O, makeup. How do I love yet resent thee? For most women, cosmetics are a bane and a blessing. They can be employed to play up your best features and mask your perceived flaws. But each day is like painting the Sistine Chapel just to wash it off at the end of the day.

Not all cosmetics are created equally. I’ll admit, I practically go into heat when I’m at the MAC counter. All the pigments all the weights and sheens and lusters. Yes, vanity is a sin. But so is looking like hammered hell should you happen to run into, say, an ex-boyfriend or that bitchy girl you knew from high school. But on a ramen noodle budget, a MAC-only makeup bag is a pipe dream.

So, where should you save and where should you splurge?

SPLURGE:

Foundation – Like a house, you want to build on a firm foundation. Or, in this case, one that matches the rest of your skin. The high-end brands use better quality ingredients that better match your skin tone. There’s nothing worse than seeing a pretty girl with an obvious line of demarcation running along her jaw.

Concealer – Yeah, this is not the same as foundation. This goes under your eyes and on any blemishes. So it’s kind of important for it not to stand out. The object it to hide, not highlight. Do yourself a favor, splurge a bit.

Powder – A good powder can end up saving you money. With the right kind of powder, you don’t really need foundation. And the better the brand, the better the coverage it affords without looking caked on. Showing my brand loyalty here, but MAC Studio Fix or MAC Mineralize are W-O-N-D-E-R-F-U-L. Oh, and on the conspicuous consumption end of the spectrum, I know I notice when a woman pulls out a MAC compact versus a Cover Girl one.

Eyeshadow – Upgrade your everyday eyeshadow. I have a neutral palette of high-end shadows that I use daily. The problem with drugstore shadows is that a lot of them are mostly chalk, whereas high-end shadows have more concentrated pigments that are better for blending and layering. So upgrade your eyeshadow and look fabulous every day.

Blush – Again, the richer the pigment, the better it blends. And blending is a good thing with blush. You want a youthful sun-kissed glow, not look like a clown.

SAVE:

Mascara – Because you should only keep a tube of mascara for three months max, opt for a cheaper version. To get that expensive look, don’t worry about what formula you get. Instead, pay more attention to what kind of wand it has. Smaller brushes reach every lash so they don’t clump together as much.

Eyeliner – Again, this has a limited lifespan and there’s not much difference between drugstore and department store formulas. You may have to go through a few brands before you find one you like, but I wore a waterproof Revlon Color Stay eyeliner to Worlds of Fun in 100+ degree weather and it didn’t move a nanometer.

Lipstick – Concentrate on the texture, not the brand. You can get a drugstore brand that will work just fine. Just make sure it’s creamy and won’t crack. Because grandma mouth is grody.

Lipgloss - It’s all the same. Just don’t overdo it. You don’t want it to look like a slug crawled across your lips.

Nail polish – Your at-home manicure will look just as good with drugstore nail polish. Save your money on color and opt for some BLING-BLING. Or not.

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