Five of my favourite drugstore picks…
My fave drugstore picks – I love finding a good solid drugstore dupe for my favourite products. Particularly when I use said product a lot as £30 a pop is a lot to spend isn’t it? Today I’ve rounded up five drugstore products that I’m loving lately, some dupes, some not. If you love a bargain as much as me then keep reading to find out why I love these five goodies…
NYX Micro Brow Pencil
I bought the NYX Micro Brow Pencil after trying to hunt down a dupe for my beloved ABH Brow Wiz, and boyyyyy am I impressed. I think I’ve expressed how much I love this little gem on here before so I won’t go into too much detail but it’s incredible! The first time I used brow wiz, I fell in love with the product and the formula, I had honestly never had brows that looked so good. It became the only brow product that I was using so I started going through it like nobody’s business! I desperately needed to find a dupe as at £22 a pop, it’s a little bit pricey to be going through them that often you know? Even though the formula of the ABH pencil is way creamier and lighter, the NYX number is a pretty darn good dupe for everyday wear. I feel like it’s one of those situations where you pay for the quality, so if you want that little bit better quality then spend the extra on the ABH brow wiz, but if you’re happy to settle for a lower quality product for day to day wear then the NYX option is perfect. I use it every single day and save my brow wiz for special events when I want my makeup to look perfect! I am personally happy to purchase them both so that I don’t go through my brow wiz as quickly, and I have the option of having brows on point or very close to on point! I’d honestly highly recommend it if you want to save a few pennies and buy a more budget friendly option.
NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil: French Fries
I’ve had a NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil before, I think in white, and admittedly I used it about once and then gave up with it. I think it was more the colour than the actual product itself, but for £5.50 I couldn’t resist trying one out again. I picked up the shade French Fries which looked like a lovely bronze everyday shade. If you guys know me, then you’ll know how obsessed I am with the BB sparkle stick in molten bronze, so any other cream shadows in a bronze shade (especially at this price) are what I’m all about. I didn’t think it would be a dupe for the Bobbi Brown gem at this price, but maybe a good alternative for day to day wear? It’s way off the mark for looking as nice as my beloved sparkle stick, but for the price it’s a pretty fab shadow stick. It’s fairly creamy and long lasting, and it’s a lovely bronze shade that goes with everything. I’m eager to pick up a few more shades now!
ELF Baked Highlight: Apricot Glow
If you love a nice subtle highlight for everyday wear then the ELF Baked Highlight is an absolute steal at only £5! It’s not overly pigmented but it is buildable, I find it gives a beautiful sheen to the tops of my cheekbones and is perfect for day to day wear. I don’t like going over the top with my highlight as I hate looking like a disco ball so something quite subtle but still clearly visible is my kinda vibe, and this one is perfect. I have the shade Apricot Glow which is a beautiful peachy golden tone, it’s very similar to the NARS Orgasm blush but more of a highlight than a blush, so it leaves more glow than colour if you know what I mean? You can see it swatched below if you want to see the gorgeous glow it gives without being too OTT! They have a couple of other shades that I’m really eager to add to my collection too.
Revlon Colorstay Foundation: Combination/Oily
I’d heard so many things about what a dupe Revlon Colorstay is for the famous Estee Lauder DW Foundation that I had to give it a try. Revlon Colorstay is £12.99 so it’s not the most affordable drugstore foundation, but it’s also less than half the price of EL DW. I love my double wear for the coverage mostly, and the fact it keeps my face matte all day. With oily skin it’s a god send if you have a long day planned or you want your makeup to look flawless for an event. I generally save mine for special occasions but how nice to have a more affordable alternative so that you can wear it more often?! So far I am really impressed with it, the coverage is very good and I don’t seem to get oily at all with it which is exactly why I love double wear. The formula is definitely more watery than double wear so I think a little bit more product is required than usual, but this doesn’t seem to affect the mattifying factor or the lasting power so it’s something that I can live with! I would 100% recommend giving this a try if you want a cheaper alternative to EL DW.
Rimmel Lasting Finish: Kiss of Life
I picked up the Rimmel Kate Lasting Finish lipstick in the shade Kiss of Life after reading all of the promises that it was a dupe for MAC Ruby Woo. I don’t wear ruby woo that often even though I love it, just because of how drying it is. I was quite tempted to try this supposed dupe of the shade though, just because for around a fiver you can’t really go wrong can you? Whilst the Rimmel offering bleeds slightly more than ruby woo (it’s inevitable with such a bright shade) it’s an amazing alternative to have. The colour is almost identical when worn on the lips, and in my opinion it’s actually slightly better because it’s not as matte as ruby woo is. This means it’s not as long lasting but it applies much easier to my lips and feels far more comfortable to wear. I would definitely reach for the Rimmel option over the MAC if I fancied a bright red lip one morning, although if I was going to an event where I’d be eating and drinking, then I’d probably opt for MAC just because of that longer lasting power. I definitely think it’s worth having both in your collection if you love a staple red lipstick because you get the best of both worlds, they’re almost identical in colour but you have one longer lasting, more drying option and one that’s more hydrating and easier to apply, but maybe needs a bit of a touch up after food and drink. You really can’t go wrong for the price.
Do you have any drugstore staples in your makeup collection? Let me know what they are!
