Glossier: What’s Worth It and What’s Not
If you see someone on the streets with effortless glowing skin, it’s quite possible they’ve recently invested in Glossier (or are coming back from the gym). Their motto is “skin first, makeup second”, and their products have blown up with the rise of the “no makeup makeup” trend in the past couple years.
It’s safe to say that fantastic marketing and branding have been a huge contributor to Glossier’s success. Even if you aren’t interested in cosmetics at all, how could you say no to their adorable pink bubble wrap bags and packaging?
Although a lot of people eat, sleep and breathe Glossier products, many claim that their products are only meant for people with already flawless skin. I’ve succumbed heavily to the Glossier tactics and tried an embarrassing amount of their products, so I thought I would put my knowledge to some use and provide suggestions on what to spend your money on if you’re thinking of trying it out. Here’s what’s worth it and what’s not (in my opinion):
Skincare
Balm Dotcom
Price: $15
Rating: 9/10
This is the only skincare product from Glossier I couldn’t live without. It does exactly what it claims. It’s super moisturizing, especially great for the Winter, and the flavors are to die for.Coconut is my personal favourite, but if you’re into tinted balms those ones are great as well. The only thing I would change is the applicator so that you don’t have to use your fingers!
Milky Jelly Cleanser
Price: $22
Rating: 5/10
I used this for a couple months and there’snothing super wrong with it, but also nothing great. I would say this productsupports the claims that Glossier products are better suited for people withalready perfect skin. This cleanser is extremely light, which is great forsensitive skin, but it doesn’t feel like you’ve actually washed your face afteruse. I doubt this would even take off heavy makeup. One thing I do love aboutthis is the consistency, the gel feels super nice.
If you’re looking for a cleanser that’sjust as gentle but cleanses better here are some alternatives:
- Fresh Soy Face Cleanser
- First Aid Beauty Face Cleanser
Priming Moisturizer
Price: $27
Rating: 4/10
Once again, I didn’t totally hate this, but didn’t find there was anything to love either. First of all, it has a pretty weird scent that threw me off right away. I didn’t find this to be super hydrating, but I do have really dry skin so others may find it fine. It also had a really shiny finish so I doubt people with oily skin would reach for this. It definitely doesn’t feel soothing on the skin like a lot of moisturizers. However, the name of the product is very accurate. It’s a great base for makeup and sometimes I still reach for it for this.
Mega Greens Galaxy Pack – Face Mask
Price: $27
Rating: 0/10
My friend and I used this one night in hopes of having a relaxing night in to destress from school. Little did we know this mask would end up causing us more stress! While we had the mask on, we noticed that our faces appeared very red under the spots where the mask was,but we assumed this would just disappear when we washed it away. We were wrong.We had what looked like terrible sunburns in exactly the same spots the mask was and we were worried our faces would never return to normal colouring (lol).Luckily, we went to bed and the reaction had cleared by the morning, but this was still very abnormal and is definitely not safe for sensitive skin. I have slightly sensitive skin but have never reacted to a product like this. After checking the reviews on the Glossier site following the incident, a lot of people have had similar reactions. Stay away!
My favourite green mask:
Body Shop Tea Tree Oil Skin Clearing ClayFace Mask
Makeup
Boy Brow
Price: $20
Rating: 10/10
My favourite Glossier product. It somehow fills in the brows and sets them at the same time. It definitely gives the bushy eyebrow look, so if you’re into that then this is the product for you.Thanks to this product I rarely use an eyebrow pencil. My one complaint is that it’s very small so I have to repurchase more often than any of my other makeup products.
Haloscope
Price: $27
Rating: 8/10
This is my go-to highlighter now, but it took me some time to learn how to love this product. Let me share my insights.When I first tried this, I tried to use the stick to rub it directly on my cheeks but I found that it was really difficult to glide and then blend the product. After some experimenting, I think the best way to use this is to warm it up with your finger first and then apply what’s on your finger to the face.The overall look is super dewy and it looks like a natural glow. I like this product a lot better in the Summer because it gets a bit melted and easier to use. In the midst of the cold Canadian winters I still struggle to use it abit.
Stretch Concealer
Price: $22
Rating: 7/10
I really love this concealer, but only for certain uses. It is super creamy which makes it great for the under eye, and it’s super brightening. The coverage is also surprisingly good considering the texture. My big complaint about this is that the dewy finish never dries down,and I find it causes my mascara to smear onto the under eyes, even after setting it with powder. Therefore, I love this concealer for day to day when I’m wearing no other makeup, but not for anything heavier.
Lip Gloss
Price: $17
Rating: 7/10
This is a prettytypical nice lip gloss, I think you could probably find something prettysimilar from the drugstore, but there’s definitely nothing bad about it. Itdoesn’t dry out the lips too much which is a plus! They’ve released new shadesof red and holographic which I’m definitely interested in trying.
Perfecting Skin Tint
Price: $32
Rating: 7/10
The skin tint isa very interesting product and is definitely unique to Glossier. The first thing that’s important to note is that this ‘tint’ is hardly even a tint, I would say it provides almost no coverage. If you have any redness, this won’t cover it up. What I love about this product is how runny and moisturizing itis. My skin is super dry so it’s hard to find something that I can just put seamlessly all over my face, but this I have no issues with. It gives a super dewy and nice look to this skin, and even though it doesn’t cover much, you can tell if you miss a part of your face. I love the shine this gives to my skin,but people will oily skin types might hate this.
Since there isn’t much coverage, I often use this as a base and then add some coverage to areas with the stretch concealer.
I’ve recently discovered a product that I find is a similar consistency to this, but with a bit more coverage (buildable) and the same glow. I like this enough that I don’t think I will repurchase the Glossier skin tint.
NUDESTIX TintedCover
Lidstar
Price: $22
Rating: 8/10
I really love these. The colours are super pretty and they’re perfect for everyday use since it’s subtle and fast to apply. Protip: pat the product into the eyelid as opposed to rubbing to get max pigment.
Cloud Paint
Price: $22
Rating: 8/10
I’m personally not a big blush gal, so I’ve only tried a sample of this, but I suspect blush users would love it. It was super easy to blend in and there’s a nice range of shades. These are almost too pigmented, definitely important to stick to a super tiny amount or you could end up looking like a clown really quick.
Fragrance
Glossier You
Price: $75
Rating: 10/10
The only perfume I use! I’ve had it for over a year and still not run out. I personally love the scent, fairly musky as opposed to flowery like many perfumes. Warning: the scent is pretty strong so if you like very light scents than this wouldn’t be for you.
Overall, I’m a much bigger fan of Glossier makeup than skincare. A bit ironic since their motto is “skin first, makeup second”. The skincare products are pretty average compared to a lot of brands out there. Some of the makeup products like boy brow and stretch concealer are very unique to the brand, whereas a lot of the items are nothing special.Conclusion: Glossier is semi-worth the hype. If you’re a glowy makeup fan,definitely check ‘em out.
Shop Glossier here:
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