How To: Find Beauty Products on a Budget

discount beauty products on a budget

My first how to is dedicated to those who has a passion or inclination towards buying beauty products.  I have a few tips and tricks I would like to share to further help us all release our inner beauty and creativity without breaking the bank.  I hope you enjoy reading this how to about finding beauty products on a budget and let me know other tips I may have missed!

Part I – Finding Products

Being a Makeup Enthusiast, Makeup Collector, or Makeup Artist may seem like it takes a lot of money to do properly. This does not have to be the case. Everyone starts somewhere and if you don’t have the newest, fanciest, most high-end products on the market do not be discouraged.

I’ve compiled a list of resources to help you get started on your beauty journey. Products are a must, but spending thousands of dollars on them is not. If you haven’t learned anything about me yet, do know I LOVE a good bargain. Let’s get to the list now, shall we?

Drugstore Products –

There are a lot of great beauty gems hidden in the aisles of Walmart, Ulta (drugstore section), CVS/Walgreens, and Target. Do your research before buying (you don’t want to end up wasting money you don’t need to) and you can find dupes for popular high-end products. I recommend the Maybelline Fit Me collection, Sonia Kashuk collection, and almost anything by Makeup Revolution!

All Cosmetics Wholesale –

One of my favorite sites the find discounted products All Cosmetics Wholesale. They have so many great brands including MAC, Urban Decay, NARS, Too Faced, and Smashbox. The last things I bought from here were NARS Sheer Matte Foundation (discontinued) and a bunch of MAC Pigment samples (to press into my own palette). Quite often they run additional discounts on certain categories of products so always check back for a great deal!

Flash Sales –

Hautelook is another amazing site to find discounted products.  You have to sign up to shop (use my referral code here, if you wish) but once you’re in, there are new deals each day. From Hautelook, I’ve purchased quite a large collection of products. Most recently, I’ve purchased Morphe Brushes, Too Faced Romantic Eye Palette, the Lime Crime Venus Palette, and a few Lime Crime Velvetines. Typically, the discounts range anywhere from 20-60% off retail price. There are a few cons to go with these pros – shipping is about $6 if your cart is under $100, there is a 15 minute time limit to hold something in your cart (products go FAST), and there is a long gap between ordering the product and receiving it in the mail.  These things don’t typically bother me, I like receiving surprise shipments because it’s like a gift to myself that I had forgotten about!

Nordstrom Rack –

A majority of the items that are sent to Hautelook eventually end up on the shelves at Nordstrom Rack. But, Nordstrom Rack also gets additional inventory from Nordstrom stores! I recommend going here if you would rather not pay shipping or you want the actual product in hand.  Each location is different but the ones near me generally have a fairly large beauty selection. There is usually a completely separate NYX Cosmetics display, with testers. I have also seen NARS gift sets, Essie nail polishes, smaller Lorac Palettes, Smashbox gift sets, and Bare Minerals sets.

Ebates –

After you’ve made your selections and are ready to make your purchase, check out Ebates to get some money back on your spending. Ebates works by offering a percentage of what you spend back to you in the form of a rebate. Each “store” on it’s website offers a different rebate percentage and Ebates aggregates it all for you. Once you hit your payment threshold, Ebates cuts you a “Big Fat Check” of all the money you earned and you can get back to spending on anything you want! Free cash never hurt, did it?

 

18 Comments

  1. January 28, 2016 / 10:55 am

    Omg these were such great tips, I will for sure take them on board, and girl, I never knew of All Cosmetics Wholesale, I’m straight onto their website haha ♥

    tipscapsule.blogspot.com

  2. January 28, 2016 / 10:56 am

    Awesome tips! I especially love the idea of incorporating in more drugstore tried and true’s and of course Nordstrom Rack – LOVE <3

  3. January 29, 2016 / 9:12 am

    These are some great tips… I love picking up beauty products from Hautelook and Nordstrom Rack. I also think that people love to see reviews on Drugstore products because they are a lot more accessible especially to people who aren’t beauty obsessed.

    Love this post!

  4. January 30, 2016 / 1:13 pm

    This is life, great tips, this post is extremely helpful as im starting out on my new blog venture. Thanks

  5. January 30, 2016 / 1:23 pm

    I raid through my collection every so often, it’s amazing what I find and realise I haven’t blogged about certain items! I find myself stumbling upon drugstore beauty blogs quite a lot, so love reading about drugstore products. Some very helpful tips, thank you xxx

  6. jenny
    January 30, 2016 / 3:12 pm

    Great advice even for more experienced bloggers as well as beginners! I’m always picking up bits and bobs in the sales and get most of my content this way x
    Jenny | Krystel Couture

  7. jenny
    January 30, 2016 / 3:13 pm

    Great advice even for more experienced bloggers as well as beginners! I’m always picking up bits and bobs in the sales and get most of my content this way x

    Jenny | Krystel Couture

  8. January 31, 2016 / 7:44 am

    I love reading posts where bloggers have re-favourites where they discover older products they have xx

    Gemma ♥ | Miss Makeup Magpie

  9. Gabrielle
    January 31, 2016 / 9:33 am

    This is a great guide for those who are heavily into beauty blogging! You make a great point about most likely having a stash of gorgeous products already, seeing as they have an interest in cosmetics to begin with! 🙂

    Gabrielle | A Glass Of Ice
    x

  10. January 31, 2016 / 6:27 pm

    Great tips! All Cosmetics Wholesale and Hautelook have been my go to in terms of makeup shopping forever. Retailmenot and Ebates also help a girl save a little bit more money, and everyone wants to save.

    Tazhiana | tazhiluxe.com

  11. February 1, 2016 / 8:04 pm

    Brilliant tips! I also believe the same applies for fashion blogging… many think that it is expensive to maintain! BUt you can establish a niche target by making posts based on items you already have and how to stretch the use for them!

    xo,
    Abby of Life in the Fash Lane

  12. February 5, 2016 / 8:18 pm

    Budgeting is definitely the hardest part for me. But I tend to hoard gift cards until I find something that I /really/ want and then use it. Or I save until its not a big deal if I spend $50 on a palette. I just bought a car so I’m avoiding any new big purchases!

    xo Jenn | Hello Wench

  13. February 9, 2016 / 1:11 am

    Great post. I love drugstore products, but it’s good to know there is online wholesalers too. 🙂

    Xo,
    Miki
    http://mikialamode.com

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