cosmetics

I did a drugstore makeup challenge

May 8, 2013 By Frugie 3 Comments

I’m a makeup snob. But I’m also a makeup junkie. So if there’s a chance there’s something just as good out there, but at a fraction of the cost- I’ll try it.

How I wish I had this knowledge last summer when we went to Hawaii and I forgot to pack my makeup!

So I made a video to show my application and to compare the high end matches to the low end dupes. Check below for a product list.

And let me tell you- I was pleased!

NYX Eyeshadow Base

Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal 24 Hour

L’Oreal Infallible Eyeshadow Bronzed Taupe

Wet N Wild Kohl Pencil- Black

NYX eyeshadow- Nude

Milani Blush- Luminoso

NYC Bronzer- Sunny 720

Boots No7 Photo Fix Primer

L’Oreal Concealer Crayon- W1/2

Laura Gellar eyebrow pencil- taupe

Rimmel lipstick- 110

Revlon Colorstay in Nude 200

Maybelline liquid master liner- black

Elf Makeup Remover Pen

Brushes- ELF, MAC, Sonia Kashiuk, Samantha Chapman

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: beauty, beauty videos, cosmetics, Department store vs Drugstore makeup, Drugstore dupes, Frugalista Blog Makeup Tutorial, makeup, makeup tutorials, Vlog

Makeup for 40 year olds (or anyone that isn’t 20)

May 3, 2013 By Frugie 17 Comments

Today’s blog post is a video.

So many folks ask me about makeup, so I’m sharing my wisdom and expertise. Let’s use those phrases loosely for me, ‘kay?

Grab a cup of something good, take notes, and enjoy a long (it’s 29 minutes!) session on makeup with me.

Tell me what you like, or what you don’t like about it and I’ll use that for my next video. I say things like, “just slap that on” or “go to town with …” it’s entertaining, I promise.

MAC Prolongwear foundation N18

MAC Prolongwear concealer NW20

MAC Mylar eyeshadow

MAC Ombre eyeshadow

Lord & Berry Kohl pencil- black

Maybelline Volume Express The Rocket Mascara- Black

Laura Gellar Eyebrow Pencil- Taupe

FLOWER lipstick LS2

MAC Mineralize skin finish in Light

Milani Blush Luminoso

No7 Photo Primer wrinkler filler

Dior Skin Nude Tan Bronzer

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: beauty, Beauty Blender sponge, cosmetics, Dior Cosmetics, humor, Laura Geller Beauty, MAC cosmetics, makeup, makeup industry, makeup over 40, makeup tutorial, Sisley Paris, Urban Decay Primer Potion, Youtube Frugalistablog

Mother/Daughter blind make up challenge

March 9, 2013 By Frugie 4 Comments

What happens when you take a Youtube trend and put me in a blind fold and Emma trusts me completely with mascara? This is what you get: hilarious.

Yes, my daughter has a Youtube channel and she kicks my BUTT when it comes to editing. Do me a favor and subscribe to her- she’ll be so glad just to get the extra numbers. http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGZj4vomL5Vfa2vAbb-Vq0Q?feature=g-high-u

Check out the video. You guessed it, I put make up on HER while I’m wearing a blindfold.

Filed Under: Beauty, Humor Tagged With: blog, cosmetics, EmmaBumblebea channel, Emmabumblebea Youtube, entertainment, humor, Youtube Frugalistablog

Contributing today In The Powder Room

March 7, 2013 By Frugie 1 Comment

Okay ladies and gents, (mostly ladies) because I’m talking product! I LURV me some product.

I’ve got some enticing tips and items for your shopping list.

So let’s all get excited for EYE CREAM!

And read my post here- Eye cream, eye cream, We all scream for eye cream!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: beauty, cosmetics, Eye Cream, Frugie explains eye cream, humor, In the Powder Room, products, skin care, we all scream for eye cream

Concealers. Am I doing it right?

February 25, 2013 By Frugie 9 Comments

Okay, I explained the ins and outs of BB creams recently. You can read that here if you haven’t already. Now, I’m approaching the confounding and vexing world of …dun dun dun…. CONCEALERS.

Perhaps maybe it’s not as vexing and confounding as say, eye creams (I’ll tackle this next time), or brain surgery. I mean, this is just make up folks. But if even celebrities can do it wrong on the red carpet, what are little people like us to make of all this mumbo jumbo?

Here’s what I learned:

Don’t go with a lighter color than your face. What? Oh, Frugie- you been smoking again? No. Here’s why.

Raccoon eyes, you do not want. Now you don’t want dark shadows (sorry, Johnny Depp not included), but you don’t want white strips under there either. See awful pic above.

You want to MATCH your skin tone and foundation. Yep, your foundation and concealer should be pretty much the same shade. Now I’ll tell you a trick to use with either a lighter concealer or a handy dandy HIGHLIGHTER product.

Now, not only did I just blow your mind with telling you to match your concealer color, but here’s the really confusing part- the formula.

Are you crepey and wrinkled like me? Do you have extra dark bluish circles? Are you oily and are looking for blemish cover too? Or maybe all three? Hey- it’s possible.

Here’s my faves and what I like about them. I’ll give you high-end and drugstore brands to pick from. Personally, this is where my extravagant hussy self comes out. I will spend more on a concealer than most other things. You really do get what you pay for. But there’s some decent ones out there in all price points.

Let’s just cut to the chase people. You want the best? Here it is. Beauty editors are not lying when they talk about this stuff:

Cle de peau. Pronounced Kla deh Poe. Or Klee dee poo if you’re immature like me.

This stuff is $70. Yep, you just have to sell half a kidney and you are set. But, it lasts more than a year. Really.

It’s creamy, blends, doesn’t crepe, covers well. Doesn’t break me out. Yeah. It’s the BOMB!

Now I did in my investigative shopping, find a close second in terms of low-end brand. What the industry calls, a DUPE. Yep, here’s my pick for a fraction of the cost.

L’Oreal True Match Super Blendable concealer crayon. It’s around 8 bucks (I got mine for $7 at Target) and it works pretty darn good. And it has a point for getting in the corners of my eyes.

Others that I’ve tried and my opinions:

Milani Secret Cover concealer cream- Covered well, less than $10, but it was drying for me. Showed up crepey after a few hours.

Chanel Corrector Perfecteur long lasting concealer. This comes as a wand and it is nice. I found it at Costco of all places! I think it’s not the best coverage for me. I’m very dark under my eyes.

CoverGirl + Olay concealer balm- I didn’t like this. The light was too dark and it sunk into my lines. No thanks.

Maybelline Age Eraser Dark Spot + Concealer and Treatment- not bad. This goes on any spot on your face and heals or fades it. I didn’t really use it under my eyes so much as just some discoloration spots. It’s okay. Not as good as a high-end product, but better than nothing.

Hard Candy Glamoflauge Heavy Duty Concealer. Oh boy do they mean it! This was cheap, found it at Wal-mart, and it covers like a beast! Kat Von D makes one at Sephora that is similar. It’s for covering scars and tattoos. Both are effective. The Kat Von D costs more but a little goes a long way.

Highlighters-

This is what I was talking about above. You want to take match your concealer, remember? But you want to highlight UNDER your concealer. This gives more fullness to the cheekbone, distracts from your bags or circles and brings your face up like a lift.

The product that does this-

YSL Touche Eclat Radiant Touch- Sorry folks, another high-end product. It’s $40 and I LURV it! I put it everywhere. On my cheekbones, over my lips, corner of my eyes, my forehead. It’s perfect. You can use this as a concealer too. It’s just a little lighter texture, so I like others to help cover with more thickness.

A question of ‘to powder or not to powder’ remains. I don’t powder under my eyes. It just makes for crepey-ness. If you are 20 and line free and perfect, go ahead! I usually blot or take a q-tip to wipe away any excess. I’m just too old to powder and then it ages me.

So there is my 411 on concealers. Maybe different than what you’ve read in magazines or seen on Beauty Editor lists. But I try everything. And I’m constantly looking for the perfect one. I’ll keep you posted if I find anything I like better than that fancy pants Cle De Peau.

There. Isn’t that purdy?

Filed Under: Beauty, Humor Tagged With: beauty, Beauty Editor, beauty industry, Cle De Peau, cosmetics, Frugalista blog reveals concealers, highlighters, humor, makeup, product. concealers, YSL Touche Eclat

Frugie explains BB creams

February 16, 2013 By Frugie 9 Comments

“Hey Rebecca, what’s a BB cream and how do I use it and why do I need one?”

That’s a great question. Let me answer-

A BB cream, or Beauty Balm, or Blemish Balm, is a moisturizer with SPF that was formulated in Asia to perfect complexions. Women in Asia want perfect, porcelain skin. So these creams improve skin tone and texture and have anti-aging ingredients, but also cover imperfections.

So which to choose? EVERY brand out there has a BB cream. From high end department stores, to your drug store selection- there’s a BB cream for you.

A couple things to know-

Shades are general, so not every shade or brand works for every body. Some are too white, some are too orange.

It can be used instead of makeup if you like a natural, buildable coverage.

They make great primers to use before foundation.

Yes, they’re a moisturizer but don’t wear them to bed, they will mess up your pillow cases and SPF isn’t very good to wear at night anyway.

Let’s get started.

Here I am before and after I applied BB Cream.

I’m wearing Hanskin in Natural that can be found at Beautybar.com

Drugstore brands to try-

Garnier- This comes in lighter shades and works well with pale complexions. I like the consistency, coverage and if you like a dewy finish, this is a good one.

L’oreal- They are making several. There’s Magic Skin BB cream, Youth Code BB cream and Age Perfect BB cream.

I’ve only tried the Magic Skin BB cream. I admit, this was a little orangey for me. It has a dryer consistency so if you are a little darker, and tend to be oily, this could be for you.

Maybelline makes one called Dream Fresh BB cream. This one is also a little orangey. I think it’s great for a younger complexion that’s more medium complected.

Revlon- Photo Ready BB Cream- I liked this one, but found others to have better coverage. I like thicker, more opaque creams, so this didn’t do it for me. If you like natural, sheer tint- you’ll like this. Also, the undertones are neutral, so I think most fair complexions can do this one.

Department Store brands-

Smashbox Camera Ready- good stuff, good coverage, neutral/yellow undertones. A little more drying on my skin. (Sephora.com)

Hanskin BB cream- This one is my favorite. Emollient, lots of coverage and the right shade. (Beautybar.com)

Shiseido - Anessa face sunscreen SPF 50- I love the high SPF on this, it’s for very fair complexions, but I found it dried out my skin a little. (Sasa.com)

Dr. Ci Labo- Perfect Cream Light- This one is a great sunblock, neutral shade and leaves my skin dewy. My second favorite.

BRTC Jasmine Water BB Cream- Light, smells like jasmine and is great for normal skin. Lots of coverage from this one, but not thick feeling. My daughter wears this to school for sun protection and to cover her freckles. (Becleo.com)

If you’re feeling adventurous, check out that Sasa.com website. Products come from Japan and they have thousands of BB creams to choose from. Or don’t, if you will get overwhelmed!

Every major line, Clinique, Estee Lauder, Dior, Bobbi Brown… makes a BB cream. Ask for a sample at Nordstrom. Or go to Sephora and ask for samples there. There’s tons to try.

The drug store brands are cheaper, but you run the risk of the shade or texture not being just right. Of course, that happens with any drug store product. It’s kind of hit or miss.

Also, don’t be too hung up on the color if you’re using it before foundation. It won’t matter if it’s too light anyway. Unless you’re using it alone, do you really need to match.

I really do love them.

And don’t worry, the BB cream bandwagon will soon be replaced by something else sooner or later. So if you miss this train, another one will pull in the station eventually!

Buy my book!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: BB Creams, beauty, cosmetics, Frugie explains bb creams, makeup, Nordstrom, Sephora, skincare

I’d like a side of herpes to go with that lipstick please.

October 8, 2012 By Frugie 8 Comments

EWW GROSS! I jest. But lately, I think that’s what people are doing. Spreading their oral herpes liberally via makeup at the store. This has to stop people.

This week has been riddled with bringing things home from the store only to find that they have been…. dun dun dun…… USED!!!

People! What is wrong with you? Don’t you know that you don’t use the lipsticks on the shelf if they aren’t testers? I don’t want your Abreva medicine on MY lipstick tube.

Case 1- Went to Walgreens because I found on Pinterest a gal that posts low end brands identical to high end brands. Being the makeup whore that I am, I wanted to check out a few. So I’m perusing the shelves of Cover Girl, Revlon and L’Oreal. Not that I would call this stuff ‘low end’ any more. They’re charging $10 for a lipstick now! Geeze, I remember when I bought a Clinique lipstick for $10.

Well, I just went through looking for the colors on my list, dropped them in my basket and checked out.

I get in my car, like any junkie does, and begin to open up my purchase to check out the loot. Apparently, I didn’t have much to check out, first tube I open, I notice the seal has been broken. Dammit. Total brain fart maneuver for me not to have checked this in the store first. I proceed with caution. I know the herpes isn’t going to jump from the tube to my lips, but I’ve now begun conducting my own CSI investigation. Gloves on, black light out…. I notice…. the surface of the lipstick has been touched by human flesh. Double dammit.

Moving on to the next tube. Yep, same thing there.

Three items that I bought were contaminated. I went inside to check the shelf and the remaining products were also tampered with. WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?? I pointed out to the Walgreens lady and she said that she’s tired of telling people to stop using the stuff because they get mad at her. Sounds like a fun job. Working at Walgreens AND getting stink eye looks from people tampering with merchandise.

Whatever happened to, ‘you mess it you buy it’? Although, I have knocked over 3 bottles of olive oil in the middle of Cost Plus World Market, and the mess that ensued was disastrous. How I’m even allowed in those stores at all is amazing. I was relieved they didn’t hold me to the rule, “you break it, you buy it” during that incident.

Back to my infected product rant- later in the week, Emma and I are at Sephora killing time before we head in to a movie. I see two women over at the mirror with a Givenchy mascara tester, yes tester, thank goodness. BUT… and I mean a big BUT, they were putting it on directly from the TUBE using the WAND that comes with it. Anyone knows you use those little mini wands they have at the end caps and you only dip ONCE. No DOUBLE DIPPING. Now that tester has their conjunctivitis all over it.

I used to work at Clinique with Nordstrom. If you are at all familiar with Nordstrom’s liberal return policies, they take back ANYTHING. Well, they did in the 90s anyway. So people would return make up all the time. No biggy. That’s cool. And you can use it and decide you don’t like it and still return it. My favorite though were the customers that would nicely hand me the package, receipt, everything. Then I would ask if there something wrong with it. You know, to utilize my skillful customer service skillz, because I was supposed to try and sell them something else. Hey, I worked on commission.

So they would say, no thanks, and then they would explain rather sheepishly, “I only used the lipstick once.” or “I only used the eye pencil once.”

And I would politely carry on with my uber friendly customer service. But in my head, the dialogue goes like this, “Oh, you only used it once? Well then I will put that in the USED ONLY ONCE DRAWER. We have a special discount for once used products. Like a roulette wheel of sorts. Great bargains!”

But I didn’t. I just smiled. I don’t care if you’ve used it ONCE or 43 times, that shit is going back to the manufacturer. Should I wipe it off and sell it to the next poor sod? No.

So that brings me to the Walgreens lipsticks. When I saw them in my car that they had been used, I totally thought of some nice lady, “I only used it once.” And then I pictured a puss-filled broken sore on her upper lip, and that’s why I returned them.

Lesson 1- Don’t use products on the shelves that are packaged specifically for tampering. If it’s sealed, don’t unseal it dammit!

Lesson 2- When using a tester, use the little doohickeys they provide and don’t double dip.

Lesson 3- I will never use a mascara at Sephora again.

Please don’t use makeup at the store if you have one of these.

Disclaimer- Do not google images of herpes or conjunctivitis. It will ruin you. There are some things that can’t be unseen.

I also do not believe that every single person who has used a tester at Sephora is contaminated or infected. This is just merely exaggeration for the sake of the blog people.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: beauty, conjuctivitis, cosmetics, herpes, humor, people, rant, sarcasm, satire, tamper, used product, Walgreens

Welcome to the party, and why the hell am I called Frugalista?

March 20, 2012 By Frugie 12 Comments

I want to just fess up and say that I think my blog name is stupid. I remember 6 months ago when I was coming up with my whole blog in the first place, I wanted a name that was cool like The Bloggess. I was also a little intimidated because this was my first blog and I was very self conscious about my writing. I really just threw caution to the wind and jumped in like people do for those Polar Bear plunges jumping in icy waters. Crazy! I say, crazy! So needless to say, I wasn’t going to name my blog Her Royal Highness, the Blog Writer. Now I’m kinda wishing I did. Because, I feel like I can do anything. I practically wear a cape when I write. I feel invincible.

But I won’t kid you- criticism is totally my kryptonite.

Okay, so I’m not Superwoman. Or Wonder Woman. I couldn’t fit into those hot pants. But the boots are pretty cool… I might rock those cuffs pretty good too….

I'm sure most of you men are thinking, 'why is that picture so friggin' small?'.

I fall into the category of mommy blogger. For obvious reasons because I’m a mom, I write about my ‘stay at home’ adventures of car pool and bed times. The name Frugalista came to me because it seemed a good play on words for my savvy bargain hunting and my desire to be at Paris Fashion Week. So for those that are new to this page- now you know.

Remember that FRIENDS episode where Rachel makes the Christmas dessert trifle from a magazine recipe and the pages get stuck together? She puts meat inside the trifle because she thought that was part of the recipe. I’m that meaty center. Unexpected, maybe tasty, maybe not your cup of tea, but unique. So there.

I do blog about shopping and things I like. I like sharing what makes me happy. I am NOT a couponer. I’m like those new Ellen JCPenney commercials- no coupons on this padre!

So between the bitching about my husband, my kids, random people in the news, my obsession with movies… you know- I like to talk about great shopping deals, makeup, and cute little fashion finds. But I also have to pretend to my husband that I don’t shop EVER, except for groceries. All that makeup, clothes and shoes, procreate like Gremlins after midnight in my closet. Right?

Despite what the calendar says, it is not Spring here yet. It’s between the 30s and 40s for a high in these great northwest parts. So I’m ready to bust out my spring looks but hate hypothermia, so I’m still in fleece, wool and Goretex.

If I WERE to get all fashiony, these are my gems of what I’m excited about-

Colored denim. At first I was like all, you won’t catch me in yellow jeans. But then I saw a couple friends in cute skinny jeans that were colored and they looked SO cute. So I got a pair of cobalt blue. Hey, it’s close to denim right? So bright blue it is with a pop of orange or teal, oh, and some cute wedges and a pedi…. oh Spring, just GET HERE ALREADY!

WANT!

It's like Skittles for pants.

Scarves- I’m obsessed with scarves. I have more scarves than Imelda Marcos has shoes. Well, not quite. Maybe more scarves than Paris Hilton has chihuahuas. I have plenty of warm weather, cold weather and all the weather in between scarves. I like something soft and lightweight around my neck (ha ha, no, not a dog collar thankyouverymuch). Even when it’s warm out, having a light weight scarf can serve several purposes- helps shield the sun from your decollete and keeps off the chills if the a/c is cranked somewhere.

Look how pretty and bright that is!

I bought at least three at H&M. They have wonderful prices and lots of great neutrals. I got a bright orange one at Nordstrom that was less than $20. I’m thinking it’s like my personal piece of sunshine to take with me wherever I go!

Next, let’s talk product-

Beauty Balms- For the ultra product-savvy, you know what these are. The industry calls them BB creams. For those that don’t know- these are like a tinted moisturizer that have SPF, primer, and brightening properties all in one product. They come on the really high-end like Dior- to the first ever at the drugstore brand- Garnier. I have yet to try the Garnier one, it’s sold out wherever I go. But the Dior one is great and so is one by Boscia. Some have one tint fits all, some have shades. If you are a less is more person- this is for you. You’ll get some coverage and sun protection in one product. Bam! You’re welcome.

Hair products-

There’s a line of products out there by ALTERNA called Bamboo. I love their glossing creams and root sprays. They seem to have what the label promises, organic ingredients and I seem to be going back to them even though my bathroom looks like a Sephora store.

Find this at Ulta or Sephora.

Entertainment-

Yeah, I’m the queen of TV. Although, it seems as much TV as I watch, people will ask if I’m watching a show and I realize I haven’t been. So I know that I’m not watching EVERY show out there. Even though it seems that way to my husband.

GCB- the new show on ABC with Kristen Chenoweth, who I love! It’s over the top, ridiculous and campy. Perfect for me! Check it out!

And yes, she does sing on the show!

So there you have it. Like a little dish of candy all served up nice and sweet. Thanks for joining me. Tune in next week when I write about…. wait for it…. PMS- just like always. Okay, I don’t really know if I will, but 8 out of 10 posts seem to deal with that, so there’s a good chance of it in the forecast.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Bamboo, BB Creams, blog, Blog names, blogging, colored denim, cosmetics, entertainment, Frugalista, Garnier BB Cream, GCB, Kristen Chenoweth, light weight scarves, random, shopping, spring, spring fashion, spring trends, writing

Am I too old for Cosmo?

January 6, 2012 By Frugie Leave a Comment

A recent article online featured trends that women love but men hate.

I’m going to say, most women I know, don’t care for them either. Unless this article got their stats from Cosmopolitan or Seventeen magazine, then I’m pretty sure, no one I know is sporting any of these trends soon.

Here’s the article:

Make up Women Love but Men Hate

I will be turning 40 this year. I’m good with this. There are parts of me I would like to trade with my 20 year old self and then preserve them forever by means of exercise, diet or habits. But that’s not going to happen. If I could talk to my 20 year old self, I would say, work out because the skinny doesn’t last and the flabbier you are, the more it sags with time. I would also say to that 20 year old self, stop trying to get a tan! Ahh youth, wasted on the young, right?

Most of my friends are in their 30s and 40s as well. So last I checked, no one I knows wears neon lipstick, bold eyeshadow or thick, cakey makeup. Where does Yahoo get their stories from? Who are these women that ‘love’ these looks?

My day pretty much consists of- my home, the bus stop, one of my kids’ schools, a PTA meeting, a trip to Target or the gym, and maybe coffee with a friend. So unless I’m sporting glitter at the PTA meeting, I’m not partaking in the latest make up trend. I guess I could start wearing glitter to PTA meetings and then everyone will wonder if I’ve started moonlighting as one of those bikini baristas or something to earn some extra money.

This really brings out my eye color.

How's this for a natural 'day' look?

Confession-

I DO have a subscription to Cosmopolitan. I have to hide it from my kids. It’s embarrassing. And let me just say, the only reason I have it, is because I got a Groupon and the subscription was 12 months for $10. I figured I could benefit from the bedroom advice, and maybe beauty articles. Obviously, I am not the demographic this magazine writes for! I am not 20, I don’t have a boyfriend I’m looking to snag, I do have children, and I don’t need advice on a pushy boss that is out to get me. Most everything in these pages is over the top. Am I that much of a prude or am I just acting my age?