August 2013

So I was thinking about this on the weekend after a couple of friends kindly pointed out that I could potentially ‘end world hunger’ if all my makeup was converted into dollars’.  Personally I think this is a slight exaggeration and I did try to justify my beauty addiction by stating that ‘not ALL my makeup products are high-end brands’. Yes, a lot of them are (slight MAC obsessed, I’ll admit), but I also have a tonne of makeup that isn’t ‘high-end’ and they’re great!

I’m pretty sure any makeup artist will confirm that the day we’re told we’ve qualified, is the day we tend to go a little beauty-product-crazy, filling our makeup kits with every single item we were ever shown how to use (this is NOT good when you trained using MAC – cha ching!).  I don’t even do makeup artistry as my chosen profession (no friends – your events do not qualify as my full-time job) and yet still I keep my kit jam-packed with all the latest beauty goodies and add to this kit almost weekly.  However, following the ‘end world poverty’ comment – I  went through my beauty closet and showed them all the duplicates (dupes) I own that most people wouldn’t even realise is a dupe for a high-end brand; and these more wallet-friendly brands are just as good.  You just gotta know what to look for.  So I’ve collated a few dupes that I use, which I thought [see: hope] you might find useful to…

Cheek Highlighters/Face Illuminators: $20 Australis vs $50 Benefit
This is one of my new faves at the moment – the Australis ‘High Lights’ face highlighter.  Now this one is seriously JUST like the highly coveted Benefit High Beam & Girl Meets Pearl (it also gives the same payoff as MAC’s Extra Dimension face illuminator).  The consistency is exactly like High Beam and is simply stunning, sans the stunning price tag. If you love that blown-out, cheek-poppin, radiant makeup look – you will love an illuminating product and I personally think that this Australis Face Highlighter is as good as any other face highlighter on the market.

Lip Gloss/Lipstick: $16 Za Cosmetics vs $31 Bobbi Brown
The Bobbi Brown lip gloss in ‘Pretty In Pink’ is a fabulous gloss that suits pretty much everyone, so of course it’s popular and in-turn has a price-tag that matches it’s popularity. The thing with gloss is that you tend to go through it pretty darn fast and this can make things quite expensive.  The Za ‘Plumper Lips’ Lipstick in ‘Pink Pearl’ is the perfect dupe for Bobbi Brown’s Pretty In Pink gloss!  It’s the same hue, consistency and wearability.  It even has the added benefit of a plumper, so you’ll have fabulous kissable lips.

Eye Liner Pencil: $10 Australis vs $36 MAC
Now I love MAC eye liners (especially their eye kohl’s) as much as the next person (and admittedly probably own way too many of them) however if you are wanting to buy a variety of hues, this is going cost you some serious bucks. At $36 dollars a pop – it adds up really fast.  The Australis 10-hour-wear eye pencils are fabulous! They’re long wearing, have a beautiful kohl consistency and wont break the bank if you are wanting to buy a variety of colours.  The one that I use regularly is the Bombastic Bronze (I prefer a brown liner, as I think black liners tend to look a little too heavy during the day).  This is a fab dupe for MAC’s two most beautiful brown eye pencils – Lord It Up & Powerchrome.

Liquid Eye Liner: $10 Maybelline vs $45 Urban Decay
The Urban Decay 24/7 Liquid Liner in ‘Perversion’ (black) is another makeup product favoured by beauty gurus worldwide and has quite the cult following.  The reason for this is (other than Urban Decay being a fabulous makeup brand) it’s easy to apply, has a great applicator, it lasts ALL DAY and there’s no peeling, cracking or fading! (plus it dries with a glossy finish which I love).  The Maybelline Line Stiletto in ‘blackest black’ would be the best dupe for UD’s 24/7 liquid liner that I’ve ever come across.  Same long-wear durability, a great applicator, has a beautiful finish and again – there’s no cracking, peeling or fading.

Concealer: $10 Za vs $40 MAC
MAC Select Cover Concealer in my opinion is one of MAC’s best concealers.  The reason for it’s popularity is it’s light in consistency, yet gives great coverage. It doesn’t cake in creases, can be matched to a broad range of skin tones and I find it’s super hydrating.  It is however, a small pottle and if you use concealer to cover and lighten more than just under your eyes, you can go through it pretty fast.  I’ve looked at a few wallet-friendly dupes over the years and this Za ”Perfect Fit’ concealer would be the closest thing to MAC’s Select Cover that I’ve found.  It has all the great qualities of the MAC Select Cover Concealer for a fraction of the price.

Makeup Brushes: $10 – $40 per brush SIGMA vs $60 – $100 per brush MAC
Ahh Makeup Brushes – this is a big one to tackle.  Makeup brushes are a beauty babe essential and it really is a case of quality above all else.  Poor quality makeup brushes equal poor makeup application and a lot of fallout (not just the product – but the actual bristles). Makeup brushes determine how every piece of makeup performs. They determine the colour payoff of your eyeshadow. They are the difference between a flawless foundation application that looks so good it could’ve been photoshopped, versus a ‘cakey’ application. They are THE key tool in your makeup bag. As I said previously, I went was taught makeup artistry using MAC products and MAC will always have a special place in my heart, however their prices for brushes are pretty darned expensive.  Ahhh but they are GOOD! [stop it Ange!].  Sorry, as I was saying…  To get one decent kit with a good variety of brushes, you are talking some SERIOUS coin!  For the last few years I have become obsessed with Sigma brushes (and I think makeup artists worldwide are now tending to lean towards a mix of both MAC and Sigma brushes). They are the same quality as MAC and are actually pretty affordable when you’re talking makeup brushes.  For the cost of an entire Sigma brush set I paid $230.  You don’t want to know what I paid for my first entire set of MAC brushes!  Let’s just say that for the cost of a whole set of sigma brushes, you’d get about 4 MAC brushes.  Don’t get me wrong, there will always be the iconic faves that MAC produces – the MAC 217 for example, but in actual fact the Sigma E40 and E55 are just as amazing! For me they have gone past the point of ‘dupes’ and are a staple in my makeup kit.  I have a Sigma Members Discount Code, so if you’re planning on giving Sigma a go, feel free to grab my 10% discount code from my blog homepage (the square banner situated on the right hand-side) or use the jump here: SIGMA BRUSHES.  Now I’m not saying ‘you must buy a whole set of brushes or your makeup world is forever doomed’, I’m definitely not suggesting that at all. We’re just talking dupes and I personally think Sigma is the ultimate in makeup brush dupes when it comes to a more affordable alternative to the pricier brands.  In reality, if you’re just starting out, or only dabble in makeup, all you really need is a great shader, a decent foundation and blush brush and you’re good to go.  There’s no reason to go all out with a whole set of professional brushes, just grab your basics and build on your brush collection as your confidence with makeup grows.

If you’d like to see more posts like this one – specifically on eyeshadow palette dupes, foundation dupes, or just more dupes in general, let me know by leaving a comment below and I’ll get started on the next installment of ‘Beauty Babe On A Budget’.

And before you go dissing ‘wallet-friendly’ makeup brands, BEWARE!  You don’t want to end up with egg on your face by saying ‘they aren’t as good as high-end brands’, because without letting any insider secrets slip, you’d be amazed at just how many ‘budget brands’ are actually produced by the exact same brands producing your high-end expensive makeup.

Ange x
Gurlinterrupted
A Girl Interrupted By Fashion, Beauty & Anything Pretty That Catches My Eye