Setting Spray Showdown Round 2: One/Size, MAC, Milk, Danessa Myricks, Milani, and Hourglass

Welcome back to the Setting Spray showdown! This is the second full round in my setting spray showdown series, where I’m testing popular formulas side by side to see what actually makes a difference in real life. I’ll be doing the same makeup, with the same lighting, for at least 16 hours for each test. I’ve also been testing all of these setting sprays for months before doing these elimination rounds. For this round, I did all of the matches in this post since I’ve already talked about each spray at length in previous posts. In this post, all links are affiliate links (thank you for your support!), but all opinions are my own.

Round 2, Match 1: One/Size On ’Til Dawn Mattifying vs MAC Fix+ Stay Over – This one was honestly frustrating to kick off this round with because these are two of my favorite setting sprays, and I’d genuinely recommend either depending on what you want. If you’re looking for a more matte, smoothed, blurred finish and maximum hold for your makeup, One/Size absolutely delivers. It mattifies, blurs, and keeps everything in place all day. But the MAC Fix+ Stay Over surprised me by keeping my makeup staying looking good just as well as the One/Size while also having a better skin finish. It managed to smooth and blur while still maintaining a hydrated, skin like, slightly dewy finish, and my makeup still stayed together all day. I was really impressed that it held its own against the One/Size while also making my skin look hydrated and natural, so MAC is moving on. Note that I have dry skin and it’s the winter, so if you have combo or oily skin, you might really like One/Size.

Round 2, Match 2: Milk Makeup Hydro Grip vs Danessa Myricks Blurring Balm Spray – I want to be fair to Milk because on its own or compared to plenty of other sprays, it really does work well, but head to head, Danessa Myricks made it obvious which of these two was moving on. The Milk side looked good at the start, but it looked way more textured as the day went on and the makeup seemed to fall apart faster. By end of day, it looked a more broken up on that side, almost like I hadn’t used a setting spray at all relative to the other side. The Danessa Myricks side, meanwhile, stayed noticeably smoother, blurred, and put together all day long. Everything stayed melded and cohesive instead of separating and getting textured. Way more easily than I expected, Danessa Myricks is moving on.

Round 2, Match 3: One/Size Powder Melt vs Milani Make It Last Dewy – This was another round where I really struggled to pick a winner. Right after spraying, Milani Make It Last Dewy looked more natural, while One/Size Powder Melt looked noticeably glassier and glowier. Both melted my powders together nicely, but the Milani felt like it slightly thinned the makeup, while One/Size kept everything more intact at the start. By my 6:30 p.m. check in though, most people I sent photos to actually preferred the Milani side because it looked smoother, even though the One/Size side held the makeup a little better. By the end of the day, both sides honestly still looked great and I’m not sure you’d really be able to tell the difference. So, I’m giving this round to Milani for that tiny bit of a smoother, less textured, more natural finish overall, and the huge price difference between them. The One/Size is still one of my favorites, and I will absolutely be finishing this bottle, but I feel confident recommending the Milani for a dewy, melt your makeup together spray.

Bye round: Hourglass Veil Soft Focus moves on. Because of the number of sprays in this showdown, one of them had to get a bye round this time, and Hourglass Veil Soft Focus is the one moving on automatically based on how the bracket shook out. I don’t mind at all, because it was one of my favorites from Round 1, and I’m excited to see how it stacks up against the Milani Make It Last Dewy.

Who’s moving on from this round: MAC Fix+ Stay Over, Danessa Myricks Blurring Balm Spray, Milani Make It Last Dewy, and Hourglass Veil Soft Focus.

What other products would you like me to review? Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.

Setting Spray Showdown Round 1, Match 3: Milk Hydro Grip Dewy Setting Spray vs. e.l.f. Power Grip Dewy Setting Spray

This is the third match of the first round in my setting spray showdown series, where I’m testing popular formulas side by side to see what actually makes a difference in real life. I’ll be doing the same makeup, with the same lighting, for at least 16 hours for each test. I’ve also been testing all of these setting sprays for months before doing these elimination rounds. For this round,  I tested the Milk Hydro Grip Dewy Setting Spray against the e.l.f. Power Grip Dewy Setting Spray. In this post, all links are affiliate links (thank you for your support!), but all opinions are my own.

Today’s match is one I’ve been excited about because I’ve seen so many people say the e.l.f. is a dupe for the Milk. During my testing of them up to this point, I honestly liked them both pretty evenly, although I have been reaching for the Milk more. It’s actually almost half way empty even with all the setting sprays I’ve been test. Both sprays have a nice even mist, which I was pleasantly surprised by since the Milk is a mini and the e.l.f. is drugstore. Both sprays also smelled really nice, like being in a spa. Right away, the Milk spray felt more hydrating and the e.l.f. dried down noticeably faster. It honestly felt a little dry even before makeup was fully set.

By 11:30 AM, there was a super clear difference. The Milk side looked much more natural and hydrated in a way that made my skin look really healthy. The e.l.f. side looked dry and emphasized texture in places that normally don’t show any. It wasn’t stark, but I could definitely tell when they were side by side. When I asked my husband which side looked better, he chose the Milk side too without knowing which was which.

By the end of the day, the finish on both sides looked honestly looked pretty similar. The Milk side had basically caught up to the e.l.f. side in terms of looking too dry and textured instead of soft and blurred or staying dewy and hydrated. One thing that did stick out was the difference was in how the makeup held up. The Milk side stayed intact, while the e.l.f. side had much more wear and breakdown. Even though the finish evened out after 16ish hours, the Milk side still clearly held my makeup together better, and I could tell a huge difference side by side.

Who’s moving on?
If you want a setting spray that keeps your makeup looking hydrated, natural, and fresh while locking it in for the day, Milk Hydro Grip is the clear winner. The e.l.f. Power Grip does an okay job, but it couldn’t match the performance of the Milk, especially in how it handled texture and wear over time. The finish became dry way earlier and didn’t keep my makeup looking great all day. Even when the finish looked the same at the end of the day, the Milk side held the makeup itself noticeably better. I promise I found a drugstore gem, but for this one, the Milk Hydro Grip moves on!

Stay tuned for the next round and more chances for drugstore products to move on! What other products would you like me to review? Let me know if there’s anything else you’d like to see here, and thanks for reading! As always, some links may be affiliate links that support the blog, but all reviews/opinions are completely my own and unsponsored.