Extreme couponing is for extremists, but that doesn’t mean reasonable couponing is a bad thing. No, in fact it’s a very good thing! Because it can be hard to find great deals on high end makeup, I like to work at getting the cheapest makeup possible in the drugstore to balance things out. And in the past few months I’ve learned that it’s easy as can be to get super cheap makeup at CVS. SO, today not only do I want to share with you the spring makeup goodies I picked up, but also share how I purchased $70 of stuff with really only $20 out of pocket. Fabulous!
Sunday Flyers and Coupons
To get the best deals, you need to be routinely look at your Sunday flyers and clipping coupons from your paper. Not only will you find coupons in your paper on every drugstore brand of cosmetics, you’ll also learn the routine of when these coupons are released and can look forward to them. Such as, I know that once a month P&G releases their coupons in the paper…therefore I would never purchase anything Cover Girl without a coupon. If you don’t get the Sunday paper, sites like coupons.com and redplum.com routinely have print-out coupons you can grab on the fly. (Often even better than the Sunday paper.)
ExtraBucks (Register Rewards)
CVS has the best register reward system of any drugstore. What’s a register reward system? It’s when the purchase of an item comes with a coupon that’s good on your next purchase. Rite Aid and Walgreens both offer their own rewards, but they’re never as high value as CVS. Such as, last week CVS offered ‘Purchase any 2 L’Oreal products and get $5 in ExtraBucks’. Walgreens also had a reward, but you needed to spend $20 in product and only get $2 towards your next purchase.
In the trip I purchased this makeup, I received: $5 ExtraBucks from 2 L’oreal, $5 ExtraBucks from 2 Revlon lip (or nail) products, $4 ExtraBucks from spending $10+ on Almay. I also got $4 ExtraBucks onrazors. That brings me to $18 of free money to use in the store ahead. Really awesome is, that free money can go towards the purchase of other products that will get you ExtraBucks. So, if you keep up with this you will be piggy backing free money atop free money to get more free money. Who doesn’t like FREE MONEY?
Coupons + ExtraBucks = Mega Savings!
Where your coupons meet your ExtraBucks you get big time savings. Such as, on this trip I used $3 off the Butterfly Mascara and $1 off my L’oreal eyeshadow. So, I got $4 off in coupons and $5 ExtraBucks for next time. That’s a huge savings. Or, Wet n’Wild was buy 2 get 1 free, with a $1 off coupon that means I got 3 nail polishes for $3.
And then there’s the reality that I was paying for everything including ExtraBucks (free money) from another trip! I mean, it’s actually so much fun working this system because it becomes like a game. I’m not really a frugal person anywhere but at the drugstore, but this has become such a fun ritual.
Now I’ll get onto the makeup, but I just had to share with you my secret to getting CHEAP makeup so you can start snatching up goodies at a low low price.
I’ve been interested in trying these out for a while. Years ago when Almay started doing the trios for eye color I got on the bandwagon, then somehow I fell off. Then I was sucked in by the beauty of the bottom shade as it’s such a beautiful bronze-burgandy. The other 2 shades are nice, but that bad boy is a standout beauty!
Almay Color + Care Lip Balm – Lilac Love
It took me a minute to warm up to this lip balms, but now that we’re in the springtime – I can’t get enough of them. They are super moisturizing and smooth, plus add a nice sheer amount of pigment to your lip. They’re really become staples in my day-to-day makeup and as purple is my favorite color, I just had to add this to my collection.
L’Oreal Butterfly Mascara – Blackest Black
When this first launched I was super excited to try it…then I sort of lost enthusiasm over it and forgot. But with a coupon and ExtraBucks to be had I snatched this up finally. Unfortunately I haven’t tried it yet so I can’t offer a review, but stay tuned! The brush really, really intrigues me.
Revlon Lip Gloss – Kiss Me Coral
When you look at the beauty of that in the picture, you can only imagine the beauty of it in life. Most of the time I really afford glittery lip products but this spoke to me in such a huge way. Plus, it’s a great color match to the matte balm I picked up, so I can wear this happily on its own or layer it.
L’Oreal 24H Infallible Eye Shadow – Endless Sea
I’ve been wanting to recreate the Chanel Spring 2014 runway look that had bright, electric turquoise eyeliner for a while now. When I saw this shade I just had to snatch it up because it should work perfectly for that. I honestly don’t know why I don’t have more of these eye shadows, as they’re amazing!
Revlon Colorburst Matte Balm – Striking
Oh you know, just another Revlon matte balm…because I can’t get enough of them, ever. Definitely my most favorite drugstore lip product right now. So, SO good. Matte, yet creamy. Long-lasting. Highly pigmented. Gorgeous bold shades. The works!
Generally, I’ve had such great things about the Wet n’ Wild Megalast nail polishes for so long, these seemed like an obvious purchase with spring/summer singing to me. And one of this shades, I believe is an exact dupe for an OPI I picked up recently…so stay tuned for a post on that.
In fact, I think I’ll generally just review these! I’m excited to put these guys to the test. The colors I picked up are Club Havana, Heatwave, and Through the Grapevine.
I hope I was able to suggest some great pointers to help you snag amazing makeup deals! And honestly, please do try shopping that way. Once you see how much money you save you’ll be HOOKED. Also, let me know if you’d like to see a tutorial or a review with any of the beauty bits I picked up. It’s definitely a nice sea of color that came home with me and I’m excited to try everything out!
Happy shopping and may you save lots and LOTS of money!
