The Cheapskate Way to Expensive Makeup

Happy Easter!  

I have been into makeup for a couple of years and have both access to cheaper and some more expensive brands. I love to compare both, see if the niche is aaaalways better (or not), and want to share some tips of how to do The Cheapskate Way to Expensive Makeup

1. Fast Technology and family 

 Huh? 

Fast technology, think how brilliant Armani Fusion Makeup foundation has been since 2012 and how L'oreal made a clone-tastic variety in 2013 by Nude Magique Eau de Teint (review here , here & here). Another one, how revolutionary was Kerastase Elixir Ultime and how fast it has been replicated by the zillions of other hairoils?

Family, brands like L'oreal often have a zillion subbrands that sell someting similar under a diffferent name & cheaper pricecard.  For example the beautiful Kerastase - I think that the L'oreal Professionel line can be just as good or even more expertised. They often have the same technologies and laboratories as Kerastase but are in slightly less polished bottles. They are often used abundantly by hairdressers and they know their stuff.

 2. Sample, Sampling Samplinged!

Buy your things at places that are often generous, bug ask the Sales Assistent what would suit your skin most: and add "your skin is sensitive so if she would have a sample to try out"...etc etc. Find online places that sell samples instead of full-sized. How often do you really empty a full eyeshadow palette or a perfume? Not that much, right? Samping gives a good way of experimenting.

The Perfumed Court - niche perfume Samples

The Body Needs - Mac pigment samples (I'm so passed MAC but I used to love them when my something in thirtysomething wasn't that much yet)

Various mineral Makeup shops have dupes of the popular stuff, and often they are less chemical/friendlier for skin: eg Alima , Silknaturals, MeowCosmetics, lucyminerals, or find even more at Phyrra's blog.

For organics head over to naturisimo.com as you can take 5 samples per order, or the sample service of beingcontent.com.

3. Pretty face & a pretty wallet = good enough

 You don't always have buy the pretty box! Various brands sell refills that you can easily use without ever have bought the original packaging.

4. You can't always get what you want, but know what you need!

Enabling of bloggers often might make you think you reaaaallly gonna need the $100 eyeshadow brush they recommend, and about a 100 more of the same line/expensive range! But  you might not even be into an intricate eye with 8 different eyeshadows. So a couple of brushes is enough. Or perhaps you enjoy your Dolce & Gabanna perfume just as much or even more than the $200 Byredo/Killian/Ineke varieties out there. There's a reason the drugstore perfumes are more popular so don't feel enabled into going niche because Ms. X does. 

Ps: I do love the eyeshadow brush posts from bloggers like sweetmakeuptemptations. It's like beautyblogger's porn: something you would never do yourself but still looks so lovely if you would have so many brushes with all the skills and perhaps the right canvas (face) as well.

5. Read, Read, Read, & take the best

You already stumbled upon my blog so I guess you read beautyblogs.  Take the best of a brand! Most brands have something they really excel in. Some have a kick-ass eyeliner or the most amazing lipstick. Just take the cream of the Crop.

6. Go Global

Beautystandards are (still) different from place to place, and so does each countries' expertise on the 'beauty-goal'. Japan is being innovative in brightening skincare. On the other side of the spectrum, the UK loves their bronzed godesses so you'll find a high expertise and selection of selftanners. "French women don't get Fat"? Thanks to their zillions of anti-cellulite creams. And for makeup the US is absolutely present. So more choice, more competition, more expertise & lower prices by each country on their 'beauty-goal'.

I think there are a lot of other ways to look good for not that much cash, so I might do a follow up on this one. Please comment if you have some fab advices on going cheaper with the same 'expensive face'-look.

Ps: have an amazing day and please enjoy your naughty food too: I adore chocolate and it's actually a superfood (without the sugar, but hey, can't have it all...)

Using...used...gonna use..

I've been hitting the plateau of beauty frugality lately. First, it was being compensated by fashion exuberance in spending, then it was both, and now both seem to tone down.

Still, I have been using some things, swapping on makeupalley and want to revise some earlier opinions as well.

Using...Used....Gonna use...

Used: (and up for repurchase) Shu Uemura Full Shimmer Conditioner

Actually almost used: I bought this massively niche and expensive conditioner from Shu Uemura I'd discussed over here. This conditioners has actually been quite good: to be precisely...good in the form I have to discard my beauty-frugality soon to repurchase.
The thing is that my hair-quality have gotten slightly better by Kerastase Elixir Ultime Moringa and some haircuts too, so on healthy hair this makes it even more delightfully shimmery.

Using: Sunday Riley Starting Over eyecream

I really wanted to post about this one because today the retailer of this, cultbeauty, has a sale going on giving discount for a whopping 25 % with code FLASH25 (link)

It seems expensive and it actually is, but I have been using it since may this year, and you can see I haven't even used half of it. It is not the eyemiracle I have been hoping for, however, I cannot stop the complete ageing process and it actually makes my eyes appear more lifted and hydrated in the morning after I slept the night with the heater on (always turn off the heat at night, unless you live in Antartica). It is creamy enough for nighttime, yet fluffy and fast penetrating enough for hasty mornings.

To be used: Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill

I received this gem during a swap and I'm dying to use it soon. However, I always seem to be distracted by the virginity of unused makeup and end up staring at it's sparkles and the way the logo still seem to be looking like freshly stamped in...

So swapping on makeupalley?

I've been swapping some beauties in the form of Burberry blush for my latest high end cosmetic crush Giorgio Armani. I looooove blush, but going to winter and seeing my skin going more wintery as well, I find myself into clowncheek dillema that looks fashionable on fashiongirls but basically clowncheek on me (seriously, I think it sometimes looks clowncheek on them too and I almost want to chase them with a stipping brush and blend*blend*blend that colour into something less russian-doll)
I know, and admire pale porceline princesses such as the stunning DrivellerKate flaunting a huge aray of blushes and making themselves even more ridiculously beautiful, but I'm slightly older with less perfect complection so I had to revise some of my stash to see if they would work if

• I'm in a hurry and cannot spend ages on blending/mixing with other colours
• smell ok (Burberry seems to get slightly sickening on me lately with it's hyper-rose scent)
• have a primer-esque quality without actually having primer (hence, not pore enhancing but smoothing)

FYI, the sale of cultbeauty.co.uk is still going on until today at midnight GMT and they have some delightful brands beside Sunday Riley. Again, the code is FLASH25 and international shipping is free after spending £100 (before discount, so after the discount I still got my free shipping even though it was under the £ 100).

Budget score: Catrice Palette in Berlin

Yesterday I was a happy camper for finally stumbling upon something that made my makeup-heart beat a little bit faster:

Catrice The Berlin Collection

Remembering my old love for anything palette and anything in cute boxes I was instantly drawn at the latest release from German budget makeupbrand Catrice. I like Catrice for various reasons, but mostly for they relatively good quality for a affordable price. Adding that Catrice packaging has become much sleeker (example here) makes it an attractive brand.

Catrice palette formula: a good clone format I've seen on other brands

It seems that Catrice have ventured on a new field, palettes. To make me more enthousiastic, because I am a realy city-a-holic, they connected their palettes to big cities. This time they didn't went for the most obvious of the 3: normally they are Paris, London, New York but included cities such as Berlin and Sydney. I still believe they got London as well, but London is too good to miss anyway :D.

So why did I pick Berlin. Most because of the colours, but I really like the description of the city as well: "The capital with its exceptional city spirit allows anyone and everyone to live by their own rules". Brilliant!

Opening the box gives out 2 blush colours and 6 eyeshadow colours. The thicker box might make you think that there is an extra layer beneith, such as the brands like Urban Decay do. But that isn't the case. I am not complaining because the whole box is under 7 euros.

I picked this box because I liked almost every colour in it. And every makeup and palette-addict knows that such a deal is hard to find: because there are always colours or formulas that you feel 'meh' about in a palette, don't you?

First the Blush: 

They included one shimmery blush, that doesn't contain glitter <BLISS> so it works for the non-perfect skins out there as well.
The second one is a matte colour.

Blush Unten den Linden is a shimmery rose-toned bronze that can work as an eyeshadow as well. I think this one will be better suited when my skin is (faux)tanned.

Siegessäule is just PERFECT for my winter skin. It creates a light windswept flush that reminds me of Bobbi Brown Slopes, only a bit lighter and more subtle.

The eyeshadows:

I included two different pictures to show the multidimension of the colours. I have to say I am incredibly impressed by the way a cheaper brand has made these colours look bi-toned from different angles!

I am not going to describe all colours, because you can see them by yourself from the swatches above. However, the only mat is Am Alex and it is a useful matte: I really like brown or taupe colours in matte. The rest are intricated shimmers/metallic colours in 3 cooler tones: Tiergarden, Brandenburger Tor and Ku'dam. I consider Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie as 'I've fooled you colours': looking cool at first glaze but with a warmer reflection from a different angle.

Best example of an 'I've fooled you colour' is Checkpoint Charlie: look how cool and white it looks from this angle:

Only to look as the most gorgeous rose-gold sheen I haven't seen in a while from this angle: 

Ku'dam looks so pretty in that picture as well. Such a perfect mauve metallic.

Strangely, the names remind me of the time the cold war was still going on (the 1980s). I know these points still exist for tourist sake (or historicans) but they were mentioned a lot in the 80s when Berlin was still separated in East Berlin (communist Sovjet) and West Berlin (kapitalist Western).

Anyway, this is the best makeupfind I have found in a while and I am quite enthousiastic about it. I wonder if Berlin itself will be just as enticing as the palette ;D.

So, what do you think? Should I buy another palette and put it up for a giveaway soon? (I couldn't let my readers with no access to Catrice miss out on this palette, right?)