Hiya! Welcome to my third blog post! My name is Stefanie, I’m a 23-year-old from Canada, and I’m a writer and journalism student.
This is one of the first (of many!) blog posts where I will discuss makeup and beauty products. I also plan to cover mental health, lifestyle topics, food and fitness, and my own personal experiences and life lessons.
This post is a continuation from the one I posted a few days ago which you can read here. I wanted to write about my favourite makeup products altogether but I found that it was way too long so I decided to separate them.
This article is all about my favourite drugstore makeup products. If you found my previous post was too boujee (as the kids like to say) for your lifestyle, then this one should be more relatable for you! I have more experience in drugstore products because I am very frugal (or so my mom tells me) and I always try to get the most bang for my buck.
I’ve been wearing makeup for about ten years now, but only got into it as a hobby over the past three or so years. The products I list are organized by when you apply them to your face, so they don’t go in order of preference.
For reference, I have light-medium skin with a neutral (olive in the summer) undertone and it is very dry all year round. All of the products in this post have worked for my skin and most are repeat purchases that I swear by.
Every item is hyperlinked in the name and will bring you to a page where you can purchase it. Most of the links lead to Wal-Mart Canada so I apologize if this is inconvenient for you.
I hope you enjoy this post and leave a like or comment (or both!) about any products you’d like to discuss, have questions about, or any tips/recommendations you can offer!!
Happy reading and happy shopping!
a. Primer (liquid)
After getting halfway through my first bottle of Primer Water (which I raved about here) and contemplating buying another one, I decided to research alternatives (because $$$). I found this ELF one and honestly…it’s pretty good. It’s not exactly a primer water, but it is a spray on face primer. I like spraying my face instead of having to use my hands to spread a cream. My only problem with the ELF one is that I have to do it before I apply any other product (especially liquid eyeliner) or it just smears everywhere because the spritz is so strong. But once it dries, it makes a pretty good base. This is also really great for dry skin. It may add a little too much moisture to oily skin, so you’d probably benefit from a pore filling primer if that’s your case. If you want to try a spray on primer (and I didn’t convince you to buy Primer Water in my last post) then I recommend starting off with this really cool product.
b. Primer (cream)
I approve of this primer. I bought it to go with the matching foundation (which I will rave about in just a bit) and I found that my skin loved this in every season: hot and sticky or cold and dry. It just glided over my face cream and provided a pretty good base for my foundation. I can’t really say if it made my makeup last any longer but I think it did what it intended to do. Again, the only reason I stopped using it is because I discovered spray primer and I’ll do anything to avoid touching my face and aggravating my dry and acne prone skin. I could see this working for any skin type-it just creates a perfect base for foundation. If you’re interested in a drugstore primer (because high end primers are crazy expensive) then definitely try this one.
c. Eyeshadow Primer
I have to say, this might actually be my all time favourite eyeshadow primer. I am on probably my 7thor 8thtube. The only downside is that it dries out and finishes a little quicker than I’d like. But for the price I can’t complain if I have to replace it three or four times a year. The application is amazing, it’s the best when it’s brand new and in the first few weeks of its life. It makes my eyeshadow last and it keeps my oily af eyelids under control. I actually first used this because I noticed that my eyeliner was transferring a lot. So most days I use this without eyeshadow and just as a way to dry out my eyelids and keep my liquid liner in place. It’s great and I will keep repurchasing forever. I trust this primer with my life. I’ve tried a few other drugstore eyelid primers now and none of them compare. You have to try this.
d. Liquid Eyeliner
When I say holy grail, I mean holy grail. If you wear liquid eyeliner and you have not tried this GO NOW. Actually don’t go yet. Wait until it goes on sale at Walmart for like $3. I’m frugal, can you tell? Anyways, I love this stuff. I’m on my third or fourth tube and I first tried it two summers ago. So, #1 it lasts forever, six months to be exact, and #2 it is worth repurchasing. The first time I tried it, I hated the tip of the applicator, and then after a while I got used to it and realized it actually makes drawing wings a breeze! I use liquid liner every single time I wear makeup. So the fact that I use this about five times a week and one tube lasts six months is amazing. I always had issues with my previous high end liquid liner smearing when my eyes watered (as I complained about in my post), but this one has rarely given me that issue. If you’re trying to get into liquid liner, this is perfect. And if you’re experienced, this is also perfect. It’s just really great.
e. Eyebrow Mascara
This is very good brow mascara. I haven’t used this in a few years because I’ve tried many other drugstore products, but I think it’s the best one I’ve tried so far. I first bought a tube of the shade Espresso, and after bleaching my hair a few summers ago I realized it was way too dark for my hair. So I moved down to the shade Brunette and it matched pretty well. The applicator is great and doesn’t give you those awkward, patchy clumps in your brows. It didn’t dry out for a long time and overall was a good product. I will eventually repurchase this if I don’t find another drugstore product that I like more. If you want more definition in your brows, you’ll likely have to follow with a powder but this is great on its own for natural brows. It is definitely worth a try.
f. Eyebrow Powder
I bought this a few months ago when I realized my Anastasia powder was getting old. I actually just googled a dupe for ABH because I wasn’t down to pay $30 again. And a good dupe it is. I find it literally identical in colour and texture to ABH. I haven’t touched the wax part because I like the lightness of powder but maybe one day I’ll try it. This is very basic but it does the job and it’s travel friendly so it's worth a try. Has anyone used the wax part in this?
g. Eyeshadow Palette
I was recently gifted this palette for my birthday and I immediately fell in love with it. The powders are pigmented but not powdery and the colour pay off is absolutely amazing. I have the palette called Must Have Metallics. The colours are absolutely gorgeous—gold and rose gold go so well with dark brown eyes. I love the colors because they are so shimmery, so if you’re into mattes then this isn’t the palette for you. I find that I can just swipe one shade across my lid and I’m good to go! No blending necessary so it’s a dream for a lazy girl. You do have to be light handed because of how pigmented they are but that’s not a downside at all. And the price is amazing too.
h. Foundation
This is very very very good stuff. I depend on this foundation to last me on long days and even on nights out. It can withstand anything. One of the main highlights of this is the fact that it’s transfer proof. That is 100% true. I’ve always had transfer issues with other foundations, but I could sneeze into a white t-shirt while wearing this foundation and not a speck would get on the shirt. It’s excellent for dry skin and I couldn’t see anyone with oily skin having issues with it either. The shade range is kind of lame but I think shade 200 Soft Beige is my match. The formula is the thickest I’ve ever used, but I’ve never had issues blending it out with a sponge. I think the thickness is what makes it transfer proof—the thin and runny foundations are the ones that just sit on my skin and come off onto anything. However, it is completely full coverage. So if you’re not into thick, full coverage foundations then you probably won’t like this. But I recommend this to anyone looking for a good drugstore foundation.
i. Concealer
I swear by this concealer. I’ve gone through over five tubes already and I will keep repurchasing it because I have not found anything that beats it. This concealer can cover my genetic dark circles from hell like they’re no match. It also covers redness like it’s nothing. I want to be buried with a tube of this concealer in my hand. The consistency is perfectly blendable and creates a smooth and flawless finish. However, I always have to set it with powder because it will crease in my under eye wrinkles. But that’s with any concealer. One tube lasts me over half a year, so it’s well worth the price (but never buy it full price, wait for it to go on sale for about $6). I recommend this concealer to anyone and everyone who needs a good, high coverage concealer. I’d also go so far as to say that it’s a complete dupe for the Nars concealer. Agree or disagree?
j. Setting Powder
If you read my last post, where I mentioned that there is a drug store dupe for the Laura Mercier setting powder, now is my time to share it. I’m on my second container and it lasts about a year. Which is crazy considering it’s only five dollars!! When it goes on sale, it’s about three dollars. I really did like the Laura Mercier powder but it’s pricey considering the fact that I bake my under eyes and end up wiping off the excess powder. Watching the powder (and my money) dissipate before my eyes made me very sad. So I switched to this drugstore powder and haven’t looked back.This stuff is so good and it has been my key to every single makeup look I’ve done in the past two years. I use this every time I do a full face of makeup and it has NEVER let me down. It’s great for baking, but like any powder it does dry out my under eyes and accentuate my wrinkles, however that’s my own personal problem and not the product’s fault. I wouldn’t recommend using this on your entire face if you have dry skin, but it would probably work great for soaking up moisture and adding a matte finish to oily skin. Everyone who wears setting powder needs to try this and see how it changes your life too.
k. Mascara
I must admit, Maybelline makes some really good mascaras. This is no exception. I was introduced to this product by Zoella, who repeatedly raved about it in her product reviews and makeup tutorials. For some reason, I didn’t think I’d like this because the curved brush head turned me off. I’ve always gone for thick, straight wands (hence why the Too Faced Better Than Sex was my fave mascara in my last post). I finally grabbed this while it was on sale and from the first time I used it I fell in love. I will also mention that drugstore mascaras are the one category where I have A LOT of experience, so the fact that this is #1 says a lot for me. I’m on my third or fourth tube and I will not stop purchasing it. This mascara is excellent for both length and volume (I find you have to wiggle it a lot at the base of your lashes to add maximum volume, but the extra effort is worth it). It did not make my lashes clumpy no matter how hard I’ve tried, and separates each lash better than anything I’ve tried. The formula is perfect and doesn’t dry out for months. I’m on month six with my current tube and it’s just starting to die (just in time because I only give my mascaras half a year of life before I chuck them!). If you have not tried this mascara, you have to now.
l. Bronzer
I was recently gifted this bronzer in a gift set last Christmas and although I’m not a “bronzed goddess”, I had to try it out and I really like it! I actually replaced this for the Hoola bronzer that I was using (I only stopped because it got old, nothing was wrong with it at all). The container is great, the formula is amazing, and it’s not a powdery mess at all. I only use this on nights out or when I have time to do my makeup (because I suck at putting on bronzer and need an extra hour just to buff it out). I will continue to use this until it finishes or gets old (probably the latter). If you’re looking for a cheap drugstore bronzer, I’d suggest this one.
m. Highlighter
I’m on the fence about whether Pixi is a drugstore brand, especially considering the high-ish price of this product, but I’m going to consider it because you can only purchase it from drugstores in Canada. I was gifted this highlighter/blush combination last year and I really like it! I completely ignore the fact that the red section is supposed to be used as blush and the orange shade is highlighter. To be honest, I just swirl my brush in both colours and apply it as a highlighter! And it looks amazing every time. Very subtle but still noticeable, it gives the “I put highlighter on my cheekbones but I didn’t drown myself in powder” look. It’s very classy and pretty. This blush/highlighter is part of a kit set that I have which you can check out here. I don’t have a lot of experience with drug store highlighter because this is the one product that I’d prefer to use high end (aka Becca which I gushed about here). But this two in one set is worth a try!
n. Setting Spray
This stuff is very popular in the beauty community for a reason. It’s really good. I’m on my second bottle and I absolutely love it. It’s marketed on the NYX website for $10 but I know in my local drugstore it retails at about $8 when it’s on sale. I’m not a huge fan of the dewy foundation look which is why I chose the matte spray, and it works even on my dry skin! I just have to be careful to not overspray on the dry areas of my face. This is marketed towards people with oily skin to help mattify it, but I’d say it works for any skin type if you’re looking for a matte look. This is super cheap and I feel like I can go crazy with spritzes and not feel guilty about wasting money every time I spray it (as I mentioned in my post about the All Nighter spray). This is definitely worth a try and I will continue using this forever.
Notable mention: I spent quite a while debating which setting spray to choose as my favourite. I still wanted to mention the Pixi Makeup Fixing Mist. Once again, it is a little pricey to be considered drugstore, but it’s really really good. I finished my bottle a while ago but I still think about it and I will repurchase it one day. The one thing I looooved about this spray is that it actually melts all your makeup so you get a seamless finish. So if this fits in your budget, then it is 100000% worth a try.
o. Lipstick
As I mentioned in my last post, I never wear lipstick. But of course, I’ve tried so many just to find something that suits my thin lips, mostly cheap drugstore lipsticks that I could throw away if they didn’t work. The one lipstick that I swear by (and will wear daily once I get the courage and $$$ to get my lips plumped a bit) is Maybelline Superstay. I bought this in the shade Pioneer which is a dark, blue toned red. It’s a gorgeous colour and compliments my olive skin really well. The best part about this lipstick is the fact that it is waterproof AF. I’m convinced this could withstand absolutely anything. The first time I wore it, I put it on and spent about 20 minutes taking various (embarrassing) selfies. After I was done, I went to take it off and….I couldn’t. You know how normally with lipstick, you just take a tissue and with one wipe it’s gone? Not with this guy. The lipstick would not budge. It was stained onto my lips. But that’s not a bad thing! I had to put makeup remover on a cotton pad to take this off, and thankfully that worked like a charm. So this is definitely waterproof, food proof, and kiss proof. It’s very good and the shades are really pretty. Of course, it’s super matte, so if you a) like a shiny lip gloss finish or b) have dry lips, then this may not be for you. But it’s so worth a try if you want a darn good matte lipstick.
Bonus Round #2
Once again, if you read my last post, then you saw that I did a bonus round of products. That is because you may have noticed that I did not mention a blush product in this post (disregarding the Pixi highlighter/blush combo). I don’t wear blush because I’m weird. But actually it's because my skin naturally flushes so I really don’t feel I need extra pinkness. Instead of blush, I’d like to recommend two more drugstore products that I really enjoy.
There is a lot of debate over these sponges, and I am personally on the support side. I LOVE these sponges. They are amazing, and I will even go so far as to say that I like them better than the name brand blenders. Do you agree or disagree? I find that they need a long soak in warm water to give the best effect, but that’s just a little tip and not a downside. I use the flat side for blending my under eye concealer and the pointy part for blending the foundation on my face. They’re just perfect. Definitely worth a try if you want a drugstore version and the price difference between these ($13 for two) and name brand ($26 for one) is insane. I actually linked to these sponges on Amazon Canada because they’re about $2 cheaper than what Wal-Mart retails them for. Do you love these sponges too?
I am manically laughing to myself as I write this. I cannot believe I’m advertising a perfume that is over five years old and was made by a boy band. But oh my gosh it smells so good. I originally bought this when it first came out in 2013 and I was still a hardcore directioner. I loved the smell and was sad when it finished but I didn’t repurchase. (It was about $50 for the small bottle back then). A couple of months ago, I was walking around my local drugstore (Shoppers Drug Mart for the Canadians reading this) and I walked past the discount perfume shelf. For the past few years, I’ve always checked that shelf to see if the One Direction perfume was on there because I know it’s not really on the market anymore. Lo and behold, I found the perfume!! And guess what? It was $19.99 for the 3.4 ounce bottle. Which is absolutely crazy. I provided a link to this on Amazon Canada but even that retails at about $37 when I only paid $20. Anyways, this perfume is very pretty smelling and has a flowery smell but is also really sweet. The scent doesn’t last long on my body but it’s not at all over powering and I just love it. If you ever find it for a sweet deal like I did, then I completely recommend that you pick it up. I had a co-worker ask me a few weeks ago what perfume I was wearing and I started cackling because I had to tell her it was One Direction (she was expecting me to say something fancy like Marc Jacobs). This is good stuff.
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This concludes the end of another very lengthy blog post. If you can’t tell, I am very passionate about all things makeup.
I hope you enjoyed reading this and will follow me for more content. I also hope you’re considering trying some of the items I shared in this or my last post!
If you’ve tried some of the things that I mentioned, did you like them as much as I did? Anything you disagree about? Any tips you have to offer about specific products? Or just questions about an item in general!
I’d love to hear from other members of the beauty community. I could talk about makeup forever.
Thank you for reading and have a lovely day☺
