Beauty and the No-Beast Budget

I thought my five-minute makeup and hairdo were cute, until I caught the beautiful people staring at me from the checkout tabloids, the folks who pay thousands to smooth a wrinkle and keep the airbrush industry afloat. Mention beauty to them, and you're speaking their language. But say budget, and eyes lined with two hundred dollar mascara will widen like they've seen a beast. When your salary can't compete and Macy's make-up counter makes you feel faint, what's a budget-girl to do? Meet beauty and the no-beast budget: