So, Glossier Stretch Concealer is finally mine! This review is sponsored by my brother, who lives in America. Jokes aside, since Glossier don't accept PayPal, international cards and only ship to US and Puerto Rico - it is a miracle I even hold this little guy. I have been testing this concealer for more than a month now and here is what I have to say.
2 Words About Glossier
Being founded by beauty editors of intothegloss.com, Glossier is not your generic beauty brand: it is modern, minimalistic, airy and real. Although it kind of tries to "stay away from popular beauty trends", it is very hyped up online and has a massive cult following on social media. Glossier believe in taking care of your skin first, so even their make-up products are infused with amazing ingredients. Typical Glossier girl: natural beauty, who embraces her imperfections and likes uncomplicated, very minimal make-up. Sounds like you?
Packaging & Claims
Whenever you order from Glossier, you get a handy bubble-wrap pink pouch, which is so great for liquids and carry-on. I am currently traveling and somehow managed to fit all of my little skincare bits and bobs in it. You also get a bunch of cute stickers, which you can decorate your favourite Glossier products with. The brand's packaging as a whole is very appealing and "millennial pink".
Stretch Concealer comes in this little glass pot and has a beautiful silver lid. It contains 0.17oz/5ml of an actual product, which is a good amount compared to other similar/popular concealers like NARS Soft Matte Concealer (0.21oz/6.21ml) or Becca Ultimate Coverage Concealer (0.16oz/4.7ml). Being all about make-up that looks like skin, Stretch Concealer is buildable and claims to: "move with your face, instead of caking on top of it"/ nourish/ cover redness, blemishes and dark circles/ enhance, brighten and "disappear" into your skin. It also contains avocado, jojoba, cocoa... I don't know about you guys, but reading that description made me drool for a moment. Comes in five shades (light to rich).
Texture & Application
Being a restless concealer junkie, I have tried a ton of products under the sun, but never anything even remotely similar to Stretch Concealer. It has a very slippery, waxy texture, which is quite sheer in coverage and feels lightweight. It is definitely a pretty dewy product, which once applied, makes your skin look a bit glossy.
To be that extra bit helpful, I did not edit my swatches. This is what shade "Light" looks like on my NC20 skin in natural daylight; my hands are a touch darker than my face.
The colour selection is not insane, but given the fact that this is a sheer product, every shade might work for a few different skin tones. I am using "Light" and it is the best colour match. This is exactly that perfect pale yellow shade for a light complexion, which NARS Soft Matte range is missing. The best way to apply it is with your fingers; I also blend mine with a make-up sponge.
Wear & Feel
Now, here comes the sad part. Although this concealer sounds so good on paper, especially for someone with dry skin like mine, once I applied it - things went south pretty fast.
Under Eye
I have never tried a concealer, which would crease under my eyes so badly. Upon closer inspection (using a x10 mirror) I could see how Glossier concealer settled into these micro fine lines, making me look like a lizard. Bear in mind I am still in my 20s; exfoliate regularly and use a light eye cream. Although this concealer does "lift and brighten", it attaches to every little line and even microscopic patches, which I didn't know I even had under my eyes. No matter how many times I would try to run my Beauty Blender on top of it to soak up any excess (normally I do this technique only one time during my make-up application and none of my concealers crease throughout the day), new creases appeared over and over again. I then thought that maybe I used a little too much product, but no. Even when I use a teeny tiny amount it still looks the same.
I guess you could set it with powder or "bake" to stop it from creasing, but skin under my eyes is already dry, so I wouldn't want to torture it even further. I use a ton of creamy make-up products in my routine, but never have I ever experienced such an unforgiving formula, which is neither hydrating nor drying. Also if you have serious dark circles (like I do), don't bother trying to hide your pandas with Stretch Concealer; go for a nourishing colour-corrector or any other creamy concealer (with better coverage) instead. I still swear by Tarte CC Undereye Corrector, you can read more about it here.
Face
On my face Stretch Concealer still accentuates and clings onto every little dry area; it also settles into my pores. I have slightly larger pores on my nose and whenever I use this product - it just collects inside and around them to the point where I have to remove it and use anything else instead. When I use similar (in theory) products like Becca Aqua Luminous Concealer for example, which is a water-based concealer with a sheer coverage, it never accentuates any of my dry areas (even when I have bad patches from healing blemishes or anything like that). You can actually watch Desi Perkins use it (she uses it without foundation under her eyes and on pimples) in this video to get a better idea of what I am talking about.
Even when I properly exfoliate my skin, use a hydrating overnight treatment and my go-to nourishing moisturizer in the morning - this concealer still finds a way to crawl into all of these nooks and crannies. It drives me nuts. Given it's a nourishing product with amazing ingredients, I just can't wrap my head around it. It also does not cover redness or blemishes, until you layer it into oblivion or use a powder foundation on top. If you don't set it, it will fade pretty quickly. I just think, if I spend my time applying it or trying to make it work, it could as well do something good for me in return.. #relationshipissues
Verdict
I am not sure whether this products' mineral pigments are to blame, but Stretch Concealer just doesn't work for my skin. Although I love the idea of minimal make-up and embracing your flaws, this concealer seems to highlight them (not hide them), almost to the point where I would rather wear no concealer at all. The only time when it looks semi-nice on me is on those very rare flawless skin days, but other than that... I have even tried wearing it without any eye cream underneath (thinking it might be the reason why my concealer creases so badly) and as a result it did not accentuate (otherwise inexistent) lines that much, but I don't want to skip on my skincare only because this formula is (frankly) pants and needs some serious improvement. At this point I am not even sure who I could recommend it to? Unless you have spotless, perfect and poreless skin just like Glossier models - I am not sure you would like this product. At all. I personally have much better options, both drugstore and from Sephora, which work like a dream and are so user-friendly.
Even NARS Soft Matte concealer, which can stick to dry patches, looks much better on the worst of days. To wrap up this review, I should say that I don't give up on Glossier as a brand (just yet) and actually plan to order some more of their products like Boy Brow and Cloud Paint to see whether they are worth the hype or not. Stretch Concealer sounds "easy", but truly is high maintenance. Although I really wanted to love this little guy, guess we are just not meant to be!
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