How To Save Money on Beauty Products
Being addicted to make up and beauty products can be a nightmare for your bank balance, but if you use the following tips, you can find ways to save on the cost of your addiction! I absolutely love bargain hunting and I love to save money wherever I can.
- Wait for the right offers
Most drugstores, like Boots and Superdrug, just rotate their offers around every month. So some months, you might get '3 for 2' and other months you might get 'Buy One Get The Second Half Price'. If you wait for the right offer for exactly what you want, you are more likely the save some money. For example, my everyday foundation is Revlon Colorstay, which is usually £12.99 but quite often, they put the price down to £9.99 and then do 3 for 2. If I wait for then and buy 3, I am spending £19.98 on 3 foundations instead of buying it individually, as and when I need it, which would total £38.97 for 3 bottles.
- Get loyalty cards / points systems
Shops such as Debenhams, Boots, Superdrug and The Body Shop all have loyalty cards, which you can collect points on every time you shop. For Boots, you get 4 points per £1 you spend, and they often send vouchers or hold points events where you get extra points. Since I got my Boots Advantage card (nearly 2 years ago), I've had around £300 worth of points, which you can use to buy anything that Boots sell. Debenhams and The Body Shop give you a £5 voucher to spend on their products when you've collected enough points. They are definitely worth picking up if you haven't already got them because the points will all add up!
- Google discount codes when buying online
These are not always available for every store, but it is worth checking before you checkout online! If you write into Google, "Boots discount codes" for example, you will often find 10% off when you spend £60 or something similar. I do this all the time, not just when buying beauty products, because you never know what voucher codes are available!
- Shop around for the cheapest prices
This might be a simple one, but sometimes two stores will have different offers on or different prices on certain products. For example, it's very common for Superdrug and Boots to sell the same products but at different prices due to different offers. An easy way to check this, is to write into Google the item that you want and click on "Shopping" as it usually lists all the different stores that sell that particular product and you can compare the prices.
- If shopping for high end, look for dupes
Although many people would prefer to buy high end products, for many of us, that's not an option every month! So if you run out of a high end product you can't live without or if you are just wanting to try something high end but you haven't got the spare cash, it's worth checking out if there are any known dupes for the product. For example, I've spoken before about the Illamasqua Brow Gel, that is £18.50 and is pretty much identical to the Elf Studio Lock On and Line Brow Cream that is £5! Have a look on YouTube or read blog posts on great drugstore dupes for high end - even if it just gets you by until payday!
- Watch videos / read reviews before buying
And speaking of YouTube, if you are interested in buying a product, especially if it is a pricey product, you are best off searching for reviews or YouTube videos before purchasing. You might find that a lot of people don't like the product, in which case, you might want to avoid buying that item! One top tip for doing that, is finding a YouTuber that has a similar skin tone / skin type / taste in make up to you. Of course, everyone is different but it might lead you in the right direction of whether you should avoid the product or not. If you're interested, I've written a blog post on my Top 5 Pale Beauty YouTubers - these videos are really useful for seeing swatches of pale foundations or concealers.
- Make lists of what you want and prioritise
One thing I've done for a while, is make a list of all the items I want to buy, especially when lots of new releases come out in the world of make up, or as it's getting closer to payday. I find that this helps me to prioritise what I want / need (always need!) more than others and sometimes, I will end up with something on the list that I never prioritise so maybe I don't want / need it that bad! This process stops you from making rushed decisions and then regretting your purchase. It can also give you the time to see reviews on the product. If it's getting close to your birthday or Christmas, this can also be helpful for friends and family asking you what you would like!
Hope this helps all the bargain hunter make up and beauty addicts who want to save a few quid!
Sarah (aka. Pale Princess) x
- Wait for the right offers
Most drugstores, like Boots and Superdrug, just rotate their offers around every month. So some months, you might get '3 for 2' and other months you might get 'Buy One Get The Second Half Price'. If you wait for the right offer for exactly what you want, you are more likely the save some money. For example, my everyday foundation is Revlon Colorstay, which is usually £12.99 but quite often, they put the price down to £9.99 and then do 3 for 2. If I wait for then and buy 3, I am spending £19.98 on 3 foundations instead of buying it individually, as and when I need it, which would total £38.97 for 3 bottles.
- Get loyalty cards / points systems
Shops such as Debenhams, Boots, Superdrug and The Body Shop all have loyalty cards, which you can collect points on every time you shop. For Boots, you get 4 points per £1 you spend, and they often send vouchers or hold points events where you get extra points. Since I got my Boots Advantage card (nearly 2 years ago), I've had around £300 worth of points, which you can use to buy anything that Boots sell. Debenhams and The Body Shop give you a £5 voucher to spend on their products when you've collected enough points. They are definitely worth picking up if you haven't already got them because the points will all add up!
- Google discount codes when buying online
These are not always available for every store, but it is worth checking before you checkout online! If you write into Google, "Boots discount codes" for example, you will often find 10% off when you spend £60 or something similar. I do this all the time, not just when buying beauty products, because you never know what voucher codes are available!
- Shop around for the cheapest prices
This might be a simple one, but sometimes two stores will have different offers on or different prices on certain products. For example, it's very common for Superdrug and Boots to sell the same products but at different prices due to different offers. An easy way to check this, is to write into Google the item that you want and click on "Shopping" as it usually lists all the different stores that sell that particular product and you can compare the prices.
- If shopping for high end, look for dupes
Although many people would prefer to buy high end products, for many of us, that's not an option every month! So if you run out of a high end product you can't live without or if you are just wanting to try something high end but you haven't got the spare cash, it's worth checking out if there are any known dupes for the product. For example, I've spoken before about the Illamasqua Brow Gel, that is £18.50 and is pretty much identical to the Elf Studio Lock On and Line Brow Cream that is £5! Have a look on YouTube or read blog posts on great drugstore dupes for high end - even if it just gets you by until payday!
- Watch videos / read reviews before buying
And speaking of YouTube, if you are interested in buying a product, especially if it is a pricey product, you are best off searching for reviews or YouTube videos before purchasing. You might find that a lot of people don't like the product, in which case, you might want to avoid buying that item! One top tip for doing that, is finding a YouTuber that has a similar skin tone / skin type / taste in make up to you. Of course, everyone is different but it might lead you in the right direction of whether you should avoid the product or not. If you're interested, I've written a blog post on my Top 5 Pale Beauty YouTubers - these videos are really useful for seeing swatches of pale foundations or concealers.
- Make lists of what you want and prioritise
One thing I've done for a while, is make a list of all the items I want to buy, especially when lots of new releases come out in the world of make up, or as it's getting closer to payday. I find that this helps me to prioritise what I want / need (always need!) more than others and sometimes, I will end up with something on the list that I never prioritise so maybe I don't want / need it that bad! This process stops you from making rushed decisions and then regretting your purchase. It can also give you the time to see reviews on the product. If it's getting close to your birthday or Christmas, this can also be helpful for friends and family asking you what you would like!
Hope this helps all the bargain hunter make up and beauty addicts who want to save a few quid!
Sarah (aka. Pale Princess) x
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