Saving money on beauty products

Many women spend an absolute fortune on products that the beauty industry has convinced them that they need, and at premium prices too. All that advertising about how "you're worth it". It's complete nonsense, and there are plenty of ways you can save money and still look good.

First, the main reason skin ages quickly is due to damage from the sun. So simply stay out of the sun when you can. Wear a hat in summer, stick to the shade. Give up the tanning salons, and save yourself a fortune. There is nothing wrong with looking a bit pale.

In addition, most supermarkets now do a cheap range of face creams and the like. Try them out one by one - I was astonished to discover that Tesco's Skin Wisdom range really suited my skin. Remember that the real cost of the expensive branded products is the advertising - hiring A-list stars to be in the ads, the cost of the expensive cinematographers, the cost of hiring a slot on TV to broadcast the ad and so on. The supermarket own-brand labels however have none of these costs, and hence are cheaper. Or try traditional Avon products, they do work. And traditional Vaseline has so many uses - you can use it instead of lip balm, put it on heels and elbows to soften the skin and it can be used as a makeup remover.

The point about beauty products is that you only really know whether it works for you by trying it out. You can't tell by the advertising whether something is good or not, and judging by pure snobbery (eg excluding the supermarket brands simply because they are sold alongside toothpaste) is silly. Give the cheaper brands a try - you'll be surprised.