Hey, girlfriend! Welcome to another new series I’m starting here on the blog! If you follow several “influencers” on Instagram, chances are you’ve scrolled through stories rolling your eyes at everyone raving about the exact same products. It’s kind of odd, right? I mean, how can ALL of these products appeal to EVERYONE? At the end of the day, it has to be one of two things:
- They’re fibbing and getting paid to give these reviews. (This has been my assumption in the past.)
- The products are ACTUALLY that good.
So this is where I come in. I’ve been on both sides of the fence here – I’ve been the consumer spending her hard-earned money praying that these girls aren’t just trying to make a dollar. And NOW I use my platform to share products I love. (And of course, when you trust my opinion and purchase through my links, I make a small commission off that recommendation.) I hope that if you’re here reading this in the first place that you know I would never sell my honesty for a single penny. So let’s skip the part where I beg you to believe that my reviews (good or bad) are my authentic feelings. Instead, I’m gonna jump right into sharing 5 Overly Hyped Products: Are They Worth It?! Be sure to leave a comment below with another hyped-up product you want me to review!
1. Amazon Facial Cleansing Brush ($32.99)
“Deep pore cleansing, removes makeup, dirts, and oils, and over 1,500 5-star reviews on Amazon!” That’s the statement that got me with this purchase. Do you remember when Clarisonics used to be all the rage?! Those babies will run you between $150-200. AND THIS ONE DOES THE EXACT SAME THING FOR A FRACTION OF THE COST. It’s easy to use, easy to charge, and it WORKS. Since the brush head is a natural exfoliator, it’s a little bit of an aggressive facial cleansing method. Because of that, I prefer to only use mine 2-3 times a week when I’m removing my makeup. But when I do use it, my face feels SPARKLING clean and there’s never any makeup remnants. I’m giving it 4 stars only because it’s not a product I use daily! (CHECK OUT MY SKINCARE ROUTINE POSTS HERE)
FINAL RATING: 4 || WORTH THE HYPE? YES.
2. Colorful Koala Leggings ($29.99)
ICYMI, I shared about these leggings on my Instagram stories + feed recently. Since I’ve always been a Lululemon advocate, I was super skeptical to take the plunge on these (even though they shockingly had 7,000+ 5-star ratings on Amazon). I thought there was NO WAY I’d find leggings that compared to my Lulus, especially for just $30. BUT BOY WAS I WRONG! This is definitely the closest dupe I’ve found to Lululemon Aligns. They come in so many prints/colors, they’re soft yet high-compression, and they don’t stretch out during my workouts! The only reason I’m docking half a point is because Kendall says he can tell a difference in the way these complement my figure in comparison to my Lulus! Otherwise, HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
FINAL RATING: 4.5 || WORTH THE HYPE? YES.
3. Verb Energy Bars $19.99/bag
Another “ICYMI” review! Ohhh, the infamous Verb bars. These 90-calorie miniature bars have 100mg of caffeine, and they’ve FLOODED the blogger community for what feels like forever. Everyone says they taste amazing, that they give you the perfect amount of energy, and then tells you to “swipe-up” to get your own. Well I’m here to partially debunk the reviews. Y’all, these do not taste good. They just don’t. I’ve tried 4 flavors, and they’re the furthest thing from yummy. BUT WITH THAT SAID, they do give you an incredible spurt of energy! I recommend them to people who’d prefer to eat their caffeine rather than drink it. In all honesty, Kendall and I are on our second bag. We use them for an afternoon pick-me-up – and I do feel “in the zone” after eating one! The best part is that you can try out their 4 best-selling flavors for FREE through this link: https://www.verbenergy.co/flex/try. Be sure to let me know your thoughts! (PS – I make zero dollars and zero cents through that link)
FINAL RATING: 3.5 || WORTH THE HYPE? MAYBE.
4. Gimme Beauty Hair Ties $6.00
THE BEST THING TO HAPPEN TO ME IN 2020. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration. But y’all, these are the real deal. I have extremely fine hair, so regular hair ties pull out globs of hair when I remove them, and they also leave a terrible crease in my hair. The Gimme Beauty ones are the complete opposite: they last all day, they keep their stretch, they don’t damage your hair AT ALL, they’re easy to remove, and they have SO many options to choose from. You can purchase based on both your hair color + your hair type! If there’s anything I recommend purchasing from today’s list of items, it’s these! (USE CODE AA50OFF for 50% OFF) (I have THIS type.)
FINAL RATING: 5 || WORTH THE HYPE? HECK YES.
5. Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer $49.99
I’ve talked about this a few times on both my blog and my Instagram stories, but this dryer has been flooding my feed for months now! I bought it at the beginning of this year to keep in my gym bag and use in the mornings before work. I love the price, I love that it’s a two-in-one dryer + brush, and I love the volume it gives to the roots of your hair! The only reason I docked a point is because it gets SO HOT. I highly recommend it to girls with thick, frizzy, or curly hair, but I cautiously recommend it to my fine-haired friends! It can sizzle your hair if you’re not careful. Tune into my Instagram stories today to see a tutorial of me using it! (It’s also on sale right now for $49.99! Such a steal for a hair dryer.)
