New Makeup & College Budgets.

Usually those four words in a sentence don't go together very well.   Having been a student veeery recently... I totally understand the stress that comes along with the good old college budget.  Besides the obvious expenses of books and tuition, people often forget about the little things that often come up.  

Personally, I completely forgot to budget in clothes and personal items such as, makeup, toiletries, gifts for people, etc.  In high school, I didn't have too many expenses and I was able to try out new goodies that Maybelline or Covergirl here and there.  After moving out on my own, those little "treats" became a thing of the past.  It wasn't until my last year of college where I discovered that you CAN look amazing without spending a fortune.  I have made a short list of tips and tricks that helped me through school and I hope they'll help you too!  :)

**DO: BUDGET IN MAKEUP.  Don't deprive yourself.

If you deprive yourself of little things you want/need, you end up spending way more than you need or intended to by randomly splurging.  Set a budget for yourself!  This may seem obvious, but it's a little thing that gets overlooked.  Tell yourself you're going to spend $X and stick to it!  You can always change it based on income or what have you, but know what your limits are.

**DO: MAKE A LIST

You don't have to stick to it.  When I'm watching YouTube videos or surfing the web and I come across a product I'm wanting to try, I'll jot it down on my "makeup want list".  I'll then have an idea about how much it's going to cost and I can then look for sales/coupons to knock the price down even lower.  Sometimes, I'll even write a product down and find myself, a week later, not really wanting it after all.  Lists help to eliminate the impulse buying problem I have sometimes! :)

**DO: KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR SALES/COUPONS

This ties into the "make a list" tip.  If you have a list written down, you know which exact products to look out for and what coupons to snoop out.  This will save you lots of bucks in the long run!  You can use the money that you saved and put it back into your "makeup fund" or towards something else.

**DO: JOIN REWARDS PROGRAMS

Sephora has one, Ulta has one, even CVS has one.  Just because you join a store's rewards program, doesn't mean you need to shop there exclusively.  I'm a member of about 5 or 6 rewards programs myself!  Having an option to build up rewards points with your purchases only works in your favor.  When you reach the store's threshold you get money off, rewards back, etc.  (depends on the store) I'll shop at whatever store is having the sale that week, rack up my rewards and eventually I will receive products or money back from every place I signed up with.  Another bonus is that if you sign up, the store usually will email/mail you coupons and other discounts you can use on top of the sales!

**MYTH: ONLY BUY THINGS ON SALE OR THAT ARE CHEAP

Makeup is like clothing for your face.  In your closet you have a few quality basic pieces like a winter coat, boots or black blazer.  In my makeup collection I like to have a few quality basics that cost a little more, but know I will use them for a long time.  Spend extra money on things that aren't considered "trendy" like foundations, primers and eyeliners.  Trendy items are things that change with the seasons and fads can be things like nail polish and eyeshadow.  Save up for more expensive items and you'll feel a sense of accomplishment.  If you are unable to, put pricier items on your "makeup want list", then ask for them for your birthday or christmas!  :)

**MYTH: DRUGSTORE ITEMS DON'T WORK

I used to have this thought.  For awhile everything I bought seemed to just not work!  I gave up for awhile and lately, almost everything I bought has done the job its supposed to do.  I'm not sure if the companies have been increasing the quality of their products to compete with high-end products or what.  But it's awesome!  Even drugstore companies like Wet n' Wild have really stepped up their game.  I just keep an eye on YouTube reviews and blogs to know what works and what doesn't so I don't end up wasting money.

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Thanks for stopping by!

Hope you guys found this helpful for your future pretty purchases!  :)

Stay Beautiful!

Laura