My 2019 Beauty Favourites and Fails

I have done a beauty favourites every year since I started my blog, and I wasn’t planning on doing one this year. I feel like the whole favourites thing is a bit dated, and nobody cares about past favourites these days, it’s all about the new launches. I did a poll on Twitter asking if anyone would actually like me to do one, and I was really surprised by the results. Over 77% of those that answered the poll, said yes to a 2019 beauty favourites so here it is. I’ve never shared my beauty fails before, but I decided this was the year I would, especially as one of the products ended up with me needing an ambulance due to a severe allergic reaction. Keep on reading to see what I loved and loathed this past year.

When trying to decide which products would make my 2019 beauty favourites shortlist, I was going to try to choose something for each category but I feel like that is a little forced. If I am choosing a product per category, I might include products I don’t absolutely love just to have the category covered. I don’t see the point in sharing tonnes of different products, so these products are my true standout favourites I’d recommend to absolutely everyone and they include both products I’ve purchased myself and PR samples.

2019 Beauty Favourites

Huda Beauty The New Nude Eyeshadow Palette

This palette had to make my 2019 beauty favourites shortlist as it’s my number one palette all year, and I reviewed it back in January 2019 so it only just made the cut for 2019. I don’t even have enough adjectives to describe my love for this palette, but it’s my dream palette with beautiful pinky nude tones. I love the combination of finishes, and the marbleised shades are to die for. I’ve never disliked any of the looks I’ve created with this palette, and if it was to disappear tomorrow, I’d instantly repurchase it as it’s my absolute favourite eyeshadow palette. 

Revolution Pro Luminescence Skin Finish Powder

Revolution are going to feature quite heavily within my fails section as there have been many disappointing products this year, but the stand out product for me has to be this amazing MAC dupe. It’s marketed as being a highlighter, but it imparts no glow at all but it is in fact a dupe for the MAC Mineralised Skinfinish Natural in Light – a skin toned powder, except it’s only £5. It’s been my favourite pressed, setting powder and I cannot recommend it enough if you have super pale skin like mine.

Lime Crime Bushy Brow Gel

Brow gels aren’t ever the most exciting product in your beauty routine, but this gel from Lime Crime has been my most used this year and when I ran out, I had to repurchase straight away as I didn’t like any of my other brow gels as much. The brush is so tiny, but it’s perfect for brushing your brow hairs up for a more natural, messy brow look which has become my go-to look this year. It holds my brow hairs in place all day, without ever being crispy and it’s amazing. 

Maybelline Tattoo Liner Gel Pencil

Out of all the products I’ve reviewed this year, this is the product which the most readers have bought on my recommendation. So many of you have bought it after reading my review, and you love it just as much as I do which makes me very happy. It’s the creamiest eyeliner pencil but it’s remarkably long lasting, and doesn’t bleed, smudge or fade throughout the day. It’s the best pencil eyeliner I’ve ever tried, regardless of price, so I had to include it.

Pixi Rose Ceramide Cream Intensive Moisturiser

I have tried a lot of Pixi skincare over the last twelve months, and the one standout product is most definitely the Pixi Rose Ceramide Cream. It’s one of my all-time favourite skincare discoveries, and it’s a product I’ve repurchased as I loved it so much. It’s a super nourishing, soothing moisturiser which calmed my skin down massively when I had a skin reaction early this year. I like to use it overnight as a mask whenever my skin’s feeling particularly dry, and it works miracles.

2019 Beauty Fails

Revolution The Liner Revolution Felt Tip Liner

The Revolution The Liner Revolution Felt Tip Liner is perhaps the worst makeup product I’ve tried throughout 2019, and I can’t believe how bad it was. The main issue with the liner is that it lasted for three days. Yes, really. The ink dried up in three days, which is absolutely ridiculous. Another issue is they launched two liners at the same time, the Renaissance Flick Liner is amazing, and they’re the same price, yet the Liner Revolution contains .5ml less product. I’ve had messages from readers that also had the liner dry up within days so it’s just a complete joke. 

Collection Primed and Ready HD Blur Setting Powder

Have you ever tried a loose setting powder which leaves your skin covered in glitter, feeling slimy and looking 20 years older? Well that’s what happens when you use the Primed and Ready HD Blur Setting Powder. It’s so, so bad and you only have to look at the reviews on both Superdrug and Boots to see how bad it is. I’ve not seen anyone say ANYTHING remotely positive about this powder, it’s truly awful.

Revolution Eye Glisten Foil and Glitter Eyeshadows

When Revolution launched their Eye Glisten eyeshadows, they were marketed as being dupes for the cult favourite Stila Glitter and Glow Eyeshadows, so I had to buy them as I love the Stila version. In a nutshell they are not remotely similar, they stain the eyelids awfully, they sting the eyes, they are patchy, lacking pigmentation and the fall out is terrible so save your money and buy the Stila version, or the Heng Fang instead as there really is no comparison.

Nip + Fab Salicylic Fix Concentrate Extreme 2%

Now we’re onto the product which gave me the worst allergic reaction. I have used salicylic acid based skincare products since I was 13 and first developed acne. I have sensitive skin which is prone to allergic reactions, so I always without fail test skincare before using it on my face. I had already tried the Nip + Fab Salicylic Fix Tonic Extreme, and had no issues at all, so I bought the Nip + Fab Salicylic Fix Concentrate Extreme 2% when I saw it on sale. I tested it before using it on my face and I had no reactions for 24 hours so I applied it to my face at 8pm at night.

At 3am I woke up with my eyes streaming and went back to bed, to wake up at 5am unable to open my right eye and my face feeling on fire. I looked in the mirror I couldn’t believe the state of my face. It was massively swollen, red and blistered and it was just getting worse. By 6am my throat had started to close up and my other half rang 111 who sent an ambulance, and they decided I needed to go to A&E as I was having an anaphylactic reaction. Luckily steroids and sabutamol helped to slow the reaction down, stop more blisters forming and stopped my throat from getting any more swollen, but it was really scary.

I’ve not had any reactions like this before to skincare, and I’m now very wary with trying any skincare products since the reaction, but I will never use Nip + Fab skincare again so obviously this is a massive, massive fail. I have no idea what was in this product that caused such an intense allergic reaction, as I use salicylic acid based products very often and I’ve never had such any type of reaction with them before. The reaction happened on the morning of Black Friday and my skin is still recovering a month later.

Revolution Shook Eyeshadow Palette

The last of my 2019 beauty fails is the Revolution Shook Eyeshadow Palette, which was the worst eyeshadow palette I tried throughout 2019 – and I tried an awful lot. My review of this palette is one of my top five most read posts for 2019 believe it or not. It is shockingly bad, and the worst part is them charging £15 for a palette of such shockingly bad quality. You have to see the swatches to see how bad it is for yourself, but everything is bad from the packaging, layout and design. Revolution have launched a number of £15-20 palettes this year, and none of them have been worth the high price tag. I’d recommend sticking to their £4 Reloaded collection, as they’re so much better quality.

So they were my 2019 beauty favourite and fails. I want to say a massive thank you to every single one of you for reading my blog, and your support. It means so much to me. I’d love to know your favourites and fails?

All products featured on Gemma Etc. are PR samples or gifted items, unless otherwise indicated. This post may contain affiliate links. If you wish to find out more, please see my Disclaimer within my navigation bar.