Drugstore makeup reviews

[meimingMember]

I’d love 2 start a thread 4 reviews on drugstore makeup…it would be great not to sacrifice quality 4 price & I’ve heard that some drugstore makeup isn’t 2 bad (maybe I’ve heard wrong…u tell me)

[ribbbitMember]

Here are my thoughts:

I don’t usually buy much from the drugstore as I have been trying to cut down on buying products that have been tested on animals and the only main 2 or 3 that are sold in the drugstores around me are Almay, Revlon and Milani.   That being said I do love a few Maybelline products.  Their tattoo cream eyeshadows are amazing, so pigmented.  I think Pomegranate Punk and Bad to the Bronze are my personal favorite.  I may go get Bold Gold, haven’t really decided as that and Bronze are so close in color.   I also love their Baby Lips balms.  They are my go-to when I want something on my lips but don’t necessarily need a lot of color.  I have Cherry Me and Peach Kiss and pretty much love both equally but they are sold out a lot in my neck of the woods.  I have been thinking about just stocking up, just in case.

Revlon:  Speaking of Baby Lips, I also tried Revlon’s Lip Butters and they feel a lot more like just a lipstick to me.  I have one in Tutti Frutti and I love the color and wear it quite a bit but if I actually want something moisturizing I usually reach for Baby Lips or a Palladio lipstick (information forthcoming).  Of course they have amazing face products (foundations / powders).  I use their aqua mineral powder right now since it’s summer and I have decided to just go with a tinted moisturizer.  Come winter I may try their Colorstay.  I like their lipsticks.  They aren’t amazing but they aren’t terrible either.  They have an eye brightener thing that I love as I put it under my eyes to clean up my makeup and have also been able to use it as a concealer.  I haven’t tried it as a primer yet because I already have three primers in the rotation.   I am going to try to get around to trying their other products just trying to pace myself.  I also really like their Luscious mascara.

Almay:  I have some of their mascara which was okay.  I wasn’t all that impressed.  Their liquid eye pen is amazing.  I love it!  I also really like their makeup remover, both the sheets and the eye makeup remover.  Other makeup removers I have tried had such a strong smell that my husband didn’t even want to be around me and it still didn’t get my makeup off.  It’s the best makeup remover I have run across. 

Milani:  I haven’t tried a whole lot of their stuff, mainly just one of their liquid eyeliners.  It was really, really pigmented and perfect purple I was looking for but unfortunately I hated the brush with a passion.  It always put it in on too thick.  So maybe if I buy the bent angle brush I have been eyeing I may give it another shot.  We shall see.  I also want to try their pencils Liquifeye (or something like that) but they were out of black and purple, my two go-to colors, so I’m patiently (ha) awaiting their return to the aisle. 

Palladio:  I don’t know if it counts as “drugstore” but I also love Palladio (which in my area they sell at Sally’s but I think Ulta may also sell them).   The only thing I have tried from them that I was disappointed in was their mascara.  I love love love LOVE their precision eye liners.  I literally want to buy duplicates of every single one.  Their lip products are also amazing, I have tried all of them and they are all very moisturizing.  They don’t last a super long time but I would rather have to reapply than have dry lips.  Their lip gloss is not sticky at all but it does have kind of a weird texture after a while, a little gritty but most of the color is off by that point so I just wipe it off and start over.  Their primer is very similar in feel to the urban decay but I’m still on the fence about whether I like it or not.  Some days it works really well and other days not so much.  I don’t like their retractable pencils nearly as much as the precision ones but they would probably work in a pinch but I positively cannot use them on my waterline, they flat out don’t show up. 

I am also testing out a Physician’s Formula mascara but I really haven’t tried much from their brand so I can’t speak too much about them either.  

I really, really wish that Maybelline would stop testing on animals (really Loreal since I believe they own Maybelline) because I really love a lot of their products.  I bought the majority of the Maybelline stuff I own before I realized they tested on animals.  Sigh, maybe one day.

Wow, that may have been a lot more information than you needed / wanted but there is my 2 cents (or maybe slightly more given the ranty raviness of it all).

[shellygrrlMember]

(Please spell out your words!)

 

I use some drugstore makeup, but not a whole lot. The brand I seem to buy from the most is Revlon, but I also use some NYX and e.l.f. products. (If you’re concerned about animal testing (see my thoughts at the end of the post), neither NYX nor e.l.f. test; I believe both have the Leaping Bunny seal of approval.)

 

Revlon ~ IMO, they’re probably the most consistent drugstore brand, in terms of product quality, that I’ve used. I think my favourite products from them are the lipsticks and their Photoready 3D Volume mascara — the latter of which I recently tried, and which may become my new Holy Grail mascara. I’ve also tried one of the Colorburst Lip Butters recently, and I quite like that as well and want to try out some more. Colorstay is a good foundation; I just wish they went a bit paler with their colour selection.

 

NYX ~ I’ve not had a chance to explore many of the products they sell, but I like the few products of theirs I have tried out — their Mega Shine lipglosses and their HD eyeshadow primer. The lipglosses are quite opaque, not sticky at all. The primer definitely keeps my eyeshadows in place all day.

 

e.l.f. ~ A bit hit-or-miss. I think the better products are in their Studio collection (prices start at $3) — particularly the brushes.

 

Other brands’ products ~ I like NYC’s (New York Color) loose powder. A lot of product for just a little bit of money (around $3), and it sets foundation very well, IMO. Maybelline Fit Me is a good foundation. I was also a Great Lash mascara user for a long time. (Some makeup enthusiasts think it’s overrated; I disagree. I think it’s rated for a reason: it doesn’t claim to give your lashes tons of volume or length, it just gives you a better version of your own lashes, which is what many a person want, IMO.)

 

I’m not as hard core on avoiding brands who engage in animal testing, despite being against the practice. This is largely because, IMO, the only way to go completely cruelty-free would be to give up makeup entirely. Every ingredient in cosmetics has been tested on an animal at some point, and really, it’s impossible to know for certain where companies get their ingredients from, even if they say they don’t test anything on animals.

 

(That said, as I understand it, animal testing is supposed to be banned in the EU next year.)

[JaciMischelleMember]

Actually I have been on a sort of drugstore product kick lately, I have been trying to find inexpensive alternatives to some of my more expensive products. Here are my current favorites from each brand:

L’Oreal: I am currently obsessed with their 24hr Infallible eyeshadows they are really like nothing I have ever used before, honestly they do crease no matter what I do but still they are so cool its worth it to have to eventually re-blend them.

Revlon: I haven’t used very many Revlon products but I am in love with their lipglosses, they are really smooth but not sticky and the colors are long lasting, my current shade is Corral Reef, its been my go-to summer lip color for the last couple months.

Maybelline: Their Color Tattoos are great, my favorite is Tough as Taupe. Also I like to buy their Colossal Volum’express mascara when I don’t feel like spending the money to get a high-end one. Finally, I absolutely love their Dream Nude Airfoam foundation, I was really skeptical about this product thinking the whole foam thing was just schtick but it is so quick to apply and gives a perfect sheer coverage. ( I use a crown buffer brush to apply it though, not my fingers as the packaging recommends.

Rimmel: I really like their 25 hour foundation (that’s what I had been using before I switched to the Maybelline Air Foam). Also I really like their bronzers.

[Sarah KavallaMember]

I love, love, love L’Oreal’s Extra Volume Collagen Mascara.  I have used this for years, have tried many other brands and nothing works as good for me as this one.  I get the black one in waterproof.

I also love Revlon’s Photo Finish foundation.  If you have oily skin this will not work for you.

I have also recently tried Milania’s baked bronzer when I ran out of my MAC one.  It is awesome and is very similar to the one MAC makes.  I bought all of these drug store brands at CVS or Walgreens

[JillianMember]

I don’t use a lot of drugstore brands but:

I LOVE Revlons colorstay liquid foundation. It is the only liquid foundation that I can find (tried up tp $100 foundation) that would suit my pink undertones and not be yellow in any way. I use their lightest that is Ivory. It lasts all day, I workout and ride my horses without it budging! A little goes a long way and I will keep buying it as long as Revlon still carries it. A few of their matte lipsticks are also nice but I would not keep buying them over and over again. I mostly go to MAC for lipsticks but will try Too Faced lipsticks next time I’m in Sephora.

Loreal’s mascaras are nice for the price. I used MAC for a while but found their formula was not worth the price. I only ever use drugstore brand mascara now, haven’t found any that are worth $20 plus for them.

[DeelyBopperMember]

I also love the revlon foundation; one of my other faves is the Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation – its great!

Actually anything Rimmel I have tried has turned out to be well worth the money I paid for it, their lipsticks are fab too!

[Katie ZehnderMember]

I think this forum is a great idea! I am just starting to explore various makeup brands, so I don’t have too many opinions! I have recently been using one of NYC’s eyeshadows and I like it. What is everyone’s opinion on Rimmel, NYC, and Hardy Candy brands? also Covergirl, especially their foundation and pressed powder? Other than Palladio does anyone know of a good tinted lip balm?

[shellygrrlMember]

I’ve not used Covergirl for years. Not since I was a teenager, and even then, I think it was just one of the pressed powders that I used. It was alright.

Rimmel ~ I have one of their eyeshadows; it’s not bad. I’ve also used their Glam’Eyes mascara and while I liked the wand, I thought the formula was too wet for me. Their stick concealer is okay. I want to try some of the lip stuff.

Hard Candy ~ I still remember when this was a Sephora brand! (It used to be owned by Urban Decay; now it’s owned by a different company.) They’ve got some fun colours for nail polishes, and their Glamoflage concealer is supposed to be really good (haven’t tried it). I’ve used one of their mascaras as well — the volumizing one. I thought it was too dry a formula, and I’m not a fan of the wand.

For a tinted lip balm, I know Burt’s Bees have some.

[MarinkaMember]

Recently I’ve bought Wet’n'Wild Mega last Liquid lip color. I swear, it looks like famous OCC Lip tars. The same good and thin coverage and no fragrance at all. I hate how lip tars smell. The only thing is not so good is the colors range, but anyway there are some nice pinks and reds to choose from.

P. S. This will dry your lips out, so lips should be in perfect condition.

[Katie ZehnderMember]

Thank you, Shelly for your response! There was one other brand I forgot to mention that I would love to hear people’s opinion’s on. Does anyone have an opinion on L. A. Colors?

[shellygrrlMember]

I’ve not tried that brand.

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