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Archive for the 'Bargain Beauty' Category


Holiday Beauty Gifts- On Sale!

Monday, November 26th, 2012
By Glinda

I think we can all pretty much agree that buying someone a gift on sale simply means that we are trying to buy more for them for the money.  In that spirit, here are some nifty beauty gifts that can be bought separately and put together in a makeup bag, or maybe one nice, big gift.  Either way, it’s a gift, and if they don’t like it they can give it back.

Sephora by OPI It’s Real 18K Top Coat.  Lots of great reviews for this top coat, a lot of luxe in a little bottle!

You can never go wrong with a pretty little compact.  This one is from Tarina Tarantino.

Adorable leather ponytail wraps.

Just give up the pretense of gift-buying and get them for yourself, already.

Go ahead and take the plunge for the friend you know will love these but hasn’t yet bought for herself.

You gotta love a palette that has almost everything.  The colors look pretty compatible for many skin tones, but that is a very personal factor that must be taken into account before purchasing.  Of course.

Let’s face it, it’s an extremely low-tech Clarisonic. At least you’ll never have to buy batteries for it? But the reviews are overall pretty great.


On Sale Now!

Thursday, July 19th, 2012
By Glinda

I like to check out Sephora’s sale pages from time to time, as they can feature some pretty good deals.  Here are some products that tickled my fancy, and trust me, my fancy is hard to tickle.

Sephora Collection Classic Double-Ended Brow Sculpting Brush

Rave reviews and over 50% off!

Hello Kitty Shimmering Powder and Eyeshadow Palette

Again, lots of glowing reviews and for those holding back on any of the Hello Kitty products, this might be a good one to go for.

benefit Cabana Glama

Just the thing to keep that summer glow going at sixteen bucks off the original price.

philosophy Candy Cane™ Body Scrub

Christmas in July for a steal!

 


Flash Sites Worth a Try*

Thursday, March 8th, 2012
By Glinda

I used to be a skeptic of flash sale sites, but I became a convert when I started subscribing to one for children’s items.

Now, I think I’m in on at least seven, and I just might be addicted.  Some of them didn’t even have beauty products when I first signed up, but branched out into them eventually.

My husband is not necessarily pleased.

But seriously, a Three Custom Color eye palette specifically formulated for green eyes that retails for almost $70.00 was to be had for less than $30.00 on HauteLook.  How could I possibly resist? Er, or the retractable lip brush for a measly five bucks? Fine, and I’m not proud of the lipstick that is normally over twenty but for which I paid ten bucks.

They have all kinds of makeup and especially skin care, the expensive stuff.  It’s still expensive, just not necessarily prohibitively so.  As for makeup, I’ve seen everything from e.l.f to Stila.

Another site for makeup/skincare worth a look is My Habit, which if you have an Amazon account, you’re already hooked up.

I think the key to these sale sites is knowing exactly what you want before you go on, and promising yourself to stick to that.  So if you are the type who doesn’t mind taking a bit of a risk with your makeup, this might just be the thing for you.   Return policies are pretty generous, though.

Now, if only I could take my own advice.

*I did not use my personal “invitation code” for these links, so no, I’m not making any money off of you! 

 


How Clever!

Wednesday, February 15th, 2012
By Glinda

Liz Marie thought of a great way to keep her most-used makeup handy, yet still technically out of the way.  She glued small magnets on the bottom of her makeup, attatched them to a lovely mirror, and voila!  Creative and pretty, too!

Makeup Idea

Things I Covet: One Nighty Nite Tonic Facial Mask

Tuesday, November 8th, 2011
By Glinda

I’m always afraid to try new skin products because sometimes my face totally freaks out.  I never know when it’s going to happen, and since I have a horrible track record about returning things, I’m hesitant to make a big purchase.

However.

One Nighty Nite Tonic Facial Masks are eco-friendly, travel-friendly, and most importantly, have an extremely budget-friendly price.

Sold only online at Target.


e.l.f. Palette for $3.50

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011
By Glinda

Now when I first saw this deal, I was really excited.  I thought that e.l.f. was offering a very large palette for $3.50.  I mean, they ARE, but you have to spend $25.00 to get that price, and I have to say that kind of annoys me.

I wouldn’t call it a true bait-and-switch, but still.

I’d like it better if they just tossed it in for free if you purchased X amount of product.  I just like free things better than things I have to pay for, even if it isn’t a whole lot.  Does that make me wrong?

A long time ago, I remember when Lancome used to give out free baguettes (and maybe a tote bag) for purchasese over $50.00, or something like that.  Bread, for god’s sake, and I recall hordes of women hitting the counters. They don’t do that any more, do they?  Tells you how long it’s been since I’ve shopped at a department store for makeup.

But, here’s the link in case you are interested.  Oh, and you’ve only got a few days left.


Cosmetics Cage Match: Too Faced Eyeshadow vs. e.l.f. Eyeshadow

Friday, August 12th, 2011
By Glinda

Yes, it’s time again for a

COSMETICS…Cosmetics…cosmetics..

CAGE..Cage…cage…

MAAAAAAAATTTTCCCCHHHH!

Because I don’t trust you guys, (kidding) I decided to do my own frou-frou brand versus a cheapie drugstore brand in the form of eyeshadows.

This is probably because even though I really like eyeshadow, I don’t wear it as often as I wear other types of makeup.  It’s the last thing I put on, if I have time.  And often, I don’t.

I used Too Faced shades Heaven and Push Up (a matte beige and light bronze shimmer, respectively) against e.l.f.’s Eye Brightening quad Ethereal, which had two extremely similar colors.  Identical, almost, except the e.l.f. beige had a bit of shimmer.

I applied the e.l.f. shades to my right eyelid, dusted all of it off the brushes, then applied the Too Faced shades to my left eyelid. 

I’m using the following criteria- 1) ease of application 2) “trueness” of color, and 3) how long the shades lasted, and 4) price.  I applied no primer to either lid, and my face was freshly washed.

EASE OF APPLICATION

The e.l.f. shade came off nicely onto the brush, but I noticed a lot of product that (in very scientific terms) poofed off the  base and remained on the surrounding plastic.  It blended fairly easily, but I noticed the same “poofing” of product below my eye.  Noticeable mostly due to the shimmery aspect of the shadow.

The Too Faced also came off nicely, with little-to-no poofing.  It went on smoothly.  Not a lot of product went anywhere other than my eyelid.

Winner of Round 1: Too Faced

TRUENESS OF COLOR

E.l.f.’s shade of beige did take more than one application to become the color on my eyelid that I wanted it to be.  I have dark-ish eyelids, so I usually have to apply very light shades at least twice to get what I want.  It took three applications, and looked fine.  The bronze shimmer was only applied once, and was a light bronze.  I didn’t find that particular bronze to be very intense.

Too-Faced beige took two applications, and looked pretty much the same as the e.l.f.  In fact, I could not tell the difference.  The bronze, with one application, was more intense and shimmery than the e.l.f., but no so much so that I gasped at the difference.

Winner of Round 2: Too Faced, although it was a SQUEAK.

LONG LASTING?

After two hours, both sets of shadows looked exactly the same.

After four hours, both beige shadows had worn slightly, bronzes looked good.

After six hours, both beige shadows were pretty much toast, the e.l.f. bronze was very faint, and the Too Faced bronze was hanging in there pretty good.

Winner of Round 3: Too Faced, again by a VERY slight margin.

Price

E.l.f. $3.00 for a quad.

Too Faced $36.00 for a complete kit.

Winner of Round 4: e.l.f. because how can you not love a quad for three bucks?

So, according to my criteria, Too Faced won this cage match, but came out pretty bruised and in desperate need of a massage and an ice pack.

I must say, that when faced with suge a huge price difference, there is not much in the way of being able to say that Too Faced was a completely superior product.  It wasn’t.  Granted, you get more colors with the Too-Faced, and your base colors are larger, so there is that. 

However, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the e.l.f. shadows, and the next time I find myself considering some pricey eye shadows, I will definitely keep this experience in mind.

 

 

 

 


My Lipsticks Are Going to Pot

Tuesday, July 26th, 2011
By Glinda

INTO a pot, to be exact.

You see, I am one of those people who tends to leave a lipstick in the car at all times so that I may have one on hand whenever needed.  Because sometimes I take my big purse, sometimes I take my small purse, and sometimes I take no purse at all.  So, I just like to have one there in case of an emergency.

Uh, yeah, being lipstick-less DOES qualify, thankyouverymuch.

Anyhoo, wouldn’t you think I would remember some silly fact like it is summer and the car gets superhot?  As in, melting-my-lipstick hot?

Well, I didn’t remember and now one of my Dior Addicts is all mooshy and I hate mooshy lipstick. I also have a Benefit one that somehow got broken, probably because I forgot to take it out of my pocket and it went into the washing machine. I do that a lot, too.

Enter the helpful ladies of this forum discussion at Spektra.

It seems you can melt your mooshy/broken lipsticks into an empty lip balm container and as long as you don’t mind using a lip brush, you are good to go.  In case you don’t read all the way down, it is possible to put the whole thing in a microwave instead of melting above an open flame.

Now, why didn’t I think of that?


Cosmetics Cage Match: DDF Glycolic Face Wash VS. Alpha Hydrox Foaming Face Cleanser

Friday, June 24th, 2011
By Glinda

I’d been using Alpha Hydrox Foaming Face Cleanser for at least five years. Maybe even more.  Then the store I bought it from stopped stocking it, and fickle consumer that I am, I decided it was a sign from the Big Guy that I look for something new.  That’s when I bought the DDF Glycolic Face Wash, and was happy with the results.

But, in a mano y mano beauty match, who will win?

I’m going to base my reviews on the following criteria: Anti-aging properties, effectiveness at cleansing (i.e. dirt and makeup), breakout prevention, and finally, price.

Anti-aging properties

DDF: Very good at overall decrease in fine lines.  Very good at making skin look smoother and more refined.

Alpha Hydrox: Also very good at overall decrease in fine lines and smoothing out skin.  Perhaps maybe a tad bit better than the DDF, but just a skosh.

Cleansing Effectiveness:

DDF: Very, very good.  Had a problem only one time getting some waterproof mascara off, but it was probably my fault somehow. 

Alpha Hydrox: Gets anything and everything, no problem.

Breakout Prevention:

DDF: For me, this product was very good, but I still have occasional issues.  Mostly hormonally related though, so it may not be fair to blame it on the wash.

Alpha Hydrox: Excellent at preventing breakouts on me. 

Price:

DDF: Mmm, yeah.  Pricey at about $35 a bottle.  But one bottle lasted about eight months.

Alpha Hydrox: Try about seven bucks a bottle.  One bottle will usually last about six months.

Winner:

You knew it was going to be the Alpha Hydrox, didn’t you?

There is no way I could recommend paying so much more for a product that does not outperform the inexpensive one by leaps and bounds.

My only caveat being that as with any cleanser containing an amino acid, it can be a bit harsh for sensitive-skin types.

But for all others, go out and get the Alpha Hydrox.  Now!


Monday Beauty Poll

Monday, June 20th, 2011
By Glinda

Perfume is what 57% of you use when you want some scent. 17% of you like to layer various products, and I would throw myself in that category. Not only will I use perfume, but I will definitely use a complimentary lotion. 9% of you prefer to be without an artificial scent, and only small percentages use soap, lotions, and body sprays to achieve your desired smell.

Buying beauty products can be an expensive endeavor. However, it is possible to create anything from lip balm to exfoliators to shampoo in the comfort of your own home. And for a fraction of the price.  How DIY are you when it comes to beauty?












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