Shopping for makeup can be a daunting chore at times.  Let’s face it.  When we go into a department store, at our age, we can be ignored.  And, if we are unsure of what we want, we can be patronized.

Thank you but I KNOW what I want and it isn’t to look like this –so don’t patronize me!

Then there’s the garbage we need to deal with when we know exactly what we want and the cosmetics sales person, who is salivating over commission, will tell us what we should have and what we need.

Trust me I have not one, but two Trish McEvoy cases to prove this point.

Over ten years ago, I was suckered into spending a small fortune and I’ve kept them as reminders to never allow this to happen again!

and although the concept of the create-your-own palette is a great one, the shadows are not the greatest quality.  You can get the same at MAC for half the price!

“meh” blush and bronzers–not very pigmented…

Oh yes. I was suckered into the whole kit and kaboodle.  

….this brightening pen was the worst.  It oxodized into an orange that would make a certain politician jealous at the hue!

Forget Ulta—I swear the Ulta Corporation goes out of its way to find the rudest and most ageist sales assistants on earth.  But I keep going back because the store sells both higher-end and lower end cosmetics.  It’s like a supermarket for makeup and beauty products!

Ulta has everything except mature-woman friendly sales assistants!

And as much as I love me my makeup, there are times when I dread going in-store to purchase.

I’ve been making quite a few on-line purchases from Amazon, Tarte, Beautylish, and The Ordinary—but there’s a certain thrill of touching and looking at a product IRL before buying.

The other thing is that in my pro-aging, I’m becoming more price-savvy.  Or perhaps just more frugal.  I not longer want to spend a fortune on one makeup item but on the other hand, I still enjoy a higher end product.

What to do?

Get to TJ Maxx.  Get to Marshalls. I am absolutely shocked in the best way possible with the makeup finds I’ve acquired since last November.  And although I’m big on drug store and lower-end cosmetics (if the quality is there), I still enjoy the higher-end!

Anyway, I’ve had blush on my mind.  Sure—I have quite a few but I was in the mood for more.  After all, I love to rotate my wigs so why not rotate my blushes?

And I hit pay dirt with two blushes.

This–THIS was a great find at TJ Maxx!

The first, by Too Faced.  Peach My Cheeks blush in the shade “So Peachy”.  What intrigued me about this is at first, I thought it was a cream because it’s so buttery—but its the softest powder that acts like a cream!  And for a powder, it isn’t ashy or powdery at all.  It’s a nice coral/pink blush that comes in the most adorable packaging ever.  It retails on the Too Faced site and in stores for $30.  The price at TJ Maxx? $10.99.

It’s called a “melting” powder blush and boy–that’s a great description!

Here I am wearing this peachy blush.  Very soft and subtle!

Here’s a closeup of the blush.  See the sheen?  No powder I’ve ever seen has a sheen like that!  It’s really a beautiful product!

The second Blush—Pool Party by Anastasia Beverly Hills.

Comes in a palm-sized compact…

Very pigmented but the color payoff is really nice…

Vegan and cruelty free–but I notice some clever verbiage.  Rather than say “Made in China”  it reads Made in PRC (People’s Republic of China).  Very interesting….

I’m sweet on the brand’s dipBrow brow gel and the Subculture eyeshadow palette.  So, when I saw this for $7.99, I grabbed it.  Three shades—one slightly bronzed, one shimmery and one a deep coral.  Despite the pigmented hues in the pan, on the skin, it comes off much lighter and gorgeous.  This is a great “occasion” blush due to the shimmery shade.  In other stores, this also retails for $30.00

Here I am (from yesterday) wearing Pool Party on my cheeks–although the weather was nothing like a pool party–wishful thinking!

And on the same day I picked up the blushes, I ran across this single eye shadow by Lancôme.  This shadow retails for $22.00 and the price I paid?  All of $2.99!  This is a great little neutral and don’t let the name “rust” fool you.  It isn’t rusty at all.  It’s very subtle.  I’ve been using it quite often.

Honestly–for $2.99 how could I go wrong with this neutral??  

The shade is nowhere near what I would figure a rust to be–it’s just a soft light brown!

Now—not all discounted makeup is created equal.

I picked up a bareMinerals foundation—I think it was $6.99 –the retail price is…$30.00.  Thirty bucks seems to be the going rate with a lot of this makeup!

There was so much to be disappointed in with this.  First of all that pour spout is ridiculous.  Then–get this–the plastic bottle–it’s flesh colored so if you DO happen to like this you never know when you hit bottom.  The bottom photo on the right is how it poured into my steel palette.  It looked fine but on the skin….

Anyway, it was horrible.  A serum foundation is supposed to hydrate and blend into the skin.  My The Ordinary Serum foundation is a go-to and this bareMinerals foundation was an absolute fail.  From the awkward opening at the bottle to the ridiculously matte and drying appearance.  I followed the directions to shake the bottle but it still didn’t work.  There was no oxidization but boy—my skin felt like a desert!  Proof that sometimes the deeply discounted is deeply discounted for a reason!

…This serum foundation was absolutely awful.  I like a foundation that blends into a second skin.  This just stayed on my face like a dried out mud mask.  You can’t win ’em all!

I’ve written about the Kat von D Shade and Light palette that I purchased a few months back—before Christmas.  For $20 I picked up the shimmer palette and after Christmas I picked up the regular palette for the same price.  These palettes retail for $48 each at Sephora and on the Kat von D site. I purchased the two for less than the full price of one.

The Shade & Light Eye Palettes

The top palette is the shimmer and the bottom is the matte.  They are divided into three quads.  Neutral. Cool. Warm.  It’s supposed to be more of a contour for eyes and it delivers perfectly! At the price of $20 each it was more than worth it.  After work I stopped by Target and saw in the Target drugstore makeup, eyeshadow palettes from drug store brands as high as $19.99.  With the rising cost of drug store makeup–I’ll take TJ Maxx!

These neutrals are right up my alley and the shadows themselves are well-pigmented and stay put!

And since I purchased the Anastasia Beverly Hills Subculture palette—for a deep discount, I’ve been wearing the shadows regularly.  Here’s a more in-depth review of the palette for you to read: A High-End Eye Shadow Palette at a Bargain Price!

The infamous Anastasia Subculture palette.  Man oh Manechevitz I love this palette!

My eyes are wearing Subculture here!

Over at Marshalls and during holidays while Bonaparte and I were shopping I noticed an eyeshadow palette.  It was by Cargo and brought back fond memories of this cosmetics company.  I used to wear quite a bit of the brand’s makeup back in the late 90’s and was happy to see the company was still around.  I picked up the palette “Chill in the Sixth” and spotted another one “Emerald City”. Each palette was $6.99.  The company makes these particular palettes anymore–I think they were limited editions;  but on the Cargo website similar palettes retail for $34!  So, I think I got a great deal!

Cargo’s Chill in the Sixth on top and Emerald City on the bottom.

These two palettes–how great thou art!   The incredible thing is the price was so low on these–I’m still in shock.  The shadows have beautiful pigment.  No fall out and the color pay off is great.  If you ever see Cargo eyeshadow palettes at Marshalls–grab them and only let them go if you are giving them out as gifts!

It’s like finding a treasure when you spot a higher-end cosmetic that’s been discounted.  But it’s also a way to discover different brands and to find out what may or may not work for you.  And even when something doesn’t work—it isn’t like you broke the bank.

I’m going to see if my daughter wants the bare Minerals foundation.  I doubt she will because she is very brand loyal to the foundation she wears.  Clinique and she also loves that Estee Lauder Double-Wear.  She’s also aware that I boycott Estee Lauder.  The brand used to be geared toward the mature woman –now the brand is jonesing for youth.

Here’s a few looks.  The February winter is playing some serious games.  We’re in the midst of an icy, wintery mix right now.  At least I’m toasty inside.

Baby, it’s cold outside but I’m going barelegged!

I dressed more weather-appropriately yesterday!

Today’s outfit. I should have worn boots!  But they are so cumbersome!

Guess what my preference is?

Have you found any great deals on makeup lately?  Are you tired of spending a ton of money on certain products?  Head to TJ Maxx and Marshalls!

OOPS!   I DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THE FORMATTING BUT THERE IS A BIG SPACE BETWEEN THIS AND THE BOTTOM.  JUST BLANK.  UGH!

MY APOLOGIES!