When you have a beauty blog, there is great temptation to lust over products to wear and review. In order to grow my blog, I wanted to be able to review those products, but I also wanted to see if they looked good on me. I learned that just because they are considered a holy grail to many a blogger, does not mean they will look good on me. Here were some products I bought, had high hopes for only to get disappointed with, but returned or gave away:
NARS Blush "Orgasm"
Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick "Lolita" (I exchanged it for "Berlin")
Sephora Cream Lip Stain "Marvelous Mauve"
Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick "Double Dare"
MAC Lipstick "Whirl" (you can read my review here)
But in this post, I will be talking about the dud products featured on the photo above, all of which I still have.
1. NYX Suede Cream Lipsticks: The shades I have above are Soft-Spoken, Cherry Skies, and Life's a Beach. Honestly, I did want to love them, and you guys know much I love NYX. But the formula was so messy, and I don't know if it has to do with the product itself or the applicator, but it makes a huge mess. I actually originally had one of the shades Pink Lust, because you know how I love hot pink shades. But this one looked so...weird on me. Maybe because it was really cool toned? I also felt like it looked better on those for fairer skin tones. I love corals and bright oranges, but Life's a Beach also did not fare well with my medium–tan skin. And I should've known better than to get Soft-Spoken, considering that it's a dupe of Whirl. Plus, at $7, these are more expensive than the other NYX lip products, which are around $4–$6.
2. Maybelline "The Smokes" Palette: I bought this on a whim thinking that it would be a decent dupe for the Urban Decay Naked Smoky Palette. I don't expect $54 quality for a $12 product. However, you couldn't believe how much I had to keep watching and swiping just to get mediocre pigmentation. Plus, the shadows were very unblendable. I should've just saved my money to get the Naked Smoky Palette.
3. Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Contour Kit (Medium): I bought this in July because it was on sale for $25 (full price is $40) at Macy's Online. I wanted to experiment with contouring more, and I will say that it does look beautiful on me. However, it does lean on the warmer side, and for contour, you want a shade to be cooler to give the illusion of a sculpted shadow. The biggest issue I have with this is that it is HARD to blend! I even used this with the Tarte Slenderizing Brush, which is supposed to be paired with cream products. I had to really, really pack it on, and really swipe it hard on my face. I watched Manny MUA's review/demo of this here, and he said in order to make it creamier and softer to use, to get the Tarte Maracuja oil (which is $48) or any other "beauty" oil. You gotta be kidding me. So I have to drop extra $$ just to get this to work better on me? What if I am in a hurry or want to bring this for when I travel? So I would have to bring an extra bottle of oil too? Ain't nobody got time for that!
4. Gerard Cosmetics 1995 Lipstick: When I first started blogging and being crazy about makeup, I've heard so many bloggers going crazy over this lipstick. The 90's trends are back, and Kylie Jenner rocks shades similar to this. Plus, this was a collaboration with beauty blogger Jaclyn Hill. I've been wanting this lipstick for months because it looked so beautiful on other people that wore it, but when Gerard Cosmetics had a sale in March, I was able to snatch it for $13. I was sorely disappointed when I swiped it and it hardly showed up on my lips. This isn't "My Lips but Better". This is "My Lips but...snooze..." I hate to say that, but I guess because I have darker lips than most. For a 90's/fall shade, I prefer MAC Lipstick "Retro" much more.
5. Makeup Academy Liquid Lipstick (Brick): I've always wanted to try Makeup Academy, since it's a UK brand and they sell them here in the US at CVS. So I tried this liquid lipstick in the shade brick. It is a GORGEOUS color, I would describe it as a dark rose pink. This is definitely my signature shade. I like the peppermint tingle upon first application. However, it is super crumbly and dry, moreso than the ColourPop Ultra Matte Liquid Lipsticks. I expect liquid lipsticks to be on the drier side since they are usually a matte finish, but wow, this crumbled and peeled my lips really fast. Plus, the applicator was a brush that was pointed and precise at first, but after a few uses, the brush got really messed up, and I couldn't bring it back to its original place, so it became really really hard to apply. It is also pretty expensive too for it being sold in a drugstore, which was $9, but I guess I should expect that from an international brand.
Here's to being more cautious and conscious in 2016 with what I buy! What beauty products did you get in 2015 that you regretting purchasing, and got disappointed with?
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