Drugstore Finds: Brows, Eye Liners, Mascaras

This is reader feedback in action — a number of you wanted to know more about drugstore beauty products. My days of cruisin’ the drugstore aisle are definitely less than used to be for several reasons, but I’ll try to step up my game in this aspect to give you all better coverage as I can. To get you started, here are some Temptalia tried and true drugstore beauty standbys.

Almay Eye Makeup Remover Pads ($4.99) make quick work out of bold eye makeup. I used to use these to remove stubborn or heavy eye makeup–especially waterproof products, mascaras, and liner.

Ardell Brow Shaping Kit ($3.99) has a decent selection of powders designed for filling in brows. I tend to use powders to fill in my brows over pencils, liquid, or creams. I find it looks a little more natural with the powder (and a brush).

Ardell Sculpting Gel ($4.09) will help keep unruly brows well-tamed and in-place throughout the day. I find you need to use just a tiny lil’ bit, and then run it through your brows with a clean mascara wand. Too much product and your brows will feel (and look!) crunchy.

Revlon Fantasy Lengths False Eyelashes ($5.49) offers really fun and fancy false eyelashes. I have a few pairs, though I seldomly wear false eyelashes, just because they’re so pretty. I always love the ones with the crystals at the tips. If you’re a frequent falsie wearer, you might want to consider going drugstore to save yourself a bit of cash!

See four beauty bargain buys more…

CoverGirl Outlast Smoothwear ($6.29) is really creamy and smooth, which is a huge thing for me with eye liner. I hate when an eyeliner is hard or rough, especially since I’m using it on my eye area, so I don’t want to have to do a lot of tugging! I wish there were more colors, though.

Eco Tools Eye Liner Brush ($3.99) has synthetic Taklon bristles with a bamboo handle. This brush is part of Eco Tool’s cruelty-free brush line. I find that they’re pretty good for drugstore brushes, and the price is hard to beat.

Wet ‘n Wild H2O ($3.99) is a thick, opaque liquid liner. When I first started out with liquid liner, I bought a Wet ‘n Wild liquid liner in a teal color. I think I tossed it out last year, but it was fabulous in color, texture, and feel. I’d say the only issue was sometimes it felt a little thin, and the brush isn’t super easy to work with–but most liquid liner brushes aren’t (hello, MAC liquidlast?).

L’Oreal HIP Bright Duos ($7.00) is an easy way to get decent color for less. You get two coordinating shades of eyeshadows in a pot. I’ve found that a lot of HIP duos have decent pigmentation, though sometimes you’ll find one or two that are a bit on the chalky side.