My love of Zara is well documented on my YouTube Channel. I head there regularly to add trendy seasonal pieces that somehow last for years, in most cases. When the new beauty line launched, I was thrilled to check it out. Since they do replicas of high fashion trends so well, I had high hopes for their make-up too. What I found was good, bad, and ugly. Here’s the Zara Make-Up Haul Review 2021 to share what to consider getting and what to run away from. Literally.
Zara Make-Up Haul Review
The Good- Lipsticks at Zara Beauty
The lipsticks are certainly a strong point for Zara Make-Up. The colors are gorgeous and the finishes are spot-on. I tried the Matte Lipstick and Satin Cult formulas. The first one I tried in the haul is a beautiful blue-red Matte color in Winner that reminds me of Chanel’s Pirate color. Suprisingly, it lasted all day and had nice soft powdery finish with no bleeding. Next, I tried the Satin Cult formula in Buttercup. This too was lovely! While it didn’t last quite as long as the Matte Lipstick, the color was rich and hydrating. Both forumulas have a really pleasant smell as well. If you’re looking for a new lipstick to try, I would definitely recommend these.
The packaging stategy is left to be desired on all the Zara Make-Up. Containers are thick and bulky, almost futuristic. The saving grace is that they have refillable options for nearly all the make-up. You can just buy the refills while using the compacts and external lipstick hard drive. With over 100 Billion beauty containers being made each year, this is absolutely a winning point. That is, if you’re gonna keep purchasing Zara Beauty.
The Not So Bad- Nail Polish
The nail polish is pretty good! It aged really well and the colors are vibrant and timely for Summer 2021. I trust the formula isn’t “clean beauty” in any sense. Most nail polish or nail art is not that great for you. My philosophy to clean beauty has always been to do 80/20. Meaning 80% of the time I am putting clean products on my face and body. The other 20% I leave for expirmentation like this Zara Make-Up Haul! My issue with the Zara Nail polish is the darn container. It’s just excessive and not ergonomic because you don’t need that big white top. You just don’t! Therefore, you have to take off the white handle to actually apply the nail polish. While they’re trying to have a strong statement branding, I don’t think they’re thinking of the customer, just their brand.
The Ugly- Eyeshadow, Blush, Loose Pigment
I LOVE eyeshadow. And for the past couple of years, I’ve been spoiled by Beautycounter’s* eyeshadows. The beautiful, color rich, clean palettes that perform! However, by definition, I’m a seeker and love to try new make-up! So I didn’t think twice when I added the loose pigment and eyeshadow palette to my cart. Initally, I had also put the bronzer/blush in there too but something made me take it out. Luckily, I trusted my instinct and deleted it from cart. I’m so glad I did because unfortunately all their powders are MICA filled. Mica is not something I think about alot. Previously, I had read that Beautycounter’s eyeshadow didn’t have any and that it was a good thing! However, I never looked into why it was SOOO good that it was Mica-free.
How did I find out? When I was applying the eyeshadow I couldn’t get over how much my lungs burnt! It was really strange. Soon after, I opened the loose pigment an all hell broke loose! I was coughing and hacking and saw “mica” as the first ingredient, “SHOOT!”. Mica. I went online and researched exactly why it was so bad. Not only was it bad, it was ugly. Most eyeshadow and glimmery make-up is made with mica, which is toxic. Over time it can lead to lung cancer and lung damage. What’s worse it that it’s mined primarily by children around the world for pennies a week. Child labor, child exploitation, lung cancer, sub-par performance, it was all too much. You can read more about the Mica problem in the beauty industry here.
Zara Make-Up Haul Review 2021 Recap
While this is a bit of a downer Zara Make-Up Haul Review 2021, I felt compelled to share for your health and for those that are forced to mine mica. I’m not a cancel culture lover and am not suggesting the boycotting of any brand. Very few fashion and beauty companies are without flaws! Hopefully, this post helps you spend your money on better beauty! You can find the video review here. And for the best bronzers for summer see here, my tried and true tanning routine here, and clean haircare here. Love, Z
*Beautycounter doesn’t currently have eyeshadow as they are working on a new formula scheduled to release Summer 2021.