Nothing brings more joy than discovering a solid beauty product among the drugstore aisles, a product that’s actually really good, and really easy on the wallet. While everything at Sephora and the department store counters will always have a place on our vanity tables, we derive an especially large amount of satisfaction from drugstore beauty finds that perform a whole lot better than their more expensive counterparts, but at a fraction of the price.

Here are the NYLON team’s current drugstore beauty favourites.

Majolica Majorca Lash Bone Black Fiber

A lash primer helps to hold the eyelash curl in place, and it thickens the mascara applied over it, creating more voluminous lashes. Majolica Majorca’s version is the best of its kind that I’ve come across; it has small black fibres that make lashes appear even thicker and darker. Some primers are also weighty and cause my lashes to droop and become poker straight upon application; the Lash Bone doesn’t do that at all.

– Adele Chan, Editor-in-Chief

Majolica Majorca is unfortunately no longer available locally; try online resellers such as Qoo10, ezbuy and Shopee (or just head to Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong or Korea to stock up!). 

Heroine Make Impact Liquid Eyeliner Super Waterproof

In my opinion, the Japanese do waterproof eye makeup best. This liquid liner really is, as it name says, super waterproof, which is what I need my eyeliner to be, because I do hate walking around with black smudges under my eyes. The only downside is the ultra thin brush applicator, which might be hard to control for some. What I do sometimes is use another liquid eyeliner with a firmer tip to outline my cat eye shapes first, then use the Heroine Make to fill them in.

– Tami Lai, Associate Editor

$18.90, available at Watsons.

Hada Labo Super Hyaluronic Acid Hydrating Cleansing Oil

Thanks to Charlotte Cho of Soko Glam, I now do a double-cleanse in the evenings, so this fragrance-free cleansing oil is always the first step to my nightly routine. It was recommended to me as an affordable alternative to Shu Uemura’s and I’m really glad I gave this one a shot. Melts away makeup instantly, emulsifies into a silky milk, and rinses off clean without irritating my sensitive skin.

– Jade Yeo, Writer

$20, available at Watsons and Guardian. 

Za Lip Crayon

I rarely ever go around without some colour on my lips, which is why this highly-pigmented lip crayon came as a pleasant surprise for me. It has stayed on my lips for half a day ⎯ through my several sips of water ⎯ and a trace of it still remains right before I leave the office. It’s also moisturising, and doesn’t dry my lips out. Pleasant surprise, indeed.

– Patrene Mathieu, Designer

$17.50, available at Watsons.

La Roche-Posay Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel

I steered clear of foaming cleansers for many years because I read somewhere that it strips the oils from your skin and dries it out, but this one cleared the worst hormonal breakout I had all year within three days! The gel cleanser lathers into a foam, and gently cleanses my face without leaving any tightness or irritation. I think I’ve found the one.

– Joanne Cheah, Designer

$33, available at Guardian and Watsons.

Cure Natural Aqua Gel

It’s been said that one bottle of the Cure Natural Aqua Gel is sold every 12 seconds in Japan, and after trying it out for myself I can totally see why. This water-based exfoliating gel is quite possibly the simplest and most effective skincare product I’ve ever used — just take a 10 cent-sized amount and apply it on your face, and an impressive amount of dead skin rolls right off to leave your skin feeling smooth and fresh. Considering how ineffective it is to wash your face with dead skin still there, this should be the foundation of any skincare routine.

– Jared Alex Tan, Editorial Assistant

$25.90, available at Lazada.com.

Rimmel London Stay Matte Pressed Powder

I’ve been using this ever since Tati (GlamLifeGuru) talked about it on her YouTube channel last year. She featured the Rimmel London Stay Matte Pressed Powder in her ‘Top 5 Favourite Powders’ and mentioned that it worked wonders in keeping oily skin shine-free and fresh. You can bet I scoured all over the Internet for it, and eventually bought my first one off asos.com. I’ve used it every day — religiously — for two years now and it has kept my skin from looking greasy all day, even in Singapore’s humidity. My routine is to dust this all over liquid foundation to set it, and another light layer of it as a finishing step. I’ve gone through at least three of these and I’ve never quite reached for anything else since.

– Chelsea Tang, Editorial Assistant

$13.90, available at selected Watsons.