One of my pet hates as a beauty blogger is when I see people saying things like "you have to use high end brands to have your makeup look good". I'm not saying that high end brands aren't amazing. I have and use a whole lot of them myself. I just hate people thinking that they have to spend huge amount of money to look good. I've picked out five of my favourite bargain beauty buys to prove that being on a budget doesn't mean looking bad!

1. Models Prefer Matte Nude Shadows ($10.00)

There's no denying that the Urban Decay Naked palettes had a huge influence on these Models Prefer Palettes. The style is almost identical but at only $10, the Models Prefer versions are definitely friendlier to your bank account. These usually get released around Christmas but you can usually find them all year round, especially in the quieter Pricelines. This one is full of lovely warm nudes and although the quality isn't quite on par with the Urban Decay ones, they aren't bad at all!

2. Essence Make Me Brow ($5.10)

I probably spend as long doing my brows as I do on the whole rest of my face sometimes! I love brow products and Make Me Brow is no exception. It's a great dupe for the famous Benefit Gimme Brow (which I also love) but for a fraction of the price. It comes in two shades and the formula contains micro-fibres to give brows volume and fill in any patches. Well worth the $5!

3. Maybelline Master Precise Liner ($15.95)

I am a slave to winged liners and this one is my old faithful. I know that I can always pull off a sharp wing in seconds. It's easy to use, easy to clean up and stays put all day. I've heard some negative reviews of this but for me, it's always been a winner and it still comes in under $20. 

4. Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipstick ($13.95)

Rimmel always kill it when it comes to lipsticks. They're well-priced, come in an enormous range of colours and look amazing on. My personal favourites are the Lasting Finish ones, just because they do have slightly better staying power. The Limited Edition Rose Gold Anniversary lipsticks are out at the moment with three reds and three nudes, if you needed any more motivation to buy!

5. Rimmel Scandaleyes Reloaded Mascara ($17.95)

I wasn't too much of a fan of the original version of this mascara but the Reloaded one is so much better. The brush is really fat and fluffy so it gives loads of volume without looking too overdone. I really like how full it makes my lashes look and it doesn't clump up or flake off. It's one of my current favourite every day mascaras.

What are your favourite budget beauty buys?

Dani XO

Products in this post were provided as PR samples but, as always, my opinions are my own. 

Maybelline is one of my favourite drugstore brands and they have been absolutely killing it with the new releases lately. They've been churning out everything from The Nudes eyeshadow palette to new mascaras to revamped lipstick shades. One of my favourite new releases though would have to be the Colour Blur pencils.

Maybelline Lip Studio Colour Blur ($17.95)

The product itself is a little unusual. On on end there is a creamy, matte wind up colour and on the other is a clear rubber "eraser". Colour Blur is based on the Korean trend of ombré lips so it's designed to be applied to the centre of the lips and blurred outwards to create the popular ombré effect. I love that a Western brand has come out with a product that is specifically designed to create a Korean beauty look! I personally love discovering what trends are popular in other countries and find it pretty kick ass that Maybelline have made it more mainstream.

I'm not especially good at the ombré look just yet but I'm working on it! I do find that the creamy formula isn't drying and wears really nicely. It works even better if you do blur it out a little with the eraser end. There are eight shades in the collection and all are very bright, perhaps because they are designed to be blurred out? All up, I think these are a great addition to the Maybelline line up and can't wait to get my hands on some more colours. 

What you think of the Colour Blurs?

Dani XO

Products in this post were provided as PR samples but, as always, my opinion is my own.

If you've been a long-time reader of Dani the Girl XO, you'll know how much I treasure my eyebrows. I used to hate how bushy and thick they were and after years of overplucking, I've managed to grow them back to their full, bold glory days. I'm always on the lookout for products to give my brows a boost and make sure they're on fleek.... whatever that means! It's a little tricky to find budget brow products that actually make the grade but this new find is a winner.

Essence Make Me Brow ($5.10)

I would liken Make Me Brow to Benefit's Gimme Brow or L'Oreal's Brow Plumper (two favourites of mine) but at a fraction of the price. It comes in two shades, 01 Blondey and 02 Browney. They are both cool, ashy-toned shades (halle-fricken-lujah!) and also have little micro fibres to help full out your brows. I love the gel texture but I do find that you get a lot of product on the brush. I find I have to wipe off a lot of excess before using. That's really the only downside for me though. The brush is small enough to get the very ends of your brows without making a mess and they fill gaps perfectly.

Have you tried the new Essence Make Me Brow yet?

Dani XO