Money saving beauty tips.

This week I thought I'd do a little bit of an all round "saving money on beauty" post.  Beauty and clothing. 

Joan asked me to consider something on looking well groomed and well dressed on a small budget as she has admired someone who looks so stylish yet knows has a very small amount to actually spend. This reminds me of my Nan B who even at ninety was still always well dressed, smart and stylish. She was like this her whole life. It wasn't until after her death that I saw how little she owned. From memory she had three very good dresses, four pairs of shoes... lovely scarves... overall very little. She always looked so nice. She proved a few well chosen things are better than a crammed wardrobe any day.

Many of us have probably spent a fortune over the years trying different looks and in search of what suits us. It can be a never ending quest. I followed a fashion blogger for a long time that had great tips. She was funny and brutally honest. She often said some things from cheap shops and brands look cheap. But if you choose classic colours then they look expensive. This was her number one tip. It is true. Classic plain black, navy, caramel, burgundy etc look expensive and some colours and prints look cheap or dated. I notice this everywhere. Remember the movie Pretty Woman in which Richard Gere played the rich businessman? He wore black and tan/caramel. And he LOOKED rich. Yep, that is just a rich classic combination and if he had of worn lime green and orange he might not have looked so rich! It is that simple.

You may not want to look rich or care! But classics do look stylish and smart and mostly all go together too.

The other tip is most of us wear a fraction of our wardrobe. We develop favourites that we feel best in. We think something suits us best and feels the nicest. If we feel we know both what suits us best and what feels comfortable then just wearing those things is like being set free of all the other stuff!

The same with colours. If you feel you know what are your best colours and just wear them then mostly your wardrobe will all go together. No endless "what will go with what?" issues! Last week I mentioned a post about wearing and accessorising with the colours of your eyes and hair. You will always look wonderful. Things will always match since you are always wearing your eyes and your hair! My wardrobe is made up of four main colours and I don't really have to work out what goes with what. If I got dressed in the dark it would probably work out ok. This is so simple and shopping is simple too.

Simplifying your wardrobe and life is bliss. I would now never go shopping because I had an event. I would wear one of several basic black dresses or my red or blue dress. I have shoes and accessories to change these to just about any look.  That's it. I'm done! 

If you look around you will see that if you go out neat and tidy with clean and styled hair you are well ahead already. Being basically well groomed looks a million dollars!

Many of us own nice jewellery that we don't wear or don't clean. If you have lovely pearls that you inherited or a beautiful ring I would say wear them! Sparkling jewellery looks beautiful. Not counting pearls most jewellery and gems can be cleaned yourself at home very well. I use half windex(window cleaner) and half dish washing liquid plus a small soft toothbrush. Dip your jewellery in this and give it a good clean. With rings that are old or dirty take some time over this and do it over a bowl not the sink! Things come up just amazingly and look brand new in no time. Then you sparkle! Every now and then sit and do this and you will truly be amazed. It is like having new jewellery!

Similarly cleaning up your shoes and handbag will make them look like new! My leather bag and shoes I use vaseline which is  rubbed in and polished off. The difference is staggering!
A more recent trend is layered necklaces and twisted/chunky feature necklaces. Just wear several of your necklaces together and it looks the same. I really like this look.

You can make new and interesting pendants by taking odd bits and pieces and grouping them in clusters on a chain. I seem to be a bower bird and have a little things I like, many from other things that have broken... grouped on a chain they are really nice...  all of these I added to existing chains and had a change around. Sort of new jewellery for free! And personal. With a theme in mind these could be lovely gifts.

If you have ever had a manicure or pedicure this is a good thing as you know what the end result feels like. I think especially with a pedicure the results are pretty major and it feels so nice. These are things you can do so well at home. The main failure in this is we do a very quick version and wonder why the results are not the same. But if we put the same time into it they will be pretty much as good. At a salon a pedicure takes about an hour. It truly is the time that makes the difference. If you give yourself a pedicure while watching a movie you will have an hour and a half or so.... then you will get salon results! Beautiful painted toenails in sandals look so nice! For tough skin a tip is to soak cotton wool in Hydrogen Peroxide. Hold against the hard skin for a couple of minutes. It will then rub away like butter. The saving will probably be about $80!

Most things you can learn to do at home. From eyebrow shaping to lash tinting they are all easy to do as long as your eyesight is ok.

You can learn just about any skill on you tube or search tutorials and have a study up. Each thing you learn to do yourself is another saving. We have shops like Priceline and Price attack. Ask for DIY kits for anything from brow tinting to waxing. It is all easy and will save a fortune. The staff will usually happily explain how it's done to you as well and how easy it is. A brow tinting kit, for instance, will cost about $20 and give you several years worth!

In the world of skin care you can save so much money. A little snooping will reveal that many brands own other brands and in fact sell the same formula's in different packaging. The difference is the packaging and price but the formula is the same. This is not all products but many. Examples are Loreal is Lancome and Nivea is La Prairie. It gets very interesting when the ingredients are the same but the price difference is $300. It takes some close comparing to find which products are equal but there are quite a few! Others are so similar the difference is not worth worrying about.

Another one is makeup... the same as above applies. But you may have a total favourite colour in an expensive brand and love it so much... online you will find the world of "beauty dupes". If you want to find an equivalent that is cheaper to any favourite product in makeup or skin care search beauty dupes. Include the name of the shade if you are searching for a particular colour. You may find a match that is a faction of the cost of what you have been paying.

In the world of perfumes the price differences are huge. Providing  you know your favourite brand etc if you search online you will beat department store prices by so much you will be amazed. I have a perfume I just love and I used to buy it in a department store. Never again! Downstairs below the department store is a chemist warehouse and it costs 50% less there but I never knew this! 

Another trick is to identify what is the active ingredient in something that might be a good thing...  Many times there is some truth about a product and a good active ingredient but the cost of the product is just huge. An example I had a while ago was an expensive brand of cosmetics and their hero product was a small bottle of 100% organic rosehip oil for the price of $99. Now rosehip oil is a good ingredient so that bit was true. But you can go buy that same thing yourself for under $20. So why pay $99? 

Many times if you can find out the active ingredient you may be able to do better. 

Many products you can do without altogether! Lots of products have multiple uses. A lip gloss can be used as a highlighter on your cheeks, a lipstick can be used for cream blush... just go by the colour and consistency and use things however you want! 

If you have skin problems many times your doctor will be able to give you a prescription for a product that will make it much cheaper than buying something over the counter. For acne, scaring etc there are really effective things that can be prescribed. This is worth checking and can save you hundreds.

You can custom mix your products. If you have a foundation that is a little dark or too thick... blend it with some moisturiser or a lighter shade. You can alter things with mixing to pretty good effect. I think cream blush is much more flattering than powder blush but I was given so much powder blush! So I use it and dab a tiny amount of vaseline on my upper cheekbone. Then it looks glowly and dewy just the same as if it were a cream blush. 

We have covered making your own scrubs. It is also easy to make your own luxurious body powder. Scented body powders can be really expensive. So can lovely powder puffs. I LOVE powder and powder puffs. After having trouble getting anything other than a depressed powder puff I started making my own from fur. These make lovely gifts!

 Next,  powder is easy. In a sealed box or crystal container (think op shop) this is a beautiful gift too. You can use unscented powder or use cornflour or arrowroot as your base. Or a mix. Arrowroot it very silky and luxurious.
To this you can add any scent from essential oil to a luxury perfume. In an enclosed container three sprays of scent will perfume a whole container. Mine is Chanel No 5. It really works and is lovely! If you took a look at the price of a classic perfumed powder it is expensive! Provided you have a perfume on hand this is very economical!
To a body powder you can also add shimmer... or sparkle. 

This is really lovely and combined these two make a gorgeous gift that will all up cost a dollar or two.

At the end of the day we all end up with products that are duds for one reason or another! It happens to us all. Apart from re gifting new things there are some great uses for products...

Talcum powder is wonderful to de stink the inside of shoes. It makes great dry shampoo. A tiny fine sprinkle between your sheets re freshens them and makes them feel surprisingly wonderful. The most expensive hotels in the world sprinkle bed powder between the sheets. This might sound nuts but once you have tried it you will understand. If you are unwell or overtired this will give you one more day of fresh sheets. It is a tiny fine sprinkle...

Talcum powder will also refresh carpets instead of carpet powder.

Shampoo you don't like is good for handwahsing clothes. Also possibly for making bubble bath (see my Hollywood recipe) or filing up your hand wash containers.

Conditioner you don't like can be used as shaving cream on your legs or as fabric softener when washing knitwear.

A moisturiser you don't like might be fine for your hands or feet. Or add castor sugar and do a hand or foot scrub. (this works really well!)

Toothpaste you don't like can be a cleaning product with a little toothbrush. It is like Jiff cleaner or an abrasive cleaner. Will get anything off!

Lots of things can be used in other ways. My number one is wearing pearls which were once quite formal but now you can wear them with a t shirt to great effect!

Use tiny evening purses that are pretty but just too small as a makeup case or small kit in your handbag.

Use an evening clutch that is too small as a travel wallet.

A handbag you don't love will make a great bag to carry your hair drier and things on holiday. Or even a great knitting bag!

Use a brooch as a hair clasp or pinned to a purse.

Use your nice things. Polish them up. Shop your wardrobe and wear things differently. 

These are areas we can be inventive and save so much money. It is kind of mind boggling! 

So much of the beauty industry is about perceived effects. How it makes you FEEL. Cath was telling me about an ALDI moisturiser that is fantastic. I went on and did some research on this. I will post about it on an upcoming post. The bottom line is this product that costs just a few dollars rated in blind tests to beat a best seller anti wrinkle cream that is many times the price. This is ALDI Lacura range which I believe is $3.99 (we do not have an ALDI yet but I am counting the days).  This is just the perfect example. Price and quality do not necessarily have any relationship in the beauty world.
Information is power!

I also accept perceived luxury is important. I love things to look nice, feel nice and smell nice! While many inexpensive and effective things will work and be lovely lots of times the packaging is awful. For my own sake I use pretty containers and bottles. I just collect them in op shops. So a cheap shampoo that I might make into bubble bath ends up in a pretty bottle and the end result looks nice, smells nice and works! I will enjoy it and it FEELS luxurious. It is a bit like outwitting myself, honestly, but it works.

If you are like me in this then decanting things into lovely bottles and containers works well. I tend to do it even with dish washing detergent etc. as the bottles are usually horrible.
I have heard ladies say that their family would object to some brands, generic brands etc. and I always think 1. too bad and 2. why not change containers? They'll never know! 
Like perceived luxury expectations have a big effect. People can decide they don't like something long before they even try it! Lovely packaging convinces you it's wonderful and that is why expensive products are in fabulous containers!

I hope you have found some money saving ideas and maybe some gift ideas as well. Take the savings and add them to your pantry fund or your emergency fund! 

Have a wonderful week. I have been talking about how I have come to love the words "prudent" and "diligent". The other day Vicky wished me a prudent and diligent week. That was awesome I thought! Have a prudent and diligent week! xxx