
Do you know what struck me the most during the last crisis? That, despite the agony of the global economy, women continued to look good. It would seem that after the mass closure of the salons and the anathema of cosmetic luxury, the streets should have been filled with crowds of unkempt, unkempt people. Nothing like this! We've been pulled up and dyed. While studying this phenomenon, I went through hundreds of articles from that period and was shocked by the amount of ridiculous tips on saving pennies (which, fortunately, no one followed). Diluting the tonic with mineral water, washing your hair less often, settling in as a model at seminars for hairdressers - all this is the way to nowhere. Messy relationships are detrimental to female charms, which has long been proven empirically. Nevertheless, the troubled times taught us the main thing: to be attentive to the choice of cosmetics,prioritizing quality over quantity and planning your purchases in advance.
The term "beautinomics" that appeared then in America means the science of clearly prescribing and calculating the cost of maintaining one's appearance. This includes two things in which women simply have no equal: saving and spending money. To become a professional in this business, you need to clearly prioritize and evaluate what you really value, and what … a little less.
The hot three products that seriously encroach on our wallet include: perfume, anti-aging creams and lipstick. On my own I will add - never, never save on tonal means! They can make your face look flawless or nullify all your furs and diamonds. It is no coincidence that in Europe, women spend 25% of all beauty expenses on products that even out skin tone. It is better not to apply anything: just moisturize the skin, remove the shine with a matting napkin and lightly rub the blush on the cheekbones, forehead and T-zone. Freshness and naturalness are much more attractive than a mottled beige mask. In general, everything that is not washed off with water and will live on your face until evening should be treated with extreme caution.

The list of quite budget beauty products all over the world includes shower gels, creams for hands and feet, lip glosses and various contour pencils. I think this is fair. The pleasant affordability of the latter generates a variety of shades, and, ultimately, the individuality of the created images.
And yet, going to a store or a pharmacy for cosmetics, you need to remember the main thing: the product you are going to buy should bring not only benefits (which is quite obvious to reasonable people), but also joy. It should be liked elementary. Once, while applying a trendy macrobiotic product, I almost fainted from the smell of sauerkraut, which burst out of the can like a genie from a bottle. Not even a call of duty made me use this cream again. With the help of a test system, we can roughly calculate how much our wrinkles will decrease, but how can we measure the degree of pleasure we receive ?! My firm conviction, reliably supported by a lot of life experience, is this: to take care of yourself should be treated like the heroine of Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. There should be as much thrill and erotic pleasure from the process of using cosmetics as there should be practical benefits.

Another way to minimize costs is to change the purchase mechanism. This is exactly what advanced French and American women do. By the way, according to the latest sociological studies, girls in Russia spend 15–20% of their personal incomes on maintaining beauty (and this is without taking into account the purchase of counterfeit goods, which "weighs down" sales up to 30–50%). How to streamline such costs? First, according to the adherents of beauty, you need to choose the right store. It makes no sense to purchase discount cards of all major retail outlets. Buying little by little everywhere, you can only count on the minimum discount. Most often, a discount system is developed for regular customers: cards are accumulative, and when a certain amount is reached, the discount rises to 20-30%. It is convenient and profitable. Second, don't give up on probes. Pride is not the quality that should guide you. Rational thinking will tell you that only by trying a new cream or lipstick shade can you make the right decision on your final purchase. Finally, do not buy funds "in reserve".
Cosmetics have a shelf life, moreover, they have a coefficient of obsolescence (especially in decorative cosmetics), so it makes no sense to have three identical lipsticks. The same can be said for the cream. It is rather difficult to predict what your skin will need in a month, what problems will have to be solved - perhaps completely different than now.
Having mastered the basics of beauty, you can go to the store and try to put the knowledge gained into practice. But if suddenly you cannot control yourself and nature takes its toll, you should not take it too seriously. After all, we are still just learning to be economical, but we have learned to be happy with a new lipstick or nail polish long ago!
Photo: Getty Images
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