Full Face Of Make Up For $20
I know I don't use much drug store make up as by the time I've come to writing a beauty blog I have been using more high end make up for a few months so I review what I have. Now I find a few people asking about drug store or more budget make up so I thought I would do a blog on a full face of make up for $20 to see how much I can actually get for my money. There are tons of brands I could use for this as I walked through Superdrug I saw how many brands I have been missing as I've been so focused on the higher end products! If buying the Sleek Box Of Tricks has taught me anything it is that the drug store brands are defiantly worth another shot and can be 100% as good as high end brands if not better. If I get comments underneath telling me brands you would like me to do this challenge with as well then let me know and I'll try to make it a monthly thing! 'Full face of make up' to me means; foundation, highlighter, mascara, liquid eyeliner, eye shadow palette and liquid lipstick as this is what I would class as a full face on me. I was going to add contour but as most palettes are at least $10 it would cut my budget in half.
To kick start this challenge I have wrote a list of brands I originally thought I would be able to get my full face for $20 but was quick to add up and realise some were over $40! I came to find three brands I could find everything and one I didn't realise doesn't actually do mascara and eyeliner. To kit start I decided to go for a brand I haven't used before as I thought it would be interesting to try something new and I have heard good things about them! MUA. I have heard loads of things about their Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer and I am a huge fan of liquid lipsticks so I decided to buy an extra one with the money I had change from the $20 budget. On their site it says 'We know that looking good is important and so is saving you money, which is why our products are of the highest standard but at a super low cost' which is exactly how I think it should be.
To start off with I brought the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in Natural Ivory (the lightest shade they offer) which cost $3.00 (on sale originally $4.00). Then I chose my mascara picking the Curl Mascara as I liked the look of the wand as the shape looked like it would be able to cover root to tip of my lashes which cost $2.00. It was hard to choose an eye shadow palette as they have so many but eventually I chose the Hall Of Fame as it has build-able shades and a couple of blues to make it more of a striking look which only costs $4.00. I only really use liquid eyeliner and I don't like the felt applicators when I'm doing my eyeliner so I chose the Matte Liquid Eyeliner in black which only costs $2.00. They have several shades of highlighter sold singularly but I brought the shade 'Iridescent' as I prefer a glow with not much colour which only costs $3.00. To finish off the look I brought the Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer as I have been dying to try them! the shade I got for the look is 'Symphonic' (blue with a purple undertone) as it will go with the eye shadow palette perfectly then as I had $3.00 extra I also brought the shade 'Lacquer Poise' (a purple grey) then a Luxe Whipped Velvet Lip Lacquer in the shade 'Majestic' (a deep red) as it was on sale for $1.50 instead of the usual $3.00.
In total without the two extra lipsticks it all cost $17.00 in total which is really good considering how much you get! Now to review the products and show a finishing look...
The first item I'll be reviewing is the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in the shade 'Natural Ivory' (the palest shade they have in this foundation). Squeezing a bit onto the back of my hand it looks a bit dark for my skin tone but I should be able to blend it out to make it look like my shade. As this has Vitamin E and Jojoba in it I expect it will be like Maybelline Better Skin but more light weight than the Maybelline one. It feels more like a tinted moisteriser than a light weight foundation and has a very nice natural glowing finish. It is like a very nice BB cream as it makes the skin feel very moisterised and soft, the skin feels breathable without having too much on but like a BB cream it doesn't give the best coverage so using a concealer would be a good idea. In the summer this will be perfect! or on holiday where you don't want to wear much heavy make up more natural. I do find that even though this is the lightest shade they offer in foundation it is a little orange (I struggle with this quite a lot) but adding a little of my usual moisteriser it does seem to work a little better with the orange tinge. Next time I will definitely be buying the other foundation they have, Skin Define Matte Perfection Foundation as it offers a lot better coverage so I won't have to use concealer over the top and it will be a lot more like the foundations I usually use every day.
Next products I used is the Hall Of Fame palette making a really simple eyeshadow look as the foundation isn't that heavy and I was only going out shopping that day. In the swatches, starting from the top, the first shade is 'Shy' (a matte shades the same as my skin tone) then 'Rose Ash' (A rose tone shimmer) , 'Bare' (a champagne shimmer colour), 'Catacomb' (a nude with pink under tone shimmer shade), 'Lion' (a gold shimmering shade), 'Chino' (a dusty purple shade with blue undertone), 'Reveal' (silver shimmer shade), 'Hustle' (a plum shimmer shade), 'Tectonite' (a grey purple shimmer shade), 'Cool Grey' (a dark blue with green undertone shimmer shade), 'Hydra' (a almost pastel blue shimmering shade) then last of all 'Titan' (a blue, black shimmering shade). Out of all of them my favourites have got to be the shades 'Rose Ash' for the inner corner of my eye and a dash under my eyebrow then 'Chino' for the crease, a dash of 'Hustle' in the outer corner of my to really make it pop then move into the centre of my eye where I blend with the Rose Ash shade. The formula is really rich and creamy! considering it costs $4 for the palette it is a total bargain! There is a little bit of fall out, but I used some loose powder under my eyes so it won't effect the foundation I've already put on.
Since my eyeshadow blended really well I moved onto using the Lift& Curl Mascara. The wand is a really nice shape to be able to cover all of my lashes completely from root to tip. You do have to wipe off the extra product from the top of the applicator where it collects but apart from that one dip is enough for both eyes to give a nice natural look. As I didn't want any getting on my lid I used one of my old college IDs to keep it from going on my lid until it dried. It looks nice and makes them look long and natural but doesn't really give a dramatic look unless you put on a few more layers that I only did a few hours after the final photo was taken. At the end of the day there was slight smudging on the bottom of my eye from the mascara but nothing really noticeable so it lasted the day really well. I do think it is really good as more of a every day mascara or the first step to building up lashes to almost fake looking ones as it separates the lashes really well only giving a thin coat.
I found the eyeliner quite hard to work with as I'm not used to how thick the tip of the felt liner applicator. I did practice on my hand before I did it on my eyes so I could get used to the applicator, but still found it hard when it came to getting it thinner towards the inner corner of my eye. I did find that it can smudge really easily so I went over it with a little bit of black eyeshadow just to try keep it in place before going over it again with the eyeliner again. The colour is very pigmented and dries really quickly (within five seconds) which does make it a little harder when it comes to messing up as you don't have time to correct it. Once it is on it is on though! It doesn't budge and is completely smudge proof! When it rains it does loose a little colour and you do get green lines from where the rain hits it. This would be a great summer eyeliner as it doesn't fade and doesn't smudge very easily.
The second to last step was of course my highlighter! This is almost a white shade but when you look in the light it has a really yellow and gold shimmer to it making you look sun kissed and your cheeks really pop. One swipe of the highlighter is enough to use on both cheeks and to give a really subtle look. It is build-able without looking like a chunk as blending it is easy with a nice fan brush (I use my Zoeva 129) and it even works really well in the inner corner of my eyes and under my eyebrows. For how cheap it is it is as good as the expensive ones! The Jeffree Star highlighters are only a little better than MUAs ones. They have other shades as well, but as I was looking for something subtle this is perfect and it blends really well with my skin tone which I have problems with some other shades. The picture doesn't do it justice with how much it shines in the light! It looks like you've got a mix of glitter and shimmer on you. This is defiantly something I will be buying again, I might try out the other shades as well as there is only around 6 shades mostly looking like shimmering blusher than highlighter in general.
To finish off my look I used the shade Poise (top swatch shade) as it is a really nice nude shade, but as it is quite dark for me it gives it a nice look with all the rest of the make up. Symphonic (middle swatch shade) is really good for a dramatic look, if I was to use it I would use the Jeffree Star Beauty Killers as there are some really nice purple tones which would look perfect with this shade or I would use the MUA palette with the purple and blue shades for a night out look. Majestic (the last swatch shade) isn't like the other two lipsticks as it isn't a matte shade, it doesn't dry down fully either so it is easy to smudge. Out of all three my favourite has to be Symphonic as it isn't like any other shade I already have which is rare for me as I have so many. It is nice to be able to have something to go for a more daring look with instead of always sticking to red lipsticks when I get ready to go out. As they are so inexpensive as well it is a really good brand to try different colours you wouldn't usually buy and they have so many as well so you have a good range to choose from. They passed the eating and drinking test, I do find that you have to top it up after eating something greasy as it degrades it in the middle and if you get the whipped velvet then I would recommend wearing a lip liner underneath just to help keep it in place for longer and remember as it doesn't dry down fully it will go on anything your lips touch.
The finished full face actually looked really nice and I was presently surprised. The eye shadow is really buttery and doesn't budge after you put it on. I didn't use any other products apart from the Kyliner in Black on my brows. The eyeliner was a little harder to use than when I tested it out before I did the entire face so they did go a little uneven but nothing a little make up remover on a cotton bud didn't fix. This was a much more simple look and if you want to see a full face going out look using this brand then let me know in the comments! I hope you liked the blog post and I'll let you know on my social medias when the next full face for $20 post will go up with the new brand!
To kick start this challenge I have wrote a list of brands I originally thought I would be able to get my full face for $20 but was quick to add up and realise some were over $40! I came to find three brands I could find everything and one I didn't realise doesn't actually do mascara and eyeliner. To kit start I decided to go for a brand I haven't used before as I thought it would be interesting to try something new and I have heard good things about them! MUA. I have heard loads of things about their Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer and I am a huge fan of liquid lipsticks so I decided to buy an extra one with the money I had change from the $20 budget. On their site it says 'We know that looking good is important and so is saving you money, which is why our products are of the highest standard but at a super low cost' which is exactly how I think it should be.
To start off with I brought the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in Natural Ivory (the lightest shade they offer) which cost $3.00 (on sale originally $4.00). Then I chose my mascara picking the Curl Mascara as I liked the look of the wand as the shape looked like it would be able to cover root to tip of my lashes which cost $2.00. It was hard to choose an eye shadow palette as they have so many but eventually I chose the Hall Of Fame as it has build-able shades and a couple of blues to make it more of a striking look which only costs $4.00. I only really use liquid eyeliner and I don't like the felt applicators when I'm doing my eyeliner so I chose the Matte Liquid Eyeliner in black which only costs $2.00. They have several shades of highlighter sold singularly but I brought the shade 'Iridescent' as I prefer a glow with not much colour which only costs $3.00. To finish off the look I brought the Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer as I have been dying to try them! the shade I got for the look is 'Symphonic' (blue with a purple undertone) as it will go with the eye shadow palette perfectly then as I had $3.00 extra I also brought the shade 'Lacquer Poise' (a purple grey) then a Luxe Whipped Velvet Lip Lacquer in the shade 'Majestic' (a deep red) as it was on sale for $1.50 instead of the usual $3.00.In total without the two extra lipsticks it all cost $17.00 in total which is really good considering how much you get! Now to review the products and show a finishing look...
The first item I'll be reviewing is the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in the shade 'Natural Ivory' (the palest shade they have in this foundation). Squeezing a bit onto the back of my hand it looks a bit dark for my skin tone but I should be able to blend it out to make it look like my shade. As this has Vitamin E and Jojoba in it I expect it will be like Maybelline Better Skin but more light weight than the Maybelline one. It feels more like a tinted moisteriser than a light weight foundation and has a very nice natural glowing finish. It is like a very nice BB cream as it makes the skin feel very moisterised and soft, the skin feels breathable without having too much on but like a BB cream it doesn't give the best coverage so using a concealer would be a good idea. In the summer this will be perfect! or on holiday where you don't want to wear much heavy make up more natural. I do find that even though this is the lightest shade they offer in foundation it is a little orange (I struggle with this quite a lot) but adding a little of my usual moisteriser it does seem to work a little better with the orange tinge. Next time I will definitely be buying the other foundation they have, Skin Define Matte Perfection Foundation as it offers a lot better coverage so I won't have to use concealer over the top and it will be a lot more like the foundations I usually use every day.
Next products I used is the Hall Of Fame palette making a really simple eyeshadow look as the foundation isn't that heavy and I was only going out shopping that day. In the swatches, starting from the top, the first shade is 'Shy' (a matte shades the same as my skin tone) then 'Rose Ash' (A rose tone shimmer) , 'Bare' (a champagne shimmer colour), 'Catacomb' (a nude with pink under tone shimmer shade), 'Lion' (a gold shimmering shade), 'Chino' (a dusty purple shade with blue undertone), 'Reveal' (silver shimmer shade), 'Hustle' (a plum shimmer shade), 'Tectonite' (a grey purple shimmer shade), 'Cool Grey' (a dark blue with green undertone shimmer shade), 'Hydra' (a almost pastel blue shimmering shade) then last of all 'Titan' (a blue, black shimmering shade). Out of all of them my favourites have got to be the shades 'Rose Ash' for the inner corner of my eye and a dash under my eyebrow then 'Chino' for the crease, a dash of 'Hustle' in the outer corner of my to really make it pop then move into the centre of my eye where I blend with the Rose Ash shade. The formula is really rich and creamy! considering it costs $4 for the palette it is a total bargain! There is a little bit of fall out, but I used some loose powder under my eyes so it won't effect the foundation I've already put on.
Since my eyeshadow blended really well I moved onto using the Lift& Curl Mascara. The wand is a really nice shape to be able to cover all of my lashes completely from root to tip. You do have to wipe off the extra product from the top of the applicator where it collects but apart from that one dip is enough for both eyes to give a nice natural look. As I didn't want any getting on my lid I used one of my old college IDs to keep it from going on my lid until it dried. It looks nice and makes them look long and natural but doesn't really give a dramatic look unless you put on a few more layers that I only did a few hours after the final photo was taken. At the end of the day there was slight smudging on the bottom of my eye from the mascara but nothing really noticeable so it lasted the day really well. I do think it is really good as more of a every day mascara or the first step to building up lashes to almost fake looking ones as it separates the lashes really well only giving a thin coat.
I found the eyeliner quite hard to work with as I'm not used to how thick the tip of the felt liner applicator. I did practice on my hand before I did it on my eyes so I could get used to the applicator, but still found it hard when it came to getting it thinner towards the inner corner of my eye. I did find that it can smudge really easily so I went over it with a little bit of black eyeshadow just to try keep it in place before going over it again with the eyeliner again. The colour is very pigmented and dries really quickly (within five seconds) which does make it a little harder when it comes to messing up as you don't have time to correct it. Once it is on it is on though! It doesn't budge and is completely smudge proof! When it rains it does loose a little colour and you do get green lines from where the rain hits it. This would be a great summer eyeliner as it doesn't fade and doesn't smudge very easily.
The second to last step was of course my highlighter! This is almost a white shade but when you look in the light it has a really yellow and gold shimmer to it making you look sun kissed and your cheeks really pop. One swipe of the highlighter is enough to use on both cheeks and to give a really subtle look. It is build-able without looking like a chunk as blending it is easy with a nice fan brush (I use my Zoeva 129) and it even works really well in the inner corner of my eyes and under my eyebrows. For how cheap it is it is as good as the expensive ones! The Jeffree Star highlighters are only a little better than MUAs ones. They have other shades as well, but as I was looking for something subtle this is perfect and it blends really well with my skin tone which I have problems with some other shades. The picture doesn't do it justice with how much it shines in the light! It looks like you've got a mix of glitter and shimmer on you. This is defiantly something I will be buying again, I might try out the other shades as well as there is only around 6 shades mostly looking like shimmering blusher than highlighter in general.
The finished full face actually looked really nice and I was presently surprised. The eye shadow is really buttery and doesn't budge after you put it on. I didn't use any other products apart from the Kyliner in Black on my brows. The eyeliner was a little harder to use than when I tested it out before I did the entire face so they did go a little uneven but nothing a little make up remover on a cotton bud didn't fix. This was a much more simple look and if you want to see a full face going out look using this brand then let me know in the comments! I hope you liked the blog post and I'll let you know on my social medias when the next full face for $20 post will go up with the new brand!
http://www.superdrug.com/brandshop/mua
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