The modern girl's makeup box

by Charlotte Kymberley

Charlotte Kymberley, resident Mookychick agony sister, has roadtested a zillion beauty products since she was 18. For no commercial gain and out of pure altruism she'll tell you which are pricy treasures to save for, which are the best cheapies on the market and which are overpriced and best avoided. Huzzah! God bless the beauty pioneers!

I love beauty products. I love make up especially and I love shoes. What girl doesn't? But the products I love come with a hefty price tag - but hey, you can't put a price on beauty right? Wrong!

You can, and from my experience of trying the latest and greatest pampering goodies, I have learned which wonder products work the best!

I'm not a fashion guru, and I don't know everything about makeup, but I do love it. And I am a paranoid android about my skin, looks etc, so I have bought and tried and tested a zillion products since I was 18.

So, these are the products that work for me. I'd like to share them with you, and maybe you'll get as much enjoyment from them as I do - and save yourself a bit of money at the same time. Everything below is from the point of view of an unbiased, nothing to sell, nothing to gain (aside from creating happiness from good brand choices) Mookychick!

From my make up box(es) I have organised the best products out there into two lists, one for when you have a job and can afford to splash out, and one where you have to go with the cheaper option - but who says that cheaper options have to be the lesser of two particular tempting evils?

Check out my bang up-to-date list of beautifying products for the girl about town!

Mascara

I have long eyelashes.

One shop assistant asked 'Are those real?'

Glancing at my boobs, and giving them a proud loving squeeze, I replied, "Yes, and not even a wonder bra in sight!"

"No," she explained, "are your eyelashes real?"

YES! They are indeed real - but with the help of some clever products! If you're looking for definitive 'notice me' eyelashes then these products are for you...

Splash out on: YSL's Great Lash Mascara retailing at around £23.00

This mascara gives an awesome lengthening effect. It's thick enough to make the most of your lashes if they are on the thinner side, and the false effect makes your eyes look outstanding, prompting comments on their authenticity! I swear by it!

Save with: Rimmel Volume Flash Waterproof Mascara retailing at around £9.99

Nearly as good as YSL but could still give the great designer a run for its money! Applies well, minimal clumps, gives a real 'out there' effect.

Don't bother with: Dior, Maybelline, Clinique, Benefit or Clarins

These are all good if you just want a run of the mill decent mascara but certainly won't make the wow impact that I love!

Secret helper: Natural Collections mascara from Boots for about two quid, it works better than any of the designer products aside from YSL and Rimmel. A real steal and great if you're on an extra tight budget.

Lipstick and gloss

Love your lips? Treat them to a good dose of Vaseline! Simple but so effective at keeping the chapped demons at bay. For gloss and lip colour, because I like to make a statement with my eyes, I tend to keep to rose blush and pink lipsticks, especially if they stay on for a long time.

Splash out on: Any of the £9.99 Maybelline Superstay 16 hour lip shines work a treat and they really do stay on. Try not to be too liberal with the coating as all of the long lasting lippies tend to crumble if too much is piled on... and for god sake ALWAYS use the little gloss stick it comes with, otherwise it just don't work.

A good gloss is Dior. I have always been impressed with all of their glosses, in particular the lipstick that is still a gloss, thick in its consistency and comes in a square package. All their lipsticks are great, especially with durability and long lasting wear; I love them! They retail between £12 and £23.

Save with: Boots number 7 has always been a firm favourite alongside any of The Rimmel matt lipsticks. Bourjois is the poor woman's Chanel, made by the same company, so if you want the same kind of luxury, then pop on some of their war paint and you won't go wrong. Pick the colours that suit you. You'll be looking at paying around £5.99 for a Boots, £6.99 for a Rimmel and around about £8.00 for a Bourjois.

Don't bother with: Clarins lipstick, as it's ever so watery and doesn't last that long. Clinique lipstick is quite heavy and the gloss is no different to any other that I've found. Benefit do quite a good range of lipstick but it's quite pricy when the same kind of product can be found with some of the cheaper brands. In Chanel's case, you're paying for the name.

Ruby & Millie's lip gloss (£10) is far too sticky and although the ergonomic packaging is pretty nifty, it gets gooey pretty fast...

Clarins lippies are retailing from between £13 - £22.00

Chanel? You're looking at £20 plus

Benefit £12 to £15.00

Clinique £16.00

Secret helper: Miss Sporty lip gloss, a total steal at less than a fiver, you can't go wrong! Oh, and Body shops lip gloss pots are fabulous and long-lasting at only £6.00

Eyeshadows, eyeliner and eye creams

With so many products out there essentially doing the same thing, I haven't noticed all that much of a difference. However there are a few gems I've picked out that don't crease, run or smudge half as bad as their contemporaries.

Personally, I don't tend to use eyeshadow unless I'm really smoking the peepers, as with the sexy lashes and juicy lippies it can sometimes be face overkill.

Splash out on: Any Karen Millen jar of eyeshadow. Silky and ever so easy to apply, a little goes a long way. Its subtle sex kitten looks are sure to grab anyone's attention. Clinique also do fabulous pallets of rich and fruity colours ranging from the singular pots to the collections. Look out for Chanel and Dior's version of limited edition summer and winter pallets / compacts, definitely worth investing in!

Save with: Body Shop, they do an outstanding range of matt, shine and crème eye shadow coming in jars, pallets and tubes. Their shimmer square pallets are to die for, and their crème gloss tubes are just divine! Light and absorbent, they go the distance. To stop the dreaded eyeshadow crease, pop a bit of Body Shop vitamin E gel under and above your eyes. This acts as a preventative barrier to stop any unsightly mess! Olay's age defying eye gel works equally as well.

All Rimmel and Maybelline eyeshadows are average, nothing to shout about and do the job as well as you expect them to. Bourjois do a lovely shimmer pot in an array of pastel colours that are really nice to use and give the effect of something more expensive.

Body Shop eye shadows range in price from £12 to £15

Maybelline retail at around £6.00

Rimmel between £5 and £10.00

Bourjois slightly more expensive at around £7 - 8.00

Secret helper: Natural Collection do a cute little selection of budget-friendly earth colours to give your eyes a really natural look.

Foundations

Sooo tricky to get this right. But in my opinion, mix a little Benefit 'You Rebel' with your normal foundation for a natural sun-kissed glow. 'You Rebel' on its own makes you orange and their new one is too pale! Argh!

Personally, I love Revlon's Skinlights - amazing coverage, gorgeous smell and makes you look a little bit in love - aww!

My other favourites are Chanel, and YSL (which I'm currently using) were voted the number one foundation in Grazia magazine. Pricy, but oh so worth it! The other amazing little pot of joy is Benefits foundation in a mock record sleeve. It comes in a compact with a sponge, mirror and suits all skin types. It gives flawless covering and is just as good as the YSL foundation.

Splash out on: Chanel pots and YSL coverage. You'll be looking at paying around £32.00 for each.

Save with: Revlon's Skinlights, ahhh gorgeous! These retail at around £8.00.

Don't bother with:: L'Oreal skin match. Urgh it's so heavy and ageing. It gave me spots! Clarins doesn't last on my skin, Clinique has a weird smell and is also quite transparent, and No.7, Rimmel (aside from Skinlights) and any of the other mainstream brands aren't all that exciting. There isn't anything that sets them aside from one another.

Secret helper: Benefits compact foundation in the little record box (£19.99)

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