While I like to look, y’know, nice, I’m far too busy (read lazy) to spend hours in front of the mirror. I’d rather spend more time in bed/at a yoga class/reading magazines, basically anything other than primping and preening.
When I’m getting ready for a night out with friends I’m the one who’s ready in under ten minutes and can’t really understand what’s taking everyone else so long. It goes without saying that I like my beauty buys to work fast and, ideally, do at least two things in one. Hey, I can multitask, why shouldn’t my lip balm?! Here’s five of my favourite time-saving beauty buys, all of which cost a fiver, or less.
Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish in Instyle Coral | £3.69
I’ve never been one for regular massages and facials but I did develop a serious mani/pedi habit that I reluctantly gave up last year after I left fulltime employment and could no longer justify the expense. Having only once attempted to paint my own fingernails (the left hand looked OK, the right hand was a DISASTER!) I wasn’t keen on the DIY approach but I was seriously sick of looking at my dull au naturel nails. The pretty coral shade of Rimmel’s 60 Seconds polish in Instyle Coral caught my eye and I decided to try again, figuring if it didn’t work out it wasn’t an expensive mistake. I started with my left hand. Perfect. Then my right. Not bad. And, as promised, after 60 seconds it was pretty much dry. I added a second coat to intensify the colour. It lasted chip-free for a couple of days and would have lasted longer if I hadn’t been too lazy to add a top coat. Needless to say I’ll be investing in more colours.
Batiste Dry Shampoo Original Clean & Classic | £2.99
Until a couple of weeks ago I’d never used dry shampoo. That all changed after a girly night out that ended a long time after the underground had shut (seriously, they can’t start the 24 hour tube soon enough but, I digress) and I stayed over at my friend’s house to save on taxi fares. The following morning, short on time and light on products, I skipped my usual daily shampoo and conditioner and gave my hair a spritz with her Batiste Dry Shampoo. It was a revelation. Instead of my usual day old limp locks, my hair felt unbelievably fresh and full of body. I’m now using it every other day to make my pricey Bumble & Bumble shampoo and conditioner last twice as long. That’s my kind of budgeting. Also how cool is the packaging?!
& Other Stories Lip Balm in Pink Dark | £5
Just sneaking into the budget is this swanky-looking lip balm from & Other Stories. Having been teased about my lips as a teenager (everything from Mick Jagger lips to, well, you can probably guess) I’ve never been one for drawing attention to my mouth. However I have to confess I liked how my lips looked when Charlotte persuaded me to try a bright pink lip for a previous post. The next day I invested in this glossy lip balm, which delivers more colour than my usual Vaseline Rosy Lips but isn’t too look-at-me bright. Kind of like a gateway drug on the way to a stronger lip colour. Regular reapplication is required but it smells like vanilla and looks good when I whip it out of my make-up bag. Win/win.
Dove Deeply Nourishing Body Wash | £2.40
In an ideal world I’d start my day with a long soak in a bath, then apply body moisturiser and waft around in a pretty robe as it sank in before I, erm, who knows what I would do next if I was living my fantasy rich bitch life? Like most people I only have time for that kind of thing every now and again so instead I shower with a super-moisturising body wash that negates the need for a separate moisturiser. Take two bottles into the shower? Not me.
Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Facial Wipes |£3.25
Yes, this is a seriously lazy beauty habit but having a packet of these wipes to hand means I’m more likely to take my make-up off at night and that’s better than leaving it on, am I right?! I got into these wipes when I went away for long weekend on a hand-luggage-only ticket and had to find an alternative to my usual cleanser, which didn’t come in a carry-on friendly size. I’ve never looked back. My sensitive skin seems to like them, so I do too. They even remove waterproof mascara. Plus they’re frequently on a 3 for 2 deal at Boots.
What are your favourite time-saving beauty buys, bargain or blow-the-budget? I’d love to add to my speedy beauty arsenal so do share below!
Batiste is the bees-knees. I use the blonde version as it looks less grey than the colourless. My husband does not like Batiste however claiming the spray covers the house….
It’s brilliant isn’t it? Will check out the blonde version next!
I love Batiste too. I’ve been known to use it on freshly washed hair as it really adds va-va-voom!
Ooh, will be giving that a try too, my hair does tend towards the flat at times!
Nivea Daily Essentials Double Effect Eye Make-Up Remover – it’s usually about £2 and I think it’s brilliant! I find it just as effective as other, far more expensive brands, and it gets off waterproof mascara with no problems while being gentle on your skin.
Ooh, always good to hear about products that work hard for their money, thanks for sharing Bryony!
My mum loves this stuff! She buys in it bulk, just in case she might ever run out.
I take the buying in bulk approach with my fave products too!
I agree. I wear liquid eyeliner and so much mascara, and this completely shifts the lot. Much cheaper than the very similar Clarins version.
Definitely trying!
God, I love that Rimmel nail varnish. I’ve got loads of their colours and they really do dry in 60 seconds! They do another formulation called lasting finish or something similar and that one’s great too. I seem to be inordinately hard on my nails and that one seems to last a good week with only minor touch ups.
PS what did we do before dry shampoo??!!
Ooh, the colours in the Lasting Finish line are lovely – Pear Drop looks perfect for beachy summer toes!
I am a Batiste super user. My hairdresser told me off for washing my hair too much, and said ideally I should be washing it 2-3 times a week to stop it drying out and losing nutrients – so I use the dry shampoo on inbetween hair wash days to stop my fringe going all limp and lacklustre. Husband also complains about the dust/powder coating everything in the bedroom though!
I’m not sure I could go down the route of washing my hair only twice a week but at least I’m not washing it every day now…
I LOVE Batiste dry shampoo and always have cans of it in the bathroom!
It does make my mum & aunts laugh – they don’t understand why I don’t just use talc powder (which is essentially what Batiste is), my mum used to get me to use talc in my hair when I was younger & I used to be disgusted by the idea! haha!
And I do have to say, the dust does annoy me quite a bit (but obviously not enough to stop using!) xx
ps., think I also need to try the blonde version
Haha, mums always know best! x
I love the Simple brand and religiously use their Age Resisting day moisturiser (slightly over budget at £5.99 sorry). I recently swapped to the matching face wipes at £3.99 and have stockpiled them in my bathroom.