Though most people don’t think of primers as a necessity, its a nice product to keep around for special occasions. For those of you who don’t know, primers act as a base for your makeup. They can have a wide variety of effects but most primers work to help makeup go on smoother, and last longer. Good primers are hard to find at drugstore prices, especially for my finicky skin which loves to break out, so I was definitely excited when I saw this cute little trio at Sephora for only $9! Though the tubes may seem extremely small, I got several uses out of all of them, and still have not run out after two months of occasional use.

The Tarte Clean Slate Poreless 12-Hr Perfecting Primer came in the purple tube and was 0.25 fl oz. I think this was my favorite primer out of the three because it helped with my extremely large pores. It comes out as a thick, clear, gel and created an instant matte effect wherever I applied it. It definitely helped my foundation wear longer at a wedding, and I think it even had some oil-controlling properties.

The Tarte Clean Slate 360° Creaseless 12-Hr Smoothing Eye Primer came in the white tube and was 0.09 fl oz. This primer came in a smaller size because it’s meant to use solely on the eye area for eye makeup. I have oily eyelids and my shadows always crease (wears off and builds up in my crease) if I don’t wear primer underneath. I thought this primer did a decent job of keeping my eyeshadow colors vibrant and creaseless, but the white, runny, liquid felt greasy during application. It did the job, but not significantly better than my usual e.l.f. mineral eyelid primer which only costs $1 for the full size!

Lastly, the Tarte Clean Slate Flawless 12-Hr Brightening Primer came in the brown tube and was also 0.25 fl. oz. It comes out like the Creaseless primer, but doesn’t feel greasy. I like using this one when my skin feels a little dry because it is pretty moisturizing. The interesting thing about this primer is that it comes out white but develops a pinkish tint when you put it on your skin. The pink tint is supposed to have a brightening effect, but it didn’t do much for my medium-deep tan skin. It worked better on my mom who is a medium beige, so the brightening effect is really only apparent on fairer skin tones. Otherwise, this primer is good at smoothing my skin’s surface, and does extend my foundation wear for a pretty good amount of time.

Overall I’d say this trio is worth checking out if you’re on the hunt for a primer. At $9 it’s a great value, I’d even be willing to pay $9 for the tiny tube of the Poreless primer alone. If you’re going to be wearing a lot of makeup for a special occasion sometime soon and want to make sure it stays on, I’d recommend investing in this adorable little trio!