I was going through my make-up collection the other day and discovered that I actually own 7 different 'stick' (no pots, I already fight enough with potted lipbalms) concealers, woah! (Plus 2 in darker shades *shhh*). And because I do like these 'comparing' posts on other blogs, I decided to do one for you as well - 7 different concealers in 'stick' & how they perform!
If you look at my eye at its 'bare' state, it's not THAT bad. I'm only wearing mascara today, so you can actually see the under-eye circles properly. Sometimes they are like this, and you can only see sorta 'lines' from my nose, sometimes in different lighting they go proper purple-ish and nasty. Anyways, not a big deal, but would surely be better off without them!
The following concealers don't go in any particular 'quality-wise' order, so don't get confused. Obviously in the pictures the lighting was different from now and then, so my skin sometimes got more yellowy undertones than in other pictures, but try to examine the actual blue-ness & how the concealer deals with it. Also, you can see what sort of consistency the concealers have on the left. Now let's have a look at the first bad boy!
I got Gosh 'Touch Up' Concealer on sale in Superdrug for £3 the other day (I believe it's normally a fiver for these 4ml?). Design-wise it reminds me of Collection 2000 concealer, however the Gosh one has got a brush-y wand rather than an actual sturdy wand. It feels really nice when you using it, and it covers well, not amazingly though. You can see that it blends in well, sorta too well, that the darkest parts under my eye are peeking through. It's probably one of the better ones in this test as it does have a nice coverage overall and for £3 it's a good deal!
I was so excited to get this Sleek Luminaire! For £6.50 you get a fair bit more than in Gosh, as it is in a pen dispenser. You simply press the bottom and it squeezes out loads of products. It's hard to control it but it is an alright amount for both under-eyes. As much as I love the packaging, obviously black sleek by Sleek (which gets dirty as soon as you grab it in your dirty mitts), I just don't get on with the product that well. It blends in nicely and you can be really precise with the brush, but the coverage is not amazeballs. Probably a bit steep price tag for what it does to be honest (scroll back up to see the difference between coverage, Gosh definitely rocks it compare to Sleek).
MUA Brush-on Concealer Pen is pretty similar to Sleek. Both look-wise and performance-wise. The price tag however is just a fraction of Sleek's price - only £2 and I guess the amount will be pretty much the same. The only difference is that you do not need to press the bottom part, but you twist the whole tube to get the product out. The coverage is very very similar, but although this is the lighter shade from the two that are out there, it is still a bit dark for me I guess, makes my eyes look even smaller than they actually are. For the price it is an okay budget product, but only if your skin is a tad darker than mine.
Topshop Brighten in Moonlight is probably the best version of the three 'pen' concealers mentioned. It has a bit of a pink undertone to it, so it transfers as a brighter colour than MUA & Sleek. It also, at least I believe so, has a slightly better coverage and is more opaque than the other two. For £7 it's definitely on the more expensive side, however the cute packaging and alright coverage can make it a little treat for your handbag. I like using it as a touch up on the go, because it's a really easy peasy application and it's a nice looking product to pull out in public!
What were you expecting? Of course, I am obliged to praise Collection 2000's Lasting Perfection Concealer in Fair. I just have to. It's about £4-5 pounds and I guess the amount is like Gosh. It has a regular wand with slanted top and it has an amazing full on coverage. It also stays on whole day without much of fading. The shade is super light and literally opens up my eyes, which I really like about it. You can see in the picture that the coverage is just mind-blowing compared to other concealers mentioned above. There are only two things that worry me about this boy. One, I have not used it in summer yet, so I'm not sure how this 'thick' consistency will be coping and second, the usual moan about the packaging - you can't even tell what that little tube is anymore and that's the state it gets into after a few days of usage. Anyways, performance for money, this is my personal favourite.
God knows where I got this Lumene Natural Code from and it was definitely some time ago, but apparently Lumene is a Finnish brand? It was surely on the cheaper side, and to be upfront with you, I don't like any sort of pens or pencils when it comes to concealers. Nevertheless, it's not that bad! It does have a great coverage and it's a handy little thing. However, it does have really heavy yellow undertones, which show up on my skin and also the consistency tend to dry my skin up. Not a great thing when you think the under eye area. I use this as an emergency for redness and spots. It's really lightweight so you don't even know you are carrying it in your handbag!
What's your favourite under eye concealer?