Top 5 Cult Beauty Product Substitutes
For me, shopping for makeup is like a bargain scavenger hunt. Whether I’m using coupons or waiting for a Friends & Family sale, I’ll do whatever it takes to save money. To be honest, I often hesitate to buy high-end products because I know I can usually find a substitute from a drugstore brand.
You know you have discovered gold when you find a great drugstore substitute for a cult product. Over the years of scouring the aisles at Target and CVS, I’ve learned that there are some amazing high-end product replacements out there – you just have to seek them out! Here are five of my favorites.
1. Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil
Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil and L’OREAL’s Hip Color Chrome Eyeliner
It easily understandable why people cherish UD’s eyeliners; they have a great color selection and their color payoff is amazing. If you haven’t heard of these eyeliners before, know that they are not your normal black and brown eyeliners; they have colors ranging from vibrant blue to golden yellow.
Don’t get me wrong: UD’s eyeliners are great, but at $16 dollars, I question whether they’re really worth the price. Although their color variety is not as great, L’Oreal’s Hip Color Chrome Eyeliner is a great $9 substitute for UD’s 24/7 liner. In general, I think L’Oreal Hip makes a lot of great substitutes for brands like Urban Decay and MAC because of their funky color variety and amazing pigmentation.
2. Diorshow Mascara
Diorshow Mascara and Maybelline Colossal Volume
I remember being so excited as a mascara lover to purchase my first tube of Diorshow. Some people go as far to say that it is the “holy grail” of mascaras. However, after a couple uses, I was extremely disappointed. For $23, I expected va-va-VOOM eyelashes but instead all I could think was “my drugstore mascara is better than this.”
Leave it up to the drugstore mascara maven, Maybelline, to one-up the high-end brand with their version, Colossal Volume Mascara. My former roommate had this so I tried hers out and fell in love with it. It definitely helps give your lashes volume, but be forewarned: it does contain a strong floral scent. Overall, though, at $8 compared to Dior’s $23 price tag, Colossal Volume is definitely worth it.
3. MAC’s Blacktrack Fluidline Eye Liner
MAC’s Blacktrack and Jane’s Be Pure Mineral Eyeliner
Gel eyeliners can vary a lot in quality, and finding the right one proved to be quite a challenge for me. After a bit of research, I decided to splurge on MAC’s Blacktrack, which didn’t disappoint with its creamy, smooth application.
I thought I had found my perfect eyeliner until one of my closest friends told me that Jane Be Pure Mineral Gel Eyeliner was a great dupe for Blacktrack at a quarter of the price. I almost didn’t believe her – could a drugstore brand really challenge the quality of a MAC product? Yet after I bought it, I was surprised to find that instead of some hard sheer formula, it was incredibly pigmented and smooth. So if you want to buy great gel eyeliner but don’t want to shell out $16 for one, I would definitely recommend this product.
* Note: The Jane eyeliner depicted above is in Dark Brown; however, it does come in Black as well as Navy and Eggplant.
4. Bobbi Brown Shimmer Bricks
Bobbi Brown’s Shimmer Brick and Physician’s Formula Shimmer Strips
Bobbi Brown’s Shimmer Brick was one of the first makeup products to catch my eye when I was younger – the shimmery gradient effect made it look irresistible. However, at 13, what girl can afford to spend $38 dollars on a beauty product?
On the hunt, I went to my nearest drugstore to find a match and it didn’t take too long to discover Physician’s Formula Shimmer Strips. At first glance, you cannot deny the physical resemblance between the two products. I was beyond happy that I could get my little hands on this treasure for $12. Even today, I really love this product because it has multiple uses: it works equally well as a gorgeous highlighter/blush and an eye shadow. But most importantly, the quality of the Physician’s Formula product is absolutely amazing – just as good as Bobbi Brown.
5. Urban Decay’s Primer Potion
Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion and ELF’s Mineral Eye Shadow Primer
Eyeshadow primer is quite the handy tool when you want to prepare for a long day at school or a night out. Their main purpose is to help your makeup last longer and keep your eye makeup from creasing. One of the most well known primers is Urban Decay’s Primer Potion (one of our cult beauty products worth the hype).
However, if you’re hesitant about spending $17 on UDPP, then I recommend E.L.F. Mineral Eyeshadow Primer. Even though it is only $3, the staying power and quality is easily comparable to Urban Decay’s. In general, for any girl who wants to keep their eye makeup lasting longer, primer is a must-have, and E.L.F.’s is just as good as the high-end brand in this case.
Any other thoughts?
I absolutely love looking around for little drugstore treasures. For me, that’s half the fun of makeup! Now I want to know – what awesome drugstore substitutes have you guys found? I think it would be amazing if we all share this information so next time we know what to look for!
Posted on on February 10, 2010 / Filed Under: Beauty & Hair / Tags: blush, drugstore, E.L.F., eyeliner, Eyeshadow Primer, Featured, MAC, Makeup, Urban Decay
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Norah
where can one get Jane and ELF products. Im from Canada so 90% of drug stores around are Shoppers Drug Mart and I don’t I’ve ever seen either product there.
Madeleine
I’m definately not one to splurge on makeup because to me, makeup is makeup and it looks fine no matter how much it costs so I always look for makeup in a drugstore.
Isabelle
This was a fantastic post, I very much agree with all of the though I have to say I still love my UD, both the liners and the potion but I keep them for more special occasions rather than daily wear.
Christa
Norah: I’m from Canada as well, and you can get the ELF products online at http://www.eyeslipsface.com. I don’t know about Jane though.
Giselle
Thanks for posting this! I’ve been buying Stila’s Smudge Pots, and my wallet would feel better if I used a drugstore eyeliner that did the same. So I’ll def try that Jane one. But I’ve used the ELF primer and it creased about an hour later..so I’m gonna have to stick with UD for that :)
kt
Although I haven’t tried it, I always hear that MIlani’s Blush in Luminous is the exact same shade as Nars Orgasm (the original one).
kaley
I’m really nervous (but excited) to try some e.l.f products. They seem like a steal, and won’t break my wallet even if they aren’t worth the dollar or two I spend.
While I will never give up my diorshow, some of these products seem really great. When it comes to smudge pots, I use Stila, and I’m definitely willing to try a cheaper option. Any girls who are stuck on Stila, though…they make a sample pack of 4 different smudge pots (awesome deal! they cost about the price of one pot). They’re smaller, but still last forever!
Ashley - Flagler College
My favorite new drugstore steal is lycra lash extender by Rimmel.. it makes my lashes super long, even more than the Chanel mascara I used to swear by. And Physician’s Formula’s blushes, bronzers and powders are my favorite because they are great for sensitive skin!
ELF has great inexpensive products, but I had problems with them shipping me items a few years ago. Shipping for anything is $6.95 ($14.95 in Canada) so I ordered about $25 worth of products. However only $5 worth of products were sent to me and the rest were sold out and never shipped. Although I got refunded my money, it still bothered me that I paid more for shipping then the products!
annie
Wow, great post. I am definitely going to have to try the Jane eyeliner, the Elf primer, and the L’OREAL eye pencils! I don’t know if this is actually a substitute for anything, because I haven’t ever tried a high end eyeliner, but I use ALMAY liquid eyeliner in black and it works wonders! I swear by this product. It lasts pretty long too :)
Tiffany - University of Pennsylvania
For bronzer — I’ve heard that Physician’s Formula has a pretty amazing one.
Also, my best friend is in love with her Lancome liquid eyeliner, but I use one from The Body Shop that’s absolutely AMAZING. It’s about $13 so not exactly a steal, but it’s still a lot cheaper than most premium brands.
esther
i am anxious to try all of these steals (:
and i know for a fact, everything i tried from jane is unexpected for such a low price.
*thank you for this entry.
caitlin
ELF SELLS CREDIT CARD INFORMATION. i was scammed and had to cancel my debit card…do NOT make any purchases from their online store!
s.
I love the makeup posts.
I would love to see a post on different foundations, rating quality and price points….
Foundation is sometimes overlooked in the makeup department, but is so important!!
thanks for another great post!
Fen
Excellent post idea – I always get drawn into the cult products, especially the primer potion (its so effective, but the bottom of my bottle broke after one month and I lost a lot of it – what a waste!).
I love the physicians formula eyeshadows, but I find them too shimmery for daily wear. I usually use Mary Kay instead, which makes me feel like an very old lady – I would love to see a post on good eyeshadow sets for day-time wear.
Mary
In resonse to kt, I have tried Milani Luminous and it works WONDERFULLY. It’s so affordable and offers a perfect shade for fresh, blushing cheeks. I just apply it with a blush brush (not the one that comes in the compact…I found its shape to be a bit weird) and it looks awesome! Definitely worth a try if Orgasm is something you’ve been dying for but can’t afford (like me!)!
Nina
Where can I buy Jane products in store? Walmart? Target? and ELF products as well? thank you!
Jen
Wow, I didn’t know ELF had a primer. I’ll have to give some of these things a try. T4P
Elizabeth - University of Missouri
This is so weird- a few days ago I was thinking “too bad I’m not the beauty blogger anymore because I want to do a post on drugstore dupes.” I love the products you highlighted! Wet ‘N Wild also makes great eyeshadow and creme eyeliner and I really want to try Physician’s Formula.
Awesome post :)
Linda
Is that true about the ELF website ^?
Also where can we buy ELF products in store?
Nicole - USC
Hi guys! Thanks for all your awesome suggestions. I’m tempted to try that Milani blush now! I’d much rather read all these great comments than study for my linguistics midterm I have tomorrow. Ugh.
You can get ELF products at eyelipsface.com and I’ve seen Jane products at Walmart and CVS.
Linda: From what I understand, no, ELF does NOT sell your credit card information. It is a highly respected company and although their shipping is kind of slow, they don’t do anything illegal of that sort.
Have an awesome three day weekend guys! Keep the suggestions coming!
xoxo Nicole
lalalina
This post was a FANTASTIC idea! I am super excited to try the Physician’s Formula Product. I have never tried Dior show because I can’t stomach the price tag, even though I wear mascara everyday. I actually tried the Lash Stiletto and I love it. I doesn’t plump my lashes as much as I’d like, but it definitely adds length and doesn’t clump! I too would like to see an article on foundations. I am especially curious about the mineral products, Bare Minerals, Bare Escentuals, and the mineral products from the big name companies.
I too have heard bad things about E.L.F and there web ordering policies. They are beginning to sell their products in CVS, so I will be buying their products from there.
Rite Aid is having a 25% off all cosmetics (in store) Feb. 11- Feb. 13. Now I do not know if that is a MD-VA-DC chain but if you have one near you I would definitely check it out. I just heard the radio ad for it today!
Charlotte
Even though I’m from the UK I love this, and am very tempted to try and find equivalents over here.
I admit, I am a slave to Urban Decay; I couldn’t live without my 24/7 eyeliner and my Primer. So far i’ve never found an eyeliner as good, but I’m gonna see what I can find in the local chemist now!!
xxx
krystal
ooh does CVS really sell E.L.F.?
Liz
You can find elf products at food4less but from what i know there only in california. They do have a great eye brightener it looks very natural unlike the white eyeliners.
Aurora
I recently received my order from elf (ordered for first time) because my friend recommended it. I like the stuff I got! Their gel liner has been compared to MAC Fluidline as well and I think it is good quality considering it is only $3. I’ve heard that most of their stuff is really good quality but really cheap (regular elf products are $1 and the studio line products are $3)
Alicia
This is so awesome! I have all of those products and am obsessed with them, especially the eyeliner from UD. I am in need of new makeup and am so broke, thanks this definitely helps!
Emily
LOVE this post please do moreee!
jennifer
I was just my local Target two days ago and I noticed they had big E.L.F. makeup area that I didn’t notice before…they carried a lot of their $1 products and a lot of items from the studio line as well ($3 and up).
A word of advice when buying items online from E.L.F. is that they always have a ton of promos going on for % off, free items, etc;, so google for promo codes (CAROLINA is a good one for 50% up to $15) before you checkout. good luck!
flopo
I have made several purchases from E.L.F. and have been very satisfied. I haven’t bought shadows or make up, but have bought brushes, make up cleansing wipes, brush cleaners etc. They have been good and I always find coupons online. They just recently had a big sale it was either 50 or 75 percent off. I can’t remember, but got tons of stuff for under 30$.
I too live in Canada and am trying to find Physicians Formula gel liner trio. Does anyone know where I can buy it? Even online I can’t find it to buy.
kristen
Elf blush is said to be a good dupe for NARs blushes. I love NYX eyeshadows. They are a great substitute for MAC shadows at a quarter of the price. You can find elf at some targets and big kmarts. There is a store locater on the eyeslipsface.com site. NYX is sold at ulta stores. NYC lipsticks are beautiful and non drying at a buck a piece.
Actually, I’m a huge fan of all NYX makeup. The color payoff is great for there blushes and shadows and their lipglosses are creamy and beautiful colors that are nonsticky.