If you wear make up, what is your monthly budget for beauty and make up?

[SarahJessicaParker1]

I know some people spend nothing!

I work in an industry where a full face of make up is very much expected. So I'll probably never get to a point where I need no skincare or make up.

Just interested in what others spend. I'm trying to write a budget for myself and trying to decide what is reasonable.

I honestly don’t know how much I spend. I only wear a little make up, 3-4 times a week. I don’t really play around with colours etc so just replace items as I use them up. Sorry I know that’s probably not much help!

Gosh. I buy a cleanser/scrub for in the shower probably once every 3 months. Simple cleanser for make up remover. I've only ever owned 1 lipstick and rarely wear it (it's 20 years old). I buy a bronzer approx once every 2 years, light foundation maybe once a year, powder once every 6 months or so. And a new mascara every 3 months-ish. Mascara is the only item in my make up bag that I couldn't be without.

I reckon ech month improbably average a spend of under £5.

Roughly every three months I buy foundation, mascara, eyebrow pencil and brow gel which all comes to around £100. Anything else I tend to ask for birthday or Christmas presents (lipsticks, etc)
So my monthly budget is about £30 when you spread it across the year.

I have a monthly subscription to Skin + Me which is £20pm. Other stuff I buy as and when, but it does tend to be quite high end.

This month I bought a Lisa Eldridge lipstick, and Nars eyeshadow primer, the last thing I bought before that was Vieve Skin Nova primer back in September.

I have enough makeup and skin care to last until I'm dead, and then for the afterlife
Skincare I have a skin and me subscription then fairly cheap cleansers/moisturisers, but see above

I have a Beauty Pie membership so £10/month and then what I purchase, I usually save up my allowance and spend about £150 twice a year.
I do read about amazing gifts with purchase on high end sites so was wondering whether you’d be better buying what you need in one go to maximise the freebies ?

@SarahJessicaParker1

At the minute I use bi-facil make up remover, then an oil based cleanser (Lyonsleaf) Liz Earle hot cloth cleanser & toner and then a serum (I have a few), then an Estee lauder night cream (at night) or Liz Earle environmental defense (in the morning)

I am not low on any of these yet, but when I am, I might try some dupes. I've heard Aldi are quite good for that

That sounds a lot.

why not use 1 multi purpose cleanser? You can use balm all over your face and a hot cloth to remove. something like Clinique Take the Day Off balm or cheaper brands like Superfacialist rose cleanser, or No 7.

At the most you would need an eye make up remover - cheap ones like Nivea or Loreal are as good as more pricy ones- then a cleanser which you remove with a wash cloth ( double cleanse if necessary.)

Not convinced that Estee Lauder is worth the cost compared to other brands like Olay ( half price on Amazon) , La Roche Posay or No 7.

I'd say £100 per year...

I have a tonne of eyeshadow palettes amd lipsticks so £0
Blusher I have 2 they have been going for well over a year so £0
Eyeliner the best I found is aldi pen which is £2 -3
MAC foundation big bottle is £30 and does me for a year
2 mascaras a year is about £20
And maybe £40 on random stuff

I use the bi facil to take off the aforementioned Mac eyeliner. It does need proper eye make up remover. I then double cleanse (two cleansers) as that suits my skin. Thinking I could probably skip the toner, but not sure. Or possibly will find cheaper one... like Simple maybe. I also think I could use a cheaper eye make up remover.

I don't want to cut out a cleansing step, but maybe a cheaper cleanser? Is that somewhere it's OK to have a cheaper product I wonder...

I have more than enough to last me while so probably don't need to buy anything this year apart from maybe foundation if I do run out.

I've spent my money on skincare so don't really wear much make up any more even though I love applying it.

@SarahJessicaParker1

I use the bi facil to take off the aforementioned Mac eyeliner. It does need proper eye make up remover. I then double cleanse (two cleansers) as that suits my skin. Thinking I could probably skip the toner, but not sure. Or possibly will find cheaper one... like Simple maybe. I also think I could use a cheaper eye make up remover.

I don't want to cut out a cleansing step, but maybe a cheaper cleanser? Is that somewhere it's OK to have a cheaper product I wonder...

You can save a lot of money on eye make up remover. Lancome is a crazy price when you can get the same thing with L'Oreal, Nivea or Boots. (from around £4, not £20!)

You might also find that some of the balm cleansers will remove eye make up just as well. I'm not sure why you need 2 cleansers, rather than just one, like a hot-cloth balm. They all do the same thing, so why double up with different products?

I like the oil / balm ones to take off make up, but they leave a residue which comes off with the hot cloth cleanser. They definitely don't do the same thing (on my skin). I don't find the hot cloth takes off make up properly and the balm one doesn't leave my skin feeling completely clean either... It doesn't have to be hot cloth though and definitely doesn't have to be Liz Earle. Might give the Superdrug one a go or maybe a foam cleanser?

Definitely will try a cheaper eye make up remover. I'm sure No 7 do a dupe.

As I said in my op, no make up isn't really an option!

This is what I would usually wear for a full face and only replace every 12-18 months.

Exfolikate daily foaming cleanser £34
Body shop rose toner £8.50
Vichy moisturiser £20
Dior foundation £35-40
Laura mercier tinted moisturiser for non-foundation days £35
Laura mercier hydrating primer £17
Nars concealer £22
Urban decay naked 3 palette £32
Urban decay mascara £20
NYX Pen eyeliner £9
Soap and glory blush £12
No 7 highlighter £9
Dior lip pen liner £24
Dior lipstick £25

So around £25 per month divided by 12 months.

No, it's daily foundation. So that wouldn't last me 12 months. Maybe I just have a massive face

@SarahJessicaParker1 course you don't have a massive face I think foundation goes faster depending on how you apply it also .
I used to work as a beautician for Clinique and still buy their 3 step for skin I wait till their is a gift with purchase when I can or use look fantastic for their 20% off offers etc.
As I've got older I use a bb cream more to try and not show off my
Deeper lines ( should save and get Botox really )
Mascara and eyeliner are my must haves I tend to use too faced better than sex mascara , Bobbi brown gel liners , I have eyeshadow palettes aplenty so use them , I like nars orgasm for blush and Mac soft and gentle for a highlighter and again Mac velvet teddy lipstick , I tried Charlotte tilbury lipstick didn't like it and I wanna try the maybelinne lingered
Lipsticks as people say they're really good.
For contour I use a Clinique chubby stick contour I prob spend about 50 a month on skincare and make up

*longer lasting lipsticks
Fatty fingers on phone 🐶

Includes hairdresser, £178.

Do a low buy and use up what you have. If you get some nice storage for it that will help you slim down your collection. Buy things when it's on sale if you can.

I probably spend £20-30 a month but I wear it a lot and like the chanel long lasting lipsticks.

Oh and I ask for vouchers or staples like setting spray and concealer for xmas/birthdays sometimes. Urban decay usually do a twin pack of setting spray around now that often ends up on sale. If you like Pat McGrath Labs they so many sales never buy it full price.

Probably works out to about £10-15 a month because most stuff lasts me a long time (my eye shadow palette is from the sales after Xmas 2020 for example) and for the most part I buy cheaper brands. I splurged on a number of MAC lipsticks last year, but again they are very long lasting so haven't bought any more for months now.

I use ELDW foundation, Aldi concealer ( bulk buy when on offer) Maybelline mascara and no7 eyeliner, Lily Lolo powder and a lip crayon which is usually a copy of the Bobbi Brown art stick.

Lasts ages and cheap. Used to spend loads but realised I was hoarding it.

I spent hardly anything. I buy mascara every 3 months, so about £12, eyeliner lasts forever and that is about it. I also have the Boots no 7 undereye concealer which lasts for six months and was about £30.

I also use Superdrug vitamin E range, both for their hot cloth cleanser and their SPF moisturiser.

Oh and I don't really bother with lipstick but I like Clinique's lip crayons.

Cleanser, toner, day cream, night cream, eye creams, various serums. Occasional masks. Maybe 300 over the year?

Don't really do foundation etc, but eye makeup is my extravagance. Don't buy every month, but probably a couple of hundred pounds over the year, and my lockdown spending on brushes was probably around £800,

Maybe on average £30-40 per month? Usually a foundation or mascara top up, occasionally a new pallette or fad item. It varies