Drugstore Makeup That FEELS EXPENSIVE

Hey guys, I hope you're all having a great day so far. Today I wanted to tell you about some drugstore products that really give you that luxe, high-end experience. And when I say high-end experience, I think you know what I mean. I'm not just talking about the performance of the product, although of course that is important. These products do perform to me on the level of high-end makeup, but at the same time, it's also about the packaging, the presentation, the textures, all of it just has that expensive feel to it, even though it's not. And I feel like I've just discovered some really top-notch drugstore makeup lately, so that is what I wanted to share with you today. Before we get into it, a reminder to hit the thumbs up button and subscribe to my channel if you haven't already. I do upload at least three videos every week, so I'd love to see you back soon for more content like this. Also, if you would like to go above and beyond in supporting me, I do also have a Patreon and YouTube memberships. They both offer the same perks, but I just have both so that you can pick whichever is more convenient for you. But if you want to see even more of me, I do upload a bonus video over there every month, and it's a great way for you to just support my channel. So would love to have you over there as well. And let's just get into these drugstore gems. I'm really excited to share these today. So here we have one that is definitely not that new to my collection, but the more I use it, the more I just, I really can't believe the price on this and the fact that this is from e.l.f. This is the e.l.f. Halo Glow Setting Powder. They make this in a few shades. I have the shade light, which is really more of a translucent, off-white kind of color. But this is such a finely milled, loose powder. I use this for my under eyes. I use it all over the face. It feels completely weightless on your skin. It doesn't give you that tight, dry feeling that some powders do. You can get by with just a little bit of this, and it'll set your makeup into place. Because it's called the Halo Glow Powder, you might think that maybe it's gonna have some kind of shimmer to it, but it really doesn't. When I swatch this on my hand, I don't see any shimmer particles or anything like that. I don't even really see any kind of pearlescent glow to it. It's so subtle, the glow. Really, it just kind of lets your skin's natural glow show through while still creating a smooth, velvety finish at the same time. So for me, that's what makes this so special and what makes it feel more expensive than it is is because they somehow managed to get that really just lit-from-within glow with this product without actually putting any kind of shimmer into it. Because I have had other drugstore loose powders, and even another one from e.l.f., the HD Powder in Soft Luminance, which I really liked for a long time. This one is just better. It just feels even more luxurious than the HD Powder. So highly recommend that powder if you haven't tried it yet, especially if you have dry skin. But even if you don't have dry skin, I think you would like this too. Another product from e.l.f., this is the only other product from e.l.f. I'm gonna share in this video, because I do think a lot of e.l.f. products, even if they're good, they don't necessarily feel high-end. It's a rare e.l.f. product that really does feel expensive. But these eyeshadow sticks from e.l.f., these are their No Budge Eyeshadow Sticks. These feel luxe to me. The packaging, the way that they match the color of the packaging to the eyeshadow itself, that feels more expensive to me. But also just the way that these shadow sticks perform is so impressive. So I actually started out with just the shade Magnetic Pull, and I now have two more. I actually got these via iHerb. I recently did a campaign, a sponsored campaign with them, and I was able to pick out whatever I wanted from their site. So I decided to pick up two more of these shadow sticks because I love this formula so much. So these really don't budge. They don't crease. And I am a very crease-prone eyeshadow person. The only time that these will crease is, let's say you have a really emollient sunscreen or moisturizer on your eyelids, and then you go directly in with these. They are probably gonna crease as a result of that sunscreen, which actually I've noticed is probably why I often get eyeshadow, a little bit of eyeshadow creasing, even if I do wear an eyeshadow primer underneath my eyeshadow. So what I've started doing to combat that, I do put sunscreen on my eyelids just a little bit because I do want to protect that skin too. But I will just dust a little bit of face powder on top to kind of soak up the oils of the sunscreen a little bit before I apply any eyeshadow, and that has helped a ton. But like today, for example, I'm wearing a matte sunscreen, the one from Australian Gold, and I don't have any issues at all. And I don't have to wear an eyeshadow primer underneath these, which is incredible to me. Today I have the shade Copper Chic on my eyes. This shade, even though it's called Copper, I was expecting to be really warm. It's actually more of like a soft brown. It is a little bit warm, but it's not quite as copper as I thought it would be based on just the packaging. To me, this is such a great everyday one-and-done eyeshadow. Lately, I've been really into those products that allow me to put in little to no effort while still getting a really beautiful look, and this is one of those products. So that's Copper Chic. The first one, this is the one that I bought that got me into these in the first place. This is the shade Magnetic Pull, which is a really nice, truly cool-toned taupey gray color. Lastly, I have the shade Rose Gold. Copper Chic and Rose Gold have a little bit more shimmer and just metallicness to them, whereas Magnetic Pull is more of like a satin finish. But these, I typically just like to wear them as a one-and-done eyeshadow. I'll just swipe one of them all over my lid, blend it out with a crease brush, and I'm done. I love that I don't have to go in with a separate eyeshadow primer underneath. It's like a truly one-step eyeshadow look. So today, I'm wearing Copper Chic. I am wearing the shade Incense from the ABH Norvina palette in my crease, but this is what I have all over my lid and on my lower lash line. I think of these three shades, Copper Chic might actually be my favorite. I feel like it makes my eyes pop. It just, it looks so sultry and smoky, but also not too deep. I also like to just take these on my lower lash line for a quick smudgy liner. They also do come with a little built-in sharpener on the end, so if you wanted to sharpen the tip, you can. Also, these swatches, once they set into place, like these swatches are gonna be on my hand until I go in with like a cleansing balm to remove them because they really are waterproof. They set and lock into place. But of all the ELF products that I've tested out recently, these stand out as one of the most impressive products to me. Another eyeshadow I recently tried out, and I, once again, I cannot believe that this is drugstore, is the Flower Chrome Crush Pressed Pigment. I have the shade Quartz. So I like to think of this as a sparkly topper eyeshadow, and I was sharing recently that I think this is almost a dupe for the Shimmer Formula in the Urban Decay Stone Vibes Palette which, unfortunately, is discontinued, at least in the US. This has that same squishy texture that those Stone Vibes Shimmers have. I like that when you look up close, it has multiple different sized shimmer particles, so it just gives it that really pretty crushed glitter sort of look. The shade is also a little bit shifty. It's kind of translucent, so it gives you that wet, glossy look. This is what I have in my inner corners today, and I did bring a little bit up onto my lid as well. It just, it elevates any eyeshadow look. Anytime I feel like I need just a little bit more sparkle to my eyeshadow, which is most days, I just feel like I could use a little more sparkle, this is what I'm using. And even though these Flower Beauty Pressed Pigments, they aren't super cheap. Like, I think individually, at full price, they are $14 a piece. So not cheap when you compare that to something like the Flower Desert Lights Palette, which is $18, so a few dollars more for six shadows. But this is a different type of formula, at least the shade that I have. At least the Quartz shade that I have is a completely different formula than like the Desert Lights shimmers. This is more of a translucent, sparkly topper. And if you were to compare this to something like the Urban Decay Single Shadows that I think people use in a similar way, this is like $10 less than those. And, you know, of course you can always wait for a sale and get them for an even better deal. Next, I have a drugstore mascara. I've been raving about this ever since I tried it. So if you've been watching a lot of my videos recently, you might've already heard me share this, but the Milani Highly Rated Anti-Gravity Mascara. The hype is real on this. This is such a good mascara. This is my favorite mascara that I've tried in a very long time. I think it is just as good as my old favorite, the Urban Decay Lash Freak, if not better, because the brush is a little bit easier to work with, and of course it's cheaper. But I even like the packaging of this better than Lash Freak. The Lash Freak packaging, I mean, it was fine, but the writing would eventually rub off. So far, the writing has stayed in place on this. I've been using it for probably a month now, and it is still looking good as new. I also think the gold and black packaging just looks so luxe and classy. But this is the mascara I have on today, and I just love the effect that this has on my lashes. It makes my lashes incredibly long, but also thick, which I like because I want my lashes to be visible from a few feet away. I don't want them to just be noticeable when you're up close. This really makes your lashes stand out, so it's not just lengthening, but it's also very volumizing while not being too clumpy either. It doesn't make my lashes stick together or anything. I love this style of brush. It has that kind of hourglass shape to it, kind of like the Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara and all those other mascaras, but it has those spiky plastic bristles, which I feel like makes it so easy to just really get in between each lash, you know? So it gives them a ton of length and volume while also not clumping them together. And the best part is it doesn't transfer or smudge, which is a huge issue that I have had with a lot of mascaras recently. This one on me, at least, doesn't smudge or flake or transfer. So I am predicting that once I'm finished with this, I will continue to repurchase it because it is just that good. I'm actually a big believer in investing in high-quality brushes. My favorite brushes are the BK Beauty brushes. I think if you want to splurge and get some brushes that are gonna last you a long time and that really feel professional quality, BK Beauty is where it's at. I like them better than Sigma, all that. But this video is about drugstore products. And I did wanna share, if you're on a budget and you don't wanna spend that much on brushes, I think EcoTools offers some of the best brushes at the drugstore. Better than Real Techniques and better than e.l.f. in terms of how long they're gonna last you. I've shared about these before on my channel, but these little short-handled EcoTools eye brushes, this was the first brush set I ever bought for myself back when I was getting into makeup like over 10 years ago at this point. And they are still standing. One of them did finally have to go in the trash last year because the bristles, as I was washing it, the bristles finally fell out. But these are still going strong and I will be keeping them until they actually fall apart. But 10 years and counting, I think. I mean, I don't know, what year would it have been that I bought these? Probably 2010 or 2011, 2012 at the latest. So it's been at least 10 years since I have had these brushes. So that shows you just how well-made these are. But I have some newer ones that are still sold by them because I don't think this exact brush set is still sold anymore. One that I've been loving for a long time, this is the full powder brush from them. I love the shape of this. It's very egg-shaped and very tapered. This is great for bronzer or blush or powder, just whatever you want to use it for. It feels sturdy. I've had this for a few years now. The ferrule hasn't started to come loose. The bristles are super soft. They do kind of almost have that natural bristle feel to them, even though they are synthetic bristles. They aren't made from animal hair. But I recently had the chance to try some of their white-handled brushes. These are, I think this is called their Luxe Collection. This set of eye brushes is from their Exquisite Eye Brush Kit. And then this highlighter brush also, this is called the Soft Highlight. I've been talking for a while about this e.l.f. highlighter brush that's a similar kind of shape. This is my favorite style of highlighter brush to use because I can get a really blended, diffused application rather than a harsh line or stripe. Unfortunately, the last time I went to wash this e.l.f. brush, it's still fine. I'm sure it'll still last for another year or so, but the ferrule did start to come loose. So that's the thing with e.l.f. brushes. They are really nice, but they don't last for more than a few years. But I think I like this EcoTools Soft Highlighter Brush even more because it feels even softer than the e.l.f. one. I think the idea behind these white-handled brushes from EcoTools is that they're supposed to be their softest brushes yet. And I can definitely see that. Like this, I wish I could get across to you just how soft this brush is, but it's like you're dusting your face with like a feather or something. It is so light and just airy and just satisfying to use. And same with these eye brushes. Today, I used this Defined Crease brush to blend my eyeshadow, and it's also just ridiculously soft. So I think EcoTools, of all the drugstore brush brands that I've tried, I've tried e.l.f., Perfusion, BH Cosmetics, Real Techniques. All of the brushes I've had from those brands after a couple of years, they do start to kind of wear out, you can tell. But EcoTools brushes are some of the longest lasting drugstore brushes out there, in my opinion. Okay, I wanted to finish off this video with a couple of body care products that have just been bringing me a lot of joy recently. And they're both so much more affordable than they seem. First, I have a body wash from Soap & Glory. It took me so long to try Soap & Glory. I didn't even know that they were cruelty-free until recently, but they are Leaping Bunny certified. So I picked up this body wash. I think it was like 30% off on Ulta during the fall sale. So I figured I would try out their kind of like original body wash. This is their original pink scent, which is Rose and Bergamot. And I am someone that does like the scent of rose, but I think even if you don't normally like rosy scents, you might still like this because when I first smelled it, I couldn't even tell that it was a rose scent, but this just smells so good. Like, I can just sit here and smell this. It's fresh and clean, a little bit floral, but not overpoweringly. And also look at how milky this is. It feels so hydrating. And the fact that I got this for $7, I think full price it's maybe a little bit more than that, but still for such a luxe-feeling body wash, it just, it feels like it could be more expensive than it actually is. Oh, by the way, I haven't tried this yet from Soap & Glory, but this is the Perfect Zen Calming Bath Milk. I will definitely let you guys know what I do think of this once I try it, but the scent of this also, unbelievable. So now I'm really interested in trying more from Soap & Glory because they're pretty affordable and they have a really nice range of body care. And then finally, this, I know a lot of people have talked about these, but I just now finally tried one of the Tree Hut Body Scrubs. This is the Tahitian Vanilla Bean scent. Okay, I need this scent in a body spray. I looked on the Tree Hut website, they don't make any body sprays, which I really think they should because they make some of the best smelling body care that I've ever tried. This is not just any vanilla scent. It's like a little bit spicy and musky too. And the scent of this actually lingers on your skin after you've gotten out of the shower. Like I will notice this on my skin the next morning when I wake up and if I took a shower the night before, I can still smell it on my skin the next morning. I love when the scent of body care products really lingers on my skin. To me, that's something that even like high-end body scrubs that I've tried, like the Kopari Body Scrub, don't even waste, don't bother with that one. Just get one of these. They make so many great scents. The other day I was in Ulta and I smelled the coffee scented one and that's next once I'm finished with this one. But also the texture of this, it has such a good grit to it. It kind of, you can pick it up and it stays together in your hand. You can spread it across your skin really easily. A little goes a long way so you don't have to use a ton of it to get a good scrub. It rinses away cleanly. It's not one of those that's gonna leave a bunch of residue in your shower. This has replaced the Giovanni Hot Chocolate Sugar Scrub which I loved for a long time. I even like the texture of this one a little bit more and the fact that it comes in so many other scents and I think it's also more affordable than the Giovanni one. So this just feels like such a luxurious treat every time I use it. So I had to mention that as well. Those are just some drugstore products that I think are, many of these are highly underrated I think and also I just can't believe that they're drugstore because they feel, like if you put a high-end brand name on these products I would totally believe that they're high-end because they really do feel that way. But thank you so much for spending some of your day watching my video. I hope you had fun. If you did, be sure to give it a thumbs up and subscribe so that you don't miss out on the other videos that I post. Otherwise, I hope you all have an amazing rest of your day and I will talk to you very soon. Bye.