Create Your Perfect Holiday Makeup Look With These Drugstore Makeup Must-Haves!
What’s the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of holiday makeup?
For me, it’s super glam makeup – medium to full coverage foundation, lots of glitter on the eyes, and a bold lip shade.
Something kind of like this:
In addition to creating super glamorous looks over the holiday season, the weather changes drastically in many places.
Winter brings cold and dry weather, which means our skin requires extra love during the season!
I talk about the essential drugstore beauty products you’ll need during the dry, cold winter season in my recent post: Winter Drugstore Beauty Essentials
With that post and this post under your belt, you’ll be able to create your perfect holiday makeup look while keeping your skin’s health in mind!
And better yet – all of these products are drugstore makeup products. Creating your perfect holiday look doesn’t have to be expensive! Everything on this list is super budget-friendly.
So, without further ado, let’s get started!
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Drugstore Makeup Must-Haves for a Glam Holiday Look
Hydrating Primer
Primer is totally one of the most important steps in any makeup routine. I never skip primer! (I actually use two different primers daily, but I’m extra AF.)
Using the right primer not only extends the wear of your makeup, it creates the ideal surface for your foundation to sit on top of.
The right primer for you depends on your skin type and the type of foundation you use. But, in general, I recommend a hydrating primer during the winter season.
Winter weather can get really dry, so I think it’s a great idea to add back some moisture into the skin with a hydrating primer.
Check out these hydrating drugstore primers:
- NYX – Bare With Me Hydrating Jelly Primer // Ulta
- NYX – Honey Dew Me Up Skin Serum & Primer // Amazon | Ulta
- e.l.f. – Jelly Pop Dew Primer // Ulta
Medium to Full Coverage Foundation
In my Winter Drugstore Beauty Essentials post, I recommended fresh hydrating foundations to counter the dry weather.
However, hydrating foundations are usually on the light to medium coverage side and for a glam holiday makeup look, I think a medium to full coverage foundation is necessary.
I want my skin to look like there are absolutely no flaws!
This can be tricky though, because many full coverage foundations tend to have a matte finish, which I believe is too drying during the winter.
If possible, find a foundation with a natural finish for the winter season. Foundations with a natural finish tend to provide more coverage than foundations labeled “dewy” or “luminous.”
Here are some great foundations with a natural finish that provide sufficient coverage:
- L’Oreal – Infallible Fresh Wear 24HR Foundation // Amazon | Ulta
- Makeup Revolution – Fast Base Stick Foundation // Ulta
- Makeup Revolution – Conceal & Hydrate Foundation // Ulta
- Catrice – HD Liquid Coverage Foundation // Ulta
For a more dewy look, with less coverage, try these foundations:
- L’Oreal – Infallible Pro-Glow Foundation // Amazon | Ulta
- NYX – Born To Glow Naturally Radiant Foundation // Ulta
- Physicians Formula – The Healthy Foundation SPF 20 // Amazon | Ulta
Related: Best Drugstore Full-Coverage Foundations
Hydrating Medium to Full Coverage Concealer
For a full glam holiday look, concealer is SO important!
Not only does it cover up any imperfections you wish to hide, you can use concealer to highlight certain areas of your face.
Full glam means highlighted and contoured to the max! Highlighting certain areas of your face brings attention to those areas (and takes attention away from other areas).
For the best long-lasting effect, the concealer you use should provide medium to full coverage so those areas stay highlighted all day.
Since it is the dry winter season, a matte concealer can definitely make certain areas look too dry.
This is especially true for the under-eye area – a concealer that is too matte can make that area look super dry and wrinkly! We don’t want that.
Luckily, there are a handful of great medium to full coverage concealers that won’t dry your skin out:
- Maybelline – Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circle Treatment Concealer // Amazon | Ulta
- Makeup Revolution – Conceal & Hydrate Concealer (this is a fairly new release and I’ve been using it non-stop since I got it!) // Ulta
- Revlon – PhotoReady Candid Antioxidant Concealer // Amazon | Ulta
Related: Best Drugstore Concealers
Face Powder / Setting Powder
After applying full coverage foundation and concealer, it’s definitely necessary to set it all in place with setting powder!
Setting powder can be kind of tricky in the winter because applying too much can make your skin look super dry, which isn’t ideal in already dry weather!
With full coverage base makeup, I HAVE to use loose setting powder to make sure it stays in place all day. I apply it with a damp makeup sponge instead of a fluffy brush to take some of the “dryness” away.
If you decide not to wear full coverage base makeup, you may opt to just lightly set your face with a pressed powder instead of a loose powder.
Or, if your skin is very dry and/or you wear a very small amount of base makeup, you may opt to not use any powder at all!
It really all depends on your skin type and the makeup you decide to use.
Here are some great powder options:
- Maybelline – Fit Me Loose Finishing Powder // Amazon | Ulta
- Revlon – ColorStay Pressed Powder // Amazon | Ulta
- Maybelline – Fit Me Set + Smooth Pressed Powder // Amazon | Ulta
Related: Best Loose Setting Powders Under $10 + How To Use Loose Setting Powder
Contour
Like I said earlier, contouring and highlighting is a total must when it comes to full glam holiday makeup! So you definitely have to have a contour product in your collection that you can count on!
I’m a fan of contouring no matter what makeup look I’m doing on any given day (because my cheekbones don’t show at all naturally!), but I think a chiseled look especially suits a full glam holiday look.
Since it’s the winter, using a cream contour would be best to keep dryness to a minimum. Layering powders on top of powders can make your skin even drier.
Just remember that if you use a cream contour, it goes on before your setting powder! It’ll be super hard to blend out a cream contour on top of powder.
And if you really want a super chiseled look, you can even use both cream and powder contour! Use a cream product before setting powder and use a powder contour product on top setting powder to deepen it.
Cream contour products:
- NYX – Wonder Stick // Amazon | Ulta
- NYX – Cream Highlight & Contour Pro Palette // Amazon
- e.l.f. – Cream Contour Palette // Amazon | Ulta
Powder contour products:
- NYX – Highlight & Contour Pro Palette // Amazon | Ulta
- Makeup Revolution – Ultra Contour Palette // Ulta
- BH Cosmetics – Studio Pro Shade & Define Contour Palette // Amazon | Ulta
Natural Light Bronzer
I think applying bronzer during all seasons of the year to give a slight warmth to the skin, especially if you apply full coverage foundation and cover up all the natural warmth your skin has!
However, in the winter, bronzer that is too heavy or too warm in tone can look really unnatural since we don’t usually tan much in the winter!
A natural bronzer that’s neutral toned or even slightly cool toned (depending on your skin tone) would be your best bet for winter.
I love all of these bronzers:
- Physicians Formula – Murumuru Butter Bronzer // Amazon | Ulta
- Milani – Silky Matte Bronzing Powder // Amazon | Ulta
- Maybelline – City Bronzer // Amazon | Ulta
“Natural Flush” Blush Shade / Cream Blush / Deep Toned Blush
If you’re going for a more natural makeup look, I’m all about having that “natural flush” or “wind blown cheeks” look in the winter.
You know that natural wash of color you get after being in the cold wind, or even after you work out!
I love using a cream blush on top of my foundation (before setting powder) to create this natural look.
However, since we’re talking about glam holiday makeup and not just winter makeup, natural blush just doesn’t cut it when it comes to glamming it up!
Deeper toned blushes, like mauve or berry tones, definitely fit the image of a glam holiday makeup look.
Here are some amazing drugstore blushes:
If you want to try a cream blush:
“Icy” Highlighter / Cream Highlighter / Liquid Highlighter
A winter look totally screams ice princess vibes, right?!
Choosing an icy shade can be tricky depending on your skin tone – icy shades can create a gray/white cast from certain angles on certain skin tones.
For myself (light neutral in foundation), the perfect icy shade is a light champagne shade that still has a bit of warmth in it.
Super icy shades or cool toned highlighters tend to look like a white streak on me, so I always go for something with a little warmth in it.
The right shade for me may not necessarily be the right shade for you, so I totally recommend looking up swatches on a similar skin tone to your own, or swatching it yourself in-store.
If you want to really amp up your highlighter, try using a cream or liquid highlighter as a base and layer a powder highlighter on top of it. You’ll be glowing!!
Try out these amazing highlighters:
- Makeup Revolution – Liquid Highlighter // Ulta
- ColourPop – Super Shock Highlighter // Ulta | ColourPop
- ColourPop – Lite Stix // Ulta | ColourPop
- Maybelline – Master Chrome Highlighter in 250 Molten Pearl // Amazon | Ulta
Related: Best Drugstore Highlighters
Glam Neutral / Berry-Toned Eyeshadow
A glam holiday makeup look makes me think of a dark smoky eye with lots of glitter on the eyelid.
The smoky look can either be done with the traditional gray/brown shades, or you can get festive for the holiday season and go with some berry tones!
These palettes will give you everything you need to create your perfect glam holiday eye look:
- Makeup Revolution – Precious Stone Eyeshadow Palette in Rose Quartz // Ulta
- ColourPop – Exes & Oh’s Eyeshadow Palette // Ulta
- Morphe – 35V Stunning Vibes Artistry Palette // Ulta
- Milani – Gilded Rouge Palette // Ulta
Glitter Eyeshadow
If the glitter/shimmer shades in the eyeshadow palettes above aren’t glittery enough for you and you want extra sparkle, you can add a cream or liquid glitter eyeshadow to your look!
I always find that cream or liquid formulas have better pigmentation when it comes to eyeshadow, especially when it comes to glitter eyeshadow.
Plus, with a cream or liquid formula, you won’t have to do the extra step of glitter glue like you would have to with a loose glitter and even some pressed glitter shadows.
These glitter shadows will definitely leave you sparkly!
- ColourPop – Super Shock Eyeshadow // Ulta | ColourPop
- Milani – Hypnotic Lights Eye Topper // Amazon | Milani
- Pixi Beauty – Liquid Fairy Lights (I’ve been obsessed with the shade included in the Shade Day duo of the new Pixi Pretties collection. It’s a gorgeous gold shade that is perfect for the holiday season!) // Pixi Beauty
- Makeup Revolution – Eye Glisten // Ulta
- NYX – Glitter Goals Liquid Eyeshadow // Ulta
- Flower Beauty – Warrior Glitter Shadow // Ulta
Liquid Eyeliner
Can you even have glam makeup without a winged liner?
LOL just kidding, you totally can create a glam makeup look without a winged liner and I actually do it all the time.
But, there’s no denying that a winged liner totally takes it up a notch!
Whenever I’m looking to do just a little extra something with my makeup to amp it up a bit, a winged liner is one of the first things that comes to mind.
Check out these amazing liquid liners:
- NYX – Epic Ink Liner (total dupe for Kat Von D Tattoo Liner) // Amazon | Ulta
- L’Oreal – Infallible Flash Cat Eye Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner // Amazon | Ulta
- Maybelline – Eye Studio Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner // Amazon | Ulta
Bonus! Glitter Eyeliner:
- NYX – Glitter Goals Liquid Eyeliner // Ulta
Dramatic Lashes
Just like a winged liner, can you even have a glam makeup look without dramatic falsies?
I personally think lashes are even more important to a glam makeup look than winged liner is!
Throwing on a pair of false lashes undoubtedly takes your makeup look to a completely different level.
When I’m too lazy to take the time to draw a winged liner, but still want to look super glammed up, a pair of big, dramatic lashes is definitely my go-to.
These are my favorite dramatic drugstore falsies:
- Eylure – Luxe Silk Marquise // Amazon | Ulta
- KISS – Lash Couture Triple Push-Up, Teddy // Ulta
- Eylure – Luxe Cashmere No. 6 // Ulta
Red Lips / Deep Lip Shades
A bold lip shade is one of the staples in a holiday glam look. I am definitely not doing a nude lip for this season!
It’s all about a classic red lip or a deep berry-toned lip shade to give off sultry, vampy vibes.
Check out my post on deep lip shades perfect for fall! Even though we are transitioning out of the fall season, all of these shades are still totally suitable for winter.
Here are some great drugstore lip options:
- Maybelline – Super Stay Matte Ink Lip Color in Pioneer, Voyager // Amazon | Ulta
- Maybelline – Super Stay Ink Crayon Lipstick in Own Your Empire, Make It Happen // Amazon | Ulta
- Revlon – Super Lustrous Lipstick in Bombshell Red, Wine w/ Everything // Amazon | Ulta
Hydrating Setting Spray
After applying all that makeup, it’s super important to set it all in place, so your gorgeous holiday looks lasts as long as it possibly can!
Because of the dry weather during winter, I like to use a hydrating/dewy setting spray to add a bit of moisture.
Especially if you create a holiday look that included the use of lot of powders and your skin ends up looking a bit dry, a hydrating/dewy setting spray will “melt” everything together and get rid of the “powdery” look from your skin.
These are amazing drugstore setting sprays:
- Mario Badescu – Facial Spray with Aloe, Herbs and Rosewater // Amazon | Ulta
- Catrice – Prime And Fine Dewy Glow Finish Spray // Amazon | Ulta
- NYX – Dewy Finish Makeup Setting Spray // Amazon | Ulta
- Milani – Make It Dewy Setting Spray Hydrate + Illuminate + Set // Amazon | Ulta
And that’s is for this list of drugstore makeup essentials to create your perfect glam look for the holiday season!
Will you be using any of the products on this list to create your perfect holiday makeup look?
If what you think about when you hear “holiday makeup” doesn’t fit my image of holiday makeup, what do you think of when it comes to holiday makeup looks? What products are perfect for your holiday look?
Be sure to let me know down in the comments! 🙂
And if you are thinking about trying any of these products out for winter, don’t forget to use Rakuten (formerly Ebates)!
SIGN UP HERE FOR FREE AND GET A $10 BONUS after you make your first qualifying purchase using Ebates!
Thank you for reading and until next time! <3
More Winter/Holiday Posts:
- Winter Drugstore Beauty Essentials
- The Ultimate Sephora Holiday Sets Gift Guide
- Rose Gold Gifts for Her Under $20 from Amazon
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