Cheap vs expensive. What beauty buys do you save on and what are you always prepared to pay extra for?

[Butteredparsnips]

I am mid forties, and like expensive foundation, lipstick, eye shadow etc but use Nivea moisturiser and cheap blusher as I see no benefit in paying more for these.

Just wondered if other people were similarly inconsistent, or do you all tend to buy within a range?

I also tend to buy mid range shampoo and conditioner and really dislike cheap shampoo, but was thinking this morning whether expensive conditioner is worth the dosh. Would it be better to buy a nicer shampoo and scrimp on the conditioner ? I have shoulder length hair and tend to slather the conditioner on so would quantity work over quality?

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Hello, this thread is a little old and the links are out of date. Take a look at this handy page for a round-up of Mumsnetters' favourite beauty dupes.

[ThenLaterWhenItGotDark]

I would never again buy expensive mascara (have used everything from Chanel to Barry M) and the best I have found is NYC in the pinky container which I got from Superdrug on a 3 items for a fiver offer!

Ditto eyeshadow and liner. Bourjois is as high as I will go, although used Givenchy prisms in the past.

I use both cheap foundation and expensive....some expensive is just not right for me, while some cheap is perfect. Horses for courses. Currently using Maybelline Dream silk liquid and it's brilliant! Dior Fusion meanwhile bobbled my skin and made me look like Barbara Cartland. I repurchase Clinique superpowder, but am liking N7 illuminating something or other at the mo.

I have some expensive skincare and some cheap as chips. I really rate Superdrug Pure serum (£2.99!) but think their hot cloth cleansers are shit.

Perfume- I love my ££££s Chanel, but also have a bottle of Yardley Jade (very similar to Chanel Cristalle for £7) I hoover up vintage Ysatis on ebay etc and am prepared to pay for it.....

Have some £1 lipsticks and some Clinique/Lauder ones. Not much difference to be honest. Unless you're paying £30 for a Kanebo one you are paying for packaging IMO.

[ThenLaterWhenItGotDark]

Oh, and I will pay for Elemis Pro-Radiance cleanser, but think Marine Cream (apart from the smell, which is divine) is rubbish.

[Butteredparsnips]

Ha ha I am a sucker for nice packaging too, and there is something about the smell of premium cosmetics that I really like. On the other hand, deep down I often think I've been had.
Think DD might have some of that pink mascara, I will take a gander. It's certainly cheaper than my Clinique...

[cressetmama]

What makes the Kanebo lipstick worth the £30? I repeat buy the Bronzing gel from them, although it has been rebranded Sensai, and swear by it but as the only UK counter is at Harrods, have never tried the lippies.

[73dexter]

I go cheap on everything now and it hasn't made the slightest bit of difference to my skin or hair, only my purse!

[ThenLaterWhenItGotDark]

You have to buy a special remover to get it off! And even then sometimes it doesn't work! It is seriously hardcore lipstick! I admit to not repurchasing it and this was a few years ago, it made me feel a bit trapped to be honest! Like I was forever dooooooomed to have raspberry tinted lips!

[Butteredparsnips]

73dexter see deep down I think know you are right. A good nights sleep is better for my skin than illuminating foundation, but the naive stuff does seem to glide on better. Am I kidding myself then

[WhyDoesGastonBark]

I use a mix of everything. Some stuff super cheap. Some of the cheap stuff is naff and I either won't use again or will use up but won't repurchase. But some is very very good!

[OTheHugeManatee]

Makeup has to be Bobbi Brown for me. I don't wear a lot but BB always has great colours and lasts well. Moisturiser has to be Kiehl's. I don't use many other products. So I suppose you could say I spend a bit on the stuff I use but I save on everything else by just not buying it

[CeeceeBloomingdale]

Ive downgraded everything to cheap. I used to spend a fortune but there's really no need as cheaper brands are very similar

[Bodicea]

Cheap ( as in herbal essenses etc ) shampoo and conditioner.
Generally buy cheap cleansers and eyemakeup removers- although have a thing for Clinique take the day off at the mo.
Mid range day moisturisers as long as they have a good spf - things like la Roche posay.
Mid to expensive serum/night moisturiser.
Expensive Bb cream/ foundation - bare minerals etc.
Expensive makeup generally but I don't wear loads so it lasts ages.

[Bodicea]

Oh and I rarely buy mascara - I look out for freebies on magazines or get samples - glamour magazine currently has free Clinique mascara ( or moisturiser or nail polish)

[MrsMolesworth]

I never bother with expensive lipstick now. Had Chanel and it dried my lips out terribly. The cheap stuff (Bourgeois or Boots) reapplied every hour is far better. Same with eyeshadows. I used to buy Benefit but it dried out so quickly. Bourgeois or Rimmel are fine. And Maybelline is the best mascara ever, for a lot less than a tenner.

I'd never skimp on perfume though. Happy to spend £££ on the right smell.

[ExplodingCarrots]

I have a bit of a mixture but i really don't get on with cheap skin care. I've tried all different types and nope.. Nothing compares to a decent skincare range. Liz Earle and decleor have been my skin saviours.

I like to treat myself to higher end make up like Mac, urban decay etc but I use a lot of cheaper brands and 'dupe' products.

I use any hair stuff that's on offer. I paid a fortune for Joico (sp?) and it did just the same as what any cheap product would do.

[MrsMolesworth]

And though I don't spend that much on face cream, I'd never buy the cheaper stuff. I know people who swear by Astral cream. Ew, just greasy, sticky and brings me out in spots. If I had the money I'd buy Occitane Divine.

[OTheHugeManatee]

Oh yes - perfume - never skimp.

Shampoo and conditioner - not worth spending loads on. Makeup remover and nail polish - as cheap as I can get usually.

[SapphireSeptember]

Cheap all the way! I use Simple face wash and moisturiser, Timotei shampoo and Dove conditioner, and a total rag-bag of make-up, as I have zero brand loyalty, (love Revlon lipstick though) but mostly high street stuff. Anything more expensive I get online (just got an OPI set much cheaper in the US than over here, even with P&P.) I think spending more that £15 on a single item is obscene! I really want the Urban Decay electric palette, but the idea of spending over £30 on an eyeshadow palette makes me squeak!

[Butteredparsnips]

Got the magazine Mascara bodica it's a handy small one too If there is a consistent message here, it seems to be to about perfume, which I would agree is worth spending more on.
Everything else not so much - though I guess we all have our favourites.

[girlguide123]

I'm fairly mid-range with cosmetics & beauty products, but spend the equivalent of a small nation's GDP on perfume...

[Butteredparsnips]

Another vote for expensive perfume then. So does anyone think any expensive cosmetics are worth shelling out for?

[ProjectPerfect]

As I get older I've bought cheaper - there is nothing that improves my face more than right hours sleep and a touch of Botox/filler

No7 foundation is perfect for me and I've not found a mascara better than maybeline. I do like Mac eyeshadow - less dreading and more staying power than some cheaper brands and Dior lipstick because I have very dry lips but otherwise it's all high street

[70isaLimitNotaTarget]

My DD bought herself a Mac lipliner (Spice) I was about the price.
But I have a Bodyshop Lip Pencil in Beech (one of the original "dupes" ) which is older than my DD

So, her purchase, if she doesn't lose it, is an investment.

I will spend £19 on "They're Real" as experience has told me that other mascaras don't touch the sides.

Eye liners - Barry M because they're soft and gorgeous colours.

Eye shadow - Sleek.

I don't wear perfume.
I will invest in Aveda Shampure because it lasts ages.

Aldi serums work on my skin as well as Philosophy.

[Penfold007]

Dove shampoo and conditioner works well for me. Nivea is the only moisturiser that doesn't irritate my sensitive skin, I know use a tinted option rather than foundation. Premium brand lipstick and eye-shadow have better colour pigments but it doesn't make that much difference. I buy the perfumes I like cheap or expensive, I do like expensive though

[RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie]

I've downgraded everything, apart from still splurging a bit on an organic shampoo £6 a bottle so not hideously expensive and it lasts for ages).

The only expensive make up I've got now that I'd still be willing to repeat buy are:
Urban Decay Naked palette
Benetint
Roller Lash mascara from Benefit

I've gone from Clinique/Lancome and Urban Decay eyeliners to Boots No 7. They are not quite as good as Clinique/Lancome and don't last terribly long as they need sharpening a lot - but far, far cheaper, and are as good as the UD. I'm also using a NO 7 foundation palette which is lovely but also doesn't seem to have lasted v long.

I use MUA cheapo lipsticks.

I've been using Superdrug moisturiser but have just bought the Boots Botanics stuff - only tried the oil so far, which is lovely. I like their BB cream too, apart from the smell.

Avene cleanser

La Roche hand cream