Salon Confidential Makeup

I purchased my Salon Confidential Extensions with my own money, however was sent their two makeup sets to have a play with and review.

There are two sets, 'Vibrant Red' and 'Smokey Eyes', from the 'Get The Look' range.

Today I want to talk to you about the Smokey Eye Set which retails at £19 and includes:

A lipstick

An eyeshadow

A gel eyeliner (not pictured, it's just a black pot with eyeliner in)

A blusher

A mascara

An instruction leaflet

A makeup bag

I'll take each product in turn.

This is what you get when it pops through your door, I like the makeup bag aspect and the fact that they use a simple design. Personally I'm not a fan of try too hard packaging, so this is great. It's good for travel and you can wipe it down if anything was to spill on it.

The lipstick is in a baby pink colour which is extremely light when applied I found. It's not drying, but it does really highlight flaws on your lips. I've not found many lipsticks this shade that don't do that though to be fair. It has average staying power and I enjoy the logo, however the packaging feels light and not 'expensive' in any way. (Which is fair enough for under £4 per product)

I've used this a couple of times now and found it impossible to photograph. In reality it has an almost green undertone to it which is very pretty. Again the packaging feels cheap, BUT it is a lovely colour that has good pigmentation. I find a primer is what makes all the difference with this product, it really makes the colour pop.

Considering I really dislike peach on me, in any kind of form, I was happy to see there was a pink blush in here. It has a nice buttery finish and I found it was just the right pigmentation. Not too heavy, and not too light. Probably the best product in the bag.

For a smokey eye kit this was a big disappointment. We all know that a smokey eye without high impact mascara is a bit... blergh. As far as this goes, I actually really enjoy it as a daytime mascara, it leaves my eyelashes soft and fans them out giving a lovely feathery effect. But it's definitely not a night time mascara.

The packaging it comes in is lovely, I really like their silver logo and it's a nice idea to have them individually packaged. Having said this, considering it comes with a makeup bag, is it necessary? Not really, and from a business point of view I can't help but think that it would cut costs down as well as making them a more environmentally friendly business to cut this part out.

You also get this included, which is an instruction guide on how to get the look.

This part I have to say, I am extremely dubious about. In particular, the fact that I doubt that someone who already owns a gel eyeliner brush and is capable of applying it (well) on a daily basis, would need an instruction booklet. (They would be much better going with a pencil in my opinion.)

Perhaps if you are a beginner this would be useful to you, but I can't help but feel that handing a novice some black eyeshadow and concealer lipstick with an instruction manual isn't going to have particularly good results. I'm open to persuasion if this isn't the case that any of you may have found however!

As far as the gel eyeliner goes, it smudges and transfers very easily. Although as someone used to Bobbi Brown I wasn't going to be swayed easily, so maybe I'm biased.

Overall

I'm gutted that I can't give a glowing review of the makeup, as you all know I'm a huge fan of their extensions. I'm not sure whether it's because I've been in the high end market for quite a long time now, or whether my tastes have changed but this isn't for me.

I also don't think that it's a particularly comprehensive way of achieving this given look.

Having said that, I should stress that if you are starting out in makeup, these products are great as individuals to use to pad out your collection. The blush is great, you get a good daytime mascara, a black eyeshadow for using in your crease with other looks, a gel eyeliner to practice with and a lipstick that with considerable prep and a gloss on top could work well for you. The guide is also helpful as a general overview on how to create a smoky eye. Look at it as more of an 'expansion' to your products to help you create your smokey eye rather than a complete kit.

You will get 5 products, a guide and a makeup bag for under £20 which is a steal when you think of it that way, but unfortunately it really shows in the quality. I'd personally rather pay a little bit more and get more of a luxury product, what about you?

Let me know if you disagree, this is just my personal opinion.

I stand by the fact that I really admire Salon Confidential's work ethic and the way they present themselves, they have a fantastic customer service and an outstanding product in the hair extensions. This particular product just wasn't for me.

Lea

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