6 Products I've Changed My Mind About

I am a fickle being. I can't have the same thing for breakfast for longer than a few weeks in a row before getting bored and searching for something else. My nails get painted over every other day. Most of all, I tend not to use the same makeup products every day, never searching for my "Holy Grail" products but instead mostly enjoy the constant search and acquisition of new, strange, interesting or colourful products to add to my collection. Of course there are many products that make constant appearances, but I've never bought backups for products and rarely ever repurchased! Maybe I just haven't found anything HG status worthy yet, but for now, this is what I love about makeup - playing with products, seeing what different things can do, as well as re-discovering old products and seeing if I feel the same way about them.

Here are 6 products that I've owned for a while, and my first impressions of them are substantially different to how I feel about them now (for better or worse!):

All opened up. So paranoid of getting makeup all over my white shag rug.

• Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Charm
• Elf Matte Lip Colour in Tea Rose
• Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Tough as Taupe
• Australis Powder Cream Foundation in Nude Beige
• Maybelline BB Cream in Light
• Elf Cream Eyeliner in Black

Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in Charm (bloody mouthful)

I bought this without swatching because there was no tester at the Chemist's Warehouse I was at and I was in a bit of a rush and the swatches online were useless, and I just guessed it would be a good kind of nude colour to put on my lips when I didn't feel like bothering with bright lipstick (God knows why, it's literally like pastel orange which is definitely NOT nude, I don't know I go crazy around makeup and love the Revlon Balms). I got home and opened it and I was so disappointed. On my lips it just looked like bits of like, concealer or something - didn't help that my lips were chapped. But I kind of applied it once, realised it was nothing like I was imagining (totally my fault) and kind of cast it aside.

Then a couple of weeks ago I was going back through my Balm Stains and decided to try it out, and scrubbed the hell out of my lips and I realised it's such a great colour! I think it works well on my skin tone because I'm so pale, but it's a nice light peachy colour. I think I've realised the trick is to not apply to much, otherwise it's kind of uneven and the more layers you put on the more opaque it gets, which isn't a great thing because you don't want it to be too pastel on your lips.

Anyway this is one of the ones that ended up for the better and I'm so happy the money I spent didn't end up being wasted (even though I got it half off). Check out my blog post here for a swatch in comparison to the other orange lipsticks I own.

Elf Matte Lip Colour in Tea Rose

This is a funny little size. It's like in between pencil and crayon size. The bullet itself is actually quite good because it's small enough to get into the corners of your lips and line them easily, but then it's a bit more of an effort to actually fill them in.

I got this in an iHerb haul after extensive researching (as always) and decided to try it out (it was only like, three dollars I think). When I first tried it out, I liked the colour more or less (a light pinky mauve, slightly on the pastel side of things), and then I licked my lips accidentally and FREAKED OUT BECAUSE IT TASTES AMAZING. Like it honestly just tastes like sugar. It was wonderful, I was like 'hell yeah great tasting lipstick what a great idea'.

Have you noticed the flaw in that one yet? Before long, I realised it would disappear within about ten minutes because I would just lick it off my lips without even realising, negating the whole purpose of putting it on really. I've also come to realise that it actually pulls a bit on your lips because it's so matte, which isn't really a great feature either. But to be honest I was just so mad that no one in their reviews had mentioned that it tasted like sugar! So here it is for all you guys. Be warned.

This is one of the ones I loved initially, and then kind of lost interest in after I realised that it's not very wearable. And regardless of all of the above, it's weird size makes me kind of self conscious to re-apply in public as it just looks like a texta. Bit weird.


Maybelline Colour Tattoo in Tough as Taupe

I, of course, heard all of the hype for this product and its ability to be used for contour, cream eyeshadow, or even on your eyebrows. I bought it from /r/AussieMakeupExchange on Reddit and was so excited for it to come. When it arrived however, I took one look at it, swatched it on my finger, and just thought, "it's... purple?" It seriously looks like a veeeryyy cool-leaning grey (the above picture is pretty accurate) and I just couldn't believe that was meant to look good on my eyebrows. I gave it a go as contour a few times, and seriously struggled blending it in (I feel as though you'd need a wet sponge to do it well, since it is a quite dry formula), then eventually just let it get pushed to the back of my drawers to finally re-emerge at some later date.

And that it did! Right at the beginning of my beauty blogging, I was looking through my collection for inspiration to try some new things, spotted this little pot sitting up the back of my drawers and realised I'd never tried it in my eyebrows! I was very hesitant, but it actually pulls very neutral toned when you put it on, despite how it looks in the pot. It also is easily blendable with a spoolie and lasts for ages! It is, admittedly, a tad too dark to go with my light blonde hair, but I still use it when I'm aiming for an extra sharp brow.


Australis Powder Cream Foundation in Nude Beige

I am a huge fan of cream foundations simply because they are easy to use, have great coverage and aren't messy (unlike some powders and liquids). I was obsessed with this when I first got it for the above reasons. However, this was before I really knew much about foundation. And before I knew how to colour match. I still like the formula, however it comes in the smallest range of colours (I think four?) that are all kind of similar looking anyway. I've also realised, in comparison to many other foundations, it's pretty difficult to blend and get looking natural. It's just not something I reach for any more due to my love affair with Revlon Colourstay and Rimmel London's Stay Matte, amongst others. Also, look at that sponge. Gross.

If you happen to match one of their colours I would actually recommend this foundation if you're looking for something full coverage.

Maybelline BB Cream in Light

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Sorry, but "Light" my ass, Maybelline. Look at that colour! You cannot possibly call that light. As you can probably imagine, when I got this product and saw the colour in it I was massively annoyed, because I'm pale and cool toned and there's just no way that colour was ever going to match. Moreover, it leaves your face a bit shiny-looking, like the look you get right after you apply sunscreen. Not a fan.

However, (I'm sure I've said that a million times so far), I've actually had a moderate amount of success by mixing this with my Revlon Colourstay (which is too light for parts of my face) and applying it all over, slightly darkening it and making it not so full coverage. Who would have thought! I originally started using it again in a sad attempt to try and finish at least one product in my collection, and it might actually happen now! Hint for all - play around with mixing your foundations (Revlon Colourstay and Maybelline Super Stay is another good mix).

Elf Cream Eyeliner in Black

I wanted this eyeliner so much I paid AUSTRALIAN price for it, choosing to go pick it up in person at Kmart rather than order online at iHerb and wait the week or so for it to come here. I know. Shocker. It was my first foray into the world of gel/cream liners, and, of course, because I had no comparison, I thought it was great. I could finally get a really super opaque black wing, which I was very impressed with. No complaints.

Then I got the Maybelline Gel Liner. And what a difference there is. The Elf liner is actually really difficult to get onto the brush because its so soft anf smushy, so I have to wipe off the excess on the side of the pot. The Maybelline one, however, is quite dry in texture and sticks well onto the brush and, therefore, your eyelid. The brush that comes with this liner is also crap (the Maybelline one is much better in my opinion). 

It still makes a small appearance here and there in my routine, but it's super creamy texture (to be fair, it is called cream liner), means that you often have to set it with powder to stop it from transferring, and the difficulty in getting on the goddamn brush just means that, well, it's not really worth the effort to me. And even though the Maybelline gel liner is a great little product, I find myself reaching for my liquid liner every. Single. Day. Ah well, the pot is cute and I'm sure once I use it up (if ever) it'll work well for some lip balm or something.

So there are my 6 products that I've changed my mind about! I'm sure others have similar products, those that they loved initially only to realise it didn't have a place in their routine, or conversely, those that seemed like a waste of money and gathered dust behind all your used items before its rediscovery and reincorporation into your routine.

Does anyone have any similar experiences? Let me know! As always, thanks for reading.