The good news is, I do love a good deal, and I really don't care about what brand something is. I like what I like, and I don't like what I don't like ~ sometimes what I like is a pricier or more elite brand, and sometimes I can gleefully find it at Walmart.
I've put together a list of my favorite skincare and beauty products that you can find at most drugstores and supermarkets, as well as Walmart, Target and Ulta. {Note: you may not be able to find all products at all locations}. These items are great for your everyday routine {soaps and makeup}, to throw in your purse {lip balm and hand sanitizer}, and for stocking stuffers! You could even create a beauty gift bag out of several of the items as part of an office Secret Santa exchange!
Beauty
Maybelline's Baby Lips lip balmThis lip balm hit the market just a month or two ago. The six shades {two are clear, four are tinted} contain SPF 20 and come in mostly fruity flavors {except peppermint}. I tried Quenched {a citrusy clear} and Peach Kiss {tinted, with a peach scent}. I like the look and feel of both, but the peach scent was a little unappealing ~ it almost smelled like little kid play makeup {plastic-y?}. They both made my lips feel silky smooth!
I've mentioned before that drugstore mascaras and I don't mix. I don't know if it's because I'm a contact-wearer or what, but I find them to flake, smudge, run, and not live up to expectations much more so than their pricier department store counterparts. The only exception? Voluminous Million Lashes mascara. {I've tried regular Voluminous and Voluminous False Fiber Lashes ~ Voluminous Million Lashes is the way to go}. It's only available in black, and it will give your lashes the most bang for your buck.
Tweezerman Folding iLashComb lash comb My friend Kaydee is a professional makeup artist, and this is the lash comb she's been recommending to me for years. This is a metal comb, which separates your lashes much more precisely than a plastic comb {whose teeth are thicker}. It folds into itself, which helps protect the teeth, and it should last you forever {I've had maybe three in the past decade}.
This is one of my favorite nail polish lines, and is one of the two major lines you'll usually find in your nail salon {along with OPI}. Essie polishes used to only be available for purchase at nail salons and pricey beauty boutiques, but I saw a whole Essie display at Walmart a few weeks ago! They have an enormous range of colors, but their classic, classy light pinks like Mademoiselle {pictured} and Ballet Slippers are my favorite. The search for the perfect wedding-day pink ends here!
The other nail salon staple is the massive OPI line of products. They have a dizzying array of colors, along with frequent seasonal or themed limited-edition lines, celebrity lines {Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj are two recent collaborators}, their new "Shattered" line of polishes {the black is pictured to the left ~ brush it over dried polish of your choice and it will "crackle" before your eyes, giving your nails a two-tone effect}, and their Nicole by OPI line {the Kardashian's Nicole by OPI collection is at Walmart now}.
Skincare
My FAVORITE hand sanitizer of all time. Burt's Bee's is all about natural ingredients {they even carry the line at Whole Foods}, which I love. The witch hazel kills germs while the aloe soothes your skin, so you don't wind up with super dry hands {or that pungent alcohol smell!} like you do with many alcohol-based sanitizers . I don't always see this in stores, so I when I do come across it I buy several bottles at a time. Love, love, love!
I used body washes and shower gels almost exclusively in high school, college, and into my late twenties. I liked the smell of some bar soaps, but I couldn't stand the 'squeaky', moisture-stripped feeling of my skin after. Caress Beauty Bar offers both a yummy scent and moisturizing ingredients in bar form. Problem solved!
Dove Beauty Bar body soap
Same goes for Dove Beauty Bar soap, minus most of the fragrance. As you know from the commercials, Dove bars contain 1/4 moisturizer, and they're great for sensitive skin. I switch between using Dove and Caress in the shower.
Mmmm....smell that? That's Jergen's yummy, clean Cherry Almond scented lotion ~ it smells as good as it has for decades. I would probably use Jergen's Original Scent moisturizer for the scent of it alone, but luckily it's also a great, fairly lightweight body lotion.
I recently discovered these facial cleansing cloths {from parent company Yes to Carrots}, and I fell instantly in love. With other brands' no-water-needed face cloths, I feel like a residue is often left behind on my skin. With these, my makeup was removed in a few swipes and my skin felt truly clean. The line is 99% natural and they offer products for anti-aging {Yes to Blueberries}, dry skin {Yes to Carrots}, sensitive skin {Yes to Cucumbers}, and acne-prone skin {Yes to Tomatoes} , so there is literally something for everyone.
Haircare
I have tried several brands {who shall remain nameless} of dry shampoos, and though they work well, the higher end brands tend to be super pricey, especially considering how quickly you can go through this stuff. So I was so excited when I came across TreSemme's version. TreSemme promotes themselves as being just as good as salon brands without the hefty price tag. While I don't always agree that they are just as good, I cannot say enough good things about this product! I will never buy salon brand dry shampoo again ~ this TreSemme dry shampoo costs literally a few dollars, has lasted me months, and works just as well as the pricier brands. The scent is a little strong, but for these kind of savings, who cares?
And there you have it folks ~ a list of body, face, hair, and beauty products at great prices that also offer great results. Not only do they all get this beauty junkie's seal of approval, they're all in my bathroom, on my vanity table, or in my bag as we speak.
Enjoy, beauty queens!
xoxo
Bean
{photo credits: all photos are from cited companies}
No comments:
Post a Comment