3 Ways to Look Expensive (Even when Your Bank Account is Basically Empty)

Lipstick, Glamour Magazine

by Petra Guglielmetti,Glamour

We can't all afford to have an army of pros perfecting our hair, nails and makeup before we leave the house--which is why the following tricks are a normal girl's best friends.


Glamour's girl Andrea Pomerantz Lustig, who some of you may remember from her posts on Girls in the Beauty Department, has a new book out (How To Look Expensive) that draws upon her years of interviewing top beauty pros to give tips on how to look as fancy as your favorite celebrities--for a lot less cash.

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Here are three of Andrea's very favorite look-expensive tips.

1. To get expensive-looking skin: "The same four ingredients celeb derms recommend are there for the taking on the drugstore shelf," Andrea says. "Think 'RAPA'. That's retinoids, antioxidants, peptides and alpha-hydroxy-acids. RoC Daily Resurfacing Disks ($9.99 at Ulta) are one great low-cost skin secret. They're like a professional peel in a jar."

2. To get expensive-looking nails: "Whenever I'm feeling like a mess, new polish makes me feel more polished. OPI Samoan Sand is the perfect rich-girl nude--not too pink, not too beige. And if your polish is chipped take it off--any manicure will look cheap if you leave it on too long."

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3. To get expensive-looking hair: "Use a Bounty paper towel to blot the water out of your hair without disturbing the cuticle before you blow-dry; it really gives you shinier, silkier, more expensive-looking hair."

Read more of Andrea's high-end beauty tips in our excerpt from How To Look Expensive.

What are some of YOUR favorite tricks for looking expensive?

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