The Make-Up of Makeup

When it comes to makeup, us girls know what we want.

Whether it's flocking to the sale items or splurging on high-end brands, sticking with the tried-and-true or reaching for a new type of mascara every month, each chick has their own makeup profile. We like what we like when we like it.

All those comfortable patterns get shaken up when you travel abroad and need to replenish your stash locally.

Brands that you've been loyal to your entire life are suddenly MIA and staple products you've turned to as the perfect shade of foundation or lipstick are nowhere to be found.

So you scramble and take a chance on some dodgy local brand. It may cause an allergic reaction, pimples, or a scaly skin rash, but what else can you do?

Here in SA, I've had both good and bad makeup experiences.

The downside: there is no CoverGirl! I know. Shocking. I had to have family and friends ferry over tubes of LashBlast into my Gollum-like paws. Now that is brand loyalty.

The other weird thing? What us North American girls know as common drugstore brands -- Revlon and L'Oreal -- sit at the same price point as Clinique and Lancome. How or why these got lumped together, I have no idea. Could you imagine paying $25 for a bottle of Revlon foundation back home!?

That's the other thing, in Canada/U.S we have it pretty good with drugstore sales. Every week makeup is marked down or there is a buy one-get one offer. Not so much in SA.

You're nearly always paying full price and drugstore prices are, on average, more expensive then back home.

The upside? SA offers some really cool international brands. Bobbi Brown, BlackUp, Tom Ford, and Bourjois all have counters here.

I nearly peed my pants when I was in Sandton City and saw that an Inglot store was opening the day before my birthday. It has a cult-like following and is rather difficult to find in North America. I definitely stopped in there for a few birthday treats once the 28th rolled around :)

All in all, I have a very love/hate relationship with buying makeup in SA.

I love that they offer great high-end international brands, but on the downside, if you're just looking for good drugstore stuff that is reasonably priced, you're not gonna find it here.