My Makeup Bag - Cruelty Free & Vegan - Under £75
Going Cruelty Free can be complicated, converting your makeup bag into a completely Vegan one can be harder still. While it’s 100% best to slowly transition (both for your bank balance and the environment), it can still be really confusing.
In this blog post I am going to talk you through my favourite, makeup bag essentials that I use all the time. I’ve tried to choose good quality, cheap and accessible products while at the same time being as diverse in shade and skin type as possible, sometimes giving you multiple options.
Base/Primer:
Barry M Nymph Radiance Serum - £7.99
For a glowy, radiant look, I really love this serum. While it is essentially an oil, it doesn’t leave a greasy or heavy film on the skin but soaks in quickly, leaving your skin really hydrated for a dewy look. It smells great and doesn’t affect my oily skin or acne. You can also use this for reviving a dried up eyebrow pomade with just a few drops.
e.l.f Poreless Primer Putty - £8.00
If pores are a problem for you, then this e.l.f Poreless Primer Putty is a fantastic product. It really is a lifesaver for filling in unwanted texture (obviously skin texture is normal) on the skin and just generally smoothing it out. I do find this a little drying on certain parts of my face and tend to just keep this to areas it’s effective, applying the Barry M Serum everywhere else.
MUA PRO/BASE Long Wear Matte Finish Foundation - £5.00
I could have chosen one of many different options for foundation, but in the end I always came back to this one. Nothing can compete with its value for money, performance and shade range. While it does have a matte finish, I find this mixes well with the Barry M oil above to become more dewy.
The coverage is medium but buildable and I am always impressed with how skin like it looks, not caked on at all! There are 19 shades in the range - not quite the Revolution 40 - 50 plus, but it cover a wide spectrum (not just porcelain to beige like a lot of cheaper ones) - it could still be better.
Makeup Revolution Conceal & Define Concealer - £4.99
When it comes to concealer, Revolution really changed the game so it’s no surprise I am still using their famous Conceal & Define Concealer as part of my everyday routine. It comes in 50 shades, which is amazing and also in a few different finishes/variations such as Conceal & Hydrate, Conceal & Fix and Infinite. It also comes in a Supersize version with more than three times the amount of product for £7.
Barry M Take a Brow - £4.99
When it comes to brows, I like to keep things simple, running a tinted brow gel through to add a small amount of colour and hold. I used to use the MUA Brow Define (which is significantly cheaper!), but I find all their shades have an orange undertone, which just doesn’t suit my brows. This Barry M one is the perfect shade for me - unfortunately it’s the only shade they make! Although there is a clear one which could be good for some. You can read my full review of this product here.
Powder:
When it comes to setting my makeup in place I have a choice of three amazing setting powder.
Makeup Obsession Pure Bake Powder - Transparent - £6.00 8g
I got this powder as a free gift when I bought a few other Obsession items and it completely surprised me. This is nothing like the other powders from Revolution (although I do find them okay!), this is finely milled, silky and looks fantastic on the skin when applied lightly, it also comes in five shades -not as good as other Revolution powder colour ranges - hopefully that’s something they work on. I’m also not the biggest fan of the packaging as the powder if just open inside without any sifter or anything. Be careful when opening this for the first time!
Lottie London Ready Set! Go Powder - Translucent - £5.45 15g
Very similar to the Obsession powder above, this is the first powder I used that didn’t make me look cakey or dry my skin out. This used to be sold in Superdrug, but is now just available online, which is a real shame. It’s also only available in two shade, but does have a sifter making it easier to use and you get double the amount to Obsession!
I Heart Revolution Coconut Baking Powder - £5.00 22g
The cheapest of the lot, this I Heart Revolution powder is also the largest at 22g. Sometimes this line from Revolution can feel a bit childish or gimmicky but this product genuinely surprised me with how good it was. So finely milled and silky smooth - I just love it! It comes in four shades and I have found both Coconut and Peach suitable for my skin tone, it also has a sifter. This one is strongly scent, so maybe not for someone with a sensitive nose!
Bronzer, Blusher, Highlighter:
XX Revolution CompleXXion Gravitate Face Palette - £18
The most expensive item on this list, I include it for its great shade range (It comes in four shades that cover a broad spectrum) and its high pigmentation. As pricy as it is, the highlighter is beautiful and the blush and bronzer vibrant. Negativity, I chose this palette because the highlighter is the right shade for me, but when trying it out I found the blusher and bronzer a touch too dark. The lighter palette available however, the highlighter is too dark - it confuses me.
The bronzer also arrived smashed, as did the replacements. I’ve since repressed it with surgical spirits and it seems okay. Not something you expect from an £18 palette and it might be worth picking one up in store so you can check before buying - 2020 depending!
I Heart Revolution Bronze and Glow - £6.00
A slightly older product from Revolution, I fell completely in love with this bronzer/highlighter duo from my first use. It smells of chocolate!!!!, is the perfect cool tone bronzer for my skin, and has a lovely gold tone highlighter that doesn’t leave a cast. I would be raving about this product all the time if it wasn’t for the fact that it comes in ONE solitary shade! I have seen deeper shades being sold in some of the I Heart Revolution Christmas sets so that might be a good option for some!
MUA Blushed Matte Blush Powder - £2.50
As Bronze and Glow doesn’t contain a blusher, I’ve included this bargain product from MUA. I’m convinced that this is meant to be a dupe of the much more expensive Milani Blush. It comes in five varying shades that are easy to apply and look beautiful on the skin - I use the shade “Rose Tea” (sounding very similar to Milani “Tea Rose”). It’s just a very good, cheap blusher. Would highly recommend.
Eyeshadow:
e.l.f Bitesize Eyeshadow Palette £3.00
These little four pan palettes caused a little bit of a stir on the internet for how good and how cheap they were - and I have jumped right on the bandwagon. I only have three right now (although I will be definitely getting more), but I can already say that these are becoming firm favourites. With super pigmented shimmers and mattes, you can easily get a few different eye looks from each palette. The packaging is a little bit ugly and I can imagine it’s not going to stand up to much wear and tear - but at £3, I don’t really have any complaints!
Eyes and Lips
The Mascara Revolution - £8.00
Still my favourite mascara of the past few years, although I know this isn’t for everyone, I actually reviewed this product awhile ago - you can find it here. Just an all round good mascara, a little on the pricey side, but well worth it for the impact it delivers.
Revolution Cut Crease Canvas - £6.00
Another one of my favourite products, although probably the least essential of the lot, this will really make any eyeshadow you wear pop. It’s great for stopping your eyeshadow creasing and making it last really well throughout the day. I’m not seeing this show up on Superdrug anymore, so I’m hoping it hasn’t been discontinued!
Revolution Renaissance Flick Eyeliner - £5.00
Slightly pricey for a drugstore felt tip eyeliner but something I reach for almost every time I do my makeup! It’s a good pigmented colour, with a precise nib for easy lines of multiple thicknesses, with an easy to hold design. It’s lasts well without fading and comes in three shades (although I haven’t personally tried the Brown or Blue). Negatively, it can sometimes feather if you apply too much.
e.l.f SRSLY Satin Lipstick - £3
These lipsticks are SRSLY good! Another one of these newer £3 products from e.l.f and I have to say, I think I like these even more than the eyeshadow palette, and that’s saying a lot! They are called satin but do look more matte on the lips, although they are super super comfortable and feel like something much more expensive. I currently have the shades “Persimmon” and “Pepper”, both coral/orange shades, although I would love some other colours. Negative wise, I wish they made matching liners!
MUA Intense Colour Lip Liner - £1.50
Finally my most consistently used Vegan lip liner, and its only £1.50!! These things are beautiful, if not talked about enough! Intensely pigmented, buttery soft and easily sharpenable, my only problem with them is they colour choice. Thirteen to choose from is just not enough - I need an orange!!!
My Makeup Bag
And that is my Vegan and Cruelty Free Makeup Bag. Made up of completely drugstore and easily accessible products, I hope it can give you some inspiration if you’re thinking of refreshing your essential kit or maybe even looking to go Cruelty Free.
Thanks for reading,