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To someone visiting the U.S., what brands/products would you recommend?
To someone visiting the U.S., what brands/products would you recommend? Several traveling Temptalia readers are dying to know what they should be saving up for on their trips to the states! For our non-U.S. readers, I’d love to hear you share your recommendations for your country’s products!
Chanel quads (since they’re a different version!), Urban Decay, OCC, Inglot, MAC (it’s practically a steal compared to the international mark up!), Hourglass. Go to Sephora!
Thanks to Marta for today’s question! Got a question idea? Submit yours here.
Definitely Urban Decay!!! Love all of it!!!
Absolutely!!! Their great liquid eyeliners!
Wet n Wild. Amazing drugstore brand!
I live in Mexico, whenever i come to the US, i buy a little UD, Stila, TooFaced, Tarte but also WnW & Milani and essie because those are the brands I can’t find here.
If they are on a small budget: ELF, Jordana, Wet N Wild, LA Colors (only some items though), Nyx
Medium budget: Physician’s Formula, Bourjois, The Balm
Big budget: UD and Inglot (Unless they’re Malaysians, as they’re available here at the same/ cheaper rate after conversion) MAC, Benefit, Stila
I don’t totally agree with you about Bourjeois. In France, Bourjeois is cheaper than in anywhere, because it’s a french brand (i think)
For cheap stuff I would say:
NYX (eyeshadows, lipsticks, blush)
Wet n’Wild Eyeshadow trios and eyeshadow palettes (the 8 pan ones)
More expensive items:
Urban Decay (eyeliners, eyeshadow palettes, lip products)
OCC (lip tars)
Buxom Big and Healthy Lip Sticks
Just butting in – I found NYX at a beauty store chain in Prague but I’m not sure how widely available it is in Europe. It was more expensive than in the U.S., though.
NYX was supposed to launch in Germany maybe about half a year ago and was planned to be insanely expensive. Also American websites(e.g. cherryculture) werent allowed to ship NYX products to Germany anymore. Luckily, a lot of bloggers and costumers started to write complaints about that and now it launched later. The prices are still higher than in the US but they are definitely more reasonable than NXY had planned before. Therefore i would recommend buying NYX in the US if you can.
Yeah I’d say go to Sephora, that’s pretty much where they will find the most things they can’t get in their country. I’d also suggest they stock up as it seems like some countries have insane markups.
I was so excited to find Essie in Europe until I realized that it converted to 17 USD a bottle. OPI comes out to be about the same price :/
I’d recommend the entire Sephora! JK JK. But I’d say go to drugstore mascaras because mascaras in overseas countries are PRICEY!! Like $24 pricey. I’d also recommend the Laura Mercier tinted moisturiser because I know it retails for $90 in Singapore as opposed to $40 in US.
Other brands I recommend:
Urban Decay
NARS
Josie Maran
Tarte
For me everything is cheaper in US so I try to save as much as I can! 😀
Definitely head to Sephora. My favorite brands there:
MAKE UP FOR EVER
DIOR (eyeshadow quints)
URBAN DECAY
Visit a MAC Store (preferably a free standing store because they have more selection)
All of those you mentioned plus Sugarpill, Lime Crime, NYX, Tarte <3333 Cheek stains and foundations especially if they're super fair! (the ones on HSN) Revlon lipsticks JACK BLACK LIP BAAAALM, and Fortune Cookie Soap products! :DDDD
what the difference between american chanel and internationa chanel? and does canada have the same as the us?
If you come to Canada, I’d say definitely go for Annabelle & Vasanti.
And when I go to US, I haul on everything I can. Canadian mark-ups are ridiculous and not to mention our dollar is almost the same.
And don’t forget those drugstore gems 🙂
Great question Marta! A trip to the US is like striking gold beauty fans.
thank you all for the tips!!! can’t wait! 🙂
The full range of Illamasqua, Pixi, Barry M, Pop Beauty, GOSH Cosmetics, Sleek makeup & Collection 2000 are all great brands. (UK)
Definitely Urban Decay, some of the Hello Kitty and Tokidoki stuff, NARS, Tarte, Inglot and Lorac.
Urban Decay and Wen n’ Wild for sure!
I’m from Norway, and I’ve never been to the US, but I think I would buy Urban Decay, Too Faced, MAC, NYX, LA Colors and Jordana. I’ve heard that they’re pretty good. However, I think I would just buy whatever that would interest me that I could find because makeup is sooooooooo expensive in Norway:( For example, in Norway, a MAC eyeshadow costs about 26 USD, while I’ve seen it for only 15 USD on some US sites…
I agree with you on the Sephora comment. That’s exactly what I did once I arrived in the US. I still miss that place dearly. >’: (And thankful for an American husband I can pester for Sephora stuff XD; )
Also yes, MAC markup is insane. Not nearly as insane as NARS markup here in Australia, though. (A blush for $62, while it’s $27 in the US while the currencies are at parity? I have no idea how they can get away with that…)
Do people actually buy blushes for that much?!
Yeah but most cotton on to the fact and use parcel forwarding to get it from the US 😀
It just means we see everything that’s not maybelline/bourjouis/revlon/etc as high end
Revlon costs the same as high-end in Aus as it does here in Canada. $20?!?! I will never!! Not for Revlon lol
And don’t forget the NARS Sheer Glow at AUD$99 a bottle *sobs* (currency is the same as US atm). Lucky for Aussies you only pay tax/duty on goods totalling something like $1000 so you learn to be an astute online shopper.
As someone who visits the US frequently I have to say.. everything! Because it’s a lot cheaper then anywhere else. But aside from that: Wet’n’Wild, Covergirl lash blast mascara, the Milani eyeliners…
I’m a bit surprised that so many people list brands that are readily available internationally.
Nail polish! OPI is so expensive in Europe and it seems brands like China Glaze, Deborah Lippmann and Sephora by OPI can only be bought on eBay or via makeup forums. Nail polish is always top of my list when I’m Stateside.
For anyone coming to Paris, I highly recommend the discount pharmacy on the corner of rue du Four and rue Bonaparte in the 6th arrondissement. It’s amazing – they appear to have every continental European brand you read about in magazines or hear about on YouTube.
Inglot is a Polish mark !!! Not so many people realize that – so if you want to get it cheap – come to Poland 😉
MAC brushes, I’m not gonna lie.. I’m so glad I live in the states because when I hear MAC prices overseas especially in aussie I cringe.. But if I were a visiting the states I’d go for MAC especially the brushes and newest collections. I’d also stock up on chanel makeup and foundations!! Buy your foundations here int he US from sephora or a department store you’d be saving a lot. But ya Sephora and department stores and possibly a coach outlet lol.. my bf’s family is from canada and they stock up on coach bags and high end makeup whenever they come down here.
I know, Australia’s make up prices ARE steep. Whether its Philosophy or Hourglass or MAC, they cost twice as much. 36 bucks for a MAC lipstick, 30 bucks for a Philosophy Shower Gel, about 50 dollars for a Sheer Aura lip stain! Its hard, if not impossible to find many brands, and we don’t have Sephora. Cringe!
I’m amazed when I hear US girls complaining about paying thirty dollars for a lipstick when the damage is so much worse here…
i would get mac because its cheaper and cover girl lasblast because it looks the same as my favourite uk maxfactor mascara but much cheaper!!! Anyone coming to the uk should look at sleek and barry m.
oooh thanx for asking the question Christine…i always wanted to know if we could get urban decay in US, and what about the chantecaille..hope i spelled it right..is it expensive?and clea de peau? are they avaliable as well?
I’m crazy about trying Trish McEvoy, Smashbox, Covergirl, Neutrogena, Inglot, Suqqu and visiting Ulta. I’m sure I couldn’t leave that place for days. I’m from Spain and some of these brands are out of reach even online bacause they don’t ship worldwide.
Hourglass! Le Metier de Beaute! Cle de Peau! Urban Decay!
Sephora is definitely a great place for people to go, and if anything, they can try asking some of the people there what other places they might recommend – something I’ve done in foreign countries! 🙂
I would say Inglot depends on where they’re coming from – in Poland I managed to get a 5 pan palette and two eyeliners for less than the US price of the palette by itself! So definitely check price differentials before committing to a brand.
When I went to the US in April, I went for LOTS of Wet’n’Wild, and of course Mac as it is cheaper than in the UK. The other things that I really loved – OPI was SO MUCH CHEAPER!!! There’s a brilliant range of Sally Hansen that is very cheap and not easy to get in England. I had a lot of fun in the Inglot store on Broadway, getting a Freedom palette was brilliant; however, I would definitely recommend having an idea of what you want before you go, as when I got home I was disappointed with the shades I’d chosen. Also, the first seven shades I chose were out of stock haha! In Sephora I was most thrilled for the tools. I got lots of brushes, as well as brush cleaner, spray bottles and a pump bottle that I use for nail varnish remover. However, sephora own brand is a great buy, and if I’d had a bit more money, I’d have gone for MUFE and expensive haircare! Love this topic 🙂
Funny…. ’cause I would recommend Inglot to people who visit Poland, since it’s a polish brand. 😉
now if only i could go there 8-> :)) i would definitely try wnw, nyx, mac, etc
I’d definitely say Wet n Wild. We can get WnW in Canada but not some of the new trios and not the large palettes like Comfort Zone, so I will be going “south” to pick those up. Urban Decay and Too Faced, if they’re not available where these readers live. Best bet – go to Sephora (which has just about every makeup brand worth having) and then to a MAC store. Between those 2 locations, they’ll be able to look at/try/get samples too of just about everything that interests them. And for those venturing to Canada, check out both Lise Watier (in higher end Shopper’s Drug Mart stores) and Joe Fresh (in the GROCERY STORE!!!! and cheap as anything!)
I found the 8 color palettes (including comfort zone!) at my local Walmart in bc Canada
Which one? I live in Calgary and I haven’t been able to find them 🙁
Dior, Chanel, Guerlain, YSL and certain brands are more expensive in the States (compared to Hong Kong)
I always stock up on Urban Decay, Too Faced, Living Proof & Aquage shampoo & conditioner and Bath & Body Works whenever I visis US because they are not availble in Hong Kong
Drug store brands like Loreal and Maybelline are much cheaper in US especially if you get buy 1 get 1 50% off
Rimmel and Cover Girl are not availble here
MAC christmas quads and sets are much cheaper in the States but other items are pretty much the same price
Of course, we never get 20% off (Friends and Family sale) here in Hong Kong so it’s always a steal when you get that offer!!!
I would definitely get some NARS products if I was visiting the states. And I think most products are less expensive in the US, especially MAC.
I think Inglot is more accessible around the world than other brands like Nars. There are stores in a lot of places I’ve travelled to. I live in Africa and there’s quite a few stores here.
Too faced. Tarte. Lush.
Is MAC really that much cheaper in the US? I always wonder when I see people ask on Youtube videos for MAC as a cheaper alternative and think ‘what are you on about, it’s basically the same price here!’.
Yeah it is! In New Zealand we pay 38 nzd for a single MAC eyeshadow, foundation (studio fix) is 75 nzd a bottle, even Chanel and the likes is costly, I bought the browning base recently for 85 nzd for our local department store here in Auckland… you get the picture
It REALLY pee’s me off hence I now do not buy MAC, I mean where do they get off charging those prices here? Our dollar is worth .79 usd and I know darn well shipping doesn’t cost that much (I work in freight) so as far as I’m concerned NZ MAC can stick it where the sun don’t shine
Jeebus! MAC certainly isn’t worth that much
Urban Decay for sure!
I live in India, almost all other brands are found in and around Asia and Europe.
UD is the toughest to get your hands on.
VERY true about the MAC markups. When I lived in Zurich, I decided to check out the MAC counter and couldn’t believe the prices–they were marked up about 75% and Swiss prices are astronomical!
When I come to the US, I always get some MAC stuff. Yet they are made in Canada, but they charge us up to 5$ more depending on the product. Sephora is a good starting point since it has lots of brand way cheaper and Inglot (my Freedom palette costed 8$ more in Canada and it was on sale!)
Well in Canada we have Gosh, Quo, Annabelle, Soap & Glory, Lise Watier,
If I was going to the states I’d go for things at Sephora, the markup here is huge. M.A.C’s markup is existent but not as bad. I’d especially look for TheBalm (haven’t been able to find it here) and some bigger palettes and sets because those seem to have the most markup (ex $75 compared to $90). I’d definitely check out Ulta too, find some Milani, NYX, Jordana etc.
Balm is available at London Drug
Shelby,if you have access to a London Drugs, they sell Thebalm cosmetics…and I believe you may be order on-line also.
The thing is, LD doesn’t carry the entire theBalm line. 🙁
Thanks for the tip! I will be checking LD this weekend 😉
I so envy people in the U.S for their mac prices! When you guys pay $14.5 for a lipstick I buy it for nearly $34 !!
but if I would recommend some product for someone coming to Iceland, I would recommend the EFG BIOeffect serum, it’s an Icelandic product which is amazing, don’t know if anyone ever heard off it outside off Iceland, but it’s really popular here.
I am from the US but where I am now they have Sephora, but not NARS and UD. I’ve even seen Revlon in there. We have Inglot here too, but I just paid $12.35 for a $5 refill, so I’d say stock up on it all!!
I would definitely suggest MAC, NYX, Ubran Decay. Check out Sephora and ULTA.
If you’re visiting The Middle East , you have to have a look at Bassam Fattouh’s brand , Amazing colours 😉
MUFE is a huge thing here as well ,
You can’t miss oriental perfumes , you can visit (Abd Al-Samad Al-Qurachi) shops for a higher end scents and authentic Musk
I do a few swaps on my blog and I loved to swap with more international people. It’s a chance for you to get some products for cheaper and try new stuff and for us in the US to get some different brands. I recommend Wet N Wild, Tarte, LimeCrime, Sugarpill, NYX, NYC Color, ELF, and The Balm!
I’m studying abroad in Italy right now, and wow do I miss makeup shopping in the US! Everything is so much cheaper… but Kiko is a pretty great place to go here. It’s inexpensive and my roommate love their lipglosses (I haven’t tried anything from them yet). I also found that I love the color selection of the Basic Beauty nail polishes. They’re also pretty cheap.
LUSH! Especially if traveling. =]
Wow this question couldn’t come at a better time lol I’ll be in NY on vacation next month and I’m literally going bananas thinking what shouldn’t I miss. I live in the Dominican Republic and here we don’t have a sephora or anything like that (we have one mac store and the prices are insane) so I get almost all of my makeup online. I’m going to be checking all the comments and my list lol(that keeps getting bigger and bigger)
Iceland : definitely try the Blue Lagoon products (made in iceland), then we have MAKE UP STORE and they are a medium budget swedish brand.
http://www.bluelagoon.com/
My best friend is going to America in a few weeks and she is going to buy either make up or candy for me!
Practically every brand is cheaper over there hahah… For example I find that MAC is so. Dang. Cheap there Dx
I’ve never been to the US but if I ever go I’ll definitely buy MAC (european prices are insane), OPI (again, OMG european prices!!!!), Tarte and Stila (both are unavailable here).
If you ever come to Italy check out Kiko, Madina, Layla and Pupa. I also love Neve Cosmetics but they only sell online.
Urban Decay, Wet and Wild, Milani
As someone who shuttles between Asia and US, the following get asked from me a lot:
Urban Decay
Carmex products
Essie
Revlon/L’Oreal limited collections
Pop Beauty
Ardell lashes
Butter London nail polishes
I’ll post more I can think of.
How about for someone going to Asia from US? What brands should we get?
If you’re going to Asia, get mascaras made in japan! especially the majolica majorca ones, amazing! 🙂 If you’re going to Korea check out Etude house palettes (gorgeous colors), The Face Shop, Skin Food and Tony Moly. They all have great Korean products! 🙂
Covergirl, Nyx
Loving this topic!! I’m going to New York in March and am already saving up for a massive make up haul. MAC, urban decay, wet n wild, inglot, chanel quads, stila, … they are all on my wishlist.
If you’re travelling to Holland, have a look at Gosh: they do amazing mascaras and eyeliners.
I would tell them to go to Sephora and fall in love. There are so many brands there that are hard to get in NZ, and the ones we can get have ridiculous markups. In particular: Urban Decay, Too Faced, Tarte, Josie Maran, Philosophy, Nars and Stila.
I dream of the day Sephora ships internationally!
Last time I visited the US, I bought a bunch of Essie polishes. At the time, they weren’t widely available in Denmark – you could get Ballet Slippers in super high end boutiques for the equivalent of 24$, but that was it. They’re sold now, but the price is the same still! OPI has just become available (for the same price), as has Sally Hansen (same price). So.. polishes? Generally. I would, at least. And MAC, as everyone else. Everything high end one could have a hankering for…
In Denmark, as may be evident, makeup shopping probably shouldn’t be a priority. GOSH is a Danish brand, but it is generally more expensive and the lineup smaller than elsewhere. The brand Nilens Jord makes paraben and perfume-free products. I haven’t tried most of it, but their eye shadows and mascaras are great.
In Germany where I live at the moment, the offering of organic beauty products is amazing. Santé, Weleda, Logona are all great brands. There are plenty more, and of course not all German (I don’t know if ANY of those are?), but there just is an enormous selection. Germany is just really, really good at organic 🙂 And much cheaper than Scandinavia, at the very least.
Keep in mind that all Sephoras are not created equally, so choose which one you decide to shop at wisely! My local Sephora is a smaller store and doesn’t carry nearly as many of the brands (or even the complete range of the brands they do carry) as do the larger stores. So although we finally got a Sephora local to me, I often long for the bigger, more complete Sephora stores.
I’m from the UK, I would recommend these drugstore brands:
Barry M
Sleek
Bourjois
Mememe
MUA
Gosh
All can be found in a store called Superdrug over here 🙂
There aren’t really any high end brands that I love that are only available in the UK.
I’d have to say Sleek, Barry M and MUA are my favourites out of those and are must haves, especially Sleek’s eyeshadow palettes! All of them are great brands though!
i would propose to head to the outlets, especially the cosmetics clearance outlets (cco’s?), great many deals on upmarket brands (mac, estee lauder, etc). also the tj maxx and other outlets.
even if these brands are available elsewhere in the world, almost never at the amazing discounted outlet prices.
for cosmetics in indonesia, go hit a martha tilaar store and you’d be blown away by the quality and the prices.
If travelling to Asia, definitely check out majolica majorca (especially their mascaras), Jill Stuart (expensive but has nice packaging for those who love pretty packaging) and Canmake which is a really inexpensive Japanese drugstore brand =)
Great idea! I’m from Uruguay and I just came from a trip to the US and felt really overwhelmed at sephora and ulta, and ended up buying things I now regret and not buying enough of other products! In my country we don’t have any make up at all! Only some few products of l’oreal or maybelline extremely overpriced (25 USD for a maybelline blush!!). It would be awesome if you guys could create a must have list or something for different skin types! Thank you so much! I love your emails!
My mother lives in Florida and I am in the UK so when I visit I make sure I stock up on Revlon Colorstay foundation (she has 16 bottles for me so far as there was a sale on!) as it’s so much more expensive in the UK. I also love the ELF range, NYX, definitely Wet n Wild and buy OPI nail polishes – cheaper in the US. I confess to watching Youtube to see what Mac dupes there are and make a list and always go on a mission to find them as there isn’t much else to do when I visit my mother. If you come to the UK then visit a shop called Superdrug and I recommend the Sleek range of makeup (palettes are fab and cheap!) – their eyeshadows have fantastic staying power and highly pigmented.
Sephora has a bunch of brands that are hard/impossible to find outside the US. When I come for a visit I also like to go to the drugstore for brands like Sally Hansen, Milani, Wet’n Wild…
Make Up Forever – I haven’t been able to try any MUFE yet
Urban Decay – I source this online but hard to get the LE itmes
MAC (although I don’t use much MAC cos I prefer other brands)
Sonia Kashuk – love to buy some of their brushes and the concealer
Bobbi Brown – anything except the lipglosses which kinda suck
Chanel polishes (they are almost AUD$40 here)
Essie polishes
Smashbox
Benefit
Wet n Wild shadow quads
NARS
I have also want to try the new Tom Ford eye quads and Traceless foundation although they aren’t released until November. Arghhh I am soooo greedy!
As my Polish friends say, Inglot is polish brand, so prices here are lower in comparison to US$ (nail polish – 6.5$ in PL). Brands like OPI, MAC or any high end brand (Chanel, Dior etc.) are very expensive. Ofc we have Sephora, but better choice is to buy cosmetics in on-line store. Even with the payment for shipping, it’s still cheaper than in normal store.
Since I love nail lacquers here are polish brand worth for check: Joko, Soraya, Colour Alike (Barbra), Ados, Eveline, Bell or Vipera. None of them cost above 5$ and quality is great, for me often better than Essie 🙂
Being in US I’d love to try Edward Bess, Trish McEvoy, Laura Mercier, Rescue Beauty Lounge, Paul and Joe, Le Metier de Beaute and many many more.
Perfect timing of this post, Christine, because I just booked a trip to New York in the end of November and I plan, where to buy products, I can’t buy in my hometown in Germany like Nars, MUFE and Inglot. Ans some Kiehl’s stuff, because I hope it’s cheaper over the sea.
I wouldn’t recommend buying Inglot in the U.S.
It’s much cheaper in Poland.
Go to Sephora! I know a bunch of English, Dutch, and German girls I talk to online are always just dying to go to one. It’s funny to me, though, because Sephora began in France… you’d think they would have spread throughout Europe before coming to the US. Same for MUFE, they started in Paris but why isn’t it accessible in London?! It seems odd to me… but anyways! I think Urban Decay, Smashbox, Wet N’ Wild, and Make Up For Ever would be worth checking out.
I’m from europe and if I can overcome my fear of airplanes and go to the US (my hubby really wants to go to daytona bike week…) I am running straight to the sephora for some sephora by opi polishes and urban decay products (i love that they are vegan) i would also stop at the dept stores for some nars and lippmann polishes! I don’t need anymore mac, i am over that brand…
If going to Europe, and Sweden in particular, you need to check out Make Up Store, Swedens most popular brand in middle ranged priced products. They have a ton of eyeshadows in different textures and finishes, beautiful lipsticks and awesome blushes. 🙂
For Canada, I would definitely tell people to check out Quo, GOSH, and Anabelle.
If I was heading to the states I would HAVE to check out Illamasqua, Milani, OCC, JK,
Totally go for the Aussie Deeeeeeeeep Conditioning Shampoo. I really want to try that.
I meant conditioner! D’oh!