Do you have any products in your collection that were either expensive or highly touted, but just didn't live up to your expectations? That is what this post is all about! I'm going to chat specifically about all of the products in my collection that I don't reach for, despite their high price tag and hyped-up nature. Before I start, I will say that these type of posts are highly subjective. What didn't work for me may work wonders for someone else, and vise versa. If you agree or disagree with any of these, I would love to know!
Naked 3 Palette - $64
This one may come as a surprise to some of you, as you may already know that I am a huge fan of Urban Decay eyeshadows. As a matter of fact, I own the first two naked palettes as well and love them to death. For whatever reason, the third one just didn't do it for me. The formulation felt a lot more stiff and dry than the previous two, and I experienced a lot more fallout than usual. With the formulation aside, I also do not like how the rose gold tones pair with my skin tone. I try to take it out now and again to give it another shot, but I am never happy with the outcome!
MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Foundation (OLD FORMULATION) - $50
When I first started getting into makeup, this was one of the first expensive foundations that I purchased. I liked it at the time, but after venturing out and trying many other foundations I realized this wasn't as amazing as I initially thought it was. I recently purchased this about a month ago, and was shocked at how it applied on my skin. I think what happened is I got used to other high end foundations, and after coming back to this one it just didn't match up to the others I had been using. After about two hours of wear, this foundation begins to separate on my skin giving a very obvious uneven appearance. It doesn't last on me, and that is one of the qualities I look for the most in a foundation. This is arguably one of the most talked about and recommended foundations, so it is surprising to see sub-par results on my skin.
NARS Blush in "Orgasm" - $37
This one might be my most disappointing purchase of all. I can't explain to you the hype this blush gained when it first came onto the market a few years back. This was, again, when I was first getting into makeup. I remember hearing about it on almost every YouTube video I watched, and it was being recommended left, right, and center by various makeup artists. The concept of it sounded great: a coral peach blush with a golden sheen. Sounds gorgeous, right?
Wrong. This blush looked like chunky golden glitter all over my cheek bones, and that is coming from someone who LOVES a shimmery highlight. It just didn't sit or blend well on my skin, and after about an hour of wear the glitter would actually migrate to other areas of my face. How? I have no idea. This was so disappointing because I have seen pictures of this blush looking flawless on many other people, but it just didn't work on my skin. Since the week I purchased it, it has been sitting in my collection giving me chills every time I look at it -- and not the good kind.
YSL Touche Eclat Highlighting Pen - $70
I remember when I first saw this being used in a YouTube video, I thought it was magic. It looked so luxurious, and the final look was amazing. I delayed buying it because of the high price tag, but ended up finding it at my local Winners last year for almost half the price, so I scooped it up right away. What this product is supposed to do is brighten and highlight the face, and erase any signs of fatigue. After giving this an honest try, it just didn't live up to the claims. It did give a slight brightening effect, but certainly not $70 worth. It definitely didn't erase any signs of fatigue, as the coverage was very, very sheer. I would apply my foundation, then put the highlighting product on top to attempt to brighten up certain areas. When I did this, it would actually just move around my already set foundation, making it look blotchy and uneven. I then tried it under my foundation, but when I placed my foundation on top the brightening effect was erased. It seems like I just couldn't make this work, which is too bad because I was so excited about this beautiful highlighting pen!
Benefit Cosmetics Benetint Cheek & Lip Stain - $40
The concept of this product is actually really cool. It is a water-based product that is supposed to double as a cheek stain (blush) and a lip stain. It is light red in colour, and has an applicator that is identical to a nail polish brush. What I didn't like about this was how quickly it dried on the skin, making it almost impossible to blend. It looked very obvious when I used this, as it appeared looking like a red stripe across my cheeks. On my lips, it ended up looking like they were just very red and irritated. It wasn't a nice natural looking flush, but more of a desperate plea for lip balm. I have seen this work wonderfully for many other people, so I was surprised to see it perform so poorly on me.
Maybelline Great Lash Mascara - $7
Although it is inexpensive, this mascara generates crazy amounts of hype! It has been around forever, and you'd think it was due to it's high performing nature. Unfortunately, on my lashes this was not the case. The wand is smaller than your average mascara applicator, which is nice to get into hard to reach places. But in this case, that wasn't enough to keep this mascara off of this list. The formula did absolutely nothing for my lashes. No length, volume, or separation. It actually clumped most of my lashes together, making them look like I hadn't taken off my mascara from the night before. One of my favourite YouTubers, Lindsey Hughes, uses this and loves it! It is a mystery to my how it worked so well for her, and so terribly for me.
Thank for you taking the time to read this post! If you have an recommendations for other ways to use these products that I may have missed, please let me know. Also, if there are any other products that you think us makeup lovers should stay away from, spread the knowledge and leave a comment!
Brittany x