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Do you use any items in your beauty routine that aren't technically beauty products?


Do you use any items in your beauty routine that aren’t technically beauty products? Like tape to create crisp lines when doing makeup… Share!  (Aside from food, since we discussed that yesterday!)

I’ve done the tape trick before, but I don’t think I use anything unconventional!

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Neko Avatar

Business cards! I use them to catch eyeshadow fallout, prevent mascara smudges, make sharp lines with bronzer or eyeshadow, etc. etc. I’m supposed to give them away to other people, but oh well.

Kelly Avatar

I’ve used tiny brushes designed for cleaning in between your teeth to apply mascara to my bottom lashes. I often use Monistat Chafing Gel as a foundation primer since silicone-based and pretty much exactly like Smashbox Photo Ready Primer.

Mariella Avatar

I will sometimes use a Post-it note to keep eye shadow fallout from wrecking my foundation/under eye concealer. I also have a clean, unused small toothbrush that I use for brushing up my brows. And I use those “fold back” or “butterfly” clips (the ones for holding papers together) to seal up the “crimp” edge of plastic tubes of moisturizer or BB creams, etc. that I cut off when they “seem” to be empty but there is still a ton of product in the tube but you just can’t squeeze it out.

KaseyCannuck Avatar

About a third of my makeup brushes are actually paint brushes from the craft store. I have a variety of taklon brushes for cream eyeshadows and loose pigments, and Maxine’s Mop goathair brushes are dupes for Mac’s 239. I can get 4 of these for the same price as a MAC brush, so it’s a no-brainier for me.

TrinaLuna Avatar

That Monistat Anti Chafing gel for a primer – if any of you out there haven’t tried it, you need to! It’s great! Hard to find in stores though, I order mine online.

I used to wear winged eyeshadow almost every day in bold colors. I’d take a business card and hold it against my skin at the angle I wanted, and then brush the eyeshadow over it to create a crisp line.

Melissa Avatar

This is going to sound strange, but I use a Colgate Wisp disposable toothbrush for my brows. I take a brand new one, remove the little bead of breath freshener with a tweezer, & voila. It works better than any other brush or spoolie I’ve tried. Since I fill my brows they get dirty-looking after a while, even with cleaning, so I swap them out every month or so.

Alizée Avatar

Oh man of course!

I’ve done the tape trick countless of times and I also use business cards when tape is not available.

More often than not I put Listerine on my zits to disinfect and dry them out.

And of this one I am ashamed, but it has to be said: I use baby powder in my hair and comb it through when it’s greasy and I’m to lazy to wash it.

Alicia Avatar

I wouldn’t be ashamed. Companies are selling what is basically baby powder and calling it dry shampoo for removing oil from hair on days of un-wash. Call it being frugal or ahead of the game. 😉

Chris25 Avatar

I sometimes use Scotch tape on my nails if I am doing a design. I also use brushes from the art supply store to apply makeup to my face. I have used pulverized walnut shells and sand, but these were in skincare products. I didn’t use them by themselves.

Veronica Avatar

I don’t personally use anything extra, but one of my friends actually uses Kool-Aid packets as hair dye, particularly when she goes red. A rather clever way to do root touch-ups on the cheap, I thought. 🙂

patsyann Avatar

I use Lansinol HPA Lanolin (from the baby supply section of Target or drugstore) in the lavender tube as a lip conditioner/lip balm. I wipe it off and just leave a slight trace when I apply lipstick. I have tried it all, it seems, and this is the only thing that has made wearing lipstick possible for me as I have chronically dry and peeling lips. Well, I did have, but not now as I am never without this stuff. I have multiple tubes…in the bathroom, purse, bedside table, and at my desk.

Mimielle Avatar

Blue low-tack painter’s tape for nail designs. It never disturbs or peels off the polish underneath. Instead of a business card, I use the clear NARS plastic insert that came with my blush duo to place winged shadow, easier to see the contrast since it’s clear. I don’t like the feel of cello tape but I use it sometimes for liner/sharp winged shadow looks.

patsyann Avatar

Krista: this is exactly the one I posted about above. I neglected to say that it is the nipple cream! The newer tubes do not blast that out in their packaging, but it is one and the same. I have used it for at lead six years and my lips are baby smooth without deep lines. I am 71 years young!

milaxx Avatar

I use pipecleaners to curl my dreadlocs sometimes. I also used the controverasal vaginal creme on an area in my scalp that was balded as a result of an illness. I have a tiny ruler I got from the eye doctor that I used to apply makeup once.

milaxx Avatar

Forgot to add. I used conrstarch over the summer to set my face. I was going some where dressy and I needed all day coverage. Surprisingly it worked without looking cake-y.

Kelly Avatar

I use tea tree oil a lot for several things. It goes nice in a bath, a DIY face mask, spot treatment for blemishes, etc.

Vaseline is another big one for me. It’s not really a ‘beauty’ product…but I use it all the time on my lips…but also on my feet. Slap it on, throw your feet in socks, and it will leave them soooo soft!!

Diana Ferrell Avatar

I don’t like using eye makeup removers,, and I discovered this trick quite by accident: using your fingers, dab warm water on your mascara and lids, then use a dab of CeraVe Moisturizer between your fingers and gently rub off your eye makeup! I wipe away with a tissue first, then follow up with a clean warm wash cloth . I don’t use waterproof mascara, but I DO use Urban Decay eyeliners which can be stubborn to remove, and this melts them away like butter.

Nicole Avatar

I use Grapeseed oil, mixed with Castor oil and a bit of tea tree oil (or Emu oil), as my daily face cleanser. I use it whether I’m taking off my makeup or not. No moisturizer needed after I wash it off. Leaves your skin really soft. I also make a scrub from sugar, and lemon. Just cut the end off a lemon, dip it in sugar and scrub your face. Works wonders!

SandraJT Avatar

Not exactly for make-up application, but I’ve found that white plumbers tape works spectacularly to keep cream/gel products in jars or tubes from drying out. Works with mascara & liquid liners as well. Just wrap it around the threads of the neck of the package, then twist the top on. It prevents air from entering the container, as well as keeps evaporation to a minimum.

Another thing I’ve found is that the white scotch brite teflon pan scrubbers are amazing to use before & during showering to exfoliate the entire body. They last much longer than typical buff puffs and exfoliate much more thoroughly.

Lastly, I love using plain old first aid tape – the paper type found in dollar stores – to gently remove fallout without disturbing or removing the rest of my make-up.

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