Today I'm coming at you with a master list of all my current favorite drugstore makeup products and tools. I've organized everything by category and how I use it. Most of these are products I've used and loved for years, so they've endured tons of wear and made it into my golden circle of affordable makeup gems. In the descriptions, I share how I use each product, what shades I use, and some tips on using some things in unexpected ways.
Eyes
Morphe eyeshadow: I know that Morphe isn't necessarily considered a "drugstore" brand since it isn't actually sold at the drugstore, but the products are at a drugstore price point, so I categorize it along with drugstore makeup. I have faithfully used Morphe eyeshadow palettes since college when my roommate turned me onto them, and the quality for the price makes them my favorite to this day. My tried-and-true palette has been recently discontinued, but the 9T Neutral Territory and 18T Truth or Bare palettes are both similar color schemes, and probably what I'll replace mine with when it runs out.Makeup Geek eyeshadow quad: I had never seen Makeup Geek in a store until Target started carrying it, but I'd heard beauty YouTubers hype it up for years. This is an AMAZING little eyeshadow quad, especially for the price! It's super pigmented and nice and small for when you want a no-fuss look, especially while traveling.
Colourpop Super Shock shadows: These single shadows are amazing, and great to supplement a palette you already have. The glittery ones are truly stunning, my favorite shade is "Ladybird" and I use it on the inner half of my lid almost every day. I recommend applying these with your fingertip for maximum pigmentation.
Morphe M441: I want to start by saying that Morphe makes GREAT brushes. I've had all of my Morphe brushes for 4-5 years and they've held up well with daily use and many washes. This is a great larger blending brush for eyeshadow, I typically use it to set concealer on my lids before going in with a colored shadow.
Morphe M433: This is another great blending brush. It's a little smaller than the M441, and pinched at the base so the bristles are arranged in sort of an oval.
Morphe M461: This brush is about the same size and shape of the M441, but has a different fiber composition. I use this brush to blend out my transition shade.
e.l.f. eyeshadow brush: This is a nice brush for applying a wash of shadow across your whole lid. I use it to apply shimmery shades on my lid after putting darker shades in my crease.
Ulta crease brush: This brush is ideal for highlighting the brow bone, that's all I use it for. The type of fibers aren't necessarily great for applying super pigmented shades, but they're perfect for shimmers.
Morphe highlight & contour sponge: I use this sponge for only one thing (and it's not foundation): creating a straight line of powder to catch fallout when doing my eye makeup. I pack transluscent powder onto the flat edge of the sponge and use it to create a line between the outer corner of my eye and the outer point of my eyebrow. I do my eyeshadow as normal and then just dust the powder along with any fallout off when I'm done. This sponge is the perfect shape to do so, and helps create a straight line of eyeshadow on the outer corner of the eye for a cleaner, cat eye look as opposed to a blown out, smoky look.
e.l.f. mist and set: I always use this with shimmery shadows to amplify the pigmentation. Just apply the shadow to the brush, spritz it with the mist and set, and apply it to the eye. It makes shimmery shades stick better and show up so much brighter.
Mascara
L'Oreal Lash Paradise mascara: This is my favorite mascara of all time, end of story. I've tried expensive ones, and none of them are as good in my opinion. This one is volumizing but not clumpy, lengthening but not dry, and comes in regular and waterproof.L'Oreal Telescopic mascara: Because I'm high maintenance, I have a specific mascara for my bottom lashes. The formula of this one is great, but what really sells it for me is the skinny little wand. It's the perfect size for coating small bottom lashes and bringing some life to your undereye.
Brows
L'Oreal Colour Riche eyeshadow in "Cafe au Lait": This is an eyeshadow, but it's the only product I've ever used and loved in my brows. It's a nice ashy brown that's perfect for my hair color and skin tone, and I think it would work well for blondes too. It lasts so much longer than a brow pencil for me, I got my mom turned onto it too.e.l.f. eyelash & brow wand: Just a cheap spoolie brush for getting all of your brow hairs on the same page before filling them in.
e.l.f. small angled brush: This is just your everyday run-of-the-mill angled brush, but it does the job to fill your brows in with powder. It's by no means the most precise brush and I wouldn't use it with a cream brow product, but it works just right for powder.
Face
Maybelline Fitme! concealer: I've heard great things about this concealer as an under eye concealer, but I use it as a lid concealer to prime before putting on eyeshadow, or even alone on a no makeup makeup day. I also use it to spot-conceal blemishes throughout the face because the doe foot applicator is easy to dot product on. I use shade "10 Fair."Maybelline Instant Age Rewind concealer: This is the concealer that I use underneath my eyes, and it's just lovely! It dries down matte to an almost powdery finish, and I don't have an issue with it creasing (although all concealer creases some in my experience). It provides great brightening and covers any dark circles. I use the very lightest shade, "100 Ivory." I have a love-hate relationship with the applicator. The sponge tip makes it easy to stamp on underneath the eye, but it isn't good for super precise areas. I feel like some of the product gets stuck in the applicator so you can't fully use it up, which is a shame! But other than that, the actual concealer is great.
Wet n Wild Photo Focus loose setting powder: I love this inexpensive loose setting powder. I use the translucent shade, but it also comes in a banana shade. I use this to set my (non-drugstore) tinted primer, my concealer, and my eye primer. I also use it to do the eyeshadow trick I explained with the Morphe sponge above.
Sleek MakeUP highlight palette: I LOVE THIS HIGHLIGHT PALETTE. I saw it on Jaclyn Hill's Snapchat years ago and pretty much haven't used any other highlighter since. I use the shade "Solstice," and there are a few other shades for different skin tones. Solstice in particular has a cream shade that I rarely use, and three powder shades that I mix and use every time. The shades are peachy, light yellow, and lavender, but none of them come off colored on the skin, they just create a beautiful, wet-looking glow.
Physician's Formula Butter bronzer: I wasn't a bronzer girl in the past, but I did my own makeup for my wedding so I started dabbling in bronzer last summer and now I can't do my makeup without it. This is a super popular drugstore bronzer, and there's a reason. It provides a beautiful bronze glow, has a generous amount of product, and even has a delicious coconutty scent. I use the original "bronzer" shade, but it comes in five other shades (I could probably use to switch to a lighter, more cool-toned shade to be honest, but I wanna look tan, damn it).
Real Techniques mini sponges: These mini sponges are perfect for concealer under the eyes, as well as spot concealing throughout the face. I don't wear regular foundation, so concealer is about as full-face as I go. I use these damp to apply concealer, and also to use powder to set areas that I've concealed with powder.
Real Techniques blush brush: This is a blush brush, but I actually use it for loose setting powder. It's super big and fluffy, a little too large and sparse for blush in my opinion, but perfect for dusting a light layer of loose powder.
Ecotools blending and bronzing brush: I use this brush for its intended purpose: blending bronzer. It has varying lengths of bristles, which helps keep you from going overboard with product and keep your bronzer blown out and natural looking.
e.l.f. blush brush: Another blush brush whose use I have gone rogue on: I actually use this one for highlighter. The bristles aren't super stiff and don't pick up TOO much product, so it's perfect for dusting highlighter over your cheeks and temples to create a strobing effect.
Lips
Maybelline lipstick: This is my favorite lipstick ever! It's super inexpensive, has a beautiful color selection, and has a variety of finishes. The shade Nude Nuance, is my favorite lipstick shade of all time, including luxury lipsticks that I have. I wore it for my wedding and if I could only choose one lipstick to use for the rest of my life, it'd be this one. I also really like Nude Lust, which is a good nude that isn't too bright and pigmented, and has a creamy, almost satin finish. Brown Blush is another favorite; it's the same matte finish as Nude Nuance, but has more of a deep rose undertone.Soap & Glory plumping gloss: This gloss is not for the faint of heart - if you don't like plumping glosses, you won't like this. It has a crazy tingling sensation, but doesn't hurt in my opinion. I don't know if it *actually* plumps, but the tingling feeling makes me feel like it's working so that's good enough for me. It comes in several shades, my favorites are "Sugar Spun" and "Plums Up."
e.l.f. plumping gloss: This is another great drugstore "plumping" gloss. It has a long doe foot applicator that picks up a lot of product. Again, I don't know how much it actually plumps, but this one has a nice minty cooling sensation. "Champagne Glam" is my favorite shade, it's sheer and shiny with a hint of shimmer.
That's it for today! Do you have any drugstore makeup gems that I need to try out? I'd love to hear them! Let me know if you try any of my favorites - I've used most of them for years and I truly stand by all of them!
xoxx, Laura
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