Drugstore Dupes

Like most people I imagine, I'm always on the hunt for cheaper versions of my favourite products. if it works just as good, I'm more than happy to go from a high end product to a drugstore one. I've got some Milani products from Beauty Base to see if they're just as good as my 'high end' products. 

I've tried Milani's lip crème's before, and I loved them so I had high expectations! The first product I tried was the lip crème in the shade Adorable (or number 10). I swatched all of my liquid lipsticks in similar shades to find the perfect match. The closest Adorable came to was my absolute favourite liquid lipstick, Bow N Arrow by Kat Von D, so it had a lot to live up to! In relation to the shade, they're pretty close on the hand. However, on the lips Bow N Arrow has more of a brown undertone where as Adorable is more pink. They're both beautiful shades and I would consider it a dupe. I've definitely started reaching for it as much as I do for Bow N Arrow. The formula feels nice and it applies very easily. I love the shape of Milani's liquid lipstick applicators, they seem to fit the shape of my lips well where as the applicator for Kat Von D is a lot smaller. It's more precise but I have to make more strokes when applying. As for how long they last, Kat pulls it out of the bag every time, her products are so long lasting and comfortable. The Milani lip crème doesn't last as long, but as it wears off it doesn't get clumpy or dry my lips out which is a plus. Adorable is a great dupe for Bow N Arrow, I would also recommend other shades, such as Amore which is a beautiful bright red. 

The next product I tried was in comparison to probably the most popular, holy grail blushes out there, Nars Orgasm. I don't really go heavy on blush, most of the time I go without it. I thought it would be interesting if I could find a dupe for such a popular product. The dupe I found was Milani's baked blush in the shade Dolce Pink (01). First impressions, milani's packaging is so pretty, I love the gold, it has a compartment for a blush brush and there's also a mirror in there too. In the pan they look extremely similar, I notice a sort of gold shimmer on both of them. The actual pink shade of the blush is even more similar which I've tried to demonstrate in the photo above. On the right is Nars, left is Milani. Nars is definitely more pigmented, but this isn't something I particularly look for in a blush as I prefer a more natural, subtle look. Both apply nicely to the skin, I didn't really find much of a difference between them. They're so similar I would actually recommend going for Milani as it's so much cheaper, the packaging is amazing and Milani are full on cruelty free. To my knowledge they do not sell in China or anywhere that requires animal testing, which Nars has unfortunately recently decided to do. 

Lastly, the foundations. I compared the Nars All Day Luminous Foundation in the shade Fiji to the Milani Conceal and Perfect foundation in the shade Natural (02). For only a number 2 shade, it's pretty dark. Their shade selection is not the best, especially for those with very light or dark skin. Milani's foundation started off well for me, great coverage and a decent match. I was surprised with the coverage and I think it's great you can also use it to conceal. The packaging is nice, I like to see what the shade is like and how much I have left. Nars' bottle is a bit more frosted so it's not too clear what the shade looks like until you pump it out. Another good thing about Milani's foundation is that it has a pump but I actually prefer Nars' packaging, it's very sleek. When I went to try the Milani foundation again, it caused me to break out so I'm a bit weary of using it again. I'm not sure if it's the formula or the way my skin reacts to foundations as I tend to just use BB Cream. I'm not sure I can recommend either of these as they were a bit of a disappointment for me. If you're going to try any, I'd say go for Milani as Nars are taking steps backwards like I previously mentioned. I would love to know if any of these products have worked for you or if you'd like to try them out.