It’s that time again! I’ve got a bunch of reviews for you below of the products I included in my March version of my Monthly Makeup Focus product. This wasn’t a good month for me – there were quite a few products that were disappointing and one in particular that REALLY let me down. Keep reading to find out what that was!
Fave of the Month
Covergirl Outlast 3-in-1 Foundation
As I mentioned, I haven’t used this foundation in about 6 months and I have to say, I really missed it. This is the best foundation I’ve found at the drugstore, for multiple reasons. First off I love the finish – it’s matte but it looks very natural and skin-like, especially if you pair it with a thicker moisturizer or moisturizing primer. I can’t say it lasts “all-day” but it definitely lasts a good 8-10 hours on me and it looks good from start to finish. Lastly, a little of this goes a long way – I can typically get away with one pump and am left with a solid medium finish. One word of caution though – don’t try and build it up past a medium finish as it will get cakey and very un-natural looking.
Fail of the Month
I should have edited the title to include Disappointment of the Month too – this palette was just such a huge fail for me! It was my first time trying the Balm’s eyeshadows and after this experience I’m not sure I have any interest in trying any more from them. The weird thing is I hear so many rave about this palette so I’m wondering if this one was defective or something – note that I did pick this up at Winners?
Perhaps I should share why I picked this up in the first place; I love the concept of an all-in-palette I can travel with – this palette includes 12 eyeshadows, a highlighter, blush and 2 cream lip/cheek products. I like the design of the palette – it’s made of cardboard and is super lightweight and thin. The lip products are separated from the powder products in a brilliant way (behind a magnetic clo I also think the rock n’ roll theme of the palette is cute – the Balm does play on words well.
Unfortunately that’s where what I like about it ends. First up, I’m not crazy about the eyeshadow shade selection – when I looked at it in store I thought it looked nice but once I got it home and started using it I just wasn’t inspired by it. I find most of the shades dull, muddy and just kind of uninteresting.
Secondly, while the shadows are soft and for the most part creamy (a formula I usually enjoy) the amount of fallout on these is probably the worst I’ve ever seen – even when I tap my brush off before application. My under-eyes are usually covered in a thin layer of eyeshadow after I’m finished applying these; normally fall-out doesn’t bother me too much but it’s just so excessive with these that I can’t stand it.
Lastly, and worst of all for me is that these powders are so soft that they just blend away to literally nothing. I’ve never been so frustrated with a makeup product before; I have spent so much time trying to apply these various ways with different brushes to try and make them work but I just don’t have the patience anymore. The only two shadows I didn’t mind were Adagio and Allegro (cream matte and cream warm brown), they don’t seem to blend away as much and kept their pigmentation. Applying the shimmer shadows with my finger achieved slightly better results but not worth the extra effort, in my opinion.
The blush and highlighter don’t seem to have quite the same issues but I don’t find they last on my skin very long – within a few hours they’ve disappeared off my face. Disappointing because I actually do like the shades of both of these.
The lip products were another disappointment – I was actually quite excited about Milly as that’s a shade right up my mauve-loving alley but the formula on both of these suck. When I applied them to my lips, they sunk into every line and aged them by about 20 years. Really weird considering the formula isn’t dry at all.
So all-in-all, completely disappointed with this palette – enough so that I’m considering getting rid of it because I know I’m never going to reach for this again. That’s how you know I don’t like this – it takes a lot for me to get rid of beauty products, especially palettes and especially something I just purchased.
Products for March
Skincare
Bioderma Hydrabio H2O Hydrating Micelle Solution
This and the serum below were included in a sample set I picked up from Shoppers for something like $7. I wish more companies would do things like that – it’s such a great way to test out their products and see if they work for me – I’m much more likely to try out their products this way. This micellar solution was okay – I liked it a lot at first but the more I used it the more I realized it wasn’t quite as good as others I’ve used in terms of removing eye makeup, and that’s the main purpose of a micellar water for me. So I probably wouldn’t repurchase this.
This is such a hyped up product so I was super excited to try it out. And I agree with everyone who says this smells absolutely amazing – sometimes I’d open the tube and just take a whiff of it. But there’s no way I could justify the almost $60 price tag for a tub of this. It’s moisturizing, yes. But my OGX Miracle Coconut Oil works just as well for a fraction of the price. I do find they smell kind of similar – the OGX isn’t quite as good as this but it still smells delicious. If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative to this, I totally recommend giving it a try.
Fragrance
Britney Spears Believe
I’ve stated a few times before how much of a fan I am of Britney Spears perfumes and I don’t think I’m alone in this. This is a really fresh, light scent and it’s very Spring like (not that we know what Spring is over here). One of the things I love most about this fragrance is the bottle – I think it’s so pretty and elegant. Overall, this is a great one!
Face/Eyes
Hard Candy Glow All the Way Ombre Blush
I’ve had this blush on hand for a few years but rarely reach for it, as is the case with many of the blushes in my collection. I originally bought it because I loved the ombre design but the few times I’ve used it previously I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. Now I know. Unfortunately it’s beauty is limited to it’s design – this just doesn’t work for me. It’s very frosty and glittery and I kind of look like I’ve been transported from the eighties when I wear this. I dislike it so much that I think I’m going to get rid of it.
Hair
There isn’t much to say about this – it works just as well as any other Batiste dry shampoo I’ve used, it’s just a different scent. The scent descriptors are as follows: Bergamot, Freesia, Jasmine, Almond. My descriptor is a little simpler: vanilla with a slight hint of floral. I enjoyed it and will repurchase it again. Note that I incorrectly stated that this was limited edition in my March products post but it’s not (yay!).
Stay tuned for my wrap-up post in a couple of weeks – thanks for reading!
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