A little over two years ago, my husband Danny and I set out on a journey to pay off over half a million dollars in debt. Our goal is to pay off our debt within five years. And while five years is relatively short in the big scheme of life, five years is a really long time to live extremely frugally, which is why I set out to find abundance on a budget. I’m constantly finding ways to get the most bang out of life for the fewest bucks, and of course, I am sharing them here with you. When it comes to cheap makeup products, I am pretty much the expert. I’ve tried basically every cheap makeup product under the sun. This is a list of my FAVORITE cheap makeup products that I wear daily and have found them to be the most comparable (in some cases, better) than other expensive makeup options.
24-hour lip stick/lip gloss.
One of my very favorite cheap makeup products is this all day lip gloss from Revlon. Expensive long lasting lipstick, like Lipsense, has been all the rage for the last few years. I, for one, cannot spend $20-$50 on lip stick, so I have used basically every grocery store version of the all-day kind of lip stick, and this one from Revlon is by far my favorite. It lasts the longest, it applies the most smoothly, and it has tons of super fun colors, infinite raspberry being my favorite for my day-to-day look. I get asked about it just about every time I wear it.
Revlon Lip liner.
This lip liner pairs really well with the all day lip gloss. I don’t use it every day, but I love how it looks with the lip gloss. Plus, if its tricky for you to make a straight line with your gloss, you might want to grab some. It’s only $5.98 as an add on item!
Rimmel Mascara.
This mascara is my absolute favorite. You only need one or two coats and it gives you long lushes lashes! Forget about expensive eyelash extensions, really. This mascara is all you need. Literally THE best mascara in existence, and as an add-on in Amazon it’s only $3.77!!
Eye brow wax.
I obviously can’t afford microblading right now, but I LOVE how full and clean microbladed/shaded eyebrows are. There are tons of different kinds of waxes, dyes, etc to help you get a similar look, but this eyebrow wax by E.L.F. is my very favorite. It’s only $3, and mine has lasted me well over 6 months now, using it several times per week.
Concealer.
This age rewind concealer has quickly become one of my favorite cheap makeup products because it is so easy and applies so smooth! There’s a sponge on the top that applies so evenly and dreamily. I also use it to contour on special occasions.
E.L.F. Foundation Brush.
My very favorite foundation brush, even above expensive brands, is made by E.L.F.
Eye shadow pallet.
The best eye shadow pallet in existence, less than $10. So many fun color combinations that blend together SO well with the E.L.F. eye shadow brush.
Eye shadow brush.
This eye shadow brush from E.L.F. is hands down my favorite. It’s $3 and works as good as any other expensive brand.
L’Oreal True Match foundation.
I’ve tried tons of foundation, including expensive brands, and I ALWAYS come back to L’Oreal True Match! It blends so well and doesn’t leave my face feeling sticky and gross like lots of other kinds of foundation do.
Bronzer.
Bronzer is pretty easy to get right, but this is one of my favorites because it doesn’t get super messy and applies nicely.
There you have it! All of my favorite cheap makeup products.
For the comments, what are some of your favorite cheap makeup products? Share them below!
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Hi there! I’m Amber! And welcome to the Deeply in Debt blog where we’re offering simple solutions for big debt.
Hi, i will be trying some of your faves, thanks for posting them. I don’t buy makeup often and when I do, i seldom pick something that works out well. But i have liked the Maybelline Tattoo eyebrow products, I have 3 different types: the one with a doefoot applicator works best for me, the one with the serrated applicator doesn’t work as promised (does not draw consistent fine hair-like lines), and the one with a bristleball applicator does not seem to grab enough product to fill in my brows. Also not crazy about Wunderbrow, it doesn’t apply as easily as Tattoo.
For lipstick, I bought a lot of Covergirl Outlast colors so I’m still using those. They go on easily and really do last all day. There is a gloss on one end of the tube but I don’t always use that with the color.
The Revlon Colorstay eyeliner works well, the tiny brush in the bottle is super skinny so it is easy to get really fine lines.
Thanks for sharing some of your favorites! I’m excited to try them– especially the tattoo eyebrow products!
Amber, so far I’ve tried the Rimmel mascara, which I chose to get in the waterproof version since I live n Florida, but I was not impressed by any aspect of it. I looked for the raspberry color Revlon lipstick, it was not available at Target so I got another color which on application, was not only too pink but seemed to look iridescent, which I don’t like. I also got the Revlon lip liner you suggested but again, had trouble with colors. I bought Blush which is too light and Sienna which is too dark. I believe the color in between those two would have been best but was not stocked. One big problem is that all the stores in my area are so poorly stocked there is never a full range of colors available. Buying online has turned out to always be more expensive plus more difficult to always get good color representation.
Bummer! Yes finding the right colors is definitely the trickiest part. I’ve never tried the water proof version of Rimmel’s scandal eyes, but I love applying two coats of the regular version, so that’s all I can speak to! If you ever do find the infinite raspberry version of the lip gloss, it’s definitely worth it! Not iridescent at all, and a color I way several times a week. Sorry to hear you’ve had a hard time finding the colors!