Beauty Products Demystified with Pretty in My Pocket ~ iPhone App

App Review Series: This series is written by members of Social Fabric to educate other members about new apps, how to use them, and their opinions about the apps. These are not sponsored posts, but written by members that volunteered to do a review.

Are you ever overwhelmed by the number of products in your drugstore beauty aisles? Or intimidated by the offerings at the department store cosmetic counters? I am. Usually I am guilty of quickly grabbing the first product I see just to be done with it. As a busy Mom I want to look good, but don’t have the time or resources to really research the products I use like I would a baby swing or diaper rash cream.

Luckily I heard about a free app for the iPhone called Pretty in My Pocket (PRIMP). It is an easy way to make buying beauty products social and put reviews and expert opinions right at my fingertips.

I downloaded the app from the iTunes store and got busy using it right away. It currently requires iOS 5.0 or later and can be used on a compatible iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. See the iTunes store for complete requirements.

After setting up my account it offered me a quick tutorial on what the app can do. I had a rough idea of what was offered from this, but really playing around with it is all you need to learn more.

The app gave me several options to begin with like following other people and their beauty advice or checking out the list of Top 20 PRIMP Products, but I went straight into filling up my beauty bag. To do this I tapped on the red “P” at the bottom of my screen. It gave me the choice of typing in a product name or scanning the barcode.

First I tried typing in a particular product I had in mind. Unfortunately, if you don’t type the product in exactly, it is hard to find the item. I didn’t have much luck. Instead I used the barcode method and was able to find the Neutrogena hand cream right away. Scanning only takes a second or two and is my preferred method to use. If I am in a rush at the store, scanning makes more sense to me as a busy mom.

There were no reviews for this product yet, so I wrote one. I love this particular Norwegian Formula Hand Cream. With the item rated and reviewed, I put it in my bag since I buy it often. Now when my friends sign up and connect with me, they can see the products I love and recommend.

I did find that my beloved CoverGirl naturelux gloss didn’t come up in the PRIMP database, so I couldn’t add it to my bag. PRIMP is currently still adding to their database of reviews and products. With as many items as are on the shelf today, I am not surprised they don’t have them all listed yet. I do wish there was a way to request for an item to be added, and maybe be notified when it has been included.

Beyond my own bag and recommendations, PRIMP allows the novice cosmetic user, like myself, to follow well known beauty bloggers, makeup professionals and others to inspire my purchases and alert me to current trends or hot new products I need to try. I love this part of the app the most, and really want to dig in and find people to follow. When I setup my account, PRIMP had several recommendations for people to follow, but since I wasn’t familiar with any of them I wasn’t sure if they fit my personal style.

Lastly, Pretty in My Pocket offers location-based perks for local pharmacies, boutiques and department stores. I put in my zip code, but rural Oregon was not yet listed. I was not surprised. I might look into this offering again the next time I plan a trip into the big city. I assume that places like Portland or Seattle would have some perks available. If you live in a big city, be sure to check this one out.

Here is a pros and cons list I compiled after my experience with PRIMP -

Pros

• FREE
• Easy, fast access to beauty product reviews and advice
• Information on products I haven’t tried before
• Interactive and allows input and suggestions from trusted friends
• Barcode scanner is a snap to use
• I can add my favorite product to “My Bag” for quick reference later (perfect shade, etc.)

Cons

• Not all products have been added to the database yet, and there is no manual way to add items
• Smaller towns and rural areas are not offered perks yet
• It can be difficult to know which experts to follow at first

Overall my impression of Pretty in My Pocket is very favorable. I think there is room for this app to grow and really shine. Part of that relies on me building a strong social network for myself. Once I get my friends signed up I know this tool could really help me gain confidence in which products to buy on my next trip to the department store beauty counter.

Social Fabric App Reviewer: Andrea Kruse

Bio: Andrea is a SAHM of 2, with one of the way, living in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys time in her kitchen, living on a farm, and getting lost in her current crafting projects. You can catch her blogging at Adventures in All Things Food.

Catch me on social media:
on Twitter – @notimeMom
on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/AdventuresinallthingsFood

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