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The bleak outlook of the current economic climate forces cutbacks on life’s little luxuries. With beauty being touted as one of the most vulnerable industries in these credit crunching times; should us gals stop the super spending?

Being a (wannabe) die-hard advocate of save-over-splurge, I think it’s time to test the waters of the cheaper beauty brands on the market. ‘To the glam streets of Selsdon!’ I instructed my driver (aka my mother, DBL), last weekend.

Indeed, Croydon is the birthplace of one of the most famed and most beautiful people on the planet; Dane Bowers of Another Level fame. Kate Moss is another notable ex-resident. Croydon even has its own beauty trademark, the Croydon facelift, where a pony tail is so tightly scraped back off the face that it gives a facelift like appearance.

Discount supermarket chain, Aldi was our destination.  Their strap line is ‘Like the best. Only better.’ Could it be, that Aldi’s in-house beauty brand Lacura, is rubbing shoulders with the big boys in the beauty industry? I exited the store laden with some absolute steals - the Lacura Concealer Pen, Eye Roll-On, Lip Gloss, and Facial Cleasing Wipes. Lacura deserves to be rolling with the beauty’s finest. The Lacura Concealer Pen, having been voted ‘Star Buy’ in the Daily Mail, April 2010, is worthy of its winning status. Hiding wrinkles around the eyes, covering pigment disorders and balancing out surface irregularities, its soft brush applicator also enables precise application. Its natural moisturising factor reduces dark shadows and keeps skin feeling soft and supple. When I’m lacking in shut-eye, the concealer is a god-send. It does however, have an accomplice in combating dark circles and puffy eyes; the Lacura Eye Roll-On.  My many caffeine fixes of the day (Diet Coke, coffee, tea) got nothin’ on the eye roll-on; containing caffeine, pro-vitamin B5 and hylauronic acid, with this little number I feel bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

So, after the weekend, I came in to the office feeling like a new woman.  I am of course both taken and an employee of an all female office, but that didn’t stop me from releasing my inner seductress on Monday morning. The Lacura Lip Gloss promised me a ‘seductive sheen for irresistible lips’ and as I slicked on the gloss, my colleague Roxanne, complimented me on my pretty pout. ‘Get down that Aldi’ I told her, and needless to say, she did.

In the life of CBL, taking off my make-up is one of life’s pleasures, and now, with the Lacura 2-in-1 Facial Cleansing Wipes by my side, my skin feels soft, soothed, cleansed, toned and moisturised, and with thirty in a pack, we will see each other day in day out in September.

Aldi is quite simply, an Aladdin’s Cave of girly goodies. So, before the masses head to their nearest store, if I were you, I’d hotfoot it down there and get your array of beauty supplies.

Lacura Concealer Pen - £3.59

Lacura Eye Roll-On - £3.49

Lacura Lip Gloss - £1.99

Lacura Facial Cleansing Wipes - 89p

Log on to www.aldi.co.uk to find your nearest store

Check out Aldi’s Wrinkle Stop website www.wrinklestop.co.uk and upload your photo and get a glimpse of how you’ll age. Concerned about those laughter lines or crow’s feet? Then put a stop to them with Aldi’s bestselling beauty buy Lacura Wrinkle Stop that is now back in stock.

Considered a credit crunch saviour for anti-ageing, Lacura Wrinkle Stop was a sell-out success when it launched last year and now its back in stock.

Lacura Wrinkle Stop is a highly effective form of facial care for minimising wrinkles in problem areas on and around the forehead, eyes, mouth and nose. The patented active agent Syn®-Ake which mimics the effect of a protein found in snake venom, has been proven to help reduce wrinkles and smooth the skin.

Price: £5.99 for 10ml

Available from Aldi

For affordable beauty, Aldi’s new haircare range is definitely worth a look.

Their brand new professional haircare range includes shampoo, conditioner, intensive treatment and serum specially formulated for either frizz-prone hair, colour-treated hair, or hair that needs a volume boost.

This range is definately worth a look, as it uses quality ingredients but just at a snip of the price.

Prices start from £2.49

Available from Aldi www.aldi.co.uk