Beauty Matchup: Face Wipes

Hello Lovelies,

I hope you are all well. I have been loving face wipes recently and trying out a few different brands. My favorites are the Olay Daily Facials Express face wipes - they are the softest and are the most effective at removing makeup and cleansing the skin.

My next favorites are the Simple Cleansing Facial Wipes - they are great wipes but they are not as soft as the Olay wipes. However, I end up repurchasing the Simple wipes most of the time because they come in larger packs so I don't need to repurchase them as frequently and they do the job well.

Simple also makes Exfoliating Facial Wipes - I definitely would not use these to take off your makeup but rather as a gentle exfoliator after you have removed your makeup. These are too rough to use near your eye area so they are not the best for just generally removing makeup but they work well to gently exfoliate your skin.

Before Simple products were sold in the US, I used the Neutrogena Makeup Remover wipes. These are  great for removing your makeup but they leave an oily film on your skin so you have to cleanse it with another product afterwards. I usually use a face wash or cleanser after I use a face wipe anyways so for me this wasn't a major problem but if you only want to use one product for both I would recommend one of the other wipes. Also, the Neutrogena wipes are not particularly soft and can sometimes leave the skin feeling irritated and red. Depending on how sensitive your eye area is, these might leave a stinging sensation so if you have really sensitive skin I would steer clear of these.

Last but not least, are the MAC face wipes. The only good thing about these in my opinion is that they are sold in bulk. I prefer to use these to spot clean my makeup brushes or to remove swatches. These break me out so I really don't like them and they also have a funny odor in my opinion. Also, they are harsh on the skin and usually make my skin sting after I use them. I am still trying to finish up the first and only pack I bought but since I don't use them on my face I really have no use for them.

Overall, I always go back to either the Olay or the Simple cleansing face wipes because they are the softest and work really well at removing my makeup. The only time I have ever had a problem with either of them is if I have put on a lot of waterproof mascara and then you need to rub a bit to get all of it off.

I hope this was helpful. Let me know if there are any other face wipes out there that you have enjoyed.

xoxo

Beauty Matchup: Pot Concealers

Hello Lovelies!!

I hope you are all well. I have decided to try out a new series called Beauty Matchups. In each Beauty Matchup I will review a couple products that are essentially the same/similar product but from different brands. I am not 100% sure about the name so that might change in the future. Let me know if you have any suggestions about the name in the comments below.



As you probably guessed based on the title, I am going to be reviewing pot concealers. I have the MAC Studio Finish Concealer, the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer and Corrector, and finally the Laura Mercier Undercover Pot.

To start off with is probably the most popular of the three, MAC Studio Finish. I have it in the shades NC15 and NW20. I use the NW20 under my eyes to help cancel out the redness and the NC15 for blemishes and what not. I really like the formula of this because it is creamy, but not too creamy if that makes sense. This is one of those products that really warms up in your hands, making it so much easier to blend. I usually apply this with a 217 brush and then blend it in with my fingers to really get it to melt into the skin. Out of the three, I think this is probably my favorite. One container of it really lasts forever, which is always a bonus.

Next up are the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer and Corrector. I have the creamy concealer in Porcelain and the corrector in Light Bisque. This two are by far the creamiest concealers/correctors that I have ever used. They blend in really well and the melt into the skin like nothing else. BUT they crease like a mother. Within twenty minutes of putting these on they crease so badly. I have tried setting them with different powders and applying less and less product in order to keep them from creasing but nothing works. You definitely have to apply these with your fingers because they are too creamy for a brush. As such, you can really control the amount of product that you apply. However, since they crease so badly it does not really matter how amazing they are if you cannot wear them without them creasing. I know this is a favorite for so many people and I had such high hopes for them but I have to say that I am definitely sticking with my MAC studio finish concealers.

Before I get ahead of myself, I want to finish up with the Laura Mercier Undercover Pot in 2. This is probably the best value of the three because it contains two different concealers as well as a translucent setting powder in the bottom compartment. It also has a mirror which is always a nice touch. However, I find it to be relatively difficult to work with. The concealer on the right, the darker, more pink toned concealer, is great for under eye circles. It is much creamier than the other concealer, which has a harder, almost dry texture, and is meant for blemishes. I am not really going to get into the setting powder other than to say that in terms of loose setting powders, it is my favorite but most of the time I prefer pressed powders. Anyways, back to the concealers - I really like the under eye, pink toned concealer since it works really well for me as long as I set it with a powder. In terms of the lighter concealer that is meant for blemishes, I find it to be relatively hard to work with because it is so dry. You really have to work to warm it up to blend into the skin. I am really unwilling to spend the time because it is so difficult to work with. The only time I really use this is if I am out of my MAC Studio Finish.

Overall, I have to say that the MAC Studio Finish is definitely my favorite of the three. I am debating picking up the Benefit Erase Paste to try out but because of the limited shade range, I am a little hesitant. Let me know in the comments what your thoughts are about any of these concealers or if you have any tricks for things that I could try.

One last thing I want to add is that price wise, the MAC Studio Finish is definitely the best value since it is the cheapest of the three and you get the most product.

I hope this was helpful for those of you looking into picking up a new pot concealer. Also, let me know in the comments what you think about this series and expect more later this week.

xoxo