After attending the #LiveBloggers event and talking about our best budget and high end buys I started thinking, rather than looking at which brands, on the whole, offer good budget and luxury products — what do I think is worth spending my money on?
For me, anything more than £15 is considered a luxury product and anything over £10 has me pause and think about whether or not I really need it and has me online checking blog reviews and looking for a cheaper price!
I definitely consider myself a bargain hunter and I love 3 for 2 deals, QVC and of course sales and Christmas box sets because they offer the best value for money and usually the chance to try out products that I wouldn't necessarily consider buying other wise.
Skin care
I’m also going to chuck makeup primer in under this category as sometimes they actually offer skin care benefits and for that reason I would be willing to pay more for a good primer that will help my makeup stay in place all day, as well as improve my overall skin condition.
Body washes and moisturisers
I always go for cheap and cheerful with these. I have been fortunate enough to try samples of more expensive brands but they haven't done anything remarkable that has made me feel the need to repurchase. I would love to try a shower wash and lotion combination that leaves my skin scented but usually the scent stays in my bathroom.
Nail polish
I have tried brands like OPI, Ciate, Nails Inc and frankly have been disappointed, so my go to nail polish brands are Barry M and Rimmel. They have great formulations, dry quickly, a good colour range and stay chip free longer than the aforementioned brands! I would be willing to spend money on a decent base and/or top coat especially if it makes my manicure last longer.
Foundation
My Bella Pierre mineral foundation costs £35, which is a lot but it lasts me a year and, other than the occasional dip into BB cream, I don't use anything else. So if you are someone who likes to break things down into costs per wear, it works out at 10p per day! I happened to get really lucky in TK Maxx recently and found a kit containing my exact shade for £30!
I took quite a jump from purchasing high street foundations, which were around £10, to the mineral foundation I now use but considering that a regular foundation needs to be replaced every 3-6 months for hygiene reasons, overall the annual spend is the same and my skin feels and more importantly looks better for it.
I took quite a jump from purchasing high street foundations, which were around £10, to the mineral foundation I now use but considering that a regular foundation needs to be replaced every 3-6 months for hygiene reasons, overall the annual spend is the same and my skin feels and more importantly looks better for it.
Lip products
I can't bring myself to spend a lot of money on any type of lip products. I don't use them enough for a start and I am not sure what benefit a £20 lipstick has over a £5 one?
Blush/bronzers
With brands like Sleek offering a good selection of blushes for less than £5, I don't see the need to spend any more than that. I do own a few Benefit blushes, and although I love them, I do think they are pricey. My all time favourite bronzer is actually from VIVO at Tesco.
Eye makeup
As for mascara, so often I end up with them as freebies from multi-buy offers or in value sets that I haven't yet needed to buy one, so I don't really feel that I can comment.
The one thing I would pay almost any price for is an eyeliner pencil that will last in my waterline all day, but I am yet to find it!
Hair care
I want to do a separate post about my hair care, but in general I do not spend a lot of money. With shampoo and conditioner I tend to opt for whatever is on offer or I head to the £1 shop. I am willing to spend more on a curly hair styling products (that is anything between £6-£9). The exception to this is argan oil, but I have been able to find this cheaply from small Moroccan stores in London.
Feel free to treat this as a tag (especially my fellow #LiveBloggers!) or respond in the comments below, I'd love to know, what will you, and won't you, spend your money on?
ooOoOoO I see LIERAC what did u think of it??? :)
ReplyDeleteI liked using it, but not too sure if I saw any real differences so I am a bit on the fence with it! x
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I have recently been introduced to antipodes and have been totally sold on every product - made another order last night!! I totally recommend a spurge on the day and night moisturisers from them - my skin has never been better!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the tip, will def check them out :-) x
ReplyDeleteGreat post here! Its fab, I love that the event got you thinking, I often think these things too! I think I am a 50/50 person in that, there are some things I think are only worth spending high end money on and one of them is foundations, I have yet to found a drugstore foundation I really like. In terms of other makeup, lipsticks and mascara, I think drugstore are just fine and I will not spend a lot money on them, not when there are really good drugstore lippies and mascaras to be found and esp when you have to throw your mascara away after 3 months or so. For eye shadows, I agree palettes (esp Sleek) are good value for money if you are going to use most of the colours, but I also like single shadows and I will pay high end prices for something really lovely. Blush I can take a good drugstore palette and be really happy with it - like Sleek or Kiko but just as easily I can spend a lot on a high end one - so there I am 50/50. I could go on and on.....but I think you get my drift! LOL!
ReplyDeleteI think this is a brilliant topic and more ladies should think about what they spend their money on and why they are spending it on that in particular (or not as the case maybe). I am also a firm believer in "trying it before you knock it" - some people are snobby about certain brands and products and dont even give them a try - that for me is daft!
All the best my lovely
Grace xx
great idea for a post! Skincare is worth the higher price tag for sure, as long as you've found something that works for you! :)
ReplyDeleteHello.
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear #LiveBloggers got you thinking. I suppose that was the idea.
I agree that paying more for the skincare is worth it. It doesn’t always mean the most expensive is the best. As you can see with my blog, I tend to write about mainly premium brands, be it beauty or fashion. Even if initially products seam more pricey, I often find I get better wear from them.
In general premium brands have a higher percentage of active ingredients in their face care. That’s why you can see better results. Very often there has been more research going into the product development and so on...
When it comes to body washes I have to agree and disagree at the same time. I don’t like artificial smells which is the case with most cheep body washes, but after looking around you can certainly find something decent for a good price. I do love to treat myself to a good shower gel based on natural extracts for example. L’Occitane or Clarins. I suppose I don’t expect my body to fragrant from it, for me it’s about enjoying the moment. I love when my body wash smells nice, it wakes me up and puts me in a good mood.
There are many very good nail vanishes that are inexpensive, although I got totally hooked on Essie, and since they now have a nice thick brush, I only use these. However, I don’t tend to buy many, I will only have a couple of shades for the season. I feel that sometimes when we buy cheep we often end up spending more. We buy quantity not quality and very often half of the products sit in the drawer not being used at all.
When it comes to foundation I’m absolutely with you on this one. I only buy premium brands.
Lipstick is a funny one. I shall quote what I said in one of my posts. “lipstick is a lipstick”. There are not many differences really except for packaging. So if you paying £20, your paying for the overall poly-sensorial experience. The look and feel of it in your hands and this is how this makes you feel. Some people care about things like that other don’t. I do :)
For me, haircare is very important and I’m happy to pay more for it. Most brands give me an irritated scalp - but if you analyze what’s in it that's not surprising anymore- this was the reason for me to reach for salon brands. Don’t get me wrong, these aren’t always perfect. I’d even dare to say it can be a real pain to find a shampoo and conditioner that is going to really work for you in every way, but personally I’ve had more luck with salon brands than the average shampoo from the drug store.
Last but not least, eye shadows. You are right here that there are many cheap brands that will offer a great result and you don’t have to pay a lot of money to get fantastic result with your eye shadows. Personally I don’t like pallets, but that’s just me. I simply end up using only one shade and never touch the rest unless it’s a Necked pallet from Urban Decay.
Best,
Eva