Swap THIS for THAT: A Guide for the Beauty Maven on a Budget

Being in college and not having tons of money (or sometimes having money but spending it on things necessary to survive, like endless amounts of coffee) has taught me a thing or two about streamlining products and finding things that work well without breaking the bank. For example I used to spend $40 every 3 weeks on foundation. Ridiculous, I realize. But now I've found some alternatives which I can pick up at places like CVS and Target which are everywhere rather than scoping out a Sephora (or even worse, spending a fortune on products and then spending a fortune to have them shipped to my apartment). Mainly, I want to bring light to drugstore products that are pretty equal in quality to their expensive counterparts.

So, let's get started with Swap THIS for THAT

My old foundation:

Not gonna lie, this was an AMAZING  foundation, but the $40 price? Not so much.

Swapped for my new foundation:

For the price of the above foundation, I could get two months worth of these 3 products, which are about $6.99 a piece.

My old bronzer:

I loved this bronzer, but not the price, which hits at around $30.

My new bronzer:

At about $12 and with pigment that isn't too dark and doesn't turn me orange, this baby is  a winner.

My old mascara:

We're talking $24 mascara. Couldn't bring myself to it any more.

My new mascara:

I lovelovelove this mascara and it's  $8 price. 

My old eyeliner:

At about $20-ish, I knew I could get matching quality for a lesser price. 

My new eyeliner:

This is $9 and makes a superfine or a superthick line. Perfect for my daily dose of cat-eye.

My old lip stain:

Spending $15-ish on a product I used only on occasion seemed silly and frivolous.

My new lip stain: 

$6. This is $6. Doesn't get better than that.

As far as blush, I'm still spending beaucoup bucks because I just cannot get myself to part from my lovely NARS shade. For eyeshadow, I've always gone for Maybelline or L'Oreal, because they're a great value and have some pretty awesome color options. 

I hope this proved helpful to you lovelies! 

Wishing you love and fashion (and beauty!) inspiration,

Elise