DUPE: Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz vs. NYX Micro Brow Pencil
2:15 AM
Hello beauty lovers!
Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely cannot live without my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. And I mean cannot live without in the most literal sense. I always have to have at least 3 brand new, unopened Brow Wiz pencils in my stockpile in addition to one that I'm currently using. Therefore, I think it's safe to say that I'm always very hesitant to try any new brow products. However, for months and months and months I've been seeing people rave about the NYX Micro Brow Pencil as being a dupe for my holy grail ABH Brow Wiz and it intrigued me, to say the least. In fact, it intrigued me enough to finally bite the bullet and make the purchase hoping it would be an exact dupe for my pricier holy grail brow pencil.
With that said, here is a dupe comparison of the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz and NYX Micro Brow Pencil, as well as my thoughts on the NYX Micro Brow Pencil integrated throughout the comparison. Please feel free to click the photos to enlarge.
Let's talk price, amount of product, and where to purchase each product. The Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz contains 0.085g of product and is C$27.00 at www.sephora.ca. The NYX Micro Brow Pencil contains 0.085g of product and is C$12.00 at www.nyxcosmetics.ca.
In terms of packaging, as you can see from the photos, the packaging of the pencils are almost identical to each other. They are both very slim, retractable pencils with a spoolie brush on the other end of the packaging. I think that the only (very slight) difference between them packaging-wise is that the spoolie on the NYX Micro Brow Pencil is a little less dense than the ABH Brow Wiz. In other words, the spaces between each spiral of bristles are spread a little further apart than on the ABH Brow Wiz spoolie.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get the exact colour dupe for the ABH Brow Wiz "Dark Brown" shade that I normally use for my brows in the NYX Micro Brow Pencil (shade "Espresso"), so I will not be able to speak on weather there is a definite shade match between the two pencils. The ABH Brow Wiz and Brow Pomade and the NYX Micro Brow Pencil and Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade have corresponding shades, so if you want to see a shade comparison between the two brands, a post is up on my Instagram feed comparing the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade in Dark Brown to the NYX Tame & Frame Tinted Brow Pomade in Espresso. You can click the link in the sidebar or click here. If anyone is wondering why I picked up the NYX Micro Brow Pencil in Taupe when I usually use a dark brown shade, I use Taupe to help feather out the front ends of my brows. It's great for gradually fading the darker end of my brows into the inner half of my brows and avoiding that "boxy" look.
Moving on, let's talk about texture, pigmentation, and application. Again, these two products are very similar in all three aspects. Both pencils have a bit of a waxy texture, have just the right amount of pigmentation for a brow pencil, and both pencils give you enough control to create hair-like strokes. I do find that the NYX Micro Brow Pencil is a little bit waxier and drier than the ABH Brow Wiz, which does affect application just the slightest bit. The ABH Brow Wiz applies a little smoother than the NYX Micro Brow Pencil. Also, because I have the NYX Micro Brow Pencil in a lighter shade, in conjunction with my darker brows and the slightly waxier formula, I find that it takes a bit of a heavier hand to get the pigmentation to the perfect amount, but I don't think I would have this problem had I picked up my regular, dark brown shade. Other than that, I really can't find any other difference in the formulas of the two pencils.
Finally, lasting power. As someone with very sparse, lightly pigmented brows, it's absolutely essential that my brows do not smudge or fade throughout the day. With my years of experience using the ABH Brow Wiz, I know that it is water-resistant (I mean, don't be scrubbing it with water or anything), smudge-resistant (again, won't budge as long as you're not vigorously rubbing your brows), and lasts all day without fading. I've slept, gone to the gym, and even swam with my brows done using the ABH Brow Wiz and they did not go anywhere - still perfect even after those activities. So this was the true test for the NYX Micro Brow Pencil. While I've only used it once, I can attest to it being water-resistant, as I left a swatch on my hand all day and it was still there after my constant hand-washing and two showers. It is also smudge- and smear- resistant, like the ABH Brow Wiz, as I had the product on my brows all day and through a nap with no fading, transferring, or any signs of my oils breaking the product down. I have not worn it through a work-out, but an equally make-up obsessed friend of mine did wear hers through her work out and they still looked fantastic when she was finished (she sent pictures and her brows looked like she had just filled them in!).
Overall, I think the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz and NYX Micro Brow Pencil are spot on, (nearly) perfect dupes for each other formula-wise. Although I've grown so attached to my ABH Brow Wiz that I don't think I'll ever completely stop using it, I think NYX has converted me in the brow department. The NYX Micro Brow Pencil is more than half the price of the ABH Brow Wiz and contains the same amount of product, with the difference in formula so minuscule that it's almost unrecognizable. I just might start opting for the NYX Micro Brow Pencil over my holy grail Brow Wiz - might,
Xo,
Marian
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