Top 5 under a tenner beauty bargains

Beauty and make-up aren’t the most important or MoneySaving things in the world, but they can make us feel happy.

And if we can save a few pennies on things that make us happy, we can put them towards those more important things in life.

I’ve certainly done that. Below are the five beauty products I’ve found to be the best (in my 31 years’ experience!) and I managed to pick them up pretty cheap too.

Being a MSE deals researcher, I haven’t paid a lot for anything in a loooong time, and where possible, I’ve included discount codes in my examples below that’ll knock the price down even further…

• From a young age I’ve been a massive fan of The Body Shop (did anyone else have a slightly unhealthy obsession with lip balm when they were at school?) so it comes as no surprise that my top £10 and under beauty product comes from it. It’s the Brow & Liner kit for £10.

  Sounds basic enough you might think, it’s just for eye brows, but ask any self-respecting beauty sporting a ‘Scouse Brow’ and they’ll tell you how important brows are to frame the face. Not only that, get the darker shades and you’ll get a black powder which is ideal for the night-time smoky look or a bit of eye liner. I can’t recommend this product enough. I use it every day and, after my recommendation, so does MSE Penny.

• Lip balm these days has to be Carmex (£1.95 at Superdrug). It’s the only thing to banish frosty dry lips. Stick it on over night for best effects. Some people swear by Vaseline, for me it feels like your putting pig fat on your lips, but that’s just a personal thing.

• Hand cream has to be another Body Shop favourite — Hemp Hand Protector (currently on offer for £5 for 100ml). It’s the only hand cream I’ve found that doesn’t feel too waxy or greasy and actually works. My sister works as a sound engineer, lifting and carrying heavy equipment all over the place, so I stocked up on this for her when there was a 40% code.
  
  Speaking of codes, I can’t remember the last time I bought something in-store at The Body Shop; the regular online discounts are really strong. It’s currently got 10% off if you buy one item, 20% off two, 30% off three and 40% off four with the code ENJOY till Mon 27 Feb.

• Another make-up bag fail-safe is Max Factor Masterpiece mascara. Now, I’ve got to admit, this isn’t one of my finds, it’s my mum’s, but no matter how many expensive mascaras I buy (Lancome, Clinique, Dior) I always go back to this one (turns out mums are always right after all, eh?). The brush is a sturdy shape that gets right down into the teeniest of eye lashes. One coat’s perfect for work, two or three’s dramatic enough for the evening.

• To take it all off at the end of a day I use the old trusted Johnson’s baby wipes (£2.98 for 2×64 pack at Asda). These are pretty much always on offer somewhere (there’s a Superdrug, Boots and Morrisons near MSE Towers and I have been known to check out prices at all three on wipe watch). I’ve tried other beauty wipes and cheaper ones, but these are the ones that agree with my face most.

So there they are, my life time’s collection. I have a hundred more, but I kept this blog down to my top five.

There’s a raft of invaluable info in the MSE forums, check out the MSE Beauty & Fashion Board for more hints and tips.