When I was employed, I got paid on a monthly basis which meant that at the start of every month, this was my life:
Of course, this inevitable lead to this situation come the 30th or 31st of the month:
Now that I am unemployed, this is my life every single day.
Inserting my debit card and waiting anxiously to find out whether it flashes the ‘INSUFFICIENT FUNDS’ alert on the machine is the shittiest casino game.
As some of you may know, my last job was for a beauty blog so I take that shit seriously. At the height of my game, I was rolling in the Benefit, Yves, MUFE, Tarte, Too Faced and life was good. This morning, I went to apply my Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation (the best IMO) and found that only the dregs were left in a small pool at the bottom of the bottle. I’m still using the bottle, obvi. I just have to unscrew the top and then either scoop out the meager leftovers with a Q tip or the end of an eyeshadow brush. Hey, I’m unemployed. And class went out the window a while back.
I’m just dreading the day I reach for my bottle and it’s bone dry with just that crusty layer of foundation on the rim. When that does happen, I will probably crumple into a ball, throw hissy fit and start crying on the bathroom floor because in a state of denial I refused to buy a replacement bottle of $50 foundation that is basically 5 days worth of work lunches for me at the moment. Then I will come into the bedroom and show my boyfriend my poor, dead bottle of UD and scream, ‘MY BBBABBBYYYYYYYYY!’ and then he’ll probably say, ‘I told you the key was for emergencies only.’
JK. But seriously- boys don’t get it. Once you go high end, you can’t go back.
When I first started wearing makeup, I wore CoverGirl’s Clean Foundation which had this awful, thick, cakey formula that oxidized to this orangey shade. But drugstore brands have seriously upped their game of late which means decent quality foundation can be found on the cheap. Good news for us broke ass bitches.
Here are 4 of my favourite drugstore, budget foundations:
1. Revlon PhotoReady Makeup (C$18.99): This foundation is a dupe for Make Up For Ever HD foundation but at half the price. It’s a thicker formula, full coverage, especially great for my bad skin days. It dries to a matte, even toned finish which can be a bit drying so be sure to use a good primer and moisturizer.
2. CoverGirl Outlast Stay Fabulous 3-in-1 Foundation (C$12.49): When you are unemployed, you spend a lot of time wandering around. For all that wandering, you need a good, long lasting foundation.
3. Revlon Nearly Naked Makeup (C$11.99): Similar to Urban Decay’s Naked Foundation (again, totes my fave), this foundation is lightweight and perfect for warmer seasons. It has a natural finish which means that it is on the sheerer coverage spectrum but paired with a good concealer looks subtle but covers blemishes and evens skin tone.
4. Bourjois Healthy Mix Gel Serum Foundation (C$27.00): Okay, so this one kind of passes on a technicality but even though it is on the pricier side, it is sold at a drugstore and compared with the $50+ foundations, it is more affordable. Bourjois makes a great formula, not cakey, natural and really moisturizing. It is illuminating and helps cover blemishes but I don’t know how much clout I give to the whole ‘anti-oxidant’, ‘fruit radiance, erasing signs of fatigue’ marketing angle.
Give me more recommendations for inexpensive, budget friendly foundations and let me know if you want more drugstore recos for skincare, makeup and more!
Yes Way, Taipei! 