Sainsbury's Boutique Makeup Review

Sainsbury's is my regular store for grocery and other household bits. I have been shopping there for the past 6 years and I do really enjoy it. I moved houses three years ago and I was lucky to find a massive Sainsbury's about 3 minutes from my house (You know the ones where they sell Tu Clothing, yeah the really massive ones). One section/aisle I always wander through is the Beauty Section because I have found so many bargains there. When they have reductions (which is pretty frequent), I just top up all my beauty essentials. One brand I have always seen but never tried was the Boutique Makeup Range. To be honest, I did not know much about the brand. You can imagine my absolute shock when I discovered that Boutique was Sainsbury's own brand. I was really pleased when I was contacted by Boutique Makeup's PR asking if I wanted to try some products from Boutique. When they arrived I was excited to see how they swatched but sadly three of the eyeshadows smashed in transit. I still managed to fix them with some medical grade alcohol and they have held up pretty well. Having tried the products out for a good while, I thought I should share my thoughts and let you know some of my favourites within the range.


Brief overview of Sainsbury's Boutique Makeup
Sainsbury's Boutique Makeup is a high quality and affordable cosmetics range which was launched by Sainsbury's in 2013. It was designed to allow women access beautiful products within the convenience of supermarket shopping. Their capsule collection was created by makeup artists Jo Saville & Sophie Price. The Boutique range offers long lasting formulations with high pigmentation and easy application to suit a wide range of skin tones. When I saw this description, I was quite intrigued and I knew I wanted to test the range especially when it comes to suiting a variety of skin tones. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the products and how they suited my complexion. Within the range, you can find lip glosses, lipsticks, eyeshadow singles, eyeshadow palettes (quads), blushers, bronzes, nail polishes, etc. They don't have concealers and foundations just yet but I am sure they will planning towards it at some point.


What products did I get?
I was very lucky to be sent a wide range of their products to try out and I have put them to the test for a pretty long time. This review is well overdue as I got these products back in August but I am so happy I am finally reviewing them. I received the following products: Eyeshadows, Lip glosses, a perfect red lipstick, Nail Polishes and Blushes. I am really pleased that I was sent products that were complementary to my complexion and I am always impressed and grateful when PRs take out time to see what products will suit me and my complexion.


Packaging
I always say if any brand is in doubt of packaging colour, they should stick to black as that always looks classy. Boutique Makeup come in really elegant black packaging and they are very good quality even down to the doe foot applicator of the lip glosses. I am mostly impressed with the Lipstick packaging which is weighted and has a lovely secure lid (of course, complete with a click). I find that some brands scrimp on packaging when they are trying to keep down costs of products but I think product's packaging really influences people's purchasing power. In this digital media age where everyone and everything needs to be visually pleasing and Instagram worthy, a classy packaging will always win many hearts. The only packaging I think may need to be improved on are the single eyeshadows. They are not bad but they are not as sturdy as the other packaging. However, I looked at the eyeshadow palette in store and that looked so beautiful and sturdy.



Boutique Lip Gloss //Link //£6
I am going to put it out there that I am not a huge fan of very glossy lips but I do find that I experiment with them during A/W season. I think it's because I feel a little more shinier during summer so I can't deal with shiny lips but during A/W, my skin may look dull so a glossy lip is actually good. I really like the packaging and the doe foot of the Boutique Lip Glosses. They are so well made and you can tell a lot of thought went into their production. The formula itself is a typical lip gloss one which means it is slightly sticky but not the kind of stickiness that sticks your hair to your lips. I was sent three shades which include Hocus Pocus, Seal of Approval and Cat got Cream. I really like the names and they are really catchy.



Hocus Pocus is an iridescent light pink shade and it is my favourite because it works with almost any lip combination. I don't wear it alone although it does look gorgeous by itself. I prefer to use it on top of some really matte lipsticks as it just transforms them so beautifully. Cat Got Cream is more of a nude pink shade which surprisingly looks lovely on my lips. I thought it would not suit me but it actually does and it can be used on its own or paired with a nude lipstick. Last but not least is Seal of Approval which indeed has my seal of approval as it is a beautiful pink shade which will suit many complexions. I really like it and I tend to wear this more on its own.  At £6, I think they are a real bargain for the quality you get with these products.




Boutique Nail Polishes// Link //£4
I am no longer very fussy when it comes to nail polishes but I do like long lasting formulas and good applicators. I am totally loving the colours from the Boutique Nail Polishes because they are versatile and can be worn all round the year. They have a wide range of shades (20 in total) and they are really very wearable shades. I was very kindly sent 5 nail polishes which include Tickled Pink, As Good as Gold, Nail on the Head, The Royal Mint and Cloud Cuckoo Land. I love their packaging because they look so elegant as with their other packaging. I feel like square shaped nail polish bottles look so much better than round ones and many high end brands have square shaped bottles. These nail polishes also have two lids which again goes to show how much effort was put in their development. Now on to the formulas which is the most important thing.



The deeper shades only need one coat as they are quite opaque and they are not thick, streaky or clumpy. Even if you are not great at applying nail polishes, you would find these relatively easy to use. The wand has a decent length and coats my nails very evenly. I always use a top coat with all my nail polishes (Seche Vite) which helps with the lasting power of these nail polishes. However, the few times I skipped using a top coat, they still lasted as good (and even better) than some high street brands. As Good as Gold is one of my favourite nail polishes from the range  because it can be used in many ways. It looks gorgeous on its own especially with the holiday season approaching and can also be used on top of other nail polishes or for nail art. Another favourite is Tickled Pink because it is the perfect "My Nails But Better" shade. If you don't have time for a manicure and you want to still have the same look,Tickled Pink is an amazing option. It just really makes my nails look so healthy and I really like it. I love the other shades as well and at the price of £4, you can hardly go wrong.





Boutique Makeup Single Eyeshadows //Link ///£4
I don't think I own many single eyeshadows that have not been put into a palette as that's my preferred option. I am a huge eyeshadow junkie and I just can't help myself at all. When it comes to eyeshadows, I look out for many things especially pigmentation, colour range and longevity. I was kindly sent 5 shades including Grass is always Greener, Out of the Blue, Put on the Slate, All that Glitters is not Gold and Forty Winks (how cute are the names though!). I was really surprised to find that they had really good pigmentation and lasting power as well. I use eyeshdow primers for all my eyeshadows including high end brands like Urban Decay, MAC and even my Shu Uemura. So, I paired this eyeshadows with primers each time and they lasted all day on my lids. They don't feel cheap at all and I am impressed with that. However, I do have my favourites and they are All that glitters is not Gold and Forty Winks. All that glitters is not Gold is a warm bronze shade that reminds me so much of MAC Bronze. It's such a beautiful shade and will suit many skin tones including deeper complexions. Forty Winks is a beautiful light gold shade that also reminds me of MAC All That Glitters. I really enjoy using these two shades a lot although the other shades are also lovely.





Boutique Makeup Blushes //Link //£8
I used to be the girl that did not care too much about blushes but I am so in love with them. I tend to go for dusky pink or muted mauve shades for everyday wear and I amp it up when it comes to weekends or nights out. I was sent two lovely shades- Footloose and Fancy Free ad Fool's Paradise. I honestly did not believe any of them will work on my complexion just from looking at them in their pans. However, I was very pleasantly surprised to find that I was very wrong. First off, their packaging is totally on point complete with a decent sized mirror for application and touch ups. These blushes are beautifully pigmented and can be built up depending on what your preference is. I was so sceptical about Footloose and Fancy Free because it is a powder pink shade which I thought will never suit me. It has a matte finish/texture and it actually looks lovely on my complexion. I apply with a light hand and it just blends in so well. However, my all time favourite which I have been using at least 70% of my working week is Fol's Paradise. It is the perfect dusty/mauve pink shade which looks very flattering on my skin and will look the same for deeper the skin tones. I really enjoy using it and I find myself reaching for it every time. It can also be used as a bronzer for lighter complexion because it has a beautiful texture and applies so beautifully.




Boutique Makeup Lipstick
This was the lipstick that made me fall in love with the entire brand because it feels like a premium brand to me. The shade I got is the Paint the Town Red which is a classic red shade which I know many people would adore especially  with the festive season. I already mentioned how amazing the packaging is so I won't repeat myself again (although I am tempted). The texture and formula is my ideal one because it is light, applies evenly, forgiving on dry lips and long lasting. It has an intense pigmentation which is also long lasting and for an affordable brand, I think it's pretty impressive.  If there is any one product you want to try, I would definitely recommend checking the lipstick range out as you would absolutely fall in love with it as I have.



Boutique Lip Liner //Link //£2
Last but in no way the least is the Lip Liner which is called Seal One's Fate. This is such an incredible my "Lips but Better" shade for my complexion. I use it in two ways- as a lip liner to set the stage for other lipsticks and on its own as a lipstick. It glides on easily without feeling scratchy on the lips and it does not feel drying either on the lips. I think this will be a winner for anyone who is into nude lips and I will be picking up backups because you can't go wrong at £2.


Overall Thoughts
I am so very impressed with Sainsbury's Boutique range because I did not expect a lot at all. I thought it would be a regular high street brand but it has proved to be so much better. I have really enjoyed using them especially all the favourites I highlighted in the review above. You can find some products on the Sainsbury's website but not the entire range and I am sure they are working on that. However, the entire Boutique Makeup range is available in at least 30 Sainsbury's stores. It's s worth checking out if you are out grocery shopping in Sainsbury's.  They also recently launched the Boutique Beauty Solutions which you can check out here.That's pretty much my review and I hope you enjoyed it. Have you tried the Sainsbury's Boutique Makeup?
*PR Sample, read my full disclaimer here.