Although Christmas is my favorite time of year, I thought it might be fun to take a break from all of the gift guides and shopping frenzy to do a little side by side comparison of some recent makeup purchases. I am including four different categories: mascara, eyebrows, lips and concealer. I am going to feature two different products and talk a little bit about them and pick one that I think is the winner of the two! Shop these products here: http://liketk.it/33asl
Mascara: Lancome Big Monsieur ($25) vs. Loreal Air Volume ($13)
And the winner is….Loreal Big Monsieur but only by a very thin margin! I have worn this mascara from Lancome for a very long time and it is a holy grail product for me! I have tried every single mascara out there and this is hands down my favorite. It does not clump or flake and it gives a lovely mix of volume and length. I can not say enough good things about it! I was very skeptical when I kept hearing rave reviews of this Loreal mascara because I am so spoiled by the Lancome. I finally decided to try it, and oh.my.gosh it is good! It is without question the best drugstore mascara I have ever used. It also gives you incredible length and volume and does not flake or clump. So, why does Lancome have the slight edge? The only thing I don’t like about the Loreal mascara is that a lot of product comes off on the brush when you pull it out of the bottle. You really have to work to clear the brush off before you apply and it takes a few minutes to dry once its on your lashes. If you try to curl them, this mascara can have a bit of a wet feeling for a few minutes. It does dry and the mascara feels incredibly light once its dry. This is a tough call as these two mascaras are both incredible!
Eyebrow Pencils: NYX Fill and Fluff Pencil ($11) vs. Elf Cosmetics Instant Lift Brow Pencil ($2)
And the winner is… Elf Cosmetics Instant Lift Eyebrow Pencil! Do yourself a favor and head to Target or Walgreens and spend $2 for the best eyebrow pencil ever. Every single day when I use this, I am surprised by it. It easily compares to much more high end pencils from Sephora and is literally $2. I used to love the NYX one, and it is not bad at all, but it just isn’t as good. The spool brush is so good and the color really stays on. This one was a no brainer, Elf cosmetics all the way!
Lips: Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner ($28) vs. Tarte Maracuja Juicy Lip ($19)
And the award goes to…Tarte Maracuja Juicy Lips! This is another category that I have a clear favorite. I purchased the Ilia lip product hoping it would be what the Tarte product is. The Tarte product is incredibly moisturizing. It literally feels like butter on your lips. I have the color Rose and while it is beautiful, there is not a lot of color. I have been wearing it on days where I don’t do a full face of makeup or as a moisturizing topper over any lipstick. It is one of my top three favorite lip products I have ever tried! The Ilia is nice, but not nearly as moisturizing. I have the color Arabian Knights. It looks very bold in the tube but actually goes on more sheer. It is still a more red/pink lip than I normally do, but it really is a pretty color. It is not drying like some lipsticks but after trying the Tarte product, its hard to go back!
Concealer: Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer ($30) vs.Cle de Peau Beaute Concealer ($73)
And the winner is… Cle de Peau Beaute Concealer…yes, you read that right, this concealer is $73. I am aware that is alarming so I will give you a moment……Okay, are you back? Let me say that I actually purchased this on major sale and did not pay the full amount for this. However, as much as I can’t believe I am saying it, I would pay the full amount. I had this on my radar for a very long time and I read lots of reviews and watched lots of Youtube videos of people talking about this product before I finally pulled the trigger.
I struggle so much with concealer. I have very dry skin and some fine lines around my eyes. That area is one of my problem areas, so concealer can be a nightmare. I also have a 14 month old and a job and a husband and a dog and a blog so I struggle with dark circles a lot. I have tried so may concealers in my life. Some of the ones I have tried are Tarte Shape Tape, Tarte Creaseless, Loreal Infallible Glow Pro, Nars Radiant Creamy and several more. I decided to compare the Cle de Peau with the Nars, because of the ones I have tried, it was my favorite. Tarte Shape Tape was awful for me. It was so thick and settled right in those fine lines I mentioned.
Each of these other concealers have one thing in common that is different than Cle de Peau. They are all creamy, liquid formulas. I would think with dry skin this would be a good thing, but it is not! The Nars worked okay as far as not looking just terrible but it honestly did not provide a lot of coverage. Enter the gold standard concealer. This concealer can be slightly dry, so I always use an eye cream before applying. I don’t really know how to explain it, but it gets better as you wear it throughout the day. Because it is not a liquid and is a more dry formula, it really stays in place and does not crease at all. It has a beautiful blurring effect and looks so nice on your skin. It just melts into your skin and makes your whole face look softer and well, just better. Even my mom commented recently that my makeup looked nice. I failed to tell her that it was the million dollar concealer, but I guess the cat is out of the bag now! I have never used a concealer that I actually really liked before this one. I understand for this price, it better be a total unicorn, and I honestly think it might be. Okay, that concludes this episode of face off! I love reviewing beauty products and giving my honest thoughts. I hope you will try some of these products and let me know what you think! Please shop these products here: http://liketk.it/33asl.
