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While we love the high street for trend-led fashion finds and designer-inspired pieces, a number of our favourite retailers are now stocking their shelves with cosmetics, as well as clothing.
You can now pick up perfume while shopping for a purse; grab mascara while refreshing your holiday wardrobe, and even stock up on hairspray while treating yourself to a new dress. This product expansion seems to be proving pretty popular, too.
Clothing retailer & Other Stories has heavily pushed its perfumes and nail polishes, while Zara has branched out into haircare, and H&M Beauty appears to be booming, with new products popping up regularly. In fact, H&M Beauty is proving so popular that there’s now a store in Oslo dedicated solely to the high-street staple’s cosmetics section.
What’s more, all H&M Beauty products are vegan and most fall under the £10 price point, making them great entry-level options for those looking to experiment with new products without spending a small fortune.
So, of course, we had to see what all the fuss is about – testing out the H&M mascara, lip and cheek sticks, lip liner and much more to make up our own minds about whether the bargain beauty brand really does deserve a spot in your make-up bag. Keep reading for our full verdict.
Swapping our regular make-up bag for one stocked full of H&M Beauty buys, we spent weeks trialling the bargain beauty products, creating multiple looks to see how easy they were to use and how long they lasted on the skin. Below, we’ve rounded up our favourite nine products from the range that deserve a spot in your make-up bag.
H&M Beauty volume mascara
Size: 10.5ml
Shade tested: Black
Shades available: Black
Why we love it
Lashes look longer and thicker
Mascara fans, rejoice, as H&M Beauty has not one but seven mascaras to choose from, with each satisfying a different look, from lengthening to curling and volumising.
We opted for the volume effect, and it certainly delivered. Our lashes looked thicker, longer and fuller. Plus, lash-loving ingredients such as rice bran wax, sythetic beeswax and vegetable oil are included, to help nourish lashes while they’re lathered in this product.
If you’re looking to pick up just one H&M Beauty product, opt for this do-it-all stick. While the concept of having an all-over face stick is nothing new (Chanel, Merit, Code8 and many more all have their own versions), this one is quite a bargain, coming in at less than £10. It will see that you have seamlessly coordinated colour across your lips, cheeks and eyes, if you wish.
We found this option intensely creamy, making it easily blendable and hydrating on the lips, plus the colour payoff is incredibly impressive. A little really does go a long way. We loved the deep pink of ‘raspberry slap’ but there are plenty of other shades to choose from, too.
Shades available: Bramble ripple, raconteur, simply red, savoir faire, spice it up
Why we love it
Strong staying power
Coming in at less than £5, this lip liner certainly sticks true to H&M Beauty’s bargain price point. However, we’re sad to see there isn’t a larger selection of shades (just five are available), as the product is pretty impressive.
Intensely creamy, it glides on almost effortlessly with a strong slick of colour that lasted all day during testing. In fact, so strong is its staying power, you certainly want to take your time when applying, otherwise you’ll need to reach for a make-up remover to get rid of any rogue lines.
As it’s a standard pencil, all you need is a sharpener to keep it looking sleek.
Shades available: Raspberry fever, royal flush, fruit punch, peonies for me, baby blush, au naturel, spring fling, meet cute, girl power, peachy keen, pinch me, fire it up!
Why we love it
Soft, healthy finish
If you’re a fan of a subtle rosy glow, this H&M Beauty pressed powder could be your perfect pick. Offering a very soft swathe of colour, it creates a gentle flushed look that’s much more natural than H&M’s do-it-all stick blush. In fact, unless you really load it up, we’d be surprised if anyone would suspect you’re wearing make-up with this option.
Shade ‘spring fling’ was perfect for our fair skin, but there are 11 other shades to choose from, too, ranging from lilac to beige. Just be sure to load up your buffing brush and use the mirrored lid to help with more precise placement when on the go.
Eyeliner fans, pay close attention, as we’re confident in saying this H&M Beauty buy may save you a small fortune. Coming in at less than £6, it offers a slick swipe of intense black, it’s easy to appy, lasts an incredibly long time (we actually struggled to get it off with just a cleanser) and can create a precise enough line for even the daintiest of designs.
The only downside we found is the lid isn’t the most secure, meaning you really do need to make sure to push it on tightly to ensure the product doesn’t dry out.
You’ve probably gathered by now that we’re big fans of H&M Beauty. But it’s not just us, we roped in a few friends to try this lipstick, and it’s safe to say they were blown away when we revealed both the brand and the price.
The creamy colour glides on effortlessly, lasts a long time and leaves lips feeling soft and hydrated. Plus, there are 36 shades to choose from, meaning there really is something for everyone – vibrant coral ‘indie pop’ was our personal favourite.
The only downside is that it’s easy to smudge, so do take take when applying and do make regular checks throughout the day – it’s a lot less chic when covering your teeth and chin, too.
Shades available: Light matte, light shimmer, medium matte, medium shimmer, deep matte, deep shimmer
Why we love it
Great for beginners
Take note
Possibly too subtle for some
Just as we found with the pressed blusher, the pressed bronzer is certainly subtle – quite a stark contrast to the brand’s creamy picks. While this means it’s most likely out of the question for contouring, we do think it would be loved by those just beginning to play with make-up or perhaps people looking to add a very subtle warmth to their face.
The bronzer is available in six shades, spanning light to dark and with shimmer and matte options. For our fair skin, we opted for ‘light shimmer’, which gave us a boost without any overpowering bronzing. Just be sure to load up your buffing brush to actually see a subtle difference. Just like the blush, there’s a mirror in the lid to help with on-the-go application, too.
Eyebrow mascara may seem like a strange name but, essentially, this pocket-sized product is a tinted gel that colours hairs and holds them in place. With only 2.3ml inside, it’s certainly a travel-szied buy, so, its low price point does seem a little less like a bargain, compared with the other options in this list. However, it’s certainly handy to pop into your handbag.
Testing shade medium, we found it definitely did coat all eyebrow hairs in colour (just be sure to press down quite firmly), which made them appear much fuller and darker. Plus, the gel did help them stay in place, so long as you left them for around 30 seconds to dry fully before adding any finishing touches.
H&M Beauty highlighter stick for cheeks, lips and eyes
Size: 7g
Shade tested: Pearl glow
Shades available: Rose glow, pearl glow, beach glow, peachy glow
Why we love it
Easy to apply
Great shimmer
Just as we loved the H&M Beauty blush and lips stick, this highlighter is incredibly similar. In an easy to blend, creamy formula, it glides onto the skin almost effortlessly; can be blended with a brush or just your fingers, and is pretty strong in colour, so you don’t need a lot to make a real impact.
Shade ‘pearl glow’ left a silver-like dusting that beautifully caught the light and worked well when brightening the inner corner of the eyes, as eyeshadow, and at the top of the cheekbones to make them more pronounced. Plus, we’ve added shade ‘beach glow’ to our wishlist, for a slightly warmer look, too.
Overall, we were blown away by H&M Beauty. The great price points and long-lasting finishes definitely impressed us. While all of the products listed here stood out as our favourite finds, the cheek, lip and eye blusher stick has secured a firm place in our make-up bag, alongside the highlighter version and satin lipstick for more impactful make-up occasions. Trust us when we say we’ll be paying close attention to what the brand does next.