Both TikTok and beauty products are my kryptonite, so when you combine the two, the result is expensive to say the least. I can read a million product reviews online, but nothing convinces me to place an order quite like a 25-year-old girl on TikTok raving about how the serum she impulsively bought last month earned her endless compliments about her “radiant and glowing skin.” As someone who is easily swayed to *add to cart*, here’s an honest review of all the beauty products TikTok made me buy and if they’re actually worth the hype.
Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi Drops: These viral bronzing drops were all over my TikTok ‘For You’ page and out of stock everywhere for months before I was able to finally get my hands on them. Now that I have them, I have to say they were 100% worth the wait. These drops give you a subtle sun kissed glow in seconds, without the spotty or uneven look you see with a lot of instant tanners and bronzers. If I’m doing my normal makeup routine, I’ll mix a few D-Bronzi drops with my foundation and apply to my face. If I don’t feel like wearing makeup, but want just a little bit of coverage, I’ll add a few drops to my moisturizer.
Verdict: 100% worth it.
Fenty Beauty Match Stix Matte Contour Skinstick in ‘Amber’: Overall, I love the consistency of the Fenty Beauty Contour Stick. It glides on smoothly, blends out easily, and stays in place. For years, I used the shade ‘Mocha’–that was until I saw a game-changing TikTok about contouring a few months ago. The creator explained that in order to really create the illusion of cheekbones and negative space, the color of your contour should be on the cooler side. Warmer shades will result in the opposite effect and appear like it’s just sitting on top of your foundation. With this knowledge, I picked up the shade ‘Amber’ and have noticed my contour has looked a lot more natural. Until I stumble across a better product, this contour stick is staying in my makeup routine.
Verdict: This is a go-to product for me.
Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Contour Wand in ‘Dark, Medium’: I have used Fenty Beauty’s Contour Stick for years (and still do), but the Charlotte Tilbury Contour Wand is amazing in a different way. While Fenty Beauty’s Contour Stick is great for true “contouring” and shaping, Charlotte Tilbury’s Contour Wand is more of a bronzer that helps create that “I just spent the day at the beach” look. Because this product is always sold out in the shade ‘Light/Fair’, I ended up grabbing the ‘Medium/Dark’ shade, and it worked out. It’s a lot warmer than the Fenty Beauty Contour Stick with a more shimmery finish, but I like the healthy glow it gives when I apply it on my cheek bones above my contour and just below my blush, as well as my forehead and nose. The creamy consistency is closer to a liquid blush, but it’s still thick enough to allow you to be somewhat precise with placement.
Verdict: Worth it!
Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Highlighter Wand in ‘Pinkgasm’: This blush truly took TikTok by storm. It was featured in almost every GRWM makeup tutorial and was sold out everywhere for almost a year. As you can imagine, after hearing so many good things about this creamy blush product, my expectations were really high, but ultimately, this blush fell short for me. I wanted it to be a lot more pigmented, and I expected it to last a lot longer. After just a couple hours out, I would notice that the product looked like it had almost completely disappeared. Maybe the color of the blush isn’t the right shade for my skin tone, but overall, this blush was a miss for me. For the price, there are tons of other blushes that provide a lot more pigment and lasting effects. I would choose the Dehiya Beauty Lip and Cheek Tint in either ‘Dreamer’ or ‘Nymph’ any day.
Verdict: Wouldn’t repurchase.
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Vanish Color Corrector in ‘Medium’: I think if I had to choose one thing from this list to recommend it’s the Charlotte Tilbury Magic Vanish Color Corrector. Over the past year I’ve noticed that the dark circles under my eyes have become more noticeable, and even when I’m waking up from a great night of sleep, I look pretty tired, so I wanted to find a product to help cover these. TikTok read my mind, because a few days later I saw a video talking about how this product was a game changer for covering dark circles. The consistency is creamy but on the dryer side, so it doesn’t cake but provides good coverage. Personally, I’ve found that this product works best for me when I apply it on top of my foundation and under my concealer.
Verdict: Absolute essential.
Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Setting Powder in ‘Banana Bread’: I will preface this by saying I haven’t tried another setting powder, but I will say I did a lot of research (aka watched a lot of TikTok reviews) to find the Huda Beauty setting powder in the shade ‘Banana Bread’. At first, I wasn’t sold on the idea of a setting powder as a product in general, but as someone with combination skin that tends to get a little oily in the T-zone, I wanted to give it a try. Overall, I have positive feelings about this product because it leaves my makeup feeling secure while adding an airbrushed effect that smooths out the appearance of my skin. The downside of this product is the powder does sometimes cling to areas where my skin is dry, especially in the winter. If my skin is looking particularly dry, I’ll skip the powder that day or avoid dry spots. I’ve gone through phases of using and not using this, but overall I think it’s worth it. My word of advice with this product is less is more.
Verdict: Worth a try.
Freck The Original Freckle: Almost every sun-kissed no makeup, makeup look on TikTok incorporates DIY freckles. I’ve always thought nose freckles were extremely cute, so I was sold on trying this. Embarrassingly, I’ve tried a bunch of different methods to draw on freckles (eyebrow pencils, brown mascara, henna…etc.), nothing works as well or looks as natural as Freck. This is one of the few products I will reach for when I want to do minimal makeup, and I feel like it gives my skin a youthful look. The original tube is super tiny, but I will say it’s lasted me about 9 months. Freck recently came out with an XL version of this, which is only $8 more and twice the size, so I’ll definitely be repurchasing the larger edition.
Verdict: As far as freckle products go, this one is elite!
Rare Beauty Liquid Highlighter: I was really excited about this Rare Beauty Liquid Highlighter when I first saw reviews about it on TikTok. I liked the idea of the shade ‘Mesmerize’ since it was a rose gold shade rather than the cooler-toned highlighters I’ve tried in the past. Overall the color of this blush is super pretty and pigmented. My complaint is that it’s very liquid, so it’s prone to moving around, so much so that my hands will be glittery if I touch my cheeks. I want to love this product, but it feels like it’s missing the mark slightly.
Verdict: Wouldn’t repurchase this.
L’Oreal Voluminous Lash Primer: I immediately drove to Target to pick up this lash primer after seeing a convincing TikTok review from a creator with extremely long and full lashes. This primer is made to be applied prior to putting on mascara to give the appearance of longer and thicker lashes. While I don’t use it on a daily basis, it’s a go-to for when I’m dressing up or going to an event. As someone who can’t stand applying false eyelashes, this is the next best alternative in my opinion. The only downside to this primer is that it’s a bright white color, so it’s important to carefully coat all of the primer with mascara so it doesn’t peek out.
Verdict: It’s not an everyday essential for me, but given that it’s under $10, repurchasing this product is a no brainer.
