London - Women all over the UK are raiding their husbands’ bathroom cabinets – for an aftershave balm.
Although the £5.35 (about R115) Nivea cream is designed to moisturise and soothe men’s skin, beauty experts are hailing it as “the world’s best” primer, which keeps foundation looking flawless all day.
And online reviews from women raving about its ability to boost the staying power of make-up back up those claims.
Fashion and beauty bloggers say the balm is more effective and far cheaper than products sold specifically as primers, with some leading brands costing as much as £28 for 30ml.
Dutch YouTube star Nikkie de Jager is credited with publicising the benefits to women from the Nivea Men Sensitive Post Shave Balm.
She told her 2.8 million subscribers that she accidentally discovered the product’s benefits after forgetting to bring her moisturiser to her boyfriend’s house.
She said: “I realised my make-up looked flawless all day long and thought, is this because of the Post Shave Balm?
“I looked up the ingredients and the second most used ingredient in the balm is glycerine. What does glycerine do? It’s going to make whatever you put on your face stick to it.”
The high concentration of glycerine gives skin a tacky finish which is perfect for make-up to cling to.
One review left for the product on the Boots website reads: “I am female and I use this as a make-up primer. It works amazingly and my foundation stays in place all day. It’s cheap and good value.”
Another read: “Although I do not use this product in its conventional sense, it works amazingly as an everyday make-up primer.
“After hearing a lot of YouTubers talking about this product, I had to give it a try.
“And I really am impressed, it’s affordable and does a pretty good job at keeping my makeup lasting all day, even on my oily sensitive skin.”
The product also receives favourable reviews from men who use it as a shaving balm.
Daily Mail