Showing posts with label highlighters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label highlighters. Show all posts

Tuesday, 10 May 2016

Urban Decay Afterglow Highlighter in Aura







Urban Decay have released three powder highlighters, and as you'd expect, they're gorgeous.  Finely milled and aiming to give a glow rather than just powdered shimmer, they're every bit as glowy and unique as I'd hoped.

There are three shades available; Sin, a glowing peachy white gold; Fireball, a glowing coral; and Aura, a glowing pink.  I've been using Aura for the past week or so, and it's completely unlike any other highlighter I own - and I own a fair few.  If your skin is pale and you find many highlighters too golden, you'll love Aura - it's an almost icy, almost duochrome pink/white/opal colour, which contains no glitter, just a pink shift glow.  It's pretty pigmented, but you can apply it softly for a subtle, real-skin glow, or apply it heavily for a more obvious strobing effect.

I'm in love.  This product is so flattering to my cool toned, pale skin - not too gold, not too silver, not too white, but gloriously pink and opal.  The closest comparison I can draw in colour is to Becca's Opal Shimmering Skin Perfector, although that's a liquid, and UD's powder is much easier to use for cheekbone and browbone highlighting perfection.

Downsides:  unfortunately the admittedly beautiful gunmetal packaging and its fishnet inlay mean that there's no mirror in this compact, which makes it a little less practical for on-the-go-glow.  And it could last longer;  I apply it at 7am and by about 2pm it's barely visible on the skin.  Still, I'm prepared to accept that for such a pretty, pale-skin-friendly ethereal glow.

Obviously the Afterglow highligher collection is providing super popular, because Aura and its two sisters are out of stock on the UD website.  When they're in stock, though, they'e £19 each, spendy, but worth it.  If you need something to do whilst waiting for them to come back, you can go back and count the number of times I used the word 'glow' in this review.  It's rather a lot.  For obvious reasons.

Disglowsure:  PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Sunday, 21 February 2016

The Balm Cindy Loumanizer







The Balm is a brand which I don't see a lot of in the UK - they're stocked in a few online shops, and I recall seeing a few bits in & Other Stories once, but really, they're not talked about all that much.  Which is a shame, as their products are functionally rather good, and have a cheeky humour that's somewhere between Benefit and Soap & Glory.

Anyway, I bought The Balm's Cindy-Lou Manizer in New York, and I've been using it steadily since.  Unlike many other glow products, it's a peachy shade, almost pigmented enough to be worn alone as a blush if you're very, very pale.  According to the packaging, you can also use it as an eyeshadow, or all over the face if you want some serious glow.

I've been using it as a highlighter, and I love that it gives an extra bit of depth to my cheeks on top of blush or alone, and I particularly love that it's got such a subtle effect.  If you find most highlighters to be too silvery or too golden, you'll probably love this one - the peachy tone makes it incredibly subtle and natural looking.  There's no chance of unintentional robot-face.

At £17.50, it's not cheap, nor is it particularly expensive given the size of the pan.  I'll readily admit that this is a product I took a punt on - I wasn't expecting much, but I'm truly impressed by the subtlety of the finish.

Disclosure:  Bought by me

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Thursday, 17 December 2015

So Intense: Colourpop Blush in Cheerio & Prenup, Colourpop Highlighter in Spoon




Cheerio, Spoon, Prenup

Just one last post about Colourpop and then I'll shut up, I promise (until I go to the US again and buy more, muahaha).  I recently invested in a few new shades of Colourpop's creamily blendable bouncy blush and highlighters, this time challenging myself a little with a bright shade, Cheerio, and treating myself to the kind of dusty soft pink I love, Prenup.

Cheerio is an amazing blush, and one which many people (me included) would be a little scared of.  It's RED.  It's INTENSE.  It's also slightly SHIMMERY.  So much room to go wrong.  But if you go right - and you can do, by applying starting with the apples of your cheeks with a teeny tiny swipe of product - it's lovely.  A really fresh, winter flush which makes you look like you've been twirling round a park in the snow, laughing gleefully, with a terribly cute pompom hat on.

Prenup is, unsurprisingly, a great everyday blush - it's matte, it's soft, it's pink - and it's a particularly great shade if you're super pale, as I am in winter.  I find I can (and do) apply this one much more heavily than Cheerio, for obvious reasons.

Spoon, now... Spoon and I have a love/hate relationship. On one side, Spoon is a lovely icy highlighter, perfect if you dislike gold.  On the other side, Spoon is, well, glittery.  And not everyone wants a glittery highlighter.  I've worn it a couple of times to parties recently, but I think it's just a little too glittery for day to day wear, unless of course you enjoy rocking glitter in the day.

As always, these little cheek pots are a mere $8 each, making them a bit of a steal.  Even if it is a glittery steal.  Find them and more at the Colourpop website, and keep hoping they'll start shipping to the UK soon.

Disclosure:  Bought by me.

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Sunday, 1 November 2015

Colourpop Strobing I



My bumper Colourpop order contained not only a ton of Super Shock Shadow, but also a new collection the LA-based brand recently released, built around technique-of-the-moment strobing.  Strobing I is recommended for light to medium skintones, and contains three shimmering, light reflecting Super Shock Cheek products, and three neutral  Lippie Stix lipsticks.


Fanny Pack, Non Fiction, Parasol

Fanny Pack, Non Fiction, Parasol

The Super Shock Cheek products have the same texture as the Super Shock Shadows - slightly bouncy, creamy powder which blends like a cream and sets down into a powder finish.  The three shades have a shimmer finish, all the better to bounce light off the skin, in true strobing style.

Fanny Pack is a very pale white highlight, which is dramatic (and a bit robot face) if used heavily, but can be applied more sheerly for a subtle highlight effect.  It's particularly good if you find that golden or pink based highlighters look off on your skin.

Non Fiction is a shimmering blush shade, and whilst it's described as a pink with gold and copper highlights, I think it's more of a rosy coral shade than a pink.  The coppery undertone is pretty strong, and I think this one is better on medium skin tones - more than a tiny bit of this is overwhelming on my pale skin

Parasol is a warm, peachy gold which makes for a very pretty sunlit highlight.  Again, I have to be careful of going overboard, but those with warmer tones in their skin will find Parasol very flattering.



Marmalade, Fame, Thistle

Marmalade, Fame, Thistle

Lippie Stix are slim tubes of lipstick with a variety of finishes - Strobing 1 contains two cream finishes and one sheer.  The texture of these guys is a little waxy and stiff until they warm up a little - after that they smooth onto the lips evenly, although still with a bit of drag.  Marmalade is a warm, rosy pink with brownish undertones; Fame is a pale creamy pink with a sheer finish; Thistle is a peachy nude.  All three are a bit warm and brown for my skintone, apart from Fame, which is fine if you like that super pale pink lip.

Mixed results, then, from Strobing I - not because the products are bad, but mostly because this set runs a little more warm than I'm personally able to pull off.  If your skin is warm toned, you'll probably love this set - particularly given that it costs a mere $40 for 6 products.

Disclosure:  Purchased by me.

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Wednesday, 28 October 2015

Becca x Jaclyn Hill Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Champagne Pop


Cats like highlighter too!



Becca's Champagne Pop is a great example of a product which has sold out time and time again largely because of the internet.  Created by YouTube makeup artist Jaclyn Hill, it's a lovely pale gold highlighter with pink/peach undertones which look naturally beautiful on most skin tones.  And because of the love it's been getting online, it's sold out multiple times at Sephora - to the extent that people have been using a set of hashtags - #findingchampagnepop - to help each other locate Sephora stores which have it in stock.

Naturally, when I was in the States recently, I put Champagne Pop on my must-buy list - mostly because of the internet frenzy - and I was lucky enough to find it at the Seattle Sephora store.  And gorgeous it is - it's not too gold, not too white, and just warm enough to be pretty without looking odd on my cool toned skin.  It's a subtle highlighter, but one which definitely helps the cheekbones to look more sculpted.  It also looks bloody good dabbed onto the cupid's bow (the dent in the top lip) and on the browbone.

Texture wise, it's a very creamy powder, blending with ease thanks to it's buttery texture.  I discovered the impressive pigmentation levels the hard way - robot face was the result - and now I use only the lightest dip onto the product with a fluffy brush.  The powder is very, very soft and thus very delicate - I dropped mine on the floor a little while ago and now have a compact full of crumbled bits and chunks, so be careful!

At $38, it's expensive, but a little goes a long way, and if you've struggled to find a highlighter that isn't too white, too warm, too gold, or too flat, you may well find this one to strike the perfect balance for you, as it does for me.  I'm very pleased with it, and would happily repurchase if I ever ran out.  Find it at Sephora.

Disclosure:  Bought by me.

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Friday, 3 July 2015

Quick Pick: No 7 Shimmer Palette in Rose





Aha, a Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick dupe!  I've seen many a brand bring out a Shimmer Brick style thing, but this one brings a whole new dimension to the party.  And that dimension is....shimmer.  Lots of it.  A light dusting over the cheeks gives a luminous, pinkish glow - I've applied it over the matte blush I was already wearing in the photo above, and you can see the level of soft, radiant shimmer it gives.  That said, a light touch is needed, as otherwise you end up with sparkly robot face, and no-one wants that, right?

The packaging, as is typical for No 7, isn't setting the world on fire, nor is it as simple/luxe as Bobbi Brown's cult Shimmer Brick.  But the product inside is a damn good rosy highlighter, that that's what counts.  Find it at Boots, where it costs £13.50.

Disclosure:  PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Monday, 11 May 2015

Kiko Sahara Glow Highlighter





I LOVE little pearls of stuff in a pot.  I don't know why they're so appealing - perhaps because they're tiny and shimmery, perhaps because they just look delicate - but I just love any product which comes in this kind of format.  This product, Kiko's Sahara Glow Highlighter, is no exception - pearls in shades of gold, bronze and tawny pink, which give a gentle glowing warmth when swirled together.

This product is part of Kiko's latest Modern Tribes collection, which has a distinctly golden summery feel to it, with an unexpected graphic twist and lovely wooden accents in the packaging.  Sahara Glow Highlighter, £14.90, is all summer, and it's best paired with this gloriously sculpted Face Brush, also £14.90, perfect for swirling in the pearls and applying the resulting powder to the cheekbones.

The effect is pretty subtle when used sparingly, as you can see from the above before-and-after photo - the difference is a little bit of warmth, and a little bit more dimension and glow.  You can layer it up for a more obvious golden shimmer, but I like it subtle.  Granted, it's not a particularly unique effect - any shimmering pink/bronze compact will give you a similar effect - but the dressing table friendly format and that cheekbone hugging brush are the real reasons to buy.

Disclosure: PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Friday, 13 February 2015

Clinique Chubby Contouring: Hefty Highlight & Curvy Contour




Another day, another variation on the Chubby Stick.  These two are part of Clinique's latest Hello Cheekbones collection - unsurprisingly it's about subtle contouring to make the cheekbones pop, and also includes some rather lovely sculpting powder blushes.  If you prefer your contouring creamy and quick, though, these two products are great - Hefty Highlight is an icy, silvery white and Curvy Contour is a deep, warm brown.  Delivered in the same blunt-nosed format as the blush Chubby Sticks, they slick on in a creamy line, and are easily blended with the fingers for a sculpted result.

Unfortunately, Curvy Contour is too warm and brown based for my pale, cool toned skin.  The swatch makes it look very, very brown, and indeed, if you apply with anything but the lightest hand you may find your cheekbones look muddy rather than sculpted.  The good news is that the intensity and depth of colour means that Curvy Contour works on a wide variety of skintones, so long as you're careful about how much you apply.  Hefty Highlight is lovely - a soft, silvery shimmer which blends beautifully into the skin.  It also works well on brow bones and the Cupid's Bow (that indented bit on your top lip).  Use sparingly on darker skintones to avoid shiny-robot-face.

At £19 each, I can't help but feel that these Chubby Sticks are an expensive way to get your contour on.  A little does go a long way, but compared to the Smashbox Contour Kit I wrote about earlier this week, you get two shades of Chubbies for £38, whereas you get three powders and a brush with the Smashbox version for £35.  If Clinique were to offer them as a pair for £25ish, they'd be much better value.

If you're not a die-hard Chubby lover, or if you're looking for a complete contouring solution, you can probably find better value contouring products elsewhere.  If you just love the Chubbies, want a single contour or highlight shade, or want something portable, these might be right up your street.

Disclosure: PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Wednesday, 4 February 2015

No 7 Instant Radiance Bronzing Highlighter





Here's a product which'll see you through summer - Instant Radiance Bronzing Highlighter is a tubby stick (see what I did there?) of golden toned, creamy highlighter which blends into the skin for a soft, golden glow.  No 7 claim that it's bronzing, but I'd say it's not quite, well, bronze enough to be a bronzing product, although it would definitely pair up well with a sweep of matte bronzer.

It's main appeal in my mind is down to the fact that it's not a pale, white, shimmering highlighter.  That kind of highlighter works brilliantly on my pale skin, but can look a bit too robot-lady on those with deeper or warmer skintones.  This golden shade, though, will look far more natural - it's more like Benefit's Sun Beam, where many other highlighters are more Moon Beam.

At £9.95, it's well priced for the size of it - you get a generous 5g of pigmented product, meaning that the tube will go a long way.  It's also a great size to pop in your handbag, should you want to top up your glow during the day.  Find it now at Boots.

Disclosure: PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.

Friday, 4 July 2014

Urban Decay Naked Flushed Palette in Streak



Last year's Naked Flushed palette was so successful, Urban Decay have brought them back in three new shades to suit all skintones.  I have Streak here to show you - it's the palest of the three (quelle surprise)



Streak gives you a light bronzer, champagne shimmer highlighter, and coral toned pink blush.  Like last year's offering, the texture is very soft, almost crumbly, and if you use a firm brush on the palette you'll get quite a bit of fallout.  The key is a very, very soft hand and a soft, fluffy brush.



Applied separately, the three products give a nicely defined look which emphasises the cheekbones.  In the photos above I've blended the bronzer under my cheekbones, then applied a bit of coral blush onto the apple of my cheek before blending it outwards, and then finished off with a dusting of highlighter on top of my cheekbone.  I've also tried applying all three products swirled together - swirling is difficult due to the softness of the powders, and if you try to swirl you'll end up wasting a fair bit.  Dipping the brush quickly and gently across the surface of the palette is the way to go, and then swirl on the cheeks.

The highlighter and blush are perfect for all you pale faces out there - they're pigmented enough but still on the right side of subtle.  The bronzer is a little too warm toned for me, but it's still wearable - if your skin is warm, it'll be a damn good match.

At £22, this isn't a cheap cheek palette, but for three products in a sturdy compact, it's a reasonable price to pay, particularly given the quality.  Find it now at BeautyBay, with it's three sisters, Naked, Native and Strip.

Disclosure: PR sample

This post originated at www.londonbeautyreview.com. If you're reading it elsewhere, it's been stolen, violating my copyright.
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