Dupe? Nudestix Eyebrow Stylus & Gel vs Australis Tag Team Brow Pencil & Gel - #RivetReview

I love finding product dupes. They're a great way to get a similarly performing formula or a colour match at a more wallet friendly price point. In today's post, the focus is on a product from Sephora, versus a product from Priceline. Which one will win?

Nudestix vs Australis

Nudestix and Australis are two brands I hold up in my highest echelon. Both are cruelty free and boast a wide array of high quality products in on-trend colours, but when I discovered that one of the new releases from the latter, a drugstore favourite in Australia, resembled a product extremely similar to the former, at less than half the price, I was intrigued to compare the two.

Nudestix, a Canadian "makeup in a pencil" brand empire run by millennial entrepreneurs, Ally and Taylor Frankel (and their wonderful Mum, Jenny), brought out their Eyebrow Stylus Pencil and Gel to Australian Sephora stores in 2016. The special slanted, triangular pencil was designed to fill in brows quickly, and also to precisely draw in fine details, followed by a strong hold, waterproof eyebrow gel to keep everything in place.

I had met the team in July 2016 at the Sephora Exclusive Brands Showcase, and tried out the beautiful pencil on my hand. In November 2016, after having been invited to the opening of Sephora at Westfield Warringah Mall, the Nudestix Eyebrow Stylus & Gel in "Brown Black" was in my basket and purchased.

The product comes as the Nudestix signature form of a chunky, matte black pencil with their shiny black logo. The top of the pencil unscrews to produce a mini mascara wand and brow gel. The pencil itself is packaged in a Nudestix tin, complete with magnified mirror, to get your look on the go. I love the little tins, even if you use up the product entirely, you still have something to keep.

Left, Pencil + Box; Top Right, Brow Gel Wand, Bottom Right, swatches sideways, length ways, and fine tip.

Thoughts?
I knew from the moment I saw this, that I was going to purchase it. It took some time, but I did, and I don't regret it at all. The colour is spot on – a cool toned dark brown leaning into black that matches my brows perfectly. The crayon texture goes on smoothly, is pigmented, and doesn't budge. The gel sets hard and makes sure that not a single hair goes astray.

The pencil mechanism is a bit loose, I do believe that it's a packaging fault, and it does make the product difficult to use (the pencil decides to twist itself down when I hold it by the end and apply), however, it's probably an isolated issue; I really don't mind, I don't feel that I wasted anything on this.

Nudestix Eyebrow Stylus & Gel $35.00AUD - vegan friendly, available in four shades from Sephora stores in Australia.

Striking similarities. Which one is which? Australis Tag Team  NudestixBrow Stylus

Australis, on the other hand, is a brand I've been familiar with since my youth, and given that it turned 30 in 2016, I had received Tag Team in a press package along with some of the other new products released at the time. The idea of the crayon textured brow pencil is the same, however, the Australis version is made in China, whilst the Nudestix version is made in Korea.

Left, Pencil; Top Right, Brow Gel; Bottom Right, swatches sideways, length ways, and fine tip.

The pencil packaging is opposite to the former, being a shiny black chunky pencil with the product name in shiny hot magenta. The colour I have is "Black". I feel that the formula is quite similar to the regular Australis Eyebrow Pencil that you sharpen, but it comes in a much more convenient form, however, it is not vegan friendly due to containing Beeswax.

Thoughts?
I don't think this one is as easy to apply. It takes a bit of work to use and get the same result, and the colour payoff isn't as strong as the Eyebrow Stylus, nor as precise. I don't think the product lasts as long either (especially when it's hot, the sweat and oils that accumulate can wash the pigment away. The gel however, works very well to keep brow hairs in place, and I can always clean the edges for a crisp brow with a pointed cotton tip.

Australis Tag Team Eyebrow Pencil & Gel $14.95AUD - available in four shades from Priceline stores or directly from Australis Cosmetics.

But is it a DUPE?

I do think it's a dupe, however, the precision of Nudestix probably makes it the winning contender, but if you're on a budget, Australis Tag Team does the job, unless you're after a vegan product.

Looks

Nudestix Eyebrow Stylus used in this look.

Australis Tag Team used in this look.

Have you tried either of these? Let me know in the comments below!

Nudestix Eyebrow Stylus was purchased by me and Australis Tag Team was received as a PR sample. My thoughts are honest.