Saturday, May 24, 2014

Is H&M makeup worth it?

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
I have some great clothes from H&M that were cheap and still look good years later. I've also bought some stuff that looked like shit after a few months. That's the fast fashion gamble. So what category does their makeup fall into?

A while back when they had a free shipping sale on their website, I decided to pick up a few makeup items to see what they were like. I don't get to the mall much, and the makeup section in my local H&M store is kind of a mess anyway, so online shopping seemed like the way to do it. There was also a sale, so I got an additional 25-30% off the prices listed below. (I bought a pair of basic leggings at the same time. Major pilling in the crotch/inner thigh area after the first couple of wears. Sticking with Old Navy in the future.) I couldn't find many reviews of H&M cosmetics online at the point, so I just chose some things that looked interesting.

H&M makeup (taken with camera setting that distorted the shapes (oops) - they are all straight).
I got a liquid eyeliner, a lip crayon, and an eyeshadow brush, so that I could try out a few different things. Unfortunately I took a while to get this review up and it seems like the liquid liner isn't listed on the website anymore. You might see it in a store? Here are quick reviews of the three items I bought.

Swatches of H&M Lip Pencil in Red/Million Dollar Smile and Liquid Eyeliner in Purple
Swatches of H&M Lip Pencil in Red/Million Dollar Smile and Liquid Eyeliner in Purple
Lip Pencil in Red/Million Dollar Smile ($4.95): I posted a swatch of this one a while back when I was comparing all of my sheer red lip products. You can check that out if you'd like to see how it compares to other things you might already own. It's a good one. Not too sheer, goes on smoothly and easily, a little moisturizing, no scent or flavor, wears off evenly. It's more in the glossy lip crayon category than the lipstick/stain crayon one. I might pass it along to someone else, just because it's not a lot different from some other things I own and I need to downsize. Here's how it looks on my lips:

Lip swatch of H&M Lip Pencil in Red/Million Dollar Smile
H&M Lip Pencil in Red/Million Dollar Smile.
Liquid Eyeliner in Purple (about $3.95): When my order arrived at my house, and I looked at this eyeliner, I thought, "Why the fuck did I buy this? What am I going to do with it?" It's not really the kind of thing I would normally use. Then I remembered this eye brightening tip (although I already have an eyeliner that works for that, so it's not a great excuse for buying it). It works for that, since it's a shimmery, pale lavender color. Unfortunately it's the style of liquid eyeliner that I despise, but you can see in the photo above that the wand doesn't get all gooey, and since it's so pale it doesn't make a huge mess when it splatters on my eyelashes. It applies well, and it wears well. It's a good product. No real complaints.

Eyeshadow Brush ($3.95): This definitely stands out as the best of the things I bought. It's soft and fluffy and picks up a lot of eyeshadow. I like the wide, flat shape, which is versatile. You can use it to apply shadow to large areas, just to the crease, or to blend. This is a better brush than most of the e.l.f. Studio ones, for only a dollar more.

Overall, I'm pretty impressed with this stuff. It's on par with very good drugstore makeup. It's doesn't seem like crap that was added to the inventory just for the sake of selling makeup. I have too many makeup brushes at the moment, but if I were looking to buy some more, I would certainly consider trying some others from H&M.

Anyone else tried H&M makeup? Are there other things worth checking out?

6 comments:

  1. I also tried the double ended smokey eye brush and its so soft an amazing but the eyeliner side i use it for brows;it doesnt work for my eyeliner

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  2. I'll tell you what *not* to buy... The "nudes" eyeshadow palette. I swear, 3 of the 5 eyeshadows are the exact same color : a light sheer powder with no pigment whatsoever. It doesn't show anywhere on the eye no matter how much of it I put on. Definitely steer clear of that!
    Also the compact powder definitely makes me look cakey after I put it on. Not too impressed. Their brushes are pretty decent, though, I agree.

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  3. Thanks for the review. I like the smokey eye palettes and have heard the nudes one is bad. I've read a few people say their concealer is good for under eyes.

    Don't suppose you've any idea if this eyeshadow brush is the same as the one you reviewed: http://www.hm.com/gb/product/30234?article=30234-A&fromSearch=eyeshadow%20brush&cm_vc=SEARCH? It looks like it is and the black one isn't available in the UK at the moment.

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    Replies
    1. It's hard to say, though it looks very similar, so it might be worth a shot. My concern would be if the bristles were made out of a different material. It's too bad they don't have reviews on their site!

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    2. That is my concern too, hmmm. Yes, it would be great if they had reviews. I do like a lot of their clothes but sometimes they are really bad quality, so maybe they wouldn't want reviews on the site.

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  4. I really like their powder finish compact. I'm attempting the concealer soom

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