For over a year, Mac's Select Moisturecover concealer was my go to concealer for undereye circles and redness around my nose and mouth. I also have Studio Finish but I only use that for the rare blemish or mark. Select Moisturecover is $16.50, and at the time I was buying it, I had an employee discount so I didn't think much of it. Now that I'm on a budget and no longer get said discount, it was time to consider a cheaper alternative.
I had heard a while ago that the Maybelline SuperStay line's concealer was very similar to Mac. I honestly hadn't done much research and set off on my lunch break to a drugstore to see what I could find. The concealer was $7.99 at Walgreens... not bad compared to paying $16.50. The problem I immediately saw was the color selection. 5 colours. I think 10 would have been more appropriate for a good range. Not only are darker tones really not covered, the-fair-toned-but-not-pale-white ladies are going to have a problem finding a shade as well.
I reached for the lightest, Ivory, because I am only the 2nd darkest shade in Mac. Shame on me for forgetting that Mac doesn't favor very pale ladies very well... so me being the 2nd darkest shade makes me "not that pale" (even though I think I'm pretty pasty). I should have known just from looking at the tube that it would be too light...
That's my Mac NW20 on the left... the Maybelline Ivory on the right. Good god. That concealer is WHITE. I know very few people that could wear that without looking ridiculous. I will say that I tried it out anyway, and the lightness did help to brighten my undereye area, but it looked ghastly unnatural in sunlight.
I switched up on ya'... the Maybelline is on the right, Mac on the left. Notice how the Mac has a pinkish general skin tone to it... I think that is a downside with that shade of the Maybelline. Even if you are very fair, your skin is still going to have a yellow or pink cast, and that shade is just straight ivory white. I don't think anyone could really wear it easily unless they put foundation straight over top.
So I went back to Walgreens, brought my Mac concealer with me this time to compare, and picked out the next darkest shade... (120), Cream. Okay, my skintone is sort of "cream" coloured... I can see where they're going with this. This seemed like a better match, though something was still off between the two:
You can't tell as much in the camera packaging pictures, but you can definitely tell in the swatch.
I couldn't put my finger on it until I realized that the Maybelline's consistency is sort of like a liquid foundation. The Mac is like a thinner version. This is why the colours are slightly off between the two brands. I think that Cream is a good colour for anyone NW/NC15-20, maybe 25. The next shade darker would suit 30+, so 25s may be a screwed with this line.
Anyway, onto the performance. This stuff is serious! For $7.99, I am impressed. I will say that the formula is a little drying... I am going to purchase a concealer brush (or try and fix the one I ruined) to use this with. I was comfortable using my hands with the Mac one but this is a little too thick and dry, and I don't feel I have enough control with fingers. It covers very nicely once it's blended however, and my dark circles are not only concealed but brightened as well, which is something I need in the winter.
I think older ladies with heavy dryness under their eyes may want to steer clear of this, or heavily moisturize beforehand.
After applying it to my undereyes and under my nose/around my mouth, I decided to take it for a quick test run on my nose. I have a scar/birthmark that is a medium red tone on the tip of my nose (you may have noticed it in FOTD shots). I generally don't cover it... but just wanted to see...
I can only "see" it because I know where it is. I can't believe a drugstore concealer covered that thing! The outline is still semi noticeable, but not from a distance. I would definitely recommend this to someone with acne scarring... I think it would make a huge difference.
Overall, recommended for purchase! It takes a little getting used to coming from the Select Moisturecover as the formulas, while a similar idea, are different in the application. But definitely a good alternative, and I am excited to have something that works even better!
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