Up to this point, the Essence You Better Work line has been unsuccessful for me. The primer didn’t prime, the tinted moisturizer was too orange and the makeup fixing spray gave me an allergic reaction. So that was a bit of dud and you can understand that I was apprehensive when I ran out of eyeshadow primer and I had to start using a new one. Thinking I would have to give up on this as soon as the other products, but let me tell you: I am pleasantly surprised.
Essence You Better Work Eye Primer // Review, Swatch, Makeup Look
Let’s start with the first thing that is great about this primer: it’s price point. This is by far the most affordable eye primer I have ever tried. I like the Catrice one I tried, but this is even cheaper than that. It retails for just €2.89 and if that works well, then it is an absolute steal. Because eyeshadow primer is a product I use every. single. day. Without fail. So if this works well then this is a great products at a great price.
The Packaging
Eyeshadow primer never comes in the most revolutionary packaging, but still it is something I want to address. Some primers have a wand, but this just has a plain squeezy tube. The packaging works well with the other products in the You Better Work line and it also works well in terms of Essence’s line.
The Squeezy Tube
Depending on what you prefer, this packaging is great or it is not. I personally don’t have a preference for primer packaging as long as it hygienic. So this works well for me. I have liked wand like primers too because I feel it is easier to get to all of the product, but a squeezy tube like this works well too. The squeezy tube on this is very skinny so it is easy to control the amount of product you squeeze out.
The Swatch
I was surprised when I first squeezed this out. I was expecting this to be a transparent primer like the Catrice and Milani primers I have used in the past. But this ended up having a bit of a tint. It is subtle and not too noticeable but it is enough to even out the lid. The texture is no different to other eye primers, but I feel it is perhaps a bit thicker than most. It feels nice and creamy, goes on nicely and most importantly: it keeps my eyeshadow on all day.
The Application
With a product like this befores and afters are difficult to do. Ultimately what matters is that my makeup stays put, but even that it does so well that my makeup survives a full workday and it doesn’t look much different. So what I can show you most is the difference this makes when applied fresh. On the top is my lid without any primer. The bottom picture is with the primer applied. As you can see the effect is subtle, but it is still noticeably more even and there is less discoloration. So this makes for a great makeup base.
My Final Thoughts
The Essence You Better Work eye primer was a completely surprise to me. After having tried so many duds from the line, I was happy to find that it is not completely lost on me. This primer has been in my shop my stash for a few rounds by now and I intend on using this until it is used up. It is a great eye primer and it is cheap as chips to boot! What’s not to love?