Hey, Cats! If you're new to makeup and looking to start a collection, the beauty isle can be WAY intimidating! I'm here to show you some of my favorite beauty items that work fabulously for me, won't break the bank, and weren't tested on animals. Sound good? Let's dive right in!
Primer - I don't actually own a primer, i only have a sample bottle of the $40 Paul and Joe one that came in my Fall Marcia Box! Obviously that isn't very affordable, but I have heard KathleenLights on YouTube rave about the NYX Angel Veil Primer, and Ive heard good things about e.l.f.'s $6 primers as well. If you're a beginner to makeup you can skip this step, or you can do what I do: simply apply a lightweight moisturizer to your face! I love the Udderly Smooth Hand Cream for this because it's water based and doesn't clog my pores, plus it feels fabulous on my dry skin. Primers fill in your pores and smooth out your skin, like prepping a canvas with a base coat. This will help your makeup last all day and apply easily and evenly!
Foundation - Depending on what kind of coverage you want, there are a lot of options for foundation. The point of foundation in my opinion isn't to cover every imperfection, (we're all human), but to even out your skin and provide a great base for blush, bronzer and all that jazz! For light coverage, a BB Cream is a great lightweight option. The only cruelty free BB Cream i have currently is by WetNWild, and though I love the brand, this specific product didn't work great for me. It had great coverage and looked beautiful on the skin, but felt sticky to the touch and I didn't have a powder to set it with at the time. Try the Sonia Kashuk BB Cream (Simply_Kenna used this and her skin always looks healthy), a little more coverage, try the Physicians Formula Youthful Wear Spotless Foundation (I have heard incredible reviews about this and would have purchased it had it not been sold out at my Ulta!) This beauty will brighten your completion, provides SPF and excellent coverage that looks and feels natural. Sweet!
Concealer - I can't believe I forgot concealer when I originally wrote this post!! I absolutely adore my e.l.f.'s HD Lifting Concealer, it gives me a natural looking medium coverage without looking cakey, and works wonderfully at covering my dark circles as well as acting as an eye primer. Two in one? Fabulous! However, this Concealer doesn't come in very many shades, so for the very fair or really anyone with skin deeper than a tan, I have heard excellent things about the NYX and L.A. Girl concealers, and I've seen that they have a lot more shades to choose from!
Powder - I love my Physicians Formula Talc-Free Mineral Wear Loose Powder (what a mouthful!). The packaging is kind of weird and I wouldn't recommend the brush that comes with it (too small and too rough bristles, but kudos to them for trying), but the powder itself is lovely. It amazes me how it can give a little bit of coverage since it's a translucent powder, so on days where I'm just going to school or don't feel like putting a ton of product on, I just dust this all over and it just evens out my skin while still looking super natural, and it mattifies (I am most definitely spelling that wrong) the face while still leaving your complexion looking healthy and glowy.
Blusher - For a beginner in blush, I highly recommend you try out e.l.f.'s baked blushes. These gems of the drugstore can be used wet or dry (that's right, you can intensify the color by adding a little bit of water!) to give the skin a healthy glow and beautiful flush of color. e.l.f.'s blush palettes are also wonderful, I have the ilikeweylie Bunny Blush Palette and I loveeee this formula. The blushes are very blendable, and somehow give the skin a bit of a glow or sheen without a bunch of glitter.
Bronzer/Contour - Bronzing and contouring are not the same thing and can be easily confused. Bronzer is used to warm the skin and are usually more warm toned, while contour is more precise and used to shape and sculpt the face; these are usually cool toned to mimic natural shadow. Great bronzing and contouring powders can be found in e.l.f.'s fabulous little face palettes. There are also cream options if you feel like experimenting with different formulas!
Highlighter - This step is neccisary if you want to GLOW, girl (or guy or anyone in between! Makeup is rated E for Everyone <3 ) ! My favorite drugstore highlighter is the Wet N Wild Mega Glo Illuminating Palette in the shade 320 "Catwalk Pink". This gorgeous palette has 4 incredible, shimmering shades to choose from: a light champagne gold, a pale pink, a rich pink that reminds me of a grapefruit, and a deep, bronzey gold; there's something for everyone in here. Yes, please! You can also mix these babies to make your own custom shade!
Eye Primer - That's right, we gotta prime those eyes, too! One of my favorite eye primers is the e.l.f. Shadow Lock primer. This darling keeps my eyeshadow in place all day with absolutely no creasing, and makes the colors super bright and intense. You can also use concealer if you want, but I advise always setting the base you put on your eye with a nude shadow for easy blending. Sometimes your primer is just too sticky and will make blending a little difficult if you don't set it.
Eyeshadow - One of my faaaaavorite steps! My favorite drugstore eyeshadows are from Wet N Wild. WNW's "Comfort Zone" palette is a staple for me, these eyeshadows are the softest things I've ever felt, soooo damn smooth, and oh, my goodness are they creamy!! You don't even need to wet your brush before dipping into these shimmery jewels, they glide onto the lid with intense pigment and blend like a dreammmmmm. This palette comes with all your neutral neccecities with a few fun pops of colors as well! If you're in the mood for some mattes, though, I've seen beauty gurus use e.l.f.'s Mad for Mattes palette In tutorials to make some really gorgeous looks. I also FLIPPIN' LOVE L.A. Colors' 18 Color Glam Eye Palettes. For $2 a pop, you really can't beat these babies. I love DownTown Brown as the perfect every day palette, it's got some beautiful, warm, matte transition shades, and beautiful shimmers ranging from taupe to a pale pink and a lovely gold. These are super soft and very easy to work with, but there is a little fallout so I recommend doing your eyes first. I also have the Diva Glam palette, full of awesome pink shades, and the Shady Lady palette has some absolutely stunning blue shades in it (the quality is real, trust me!!). This is definitely one of my favorite drugstore finds!
Eyeliner - there are a TON of eyeliner options. For liquid, Wet N Wild's MegaLiner Liquid Eyeliner is really good and only $2-$3, depending on where you shop. They make this heavenly matte liner formula in black, blue, and even an electric purple! The brush is thin, flexible, and very easy to use and one of my top favorite eyeliners, period! My sister uses NYX's Collection Noir liquid liner, and the brush is soooo tiny that she makes a mesmerizingly perfect wing every time (I really want to get my paws on this!!) Another must have is e.l.f.'s Intense Ink Eyeliner, a simple and chic pen lined with a super precise tip for the perfect cat eye! Another option is NYX's Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk. This universal stick eyeliner can be used as an eyeshadow base, but I find that it creases so I use it in my waterline instead. It also works wonderfully to brighten the inner corners and highlight the browbone. You can even use this pencil on the lips for lip art, hell yeah!
Brows - I've tried brow products from Anastasia and Smashbox, and hands DOWN, my FAAAAVORITE brow product is e.l.f.'s Instant Lift Brow Pencil. The pencil is soft enough for easy application, yet firm enough to remain natural and it won't break if you apply pressure. The spoolie is pretty big, but the soft bristles brush brow hairs perfectly without being too rough and hurting the skin around your brows. I cannot recommend this one enough!
Lip Balm - Yep, you gotta prime your lips as well! I used to love eos, but they test on animals! :,( Luckily, I discovered Palmer's Flip Balm, which has an even cooler design! These things are nearly impossible to loose coz they're so big, and they're super duper velvety and soft on the lips, they feel like butter! Not to mention they smell good enough to eat, and are also vegan!
Lipstick - There's a ton of different types of lip products on the market, but there are 3 formulas that I keep coming back to. My first lipstick was Palladio's Herbal Lipstick in Smokey Rose, and it's still my all time favorite! The packaging feels so high end, and the lipstick itself smells like Vanilla! I adore the smooth formula, it's so insanely pigmented that I prefer just to tap it on instead of smearing it. I also ADOOOORE Wet N Wild's Silk Finish lipsticks. These babies are soooo silky, as the name suggests! I don't even have to put lip balm under these because they're so moisturizing. They honestly remind me of a highly pigmented Chapstick! For liquid lipsticks, my favorite are NYX's Soft Matte Lip Creams. I prefer this plush, comfortable formula to Kat Von D's everlasting lipsticks (which are good as well, but in a different way. But this is supposed to be an affordable product list!!). Soooo good!!!
Lip liner - My favorite lip liners are Palladio's eye and lip pencils. These lovelies are soft and creamy, non irritating, and incredibly long lasting! Whether on the waterline or on the lips, you'll really have to use some elbow grease to remove these! Love love love
Mascara - Woah, I almost forgot Mascara!! My two favorite drugstore mascaras are as follows: e.l.f.'s Mineral Infused Mascara (length length length is provided by this natural mascara) and NYX's Propel My Eyes (great volume as well as some length from this mascara with oomph). I've also been dying to try Jordana's Best Lash Mascara (this lovely product gives Lauren Curtis HUGE, voluminous lashes that makes it seem like she's wearing falsies!).
Setting Spray - This step is optional, but if you want your makeup to last AAAAALL day with few touch ups, Setting Spray will be your best friend! I don't have one (yet!) though, but I've heard really great reviews of the Wet N Wild's Photofocus Setting Spray! It's only $5, which I think is worth trying!
Brushes - When it comes to brushes, BH Cosmetics makes the softest, prettiest brushes!!! I use their Studded Cotour set every single day, but unfortunately you can only find BH online. For great brushes in stores, e.l.f. has some incredible brushes ranging from $1-$6 usually. Amazing, am I right?? Their studio brushes are simply fabulous! I also highly recommend Real Techniques, these brushes look and feel super luxurious, and I love their design. The Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge is I N C R E D I B L E, let me tell you. This thing is super squishy and soft and gives an airbrushed, flawless finish and easy foundation application. I love to use it wet because it increases in size and is even easier to work with, but it's still wonderful if used dry in case you're on the go.
Other Tools - e.l.f.'s $1 Eyelash Curler is incredible, it works so well that I can't believe how affordable it is! Shaaanxo also talks very highly of their tweezers, and I LOVE their pack of two excellent pencil sharpeners (great for pencil eyeliners or lip liners!) for just a dollar! The bigger of the two sharpeners even comes with a small plastic stick to help dislodge product, so helpful.
Alright, beauty lovers, I hope this super long post was helpful! I wish you the best of luck, and hope you have fun experimenting with different looks and styles! Remember to have FUN with it, and don't use it as a mask-- you are beautiful and perfect just the way you are. <3
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