Search Results for: faceoff

May 6, 2019

Light Bronzer Faceoff: Physician’s Formula Butter Bronzer vs. Fenty Sun Stalk’r vs. Benefit Hoola

Fenty just released a new line of Sun Stalk’r bronzers and I was keen to get my hands on the lightest shade, Inda Sun. I wanted to compare it to two other popular “light” bronzers on the market– the Physician’s Formula Butter bronzer in ‘Light’ and Benefit’s Hoola bronzer in ‘Lite’

Keep on reading to see how it compared and to see some swatches.

three light bronzers: physican's formula butter bronzer in 'light'. fenty beauty sun stalk'r bronzer in 'inda sun' and benefit hoola bronzer in 'lite'

Upon first look, you can see that Hoola Lite is significantly lighter than these other two. I almost never wear it for that reason. It’s too light for me and that is saying something because I am on the fairer end of the spectrum (NW15, Fenty 110/120). That being said, I really commend Benefit for releasing a product that works for the fairest of fair complexions.

on-arm swatches of three light bronzers: physican's formula butter bronzer in 'light'. fenty beauty sun stalk'r bronzer in 'inda sun' and benefit hoola bronzer in 'lite'

I didn’t have any expectations going into this comparison so I don’t feel anything in particular when I notice that ‘Inda Sun’ is the darkest of the three. In addition to being the darkest, it is also the reddest. I like this because both Hoola Lite and the Butter bronzer both seem to disappear into my skin. They do a proper job of adding warmth to the face but I like my bronzer to add a bit of depth as well so I see myself reaching for Inda Sun over the others quite often.

The formulas are important to consider as well. As per its name, the Butter bronzer is smoother than the others and almost feels a bit wet. Both Inda Sun and Hoola Lite are your traditional powder products with Inda Sun being a finer powder than Hoola. The finer the powder for a bronzer, the smoother the transition on the face. I have found all three apply really nicely with little to no patchiness.

I am really excited to continue using this Sun Stalk’r bronzer. The formula and shade are perfect for my intended uses. Each of these bronzers have nice formulas and apply well. Their main differences are the shades and depth of color.

I’ve done some other “faceoffs” in the mascara, eyeliner and eyebrow gel departments. Check ’em out!

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November 21, 2018

TINTED BROW GEL FACEOFF: GLOSSIER ‘BOY BROW’ VS. BENEFIT ‘GIMME BROW’ VS. MILK MAKEUP ‘KUSH’

Happy pre-Thanksgiving! I’m so excited about today’s post because I feel like I am finally organizing all of these thoughts that I’ve had in my head for the past few weeks and publishing them down in a concise, easy-to-understand manner. Let’s get to it!

Today I wanted to compare three similar, mid-range tinted brow gels that are out on the market currently. We’re looking at the Glossier Boy Brow, Benefit Gimme Brow, and the Milk Makeup Kush brow gel.

Starting with applicators, they are all very similar. Each applicator is decently short, which allows you to fine tune your brow gel application and not get it on surrounding hairs or skin. Boy Brow is a bit more compact and dense of a brush than Milk, which is more compact and dense than Gimme Brow. I believe this does make a difference in applications. See below!

The three shades chosen were all mid-toned brown offerings from each of the brands. That being said, each brown is not created equal. Glossier’s Boy Brow in ‘brown’ is the lightest of the three, MIlk Makeup’s Kush in ‘Dutch’ is the darkest and Benefit’s Gimme Brow in ‘3’ was in the middle.

Okay, let’s get into the nitty-gritty.

One of the highest rated brow gels on the market right now is Glossier Boy Brow in ‘Brown’. I have owned this product in the past and have genuinely enjoyed it but due to Glossier’s limited online availability I never picked up a new one until I was creating this post. It’s different than the other two gels listed here in that it’s more of a pomade than a gel– meaning that it feels like it doesn’t truly dry all the way down. That being said, it does lend a more natural appearance and feel to your eyebrows. I find that Boy Brow is the best of the three products for making current hairs appear fuller (aka needing to fill them in less or using BB as a replacement for fill-in products!). If you have a decent shape to your eyebrows and just need help to get that extra mile, Boy Brow is your product.

Truly my “OG” in this category, next up is the Benefit Gimme Brow in ‘3’. I have absolutely loved this product for years and have repurchased numerous times. The reason that I like Gimme Brow is that you get the tint, you get the hold and you get the slight volumizing of your hairs. I’d say Gimme Brow does not volumize your hairs as much as Boy Brow but the formula of the product does allow it to dry down and not feel as pomade-like throughout the day. I also prefer the Gimme Brow brush the best over the others– it’s easy to use and doesn’t get product all over your face.

Milk Makeup Kush brow gel in ‘Dutch’ is the newest product for me in this trio. It is the most “brow gel”-like in the group, meaning it holds your brows in place the best. The ‘Dutch’ shade was a bit too dark and cool for me personally, but that is no fault to the actual product. One thing that I do find as a fault, though, is the brush. I can never seem to apply Kush without getting product all over my small facial hairs. If you’re looking for a brow gel that applies a tint and holds your hairs in place (ala Anastasia’s tinted brow gel) though, this is your product. If you’re looking for something that will assist your hairs in looking fuller, the other two products mentioned are yours!

I prefer the Benefit Gimme Brow the most, followed by the Glossier Boy Brow and the Milk Makeup Kush. I think I may buy that Milk one in clear to use as a brow setter instead 🙂 LMK your favorite tinted brow gels in the comments below! I did not include the Anastasia Beverly Hills gel because I personally use the clear and use it for a different purpose than these.

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November 7, 2018

EYELINER FACEOFF: FENTY ‘FLYLINER’ V. KAT VON D ‘TATTOO’ V. STILA ‘STAY ALL DAY’

Oh my goodnesssssSsss

Today’s post has been a WORK. IN. PROGRESS. lemme tell you. I could give you a short blurb why or I could just get into the post. Let’s just get into it. Today I’m comparing three very similar mid-range eyeliners:

Kat von D Tattoo Liner

Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eye Liner

and Fenty Beauty Flyliner (new!)

tips of stila fenty kat von d eyeliners stay all day flyliner tattoo

As you can see, these liners are all felt/brush tipped and they’re all fairly equal in tip length.

My go-to for years and years (seriously. repurchase after repurchase) was Stila’s Stay All Day. If you look back on old Beautymunson posts you’ll see just how much I used it. I eventually replaced it with Kat von D’s Tattoo liner because of how quickly the Stila one dried out. I’ve been gung-ho on the KVD liner for years now but with the recent anti-vaxx debacle and the societal cancellation of her brand, I was curious what else was out there. Around the same time, Fenty Beauty dropped their Flyliner. The idea for this blog post was then born.

on-arm swatches of stay all day tattoo and flyliner stila kat von d fenty

Each product is very black, for sure. That being said, these were all BRAND. NEW. liners and I was very confused by the Kat Von D swatches. That is a liner I have been using for a long time up until today and it’s never been that translucent before– I can only assume the batch I received is off or the formula changed? It was translucent when I applied it on the eye, too.

As for the Stila and Fenty liners, they were pretty even. Fenty’s was super duper inky, though. I consider that a positive. Stila’s, on the other hand, is more like a felt-tipped thin marker.

Please pardon the inconsistency in the lighting of the “test run” photos. I clearly took them on different days and it’s been rainy and dark this weekend/week!

Starting with Kat von D’s Tattoo eyeliner– again, it was not opaque upon first application but you can easily layer up two or three layers to get a deep black. What I personally dislike about the Tattoo eyeliner is the Satin finish but many of you may find that to be a good thing! It brings a little bit of life into your eye look. The Tattoo liner applicator is different than the other two in that it is more of a brush than a felt tip and I think that helps with its longevity. Tattoo liner lasts significantly longer than the other two– giving you a better value. (of course this is assuming for the Fenty liner but I can already tell it’ll act similarly to the Stila option)

Next is the Stila Stay All Day liquid eyeliner. This one is black, opaque and extremely easy to use. The only downside is the life of the product itself. It does dry out but will still give you months of solid performance. I really like how sharp the tip is because it makes it very simple to draw out a perfect wing. They even have a MICRO tip Stay All Day if you want an even more precise application.

Last up is the product that I am currently conducting the hype train for– the Fenty Beauty Flyliner. It’s SO dark and opaque and applies beautifully. It’s as if the product just flows into a line on your eyelid. I was nervous when I purchased because a lot of the reviews state that it transfers but I assumed correctly when I assumed it wouldn’t be a problem for me because my lids don’t usually have transfer issues.

All three of the eyeliners are good. I appreciate that they aren’t thick or clumpy and don’t flake. I like this style of liner pen because it saves your lashes from getting all goopy right before applying mascara.

Now, I have a question. Have you “cancelled” Kat von D? If so, what product(s) have you had to find replacements for? If not, let me know what your favorite eyeliner is! It doesn’t have to be in pen form like these. Have a great day and I’ll talk to ya in the comments.

I have done a handful of face-offs, check them out here:

MASCARA | BRONZER (coming soon!)

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October 22, 2018

MASCARA FACEOFF: HOURGLASS ‘CAUTION’ VS. MILK MAKEUP ‘KUSH’

Happy Monday my friends!

Today I’m comparing two newly-released mascaras. Kush by Milk Makeup and Caution by Hourglass Cosmetics. If you would like to hear what I have to say in video format with a side-by-side on-the-eyes demo, scroll to the bottom of this post to watch my YouTube video on these products!

hourglass cosmetics caution mascara milk makeup kush mascara

Please ignore the beat-up packaging.. it just goes to show that I’ve actually had these in my makeup bag and purse for the past few months!

I bought these mascaras fairly close to one another.. kind of.. (Kush on May 10th and Caution on August 24th) but at the time of their respective releases, they were each highly raved about online. I have never purchased a full-sized mid to high range mascara because I’ve never been unhappy with my drugstore Maybelline faves. I decided to give these both a go because of the hype and I feel that one of these were a waste of money while the other was not! See the below photos to try to guess which mascara matches with which response…

On-eye before and after swatch hourglass cosmetics caution mascara

On-eye before and after swatch milk makeup kush mascara

To further explain what’s going on in the above photos, both mascaras are fine. They both lengthen and give body to the lash. The main differences are in 1. how much length they give, 2. clumpability and 3. depth of color.1. Length — The Hourglass Caution mascara ($29) gives my lashes a bit more length than the Milk Makeup Kush mascara ($24)

2. The Kush mascara clumps SIGNIFICANTLY more than the Caution mascara and is unable to get those clumps out.

3. The Caution mascara is a deeper black that stays true all day.

I much prefer the Hourglass Caution mascara because it applies beautifully and is never finicky, doesn’t flake and stays a deep black all day. The packaging of the Hourglass mascara is sleek and pretty while the Kush mascara is heavy and clunky. The two mascaras are about the same amount of product (.34 oz Kush versus .33 oz Caution) with dissimilar price tags but if I had to choose one of these mascaras to repurchase, I would splurge the extra amount to buy the Hourglass for the formula.

I reviewed these mascaras side-by-side in a YouTube video, too! Check it out below:

I would love to know if you’ve tried one or both of these mascaras and what your opinion is on them! Mascara is such a personal choice– I’m always interested in how one formula could work so well for one person and horribly for another. Let me know!

I have done a handful of face-offs, check them out here:

EYELINER | BRONZER (coming soon!)

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