More beauty for fewer $$: Israeli discount cosmetic chains

Ladies - do you remember buying drugstore-brand makeup in the old country? Cosmetics of decent (and even better) quality that didn't cost a king's ransom, so you didn't feel too guilty buying a variety of products to supplement your makeup kit?

Well, the cosmetics in the local drugstores (even with coupons) are still on the expensive side. But in the past few years, some really good, local alternatives have sprung up to expensive brand-name makeup, cosmetic products and toiletries. And unlike discount products purchased online from abroad, you don't even have to wait a month for them to arrive in the mail, because they're available at storefronts all over Israel.

My 10 favorite items to buy at iHerb

I'm sure many of you are already familiar with iHerb, a large, California-based online retailer selling mainly nutritional supplements and foods, and also "natural" cosmetics and toiletries. If not, you can read more about it in my post discussing how to buy cosmetics and toiletries online for less. iHerb's large variety of quality products, their reasonable prices (both of the items and on shipping), and their great customer service have made me a repeat customer of theirs.

While obviously, my favorite items may not be your cup of tea, I'd like to show you some of the products I've sampled from the store and find myself repeatedly ordering because they're just that good. If there are others you'd want to recommend, feel free to do so in the comments.

Cheaper than your local drugstore: Buying cosmetics and toiletries online, Part 2

In Part 1 of this post, we discussed large American online retailers which have a large variety of quality cosmetics and toiletries, and offer reasonable shipping rates. Now we'll discuss a few more online retailers with great shipping rates - some even free!

While the promise of free or low shipping is often accompanied by a serious hike in the items' prices to compensate, this isn't the case in the stores I'll be mentioning, and their prices are generally better than what you can find in stores here. 

Cheaper than your local drugstore: Buying cosmetics and toiletries online, Part 1

Not long ago, I was standing in line at my local branch of a large Israeli pharmacy chain (which shall remain nameless, for reasons which you will soon understand), when I overheard a conversation between two men standing behind me, in new-oleh, American-accented English.

"Look at this!" One man said to the other, eyeing the small bottle of Listerine on the shelf next to him. "I could get a huge bottle for a third of the price in CVS. Everything is so much cheaper back in the old country..." he sighed. The other nodded wryly.

I can't say I disagree. Too much of our luggage space on our rare trips back from the old country is devoted to simple drugstore items that either can't be had here at all, or economy-size packages of items that are available, but very expensive and only obtainable in small packages. While I'm the last person to encourage brand loyalty and I actually find many local brands as good, if not superior, there are still some things I'd like to have without schlepping it here or worse, having someone else do the dirty work for me. If you have parents or siblings in the old country who will, more power to you. Not all of us do, though.

Luckily, there are a few stores which both offer a wide range of cosmetics, perfumes and/or toiletry items, and are willing to ship it to us here in Israel for a not-too-exorbitant fee. You'll have to wait anywhere between a week to a month until you get your package, so keep that in mind when ordering new stock. Keep in mind that if ordering over $75 of merchandise (not including shipping), you will be required to pay 18% VAT.