August 16, 2010

God, What Is That Smell? Cosmetics That Stink!

Thanks to reader Florence for this post who kindly pointed out that one of her lipsticks smelled like…ahem…pee. I haven’t run into that variety of lipstick myself to be honest but lord knows I’ve run across my fair share of cosmetics, skincare, and beauty bits and bobs that do STINK!

I’ve had people tell me that Lush Face Masks smell like….well…perhaps I shouldn’t say that one out loud.

Now I’m talking about rancid, nasty smells here because I know some of you think that cherry flavored and scented lip gloss is the devil’s work. I personally love lipgloss or lipsticks that are flavored and scented nicely…..so I asking you about some really gross, disgusting smelling stuff here and it isn’t cherry honey!

The award for worst offender for me in the smelly category goes to…

Jump!

Hope in a Jar.

It smells like wet dog.

Wet, smelly, I didn’t wash my dog for a week stench.

Seriously.

Have some hanging around? Go take a whiff and get back to me. You’ll agree it smells like some wet, nasty dog stench.

Now it’s your turn….

What are some of the stinkiest beauty and makeup bits you have hanging out in your stash?

Share ’em!

Maybe I’ll agree….!

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • niewniewjen

    HERBALISM by lush >._>” I know some people love it, but I die when I use it in the shower Q_Q

    • the Muse

      LOL jen yup I def DO NOT touch herbalism with a ten foot pole even though people proclaim how incredible it is. Nope, no way!

    • Helena

      Has anyone tried Skin Doctors Breton face cream? I just bought some & to me it smells like urine!

  • FrenkUzumu

    I’ve found out that products containing pomegranate smells off and plasticy. >.< I have my Desert Essence Anti-oxidant serum and Now Foods Anti Oxidant moisturiser I've bought from iherb.com, both smell awful! x.x
    I also hated the smell of tea tree products, reminded me of mosquito sprays. But then it grew on me, now I like it!

    • Jasmine

      I agree with you! girl you’re not alone lol Pomegranate-scented stuff give me this plasticky fake grape vibe. Burt’s Bees Replenishing lip balm really sealed the deal for me >_<

      thing is they don't smell too bad to some people though, it's a case of one man's meat is another man's poison

    • artemis

      It may seem fake, indeed, but that’s how it really smells and it’s a lovely smell <3

  • makeup morsels

    Prescriptives Vibrant-C Skin Brightening Cream Moisturizer. It smells like something synthetic…died. I don’t even know how to describe the smell. It’s not even that heavy, but it still makes me feel like gagging. It’s a great moisturizer though lol

  • meghan

    1. OMG not only does hope in a jar smell bad but it also messed up my skin!
    2. i have a hyaluronic serum face treatment that smells like honey cough drops that have gone bad. It’s a really strong smell too!
    3. Not a smell but taste, Urban Decay lipsticks have a really strong chemical-y taste to them. Not everyone can taste it, but I’ve had a number of other people say the same thing. I still buy their lipsticks (because they’re awesome) but it’s kind of a drag.

    • the Muse

      meghan I’ve tried disregard the smell and what it does to my skin for YEARS now. I almost had myself convinced it really was Hope in a Jar but nope just wet dog in a jar hehe!

      eep cough drop smelling skincare not good. Alot of people say that to me but I honestly never noticed mostly I get cherry-ish perfume going on with UD

  • Iris

    NYX round lipgloss…it smells like dishwashing detergent, seriously! That lipgloss has this disgusting chemical lemon smell…which was a pity b/c the gloss itself is quite good and very budget frdly, only $2!

      • Linda

        Their round lipstick is the one that smells like dishwasher soap to me. Taste nasty too.
        Don’t care much for their basic ipgloss too.

        But I love their megashine gloss.

    • Anny

      Totally agree with the dish soap smell……….. That was the first thing come to my mind when I tried on those round lipsticks

  • jerseygrrrl78

    Ulta recently added a lip stain to their cosmetic line that tastes and smells like Robitussin! Bleh! Other than that it’s a pretty decent, long wearing stain that gives lips a nice wash of color. Very similar in formula to Vincent Longo’s lip/cheek stain.

    • the Muse

      ugh jerseygirl wth is with brands that do the cough syrupy taste 😛 lola is so guily of that.

  • Mary

    I don’t have anything in my stash that smells TOO offensive, but I’ve used my UD Pocket Rocket no more than about 3 times because, although many people rave about it’s scent, I cannot STAND how artificial it smells. 🙁

    • the Muse

      mary hated PR smell at first but than for some reason it grew on me!

    • Maggie

      I know! To me, it tastes and smells exactly like Buttered Popcorn flavored Jelly Bellies. Whose idea WAS that? *Nobody* likes Buttered Popcorn Jelly Bellies!

      • jonnie

        I adore buttered popcorn jelly bellies! 😛

        I also can only barely accept the PR smell though…

    • Irene

      what is that smell suppose to be anyway? I can’t handle the smell 🙁

    • Mandy B

      Ugh! I agree!! Awhile back I got a little sample tube of PR from Sephora. I used it twice and couldn’t get past the smell/taste. I was glad I didn’t purchase it.

      • Kay

        That smell is supposed to be creme brulee I believe (no, I don’t see it either) I also used to hate it but the smell grew on me 🙂

  • Vicky

    I agree Hope in a Jar smells like pure s**t!! I don’t know how the people deal with it in the Philosophy lab!

  • sillylilacs

    First, I agree, Hope in a Jar = Poop in a Jar.

    Second, as much as I love and adore NYX products…I have to say NYX Lip Balm in Apple. It’s the one in the little black jar. Terrible. Terrible. Terrible. It smells like a 5 day old diaper rolled around in durian and flung into a medieval composite site, sprayed with a thin coat of plastic, and laid to dry on fresh asphalt. Maybe that was a bit extreme, but the point is, the product is now sitting in its cute packaging on my shelf never to be touched. =/

  • Kendal

    I have a lipstick from Victoria’s secret that tastes like burnt paper smells. Even when you don’t lick it, it still puts the aroma in your mouth. It’s the wierdest thing, and even though I like the color, I just can’t wear it!

      • Maggie

        They do have a kind of weird taste/smell for me, too It’s kind of like… oregano, actually. Weird savory herb smell. But they’re so nice to my lips that I wear them anyway 🙂

  • Eleanor

    Lancome Dual Finish powder! It smelled like an old lady mess of dead flowers. Like literally you could smell my face from about 12 feet away. And it has mineral oil so it totallllyy broke me out. Do not want 🙁

  • Kristina

    Totally agree on the Hope in a jar! I would’ve loved it had I been able to get past the smell, it actually worked really well for my skin.
    I also really hate the smell of Origins gentle microdermabrasion/ exfoliating something or other. Smells awful! I can’t believe it’s a best selling product.

    • the Muse

      hey kristina ugh the smell really got to me. for a long time tried to convince myself it was doing something incredible but honestly it really wasn’y sadly 🙁

      and that wet dog smell…..what is that?!

  • ValentinaSugar

    OMG Muse you are so right! That cream does stink. If there is a smell that I hate, its def wet dog. I bought an N.Y.C Lip slider once and that thing had this really artificial yucky caramely kind of smell, my sis told me it smelled like petroleum.

    On another note, this has nothing to do with the post but can you do a post on your daily makeup routine. What products do you always put on or reach for the most in the morning. I don’t know if you’ve done this before but it might be nice. THANKS 🙂

    • the Muse

      ha valentina glad I’m not the only one getting the wet puppy from it. oh I did one a while ago but def will try to get another one done soon 😀 skincare wise?

  • Marina

    I can’t think of anything off the top of my head that smells like anything totally abnormal…but I really hate the smell of the Liplicious gloss in Pink Grapefruit. It just smell like something gross and super sour. It such a gorgeous color, but I can never wear it because it makes me feel sick to my stomach.

    • Lenna

      Aw, I love that flavor lipgloss best…it’s actually one of the few Liplicious glosses that doesn’t make me want to puke. Xp

  • chibaraki

    I have a Maybelline lipstick I bought because it was a near-dupe for a Guerlain shade I loved but just couldn’t talk myself into spending the big bucks for, and it smells REALLY strongly of plastic. So much so I won’t wear it! It honestly smells like holding a freshly opened barbie doll under your nose — faintly perfumed but mostly PVC!

    • the Muse

      hey chib that stinks literally lol. I get very plastic-y smells from Maybelline as well sigh 🙁

  • Roxie

    Nars lipgloss tastes like petroleum/diesel that went bad. The lipgloss is great but I can’t handle the taste nor the smell. In the trash it went.

  • Audrey

    I got a sample of Fresh’s Soy Face Cream once and nearly gagged when I opened it. I can’t even begin to describe it; it’s this sour, bitter, pungent grassy scent.
    I had my boyfriend smell it and he said he thought it smelled fine, but I really think it’s just the most awful! I don’t even know what it’s supposed to smell like!

    • Margaret

      Audrey, I think I had the same one! It was supposed to smell like rose and cucumber, wasn’t it? Or was that something different?

      Anyway, the samples from Fresh are always so huge, you can make them last for about a week. After the second time I tried this, I said to myself OMG, WHYYYYYY am I still using this? I *hate* this! Threw it right out.

  • Brooke

    Benetint Lip Balm in the pot…I don’t even know how to describe the smell – plastic, maybe? I don’t even think that’s it…I just know it’s yucky and the taste isn’t any better. It’s unfortunate because I liked the look and feel but couldn’t get past the smell/taste.

  • GinaB

    Yuckk! The urban decay lipsticks taste! After it gets in your mouth, thats all you can smell as well! So bitter and gross! (but sooooo prettty!!!)

  • M

    Heavily perfumed lip products turn me off! Especially since they are so close to your kissers!

    1. Givenchy’s Rouge Interdit lipsticks. They smell like my grandma’s lipsticks! Waxy scent.

    2. Lancome’s old lipsticks (I can’t remember the shade I had). Same grandma scent! I was applying it and my friend who stood next to me can smell it.

    I honestly think, with the amount of $$ we pay for branded cosmetics, they can AT LEAST put in a pleasant, non-perfumey scent to match the nice casings, right? RIGHT? Having said that, I am tolerating my Rouge G lipstick’s slight perfumey scent…. bec the finish and colour is too gorgeous.

  • LorraineER

    CVS brand oil-free eye makeup remover smells like a skunk! Seriously. I’m usually not a brand snob but that product was the first and the last time I’ll buy a generic makeup remover.

    • the Muse

      LMAO Lorraine you learned a lesson here, NEVER BUY cheap ass shiz LOL!

  • Ally

    There is this serum by SkinCeuticals that I got a sample of.. and while it did improve my skin, it smelt kinda funky like.. HOTDOGS! *gasp*
    Luckily it was a sample and the smell didn’t linger for too long after applying on the face but I’m going to have to explore for a while before I purchase a full size bottle 😀

  • Melissa

    ahahahah thanks for this post it cracked me up! I am one of those wack jobs that doesn’t mind hiaj smell. Ive been using it for years and it doesn’t bother me one bit. Now Dior lipsticks are seriously ew. They smell like perfume gone bad to me. I’ll stick to my scent-less Chanel lippies for the same price and quality.

  • aretha

    My Bobbi brown Platinum shimmer brick smells of pee pee! >.< Does yours smell like that too, muse??

  • Tracy

    Anything by Perricone MD smells like fish! I think it’s the DMAE or whatever it’s called but EVERYTHING smells like you’re rubbing a fish on your face. The smell does dissipate, but you have to hold your breath while putting the stuff on!

  • peri

    lmao! when i started to read this before i made the jump, hope in a jar was the first thing that popped in my head. that stuff smells like ass…so awful. i cant even begin to imagine putting it on my face lol.

    philosophy’s baby grace everything smells frigin horrible too

    • the Muse

      LOL peri!

      WAIT..all the graces! I hate amazing grace, baby, pure..UGH!

        • the Muse

          oh wait inner grace is the purple or the green one? the LATER graces are good but the earlier ones I hate peri!

  • Maggie

    NYX round lipsticks. GUH. They smell (and taste) overpoweringly like used dish soap. It’s revolting. And their lip gloss smells/tastes like Robitussin. Cherry flavor is fine – cough syrup flavor is NOT.

  • Vee-Em

    Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream. I put some on my hands in an airport shop one time and I was horrified at the smell. I read that it was originally developed to treat horses cracked hooves and I think it smells of yucky farmyards and horses. Ugh. And it was all over my hands right before I was about to get on a plane!

  • LithiaBlack

    The worst smell/taste ever for me was Body Shops Lip & cheek stain. It was unscented but it tasted awful when I tried to use it on my lips. Some kind of bitter chemical taste. When used it as cheek stain the smell went away when it dried thankfully but I still hated the smell/taste so much that I gave it away to some one with a less sensitive nose.

    2nd place is Lancome Fruity tube in Cherie. It’s supposed to taste like cherry and vanilla I think but the scent and taste are so totally overwhelming and synthetic and “sticky”. I still use it though because it is the best blue shimmering lip gloss I’ve found….

    /L

    • the Muse

      I always got bitter from it lithia. Not a bad smell or anything just really bitter 😛

  • Florence

    Muse, you made my day with this post, seriously, so funny!
    So here goes my list:
    – Sephora Rouge Cream L/s- pee
    – Versace Bright Crystal perf- pee
    – La Roche Posay Active C face cream (great cream btw)- pee (basically this is a case with everything that contains vit. C)
    hmm, i seem to smell pee in everything, what is wrong with me???
    – adidas action 3 control deodorant- smells of..sweat. how lovely indeed- im never touching it again
    – john frieda frizz ease straightening potion- smells like sth is burnt, hopefully not the hair…
    – Nuxe honey lip balm-if honey smelled like this no one would ever think of using it, not to mention eating, yuck
    – SVR Topialyse for very dry skin- what is that smell? oh yes, PEE! (i use it like a crazy person, cause its sooooo good, i just try not to breathe…easy)
    – La Roche Posay- Lipikar BalmAP- smells of a wet cloth from a wooden house. yep.
    that’s it for now;)

    • the Muse

      lol Florence the idea was from you 😀

      LOL you seem to have a serious PEE theme going on here! LMAO!

      • Florence

        the idea was from me, and thats why u made my day by using it! thanx!
        yeah, i can see a theme going on, makes me worried;)
        but i can see a lot of worrying products;) lash glue smelling like fish oil- serios LOL!

        • the Muse

          xoxo Florence 😀 maybe you have the smell of pee perceptually under your nose LOL!

          • Florence

            LMAO! hahahha
            and look how many comments! how amazing! yeah!

          • the Muse

            LOL ;-D yea, it really got everyone going Florence hehe!

  • Marina

    How come nobody mentioned YSL lip products? I hate them! No, i HATE them. They literally make me gag. They have very strong fake “mango” smell that has nothing to do with mangoes.

    • dangster

      No one’s mentioned it because the “mango” scent is on purpose. If it ain’t smelling like excrement, urine, or other unpleasant bodily fluids, it’s not worth mentioning, lol.

      I personally love YSL lip products and think they smell fine.

    • Kim

      Yes I have one, it tasted so bitter I almost passed out! The color is gorgeous but everything else about it SUPER SUCKED!

  • lisa

    Your headline made me laugh a little.

    I got to agree with you. I have used some products in the past that smelt terribly bad that I hhad to throw away.

    The philosophy foot scrub was one of them. I just couldn’t stand it no more. Yikes!

    • the Muse

      ha lisa 😀 glad you laughed. I never tried the foot scrub…jeepers foot scrub that smells bad, the irony in that eh? 😀

  • Jasmine

    Udder Smooth Cream. It STINKS like godforsaken pee. I think it’s the urea in its formulation. I want to die whenever I smell it.

    I passed it to my dad, who is permanently afflicted with nasal congestion. He is not a bit wiser and is quite fond of it too. 😉

    • Jasmine

      UDDERLY I mean. ugh…

      oh, Anna Sui lip gloss make me nauseous sometimes too, like I swallowed air freshener from the rose scent…

    • the Muse

      just the name freaks me out jasmine. Udderly smooth…WHOA sounds gross LOL!

      • Jasmine

        consider yourself warned! it’s the case of a light, delicate milk fragrance failing to mask the urea…

        Anna Sui is the kiss of death for me, but others are quite fond of it.

  • acka

    I am now a quasi-vegetarian (in that: I don’t eat certain types of animals, and birds are #1 on that list), but for 20 or so of the first years of my life, I ate all manner of creatures. At that time, I was known to re-heat things in the microwave: namely turkey and chicken.

    Have you ever burned bird, re-heating in a microwave? You know how bad it smells?

    It smells EXACTLY like Jurlique’s night creme.

    I loovvvve Jurlique, but I absolutely Hate the smell of their face creams. Their washes and serums are fine. But the cremes bear a dead-ringer smell for over-cooked day-old bird carcass. And it’s NOT good.

  • Wendy

    Ulta’s lipglosses! It was one of my first “expensive” makeup purchases and blehhhh they smell terrible. Also, Merle Norman’s lipglosses. Both that I have are gorgeous colors but I can’t take the synthetic smell. I heard Merle Norman changed theirs.

  • Leah

    Herbalism is just wrong!

    Cosmetic Warrior face mask is worse though… theres garlic in it and it REEKS on your face!

  • mochamishmash

    I have to give a smelly award to NYX’s lipglosses. I love the colors and formula–but they smell like straight up cherry cough syrup–yuck!! I threw away because I just couldn’t tolerate the nastiness!

  • Allyssa

    This is making me chuckle. WELL, my product is my DiorShow Backstage mascara in Plum! I bought it at Sephora for ONLY 10 BUCKS!!!!! But after opening it, I think I realized why it was on clearance. It smells like ear cheese. Anybody with even slightly stretched ears or anybody who hasn’t changed their earrings in a long time knows what I’m talkin’ about! The mascara looks so fab on my lashes and it’s the only purple mascara to pop my hazel eyes that actually looks PURPLE, without being too “16-year-old girl” haha. But the smell is so bad I won’t ever touch it again. Every time you bat your long lashes you smell…………..ew.

    • the Muse

      ha allyssa glad I gotcha to laugh! ear CHEESE?! WTF is ear cheese LOL! LMAO!

      • Allyssa

        haha! I just can’t describe it! but I guess it’s old skin cell accumulating around a piercing and if you don’t move ’em around or clean them you get ………ear cheese. HAHAHA! Too bad, DiorShow is such a nice mascara!

        • the Muse

          LOL allyssa, like ew and stuff LOL! I’ll have to go smell my diorshow to get the ear cheese experience LMAO!

  • Hannah

    Too Faced Lipsticks.. atleast the one I have (Totally Nude, I think?) It just smells.. bad. Like chemical-y. It makes it hard for me to use it, but I love it so I refuse to throw it away.. haha (:

  • tina

    Maybelline Color sensational lipsticks. Love their colors but can’t stand that smell. It makes me gag everytime I attempt to put it on…

  • Jen

    I tried a Mark lip gloss once and it smelled so disgusting I had to throw it out. It so turned me off that I have not since purchased any of their other products. I cannot even describe what it smelled like but I even had my daughters smell it and they both thought it was a nasty smell as well!

  • JoElla

    Well since we are on the cat pee theme today…

    D&G Light Blue.

    There I said it! I took a sniff in the bottle and thought what a lovely summer fragrance. Spritzed some on me.. I smelled like a cat sprayed me.

    How could something that smelled so lovely in the bottle turn into something so horrid out of the bottle.?! I am not talking dry down, later after it mingled with my body chem.. I am talking the very second it hit my skin. EWWWWWWWWW

    HIAJ does smell like stinky never been bathed dog. And burnt my skin horribly.

    And vanilla.. I am such a vanilla snob, I will not buy anything that gives the slightest hint/whiff of plastic. Sorry BBW burnt vanilla sugar.. this includes you.

    Now I open everything and sniff it first.. I am not a fan of the stinky

  • Annie

    Definitely Hope in a Jar. It’s just disgusting smelling! Pure Grace smells like Cod liver oil to me, too.

    The Urban Decay lipsticks are gorgeous, but are heavily scented of black licorice. I have to really be in the mood to smell that to wear them.

    Stila lip glazes smell too. Sort of like burnt pvc pipe. Nasty!

    • the Muse

      ooo annie I don’t get that from lip glaze ha must sniff and check it LOL!

  • Hithlain

    NYX lipsticks taste like dishwashing soap to me…. and everyone raves about how they have no taste or smell. The moment I opened them I was like “Oh… wow. Ok, gross!”

  • Maria

    I agree with Leah – Cosmetic Warrior from Lush is just gross. The first time I tried it, I sat in my bathtub with my stank face on and counted the seconds until I could wash it off… I got rid of it after that – no face mask should be torture.

  • Jasmine

    I have “when hope is not enough” by Philosophy (it has spf and antioxidants)…does it have the wet dog smell? it smells pretty OK :S

    • the Muse

      I have when hope is not enough the regular version in the tube and it smells GORG! never had a prob with it jasmine but regular HOPE is totally dog scent!

  • Kim

    I hate when you buy expensive cosmetics & you get them home & discover that they smell or taste bad, sometimes you can take them back, & sometimes you’re just freakin’ stuck with the S**T!

  • Emilie

    The only product that has smelled horrible to me is this rareminerals moisturizer. Maybe I got a bad batch but it smells like feet and wet dog. It also doesn’t moisturize my dry skin very well at all. So it’s a double fail.

  • Robyn

    i had a lancome juicy tube that smelt gross like a wet towel left in the bottom of a swimming bag gross but ive had heaps of otheres since then that have been awesome but that one was yuck

  • Valerie

    MAC Studio Fix Fluid augghhh, if it didn’t work so well I wouldn’t put it anywhere NEAR my face! So smelly

  • KristyQ

    LOL. This post is awesome. I waited and waited to buy HIAJ (it’s $50 CDN!) and could not believe how badly it STANK! My husband called me “seaweed face” for months because I refused to throw it away after spending so much $$ on it! HaHa 🙂

  • sandy

    1. anna sui lipsticks. maybe its just mine but it smells like rotting plastic. i didnt even know plastic *could* rot! its kust awful. maybe its old? the color comes off bad too. ICK!
    2. the body shop’s born lippy lip balm in guava. it smelled soooo good at first. then it smelled fake. i dont even know what a real guava smelled like, but now i dont think i want to know.
    3. new york color (NYC) lip glosses. it smells like dishwashing soap. AND the colors were sooooo frosty!!!!!

  • Elena

    Lush Retread conditioner! The first jar i bought smelled like fruits, the second one that went to the garbage bin just yesterday smelled like beef stew left at the sun to rot…

    • the Muse

      agreed grace. I don’t like the tasty perfume thing going on with EL!

  • Resham

    Me too hates this smell of Philosophy Hope in a Jar….well not like a wet Dog…but not nice either…lol!

  • Gia

    Oh gosh Hope in a Jar! Seriously it was amazing on my face but i nearly gagged everytime i put it on my face. It was nasty. This clinque face scrub I use smells medical and horrid but I still use it because it’s the best face scrub I have found. I just hold my breath for a few seconds. I had some Victoria’s secret bronzer from some special edition summer collection and you can tell they tried to make it smell tropical but it smelt like rotten coconuts!

    • the Muse

      god yes gia. dunno what it is they do with it but damn the smell scares me 😛

  • Kay

    Sonic Death Monkey from Lush’s retro range. I reeeeally wanted to love it because of the awesome name…but it reeks!

  • Victoria

    Hope In A Jar…awful! Pacfica Malibu Lemon Blossom Perfume…dead gardenias.

  • Chloe

    Revlon’s new range of lipsticks. It’s so waxy, it smells like saliva. -shudders-

  • womble

    This is totally gross… BUT Burts Bees lip glosses- they make me gag.. i smelled one in a shop and it was so bad, i smelled one else where (just to check it wasn’t a duff one, you know) it wasn’t a duff one, THEY ALL SMELL LIKE… WAIT FOR IT….. PUKE. yeah, that stomache acidy smell after you retch… its EXACTLY that. Sorry but ladies DO NOT buy that!!! lip balms are fine though xx

  • womble

    oh and as for hope in a jar- i used it once, was nice for my skin and all but it had an odd smell i must admit… not wet dog though… more like off milk- sour

    • the Muse

      womble def don’t get the sour milk but the wet dog is full on for me hehe!

  • Foxie

    Hi Muse!

    For me Maybelline Color Sensational is my stinkiest product I own. Cant describe the smell but it’s gross , artificial. Rotten old peanuts! The color is so nice and smooth and I cant see myself throwing it out , but man it smells!

    Carmex lip balm – the normal version for chapped lips. it smells like medicine to me, like the smell of hospitals. Lots of people love it and I am evil to myself aswell … when I had it , I used it despite the smell …. maybe I like torturing my nose like that!

    Givenchy Lip lip lip lipstick – old granny smell with an artificial taste to it.

    Too Faced Shadow insurance – smells of mould to me. And I still love it! 🙁

    • the Muse

      mm i agree and bitter tasting Foxie! I’m not even so much put up by the scent it’s the taste, it’s bitter as hell!!!!!!!!!!!!!! old granny smell for sure on Givenchy!

  • taxi

    Major bad smells:
    Laura Mercier – Creme Brulee anything
    Molton Brown – Sensual Hanaleni bath & shower gel
    Lancome powder foundation
    Palladio face powder
    Pureology shampoo – pink
    Eliz. Arden – 8 hr Intensive Moisturizing Hand Cream
    practically anything with Tea Tree Oil as a major ingred.
    many Vitamin C products – body lotions, face serum – oxidizes so fast & then it just flat-out reeks.
    Flower Bomb – instant gag, retch

  • Leah

    I’ve never smelled Hope in a Jar cos I bought When Hope is.. instead… but now I kinda want to smell it, to see if it smells of wet dog…

    I may have issues…!

  • Stavroula Plag

    LOOOOL the pic of hope in a jar is hilarious!!!! I hate the scent of Elf Mineral Infused Face Primer, I love how it works, but boy it stinks!! It smells like oil !

  • Lanye

    Chantecaille Le Stylo liquid eyeliners smell like burnt dirty gym socks. That’s the only way I can describe it. But they’re still my favorite! They’re so easy to use.

  • Whit

    Clinique Youth Surge Moisturizer smells like a gross broccoli burp or something.. I hate it.

  • Abby

    OMG I just got hope in a jar for Xmas .. what the hell it’s so nasty smelling and smells exactly like a wet dog . I have to breathe through my mouth until it goes away . I like the cream bit can’t stand the smell (so dissapointing because I’ve been waiting to try it forever) I like the way it makes my skin feel and I’m trying to stick it out because I don’t want to be a terrible waste , but OMG please put some type of frangrance in there to make this product smell good . It should come with a warning

  • Sasha

    Today I received YSL Rouge Volupte in Corail Incandesent and it smells like ……….cat urine! I can’t believe that a cosmetic company will perfume a lipstick so disgusting. It is some sort of a joke!
    Another disgusting smell – felt tip eyeliner by Physicians Formula – smells like pee and gave my eyes major infection. I am sorry that I threw it away, I could have given Physicians Formula to court for this infection.

  • Rachel Tan

    Hope in the jar smells so fishy. i really hate it!!! i got a sample and i used it only once before throwing it away. Not to mention, i washed my face soon after because i really couldn’t take the smell.

    Rimmel lipsticks too. the purple tube ones. they smell so chemically, i totally ditched them soon after.

  • GirlOfPages

    I’m late to the party but I have two lipsticks to add. L’Oreal color riche lipsticks smell horribly strong of old lady perfume. It’s so strong I can’t wear it, every time I put it on, I take it right back off. Gag. Awful. And the Rimmel London Lasting Finish lipstick in Airy Fairy. It’s just a strong artificially sweet smell. I know some people love it but I CANNOT stand it. Why? Why do they put super strong fragrances in lipsticks? We would all be so much happier without them.

  • Missy S

    I’m so glad I found this site I was just making my boyfriend smell my Bobbi Brown eyeshadow for the second time. I was saying how I thought that our two year old had thrown it in his diaper genie (he has a habit of doing that) but when he does I leave it there. So I googled it and stumbled across this site… How could such expensive male up smell so bad!!!

  • ricanbeauty

    Rimmel nail polish smells like urine. The stench is so strong it smells like a public toilet. So disgusting. Stay away from this brand!!!

  • Danielle

    I just found this post because I searched for ‘hope in a jar smell’, it’s so terrible! Smells like rotten flowers!

  • Tina Giuntoli

    Hi All,

    I was just recently able to hunt down two of my favorite D/Cd lipsticks. I bought them from an eBay seller. It’s the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Coffee Bean- the ORIGINAL shade, from the 90s (the re-released Coffee Bean is different). Anyway, I JUST got them in the mail and was so excited, I opened one and put some on immediately.

    OHHHH MY GOD!!! SOAP. I mean the strongest ever SOAP. I tried to tough it out, but I got so nauseous that I had to scrub that shit off. I’m heartbroken. 🙁
    So, other than trying to “air it out” can anyone tell me something that may remove the stench so I can wear this favorite lippie of mine?

    Please HELLLLP!!! =\

  • Crystal

    Just got a jar of this and was worried it had turned, thankfully I came across your blog. I’ll suffer through the stink, it works nicely on my winter dry skin without feeling greasy, I’ll suffer!

    • Isabella Muse

      Aw sorry about the smell Crystal it’s the worst. Great formula but the smell sucks!

  • Lynnd

    I am a big fan of scented lip balms and glosses yet I can’t stand Milani lipsticks, even though they’re very good formulas, because they smell very strongly of watermelon.

    The one that always confuses me, though, is Estee Lauder. I always think that every last one of them is rancid. They really need to change the perfume counter scent. It’s not helping.

    On a related note, what do I make of a lipstick that has begun to smell somewhat like a crayon? I get this with ELF. They recommend throwing out lipstick after a year. But I have other lipsticks that have gone over 10 without that strong Crayola scent. So does it mean that the lipstick just doesn’t contain a lot of artificial fragrances “� or does a crayon-like scent mean that the lipstick is rancid? I’ve only had two lipsticks that ever had a super strong crayon scent and those were tossed. But I wonder about my ELF mineral lipstics, which are two years old and barely used. There’s no fragrance at all to them, otherwise, but since I only own two ELF-brand lipsticks I can’t recall if they ever did have a characteristic “scent”. Should I be worried?

  • Elvean

    The “Angels on bare face” scuba mask thig smells horrendous to me! Everyone raves that it smells nice but it is so strong of lavender and perfume that it literally made me gip. I bought some and threw it out the same day.

  • Yumiko

    Almost a year ago, I bought Wet ‘N Wild Venice Beach lip gloss. It looked good, but once I opened the bottle, I noticed that the product smelled like smelly saliva! Ewwwwwwww!

  • elilili

    I showed up really late for this discussion, but my all-time most hated smell is…MASCARA! It doesn’t matter what brand, older, or fresh out of packaging..mascara smells GROSS! To my nostrils, it has a scent I can only describe as plastic or paint with a sweet twist. It gives me the same disgust as that lipstick that smells my my great-grandmas clothes (that’s been put away since she passed 15 years ago).

  • Elle

    L’Oreal Age Perfect Night Cream for Mature skin in the blue jar. Sure, it improved my skin but it has a DISGUSTING rancid lemony-herbal scent. I tried so hard to like it but I can’t even.

  • Terri

    my complaint is the “Oil Of Olay” active hydrating beauty fluid lotion…it smells like “old band aides”…..and has done nothing for my skin even though I have given it a reasonable try ….this is just telling me that the product is probably rancid…..nasty!

  • Maggie

    Egad…..has anyone used Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy lip gloss? It smells like maple syrup and caramel corn, but synthetic sticky sweet, completely off putting. Why do cosmetic companies do this? It seems to me that a very small percentage actually like that sort of thing. Who on the Estee Lauder team of developers in their lab agreed that the scent was really swell?!

    BULLETIN TO ALL COSMETIC COMPANIES: Please make your lipsticks and lip glosses unscented!! Thank you

    • Isabella Muse

      there are TOO many awful tasting and smelling lipglosses on the market :-/ blah!

  • Karen

    I always use nyx matte lip gloss stick…. Until… After around 2 weeks of having one it seems to smell like hard urine… Like the kind of urine that smells like rat piss. I don’t know if anyone else has had the same experience. At first I thought someone at my job was just just playinG a prank so I threw it away but then all of them started to smell… And they were at My house, I don’t have any animals in my house so a cat or something peeing on it is not possible. Anyone else have the same problem or know why it smells so raunchy?

    • Isabella Muse

      oh gross! That’s disgusting! I’ve never had the issue. I have quite a few NYX lip products and even 6 months in they don’t smell yuck 🙁

  • Melissa Wardle

    Covergirl Tru blend primer for dry skin. Smells salty, or like torilla chips, when you first open the bag.
    Although it does seem to fade away after a minute or so once applied to your face.

  • Alex

    I believe one of my teachers wears makeup… And whenever she gets too close to me it smells like wet dog and plastic and I can’t breathe. It’s so strong it’s suffocating, I tried to tell her but when I went to school the day after her breath was still horrible. Ugh. >.>

  • Alicia

    I think you should do a review on sacha lipsticks because they stink when u lick your lips and i got opinions from other people who said the same thing is happening to them

  • Katie

    My NYX Pressed powder foundation smells like….. well weed lol. I am not sure if people around me can smell it or not but I can! and i JUST bought it so I know it isnt bad!

  • Melinda

    My Beauty for Real lip gloss that came in this month’s ipsy bag smells like natural gas. I thought maybe the pilot light had gone out on the stove. LOL! It looks pretty, but bleh!

  • Claire Brown

    I’ve just won a free Mac Powder Kiss lipstick and it’s arrived in the shade Werk Werk Werk. Oh my goodness it stinks!! I can’t put my finger on it but it’s like rancid overcooked vegetables… I’m glad I didn’t pay �19 for this or I’d be very annoyed!!

  • Holly

    The worst smelling body wash to me is olay coconut body wash! The smell of poop or someone’s bad breath! What’s up with that?!

  • Chantel

    First off… I’m so disappointed I found this article so late! Almost 13 years old! I recently googled “why does my essence brand juicy bomb lip gloss smell and taste like bug spray?! ” I was debating if maybe I was the only one who thought that, or maybe my Ulta just had pest control destroy a bunch of essence brand makeup and that’s why they were selling all the juicy bomb lip glosses for $1.00 each but no matter what I do I can’t shake the taste/smell. And the funny thing is, I lean more towards the thought that pest control sprayed all this makeup and instead of trashing it they sold it for dirt cheap and I was the prime sucker that was reeled in and bought up almost all the damn lipglosses anywhere I’ve stored these extra lipglosses absolutely REEKS of bug spray so it’s hard for me not to feel like I got a dirty deed pulled over on me. Anybody else experience this? I wonder if I should write in to essence and explain to see if they’d offer to fix it and send me some from them directly to see if there’s a difference?

    • Isabella Muse

      Oh wow that sounds like maybe it expired and wet bad/off. I’d return it!

  • Emily Naetzker

    Nudestix blush stick smells like mold… has anyone else had this experience or had mine just gone bad before I purchased it?

  • Lori Craig

    I purchased Lancôme foundation ( I used for years and their company scent is a mild rose) in Mercari. It smells like bug spray. Thinking I got got. Maybe a refill or something?? But it continues to wreak WHILE you’re wearing it Anyone else?

    • Isabella Muse

      which one Lori? Normally Lancome is pretty heavily fragrance but never got bug spray from any of the ones I own!