When I tell people that I have a beauty blog, the responses range from 'Oh, that's amazing!' to 'That must be expensive.' I'm not sure when it happened, but somewhere in my early-twenties, after the Sephora-revolution in Toronto, makeup collecting became ultra-serious.
As much as I love my Benefit's They're Real mascara, and my Urban Decay lipstick, not all beauty is costly. To prove it, I've made a list of a few of my favourite beauty steals. Keep in mind that everybody's skin and style is different, so it may not work for you, but for less than $10? You can't go wrong.
1. Eyeliner: Hard Candy Walk the Line Eyeliner in Asphalt
I didn't start using liquid eyeliner until I was in my twenties. Until then all I knew was that eye pencils were the devil and I loathed having to use them. I had ONE kohl liner that I stuck to like glue, that is, until I met this product. The Walk the Line brush is REALLY LONG, it took me awhile to get used to it but now I prefer it. It goes on smooth and can easily be used to make a delicate cat eye or a thicker line. The only caveat is that the other colours aren't nearly as pigmented. I've tried the black with glitter and the purple and it's only asphalt that really makes it pop.
Cost?You can get this for $6-8 at Walmart.
2. Mascara: Maybelline - Volum' Express The Colossal
While I'm currently a slave to the nice collection of high-end mascaras in my arsenal, I definitely spent a lot of time with this mascara. It's quite the value for a drug-store brand, providing a lot of coverage and great length, but allowing for a more natural look if you dab the applicator a bit. It comes in waterproof or non-waterproof for your own personal tastes and comes in black/brown, etc. I highly recommend this as a quality backup mascara if you're traveling and don't want to bring the pricey stuff with you.
Cost? This baby is only $6 on Amazon
3. BB Cream: Rimmel London BB Cream Matte 
Back in the day, we didn't bother with BB/CC/DD cream, we just used moisturizer or tinted moisturizer and called it a day. But times, they are a'changing. I've had poor luck with BB creams in the past, but after doing a bit of extensive research I found this one that provides great coverage, mattifies my oily skin, and evens my skintone. Compared to some other BB creams, it is quite thick, but I find that the lighter BB creams actually extend my oiliness, so this matte formula is much preferable for my skin. It's almost like a foundation, but not quite, so it's great for those more natural day looks.
Cost? This will cost you about $10 on Amazon.
4. Eye Pigment: Annabelle Eye Dust/ Mineral Pigment Dust
When I was in high school, my boyfriend at the time lived with his makeup-artist-aspiring sister and if it wasn't for her, I don't think I ever would've found my way to this product. Pigment is a funny thing, it's intimidating to some, but it's actually really easy to work with. Annabelle's eye pigments are multi-faceted and each pigment come in two tones. 'Golden Pink' is exactly that, pink with a gold shimmer, and Solar is gold with orange/peach tones. A little goes a long way with this product, as I've had them for almost a decade and I still have at least 50% of my dust. I recommend using a base, as with any pigment, to make sure an optimal amount stays on your lids. But yeah, great payoff, great colours and Canadian!
Cost? You can find this online or at Shoppers Drug Mart for about $9.
5. Blush: Essence Cream Blush - Beauty on Tour
Oh, Essence! If you've been to a drug store lately, you've probably walked by a colourful end-cap full of Essence products, ignoring them in favour of Rimmel, NYC, Cover Girl or Revlon. But I'm going to encourage you to walk back to the Essence rack and take a look at what they're offering! From mini nail polishes, to bronzers, eyeliners and eye pigments, Essence has a lot to sell and all of it for under $10. My favourite Essence steam is a pink-coral cream blush from the Ready for Boarding collection. It gives the colour payoff of a pricey brand but for less than $5. They come out with a new collection every month so do yourself a favour and take a peek at their next launch.
Cost? This blush was $3 and you can find it at Shoppers Drug Mart.
So there you have it. Five of my favourite beauty steals for under $10. What are some of yours?