Fast-forward to this month and Rare has finally landed in the UK at Space NK. As you might’ve expected, it’s already racking up five-star reviews. You’re probably thinking, Do we need another celebrity beauty brand, though? With the likes of Authored by Tanya Burr, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s Rose Inc. and Halsey’s about-face, you’d be forgiven for feeling a little overwhelmed. But Rare definitely feels different.
The blush in particular has amassed fans worldwide for being one of the most highly pigmented products out there. Then there’s mascara, liquid eyeliner, an eyeshadow palette and liquid highlighter — all of which Space NK reviewers seem to be in love with. Taking a cue from Fenty Beauty, there’s a wealth of foundation and concealer shades (48 each, to be exact), which means it has piqued the interest of beauty-obsessed YouTubers and TikTokers. How do the products fare on darker skin? “I expected nothing less,” said YouTuber OHEMAA of the foundation selection in a recent video. She championed the product for being “luminous, dewy and glowy” and, in a later review, said she was “absolutely in love” with it. TikToker @ris.monae said that Liquid Touch is her “fav foundation hands down” and the concealer has also been praised in TikTok comments for featuring yellow undertones to complement and enhance brown skin.
It all sounds very promising but is Rare Beauty really worth your hard-earned cash? Six R29 staffers and contributors put it to the test and here are their thoughts.
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Jacqueline
“Thanks to Fenty by Rihanna, Florence by Millie Bobby Brown and Lady Gaga’s Haus Laboratories, we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to celebrity makeup. Do we really need another brand? I asked myself when Selena Gomez’s Rare landed at Space NK. But I simply couldn’t ignore the hype on TikTok, not to mention the very high praise it has received from totally obsessed beauty editors.
I tried the Brow Harmony Pencil & Gel, £21, in Deep Brown and it was an exact match for my very dark arches. This is dual-ended so it features a twist-up brow pencil and a tinted brow gel. The nib on the pencil is angled and reminds me of a favourite of mine, Hourglass’ Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil, £33, though it’s a lot cheaper. It gave me the most snatched brows. In fact, it’s the best they’ve looked in months. That’s because the pencil is very pigmented but not too soft, so you can whip it through sparse hairs to create shape and definition without fuss. The tinted brow gel is much like Glossier’s cult Boy Brow, £16, but the brush is much smaller so it’s easier to be more precise and to avoid smudges. That said, I’d have preferred a clear brow gel as once I’d defined my brows with the pencil, I didn’t need to use the tinted gel for fear of brow overkill. I use brow pencils more so would prefer this to be two separate products. I can’t deny that they’re great, though!
The Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara, £19, is really, really good. Even without an eyelash curler it perked up my lashes and bulked them out in one single swoosh. I was actually taken aback by how quickly it thickened and lengthened without so much as a single clump; usually I need multiple coats. It even lasted a run outside in the sun without smudging an inch or flaking, and it was easy to remove with micellar water at the end of the day.
A confession: I hate liquid eyeshadow. It makes a mess and often dries too quickly to blend, lending lids a blocky, smudged look. But the Stay Vulnerable Liquid Eyeshadow in Nearly Neutral, £19, has converted me. It swipes on smooth and takes seconds to blend out using fingers, resulting in a very pretty, soft matte finish that looks just like a powder eyeshadow. The best part is that it stayed matte all day and didn’t melt away or collect in my creases. If you buy anything from Rare, make it this!
Winged eyeliner is my signature so I was very excited to try the Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner, £17. It fell short for me, though. Despite giving it a proper shake, the nib wasn’t wet enough and it took me a while to achieve the jet-black, feline flick I like. While the initial application looked a bit grey, I do like the shape and feel of the liner brush — it’s precise and soft but sturdy, too.”
Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Liquid Eyeshadow, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Brow Harmony Pencil & Gel, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner, $, available at Space NK
Maybelle
“It’s impossible to go on TikTok at the moment without scrolling through endless beauty influencers raving about Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty line. What I keep hearing is that it’s super pigmented without sacrificing how breathable it is for your skin — so naturally I was excited to try it. First up: Always An Optimist Pore Diffusing Primer, £13. Because I’m acne-prone, I have this irrational fear that primer will act like a plug to block all my pores and break me out but this one went on like a dream and instantly gave my skin a Photoshop-style, mattifying blur. I haven’t seen my skin look this good in such a long time; so much so that all I needed to go out were a few dabs of concealer. Next up: Lip Soufflé Matte Lip Cream, £19. Unfortunately I have super dry lips and this powdery texture immediately settled in the lines in my lips. I preferred it when I wiped it off (or struggled to wipe it off). It has serious staying power and the shade, Inspire, left a gorgeous, coral-blush stain, perfect for summer. I also tried the Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm in Nearly Neutral, £16. I’m obsessed with this brown-nude hydrating gloss, which honestly I’ve been applying every half an hour since I got it. I know it’s probably all in my mind but my lips feel plumper and more cushiony since it came into my life.”
Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Lip Soufflé Matte Lip Cream, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Always An Optimist Pore Diffusing Primer, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm, $, available at Space NK
Alicia
“I was really excited to finally try out Rare, especially after reading about the company’s ethos and accessible packaging when it first launched. The brand’s natural approach to beauty is definitely baked into the products, with everything falling under the Glossier-esque umbrella but with more of a focus on soft matte finishes than sheer ones. With dry skin, this scared me but the products turned out to be highly pigmented and easily spreadable on the skin. In particular, the Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, £19, really impressed me. I only needed a little to achieve a fresh, rosy look. Similarly, the Lip Souffle Matte Lip Cream, £19, was a big surprise, offering a light, fluffy formula that didn’t stick to the dry parts of the lips like most traditional liquid lipsticks. When it came to the liquid highlighter, the intense pink in the bottle gave me cause for concern but when applied it actually gave more of a silvery payoff, which worked well on my pale skin. The mascara is a nice touch to the kit but mostly wins for its handbag-friendly size rather than its substance.”
Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Lip Soufflé Matte Lip Cream, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer, $, available at Space NK
Vanese
“I’ve never seen so much hype and anticipation for a celebrity beauty brand like I did with Rare Beauty. I had been counting down the days until its UK launch. I struck gold back in November when I spent a few days in Paris and a lot of time in Sephora at the Rare Beauty stand. It’s been a few months now since I made my purchases and the results still have me shook!
The product I was most looking forward to trying out was the Lip Soufflé Matte Lip Cream, £19, and it did not disappoint. I picked up quite a few shades but my favourite by far has been Inspire, a buildable, bright red which instantly feels creamy on the lips and has a velvety matte finish. The lipstick is really lightweight and in just one swipe it lends quite a sheer colour that can easily be built up.
Next up is the Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner, £17, a waterproof liquid eyeliner in the darkest ultra-black I’ve ever seen. As someone who has struggled massively with trying to get my eyeliner to look semi-decent, I can confirm that this liner is truly one of the easiest to use. It has over 1,000 vegan bristles and there’s something about the angle that makes precision seem like a breeze. Honestly, my winged liner game has never been so strong.
Lastly, the Positive Light Liquid Luminizer in Transcend, £21, a captivating rose gold. A little really does go a long way. The first few times I tried the highlighter I applied far too much and had quite a tricky time blending it down (the glow was popping a bit too much for the morning). A small dot is just right for a nice pop of colour on the cheeks. The formula is nourishing and it layers well on top of makeup and skincare without any piling or separating. I’m ready for Rare Beauty to dominate the beauty space.”
Rare Beauty Lip Soufflé Matte Lip Cream, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer, $, available at Space NK
Kristine
“Like everyone else I haven’t managed to escape the hype about Rare Beauty so it’s safe to say I was quite excited to try out a few of the products. I was a bit sceptical about the selection I had on hand but everything really impressed me! I was worried the foundation was going to be too dark for me when I first saw it but I can’t get over how perfect a match it turned out to be. It’s a very natural-looking foundation which blends nicely and feels super light on the skin. I personally love that I can wear it sheer enough to show some of my freckles while evening out the redness I experience. I thought the mascara would clump just from looking at how big the brush is but it’s very lengthening and held up nicely throughout the day. The blush is so pigmented, I can’t believe how little you need. It blends out really easily to quite a natural, peachy flush and didn’t interfere with my foundation underneath. The highlighter was probably the most unexpected of all. I was a bit worried it would be too cold and glittery on my face but it actually just provided a beautiful sheen on the skin. I definitely plan to keep using what I’ve already tried but I’m quite keen to get my hands on some other products in the collection. It’s not often I want to go out and buy new makeup but Rare Beauty has me converted.”
Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Faves 4 Piece Mini Set, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer, $, available at Space NK
Sadhbh
“Embarking on this would genuinely be the first time I have worn eyeshadow since about May 2020. I have poor eyesight and have been less inclined to wear contacts as the years have gone by so I essentially have to relearn how to put on eye makeup. All I knew about this collection was what R29’s senior beauty editor Jacqueline told me (that it’s very hyped but the hype may well be worth it) and I trust her beauty judgement more than anyone — even Selena. For that reason, I was excited to dig in. I went for the Glossy Lip Balm in Nearly Neutral, £16, as a matte lip cream felt too much for a Monday morning (no hate to the matte lip cream fans). It’s a LOVELY product: glossy but not sticky, tinted enough to make lips look fuller with a pop of colour but subtle in a way you could forget you have it on and just think you’re having a good lip day. Is that a thing?
The Discovery Eyeshadow Palette, £28, is pretty – almost too pretty for my tastes! I’m not a glitter girl so I gravitated to the mattes and swept the shade Positive all over the lid. Back when I wore eyeshadow I liked solid, statement colours. This lived up to the hype and seemed to blend beautifully on the back of my hand with other shades.”
Rare Beauty Discovery Eyeshadow Palette in True To Myself, $, available at Space NK
Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm, $, available at Space NK
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