5 of the Best: Budget Beauty Buys That Really Work

 Hello my lovelies, sorry I've not blogged in a while, I got back off holiday last week so it's all been a bit hectic. I'm a bit depressed with the holiday blues to be honest as now I'm back it suddenly seems to have got majorly wintery all of a sudden, so I've got from laying in the sunshine in my bikini drinking cocktails, to sitting in my christmas fleecy pjs drinking endless cups of tea :(

However to cheer myself up I thought I'd do a little blog post on 5 budget beauty buys that are actually really good. Hopefully these purse friendly little wonders will cheer you up too :)


1. Montagne Jeunesse Face Mask- £1.48

I like to use this brand of facemask sometimes because they have such a wide variety of different purposes and textures, from peel off detoxifying masks, to moisturising chocolate masks. This particular mask is really good because rather than being the usual liquid that you squeeze out and spread onto your skin, it's actually a fabric mask infused with the clay mask solution.

Don't be put off by the fact that the mask looks, well, horrifying and more like something Michael Myers might put on before he goes on a murdering spree, it actually feels really nice when it's on!

One thing I would recommend is to definitely let anyone in the house know that you're putting the mask on, as it does look pretty scary. 

As you can see apparently I must have an absolute pea head because the mask is a bit big for my face, about 2 inches of the forehead piece actually covered my hair, and I had to stick a lot of it to my neck or it would've been hanging off, but for £1.48 it's a funny little treat that made my skin feel like it had a really deep cleanse.

2. Garnier Simply Essentials Soothing 2 in 1 Makeup Remover- £2.99

I first bought this makeup remover because I desperately needed some and was absolutely skint. It's safe to say I wasn't expecting great things from a makeup remover costing less than three quid, however I've got to say this is actually the best makeup remover I have ever tried! It is part oil, part cleansing liquid, that you shake up to mix before applying it with a cotton pad, and I think that's what makes it so effective. Usually I HATE oil based makeup removers as they make my skin feel greasy and when I use them to remove my eye makeup I tend to feel a bit like I'm going blind, however this product is different, it doesn't feel oily at all and is SO gentle.
It dissolves eye makeup and mascara really easily, and I usually wear at least 3-4 coats of mascara so that's saying something! It's also brilliant at removing other makeup too so you can use it all over your face.
All in all I would rate this product 10 out of 10, it literally does exactly what it says on the bottle, and you can't go wrong for £2.99.

3. Palmer's Cocoa Butter Body Lotion- £3.77

I couldn't write about budget beauty buys and not include good old Palmer's Cocoa Butter, I have loved this product for years as it is so cheap yet so effective. I love it because it really hydrates my skin, yet it absorbs easily, as I hate anything that sits on my skin and feels greasy. 

Recently it's been a lifesaver as my skin has been peeling since I've come back off holiday. I was absolutely horrified when my lovely tan suddenly started peeling off leaving me looking like I've had some sort of flesh eating tropical disease...not ideal. This has also meant that my dreams of showing off my tan have died an absolute death and I've been in long sleeves since I got back...gutted.

I was using aftersun but that did nothing, so I switched to an expensive Sanctuary body butter which smells amazing but didn't really help my skin much, so I went back to my old favourite and of course, it's worked and my tight peeling skin is starting to feel (and look) much better.

4. St Moriz Instant Self Tanning Mousse- approx £3 (depending where you get it from)

Speaking of tanning this brings me nicely onto my next little budget wonder, St Moriz. I'm including this although I imagine most of you will have already heard of it, simply because it's LIFE CHANGING! This is the best cheap fake tan in the actual world. It gives a gorgeous deep brown colour instantly, and then develops to give you a long lasting golden glow. I prefer the mousse formula, although the spray is also good, especially if you're not as confident with tanning. I also use the normal version as opposed to the Dark one, as although the Dark version gives an amazing tanned colour, its also an absolute b*tch to scrub off and leaves you with that awkward patchy giraffe skin when it's coming off. 

You can usually buy this tan from dubious places such as Home Bargains type stores, indoor markets etc, don't buy it from bigger shops like supermarkets as they charge about £4.99 when you get get it for as cheap as £2.99 from bargain shops.

5. Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Reconstructor- £4.99

And finally my last honourable mention goes to Aussie for their amazing 3 Minute Miracle range of hair reconstructors. I use the Deep Conditioning treatment for dry/damaged hair, but they also do 3 Minute Miracles for coloured hair, heat damaged hair etc, so you can pick your hair dilemma and they have a product to solve it for you. 

All Aussie products smell amazing, and this one is no different. The scent really stays on your hair as well, so your hair will be smelling sweet all day long. 

This is a really simple product to use in the place of your conditioner, I tend to put it on in the bath or shower, then tie my hair up while I faff around doing everything else I need to do like shave my legs, then just wash it off like normal conditioner. 

My hair can get a bit frazzled and look less Kim Kardashian, and more like a Fraggle from Fraggle Rock, but this treatment smoothes the hair and leaves it feeling soft and silky and really easy to style...perfect!

So there you have it, some amazing beauty buys that won't break the bank. Let me know if you've tried any of these products, and what you think to them.

Take care,

Alex xxx