I do like a splurge every now and then, but only on products that I've researched thoroughly as I'm impressed with drugstore products these days, so if I'm parting with a large sum of cash I like to know that it'll be worth it.
Saying that, some high end products that I've researched and purchased have been fails, no matter how positive the reviews. I've picked out the creme de la creme of my stash to show you which high end products I believe are worth saving up for. Now I'm not saying there aren't drugstore equivalents in Boots or Superdrug, but if you're wanting some luxury in your life, these are the products I'd recommend.
I use this bad boy for eeeeeee'rythin. My lips before bed, around my eyes when my eye cream just ain't cutting it, dry spots on my elbows and knees, my eyebrows to keep them from moving throughout the day, even my eyelids during the day when they need a touch of moisturisation with a little added glow. I love my tube so much and it's a cult favourite, a household must, for so many reasons. A little goes such a long way and after a year of using mine religiously, I've only just had to repurchase. If there's one product that you should buy from this list, it's this one.
A new one to me, this foundation kind of changed my opinion of high end foundations completely. There are so many amazing bases on the high street that I always assumed it was a waste of money when splurging on a high end one. I was given this to try and instantly my opinion changed. It just performs like a luxury foundation. It glides on, doesn't stick to any dry patches on my (annoyingly) combination skin, doesn't smudge or fade throughout the day, and gives a good amount of coverage whilst letting my skin breath. I really love this and have found myself reaching for it a little more often than my staple L'Oreal Eau de Teint recently.
I'm obsessed with highlighter and I never miss this step, no matter how late I am or how natural I want my make up to be look! Lightscapade is a pearly pink highlight and has the most gorgeous marble effect throughout. A light dusting of this is enough to give a lovely sheen as it's quite pigmented and it looks lovely on the tops of cheek bones, nose and cupids bow. (I often get carried away, take a large powder brush and dust it all over my face!)
Industrial concealer is what's needed for my acne scars and under-eye bags. I feel like I've been on a lifelong hunt for the perfect concealer to do this, and this high end one is perfect for the job. I literally take a dot of this and use my fingers to blend it on my scars and under my eyes. It's creamy and full coverage, will need setting with a powder if you don't want it to crease, and lasts hours and hours. I've put this on at 6.30 in the morning and it's looked amazing until 10 at night. I love it and I'm sure the tube will last me a life time as you get so much product!
This blush had been on my wish list for so long, I can't even tell you. I'd wanted them from the moment I started reading reviews on them and can remember feeling so gutted that Tarte wasn't readily available in the UK. A few years on, and Tarte is now sold on QVC (still overpriced, but available). When I won this blush, I was 1. extremely grateful and excited to play with it, and 2. super impressed with the quality. When the say 12-hour blush, they mean 12-hour blush. It stays put, is highly pigmented and the shade range is incredible. I also have a Tarte blush palette and I'm equally impressed. If you can get your hands on them, definitely try them out.
My bloody brows are a nightmare at the moment - they are so thick, unruly and don't stay in one place! Due to the crazy weather we have here in the UK, I'm forever taking off my jumper and putting it back on - and when I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror, my brows are going in all sorts of directions. So I love this brow gel because not only does it keep me from looking like a crazy professor, it doesn't make them look shiny or gel-like. It also has a quick-drying formula so it doesn't feel sticky on the skin, and the wand is teeny tiny so it's easy to apply. Amazing.
I'm cheating a bit here as you can now get Essie in Boots, but the polishes are more expensive than, say, Barry M, so we'll go with it. I
love Essie polishes, so much so that I'm slowly building my collection by picking one up every time I go shopping! They go on so smoothly and I love the applicator; it's thick so I usually only need 2 swipes and my whole nail is painted. The colour selection is also huge, so there's a colour for everyone, and the polishes are really pigmented.
Laura Mercier Creme de Pistache Souffle Body Creme
Anything pistachio, I'm buying it and loving it. This richly scented pot of gloriousness is a firm favourite of mine and I always look forward to using it after my shower. You only need a little of it and it spreads a long way, it doesn't feel sticky on the skin and the scent lasts such a long time. There's a full review of this product in
this post where I also offer a drugstore dupe!
Diptyque Philosykos Eau de Parfum
This is my all time favourite scent in the whole entire beauty universe. It's marketed as smelling like figs, but to me this just smells so fresh, musky and sexy, and I'm sure it could be unisex. The words I used in my
review of this were timeless and sophisticated, and I still stand by this - everything from the packaging to the scent is so classy and I feel like women of any ages could wear this.
I raved about this product in this post, and for good reason. I'm obsessed with lip balm and keeping my lips hydrated as there's nothing worse than applying a lipstick only to realise it looks terrible, dry and flakey! The condition of my lips is really important to me so I tend to apply this when I've exfoliated my lips with a sugar scrub. It's really moisturising, is matte so can be worn under any lipsticks, and has a lovely honey/lemon scent.
I guess there's nothing revolutionary about this list of recommendations as I'm sure you've already seen them a hundred times plastered over blogs and vlogs, but I've tried and tested so many 'luxury' products that can only be described as utter crap, therefore I've just plucked the seriously good ones from my collection. Honourable mentions go to Urban Decay Naked Basics 2 palette, Ole Henrikson Truth Serum Collagen Booster, Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and Make Up Forever Lipsticks - I love these equally as much as the other 10 products, but I tried my hardest to needle them down to just 10!
What are your high end beauty loves?
Daniela xo
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Application is a dream, as it comes in pippet form (very hygienic) and you only need a few drops for it to blend around the whole face, so things never get messy for me. I also love the fact that the serum is organic, vegan, cruelty free, doesn't include any nasties such as alcohol, parabens or sulfates, and is safe for all skin types, which is particularly useful for me as one day I'm oily, the next day I'm dry, another I'm spotty, and on others I can be sensitive. It's made from the highest quality vitamin C, which is known for being fantastic for injecting a surge of moisture into the skin, and the product was even voted as the best vitamin C serum in Allure Magazine. If that's not enough of a recommendation, I don't know what is.
