Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Save or Splurge?

Are you budget-conscious like me yet you want good quality makeup? Well then, you're just like me. I do a lot of reading about saving vs. splurging so I hope that my own version will help other people like me in choosing which products they can save on and products that need a little splurging. Of course, if you can afford to splurge in all types of makeup, then no one is stopping you :P

Let's begin.

Foundation. Splurge. Your face is your canvas, so look for one that will make your face as flawless as possible. It should be long-lasting, non-streaky or cakey, and will give you a "your face but better look.

Concealer. Splurge. I hate to be the one to say this, but when it comes to concealer, the more expensive brands to seem to work better than drugstore brands most of the time (not all of the time!). Look for something that will give good coverage, long-lasting and is not cakey.

Eyeshadow. Save. Here's a tip: buy in palettes. That way you get more value for money. Besides, if you're not a makeup artist, it's quite unlikely that you'll be able to consume one whole pot before it expires. But if there are some shades that you use almost everyday, then buying a whole pot is a good idea.

Eyeliner. Splurge. Especially for me since I have REALLY oily lids, I need something that will stay put the whole day!

Eyebrow pencil/powder. Save. I do believe that you can save on this because a lot of inexpensive brands seem to do the trick.

Mascara. Save. Since mascaras have the shortest life span among makeup items, it's a good money-saving tip to buy inexpensive ones. I believe that there are inexpensive mascaras that work well.

Blush. Save. There are inexpensive blushes that have good pigmentation, have a good finish and are long-lasting.

Lipstick/Lipgloss. Save. I'm not an expert on trad lippies, since I only use mineral lippies, but I've read that there are some good inexpensive lippies out there. Besides, even the high-end lipglosses can have that sticky feeling that I hate.

Finishing powder. Save or splurge. If all you're looking for is good oil control, then you can find it in inexpensive powders, but if you're looking for a pretty finish as well, I think the more expensive ones give a better dewy-but-not-glittery look.

Well, I hope I've helped some of the budget-conscious! I'm not saying that you SHOULD save on the items I've mentioned, I'm saying that you CAN save on these if you want or need to. Although, I know how fabulous makeup makes us makeup addicts happy!

Any reactions or comments? Leave me a note :P

20 comments:

K said...

Nice to know your point of view!
I have a slightly different opinion for some of them...

Eyeshadow - splurge if it is a color you wear everyday. Save if you like to switch around and wear different colors, or if you just want to try a new color.

Eyeliner - save - I toss liquid liners at certain intervals similar to what you do for mascara. Revlon color stay is a good brand which is not expensive.

*KiM* said...

I agree with everything you said =D

Crystal said...

k, yeah i agree with splurging too if it's a color you wear everyday. regarding eyeliner, i've heard good things about revlon color stay but unfortunately, it's not available here in the phils. i'd love to try it out though.

ury, haha it seems like are minds work similarly.

Chrissy said...

I totally agree, too! And definitely on the palette thing. Hehe.

AskMeWhats said...

Definitely SPLURGE on foundation, because it covers a bigger area and it has direct contact with skin (not unless you use a primer). :)

Crissy said...

That's what I do except for eyeshadows and liner. I have oily lids too and i use $1 eyeliners.. pencil or liquid.. and it works great for me. I felt so bad about buying another MAC foundation so I opted for drugstore but it still wasn't cheap! XD

Anonymous said...

hmm. i will splurge on mascara even though it has the shortest life span because I must say that the mascara carries the whole look if you don't wear falsies that is. :p But I am definitely more of a hoarder if I see my fave mascara on the rack I buy a bottle of two without thinking.

Eyeliner I agree with the splurge although I have a nichido eyeliner that works really well :D but on the contrary I own a bobbi brown since I am not very confident with my other eyeliner hehe.

Crystal Gale said...

I agree on majority of them sis! here's mine :)

Splurge on foundation, concealer, primers and blush since they can cause breakouts and skin problems (I have sensitive skin so anything that touches my face must be the best I can find)

Save on mascara, lip sticks/glossses and eye brow pencil coz they can expire easily and many cheaper brands work great too!

For eyeshadows..you can either splurge or save on this one..depends if you love putting eye makeup or not :)

great post sis! :)

Bijin Blair said...

I mostly agree with you! I've been using a not so expensive eyeliner and it worked okay on me whereas Aqua Eyes smudged =[

Oh yes, Crystal, which eyeliner do you use? We seem to have similar oily lids hahaha

Crystal said...

chrissy, palettes rock!

nikki, yeah i have to agree that foundation really covers a big area.

crissy, i've tried a lot of cheap eyeliners before i went high end. unfortunately, the cheap ones don't work for me :(

Crystal said...

gale, yeah i know you have sensitive skin. i have sensitive skin too that's why i like mineral makeup.

blair, i don't use liquid liners much so i don't have much basis. i use MAC fluidline but i find that it takes a LOT of UDPP to make it stay put. i actually like stila smudgepots better because it stayed put even if i used MAC paintpots only (which is not as good as UDPP, IMO). i'm sorry that aqua eyes smudged on you. i tried it but it stung my eyes so badly i just had to wash it off. i have yet to find a good pencil liner for my waterline as the black UD 24/7 pencil didn't work for me. HTH!

Crystal said...

gia, i know you love mascaras! i like them too but i still choose not to splurge just because of the short lifespan. however, you're right about how it puts the whole look together.

Ida said...

i agree on all points, especially regarding foundation and concealer since these cover the entire face and sensitive spots like blemishes :)

this is a great post crystal, very helpful! :)

btw, how bout makeup brushes? save or splurge? :)

Crystal said...

thanks ida! makeup brushes are a different issue. there are cheap ones that work and there are expensive brands that aren't top quality. my advice is to do research before buying brushes.

Soapaholic said...

I save on blushes too, especially since I rarely wear them. I agree that we shouldn't scrimp on foundation, but aren't most MMUs relatively cheap?:) I use Lauress Minimalist on casual days and I'm still using up the sample pot I got months ago, hehe. I get what you mean though.:)

Crystal said...

yes, MMU is relatively cheap, which is a good thing for us MMU users. however, non-mmu users have to splurge more on foundations.

Chrissy said...

Crystal, where did you find Konad? ^_^

Crystal said...

i found it from a reseller. i don't remember his name na but he has a multiply site. just try searching for konad philippines in google i'm sure you'll find his name.

September said...

hi sis Crystal, great post! ^_^

re: Lumiere, im not really sure, but the day it got shipped out, I texted Mr PO guy and i told him that a package was coming in. before, I used to go to their office pa to get my stuff, but since January they've been delivering the stuff directly to my house.. I never experienced any problems with Pasig PO naman, and I hope it stays that way. =)

Crystal said...

september, thank you! i might try the pasig PO sometime because of what you said.

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