Archived Post
Are there any types of beauty products you refuse to skimp on?
Hmm, good skincare is worth splurging on, but there are effective products at lower price points, too – but if what worked for my skin was $100, I wouldn’t compromise on it just to save money (I’d cut back elsewhere) unless I absolutely could not afford it, of course. I like natural hair brushes, and it is hard to get quality natural hair at a lower price point (the material just costs more), so I think I could safely say I wouldn’t skimp there. (If I wanted more affordable brushes, I would opt for synthetics.)
— Christine
I totally agree with Christine. Skin care is something I won’t skimp if I have used the product and it has proven to be effective then I will continue to purchase unless finances change. I have been contemplating trying a couple of products from The Ordinary and have heard good things but I am scared to change and find out they don’t work as well, since it may take awhile to recognize they aren’t working. Having said that I have decided to pick up a couple of products for my aging skin and test them sort of on one side. I should be able to tell relatively soon if I have the more expensive side to compare. I also know that a portion of the company was just sold to EL I think and that is of concern.
Simple answer is skin care only.
Skincare. Of course I do check the ingrdients to see if it is worth the price tag, but if it works, I will splurge.
Budget permitting, if I’m absolutely head over heels crazy for it, I won’t cut corners! Another thing I won’t skimp on is effective, anti-aging products. As in, I will continue to buy my Dr. Dennis Gross Ferulic Acid & Retinol Eye Serum and Ole Henrikson Truth Serum. Fragrance is something else I don’t generally skimp on either. While I may not be buying​ the most expensive ones, they aren’t cheap either!
There are so many good makeup and skincare products at a variety of price levels I honestly can’t think of something I feel I NEED to spend a lot on. (Don’t get me wrong, I still buy pricier things sometimes.)
Maybe fragrance? There aren’t a ton of super cheap fragrances that I love whereas I tend to appreciate the quality of higher end fragrances a lot more.
Not really, although there are so many good products at all price points that, increasingly, I realize it’s truly not necessary to spend $100 for a good face cream or eye cream (but that doesn’t stop me using my pricey Clarins eye cream!). I think the only product where I don’t “go cheap” is eye shadow primer. I keep hearing how good the WnW shadow primer is but I’ve never even sought it out. Oh yeah – facial sunscreen is the other thing where I don’t really look for a more affordable option – I’ve found those I like and while they’re a bit pricey, to me they are worth it.
Haircare, skincare, and good brushes (hair). Out of the three, I would rank skincare the most important. I’ve been a skincare freak since my teens and I credit good skincare to the good quality of my skin at age 50+ (despite bad genetics, medical conditions, and smoking). You can always “fix” your hair. You can always find a brush that will work. BUT once you lose the good quality of your skin, short of extraordinary measures (like injectables or surgery – neither of which I would ever do), you’re out of luck.
Totally agree, no one believes how old I am. I am a fanatic about skin care and it shows. I hope the golden years will be as kind to me as the first 50!
I can’t think of anything I wouldn’t skimp on IF the less expensive options were good quality and worked the way I wanted.
I usually end up not skimping on skin care, foundations, eyeshadow primers, and eyeshadow. Mid-range or high end usually end up working better for my skin tone (very fair with neutral undertones) and type (oily, including eyelids).
I won’t skimp on mascara, foundation, blush or highlighters. They make a major difference in how my face pulls together. Thankfully I can afford them now vs when my children were at home and they got all my money, lol.
I’ll splurge on sunscreen for my face. Most sunscreens or facial moisturizers with sunscreen burn my face (even changing the formula can cause a reaction). So far Supergoop has been my go to for the past year
I won’t skimp on sunscreen or anti-oxidant products and I won’t substitute a non-prescription retinoid for my prescription. I get a great deal of pleasure from my products and I would rather cut back in other areas of my life.
If I won the lottery and money was no object I wouldn’t skimp on a thing! Ive never tried high end skincare products so I don’t know what I’m missing out on. When I hear a price tag of $80 for drunk elephant whatever, I think “well I guess I won’t be buying that”. I have good eyeshadow like ABH, Too Faced, Urban Decay, Tarte and the like — but I’ll probably never be the proud owner of a Natasha Denona palette.
Everything! However if I can get what I consider excellent quality at a lower price or less prestigious brand, I’ll often go for that. There are some very low cost items I actually prefer, such as a couple of the NYX Butter lipsticks, L’Oréal Voluminous Carbon Black mascara, some of the classic NYX and WnW eyeshadows, Sephora sleeping masks, and plain water for skincare in the morning — can’t beat any of these in terms of quality or result. Yet some of my pricier HG items include my Ole Henriksen skincare, Nars lip pencils, eyeshadows and illuminators; Bobbi Brown; Becca; Estee Lauder; and of course fragrances.
Nothing I would refuse, that I can think of.
I’m definitely more wary of inexpensive foundations because they rarely have a good shade match and/or formula I prefer.
I also would drag my heels about buying inexpensive nail polish remover because the Zoya one is so nourishing and doesn’t dry out my already dry nails.
If the quality is there, I’ll purchase it. Skin care is hard to skimp on for certain things but easy for others with beauty brands like Mizon and Benton or The Ordinary.
I have no set rule in this regard. I have found gems at reasonable prices and crap that is overpriced. I am more interested in quality, on whether a product works for me and if it is a good value.
Sun Screen-I use Super Goop SS Oil which also doubles as a primer at times or their CC Cream and their hand cream. Also use Shiseido Ultimate Spray for face and body at times. And also love NIA 24 for non makeup days on my face and neck. Took me 10 years to get rid of the sun damage from my youth and won’t go a minute without sun screen or skimp and use drugstore brands as some of them break me out or don’t work or leave a white cast. Also I will not skimp on foundation, as with a painting the canvas must be good. I tried drugstore brands and they just don’t cut it. Right now I am hooked on Chanel Vitalumiere. As for anti-aging skin care, I make my own serums and eye creams, looking more for lift and firm over wrinkles and lines (I used retin a for that). So a good moisturizer must have peptides and products that helps produce collagen faster. They don’t come cheap. The older you get the more $$ the companies charge for skin care. Basically I refuse to pay super high prices for cleansers, I have normal skin, any cleansing oil that removes my makeup will do. I do my own acid peels. I buy pretty low priced facial masks, tried high end-they don’t do any more that the Sephora brand.
Skincare is absolutely vital, especially serums and really good daily moisturisers with a hefty SPF.
But when you comb through beautypaedia, you can find quite a few 5 star products that are inexpensive and easily obtained. That guides my purchasing and helps me to know what are the best products to look for when the sales are on.
Eye shadow palettes are another beauty item that I just refuse to buy from our equivalent of the DS. I only purchase the ones that rate really well here from Temptalia (in the shades I like, of course).
Perfume is another beauty item that I will splurge on (generally they are Christmas and Birthday requests) as I refer unique scents and don’t like a lot of the cheaper, celebrity scents that are out in the marketplace.
Concealer- I have never found a DS concealer that even comes close to my CdP & It Cosmetics Bye Bye undereye concealer
Foundation- I’ve tried cheaper foundations but for overall perfomance & ‘skin like’ finish I prefer CdP & for everyday It Cosmetics foundations
SPF- good quality spf in an elegant, easy to use form isn’t cheap (IMHO)
Eyeshadow. While I do have quite a few budget-friendly items, and I do really like them, I much prefer my higher-end ones. I find there’s often more depth/
dimension in the pricier brands, particularly NARS & Urban Decay. That said, I have yet to be swayed by “Luxury” brands…
Also, if I found a foundation that was a perfect match & formula, I don’t think I’d take price into consideration (provided it’s not *too* outrageous!). Until then, I’m okay with mixing, and tend to reach for my DS brands most often ( I have found them to match better than HE ones, believe it or not).
Eye shadow
there are simply no good ~*single powder eye shadows*~ in the drugstore. (yep, there are some great liquid and cream formulas – and some decent palettes – but i don’t buy palettes and i find liquid or cream eye shadows hard to blend haha.)
i live in Canada, so when you factor in shipping + convert to CAD, eye shadows from indie brands like MUG, Colourpop, Coloured Rained etc, come down to about the same price as ABH eye shadows & Make Up For Ever eye shadows, and are more expensive than Mac lol. plus Sephora brands (and Mac) offer you the ability to swatch them in person, get free samples from Sephora, return the product in-store if you change your mind about it – and because of all of this, i go for high-end (though not luxury) eye shadows every time. (: