MY TOP FIVE // Drugstore Mascaras

Hey guys!

Similar to a series I did for a short time last year, I want to start doing another 'My Top Five' series. I'll basically be picking a category of products, and choosing what are my personal five favourites in that category. And this week, I've chosen to do drugstore mascaras!

I've noticed recently that I've been using a tonne of high end products in my routine over those from the drugstore - in all areas, except masara! Out of five mascaras sitting in my 'everyday' lot of products, only two or high end. And maybe that doesn't say anything to you, but it definitely says a lot to me! Thats why I thought it was appropriate to start this series off with this particular category, plus its always great to showcase what is truly great from the drugstore.

So in no particular order, here are my picks - keep reading to see my thoughts!

1. L'Oreal Voluminous False Fiber Lashes Mascara // $8.95US

Eeek, not only is the packaging absolutely gorgeous, the product inside is incredible. I'm a massive fan of L'Oreal mascaras - I also love Miss Manga, One Million Lashes, Butterfly Lash, the originial Voluminous and the Extra Volume Collagen - but this one is probably my favourite. It has a slightly curved, bristle brush wand that really lifts and curls my lashes. The formula is also quite dry as well, which I personally love about mascara formulas, because it makes it so easy to build volume. This formula also has small fibres that also help with volume, although I barely notice them within this mascara. Definitely give this a try if you love voluminous, big, coated lashes!

Unfortunately, I could only find this on drugstore.com - they mustn't sell this over here :( (I purchased this from New York when I visited there)

2. Max Factor Masterpiece Max High Volume & Definition Mascara // $24.95

Another favourite brand from the drugstore - Max Factor mascaras have never disappointed me. This has been my personal go to lately, as I have it in the brown shade which looks more natural on me than black mascaras. This just has a straight, plastic brush - but don't let that put you off. I promise you, Max Factor have the best mascaras in the drugstore (and possibly even the high end market) on the same line as L'Oreal.

3. Max Factor Masterpiece Transform High Impact Volumising Mascara // $23.95

Oh goodness, another massive favourite! I recieved this late last year, and it went straight to my top favourite mascaras that I have eye used. The brush is small, plastic and goes up at an angle, with the biggest bristles on the end of the brush. It flares out, so trust me when I saw that this helps push your lashes up a ridiculous amount. I'm almost at the end of my tube, which makes me quite sad really, but I really really love this mascara. I used it, and only it, for months of end before turning to something else!

(If I still owned it, I would also be including Max Factors False Lash Effect Masara - thats also incredible, it's just never in stock when I go to buy it! Can you see how obsessed I truly am with Max Factor mascaras?)

4. Model Co Double Ended Fibre Lash Mascara // $20

I've done a comparison review with this and the Too Faced Better Than False Lashes here - and this mascara won! I have back ups upon back ups of this (I always buy it on sale at Woolies), thats just how good it is. It has the two ends, one with the actual mascara and the other with loose fibres. Unlike other fibre mascaras, this really coats your lashes with the fibres without ever looking clumpy or spidery. It's great for building volume on my lashes without every going overboard!

5. Covergirl Flamed Out Mascara // $14.95

I did another comparison post that featured this and the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara here! This is THE perfect dupe for the Too Faced mascara (which is out of stock a lot of the time, may I add ;) ), and is definitely my favourite Covergirl mascara! The brush is a bristle brush which is flared out on either side to really flare out dem lashes and volumise them. Its so incredibly buildable too, which is why it's really the drugstore version of the Too Faced Better Than Sex. 

And those are my top five drugstore mascaras! Which would have to be your favourites?

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

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review; new covergirl trublend foundation

Hey guys!

In the time since I've been back from Thailand, I've added a new foundation into my rotation. Covergirl recently reformulated their TruBlend foundation, and also added a concealer and powder to their line! I did used to use the original TruBlend back in the day, but I honestly cannot remember how it performed or anything back then - shows how interested in makeup I was! But I have been LOVING this foundation, and it definitely deserves more recognition then it has been getting.

Covergirl seems to be bit hit and miss with their products. Especially in Australia, you don't really hear much about it. But I love their Flamed Out Mascara, Jumbo Lip Crayons, primers and nail polishes - and y'all know I'm always game to try a new foundation.

This won't be a review on the whole line - unfortunately, the powder and concealer are too light for me, but I'm sure they work wonderfully as well. But I will be giving a full overview of the foundation for you, and how it's been working for me over the past three weeks!

The foundation comes in various shades all under a specific skin tone - L, M and D, which I'm assuming mean light, medium and dark. I personally think this is awesome, because it means the foundation can match even darker skin tones which most drugstore brands fail to meet. I'm using L6, which is a tad light and neutral for my skin but I warm it up with bronzer and it looks fine.

It is a thicker foundation, but it blends out like a dream. I've been using my beauty blender with it (all my brushes are dirty - oops!) and the pair are magic together. It gives a medium buildable coverage, and with the beauty blender it doesn't cake whatsoever. It makes my skin looks smooth and even gives me an almost dewy finish. This may be due to the beauty blender, but its definitely my most preferred tool anyway and if it makes it look fantastic, I'll take it!

I've been wearing to work over 8-9 hour days, and it lasts well over those periods. However, it does seem to break up on my nose if I wear it any longer than that, but really I'm usually home by that point about to take it off. Really, it doesn't claim to be long lasting, so whatever - ain't no big deal!

Here is a swatch of the foundation for you:

As you can see, it is a little neutral for my fake tan, but makes my veins and fine lines on my hands almost unnoticeable, but it still looks like skin! For reference, I have normal to dry skin, and most foundations that I have tried work for me and my skin. For those looking to see if it would work with oily skin, I will leave my friend Katina's Instagram here - she has oily skin, and adores this foundation! 

For some reason, I cannot find this online to buy in Australia - the Covergirl website also hasn't been updated and still has the original formula on there. But, it is available to buy in various stores - I've seen it in Priceline and Big W, and although I can't remember RRP, it wouldn't be expensive. Covergirl is a really affordable brand, and in this case I would highly recommend grabbing one of these foundations! Once it's available online, I will update this post and link it for you.

Let me know if you've tried this foundation - or if you have a drugstore foundation that has surprised you!

Until next time...

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner

*These products featured were kindly sent to COAMA HQ for consideration of review. All reviews are 100% honest!

DUPE ALERT: too faced better than sex mascara VS covergirl flamed out masacara

Hey guys!

Today's post will just be a quick little comparison post between two mascaras - one that is one of my all time favourites and the other which is relatively new in my beauty regime, but that I have been loving nonetheless.

I want to take the both of us back to when I first laid my hands on the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara - not only was the packaging destined to be one of my favourites of all time (#pinklife) but the product inside was incredible. This mascara volumises, seperates and lengthens almost as good as my holiest of holy grail mascaras (Dior Diorshow, holla!), plus its pretty decently priced, even in Australia, for a higher end mascara.

Enter the Covergirl Flamed Out mascara.. When I first got my hands on this, I had heard basically nothing about it. I've only ever tried the Lash Blast mascara before, and let's just say it didn't work out well, so I wasn't sure if I would have a great experience with this. However, upon opening the mascara, I noticed the brush was extremely similar to the Too Faced mascara. After using it for about a week, I was convinced that I had possibly found a very close dupe for the ever coveted Better Than Sex mascara.

But you can judge for yourself..

This is a close up of the brushes. Too Faced Better Than Sex is on the left and Covergirl Flamed Out on the right. You can see just how similar the two wands are - both in an hourglass shape, being thicker at the sides and dipping in at the middle, and both are also bristle brush wands, which I personally prefer.

In terms of formula, at first they were a little different. In saying that though, generally most mascaras I have tried are wet at first and change as they dry out. These mascaras followed the same pattern, and as they dried out they became alot more similar. In the photos below, you can see how similar they both apply:

Covergirl Flamed Out Mascara

Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara

Too Faced Better Than Sex (left) and Covergirl Flamed Out (right)

You can see with both the mascaras that they add a ton of volume to your lashes and seperate pretty well with minimal clumping. Honestly, if I didn't know myself that there was a different mascara used on each eye, I would just assume that the product used was exactly the same. I will say though, that after wearing them on my eyes like for this for 5+ hours, the ONLY difference I noticed was that the Too Faced mascara smudged under my eyes, whereas Covergirl stayed put. Something to think about..

You can find the Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara here at Kit Cosmetics for $31.95AU

You can find the Covergirl Flamed Out Mascara here at Priceline for $14.95AU

Hope you enjoyed the comparison, and maybe found a good alternative mascara to use instead of spending double on another ! ;)

What do you think? Are they similar enough for the Covergirl mascara to be a 'dupe'?

Until next time....

xxxx

in between blogging, you can find me here!

instagram: http://instagram.com/beautybybek

twitter: https://twitter.com/bekaaturner