Save or Splurge: Beauty Edition

Who doesn’t love saving a little money? The worry is if you are sacrificing quality for price, so I decided to put products to the test and share my thoughts! Beauty products can be particularly challenging because there are so many options out there. I hope this post helps you find something you love and saves you a little money along the way!

Mascara

I found both of these from friends on social media, The Sky High is a great drugstore option for mega volume and it doesn’t smudge or flake so a great budget option. That being said, this Chanel mascara is my favorite ever! It’s not high volume but it does elongate my lashes and I love the look. As for the Sky High my one qualm is that it does get lumpy near the end of the tube. Splurge wins this one but the save option is still a great buy!

Daily Sunscreen

We all know how important sunscreen is to keeping skin looking youthful. But it’s just as important that sun protection doesn’t come from harmful chemicals such as Oxybenzone, Oxybenzone (PABA), Anatase Titanium Dioxide, Octinoxate often found in sunscreens. Both of these options are free from those ingredients, non-greasy and provide significant protection. What I like about Kinlo is that it is Mineral Based but doesn’t have a whitecast. Supergoop has a mineral based sunscreen as well and the ingredients are very similar to it’s inexpensive counterpart. Their most popular sunscreen pictured about is great if you have oily skin because I feel it is more matte but for other skintypes I like the Kinlo!

Silk Pillow Case

I’ve owned both of these pillow sets & they are both great! However, the Slip set bares a brand name… so what is the difference? Nothing but the name on the tag. Both are made of real silk and serve the same purpose, less friction on your skin and hair. If you’re purchasing as a gift maybe go with the name brand but for me they are both great options!

Fragrance

I had to include Dossier because they offer incredible value on fragrances inspired by top selling designer perfumes. For example, Tom Ford’s ‘Tobacco Vanille’ retails for over $260 for a 1.7 oz bottle — Dossier’s ‘Oriental Tobacco’ has the same combination of Tobacco, Vanilla and Ginger at just $39 for the same 1.7 oz size. This is just one of many Dossier ‘dupes.’ The brand offers 80 copycat fragrances inspired by top selling designer fragrances from brands like Viktor&Rolf, YSL, Jo Malone and dozens more.

Razors

Both of these razors come with a handle and 2 refills. I’ve had each of these and both give an equally close shave in my opinion. Billie sports 5 blades rather than 3, I find that more blades makes the razor last longer between refills. Venus often adds shave gel bars to their razor heads as shown above, I don’t notice a difference from that and it can make a sticky mess in the shower if I’m not careful. What I do like about the Billie is the magnetic holder that keeps it on the wall dry and out of the way. For cleanliness I choose Billie! However, when Venus is on serious sale (this bundle is $3!) I can’t pass it up

Makeup Sponges

Beauty sponges are definitely an item you can save on in my opinion! The brand name Beauty Blender is great, but so is it’s Amazon counterpart and you can’t beat the savings. I also love that this Amazon set comes with 5 different sponges, so you don’t have to wash them after every use, and it comes with a stand to keep it off of the counter while it drys. Much more cleanly!

Primer vs Setting Spray

This choice is a no brainer. Smashbox’s primer peeled off the moment I added my foundation and I had to redo my whole look. I was so disappointed because I heard great things. I haven’t found any primers that I love however, I do love the Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray. It too is designed to help makeup last and it really does the trick!

Makeup Removing Balm

When I started using cleansing balms I fell in love immediately. The first I tried was the Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm. I adore the smell and it works wonders so I never felt like I needed to try another. For the sake of this post I picked up the Versed Cleansing Balm and was pleasantly surprised with how well it worked at removing my makeup! The main difference is after wiping my face free of the excess Elemis product I feel like I can go right to bed. The Versed Cleansing Balm left a bit of a waxy residue so I felt I needed to wash again and moisturize after using that balm. Both do work really well however but if you’re able to treat yourself, I would splurge!

What are your favorite beauty products? Do you have tried and true winners? Are there any items that you don’t feel are worth the price tag? Let me know in the comments below if you’d like me to help test alternatives and let you know if you should save or splurge!

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xoxo,

Kristy