The Cosmetics Company Store Review & Mini Haul

On a recent trip to Wrentham Premium Outlets I made a visit to the Cosmetics Company Store.  This is basically an outlet store for makeup, skincare and fragrances. They sell only Estee Lauder-owned brands such as MAC, Bobbi Brown, Origins, Clinique and obviously Estee Lauder.  The products they sell are overstock, discontinued and limited-edition releases that are no longer sold at counters or stores. So here is what I bought:

Hey Sailor Blush in Launch Away!

(Summer 2012)

This is a pale pink satin finish blush.  It applied smooth and looks subtle on.  I tend to apply my blush pretty sheer, but it can be applied more heavily to get the true petal pink color as seen in the swatch. I think this will be lovely for spring!



Marilyn Monroe - Showgirl Large Eyeshadow

(Fall 2012)

So I ignored the bad reviews I'd read about the Marilyn Monroe Eyeshadows and picked this up.  I'll admit it, I was drawn in by the beautiful packaging.  I really loved this collection when it came out last fall and I own several pieces already.

The quality isn't terrible, but it isn't great either.  Kind of dry and flaky, I had to pack it on a few times on my eye to get true to pan color.  I do love the color though, sort of a light navy. It has a Veluxe Pearl finish and is double the size of a regular MAC eyeshadow.

I was thinking I would use this to create a one shadow look but when I wore this over the weekend I found I needed a little brown in the crease to warm it up.

In Extra Dimension - Extra Dimension Blush in Blazing Haute

(Spring 2013)

This blush is from a fairly recent MAC collection and I actually wanted to get this blush when it came out but it was sold out online so I was psyched to see it here!

The color is bright and frankly a little scary when swatched, but it looked surprisingly natural on my skin. Color is buildable and can be sheered out, which was necessary as I'm pretty pale right now. I will probably get more use of of this in the summer months.

Final Thoughts:

Like most outlet stores, expect for things to be picked through, but you can find some Gems! Its definitely hit or miss. I was so excited to see some items from some of my favorite past MAC collections!

Discounts were not as deep as I was hoping for, somewhere around 20-30%.

Keep in mind the potential age of the products.  I wouldn't buy things that have a short shelf life such as mascara or lip products since its tough to say how long they were already sitting on the shelf. I actually saw some things from the MAC To The Beach collection that I knew was pretty old.  I looked it up and this is from summer 2010...glad I passed!

Another thing to note is that if you are looking for help from the sales staff their knowledge seems to be more limited than those at the regular stores or counters who are generally makeup artists.  Expect the salespeople to greet you when you walk in, ask if you need help and then leave you alone to shop.  But to me this was refreshing because I personally hate it when salespeople hover over your shoulder. My shopping philosophy is I like to look around myself and if I need help I ask for it. When the salespeople are lingering it makes me uncomfortable and I usually end up leaving empty handed.

What has your experience been at the Cosmetics Company Store?

-Monica