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During unbecoming economic times, maintaining confidence in how you present yourself to the world is more important than ever. At the same time, it’s hard to justify spending your hard-earned and perhaps limited funds on frivolities like make-up and skin care. Well, the forecast may be ugly, but you can feel pretty for less by knowing where to save and where to splurge when it comes to beauty products.
One make-up category I don’t get high and mighty over is mascara. That’s because brands like Cover Girl, Maybelline and L’Oreal spend just as much time and money on research as the flashier product lines, and these companies regularly turn out state-of-the-art lash weapons. My current favorite is L’Oreal’s Double Extend Beautytubes Mascara, which recently made my lashes so long that they touched my eyebrows, and the stuff did not smudge, period. The tears of joy I shed did not cause it to run, and it came off easily, if not a bit strangely (in tubes), with warm water. So run—don’t walk—to the nearest drugstore if reasonably-priced fringes that go on forever are your goal.
And whilst on the subject, just a quick note about the mascara darling of the beauty editorial empire, that is, Maybelline Great Lash. What the famous pink and green tube is “great” for is photo shoots at which deathly bored models are being scrutinized and fawned over continuously for any kind of imperfection. For the rest of us, Great Lash looks lush and silky for exactly five minutes before beginning its steady migration southward.
In the category of “I Will Not Compromise” are eye shadows and blushes. Your most wearable, go-to colors are always worth spending on, not only because higher-end products contain more pigment—meaning more bang for the buck—but also because of the superior range of shades and textures. It is my humble opinion that spending $25 on a NARS blush is well worth it, because nothing makes me sadder than a feebly-pigmented, cracked or crumbled blush imposter in a broken plastic compact. And don’t get me started on brushes; spend once on the best you can afford, lovingly care for them, and as I often say, you’ll make a furry friend for life—one that doesn’t need to go “walkies.”
My best shopping advice, whether in good times or bad, is to ask yourself, “do I really need this product?” or “am I looking for a buyer’s rush?” There is such a thing as too much, and hording make-up and skin care products won’t make your beauty regime any easier or your wallet any fatter – and the latter is one item in your life that actually looks good with a few extra pounds.
