Drugstore Beauty Finds

I’m always looking for cheap thrills, especially ones having to do with makeup. 🙂 Before I tried them, I was sure the uber-affordable Milani Liquif’Eye Liquid Eye Liner Automatic Propel Pencils (just $5.49 each, SCORE!) would fit the bill.

New for spring 2011, these affordable twist-up eyeliners come with a fancy schmancy tip that doesn’t need sharpening. The fun shades of green, purple and blue are supposed to last all day long…with “supposed to” being the (controversial) key phrase.

I tested the green one today along my lash and water lines, but contrary to Milani’s claims, it didn’t last long. Along my lash lines, it exhibited significant fading after three hours, but that was still about two hours longer than it lasted along my waterlines, where it gave up after one.

While smooth, the tip doesn’t feel as smooth to me as similar twist-up pencils like the Tarte emphasEYES Aqua-Gel Eyeliners and MAC Technakohls.

And as if that wasn’t disheartening enough, it took five layers to reach opaque coverage, yikes!

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Remember when the first baked eyeshadows emerged hot and fresh out the beauty ovens way, way back in 2008? The big department store lines were popping them out faster than you can say, “I’ll take two red velvet cupcakes with extra frosting on the side.”

Three years later, the trend lives on! Budget versions of these sturdy baked beauties, which tend to resist water a little better than traditional shadows, have now made their way into drugstore makeup aisles.

And some of them work just as well as their pricier department store cousins. Take Milani’s Marbleized Baked Eyeshadows ($7.49 each), for instance.

Milani Marbleized Baked Eyeshadow in Mix It Up

New for spring, these six pretty pans, which Milani baked on Italian terracotta tiles (fancy!), steal a page out of MAC’s book. Like the more expensive MAC Mineralize Eyeshadows ($19.50 vs. $7.49 for these), they’re infused with multiple powder shades, except that here, in Milani’s Marble line, the colors are stirred together (and not kept apart like in a duo).

They can be applied wet or dry, but in either case, I like to use an eyeshadow brush with a compact head and firm bristles to minimize shadow fallout.

And fallout does seem to be a minor concern with these. When I wear Mix It Up, a silvery black with teal glitter, I detect a light dusting of renegade shadow at the corners of my eyes and beneath my lower lash line, but it’s nothing compared to some baked shadows that leave freight trains of shimmer all over my clothes and cheeks.

I feel like they aren’t the easiest shadows to blend, especially around the edges, but the fact they last all day long without creasing offsets the issue for me.

Even though these cost less than $10 each, Milani wasn’t stingy with the pigment. The Milani Baked Eyeshadows deposit loads of color, probably enough for most hard core makeup enthusiasts, and two layers applied with a MAC 217 produces a sooty smokey look worthy of sky-high sexy heels and a tight black dress.

Swatches of Mix It Up applied dry (left) and wet (right)
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