Beauty Call: Back to college makeup

There will never be a better time in your life to experiment with make-up than during your third-level years.

Your lecturers won’t bat an eyelid if you decide to rock Amy Winehouse eyeliner, dye your hair purple and pierce everything in sight. Your future employers probably will though, so it’s best to get it all out of your system now and have lots of fun with it.

I’m more than happy with such endeavours and even if your style is more pared back than punk, you’ll still need good quality, but well-priced products that will last and yet be flexible enough to adapt to whatever trend you feel like following on any given day. The standard has improved across many of the budget brands and there are plenty of gems out there. However there is also a lot of rubbish. Students, like everybody else, need to be discerning.

Buy trusted brands and get recommendations. The most important thing to think about when you are stocking your make-up bag is quality. You can waste a lot of money on finding a decent foundation but good, well-priced bases include Bourjois Healthy Mix, Maybelline Fit Me and Rimmel Wake Me Up (this one is great for a mature student’s skin).

Oily skin will get along with long-lasting formulas like L’Oréal Infallible 24-Hour. Long-lasting foundations are also a good bet when you’re pulling an all-nighter. Whether that is in the library or the student union bar makes no difference; you’ll still want your make-up to perform.

Choosing a couple of well-priced eyeshadow palettes means you can build as much flexibility into your looks as possible with the minimum of expense. The W7 Palette below costs just over €5 and is a great choice for neutrals and soft smokey eyes.

You can can also use the matte neutrals to define your eyebrows while you’re at it.

Choose any of the highly pigmented Sleek i-Divine 12 shadow palettes (€9.99, Boots) which are comparable in quality to Urban Decay and will add vibrancy quickly and cheaply. Don’t discount the budget cosmetic line Catrice either; its brushes are good and start at a couple of euro.

My budget blusher picks will always include Bourjois Little Round Pots (cream blushers can double up as lip colour), while L’Oréal can usually be relied on for good solid mascara and eyeliner choices.

Lips and nails are the quickest and most inexpensive ways to keep up with trends. All of the budget brands, from NYC to Rimmel make good highly pigmented lipsticks and glosses. My pick at the moment however has to be Maybelline Baby Lips Electro, moisturising balms with a tint of colour. Never underestimate the power of a lip balm, particularly if you are relying on public transport to ferry you around during the winter. Long waits at the bus stop can chap your lips more quickly than you’ll long for an extension on those essays.

Twitter @aismcdermott More at beaut.ie beautycall@irishtimes.com

W7 In the Buff 

A copy of the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette, this tin of 12 neutral shades in a mix of shimmers and mattes may not be as highly pigmented as the original but is still a good buy.

NYC Browser Brush-On Brow Kit 

This dinky little kit contains all you need to keep your eyebrows groomed: wax, brow powder, the tiniest tweezers in the world and an angled brow brush.

Rimmel London Wonder’full Mascara 

Enriched with Argan Oil to help stop it from flaking and going brittle this is a good day time mascara.

Maybelline Colour Drama Intense Lip 

Rich deep lip crayons in 10 intense shades that are long-lasting and easy to use. You won’t know yourself at the Freshers’ Ball.

Benefit Bathina All Over Me Scented Body Mist 

As someone who was bereft when Benefit discontinued its first ever fragrance, Bathina, I’m delighted to welcome back this light fruity, floral body mist.