Beauty Product Battles, Throw Downs and Showdowns

[itsfi]

Ready to pit some beauty products against each other? Can't decide which of your mascaras, lipsticks, hair masks, eye creams, vanilla scents, etc. reign supreme? I don't know about you but I love hearing about how products compare with one another, and which products come out on top when going head-to-head in a dual.  Share your beauty battles here and let's see which of our product(s) come out on top! 

If you have two or more similar products you're testing out or have been wanting to compare against the other to see which performs better for you, put them to the test. So that we can all join in on the fun and learn from your experiment, let us know what product(s) you'll have face off against each other and who comes out victorious, and any other details you'd like to share. 

[peculiarzmakeup]

Great job! I love seeing the photos of the lipstick on as well as its benefits or not as helpful features. It’s amazing you were able to narrow down by 5, that is a challenge but I love your method of assessing it brings a lot of helpful perspective into the process. I love all the beautiful swatches. I think it’s such a neat concept to have bins it’s such a great visual. I’ve loved watching your lipstick throwdown journey! @itsfi congrats to the winners 🙂 

[ather]

@itsfi  Wow great job!!! You decluttered 5 that’s awesome!! 

Did you notice you are faster to say good bye? Or did you still have a hard time? 

You think something is happening to the GXVE brand! Am I missing something? 

Florasis is so pretty on you. I love the burgundy colour and how it complements your skin perfectly! 

I can see why you said good bye to the Armani. If your not comfortable no point in keeping it. 

Great job! This was so fun to read!

ps: is that the new Merit perfume in the background? Have you tried it? 

[itsfi]

Thanks so much @ather! I went through these reds more quickly than I thought I would. Ahhh, that's a really good question. It was faster to say goodbye to the reds after the first round and decluttering through the weekly capsules has been helpful, too. Having place(s) to redirect the products has been a good motivator as well - it makes me feel less bad about letting something go if it isn't something that works for me. If someone else can get use out of it,  all the better!

GXVE products have been on sale for a long time, on Sephora and the brand's site. At first, it was a couple of products and then more and more started going on sale, for longer periods of time. It seems like their entire collection has been marked down for a whileT. hey also have shut down their direct site - visitors are directed to purchase through Sephora. Not sure if they are working on a rebrand, are closing down, or are making their way out of Sephora. Or, something else, maybe.

The Armani is a gorgeous red; it's just too much for me. I was really self conscious when I had it on. Maybe one day but for now, I have all these other reds to use and a handful more for a future throw down! 😉

P.S. That is the new Merit fragrance. It's got a unique blend of fruity, floral and woody. It wear better on me in the cooler weather. I first tested it in store during a heat wave and it wasn't for me. On a whim, I decided to try it again when the weather was more what we're used to here and it smelled like an entirely different fragrance than before. 

[ather]

@itsfi  Hmmmm interesting about the GXVE I guess I will have to keep my eyes open. Weird they shut their site down too. 

Oooo maybe the next time I am in the city I’ll pop into a Sephora and see how it smells on me. It’s interesting it’s more of a cooler weather scent. But that makes sense because depending on the weather I like different scents. In the cool weather I like a more smoky and woodsy scent and in the summer I like a more floral and citrus scent. 

[PDXXXX]

I have 24 foundation or tinted moisturizer products, yet I never feel like anything is working. This was an attempt to swatch, figure out what doesn't play well with my skin, and narrow things down to the products that truly work for me (an. At the end I got down to four foundations and a tinted sunscreen. I'll show them at the bottom if you want to skip the longer read and just get to the winners

Here is a photograph of where I began. I will list the products with my thoughts below on the top three rows I almost immediately ruled out for those who are interested or want more product info and then discuss the bottom row which were all contenders I swatched and further ruled in or out. Keep in mind so much of this is specific to skin type and shade and I have very dry, sensitive skin that is fair/light-warm:

TOP THREE ROWS ALL RULED OUT:

1. Westman Atelier Vital Skin Full Coverage Multi-Use Foundation Stick Atelier 0.5 :

• great but my skin is becoming too dry for it and the shade leans cool,

2. Westman Atelier Vital Skincare Complexion Drops Dewy Skin Tint Atelier 0.5 :

• expired and separating, shade leans cool,

3. NARS Sheer Glow Foundation Gobi:

•  expired. Do like the formula but have a hard time finding a shade match in NARS so weary of trying again. If you're looking for a super blendable luminous sheer foundation though this is great,

4. Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter 3 - Fair:

•  love this product so much last summer when I was darker that I immediately bought a full size after trying the mini only to find it breaks me out and is a no-go for me,

5. Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Soothing Serum Skin Tint Foundation with Peptides + Ceramides 2 :

• adore but breaks me out. With that said I think this is one of the better products out there for a lot of drier skin people right now and I would go for it in most cases,

6. HUDA BEAUTY Easy Blur Natural Airbrush Foundation with Niacinamide Cashew 140G :

• Good shade but doesn't play well with my drier skin,

7 & 8. Two bottles of NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer  in Mont Blanc:

• Decent color match but finding while I went through tubes of this when I was younger it now clings to my dry skin,

9. #Fenty Beauty Eaze Drop Stick in 2:

• Great color but too dry for me now. I do love the ease of application and bendability when I'm not so dry,

10. #Yves Saint Laurent Nu Bare Look Tint in NU 1:

• Too light for me and too heavy a tinted moisturizer for my taste,

11. ILIA Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40 Foundation in Skye:

• Never liked,

12. Hourglass Veil Tinted Moisturizer in 5:

• Too dark for me,

13. NARS Light Reflecting Advanced Skincare Medium Coverage Foundation in Gobi:

• Not quite a shade match and is heavier than I like,

14. Tower 28 Beauty SunnyDays SPF 30 Tinted Sunscreen Foundation in La Cienga:

• Like the product but the shade was too dark for me,

15. DIOR Dior Forever Skin Glow Hydrating Foundation in 0W:

• Too light a shade for me and heavier in general than I like,

16. NARS Light Reflecting Advanced Skincare Medium Coverage Foundation in Mont Blanc:

• Not quite a shade match and heavier than I like.

BOTTOM ROW: THE CONTENDERS:

I used Iconic London Underglow Blurring Primer .9 oz / 27 mL on my face as I swatched and then applied the same to my arm to narrow down the following:

17. Jones What The Foundation in Porcelain:

• I truly love this foundation and it is a decent match. It is highly concentrated and has a shorter shelf life though. If there were a warm shade between this and the lightest tone which is fair I would repurchase,

18. Supergoop! Protec(tint) Daily SPF Tint SPF 50 Sunscreen Skin Tint with Ectoin in 10N:

• For some reason I thought I didn't like this but when swatched on my face and arm it was a great shade match and I will keep it for lower coverage days (it's not pictured below though as it's sheer and won't photograph on my skin),

19. Armani Beauty Luminous Silk Natural Glow Foundation 2 :

• Love the formulation and it looked great when I wore it late last summer but it's too dark now. Am trying a mini in a lighter warm shade,

20. PATRICK TA Major Skin Hydra-Luxe Luminous Skin Perfecting Foundation For Natural Glow 4 Golden :

• I've had this for about a month and a half and I would say it's my favorite of the bunch. I wasn't sure about the shade match at first (though now it's my favorite of the bunch) so also bought,

21. PATRICK TA Major Skin Hydra-Luxe Luminous Skin Perfecting Foundation For Natural Glow 5 Golden Neutr...:

• Still a decent shade match I may mix with shade 4 or wear for summer,

22. Iconic London Super Smoother Blurring Skin Tint Neutral Light :

• Love this but it's a bit dark now and doesn't have quite as nice a finish as the other contenders, 

23. Chantacaille Future Skin Foundation in Alabaster:

• Decent shade match and great coverage. I think I could do a slightly lighter warm shade but it's major $,

24. TIRTIR Red Cushion Foundation in Vanilla:

• I got a mini of this because I was curious and will say the color match is second to if not even better than my favorite shade match in the Patrick TA. It applied like a dream but got a bit cakey but I might try this shade in one of TIRTIR's lighter coverage cushions.

MY BEST FOUR:

[peculiarzmakeup]

Such a beautiful throw down I love how organized this is as well as how it is easy to match the product in the photo to reference its description! I love your swatches! I have been wanting to try Jones Road I’ve been seeing her advertising everywhere. I loved reading of your experiences with each and why it did or didn’t work out so much. This is such a great way to go about selecting the winners. Amazing job! Your winners look beautiful 🤩 @PDXXXX 

[PDXXXX]

Thank you, @peculiarzmakeup. If you're curious about anything in the Jones Road product line, feel free to ask me. I've tried many of the products (What The Foundation, The Face Pencil, several shades of The Miracle Balm, the Just A Sec cream eye shadows, the powder eye shadows, lip glosses, setting powder, and powder blush). I would say the best in the lineup are the foundation and cream eyeshadows (they're all beautiful shimmery shades). The Miracle Balm is also an interesting product: they often have deals on mini sets (like for the holidays) and going mini is the best way to try them. I've never seen a foundation like the What The Foundation - it applies best without primer and is very moisturizing and long-wearing. Feel free to ask if you'd like swatches of the powder and cream eye shadows, mini balm shades, lip gloss, or blush I have!

[itsfi]

"I have 24 foundation or tinted moisturizer products, yet I never feel like anything is working." I got a good chuckle reading that - completely understand!! It's the equivalent to staring at my closet and thinking "I have nothing to wear" when there are choices galore. 😂 That's great to hear that the Patrick Ta foundation works so well for you - and now you have it in shades that suit you for the warmer and the cooler seasons! I'm going to revisit that foundation early next year. 

[PDXXXX]

@itsfi yes, lol, I definitely have the "too many things to find the things that work" problem. Purging is helping. The Patrick Ta is so interesting: somehow I love it but admittedly figuring out application methods has been tricky. I did pick up a mini of the Armani in the correct shade after writing this and will say in terms of shade match and blend-ability it's probably at the top of my list now (I know you have it as well so know all about it). Now if only I could get through the makeup purge and get to my closet 😂

[PDXXXX]

I recently saw a Robert Welsh video discussing the balance between "underconsumption core", panning out as a trend, and...simply using expired makeup (you can watch it on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=822688013141587&rdid=XCrAelSKcTDBnKB2 ). After watching I formed the goal to approach product battles until the New Year by trashing expired makeup category by category to clear out my space, examine what has and hasn't worked, what I will and won't save to replace, and provide swatches as requested if you see something you've been curious about.

Here is the chart I'm using for expiration guidelines:

This week I chose the category of lip glosses (which have an expiration date of one year), and colored lip balms (good for 1-5 years: vague much?) after opening. I've included some stains and will assume they fall somewhere between a gloss and lipstick. For reference, to find an expiration date on a product you can often look at the bottom of the product and see a container illustration with a number showing how long the product is good for. I found trying to remember when I got these fun. Things like recalling how indulgent it felt to buy my first YSL Candy Glaze after ducking into Sephora while taking photographs downtown and how much I adored the scent every time I applied it (the problem being that was...8 years ago).

After sorting everything out, here is what I had:

Below is the breakdown I came up with for each category. I've identified the products from left to right w/n each category with my reasons for replacing, not replacing, etc. It's a longer read but it got me from 25 products to, counting what I might replace when I have the money, 11 (with a little wiggle room if anyone has suggestions for discontinued products they have also used). Feel free to let me know if you'd like to see a swatch of any of these products before they hit the can or have any of your own you recommend!

EXPIRED PRODUCTS:

1. Stilla Beauty Boss Lip Gloss - In The Red (Discontinued)

• I’m sad to see this go and on the fence about finding an alternative. It’s more opaque than my Tarte Cherry (in the "still good" section below) but a similar shade,

2. YSL Tint in Oil Lip - Undress Me (Discontinued)

• This was a lovely product. The packaging, the perfect doe head, the consistency, the sheer color and scent: I wish I could replace it and would love recommendations,

3. YSL Volupte Sheer Candy - No 5 Mouthwatering Berry (Discontinued)

• This shade is a lot like the famous Clinique Black Honey. I liked it but feel like I have it covered with my Tarte Honeysuckle (below in the "still good" section) or can buy Black Honey in the future,

4. YSL Loveshine Lip Oil Stick - 150 Nude Lingerie

• There was never a lot of there there other than FINALLY getting one: I find this has such short wear and won’t be looking to replace,

5.. Dior Lip Glow Oil - Rosewood

• Not a bad product just not one I’m looking to replace. I bought hoping it was more like the original Rosewood but Dior is now calling multiple shades some variation of Rosewood (grrr). For comparison, the shade is a lot like the Tarte Gloss in Desert Rose in the "still good" section below,

6. Dior Addict Lip Tint - Natural Rosewood

• A staple I will replace. Natural Rosewood is very close to my natural lip color only a bit deeper. I never dry out with this and it’s an easy way to look a bit more put-together just still like my lips only better,

7. Dior Addict Lip Tint - Natural Nude

• Not replacing - love the product but this shade is too light and pink for me and I reach for the shade Natural Rosewood far more,

8..Dior Addict Lip Maximizer Plumping Gloss - Beige

• I’ve replaced this countless times and probably will again. Great consistency and plumping effect,

9. Jones Road Cool Gloss - Pink Gold Shimmer

• I’ve loved this but am unsure I’ll replace it. It looks opaque and glittery in the tube but is more sheer and nonsticky with just a bit of shimmer IRL We'll see,

10. Jones Road Cool Gloss - Clear

• Similar to the Pink Gold Shimmer shade, this has a great consistency and a nice minty flavor. May consider replacing to use as my all-around clear gloss color,

11.. Kosas Wet Lip Oil Plumping Peptide Lip Treatment Gloss - Jellyfish

• Already replaced. One of the few glosses I’ve finished off. It’s advertised as clear but is a very sheer warm peach/pink.

NEVER LIKED:

1. Floss Lip Gloss - TLDR (came in Birchbox)

• Seriously not getting this - a holographic purple, clear gloss from the outside that when applied didn’t even feel like any gloss was there,

2. Floss Lip Gloss - ATA (came in Birchbox)

• Shade isn't wasn’t remotely something I’d wear and, as above, I am so not getting a gloss feel from this,

3. Lawless Forget the Filler - Velvet

• I got this as part of a three-piece mini set. It runs fairly opaque and this and Nudie simply aren’t my shades though I do like the third shade Rosy Outlook (See below in, the "still good" section),

4. Lawless Forget the Filler - Nudie

• See above,

5. Grande Cosmetics Grandelips - Barely There

• I purchased this after first getting the clear version: as a nude, it just doesn’t work for me. 

STILL GOOD:

1. Grande Cosmetics Grandelips - Clear

• One of the better plumping glosses I’ve used. Do I believe it has long-term results? No. But it has good staying power and definitely plumps my pout when I use it. Likely won’t repurchase though,

2. Fenty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminzer - Fenty Glow (came in IPSY box)

• I was pleasantly surprised by this! It looks rather orange/coral in the tube but applied is a nice warm rose. It’s not my fav consistency so I don’t know that I’ll replace it but I’ll enjoy using it until I run out,

3. Tarte Maracuja Juicy Plumping Oil - Honeysuckle/Black Cherry

• I love the consistency of this lineup: reminds me a lot of the old, beloved Stilla Glosses that twisted and dispensed product on the brush. This shade is very similar to Clinique's Black Honey and a nice deep berry staple,

4. Tarte Maracuja Juicy Plumping Oil - Desert Rose

• My favorite shade in this line. If you like Dior’s brighter Rosewoods, you’ll love this too (part of the reason I’m not running to replace my Dior Lip Oil Glow),

5. Tarte Maracuja Juicy Plumping Oil - Cherry

• A great bright neutral red with medium depth; reminds me of the old Stilla shade Strawberry,

6. Kosas Wet Lip Oil Plumping Peptide Lip Treatment Gloss - Unbuttoned

• I’ve been a fan of the Kosas Oil since I tried the shade Jellyfish. This is a nice deeper nude consistent with the line's warm tones. I prefer the shade Unhooked though so don’t see replacing this,

7. Kosas Wet Lip Oil Plumping Peptide Lip Treatment Gloss - Unhooked

• Very similar to the shade Unbuttoned but a bit lighter and I see myself using this more often,

8. Lawless Forget the Filler - Rosy Outlook

• Nice, barely pink more opaque gloss with a lot of staying power. Not one I plan on repurchasing though,.

9. LANEIGE Lip Glowy Balm - Grapefruit

• Great shade true to the color of the fruit but I probably won’t repurchase it as I find the Lip Glowy Balms don’t have a lot of staying power. I do love the scents of LANEIGE products though and having previously purchased it in Vanilla may go for that again.

[peculiarzmakeup]

@PDXXXX Reading this brought a giant smile to my face I love how prganized and well thought out it is. I love how familiar you are with what works for you and what doesn’t and I absolutely love this! Amazing job!!! 

[PDXXXX]

Thank you @peculiarzmakeup. My little research reports even on things like makeup almost embarrass me (but also crack me up). I'm a diagnosed Autistic and it's just so Autistic of me to always have to organize and overanalyze every aspect of things, lmao. I do have a fairly vanilla makeup routine with shades I've probably gone to since I was 16. I love that you guys inspire me to try to break out of my box and experiment more with makeup. Next year I hope there will be a far greater variety of shades in my collection 🙂

[peculiarzmakeup]

I think you’re amazing as you are! It’s awesome to have quirks. I’m glad you’re trying new things. Very happy to meet so many amazing people including you here at BIC thanks for these posts I do learn a lot I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone a lot here too! Your awesome 😎 @PDXXXX 

[itsfi]

Wow @PDXXXX, spectacular work with whittle down your lip glosses and balms. I spy a few products I like in the expired and still good categories. I'm a little more flexible with expiration dates with lip products, if they survive the smell and look test, but it's good to know I got time with some of my tinted lip balms. I'm not sure how I feel about the applicator on the Tarte Honeysuckle lip oil, but I do love the color - it's a beauty. The YSL Candy Glazes  and lip oils were some of my favorite lip products back in the day - I love the silver packaging too! 100% agree on the Dior Lip Tint Natural Rosewood - it's such a great staple. 

About the Lawless Forget the Filler, was that a line you looked into / purchased products from for the claimed plumping effect? Do you prefer the Tarte or Kosas in that regard?

[PDXXXX]

@itsfi I'm glad you asked this as it got me to reevaluate these products and shifted my impressions quite a bit! I'm going to drop a photo of the shades first (the Tarte and Lawless appear glittery here due to lighting but they are not at all) and then my thoughts on the three products. Sorry in advance for the lengthy research report, lol. 

1. Overall impressions and best for plumping IMO:
   • My motivation in purchasing the LAWLESS mini set was indeed driven to see how it worked as a plumping product. Of the three lines, I'd say it is the most plumping and longest-wearing. Both it and the Kosas are more opaque with a thicker consistency. Between the two, I find the LAWLESS has a much smoother finish,
   • In evaluating the ingredients for the three products only the LAWLESS and Kosas have Peptides or Hydralonic Acid: the Tarte relies on the conditioning effect of a blend of oils. LAWLESS includes a proprietary ingredient called, "MAXI-LIP tm" that claims to visibly plump lips by 40%. It is the only one where you get a tingly feeling (which I happen to like),
   • The shades I got in the LAWLESS mini-set aren't spectacular to me. But the line has more vibrant shades I'd like to try. What I've found unique about the lighter shades is they blend and shift very seamlessly with lip liner (there's a good range of nudes in the LAWLESS Forget The Filler Definer Lip Liner and did find one of "my" nudes in the line: in terms of ingredients there's really nothing to distinguish it from any other liner though). Overall, a good option if you're looking for "your" nude plumping gloss or a more defined lip with liner.
2. What I like about the Tarte:
   • This one has the lightest consistency making it apply the most smoothly. It feels great on the lips. I think it does make the lips appear plumper but also enjoy the moisturizing properties,
   • The shade range is impressive. It does run more sheer but layers well with other products (e.g. I just layered Honeysuckle over the Dior Rosewood Stain and it shifted and deepened the base color quite impressively),
   • It's not as long-wearing as the others but there's no noticeable mess as it wears,
   • The applicator is interesting as you mentioned: "click, click, click...hello, are you there?"
   • Overall it's my replacement for the discontinued Stila lip gloss line w/brush applicator (though they now have a plumping version I'm curious about) and the one I find myself reaching for the most though not so much with plumping expectations or for when I want a more defined gloss look though.
3. Finally the Kosas:
   • I've gone through one tube of Jellyfish and replaced it now. It shifts a bit warm pink on the lip but mostly is a nice all-around clear gloss. I find the hyaluronic acids and peptides give a nice moisturizing, conditioning feel. In trying on the pigmented shades again, however, I realized I don't care much for them. They don't apply very smoothly and look creasy/clumpy to my eye. 

OK, that's my novel! Remember when we only had DuWop's Lip Venom??? When did this get so complicated?!

[itsfi]

@PDXXXX, lol, I remember trying to get the product out of Tarte honeysuckle the first time and thinking I’d been clicking away for a while. 😂 It’s a pretty color. The Lawless plumping glosses are among my favorites when it comes to lip plumping products - the effects are good and the tingling is not too much.

Thanks for the swatches - Kosas Revealed is more pigmented than I thought it would be. 

[PDXXXX]

So it looks like we have another red lip showdown: this time, the hunt for a matte brick red edition...

I've been wanting a good dark brick red and in the past month or so have bought two new lipsticks (The first DIOR Rouge Dior Forever Transfer-Proof Lipstick 866 - Forever Together, the second NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment Vain ) and one new liner NARS Precision Lip Liner Mariachi as part of that hunt.

Here is how they swatch out:

As you can see these practically look like the same color. Yet, they worked very differently on me.

My favorite of the three in terms of shade - the NARS Power Pigment in Vain-  is my least favorite in terms of application, bleeding, smearing, etc. The Dior was lovely, don't get me wrong, it's just more sheer and not as concentrated as the NARS leading to a brighter, lighter color on the lip. The NARS liner, however, is a great staple. I can see using it with a lot of reds and even on its own.

Anyway here is my favorite - The NARS; if this shade reminds you of any you may have and love puh-leeze let me know, I would love the suggestions!

[peculiarzmakeup]

Amazing throw down I love how you mentioned they look the same shade but how they worked differently I think that is such a helpful thing to think about in terms of selecting the best fit. I love how you were able to notice the differences and what works best for you. The look is gorgeous I love that lippie on you! I loved reading on your process of selecting and the winner looks amazing and hopefully feels amazing too! Great throw down ❤️❤️💄 @PDXXXX 

[PDXXXX]

@peculiarzmakeup you are always such a sweetheart, thank you! I'm so sad I found a color I love in a formulation I'm not crazy about but think I will play with the Dior layered over the lip liner and see where I land. Lipstick has never really been a staple for me so I love reading all the lipstick comps here as I'm warming up to it (yours are great as we're both into those peachy tones, now I just need to get brave enough to try lipstick more often). I don't know what's with the current red lip obsession, lol. Figure I'll just go with it within reason. Hope your weekend is off to a good start 🙂

[peculiarzmakeup]

Aw thank you, so are you! I hope your weekend is going well as well 🙂 it seems to be a theme currently reds are very pretty! I am the same with lip stuff it’s trial and error for me I like how everyone has their unique take on lippies, such a neat throw down you did ❤️ @PDXXXX 

[itsfi]

NARS Vain looks stunning on you @PDXXXX. I feel like YSL had a similar lipstick shade but I think they’ve discontinued it. I can’t find it online. 😞 Will keep an eye out for something similar.