Milk Makeup review: "I put over £200 worth of product to the test, here's what I thought"
There aren’t many beauty brands that have reached cult status and remained effortlessly cool throughout the years, but Milk Makeup has amassed a well-deserved following. Famous for their simple-to-use, multipurpose products, Milk’s offerings are both easy to apply and fun to play around with.
Their Hydro Grip Primer has risen to TikTok fame and their Future Fluid Concealer is beloved by celebs, so it’s safe to say, there’s a lot of hype. It’s also not a brand that drops new launches constantly, priding itself on its curated cruelty-free and vegan lineup.
While I reach for the brand’s products in my makeup stash frequently, I thought it was time to evaluate their portfolio as a whole, so I can actually say which of their hyped-up products are really worth the cash. Here, I review which Milk products are worth buying and the ones that I probably wouldn’t add to my collection again.
Milk Makeup Sculpt Stick
Social media feeds everywhere were concerned when the brand's iconic bronzer was reformulated and came out of the production line Polly Pocket-sized (yet exactly the same price), but I actually found the newer, diddy version more slick to use than its chunkier predecessor.
Not only does it take up less space in your makeup bag, but it’s the perfect size to sculpt out cheeks. The creamy formula was effortless to blend and I appreciated the cool-toned shade offerings. For a cream product, I was happily surprised at its long-lasting power, too.
Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Primer
I was embarrassingly late to the game with this viral primer. The hydrating hyaluronic acid-packed base aims to keep makeup sticking around for a mega 12 hours after application. It’s safe to say, my skin soaked up the jelly texture greedily.
I’ve never used a primer quite like it; it leaves a tacky – but not sticky – film over the skin that really did encourage my foundation to latch on. Usually, this comes hand-in-hand with dryness, but no dehydration occurred. It did make foundations on the dewier side appear more matte, so if you’re after more of a glow, this might not be for you. However, it locked in my matte foundations, managing to keep grease at bay without leaving my skin uncomfortably dry.
Milk Makeup Sunshine Skin Tint Broad Spectrum SPF30
Speaking of fans of a glowy base, this vegan silky tint is sunshine in a bottle – AKA, perfect selfie material. Formulated to keep you protected from the said sun with SPF30, this super-glowy number delivered on hydration and left my skin looking healthier, with pores and unevenness masked in one swipe.
It is only available in 14 shades – which the brand claims are due to its subtle coverage – but even so, this is quite limited considering the 40+ options some brands boast. If you’ve got oily skin, I wouldn’t touch this with a barge pole (dramatic? Me? No), but if you’re on the drier side this will be a godsend. The rollerball applicator isn’t the most effective (mine often got jammed with product), but the clicky pump button at the base gave me a serious throwback to those old-school highlighter pens.
Milk Makeup Future Fluid All Over Cream Concealer
I had high hopes for this Hailey Bieber-approved concealer and it didn’t disappoint. For those who don’t like the cakiness of a foundation, this creamy concealer is both lightweight and pigmented, so it’s ideal to use in those areas that just need a bit of a touch-up.
With 30 shades to pick from, I was pleasantly surprised at how hydrating and blendable this was. It did a decent job at both covering up any breakouts and camouflaging my under-eye bags, leaving a natural-looking finish. I also appreciated the packaging that prevented too much product from coating the applicator – no wastage to see here.
Milk Makeup Kush Brow Lamination Gel
One of the brand’s newest launches on the scene, this clear gloss aims to cheat a brow lamination to leave arches looking fluffy, whilst also keeping them in check. The formula is one of the driest brow gels I’ve come across, leaving behind an almost rubbery texture on hairs. Either way, it made them stay put and added more fluffiness and volume.
If you love a sculpted look, this will help achieve the desired effect with minimal effort. The two-sided brush allows you to coat hairs with the longer side, whilst the shorter side helps you define – we love a 2-in-1.
Milk Makeup Mini Lip + Cheek
As the blush counterpart to the sculpting stick, this has the same miniature format but aims to give you a flush of colour, instead of defining cheekbones. It’s the same creamy formula that makes it fuss-free to blend, leaving cheeks looking flush and healthy.
The colourful dewy sheen didn’t last quite as long as the contour option, but the easy application and dinky size means I can easily reapply on the go.
Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Setting Spray
I’ve tried many setting sprays in my time but never found they had much impact on my makeup's lasting power, which means they often sat collecting dust. However, I kept reaching for this multi-phase spray.
It provides an ideal mist – i.e., not so targeted that it feels like a damp ride on Splash Mountain – and really does give dusty worn makeup a new lease of life. Just remember to shake it like a martini before application and voila!
Milk Makeup Rise Waterproof Mascara
To put it mildly, I did not get on with the OG Rise Mascara; it was not the flake-free experience I had hoped for. This new waterproof version did curb the smudging that I experienced with its predecessor and created a subtle fanned-out look to my lashes, but if you’re looking for drama, this is not the one.
It’s nice but it didn’t wow my lashes, therefore I’d finish it but probably wouldn’t crack open a new tube once I’m done.
Milk Makeup Color Chalk
Want your lids to look like they’ve been dipped in gold? Look no further. These bricks of gilded chalk are a bit messy and fiddly to deal with – it really is just a loose stick in a plastic case – but the wet look they leave behind is seriously blinding.
I can’t say they’re crease-proof, but tbh, they’re such a thing of beauty I almost don’t mind. Depending on the shade, they can also be used as a blush or highlighter, too.
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