dramatic look I go with the Falsies, for a flirty day-time look Rimmel Lash Accelerator. 

Maybelline the Flasies Flared and Rimmel Lash Accelerator

The Liners:
My new all-time favorite eye liners - high end or drugstore. I tightline my upper lash line with the black or smudge it into my lashes for soft all-day definition. I use the turquoise on my lower lash line for a fun pop of color. 

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal eyeliners in 001 Black and 007 Turquoise

The Lips:
I have a lot of bright lip products I rotate. This weeks crop: Glisten Up Pink is a beautiful berry-pink with silver shimmer and over a lip balm gives the softest, prettiest shiny look.
Coral Tattoo is a great long-lasting, bright and juicy lip color. Orange Attitude and Pink Possibilities are fantastic when you're running out the door and want some color without having to think about it. I layer them over lip balm and they're soft, shiny, water-color brights.

Left to right: Maybelline lipstick in Glisten Up Pink, L'Oreal Colour Riche Color Caresse Wet Shine Stain in Coral Tattoo and Maybelline Color Whisper in Orange Attitude and Pink Possibilities.

The Tools: