Around 18 months ago I had my very first experience of having my brows done at the Benefit Brow Bar and since then I have had my brows waxed and tinted at the brow bar when they need doing. For a few weeks after having my brows done, I don't need to pay much attention to them when applying my makeup and all I use is my Benefit Gimme Brow £20.00, I bought my first one the first time I had my brows done by Benefit and have re purchased it ever since as I love it and it is so easy to use.
Recently when making an Essence order online, I saw their Make Me Brow brow gel and remembered a conversation I had had with my good friend Gemma about it, we are both big fans of Essence cosmetics and she had recommended it to me quite a while ago, everything Gemma has ever recommended to me, I have loved, we have very similar tastes so I popped one into my online basket with high hopes.
As I said I have been using Benefit Gimme Brow for around 18 months and re purchased several times, I use the shade 01 Light but it is available in shades 02 Medium and 03 Deep too. When making my online Essence order I ordered their Make Me Brow £2.50 in the shade Blondy Brows 01, it is also available in the shade Browny Brow 02 but since I am shade 01 in the Gimme Brow I went for 01 in the Make Me Brow also.
When the Make Me Brow arrived, I did wonder if it could be a dupe for the Gimme Brow and I thought I would share my thoughts and findings with you all.
Product Similarities & Differences
Essence Make Me Brow
*Brow gel/mascara containing microfibres which adhere to the skin and hair.
*Cruelty Free.
*Contains 3.8ml of product.
*Available in 2 shades.
*Stays in place all day.
*Small brush making application simple.
Benefit Gimme Brow
*Brow gel/mascara containing microfibres which adhere to the skin and hair.
*NOT Cruelty Free.
*Contains 3ml of product.
*Available in 3 shades.
*Stays in place all day.
*Small brush making application simple.
Swatches
My Thoughts
After using both products for several weeks now, I have found that both are extremely similar, as you can see from the product similarities and differences, they are very similar in terms of how they perform, the shades are slightly different with the Essence being slightly lighter but for me it isn't a problem as I have blonde hair and when applied to the brows they don't actually look much different.
Both products apply with ease and stay in place all day, I find the Essence brush picks up more product than the Benefit but that may be with the brush being slightly bigger, it isn't a problem though as I wipe the brush off before using it.
The most obvious difference between the 2 products is the price with the Essence Make Me Brow being £2.50 and the Benefit Gimme Brow £20.00, making a £17.50 difference in price, which is a massive difference. The products apart from the Make Me Brow being slightly paler in colour are practically the same and if they were the exact same shade I would be saying these are a dupe.
I don't really like the word dupe much and for me a dupe should mean that the products perform the same, have the same consistency or texture and are the
For £17.50 less, a cruelty free product and slightly more for your money, I would definitely purchase the Essence Make Me Brow over the Benefit Gimme Brow any day of the week and I will not be re purchasing the Gimme Brow when I have an amazing product that is just as good and does exactly the same for such a lot less money, it really is a no brainer.
You can find the Gimme Brow on the Cult Beauty website priced at £20.00 and the Make Me Brow on the Wilko website priced at £2.50.
Have you tried either of these products? Do you like a good dupe product? Which would you buy given the shade is ever so slightly different? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
