I must admit that I have a love-hate relationship with drugstore makeup. Every now and then I'll find a gem that becomes a staple in my makeup bag, like the Almay Liquid Lip Balm or Nyx Makeup Setting Spray. But I've wasted so much money on mediocre products that I never use! I'm always tempted by the low prices and the new releases, however the quality is just not always there. For the past few years I've tried to refrain from buying too much drugstore makeup, but there were a few products from Wet n Wild I had heard good things about and really wanted to try. So I purchased the brand's popular Photofocus Foundation, MegaCushion in Highlight and in Contour, and the new Megaglo Hello Halo Liquid Highlighter in Halographic. Were they the rare gems I hoped for, or did I waste my money again? Let's find out!


WET N WILD PHOTOFOCUS FOUNDATION


When this foundation was launched in 2017 it got rave reviews, with beauty gurus on Youtube comparing it to their favorite high-end foundations. The main selling point is that it was "tested under 7 light conditions" to deliver "flawless camera-ready makeup" and "prevent white cast in photos". I should have known from the claims that it wasn't for me... I can't remember the last time someone took a picture of me with a flash, and the foundations that I think look the best in pictures (that I take for this blog) are often the ones that I don't like at all in real life. But this foundation's reputation was so good overall that I thought it should be worth my $6. It wasn't.

First let's start with the good: the packaging is good quality and quite convenient. The Photofocus foundation comes in a sturdy glass bottle (great point for 6 bucks) with a sort of plastic paddle that you can use to dot product on your face before you blend it out. Most people would prefer a pump, but sometimes pumps can be hard to control. I thought this paddle thingy was easy to use, if not the most hygienic. That was it for the good.

Now for the rest: this foundation smells like toxic chemicals. I don't usually mind odors too much, but this is so bad that it made me hesitate to put it on my face. Then again, I don't expect the sensory experience with a $6 foundation to be as luxurious as I would for a $50 foundation, so I could have lived with it. But it just doesn't look good on my skin.

Despite being a rather light fluid, it feels thick and sticky, which makes it hard to blend. Forget using your fingers or a brush, the result is disastrous both ways. But even with a sponge, it tends to look patchy as it doesn't want to spread evenly across the skin. When I press it into the skin with my beauty blender I can hear a "squish", like it's so sticky that it creates a suction effect when I lift the sponge.

I've tried all the possible methods to apply it over a half-dozen different primers, and it never, ever looked smooth. It sits on top of the skin looking horrendously dry. I don't even have dry skin, I have combo skin, but it makes me look like I have dry patches! It also emphasizes fine lines and sinks into pores - not surprising for such a dry foundation. Basically it makes me look dried out and old....

A word about the color range: there is too much of a gap between the light and the light-medium shades, so I couldn't find one that matched me well. With drugstore brands "light" shades are often more light-medium and too rosy, but here Wet n Wild really did create truly light colors in different undertones, so kuddos to them for doing that. The issue is that Soft Ivory, the light shade with warm undertones, is way too light for me (I think that's the first time it ever happened with a drugstore foundation) but the next warm shade in the range, Soft Beige, is too dark and orange. This foundation being medium to full coverage it's a bit of a problem!

This foundation reminds me a lot of the Smashbox Studio Skin Foundation - another foundation I don't like. In fact I'd say it's a dupe, only just a bit dryer. So if the Smashbox is something you love, you may want to give the Photofocus a try, if you don't have dry skin.


WET N WILD MEGACUSHION CONTOUR AND HIGHLIGHT


Aren't these little boxes cute? I have a cushion highlighter from Lancôme that I absolutely love, so I was hoping to enjoy this much more affordable version as well. As for the contour, it's a step I rarely do in my makeup routine, so I was thinking that a cushion could be an easy and convenient way to contour more often.

First of all, although the packaging is adorable, I can't say that it's very sturdy. All cushion makeup I had tried before had double lids to prevent the actual cushion inside from drying out. The MegaCushion has a cheap, flimsy version of that with a screw top, and an inner lid that you just push down to protect the sponge. After the very first use, that inner lid didn't want to fit in properly anymore in both cushions. The sponge that comes with them is pretty useless, it's just too big for detailed application.

Let's talk about the MegaCushion Highlight first. As far as I know it only comes in one shade, called Who's That Pearl, a neutral ivory with very fine shimmer. The product in the compact is a lightweight, creamy liquid, and I do like the texture. The thing is that it tends to disappear as you blend it, leaving only a faint veil of shimmer. Another issue I noticed is that it can disturb any foundation I'm wearing underneath, making it look patchy. This is nothing like my Lancôme cushion highlighter, sadly...


Now about the MegaCushion Contour: it's actually my favorite product from this Wet n Wild haul. The one shade available, Café Au Slay, is a little too warm to be a true contour, if you ask me. But the liquid texture blends well, it dries down to an undetectable, weightless finish, and I like it to add warmth to face - so more as a bronzer. I didn't find that this one messed up my foundation, so I think I'll keep using it!



WET N WILD MEGAGLO HELLO HALO LIQUID HIGHLIGHTER


This is a brand new product by Wet n Wild, and so far I have only seen positive reviews. I bought it in the lightest shade called Halographic, a creamy white with a rosy, purplish shift. It comes in a wide glass tube (again, awesome for a $6 product) and a giant doe-foot applicator with a reservoir in the middle.

I've loved all the liquid highlighters I've tried so far, such as Becca Opal, so I didn't think I could somehow dislike Hello Halo, and yet I do. I might be the only one too! The white base color in Halographic is rather sheer, but not enough to disappear completely once blended on the skin where it sinks into my pores. So I have tiny white dots visible under the sheen...

Then I find it hard to blend on top of foundation. It's fine on bare skin, but again, it disturbs, melts and lifts any foundation I'm wearing underneath, adding to the patchy white pores mess. I tried different brushes or sponges to blend it out but I could only apply it with my fingers to minimize the problem.

And then the effect is not at all what I had expected. The rose shift looks rather discreet in the tube, but it's very prominent once blended on the cheekbones. Unless I apply only a tiny amount (which is difficult with the giant doe-foot), I get a very strong rose metallic sheen - I wasn't able to capture that on the swatches unfortunately. I thought it would be more of a whitish silver or ivory with a bit of pink and bluish flash, but it's much more colorful than expected. That could be a good or a bad thing depending on what you're looking for, but I find it a bit too rosy for myself.

Wearing Wet n Wild face products: Photofocus foundation in Soft Ivory, MegaCushion Contour under cheekbone and around forehead MegaCushion Highlight on center of face Hello Halo in Halographic on cheekbone (no airbrushing)

Unfortunately it looks like I've wasted my money at the drugstore again... The foundation is just plain bad for me, the highlighters are mediocre at best, and the contour is just okay. The foundation is going straight to the trash, and the two highlighters will follow as soon as I can shake away the guilt of throwing away my money. I will keep the MegaCushion Contour and use it as a liquid bronzer, but I wouldn't go out of my way to buy it again.




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