Discount Beauty Finds at TJ MAXX

Wow, this is just a great week for the young, broke and fabulous! First the fab, new makeup lines at Target, and now great finds at one of my favorite stores in the world, TJ MAXX!


I always knew that TJ MAXX was the best place to go if you want great, discounted department store fragrances, body lotions, and the like, but they have definitely expanded their repertoire. They now feature exclusive makeup and haircare products!

This caught me by surprise the other day - and a great surprise, at that!

As I was wandering the beauty aisles, looking at a random bottle of lotion, a small, silver box caught my eye. I literally did a double take! Lo and behold, that tiny box turned out to be Brows in Bloom by Anastasia Beverly Hills. In case you don't know, Anastasia is the eyebrow guru to all of the Hollywood celebs. She has a line of products that retail up to $65 dollars. I found Brows in Bloom, in Brunette, for......

$12.99!

That's basically a 50% off discount because it normally retails at stores like Sephora for $28.50. This was so perfect because I have been searching for the perfect brow kit for a while now, to no avail.

Brows in Bloom is a great alternative to poor quality, compact brow kits, like the previously reviewed dud that was the Milani Brow "Fix" Brow Kit. According to Sephora, Brows in Bloom is "a must-have grooming kit for keeping newly grown-out brows looking fabulous and fashionable." Basically, it's great for when you are in between waxing or doing your own home maintainance.

Brows in Bloom includes:

.07 oz Eyebrow Powder, .02 oz Wax Cream, .03 oz Highlighter Cream and a mini brush. It comes in 2 shades, blonde and brunette, with two shades of brow powder each so you can customize your perfect shade. With this kit, perfect looking brows are easy to achieve.

• "Custom blend the two shades of Brow Powder using the angled brush, for a clean and precise application.


• Apply the Cream Highlighter along the brow bone to lift and accentuate the eyes.


• Apply Wax Cream to hold a perfect shape from day to night. "

Source

All in all, this kit is a winner.

More Fabulous Deals

TJ MAXX also features discounted Frederic Fekkai and Biosilk haircare products. I saw items such as Fekkai Glossing Shampoo for $14.99, which is a little cheaper compared to the normal price of $22 for an 8 ounce bottle. Also, they have the big bottle of Biosilk Silk Therapy (the holy grail for people with dry, processed hair such as myself) for $23 bucks. Way better than nearly $40, I'd say... and it lasts forever.




Make sure you get to TJ MAXX with a quickness because these items might not be there for long. Also, the problem with TJ MAXX is finding something more than once, so if you see these products or any others that you like - buy them right then. Don't wait! Brows in Bloom in patrticular is difficult to find because it's currently sold out on Sephora!

Happy bargain hunting!

[The Verdict]: Milani Brow Kit

With the economy as bad as it is nowadays, sometimes it's hard to splurge on luxury makeup products that we really don't technically need. Yet, sometimes drugstore makeup just isn't the same no matter how hard you try to squint in the mirror.

I've made it one of the missions of TB to help you out by testing and narrowing down the best products of the drugstore bunch, and also by finding the products that you should splurge on. This way you save both time and money.

The first review is for Milani "Brow Fix" Brow Kit.

As you know from my previous post, I'm an eyebrow maniac! I love to keep my brows looking as fresh as possible at all times. I've always been curious about those "miracle" eyebrow kits, which can supposedly give you spectacular looking eyebrows, like the ones by the guru Anastasia, which can be up to $65! One day, as I was perusing the aisles of my local CVS, I spotted this kit by Milani. Now, I know Milani isn't the best drugstore brand, but this product seemed different. It has the same contents as the more expensive kits but in a tiny pocket-sized version. At only $6.95, it's perfect, right? Maybe not....

The small compact contains 6 items:
A straight edged, steel tweezer, slanted brow brush, brow bone sponge applicator, 1 brow bone highlighter and 2 brow powders (light & dark) to fill & shape brows.

The company describes the product as a "brow grooming-shaping kit that will help you create a perfect set of arches."

With these kinds of claims, I decided to give it a go and try this product. I tried using the tweezer that it comes with, only to find that it was of horrible quality! I had to try to pluck the same eyebrow hair several times - a tell-tale sign that you need a new tweezer. I tried the brow powder and highlighter and my eyebrows looked like Frida Kahlo's, which defeats the whole purpose of even buying such a product!

The powder did not blend well at all. It made me look like I needed a wax! Also, the highlighter didn't do it's job. I had to sigh in annoyance after using this product, because I have to take it right back from whence it came... CVS, here I come... again.

The only pro about the Milani Brow "Fix(?)" Kit is the small packaging. It fits in the palm of my hand and would be PERFECT for a beauty 911 kit, if only the product itself worked.

I will be trying out department store brow kits to see if those are worth the money. I'm willing to bet that they probably are because of the better quality ingredients and formulation.

The verdict for this product?

Skip it.

[Saving $$$]: DIY Eyebrow Maintenance

If you really know me, you know that after several awkward years in eyebrow hell, I emerged an eyebrow maniac. My name is Aly and I am addicted to maintaining my eyebrows at home to always keep them arched like I just walked out of the salon (or at least until I think they look decent). Plus, I'm "frugal", so saving $7 bucks every 2 weeks is a HUGE reason as well (Hey, that's a nice lunch or 1.5 gallons of gas)! The economy sucks right about now, so any little bit of savings will help your bank account, right?

Well, here are some of my tips on how to maintain your eyebrows at home and my general thoughts about this risky endeavor.



The last time I got my brows done professionally was in February. Since then, I have been maintaining them myself. They usually look okay when I keep up with them. Unfortunately, they don't have that freshly waxed look (I kinda miss that...), but they look okay enough for me not to go back to the salon for a few months.

DISCLAIMER: I do not advise home maintenance for people who are pluck-happy or who don't know when to stop. For those people, the results could be disastrous. Also, in general, please tweeze at your own risk. I have definitely messed up a couple of times, but in my case, the benefits outweigh the risk. If you don't trust yourself, don't try it. Anyway... I hope I didn't scare anyone away... I just want everyone to be careful because eyebrows frame your face and it sucks to mess them up!

My eyebrows, a few weeks ago.

1. Get your eyebrows arched by a salon professional who you trust. If you just moved to a new area or if you have never gotten your eyebrows waxed before, ask someone who has nice eyebrows where they get theirs done! The arch is the most important thing if you are going to be maintaining it for an extended time between waxes. You don't want to maintain something that doesn't look good to begin with. If they have been arched perfectly, they will correspond to the lines on the image below.

2. Get the proper tools! The most important tool that you will be working with is the pair of tweezers that you have. In the past, I have used brands such as Trim and some of the others that you will find at the drugstore. Those don't work! My brow addiction came on once I discovered Tweezerman mini tweezers. They get every single hair - even the tiny ones. You will also need a small pair of grooming scissors. You can get the ones with the rounded tips if you are scared of cutting yourself. You also need a brow brush/comb, brow gel or clear mascara and an eyebrow pencil in your shade.

3. After your trip to the salon, you can sit pretty for however long it takes for those tiny hairs to start growing back in. Zap them as soon as they come up! This is the key to at-home maintenance. Never ever let your eyebrows grow too much before plucking. The longer you wait, the higher the chances are that you will over-pluck in an effort to regain control of them. When plucking, take your time and only pluck one hair at a time. Make sure you are doing this in a clean mirror (not a magnifying one).

4. If your eyebrow hair is unruly, use your eyebrow brush/comb to brush the hairs down and then trim lightly. Never trim too much, or your brows will be bald! Some length is needed to cover the ends of your brows. Just barely trim the hairs along the shape of your arch. This trick will also keep your brows looking freshly done.

5. When you finish, lightly coat your brows with brow gel to keep them in check. There are tons of fancy products on the market to achieve this, such as brow wax, but I haven't tried them as yet, so I won't recommend them at this point.

6. If you have accidentally plucked that one hair that seemed to make all the difference (don't you hate that?), use an eyebrow pencil to fill in the bald spot. Use very light strokes to draw short, hair-like lines. This way, it looks very natural. Also use eyebrow pencils if you want to add some va-va-voom definition to your perfect arch. Again, use light, short strokes to accent underneath the arch, going down to the tail of your brow. Use the brow brush/comb to blend the color for an even more natural look. Brow powder is also another option, instead of a brow pencil. I like the one featured above, by Clinique.

These are my tips for maintaining your eyebrows at home. My way is definitely not the only way or the best way, so please share your knowledge of any other techniques or products. Also, again, please be careful when messing with your brows. Any type of plucking at home is always an at-your-own-risk thing.