Celebrity beauty brands often get a bad rep for being nothing but a cash grab. However, former Spice Girl-turned-fashion designer Victoria Beckham has more credentials than most to back up her foray into the world of make-up.

In the Nineties, she became synonymous with her signature brown lip liner, contoured cheeks and smokey eyes, then in 2016, she collaborated with Estée Lauder for a successful limited edition collection of skincare and make-up. In 2019, she unveiled her eponymous line, Victoria Beckham Beauty, and has solidified her place in the beauty industry ever since. Her kajal satin eyeliners are a favourite among beauty editors and her future lash mascara wand and sculpting contour stylus have long been mainstays in my own daily routine.

Her latest launch, however, is potentially the most significant to date. Meet the concealer pen. A click-up brush wand with a tapered design for precise, targeted application across 16 shades. Created with Augustinus Bader, the stem cell scientist and founder of the beloved skincare brand of the same name (known for its hugely popular the rich cream), it promises a slew of skincare benefits thanks to its hybrid formula that conceals dark circles and blemishes while improving skin health simultaneously.

While it comes with big performance claims, such as improving the appearance of hyperpigmentation, brightening dull complexions and diminishing under-eye puffiness, the price tag attached is even bigger. Costing an eye-watering £64, it begs the question, is any concealer worth that much? In a bid to find out, I put it to the test. Here’s my verdict.

How I tested

I tried the concealer pen for a few days to see how it fared (Louise Whitbread)

During a visit to the Victoria Beckham Beauty flagship store in London, Beckham’s make-up artist, Francesca Abrahamovitch, applied the new concealer pen and colour-matched me for my perfect shade – mine is FL1. I then took it home and tried it out myself over the following few days to see how well it added luminosity and light-to-medium coverage to my dark circles, blemishes and areas of discolouration. I also examined its value for money, packaging, how easily it blends, how well it wears throughout the day and most importantly if it’s worth the price.

Victoria Beckham Beauty the concealer pen

Key ingredients : TFC8 by Augustinus Bader, polyglutamic acid, acetyl hexapeptide-8, squalane

Why we love it

Luminous finish

Instantly brightening

A little goes a long way

Long-wearing

First up, let’s discuss packaging. A chic black pen, no bigger than a felt tip, it’s the perfect size for all make-up bags and even a coat pocket. On first use, it takes a lot of clicks before the product comes out, but it distributes much less than your usual doe-foot applicator found on most concealers – it’s much easier to control how much you use and can be applied with just one hand and blended with your fingers.

Secondly, the formula is an impressive cocktail of ingredients boasting a long list of benefits as a skincare-make-up hybrid product. It has been made with TFC8 – trigger factor complex – AKA Augustinus Bader’s patented “supernutrient” that is the central pillar for the whole Bader brand. It’s a mix of vitamins, lipids and peptides, which addresses skin concerns such as fine lines and wrinkles, redness and hyperpigmentation to name a few.

This concealer also contains a peptide called acetyl hexapeptide-8 to tackle wrinkles around the eyes and mouth, polyglutamic acid to boost hydration and elasticity, and squalane, a lightweight antioxidant oil. In a nutshell, it claims to improve your skin health with continuous use. I tested it for a few days so can’t speak to that, but I’m keen to wear it regularly to see if I spot a difference in a few weeks.

It has a surprisingly thick texture, yet feels weightless once blended. The promise of light-to-medium coverage is accurate, and it leaves a very luminous, but not overly dewy finish. I would recommend using it sparingly, a small dot under the eyes is enough. The first time I used this I made the mistake of drawing on three swipes and found it to be far too thick and it left me looking ghostly. Instead, apply a tiny dot for the most flattering results.

Even paired with my go-to base product, Kosas bb burst (£34, Spacenk.com), I was pleasantly surprised by how well it covered up my dark circles and redness on the tops of my cheeks with a single light layer. It’s definitely one I would wear without foundation too, on days when I fancy a lighter make-up look.

While you can blend it out easily with your fingers, I prefer to use a small, dense brush and find it seamlessly spreads across the skin and stays put, without feeling too drying or too wet. Its instantly brightening, and impressively long-wearing, it never looked cakey and held up well for hours of wear. Small but mighty is the best way I can describe this.

However, while I think it delivers on its promise of easy application and a radiant, skin-like finish, it’s extremely expensive. It will last you a long time, but £64 is a lot to part with. Also, keep in mind that while it claims to be compatible with warm, neutral and rosy undertones, the 16-piece shade range is developed with predominantly neutral undertones, so if you plan to add this to your make-up bag, I’d recommend taking the shade match quiz on the Victoria Beckham Beauty website.

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The verdict: Victoria Beckham Beauty the concealer pen

Overall this is a beautiful concealer with a fun packaging component. It delivers on its promise to add radiance, hide tired eyes and be long-wearing. That said, it’s more of a splurge than an essential because of the price tag, but I can’t deny that if you’re in the market for a luxury concealer, this is a strong contender.

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For barely-there coverage, read our edit of the best lightweight foundations