This is less of a review and more of a showcase for one of the three newest blush shades added to Dior’s Rosy Glow line. The color Rosewood shot to the top of my blush favorites and is the only one of the three I brought with me to Germany. The original Coral was too light for my taste, whereas Mahogany was too deep. This new Bronzed Glow shade is a lighter version of Mahogany and includes visible shimmer in the pan that not only makes this formula easier to pick up with a brush than the others, but also adds a subtle glow. The previously released shades were not flat matte, but didn’t have any shimmer that I could see. I would call Bronzed Glow the first actual satin blush. My review for the original Coral, plus Rosewood and Mahogany can be found HERE.
I didn’t pick up the new Coral shade because it doesn’t look, in my estimation, different enough from Cherry (which depending on one’s skintone, is like a deeper Rosewood). So, I stuck to buying Bronzed Glow from Dior’s website and it shipped to Germany from France. Bronzed Glow is a beautiful nude-brown red. Rosewood is still my favorite, but I’m thrilled to have this second shade. Also, this formula doesn’t swatch well, but looks beautiful on the face.
I know some people had issues with patchiness from the previous releases, but I think the added shimmer will help with that for more skin types. I personally find that as my skin is drier here than it was in Florida, the longevity of this shade is slightly shorter because there isn’t as much moisture to grip to even with liquid makeup and skincare on my face. However, it lasts long enough for me to be happy with it. I also commend Dior for finally being inclusive with this range. For once it was actually the tan and medium-dark range with less options since Berry and Mahogany came first. Now, there’s something for everyone.
This is technically a concealer and color corrector declutter post, but I didn’t have many color correctors to begin with, so I kept them both. The ELF Camo Color Corrector in Orange I use just on my face because it settles too much in areas with lines, like under my eyes. The Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Luminous Matte Liquid Corrector in Mango (reviewed HERE) does a decent job, but it doesn’t pair well with all my concealers and it’s a touch on the light side for me, so that also partly limits how and where I can use it. The MAC Pro Palette Studio Finish Skin Corrector x 6 (shown HERE) was old, so I decluttered it.
The photo above is what my concealer collection looked like a few months prior to me moving overseas, but I have a few new concealers and additional shades within the same lines that I purchased since then and will discuss here too.
In the “You’re Falling Apart” category of concealers that I had to toss due to them being too old, I decluttered the Pat Mcgrath Skin Fetish Sublime Perfection Concealer in 23 (also owned 22 and 24 reviewed HERE) and Lancome Teint Idole Ultra Wear All Over Concealers in 460 and 495 (reviewed HERE). Although the Pat Mcgrath concealer was one of my favorites in terms of coverage, the shades in the MD range were too olive to look natural on me. Even if I had a better color, I admittedly had to babysit this concealer a little because it wasn’t as long lasting on me as some of my other concealers, such as Tarte Shape Tape. I still attest to it being a good concealer that I used quite a lot (about 1.5 tubes worth of product between all three shades). The Lancome concealers were decent, but I kept reaching for other things because of my desire for more coverage and a longer wear time.
The “It’s YOU, not Me” category is for concealers that looked horrible on me nearly immediately. I couldn’t get them to work no matter what powder I used with them or by switching techniques. The ones that fall into this category are the LYS Triple Fix Brightening Concealer in DG6 and Bobbi Brown Skin Full Cover Concealer in Almond. I hated them both so much that I didn’t want to review them. The irony is that the shades for both looked nice. I just couldn’t get them to last even an hour without gathering horribly in the lines under my eyes or fading in under an hour if I used the products too sparingly. Also being placed in this category is the Juvia’s Place I Am Magic Concealer (reviewed HERE). I have shade J11 which is too light for me, but the next shade would be far too dark. Color aside, I love the full coverage aspect to it, but it creases too fast and too deeply for my liking. So, it’s no surprise that all three were decluttered.
“The Incompatibles” are the concealers I’ve heard good things about that tend to be loved by others with a different skin type than mine. The ones that fit this description are the Urban Decay Quickie 24HR Full-Coverage Waterproof Concealer in 70WR, Huda Beauty #FauxFilter Luminous Matte Liquid Concealers in Crumble 7.1N and Butterscotch 7.5G (reviewed HERE), and the Ami Cole Skin-Enhancing Concealer in Medium 1 and Deep 2. With the Ami Cole one, as I told a friend, Medium 1 is really pretty and matches the lightest part of my face, but because it doesn’t 100% cover the intensity of my dark circles, I get the slight grey look to it. Because I loved the way it spread and the finish of it, I saw the potential of it being a favorite if I had a darker shade, so I ordered Deep 2. Deep 2 turned out to still be lighter than my dark circles, so it still looks “improved,” even though it’s deeper than the lighter parts of my skin. Because the foundations I reach for most are essentially matching the darker parts (not as deep as the hyperpigmentation areas), I can pull it off when I have a full face on. Medium 1 is only the tiniest bit lighter than UD’s 70NN, but because the one from UD is full coverage (and the tiniest bit warmer), Quickie doesn’t give me that slight grey look. The Ami Cole concealer has such a beautiful finish on the skin, but because it didn’t give me more than six hours of wear, I left it behind. The Quickie concealer, as much as I wanted to love it, I couldn’t get it to last on me unless I loaded up on powder which then dried out my under eyes. It didn’t look as good as Tarte Shape Tape, so there didn’t seem to be much point in keeping it. The Huda concealers also gave me issues with dryness. I found some ways around it, but then longevity was an issue. I was tempted to bring these with me, but since I liked other concealers more, it made more sense to just let them go. I think all three of these concealers in this category could be fantastic on the right person.
In the “Good Formula, Wrong Shade” category is just the Dermablend Flawless Cover Drops which is a foundation that I use as concealer, I loved how it looked when I had shade 75W, but I was unwilling to pay full price for it again since I was unable to use up even 25% of the giant bottle before it went bad. Two other times I purchased shade 72N from Ulta during a 50% off sale (Ulta still doesn’t carry the 75W shade), but it never looked as good because it was too neutral on me and didn’t have enough warmth. It got the job done and I loved how lightweight it was, but since the shade couldn’t measure up, I decided to give up on it. I currently still have 72N in my collection, but I plan to declutter it.
“You Have My Attention” is what I’m calling concealers I was unwilling to declutter because I felt there may be potential, but I hadn’t (at the time I was preparing to move) had the time to explore and test them further. In this category is the Haus Labs Triclone Skin Tech Hydrating and Depuffing Concealer in 40 Medium Deep Neutral and 43 Medium Deep Golden, Estee Lauder Futurist Soft Touch Brightening Skincealer in 6W, and Hourglass Cosmetics Vanish Airbrush Concealer in Maple and Umber. I had a creasing and fading issue with Haus Labs, so I left that in the US to deal with in the future. The other two concealers I brought with me and I can say that it’s shocking the EL concealer is light on me considering 6W in the foundation has been much too dark for me these past five or so years. This is a range that I definitely recommend seeing in-store if possible before purchasing.
The EL concealer has a very interesting applicator that helps get into corners, but I still have to blend it out with a brush that gets into all the corners, so having a good brush at the end of the day is more important than the shape of the tool. I give it credit for not applying a ton at once though.
The finish looks beautiful initially, but it creased horribly in the beginning and faded significantly within the first hour or two. The best I’ve been able to get it to look is using the Milk Hydro Grip Eye primer, which gives me six hours maximum before the fading is too significant for me to want to be seen in public with it. The Charlotte Tilbury pressed powder with it helps too, but it still settles more than I’m used to in my under eye lines. Without the Milk primer it’s far worse. As much as I like the finish, I’d only wear this for short outings until I can figure out a combination with powder that potentially helps it last longer. I don’t have much hope on that considering Nikki had similar issues as detailed in her review HERE. I’m close to giving up on experimenting with it since so many trials ended poorly or with such short lived results.
As for Hourglass, I’ve been able to get minimal creasing and a 7-8 hour wear time with the Huda Beauty Easy Bake loose powder, but I have to continue checking if any other powder combinations can improve the results. The best wear time I get with the concealer plus any powder is if I used the MILK Hydro Grip Eye Primer underneath. Then the concealer lasts on me at least nine hours. It could be even better, but eight hours is the minimum for my wear tests and nine hours was the maximum I was able to test it for before intentionally choosing to remove it from my face. With the MILK primer, I can get close to full coverage. Without it, I’d say I get high medium coverage.
Also, I just wanted to add that the applicators are different between the travel size and full size of the Hourglass concealer. The full-size (on the left half) has more of a curve and tapered tip. The travel size has a more common/generic shape.
Between the three concealers, the Hourglass seems to be the one with the most potential.
My Top 5 Concealers Ranked
In fifth place is the Fenty We’re Even Concealer in 385W and 410W. It’s a new one to my collection that released since I’ve been overseas. The coverage level is quite good, it has very little creasing, and while it’s not the longest lasting of the bunch, it lasts eight hours before the fading starts to be significant. At least, that’s the case when I pair it with the Charlotte Tilbury powder. Using it with other products led to way faster fading. For example, I got superb protection against creasing and full coverage results when using it on top of the Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Eye Primer, but after just four hours, it looked fully worn out. So, I just have to remember to keep using it with the Charlotte Tilbury powder or any others I may discover work well with it in the future. Also, when I use it with the CT Powder, I have to still apply a lot more product than I would with other full coverage products. This isn’t to gain extra coverage. This is necessary because a thin layer, although enough to hide dark circles, will get absorbed (or broken down…whichever happens to cause the disappearing act) too quickly by my skin. Loading up the product means some will disappear, but there will be enough left to last the eight hours when paired with the right powder. If I try to use a normal amount of concealer, even with the Charlotte Tilbury powder, it will fade significantly after only five hours.
This isn’t a deal-breaker, but the Fenty packaging doesn’t allow one to stand the concealer upright. There are too many pointed edges and the only flat parts are the front and back, so it has to be stored in a laying position unless it’s stored in a container. Also, it has an interesting curve tip for distributing product.
In fourth place is Tarte Shape Tape in 35N Deep (reviewed HERE) and third place is the L’Oreal Paris Infallible Full Wear Concealer in 415 Honey. I still go back and forth trying to decide which of the two is truly better. They even have similarly sized packaging with near identical wands, though the applicator tip from L’Oreal is even bigger than the already large one from Tarte! Tarte’s component also has a tighter inner ring that prevents excess product from being pulled out of the tube, whereas L’Oreal’s gets a little messier.
I’ve tried so many variations of the Medium/Deep range from Tarte: Tan Sand, Tan-Deep Sand, Deep, Deep Honey, and Deep Sand, etc. The best shade from the range for me is Deep, which is the right depth, but still not the perfect because of the undertone. The full coverage nature of it and lasting power is why I’ve repurchased specifically Deep six times between full-sizes and minis since its release. I haven’t found a way to be able to purchase it in Germany, so it was important for me to find alternatives since concealer is the single most important piece of makeup for me. Although I wish it was a little less dry looking (the creamy version does NOT work for me), I’ve had concealers that looked way worse on me.
As for the L’Oreal concealer, it’s the closest thing I ever found to looking and performing like Tarte Shape Tape. It still can look a little dry under the eyes, but the finish is slightly better than Shape Tape. It also has a tiny bit shorter of longevity results, at about a maximum of 10 hours for me if I use the right powders (and as short as 6 with the wrong skincare, powders, or other products). However, one big plus is the price difference with L’Oreal’s being way more affordable. Tarte usually offers 50% off Shape Tape sales throughout the year, whereas you can get it at less than that at any time by getting the one from L’Oreal. For these reasons, and the tiniest bit better shade match, I believe I like the Infallible Concealer slightly more.
In second place is the Givenchy Prisme Libre Skin-Caring 24H Hydrating Radiant Correcting Creamy Concealer in N390 and W420 (reviewed HERE). I only go for complete coverage concealers, but the hydrated look from this one (when paired with the right powder) is so nice that I am willing to settle for high coverage instead. I used to consider this a finicky concealer because using the same products didn’t give me consistently good results, but then I realized it was due to my under eyes and the concealer’s inability to hold up as well when the application area was oily instead of dry. On those oil producing days, I have to monitor my eyes within the first half hour to check if the creases need to be patted back out and touched back up with powder. This isn’t an everyday problem, just every once in a while when my skin decides to play games! Using the Milky Hydro Grip Eye Primer under the eyes helped extend the wear time as well. Also, since I have to set it with powder to minimize creasing, I lose a lot of that luminosity. I tested the concealer with various powders and Givenchy’s own Prisme Libre Powder was the only thing that helped my under eyes look at least more hydrated than Shape Tape. Since that initial review, I’ve tested new powders I didn’t have before, and the current best pairing is with the Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Setting Powder. The Givenchy powder gives me around eight hours of wear time (six hours on a bad day), but the Huda Powder helps it look close to a natural finish while lasting eight hours before the fading even starts! That’s without bothering to use the Milk primer. Since discovering the Huda and Givenchy power combo, this concealer was able to jump up to the number two spot.
In first place is the KVD Good Apple Concealer in Tan 167 (reviewed HERE but I also own Tan 161 and used to own Tan 173). It’s shocking that this is my new number one considering it can be troublesome too. However, when I learned the combination of this concealer with the Charlotte Tilbury matte face powder fixed the longevity issue, I haven’t had problems ever since. I get the coverage I need, the texture is lightweight, the finish is better than Shape Tape (which I consider the standard and where the bar is set), and I can get 8-12 hours of wear as long as no other products come in contact with this one, particularly emollient ones like some skincare, certain primers, and creamy blushes or highlighters. Even when using the Sephora Setting Spray, I have to reapply and repowder my concealer because it will make it suddenly crease badly. Strangely, since my own natural oils tend to not be too much of a hassle to the concealer, I don’t have to baby it as much as the Givenchy concealer. So, this one is essentially my new Shape Tape. This means it’s one that I will continually purchase (and have repurchased multiple times already).
The photo above demonstrates some of the various stages that I was testing different makeup products and practicing techniques in the weeks prior to the wedding. The very first example is what I would consider my typical amount of makeup, versus the last photo where I put in way more effort with a ton of extra steps that were necessary to create the look I envisioned for myself.
In Part 1, I explained which strategies I chose and showed the specific makeup products used. In Part 2, I’m going into greater detail listing the actual order of the steps I took. That includes all the details about the eyeshadows that I left out of the previous wedding post. I will also include photos of alternative wedding/special occasion looks in both the cold winter theme, classic looks, and a few colorful ones now that we’re in spring.
The makeup artists were upfront about either not being available on the day of the wedding or not having their own products to match me. I was a bit nervous about having to do it on my own, considering I’m just a makeup enthusiast, but many loved ones reassured me that I knew my own face better than anyone else and they were confident I could pull it off. I hope that this post will be inspiring to anyone else in a similar situation where you have an important event coming up and aren’t sure where to start or would just like to see extra ideas.
My Wedding Makeup Step-By-Step
First, I applied skincare (and this would normally include sunscreen though I skipped it), allowing ample time for everything to absorb in the skin before moving onto applying primer(s).
I then applied color correctors to the spots I have discoloration, put on the liquid contour for my nose and under the cheeks, and added liquid blush. I left them only halfway blended since the foundation would go over everything anyway as part of the underpainting technique.
I made a mixture of foundation shades and applied it to the outer perimeter of my face. The lighter foundation color, I applied to the central zone of my face.
The eye primer came next before I filled in my brows with my brow pencil of choice.
I applied my skin tone shade of concealer to my under eyes and areas of discoloration. I applied a combination of my skin tone shade and a lighter color to my under eye area again, the bridge of my nose, center of my forehead, and chin. I use the lighter concealer color alone to highlight under my eyebrows.
After setting those concealer areas with powder, I did a first round of setting spray to lock those in.
In the photo series above, I saved my eye makeup for last, but I switched the order on the day of the wedding to do the eye makeup next in case I had a mishap with eyeliner, if mascara got on the lids, etc.
1. First, I applied Viseart’s Illusion shade from the Peridot quad under my brows on top of where I laid down the lighter concealer shade.
2. Then I applied Melt’s Rubbish shade from the Rust palette in the space under the Viseart shadow, but above the crease.
3. Next was Melt’s Rust shade from the same palette tightly in the crease, not going past the previous shade.
4. I lightly added Log from Natasha Denona’s Gold Palette, building up the outer corner and moving halfway inward. I chose this placement because of my particular eye shape.
5. I then built up the depth and smokey factor in the outer v area using Xtreme Black from Pat McGrath’s Mothership III: Subversive palette.
6. I smudged the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on Pencil along the outer quarter of the lower lash line before using Deep Shade (actual name) from the same PML palette on the rest of the lower lash line.
7. I smoothed on the Nyx Glitter Primer to the empty space on my lids and applied Bronzed Mink from PML’s Bronze Bliss palette to the outer half of the lid, taking care to not cover up the dark shadows in the outer corner.
8. I added Divine Dahlia from PML’s Interstellar Icon Quad on top of Bronze Mink to tone down the warmth of that shade.
9. The next step was picking up Nude Moon from Bronze Bliss on my brush, spraying it with MAC Fix+ and applying it to the inner half of the lids.
10. I placed Skinshow Fever from Mothership III: Subversive in the inner corner, under the brow arch, and the inner third of the lower lash line for highlighting purposes.
11. For extra sparkle, I added Lunar Luxury damp from Bronze Bliss to the inner corner. I applied the waterproof eyeliner to my upper lash line, along with two coats of waterproof mascara to my upper lashes, but only one coat on my lower lashes. Had I used the Clionadh multichrome, I would have placed a small dot that was eyeliner width to the center of the upper lash line.
Going back to my base, I applied powder contour under the cheeks and along my jawline. I applied a cooler toned contour to my nose, and on top of the other contoured spots.
I applied bronzer along my forehead and slightly above the contour under my cheeks.
I used my face powder and the Beautyblender Puff to clean up a small section of my sculpting work without going too far in. Just about one inch inward from my ear.
I applied my intense highlighter to the tops of my cheekbones.
I applied the mixture of powder blushes to my cheeks.
I applied my more subtle highlighters to the top of my cheekbones again, bridge of my nose, above the brows, and any remaining product on the brush to my forehead and chin.
I used my blurring finishing powder in any areas that needed extra blending/blurring.
I lined my lips with the lip liner of choice, filled it in with liquid lipstick, and added a lighter lip product to the center of my lips. During trial sessions, I even added highlighter, but didn’t end up doing it on the wedding day.
I put the leftovers of foundation from my brush and applied it to the spots on my neck that would be seen.
I applied highlighter to my collarbones and shoulders.
Lastly, I finished up with a generous amount of setting spray to my face. Had I remembered, I would have sprayed my neck and the spots I applied body highlighter.
And that’s everything! It’s a lot of steps, but worth the time and effort for one of the most important days of my life!
Just as unexpected problems can arise on important days, unfortunately, nearly every day that I set aside free time has been a dark day. I’ve done my best to play around with artificial light, take photos during the brightest part of the day for natural light, and do some color adjusting with the photos, but I’m dealing with cloudy days constantly over here. Times like these, I miss Florida haha.
Recreation of my Wedding Makeup/Neutral Glam: Used all the products I still have on hand. Photo Setup: (1) In front of an open window on a cloudy day. (2) In a room with warm light and a second cell phone’s flashlight was lit behind the camera. (3) In front of an open window with warm white bulbs overhead.
Here are the additional looks!
Frost Queen: Milky Hydro Grip Primer and Armani Luminous Silk Hydrating Primer, Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in 10, Hourglass Cosmetics Vanish Airbrush Concealer in Maple and Umber, Chantecaille Perfect Blur Powder in Med/Deep, r.e.m. Beauty Hypernova Satin Matte Bronzer in Cocoa-Nut, REM Beauty Highlighter Topper in Miss Mars, Hindash Beautopsy Palette (nose contour), Armani Neo Nude Melting Color Balm in 60 Warm Plum and Hourglass Ambient Light Blush in At Night, ELF Instant Lift Brow Pencil in Deep Brown, Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liner, KVD Full Sleeve Mascara, Juvia’s Place Lip Liner in Brownie, Lisa Eldridge True Velvet Lip Color in Sorcery, Colourpop Hocus Pocus 2 So Glassy Lip in Boys Will Love Me, the eyeshadow shade Memory (Metallic) from the Tati Beauty Textured Neutrals Volume 1 palette, and shades Nowhere, Christmas Eve, and Snowflake from the Oden’s Eye Christmas Eve Palette. Photo Setup: In front of an open window with a warm white bulb overhead on a partly sunny day, but near sundown.
Playful Pinks: Milk Hydro Grip Primer, Nars Light Reflecting Foundation in MD3.3 Caracas, KVD Good Apple Concealers, Huda Faux Filter Corrector in Mango, Nars Soft Matte Advanced Perfecting Powder in High Tide, GloWish Soft Radiance Bronzing Powder in 04 Deep Tan, Dior Backstage Powder No Powder, Hindash Beautopsy Palette (nose contour), Dior Rosy Glow Blush in 012 Rosewood and Nabla Skin Glazing in Lola, Pat Mcgrath Labs Skin Fetish: Ultra Glow Highlighter in Divine Rose, Suqqu Treatment Wrapping Lip in 05, Coloured Raine Lip Liner in Decadent, Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil in 05, KVD Full Sleeve Mascara, Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eyeliner, MAC Fix+, Melt’s eyeshadows from the Gemini II Palette with shades Bela, Sweetheart, Gemalas, and LX Queen, and the Rust palette with shade Antique. Devinah Cosmetics Eyeshadows in shades Empress, Pixy Stix, and Gelicide. Pat Mcgrath Labs’ eyeshadows from the Mothership III: Subversive palette in VR Pink and from the Celestial Nirvana 5 pan Palette in Nude Allure in the shades Mercurial Rose and Coral Kiss. Photo Setup: In front of an open window on a less cloudy day, but during late afternoon hours and a warm white bulb overhead.
Chocolate-Gold Glam: Milk Hydro Grip Primer, Armani Luminous Silk Hydrating Primer, Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation in 13.5 and 14, L’Oréal Infallible Full Wear Waterproof Concealer in 415 Honey, Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Baking & Setting Powder in Blondie, Gxve Beauty Check My Glow Multi-Dimensional Illuminating Highlighter in Karat Country, Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Bronzer in Terracotta, Dior Powder No Powder, Chanel Blush Lumiere Illuminating Blush Powder in Brun Roussi, ELF Instant Lift Brow Pencil in Deep Brown, MAC Macstack Mascara, One/Size Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner Pen, Palladio Waterproof Lip Pencil in Coffee, and Kaleidos Cloud Lab Lip Clay in Sienna. Hindash Beautopsy Palette (nose contour and no contouring anywhere else). Viseart’s Illusion shade from the Peridot Quad, Deep Shade (actual name) and Gigabyte from Pat Mcgrath Labs Mothership III: Subversive, Clionadh Cometics’ shade Lux, and Devinah Cosmetics’ shade Ambrosia. Photo Setup: In front of an open window on a less cloudy day with a warm white bulb overhead.
Flower Garden: Haus Labs by Lady Gaga Triclone Skin Tech Foundation in 425 Medium Deep Neutral, Tatcha the Liquid Silk Canvas Fenty We’re Even Concealer in 410 W and 385W, Givenchy Prisme Libre Powder in 5 Popeline Mimosa, Dior Powder No Powder, Hindash Beautopsy Palette (nose contour), Victoria Beckham Matte Bronzing Brick 05 (regular contour), Gucci Bronzer in 04, MAC Glow Play Blush in Peaches N Dreams, Sephora Blush Duo in 02 Peach Blossom, Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Highlighting Duo in Tanlight, Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil in 05, L’Oreal Telescopic Lift Macara, Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner, Danessa Myricks Infinite Chrome Micropencil Eyeliners in Jade, Amethyst, and Lemon Quartz. Devinah Matte Eyeshadows in Courtney and Meraki, Clionadh Cosmetics Stained Glass Shadows in Mural, Patina, Quest, Noble, and Spire. Coloured Raine Lip Liner in Pine and Suqqu Sheer Matte Lipstick in 112. Photo Setup: In front of an open window with the sun poking out randomly on and off from behind the mostly cloudy sky, and a warm white bulb overhead.
Spring Purples: Milk Hydro Grip Primer, Glossier Futuredew, Lisa Eldridge Seamless Skin Foundation in 27, KVD Good Apple Concealers, ELF Camo Color Corrector in Orange, Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish in 2 and 3, Hermès Plein Air H Trio Healthy Glow Mineral Powder, Dior Backstage Powder No Powder, Hindash Beautopsy Palette (contour), ColourPop Pressed Powder Blush in Potted and Gucci Cheeks & Eyes Powder Luminous Matte in 06 Warm Berry, Hourglass Metallic Strobe Powder in Infinite Strobe Light, Lisa Eldridge Enhance and Define Lip Pencil in Sorcery and Lisa Eldridge Luxuriously Lucent Lip Colour in Painterly, Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil in 05, KVD Full Sleeve Mascara, Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eyeliner, Melt’s eyeshadows from the She’s In Parties Palette with shades Total Immortal and Last Caress. Clionadh Cosmetics Multichromes in shades UV and Tracery. Sydney Grace Eyeshadows in Dear Reader, Flannel, and Sovereign Reign. Photo Setup: (1) In front of a window on a partly sunny day. (2) Same as the first, but from the opposite direction. (3) In front of an open window on partly sunny day and a warm white bulb overhead.
That’s all for today! Thank you for stopping by! I hope you’ll click to follow or bookmark this page to come visit again!
Also, I seem to be having an issue with WordPress. For some reason, images have a hard time loading for those viewing my blog within Germany. The customer service advisors were unhelpful and the only way that even I was able to get around loading issues was to use a VPN. If you live in the US or most other countries, it should be working fine. The issue, as far as I’m aware, is a DE issue for some reason.
Since the brand’s highlighter is one of my favorite products, I was excited to see the release of their new blushes and bronzers in similar packaging with the same pattern and soft looking texture. I won’t harp on the highlighter because I reviewed it in-depth in my Best Highlighters Showcased post just a few months ago, but I wanted to at least show it again in different lighting.
Although the texture isn’t exactly the same as the new products, because it’s a shimmer that feels slightly emollient to the touch, the others are a soft matte that feel like they still have a bit of slip to them.
r.e.m. Hypernova Bronzer in Cocoa-Nut
This is the fifth shade option out of six bronzer colors. Cocoa-Nut is described as, “very deep with warm undertones.” Warmth can mean it has anything between a yellow, orange, or red undertone. In this case, it’s red and a bit warmer than looks natural on me. I can still pull off this shade if I use it sparingly, but the color does impact my enjoyment of this bronzer. It’s possible the 4th shade called Solar Storm described as, “tan with warm undertones,” might work better for me, or just as easily could be too light.
I purchased this from Selfridges because, at the time, Sephora DE only carried the four lighter shades.
I recommend using an airy brush with this because it’s quite pigmented. It blends well, but it doesn’t have the best sticking power (which shortens how long it lasts throughout the day). Although I love the soft texture and it has a natural looking finish, I prefer bronzers with a little more of a satin sheen to them. I’ve also been spoiled to own so many bronzers that have an even more effortless blend.
r.e.m. Hypernova Blushes in Jupiter Moon and Sun Pop
The blushes perform identically to the bronzers, though they have slightly less pigment. For that reason, although they are nice, I’m even less impressed. The blushes eventually become one with the skin, melting into my foundation, which looks pretty while it lasts, but it does fade as the day goes on. I love the Jupiter Moon shade because it’s in the family of reddish brown blushes, which I can pull off as long as it isn’t too red. I can list some that I still love more in terms of finish and performance such as Benefit’s Terra and Pat Mcgrath’s Paradise Venus. It’s still nice and I plan to continue using it on and off. In this case, I recommend using a medium density brush like the Sonia G Cheek Pro so that it has enough blending power while remaining buildable if you have a lighter skintone. The shade Sun Pop, however, looks ashier on my skin and even looks more powdery in the swatch. I think it has to do with the vibrancy of the pigment as it’s akin to neon/fluorescent oranges/corals. All the promo images I saw in the beginning show this shade as looking orange, but in person it’s clear to see it’s coral. To be fair though, I had a hard time capturing the color accurately on camera because it does tend to pull orange in photos.
Just like the bronzers, I’m intrigued to see if there are more out of the eight options I’d prefer on myself. However, my blush collection is too large to justify buying more and at full price. Ironically, these I bought via Sephora DE because none were available at Selfridges on launch day.
I don’t usually include so many photos of the same products, but I was unsatisfied with how the pictures turned out. Every day I attempted to take pictures was a cloudy day. So, they were either too dark or too washed out with the lights I tried to use to compensate. Below are the newest ones and most color-accurate.
You can click on any image to enlarge them.
That’s all I have for today. Thank you for reading!
There were a lot of factors to consider when it came to doing my own wedding makeup. I scoured the internet for tips and tricks, but at times the answers were contradictory. I thought I had a good plan in the beginning, but as I practiced doing multiple looks, I realized I needed to make some changes along the way.
Today, we’ll cover the things that should be decided on in advance and what I ultimately chose to do. The conclusions I came to won’t be the same for everyone since it depends on each individual’s personal tastes, skin type, skin texture, skin tone, undertone, priorities, etc.
Although I was inspired to create this post with weddings in mind, this topic is for anyone with an upcoming special event/occasion where photographs will be taken. I was not in a position where I could afford to forget something and run to grab it at the last second, so hopefully these topics will help others avoid having to make last minute decisions and purchases too.
DISCLOSURE: All makeup products in this post were purchased by me with my own money. The only affiliate links in this post are for a few of the brushes mentioned towards the end. Non-highlighted links in bold blue font (Example) are standard non-affiliate links. Links marked in bold black font with a light blue background (Example) are affiliate links. This means that I would make a commissionif purchases were made directly using my link. Whether you click to shop through them or not, I appreciate you visiting and I hope you find the information I’ve provided to be helpful!
Red – Titles/Topics, Purple – Products Used, Green – Additional Options to Consider
Deciding Between Looking Better in Person or Looking Better on Camera
We had a micro wedding (less than 25 people) and the majority of the guests were non-makeup wearers or neutral-color wearing minimalists. I was concerned with looking overly made up in person compared to the group, but also recognized that full coverage and full glam faces result in the most photogenic pictures. I would love to look as natural and fresh-faced as possible, but I think I look the prettiest with “a beat face,” so to speak. So, I decided that I ultimately would start researching ways to look best in photography since pictures last longer and can even serve to replace memories in the minds of those who see them. If it was possible, my plan was to still try and find a balance between the two goals. This balance involved using other techniques such as color-correcting so I could use less concealer and foundation to hide my skin discoloration, using underpainting techniques to have my sculpting attempts look as natural as possible and reduce the need for as much powder on the surface layer, using full-coverage makeup paired with brushes that apply less product so that I could build up to the minimum amount of makeup I needed in small layers instead of packing it on heavily all at once.
In the age of social media, it’s safe to assume the majority of people prioritize how makeup will look on camera versus how it looks in real life, as discussed on the Mixed Makeup YouTube Channel. However, this is still a question everyone has to ask themselves because the degree to which direction one leans will dictate how they have to proceed with the next steps.
After Choosing to Prioritize How One Looks on Camera…
When I do a full-face in the type of soft tones that are typical of bridal makeup, I don’t feel satisfied with my appearance. So, looking natural was less of an option for me. In addition, if I wanted things like blush to be seen on camera, I had to get comfortable packing on way more than usual because blush gets washed out so easily. As described by Kackie of Kackie Reviews Beauty, the key is applying makeup in a way to add more dimension that the camera can pick up even when pulled back. I had to practice applying more than usual, taking pictures, and then adding more and photographing that to learn how much would actually be needed on the day. Blush, highlighter, and eyeshadows were the things I had to work on amplifying dramatically in order to get photos I was satisfied with (at least on my own camera).
One of the first big decisions I had to make was deciding what finish I wanted for my skin. A matte base with strategically placed glow seems to be the consensus for what photographs the best. However, I did not anticipate the climate when I chose what products to bring with me when I moved overseas. The products that looked the best on camera for me in Florida were extra dry looking on me in Germany and I didn’t bring my dewier foundations because I have them in my darker summer shade. This led me to buy a new foundation (N°1 DE CHANEL Revitalizing Foundation), the only one that mimicked the appearance of natural oils peaking through my face, and it remained that way through the end of the night. It basically looked like a natural-finish foundation on my dry skin. I used the Glossier Futuredew, to ramp up the glow in typical places I highlight, the MILK Hydro Grip primer for hydration and lasting power, and the Benefit Porefessional Hydrating primer in my T-zone for a smoothing effect without a silicone texture. I have all three of these products in minis (and a travel container).
I did have the Nars Light Reflecting Foundation with me, but my research scared me away from using it. Since Nars is an artist brand, I always assumed their products looked fantastic on professional cameras, but I kept coming across warnings against using too many light reflecting products. Considering how dark it is in Germany, I knew the chances of flash being used was high, so I didn’t want to look crazy on other people’s cameras either (even though Nars’ foundation is supposed to be photo-friendly and produce no flashback, but I didn’t know if that would still be the case if paired with other light reflecting products). So, I didn’t use that one just to be safe. Skipping it turned out to be necessary because I tried using it in strategic spots and it still wasn’t luminous enough for my liking while not in Florida. Lisa Eldridge was one example of someone who discussed light reflecting products in flash photography and Pete Coco Photography cautioned against using shimmers in studio settings, but I saw more mentions of light reflection from various articles and blogs.
For those curious, the top foundations I wanted to use if the climate was more like Florida would have been the Lisa Eldridge Seamless Skin Foundation or Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation (this one only starts to look good for me if oils break through and my skin is prepped for maximum hydration including using a facial oil). The Lisa Eldridge foundation is extremely similar looking to the Chanel one I opted for, but without as much luminosity. I also own two lighter coverage products that make my skin look beautiful in person: the Fenty Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint in Shade 18 and the Rose Inc Skin Enhance Luminous Tinted Serum in Shade 100. I was looking for high coverage, but if I had to recommend another option it would be the one from Fenty. I normally dislike their foundations, but this newer one finally agrees with my dry skin. The Rose Inc one unfortunately can come off extra warm colored on camera. Sometimes I look orange in photos even though I don’t in person. It’s also random when it happens as well. I’m not sure if it’s some interaction with a specific product I might sometimes pair with it. So, that’s why I don’t recommend that one.
Deciding On the Color Scheme and Undertones of the Makeup
I had quite the dilemma trying to figure out what colors I wanted to use as a person with warm undertones who was planning to wear cool toned accessories and have blue and purple flowers in my bouquet. I like wearing eyeshadow that matches what I’m wearing in some way, whether it’s clothing, a purse, jewelry, etc but I never like how cool toned eyeshadows look on me as much as warmer ones. At the same time, I didn’t want the winter aesthetic I planned for my look to clash with my natural warmth and make me look extra warm by comparison. I did a test run using my go-to makeup and just switching to a cool toned blush, but I didn’t like the outcome. My second solution was to wear neutral makeup to bridge the two types of looks, but after doing another test run, I just didn’t feel my makeup was as pretty as it usually would be.
Experts say that although anyone can wear any color they want, we tend to find shades in our undertone to look prettiest on ourselves. For instance, Lisa Eldridge says it’s nice to match the wedding scheme/theme, but not if it’s against your coloring. Ultimately, I felt that if I didn’t wear the kind of shades that were natural for me, I would have regrets looking back at pictures thinking my everyday makeup looked somehow better than what I chose for my own wedding.
Many makeup artists recommend trying to look like an enhanced version of yourself, and not looking like someone else. This concept is what helped me solidify the decision to use warm tones, just ones that didn’t veer too far off from neutrals. This idea of trying to look like myself also had me wondering how I could possibly incorporate a pop of color into my look because that’s “me” too. Even when I’m on a nude colors kick, I still end up popping on a multichrome or some other colorful indie brand’s eyeshadow. Considering the wedding colors were blue, purple, and ivory/cream/whitish (we couldn’t really nail that one down), I thought it might be a good idea to add a blue-purple multichrome into the eye look. I really wanted for it to be one from Clionadh Cosmetics like Etched or Spire, since it’s my favorite brand, but the reason I love theirs is how intensely they stand out. In this situation, every technique and position I tried to place the multichrome was just too much.
Because all my other makeup was in natural tones, my eyes were instantly drawn to the spot with the multichrome and stole attention from the rest of the look. Eventually, I was recommend by someone on Instagram to try putting the tiniest dot in the center. This worked in low light in a very pretty way, but the second actual lights hit my eyes, it was still too much for what I wanted. Ultimately, as much as incorporating color into my looks is something I’m known for doing, I wanted something classic and timeless for my wedding. So, I decided to go back to the neutral glam idea for eyeshadows and using my slightly warm tones of makeup for everything else. My blush was still a mix of everything. I used a liquid blush and then ended up using powders on top further into the makeup process. For those curious, it was three shades from MAC: a whisper amount of Breath of Plum for a slight cool-toned wintery cheek look, a normal amount of Pinch Me as the main color and a natural looking pink on me, and the tiniest bit of Burnt Pepper to add a little more warmth that compliments my undertone and depth of my skin color.
The eyeshadows I ended up going with were mainly from Pat Mcgrath Labs. I intend to do a part 2 to this post, which I can hopefully complete and upload within a few weeks. In there, I’ll post more details on the step-by-step process.
Making Sure Base Techniques are Down Pat
After using my various primers, the next step for me was to color correct the areas of hyperpigmentation. Most of the time, I don’t bother with color correcting because I prefer to just lean on full coverage concealers for that job. However, I wanted to avoid my base makeup looking heavy, since I knew I would be putting more layers of product than usual. I only had two options with me: the E.L.F. Camo Color Corrector in Orange and the Huda Beauty #Fauxfilter Color Corrector in Mango. Although I prefer Huda’s on a regular basis, the ELF one worked better with the KVD concealer, as well as me wanting more intense color-correcting from using a darker color.
I would normally recommend using a color-corrector under the eyes too for those who have intense dark circles like I do. In my particular case though, I already know the ELF formula creases/gathers like mad in areas with lines, which is why I only use it in smoother areas of my face. So, I had no choice but to skip that step on myself. For those that don’t have discoloration issues like I do, color-correcting is not a necessary step. The most coverage one can achieve using the least amount of products is better, so if you can skip it, then please skip it. Ultimately, even I would have skipped this step, but I tested out how my makeup looked with color correcting versus going without it and the results spoke for themselves. I decided it was a step worth doing because I wanted as close to a flawless base as possible.
Although I settled on a foundation, the color match wasn’t as spot-on as I hoped, considering it was a bit more orange rather than yellow/golden and just slightly darker. I had purchased shade BD121, so my only other option was to buy BD91 to mix with it. The brand makes shade BD111, but it’s exclusive to the Chanel website and was sold out. Thankfully, using a ratio of roughly 2 parts BD121 to 1 part BD91 gave me a better color match. At least, that’s the mixture I used on the outer perimeter of my face and then used BD91 by itself in the central part of my face for a more natural gradient of color. My foundation application did not come first immediately after priming and color correcting though.
The other technique I wanted to utilize was under-painting. I have a naturally round face, besides it being chubby. Trying to create a chiseled look is by nature going to be easier for those with a clearly visible bone structure. Although I still have slight indent in my cheek area, I have an undefined jawline made weaker by having a rounder face. There’s only so much one can do to make a believable contour on a face like mine. One of the most believable options, if done correctly, is underpainting: to do the contouring and highlighting as a cream or liquid step first before applying foundation on top (and following it up with powder products afterwards too). Funnily enough, I learned about this technique about ten years ago when under eye concealers weren’t full coverage enough for me. I don’t think it’s necessary to do a full-face of underpainting like you see in TikTok and around social media as a fad, only the specific areas that need extra help to again minimize product usage. So, I bought the darkest shade of the most affordable foundation I could get my hands on (that I knew would work well). This was the Sephora Best Skin Ever Foundation in 68N. I would have preferred for it to be cool-toned, but “cool” shades in the darkest colors tend to be red instead of blue-grey so I figured neutral would be good enough. I could have used a concealer as well, but considering how much I spent on those Chanel foundations (even though they were discounted), I wanted to save as much money as possible. I could have also tried to use an actual cream contour, but I figured using a foundation would look even more natural on the skin and potentially blend better as cream contours can sometimes be too emollient. The 68N shade worked well enough for my cheekbone and jaw area, but since my nose is a lot more yellow than brown, it looked a little more red in that spot that I like. So, I just had to apply the product even more sparingly and make sure to use more greys when I contoured with powder later.
Besides applying contour, I also used a Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush sample of Joy as an underlayer of blush to help ensure longevity for the whole day. Plus, this particular shade is bright without being overly vibrant, which tends to work well for me. Using this underneath wasn’t overkill when I used the MAC blushes later. In fact, I still had room to go heavier with my blush.
After the liquid blush is when I would apply my foundations. I think some people recommend doing highlighting with concealer (product several shades lighter to bring those areas forward and not the shimmery type of highlighter) underneath foundation, but the KVD Good Apple Concealer formula that I used can sometimes melt/fade away with other products. The foundation on top of this one would have been covered up too completely, so I applied the mixture after foundation. I could have tried to use a different concealer for underpainting, but I was running out of time and just wanted to stick to what I knew. I began practicing applying the makeup on an off nearly two months before the wedding (with more consistent daily testing in the final three weeks). It’s not useful to test out all new products at once, since it would be too hard to tell which products were interacting badly with others, or were only working well depending on what it was paired with. I could only test a few combinations at a time. So, even the two months wasn’t as much time as I thought. In retrospect, three months would have been ideal for me.
The theme of this sections is to make sure the base techniques are nailed. Part of that was my realization that in all the bridal makeup photos I liked, they really utilized highlighting for color in addition to the glow factor. However, I’ve never liked an overly brightened under eye on myself. When I was younger without so many lines to worry about drawing attention to, that was a different story. So, I had to think about what’s more natural for myself and my style rather than just sticking to the template of instructions on how most people do wedding makeup. I thought perhaps I could use my typical Tan 167 all over and apply my new Tan 161 (this specific shade was on sale which is why I chose this one for my highlight option) on top in strategic spots to highlight with, but I didn’t like the outcome. It was still too stark of a contrast for me to be comfortable with no matter how great it could have potentially looked on camera. What worked best for me was applying my near skin-tone shade 167 and then using a combination of 167 and 161 mixed together as the highlighting concealer color on top. The transition was more natural, which I ended up liking a lot better than using 161 alone (though I did use 161 alone to highlight my brow bone area). I then set my concealer with the Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Powder in either Medium (which I bought in the travel size) or a combination of Medium plus my usual shade in Tan. I tested out plenty of different powders and the one that worked the best to keep the KVD concealer creasing the least and not fading at the end of the night was this Charlotte Tilbury powder. The Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Powder was a close second since it worked so well with other concealers I was testing at the time (Fenty We’re Even Concealer and L’Oréal Infallible Full Wear Concealer). However, the results of the KVD and CT combo won out.
I would normally use the back of my hand as a spot to mix shades, but since I wanted to have leftover mixtures reserved on the side for touch-ups, I started to wish for a makeup mixing palette or plate. Since I didn’t bring any with me and didn’t want to buy one, I used the top lid of the Charlotte Tilbury Cream Bronzer compact (pictured in the foundation photo above). It has a surface that’s easy to wipe down with a makeup wipe or makeup eraser cloth. Also, when I mixed with my brushes, I got too much product on the bristles, so I started using the brush handle to mix shades and then wiped off the handle onto my microfiber cloth. That way, I’m able to pick up smaller amounts of product with the bristles and even switch to a smaller brush for spot applications where needed.
Securing the base is important, but so is recognizing whether the recommended techniques have to be tweaked to your specific preferences and what makes you the most comfortable. It’s okay if you hate contouring to skip doing it. It’s okay to go with a sheer coverage foundation and then just use concealer in areas that require more coverage. The most important thing to do is to practice techniques as much as possible before the wedding or special event if you’re doing your own makeup. Sometimes products don’t perform the way we remember them and the last thing you want is to discover that on an important day. You want to thoroughly test your full look in every step in order to make sure you can replicate the same results every time, in every type of lighting, and in every weather scenario.
To Bake or Not to Bake, Setting Spray vs Fix+
Continuing the theme of getting used to wearing more makeup that usual and utilizing techniques I normally don’t, I had to decide whether or not to utilize the baking technique. Since I already narrowed down my concealer, it was just a matter of doing a wear test all day to see if my makeup looked better with or without baking. As it turned out, with my products and my skin type, baking really wasn’t necessary, or at least not in the traditional sense of loading a ton of powder on and then dusting it away after five minutes or so. I ended up not even needing to powder my whole face since I was utilizing setting sprays too.
My process was applying my concealer to my under eyes and face area before using my normal brush to powder-set those spots. As the days were counting down to the wedding, I started to utilize more skincare such as using the Lisa Eldridge Skin Enhancing Treatment Cleanser as a mask, which made my skin more hydrated and strangely enough need more setting powder under my eyes. So, after setting my concealer I would wait until I noticed creasing before patting the creases back out with my Sonia G Jumbo Concealer Brush, and then using the Charlotte Tilbury powder with my Beautyblender Power Pocket Puff to lightly apply a thin layer in the areas I highlighted with the concealer mixture (skipping hyperpigmentation areas that didn’t need extra powder) and also slightly under my contour to sharpen those spots and “clean them up.” The puff still came in handy because some days during the trials it was even necessary to go as far as to spray the silicone side of the BB puff with setting spray, press that into the concealer creases, reapply a little more concealer, and then set it with powder using the velour side of the puff. This was during the trial days I started using different skincare that I should have been testing much earlier in the process. So, this is all I need in terms of baking, but those that have combo or oily skin will probably need to take additional steps to lock the makeup into place. The puff also comes in handy while on-the-go. Instead of me needing a face powder brush and an under-eye powder setting brush (plus technically I could use other areas of the puff for other types of powder products), I just needed this on hand in the “Emergency Bride Kit” for touch-ups.
After I apply my liquid and cream layers, I set my face with setting spray, finish applying all my powder products, and then set my face again. I tested a few sprays before I moved, but the only one I brought with me was the One/Size On ‘Til Dawn Waterproof Setting Spray. I had the mini size and as I started testing, I got paranoid that I would end up using it all before the wedding and it’s not available for purchase in Germany. So, I ended up buying the Sephora Makeup Setting Spray for my trial runs. What I like more about the Sephora spray, besides the lower price, is that it’s unscented. The One/Size spray has a slightly floral, but not overwhelming smell.
I’ve tested both of the waterproof claims by splashing water on my face and have seen how the water rolls off my face without leaving streaks in my makeup. In terms of making things transfer-proof, that wasn’t the case with One/Size unless I just wasn’t using enough of it. The Sephora Spray only seemed to make my makeup transfer-proof that was in lighter layers and on lighter makeup days. It didn’t seem to work with a full face of everything. I haven’t tested the One/Size spray in the same scenario of a lighter makeup day, so perhaps they are equal. On my actual wedding day, I still stuck with using the One/Size product. We ended up doing a second day of photos, so the picture below shows what I looked like by the end of the night. On my wedding night, I got home at nearly 3 am, so I don’t have a photo for that. All things considered, I think it held up pretty well. It rained on the actual wedding day, but my makeup didn’t budge. I just transferred some of my nose contour onto my husband’s nose. I had to wipe it off him a few times, but it didn’t transfer any further after that.
I always use MAC Fix+ if I want to dampen my shimmer eyeshadows. It can make the face look hydrated, which is what I need, but sometimes it can cause makeup to not last quite as long and break down a little faster. So, I was too scared to use it on my face (nor did I have the time to test it with everything), so I just used it for my eyelid shades. At one point during my trials, I tested spritzing my highlighters with setting spray and my sample of Fix+ to see if I could intensify the look without leaving a stripe on my face. I ended up deciding to just skip that step as the Charlotte Tilbury Face Architect Glow Glide Highlighter worked well enough as a base highlighter. Others might prefer using a liquid highlighter, but powder products are always easier for me and I was planning to do a technical enough makeup application, so I’d accept easier options wherever possible. Throughout the practice days, I used some combination of multiple other highlighters shown below. On the actual day, I ended up sticking to just Charlotte Tilbury by adding the Pillow Talk Multi-Glow highlighter and I used the Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Highlighting Duo on my shoulders and collarbone. Since I ended up wearing a faux fur shawl/stole and my hair was down, that final step ended up being pointless. It couldn’t be seen on my body. I also forgot to spray setting spray to those spots on my body afterwards, which could have potentially helped lock the highlighter into place.
Although I didn’t end up glowing as intensely as the models in the inspiration photos I procured from Google, seen below, I was still happy with my makeup choices. I applied highlighter to my brow arch, slightly above the brows on either side of the forehead, one specific spot on the bridge of my nose that I build up with contour and another spot lower down, and the tops of my cheekbones.
I mentioned earlier that I used the underpainting technique to contour. Then I used the powder contour in the Kaleidos Symphony Trio for more depth. It’s not grey toned enough to give an actual shadowed effect, so I added a mix of Feel + Real from my Hindash Beautopsy Palette to create the shadowing for my jawline, under the cheekbones, and nose contour. I didn’t use the Kaleidos powder on my nose, only Hindash’s product because I didn’t want it to be overkill in person.
When it came to bronzer, I was dead set on using the Hermès Plein Air H Trio Healthy Glow Mineral Powder because it’s the highest quality powder one that I own. However, in test photos I kept feeling like I was looking too warm toned. With a few days to spare, I tried some of my other top powders like the Glowish Soft Radiance Bronzer Powder, but that one was too red toned. Ultimately, the one best suited for my undertone is the Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Sun Kissed Glow Bronzer in Tan. Even though it’s a cream product, it went next to and slightly on top of my powder contour with no issues. This meant that my bronzer was going to be natural looking in person and likely too subtle to see much of it on camera, but it was a better alternative for me than having my face pull too orange.
I finished my face with my Dior Face & Body Powder No Powder. It blurs imperfections and helps blend the makeup seamlessly into each other. I didn’t use it all over my face, just in key areas that I wanted to touch up. If I had a sparkle-free version of Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder from Hourglass in my shade, I would have considered using that instead or in conjunction with the Dior product. Finishing powders can do wonders for a makeup look, but be sure to test in photos whether the sheen might or might not be too reflective for flash photography!
Waterproof Tests are Required
I’ve always hated waterproof mascaras because of what a pain they are to remove, but I was so certain I would need one for the wedding. I have plenty of favorite mascaras, but according to customer reviews I’ve seen online, apparently getting a waterproof version doesn’t mean it will perform as well as the normal formula. Some of the most beloved mid-range and high end mascaras have terrible reviews for their waterproof counterparts. So, I decided to try exploring the higher rated drugstore waterproof mascaras that I was familiar with in the original form. In my testing, the L’Oréal Voluminous Lash Paradise gave volume, but not as much length and was prone to clumping. The L’Oréal Bambi Eye Mascara gave length, but not much volume. I was debating whether or not to try using both, but it ended up not being necessary because I got the results I wanted from the Essence Lash Princess Waterproof Mascara.
Another alternative I considered was the KVD Beauty Full Sleeve Long + Defined Tubing Mascara. I love the length and volume of that one, and in theory tubing mascaras aren’t supposed to come off easily unless under warm water. While the KVD one seems to be harder to remove than other mascaras with regular temperature water, it can still be done. So, I didn’t want to risk a circumstance where I would have even the slightest chance of having my mascara come off. So, I stuck with using the Essence mascara.
When it comes to using eyeliner, I have a few that are supposed to be waterproof (Stila Stay All Day Liquid Liner and One/Size Point Made 24-hr Liquid Eyeliner pen), but they aren’t as effective when my eyelids get too oily. I’ve always had great results from Sephora’s waterproof liners, so I purchased the Sephora Collection Hot Line Brush Tip Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner. It definitely did the job. I didn’t end up crying, but there was a bit of rain and both the mascara and eyeliner held up completely all day and night.
For the tiny spot I wanted to smudge on my outer lower lash lines, I used the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eye Pencil. I don’t find them to be as waterproof as my other liners, but I can’t get the smudge effect with those, so this was my best option. One thing I should have considered was getting colorful eyeliners to put on my lower lash line instead of regular eyeshadows. It’s possible I could have still ended up with a mess if I had actually gotten teary-eyed. I lucked out, but that might be something to consider.
I’d like to note here that another option for waterproof eyeliners could be those false lashes eyeliner pens. I went back and forth debating whether or not I wanted to wear fake lashes for the wedding. They look amazing on camera, but they are an absolute nuisance for me to wear, especially for an extended period of time. My eye shape, with my super rounded upper lash line, doesn’t hold onto even extreme lash glues very well. Within an hour max, either the inner or outer corner will lift up. The majority of lashes are too short (in width) for my eyes because I need extra length to account for the higher degree angle of the rounded curve of my eye. If I want to rock a half-lash, I have to use 3/4 length lashes. Then, even if I put the eyelashes properly on my lash line, I can still see them in my field of vision. I still thought that if I practiced putting them on enough times, I could make them work. I also heard of the recommendation to cut the lashes into 3 pieces (also from Mixed Makeup) instead of 2. Since splitting them in half never worked for my eye shape, I was willing to give smaller ones a try. My lashes ended up looking like the Cynthia doll’s hairline from Rugrats! Even when I tried to use the pieces just on the outer lash line, it was so hard to get them to look even since I don’t have perfectly symmetrical eyes. Plus, it’s my inner lashes that need the most help, but it would look just as strange if I had lashes there and nowhere else.
Ultimately, for all the hassle it would cause me on the wedding day, I decided to skip the false lashes. I figured I could just try to cheat the look with more coats of mascara and extending the eyeliner out a bit more. This trick worked well enough for my satisfaction. From all the trials though, I did figure out that the House of Lashes Lash & Dash Glue Liner pen makes for a tough to remove waterproof liner even without putting lashes on top of it.
Brow products are never exciting to me, so I almost forgot to mention that the brow product I used is the Benefit Precisely, My Brow PencilWaterproof Eyebrow Definer in shade 5. Although I don’t recall if I’ve purposely tested the waterproof claims, I know from experience that I’ve never had my brows run or smudge when using this product, so I didn’t think twice about using it on the day.
The last waterproof or transfer-proof thing to consider is the lip product. I’m sure most spouses-to-be would be grateful not to have lipstick transfer onto them. However, I didn’t go that route because my lips were in too poor of condition, even with using masks. There are some great waterproof lip liners that I could have used to cover the entirety of my lips instead of opting for a liquid lipstick, but I decided I didn’t want to go that route either.
My lip combination was to use the Coloured Raine Botanical Collection Lip Liner in the shade Decadent. It’s darker than my natural lip line to give me a slight shaping effect. I consider it a transfer-resistant product, but it only claims to be long-wearing. I then filled the insides with the Lisa Eldridge Velveteen Liquid Lip Colour in Muse. This isn’t like most liquid lipsticks that dry out the skin like crazy, but that also means it’s a low-transfer product rather than transfer-proof or even transfer-resistant. The brand claims it’s “smudge-proof and budge-proof,” but that hasn’t been my experience. The final step for slight shine is from using my Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien. Unfortunately, it doesn’t last very long, but I wanted a little bit of shimmer and a slightly creamy look to the center of my lips. My husband hates lip gloss or any kind of sticky balmy product on my lips (which makes keeping them conditioned even more of an uphill battle). So, for his sake, I held off on using any gloss products until later in the night.
Many makeup artists commented that having some color and shine on the lips looks beautiful on camera. For that reason, I wanted to make sure I carried the Pat Mcgrath Lip Gloss in Bronze Temptation in my makeup touchup kit. On the second day of taking photos (because the weather was bad), I didn’t bother with the other products and just applied this gloss.
I chose the other three products because their tones of pink looked so complimentary with my blush. My PML lip gloss shade is a warm toned one, so that was something easy to carry with me to warm up the look if I wanted. The other lip product I considered swapping out instead of Lisa Eldridge’s was the Kaleidos Cloud Lab Lip Clay in Sienna. That shade went very well with my skin tone, but looked almost too natural. I wanted more of an impact since I don’t often wear colored lip products and usually stick to clear or slightly tinted glosses and balms. The Kaleidos product is also long-wearing and not completely transfer-proof.
Considering the amount of kissing throughout the day and night, the transfer onto my husband’s lips was minimal. It also helps that I was wearing pinks that weren’t ultra vibrant. Food was the culprit that removed most of my lip products.
Tools and Extra Makeup Helpers
I mentioned the MAC Fix+ as something I always have on hand, but another one is the Nyx Glitter Primer to help make my shimmer eyeshadows pop and better adhere to my lids. For any mistakes that need to be cleaned up, I have Q-tips, but for more precise spots I like to use these tiny fine point cotton buds from MyKitCo called the My Small ‘On Point’ Buds. I dip them in a little micellar water, which my tried and true is the Bioderma Sensibio H2O. These are the types of things that are easy to forget when getting ready, that is, until they’re needed.
For my touch-up bag, I kept my skin-tone matching concealer and brush, the BB puff, the travel size mini CT powder, and the lip gloss. I was also gifted a slim compact with a magnifying mirror. I didn’t end up doing any makeup touch ups at all on the wedding day, but it’s nice to have things on hand in case there is an accident. Other random products in my Emergency Bride Kit were bobby pins, safety pins, band-aids, ibuprofen and pain meds (in case my back decided to act up which thankfully weren’t needed), hand lotion because of the constant dryness on my knuckles in this weather and taking pictures up close of the rings, eye drops with a backup pair of contacts, and tissues.
The photo above shows all the brushes I used on the wedding photo days!
Sonia G Mini Booster – Used for darker eyeshadow shades on the outer corner. Needed a small size blender brush for precision and for it to be not too dense to build up the color slowly. Mizuho MB123 – For applying the transition matte eyeshadows. Smashbox Double-Ended Smudger Brush -Used to apply shadows to the lower lash line, smudging the UD liner with the rubber side, applying the shimmer highlight shades to the brow arch and inner corner. Wayne Goss 08 – Applying concealer under the brows and to clean up any other spots around the eye makeup. Sonia G T4 – Extra blending to the eye look with no product on the brush plus blending out the nose contour. Sonia G T2 – Applying/stamping powder nose contour. Real Techniques Brightening Concealer – Used on the first day used to apply highlighter on the collarbone and shoulders, but the next was was used to set my under eye concealer with powder. Bisyodo B-ES-08 Eye Shadow – Was intended to apply the Clionadh multichrome. Real Techniques Setting – My usual under eye setting powder brush. MS-4 Mai Sakura Eyeshadow – Brush to apply shimmers to the lids prior to using my finger afterwards to build up eyeshadow in strategic spots.
Sonia G Jumbo Concealer – My holy grail concealer brush because it gets the most coverage by packing on a lot of product at once, but it can still smooth things out. Amazon Brush? – Used to apply eyeshadow primer to the lids and touch up concealer in other places. Chikuhodo FO-2 – Used to apply the Dior Powder No Powder. Eihodo WP PC-1 PUFF Makie Powder Brush Goldfish – Used to stamp on foundation mainly on the outer perimeter and over under-painted creams and liquids. The denseness and surface area size help with quick blending if needed and also aid in giving maximum coverage from not soaking up as much product. OdensEye Blush – Used to whip across the face the lighter shade of foundation. Functions like a stippling brush. Sonia G Soft Cheek – Applied powder blushes lightly, which was needed since I was building up three shades. Patrick Ta Contour – Applied the CT cream bronzer and is a holy grail product for sculpting around my face. Bisyodo CH-HC – Used to apply highlighter to the face in a light non-concentrated way, but without being dispersed in too wide of an area. Sephora Concealer Pro Concealer #71 – Used to apply liquid contour (the deep foundation shade) around the face. The angle of the brush was helpful, but technically many other brushes could have been used. Eihodo Outlet 153 Highlighting/Blush – Used to apply the contour shades from the Hindash Beautopsy palette over the areas that already had the Kaleidos contour. Was very useful for it’s small size considering the shape of the Beautopsy pans. Wayne Goss F3 – Used to lightly apply the Kaleidos Symphony Trio contour under the cheekbones and along the jawline. Sonia G Mini Base Keyaki Version – Used to apply the Rare Beauty liquid blush for under-painting. Bisyodo B-F-05 Perfect Fit – Intended to apply powder bronzer in a slightly concentrated amount under the cheekbones, but I used it instead to do slightly more blending to the contour areas. Sonia G Jumbo Bronzer – Intended to apply a lighter application of powder bronzer around the forehead, though on the actual wedding day I changed plans and opted for a cream bronzer instead.
Using the correct tool for the job is extremely important. To make things easier, I started narrowing my collection down ahead of time so that I wouldn’t be wasting time digging around looking for specific brushes. I knew which one (or ones) I wanted for each specific type of makeup. This came from practicing those makeup looks as often as I did. The backup brushes I also had on hand, but didn’t end up using, are in the photo below.
Another very important tip is to make sure the brushes are clean or “clean enough” before the big day. Gunked up old product on brushes can effect the performance of the makeup. Things can be harder to blend, not be color accurate, not apply as smoothly or in the right amounts.
All this being said, and for all the effort and planning I did…the funny thing is that I don’t have up-close shots of my face! The photos below are the best I’ve been able to produce. We couldn’t get a professional photographer in time and a coworker of the family graciously offered to take pictures on her high quality camera for us. The pictures were often dark or on some setting I’m not sure what (I’m not very knowledgeable about photography myself). My focus was to apply makeup in a way that would stand out at far distances, and it’s a good thing I did because most of the pictures were taken from father back and the quality dips when trying to zoom in closer. I have some wedding photos that I ended up liking or loving after tweaking them a little, so I’m happy about that. However, I don’t have ones for blog usage that specifically showcase the makeup except the two below. Sorry about that! I had too much on my mind to really think about how the pictures would turn out after a while.
Like I mentioned in the eyeshadow section, I plan to post a Part 2 with step-by-step details on how I completed my wedding look. Over the next few weeks, I plan to create a few alternative makeup looks as well. I hoped to get it finished sooner, but I got bronchitis and was feeling sick for over a week. Then, I took two weeks off of blogging to finish the wedding planning. Unfortunately, we all got Covid immediately after that, which put me out for a while too. And now, since the beginning of March and for the next eight weeks I’m taking an intensive course so I can get A1 certification in German language, as is required for me to have in this moving process. So, my usual Monday postings will likely be interrupted again. I’ll be back as soon as I can!
I haven’t done one of these face powder declutters since 2021. Some of the powders I said I would declutter, I ended up keeping around. Most, however, are fairly new.
Exiting the Collection: Laura Mercier (mini), Makeup by Mario, Nars, GloWish, and Sephora
Since my last review, Laura Mercier has released a few new shades of their original Translucent Loose Setting Powder and other versions of setting and finishing powders such as the Light Catcher ones and Ultra Blur. I bought Light Catcher in Honey Star, but it was so shimmery that I decided I should keep it around to use purely as a loose highlighter. I said I was going to try and press it into an empty tin pan, but never got around to it, never reviewed it, and decided to just declutter it. Ultra Blur, unless I’m told otherwise, sounds like it’s just a talc-free version of the original. So, I didn’t bother purchasing that. I stopped using the original, and even samples, because I just couldn’t get a good enough shade from the brand. Medium Deep was too dark, the original shade left a cast, and Honey only worked for my under eyes. I found other powders that looked more flattering on me, so I decided to finally even let go of the samples too. It was certainly worth the hype back in the day, but I don’t think it’s as special on the market now. It still has a strong cult following though, so not everyone will agree with me on that.
I really liked the Makeup by Mario Master Eye Prep & Set, but the powder became so hard to get product onto my brush and the primers got stiff and dry. I can’t see any hard-pan, so I’m not sure why it became difficult to use. It’s like, once the initial surface print rubbed off, the smoother texture underneath was too compacted and hard-pressed. It didn’t matter what bristle type the brush had. Everything required that I rub super vigorously to get anything out. So, I eventually gave up using it. It’s such a shame that this happened because I actually intended to make this a project-pan item and was using it enough that I purchased a cute sticker for the top of the packaging to try and make it even more special. I considered buying a new one, but one of the benefits of powders is they can usually last longer than the expected period after opening. With the amount of powders I still have, and are still good, I just couldn’t justify getting a new one. Plus, my goal for setting powders specifically is to keep the ones that set my face and eyes, but the powder in the compact is too dry for my face.
The Nars Light Reflecting Pressed Powder was something I intended to declutter a while ago because I kept reaching for other powders instead that were more flattering than my Sunstone shade. I basically kept it around for nostalgia and the fact that it was one of my most used powders in my collection and I kept hoping I’d be able to make a significant dip into the surface, but that hard-pan look to it eventually got too off-putting. The reason I liked it in the first place was because it left a slight sheen to the skin and was slightly blurring, but other products do a better job of keeping my makeup in place while imparting an even nicer finish with more blurring properties. So, even without the hard-pan issue, it truly was time to move on from it.
The Huda Beauty GloWish Luminous Pressed Powder was more of a highlighter in my book because of the frosty cast it left on the skin. Just like the Laura Mercier Light Catcher powder, I kept it around for the intent to use it on the high points of my face, but it just wasn’t worth keeping any longer. It wasn’t flattering enough on my skin and it didn’t make sense using something mediocre as a highlighter when I have so many I actually love. So, it’s out of my collection because I’ve finally given up on trying to find a use for it.
The Sephora Multi-Tasking Microsmooth Baked Powder is one I forgot to include in the first photo because I kept it in my “need to review” pile, and just never got around to it before I had to pack things up for the move. The shade I bought was a little light, it was a little drier than my MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural, and even though I tend to like Sephora’s baked products, I had limited space on what I could bring. I would rather stick with the products I am familiar with and trust to work instead of taking a gamble on something new. Since the shade was a little off and I hadn’t used it enough to form an attachment, it was easy to decide to just declutter it. My aim is to condense my powder collection so I don’t get so hung up on which powder to use out of all the options every time I’m doing my makeup. Some of my concealers work better with specific powders, yet I’m constantly forgetting which ones it is because I don’t have it written down and there are too many to remember. So, that’s why I didn’t give this one a chance.
Surviving the Next Round: One Size, Nars, and ColourPop
In one of my posts from last year, I showed the process of me combining two different sample shades of the One/Size Ultimate Blurring Setting powders into an old (but cleaned out) Besame powder container. I consider it part of my unofficial project pan, but there are so many other powders that take priority over this one that I’m not sure when I’ll get back to using it. Two sample sizes worth shouldn’t be too hard to use up in theory, but I use so little powder on my face that it might actually take a while. It survived this round of declutters, but I’m hoping to have used it before I do the next one once it’s actually back in my possession again.
The one Nars powder that’s still in my collection is another unreviewed product, the Soft Matte Advanced Perfecting Powder. Deciding on a shade was quite tough because Seafront looked too dark based on website photos, but Offshore was listed as being for cool undertones, and High Tide for warm undertones. So, I opted for High Tide, but it looks neutral-pink on my skin. I try to balance it out by pairing it with some of my extra warm (borderline orange) concealers, but it still looks a bit off sometimes. I’ve had a few concealers (unfortunately I can’t confirm which ones yet) that increased in the time without creasing and fading under my eyes when I used them with this powder. So, I definitely want to explore that further, especially with it being so recent to my collection. This is why it survives the declutter, but ultimately the undertone of the powder will make me want to declutter it at some point.
I remember liking the Colourpop Pretty Fresh Pressed Powder, but since there were other powders I was obsessed with, I thought it would be easy to let this one go. I decided to use it again for old time’s sake, but that only served to remind me why I liked it in the first place. My skin looks smoother when I apply it on top, and all without looking too dry. I found myself being unable to get rid of it! However, I still didn’t have room to bring it with me, so it’s currently in my drawer in the US. I’m hoping it’ll still be good by the time I return there for a visit so I can bring it back with me. It would make me happy to be able to get more use out of it, so I won’t feel like I wasted it. If it’s not in good condition by then, I don’t intend to repurchase it just because I’m still trying to downsize my collection and admittedly others are still better for both setting my under eyes and using all over my face.
Powder Likes: Chantecaille, MAC, Laura Mercier, Hourglass Setting and Finishing Powders, and Charlotte Tilbury
I’ve discussed the Chantecaille Perfect Blur Powder several times on this blog, including the fact that I sold the original one to pay for the slightly darker version. However, my Medium-Deep powder looks practically untouched because I always reach for my Dior powder instead. The Dior one does everything the Chantecaille one does, but better. Because the Powder-No-Powder is being discontinued or reformulated, I brought this along to be my replacement. Even if I never end up fully using this powder, considering all the trouble I went through to get it, I don’t intend to declutter it until or unless the powder goes bad.
As I mentioned in the Sephora discussion, I kept this MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural because it’s better. It’s a hair off in color (depending on the time of year), but I like that I can both set my face and get a decent boost to my concealers’ longevity. It’s a bit powdery, so the kickup gets messy at times, but I like that it has a good balance of eliminating shine without looking flat matte. It was so tough to leave this behind, but it’s definitely coming with me in the second wave of products I plan to return with to Germany.
The Laura Mercier Candleglow Powders and Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders are in the same boat of beautiful finishing baked powders that I don’t have in the perfect shades. I consider the Laura Mercier one close enough by mixing shades 5 and 6 together, but I didn’t have the space to bring two bulky compacts that fulfilled one singular purpose. So, as much as it bugged me because I did want to get more use out of them, I left them behind. I recommend anyone looking for a beautiful smoothing finishing powder to consider looking into the Candleglow ones, provided that the Dior Powder-No-Powder doesn’t work out. As for the Hourglass ones, I was already bringing two Ambient Lighting Edit palettes, so I didn’t have room for anything else. I had to leave the Volume III trio, pictured above, behind. The lighter finishing powder in there contains random specks of shimmer which makes me not want to use it, even though it looks gorgeous on the skin if not for that. The Radiant Light shade that I have within the edit palette works to set my face, but doesn’t give me as pretty of a finish because it’s on the lighter side. The whole allure of the Hourglass powders is specifically the finish, so if I’m unable to get that from this particular shade, I don’t really expect to use it up. If they make a deeper color one day without visible shimmer, I’d consider buying it. For now though, I’m just hoping I’ll have space to bring the Laura Mercier ones instead in the future sometime while they’re still good.
The Hourglass Veil Translucent Loose Setting Powder is still fairly new to my collection. I brought it with me because I like it, but I mainly like it for setting purposes on my face and not as often for under my eyes because the darkest shade is a touch dark while I’m at my lightest. It also depends on which shade of foundation I use, but that still means it’s often a bit too dark for my under eyes unless I’m using a brightening concealer. I intend to continue trying it out though, but perhaps during a time of the year when I’m a little darker.
My relationship with my Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Matte Powders is a weird one. For starters, I used the heck out of the tiny deluxe sample for a year and a half, but still never hit pan. Part of the issue was the fact that it was so small that I could only fit an under eye setting brush in it, so it was impossible go through the product for just that purpose. I got overly excited when I finally made a noticeable dip in the surface, so I thought that was a sign it was alright to get the travel size mini. However, I bought the shade Deep which ended up being too dark for my face and certainly much too dark for my under eye area (the main purpose for getting this powder). I considered buying the Tan version as a travel size, but I refused to do it until I finished the sample. I eventually grew tired of trying to use it up, kept misplacing the tiny compact, and felt it was more worth my time to test and use other powders instead. I’d basically given up on the powder until the brand released a limited edition compact for Lunar New Year and I was able to get it on sale. That’s how I ended up with the full-size in the correct shade. The mini is so old though that I’m just keeping it around for travel. I’m going to find a new home for the actual travel size powder since it’s the wrong shade for me. Currently, the full-size is getting quite a bit of use because I discovered the KVD Good Apple Concealer gives me the best results with this powder, which I planned to wear for the wedding, so I continued to use it while practicing makeup looks.
I have heard some people say this powder darkens over dewy products. I never noticed that before because I used to give the KVD concealer a little time to set before applying powder on top to lock it in place, but upon further testing, I realized it does actually do that when setting the concealer with powder immediately. Perhaps this is why the shade Tan works for me (and Deep doesn’t) despite how light it looks in the pan. Tan becomes my skin tone shade. I prefer not to have an overly brightened under eye area and just match my skin tone, but the wedding is an exception. So, I ended up buying a travel size of the medium color as well for extra brightening.
Powders Used Regularly: Givenchy, Huda Beauty, Kaleidos, and Dior
It wasn’t all that long ago that I reviewed the Givenchy Prisme Libre Loose Powder, so it’s staying in my collection purely for newness. I still haven’t tried it with all my foundations nor all my concealers, and I won’t be satisfied until I’ve basically used up the one shade out of four that I really like.
I planned to eventually declutter the Huda Beauty sample of the Easy Bake Loose Baking & Setting Powder, but that’s because it was in the shade Banana Bread, which isn’t intended for my skin tone. When I came to Germany, I purchased a travel size of Kunafa and have been experimenting with that shade. I like it, but it has the same issue of looking better with some concealers and not all of them. Kunafa is also so yellow that it can alter the look of my concealers the way the Nars Soft Matte Powder does (but in pink), so I have mixed feelings about that. I have a yellow-golden undertone, but something being so strong of a yellow can still look off. I wonder if Cinnamon Bun might be better. It’s possible it could be too dark, but there’s no way for me to know unless I see it in person. Ultimately, for wedding makeup testing purposes, I ended up buying the shade Blondie as a mini with the intent to mix it with Kunafa or use solo for brightening.
Another powder that can sometimes alter my concealer color, but only if I overapply it, is the Kaleidos Symphony Face Illuminator that I have in the Symphony Face Trio. The compact is very heavy. I like the powder enough that I would have considered buying a single, but it wasn’t necessary since I like the other powders in the trio too. It was worth just bringing the whole thing. Based on the name, I assumed this would be a highlighter, but this has no shimmer. The finish on the skin looks natural, including under my eyes. Even though I have used this quite a bit, I still don’t know it like the back of my hand, so I’m using this time to get to know this product a lot better.
Lastly is the powder I’ve been a broken record about: The Dior Backstage Face & Body Powder-No-Powder. Shade 5 is the first powder I’ve ever hit pan on! I’ve obviously used this the most out of everything in my collection. This powder is the reason I don’t get as much use out of the others. It erases my mistakes because of the blurring properties and leaves a beautiful sheen on the skin. In fact, it’s the most blurring of any powder I’ve ever tried. I’ve still gotten a fair amount of use out of Shade 4, but I’m rarely light enough to wear it on its own. Sometimes I mix 4 and 5 together, but I typically use Shade 5 around the darker areas of my face and Shade 4 around the parts that I want to soften if I overapplied something or if whatever shade I used of blush or bronzer is too intense or vibrant. Rather than taking both shades, I decided to leave Shade 4 behind and if I really need to, I can use the Chantecaille powder in its place. They’re close to the same color.
It’s still unknown, since no website has had all 9 shades listed as being stocked in over a year, whether the range is being discontinued or just prepped to return in a reformulated version. Since I hit pan on Shade 5, I naturally started to worry about being without this powder that I’ve been obsessed with for quite a while now. I knew the Chantecaille product could be a replacement, but I would never repurchase that one at full price. My hope was that an identical product would hit the market or Dior would bring it back, but there’s no way to know if the reformulated version would perform the same way. I couldn’t find Shade 5 anywhere to buy a backup, until I checked Dior’s non-US site (delivery within the EU ships from France). I was not about to overthink this…it’s my ultimate powder for my face. So, I went ahead and purchased a backup, plus it was complimentary to get the compact engraved! The hardest part was deciding whether to use my name or nickname instead!
I still want to narrow down my collection further, but for now, this is the best I could do.
There are more shades of products that will be shown and discussed in this post than are represented in the photo above.
I consider Glossier to be one of those brands that cater to both Millennials and Gen Z, but they have this minimalist cool and youthful social media-loving aesthetic that feels unapproachable to me. The marketing just isn’t my vibe, yet I’m fascinated by it all the same. I’ve discussed the Cloud Paints and Solar Paints before, but this time I have one of the two newest full-size Cloud Paints to feature, plus the exclusive mini 2023 Holiday set, as well as the other Glossier products in my collection that haven’t been reviewed here until now. I’ve wanted to do a brand overview for years, but it’s taken so long to acquire enough products that suit my makeup preferences. So, here we go in 2024!
Cloud Paints
My collection of full-size ones I currently own are shown above. I am decluttering Spark, Beam, and my older tube of Storm because I’ve had them all for too long. The other three were purchased late last year.
I was so excited for the shade Rise because reddish brown/terracotta type of shades are my favorites for a natural looking flush of color on my cheeks. The minis that came in the holiday set are significantly smaller, which I don’t mind because you don’t need a lot of product. The downside is that the opening is the same size as the full-size, and the pressure needed to squeeze product from the base of the tube makes too much product come out every time, which then wastes what is already so little product. Even when I’m being super careful, I sometimes run into the issue of blush still squirting out forcefully.
Puff doesn’t really show on my cheeks, but it makes for an interesting mixer shade, the way I used to use Beam and am now using Dusk. These types of shades alter the undertone, making them more to my liking or tones down the vibrancy.
Two weeks ago, the brand distinguished between Cloud Paint Blushes and their newly launched Cloud Paint Bronzers. I would be interested in trying them in the future because my only issue with the Solar Paints was the intense shimmer present. If the Cloud Paint Bronzers are identical to that formula (but shimmer-free), I’d like them. If they are slightly sheer like the blushes, I’m not as sure. However, I wonder if they could potentially mix well with the blushes in order to turn them into toned down nude or more neutral leaning colors.
As for Soar, I literally forgot I reviewed this before HERE, but here we go again! I have a few more mixing examples over there.
After using Soar, Puff, and Rise, I can confirm what I said in my original review about Storm (newest at the time) compared to the older shades: the new shades continue to be less pigmented. These colors are vibrant, but the ratio of gel to pigment of the newer shades makes it easier to have an even more natural look to the skin while not being overly natural to the point of having a watercolor serum-like effect. When I want lighter coverage or something to wear on low-makeup days, I reach for these. When I want something with a bit more pigment, I reach for the Rare Beauty ones, but even RB’s newer shades are less pigmented too.
Glossier offers free samples with orders and this time I got the shade Eve which is a much deeper version of Storm. If I use it super sparingly, it can look quite pretty, but this type of hue on my skintone can also look a bit like a bruise. So, this isn’t a color I would buy, but figured I could show it anyway for anyone curious about that color.
If these were the only liquid blushes in my collection, I’d have way more of the shades to be able to mix and match them. It’s one of my top two favorite liquid blush formulas because of the ease of blending, longevity on the skin, and how it dries down fully without a dewy or sticky feeling left on the skin. Because these aren’t the only liquid blushes in my collection, I didn’t go overboard on the shade repurchases. However, if I ever use up my tube of Rise, the chances are high that I would eventually buy it again.
Futuredew Oil Serum Hybrid
Glossier’s Futuredew is one of those hero products I’ve heard everyone talk about before, so I was excited to finally try it. It has an interesting herbal scent. Up close I can see the tiny sparkles or “light-reflecting minerals” within the pearly light-pink liquid, so I was hopeful. However, it doesn’t do much for the look of my skin or makeup if used in a normal amount. Perhaps my skin is just too dry because within a minute of being rubbed in, it’s practically all absorbed by my skin (as seen in my hand photo above) without leaving much of a dewy look behind. It can make ashy skin look normal, but it never makes me look dewy unless I slather enough layers of it on my skin. For daily use, I use the maximum amount that feels comfortable for me to tolerate because in large amounts (which is needed for the dewy look) it feels greasy and a bit heavy. While it’s true that I can load it up, it’s not practical for me to do that on a regular basis. However, I’m willing to do that for special occasions, and it was admittedly super helpful for my wedding, but more on that later.
I wasn’t about to take the whole heavy thick glass bottle with me in my luggage, as shiny and pretty as it is, so I put some in a tiny container to bring with me to keep testing. I tried prepping my skin well and applying the Futuredew and the results on my bare face were the same. A difference is only made by layering it up, so I don’t bother to use this for skin prep.
When trying to utilize this as a makeup primer, it doesn’t improve the longevity of my makeup. The results are normal. In addition, the tiniest bit of sheen that lingers visibly is completely hidden the moment I put on foundation. No luminosity shows through underneath unless I apply an ultra generous amount of product. Considering how my dry skin is behaving in German winter, where my natural oils still don’t come out even at the end of the day, loading up the product has been the answer to getting my foundations to at least have a natural look to it rather than matte. Under foundation, it was still impossible to look dewy, especially when I needed to lock-in my makeup with setting powders and sprays to prevent transfer and keep my face looking as fresh as possible in photos, but my foundation would have looked displeasing without it. As unimpressed as I was with how much product I needed to use to achieve the look I wanted (and technically still could not achieve fully), the Futuredew still ended up being helpful to me and saved the day.
I should note that the brand says using this product will cause the skin to be brighter and more glowy over time, but I’m not sure that I believe those claims. I will continue using the amount I brought with me and if I notice any improvement, I’ll update this post.
Milky Jelly Cleanser (Travel Size)
This is another product I was excited to try because it was hyped up for years as this luxurious type of cleanser, especially by popular influencers. I’m planning to include this in a cleanser post in the future, but my full thoughts on this product is that I don’t like it. It’s not milky or jelly-like in texture, only in looks. The “conditioning” part of the label better explains how it feels, which is like I’m rubbing lotion or hair conditioner on my face. I don’t know if there’s a term for it, but I’ve always been the type that gets unnerved by having anything oily feeling on my fingers and palms. I can tolerate putting on lotion if it’s the fast absorbing type that doesn’t leave a film or slippery layer on my body that I will continue feeling when skin touches skin for an extended period of time. I don’t mind those in-shower body lotions because they go on my body, but rubbing this milky jelly cleanser on my face just feels wrong because of my quirky sensory issue. This might have been a feeling I could get used to over time, but this is advertised as being able to dissolve makeup even though it doesn’t! Or at least, my makeup is apparently too heavy duty for this cleanser to remove properly. Even on lighter makeup days, my skin never feels clean enough after washing my face with it, and it doesn’t pass the white towel test. If I wear heavier skincare like other facial oils, a thicker heavier face cream, and/or sunscreen, even those I don’t feel properly get removed from my face. If the brand wants to market this as a face conditioner, fine, but it’s not a good cleanser at all. A cleanser should be able to do the bare minimum and actually clean the face. There are better gentle cleansers out there.
Monochromes Essential Eyeshadow Trio Palette in Prairie
Oh, how I’ve waited so long for this to go on sale so I could justify buying it! I’ve certainly paid more for three eyeshadows, and even a single eyeshadow, but I wasn’t confident that I would like these, so I didn’t want to pay full price. The reviews were certainly mixed.
I am happy to report that I’m satisfied with the completed look. I got more pigment than I was expecting, which is a good thing in this situation. The matte blended nicely. The satin may as well have been a matte on my eyelids because there wasn’t much of a sheen. It looks very bland. The metallic didn’t have as much shine to it as I prefer, even after wetting my brush, but having it saved the look for me considering how much more I liked it instead of the satin. Also, I’m not sure why they call it a metallic when it’s more like a low impact shimmer. Then again, that description, though more accurate, probably wouldn’t help with sales.
The concept of this is certainly interesting for single shadow lovers to be able to have a potential favorite color in three different finishes all in one compact. That’s not me, so I was never going to be the target customer for this product. I was just curious about the quality, which is better than I expected, but the format just doesn’t suit my needs. It could be useful for me if each individual pan was customizable, so I could put a different color in place of that useless satin (for instance the Clay Matte, Teak Matte, Heather Metallic, or Rosin Metallic). Being stuck with a single trio that is only replaceable with another premade trio (and honestly wasted space that could have fit 4 eyeshadows if the logo wasn’t there) is very limiting.
For those that like minimal makeup and nothing too sparkly, I guess I could say this would be nice. However, it’s just so far removed from the type of makeup I like that I can’t help but feel there are so many other brands that do single eyeshadows better, trios, and quads and all for the same price or cheaper. I’d even recommend a little Natasha Denona mini 5 pan over this. ND’s quality is better. The closest equivalent I can think of is the Huda Beauty/GloWish Micro Mini Eyeshadow Palettes. Those are similar quality mattes (perhaps even slightly better) with soft shimmers that are only a little more impactful than the Glossier metallics, and in shades that can create a slightly more nuanced monochromatic look, all for $21 instead of $27 (or $22 for just the refill alone). Plus, I’ve seen the GloWish ones go on sale for half off (a better discount than I’ve ever seen from Glossier). The pan sizes are different, but the GloWish quad has 4.05 total grams (0.14 oz) of product versus Glossier’s 3.9 grams (0.12 oz).
Glossier Samples/First Impressions
Perfecting Skin Tint G1-G6 (Sample)
There wasn’t enough of the sample to do an actual wear test, so I wanted to just show off the shade range in swatches. G4 is my closest match, but it’s a half shade off. I would need to mix it with G3 to get something that matched my whole face and not just the lightest spots.
Stretch Concealer G1-G6 (Sample)
There was enough of the sample to do a wear test. This concealer is too creamy. As much as I would like a creamy concealer because my under eye area can be so dry sometimes, my eye area shape and lines require me to have a concealer that is flexible enough to stay put through movement (like Givenchy Prisme Libre) or to solidly lock into place (like Tarte Shape Tape). Creamy concealers move too much and crease on me horribly. That was unfortunately the situation with this one, which is a shame because I liked the coverage.
Stretch Foundation (Sample)
I can only guess that my shade would fall somewhere in the MD3 range. I did my best to mix the two closest ones in the sample card to create a custom shade for me. However, the mixture turned slightly grey from the two shades being too far apart in depth. I have a slightly grey tinge where I wore it in the photo below. It doesn’t look as bad in the photo, but it was quite obvious in person. So, I can’t really say how I liked this foundation in terms of looks. In terms of performance, that side of my face looked greasy at the end of the day. I like a little dew, but not that much. It felt nice on the skin, but it transfers more than the amount that’s acceptable to me. Perhaps powdering it would have changed things. I can’t say if I would recommend it or not based on the first impression. At the foundation’s price though, I’d rather spend a little more for my tried and true foundations instead. So, I won’t be buying this one.
Body Hero Oil Wash (Sample)
I mentioned in the cleanser section that I don’t mind in-shower body lotions. The ones I’ve used before don’t trigger my sensory issue. The same goes for this. I like how it instantly gets frothy and creamy when it hits water and gets rubbed onto the skin. It washes off easily and leaves my skin feeling clean and moisturized without a residue layer lingering on the skin. If I wasn’t such a Lush stan, I would consider buying a full-size bottle one day. It also has a nice light scent which makes for a great experience in the shower, though it doesn’t linger on my skin once I’m out. I should note that the scent of nearly all body washes don’t cling to my skin after I’ve dried off.
Another thing I noticed is that I was unable to see this product on the Glossier website until I changed my country settings to the US. I checked reddit and found out that as of at least 3 months ago, this product has been unavailable to those in the EU. I’m not sure why.
Anyway, that’s everything for today!
I continue to be intrigued by Glossier and its products. Thus far, the only ones that I can really stand behind are the Cloud Paints and Solar Paints (I admittedly decluttered my Solar Paint though), but I think I’ve given the brand a decent try and I will continue to keep my eye out for anything else they release in the hopes to find another gem like the Cloud Paints.
Welcome, lovers of Japanese brushes! If this is your first time visiting, I’d like you to know that I have a page that’s accessible on the left menu bar with every Fude post linked, as well as a description of the topics discussed in those posts and a list of which brushes are in which posts. For cell phone users, this page is visible by clicking on Navigation. If this is not your first time here, welcome back!
Regarding my measurements, “hair width” is measured from the widest part, regardless of the overall brush shape. I don’t measure thickness. Anything with an asterisk indicates that I had to measure that one myself as those numbers were not listed on the website. All figures listed in inches are converted estimates.
With costs of materials ever increasing and supply of certain hair types being harder to acquire, brush prices also increase. So, the prices I’ve listed might not reflect what is current, though I will do my best to keep them updated.
*DISCLOSURE: To those who have been using my affiliate link to shop from CDJapan, thank you so much! I am truly grateful! The commission from that was used to partially pay for one of the brushes in this post. Otherwise, all other brushes discussed today (excluding the one accidentally shipped to me) were purchased by me with my own money.Non-highlighted links in bold blue font (Example) are standard non-affiliate links. Links marked in bold black font with a light blue background (Example) are affiliate links. Affiliate links allow me to get a commission if purchases are made directly using my link. Whether you click to shop through them or not, I appreciate you visiting and I hope you find the information I’ve provided to be helpful!
Chikuhodo
The Zen Collection became available at various retailers in very limited quantities. On CDJapan’s website, they stocked 5 of each brush individually and 5 complete sets. Within the first 5 minutes, most of the brushes were in low stock. Within 10 minutes a few sold out. By 20 minutes, everything was gone. They did not allow the purchase of more than 1 brush per person in order to allow more people to get their hands on them. There have been several restocks since the initial launch that were less restrictive in quantity. I don’t know how much supply there was in total, but Fude Beauty emailed customers stating the line is discontinued.
I love the look of the brushes, which was enough to make me want something from this collection, but I was also curious to know the difference between Chikuhodo’s standard and premium Silver Fox Hair. When I put them on my face, I can’t tell a difference. The softness is the same. It’s only when I feel them along the strands, not the tips, that I can tell the premium hair feels silkier, as if the bristles have been conditioned. I’m not sure if treating the bristles is what makes them special, if it’s the difference in the hair color, or if the premium hair naturally has some other quality I can’t detect that makes it “premium” above the FO series hair. Since the tips feel the same to me anyway, I recommend just choosing the shapes one likes most between the FO series and Zen series while there is stock left.
In my opinion, the Chikuhodo Premium Silver Fox hair feels the same as the silver fox hair used by Koyudo in their Yoshiki SF line.
It was also interesting to me that the ZEN series has Granadillo wood handles, just like the discontinued Homare line. I don’t know if that was to make use of leftover stock of handles or because the brand just likes that wood, but I’m not complaining. The wood is beautiful and I hope they use it in yet another line in the future.
Chikuhodo ZEN Series ZE-5 Eyeshadow Brush
Full Length: 145mm / 5.7 in
Hair Length: 30mm / 1.18 in
Hair Width: *13mm / 0.51 in
Bristle Type: Premium Silver Fox
Handle: Granadillo Wood
Of course, I was drawn to nearly all the brushes in the set, but because I already own so many FO series brushes, I wanted the ZE-5 for its intriguing shape that added something different to my collection. I wanted it specifically for highlighting because it reminded me of my beloved Bisyodo CH-HC brush, just thinner. It’s interesting that this is intended to be used for eyeshadows since it’s so huge for that purpose. I have round-shaped eyes, and I think this is why I don’t enjoy using it for even eye tasks as simple as single shadow looks.
For highlighting purposes, it’s better with loose pressed products. The hair is resilient enough to pick up firmer pressed highlighters, but it’s more prone to dispersing in a stripe if it’s a wetter formula that sticks where it’s placed and needs to be blended and/or buffed in. My favorite use for this brush is with the Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Multi-Glow Highlighter because that one contains four color strips and the pointed tip allows to me pick up an isolated shade without the other colors getting mixed in. It’s also great for spotlighting, which I tend to take a brighter highlighter shade from one of the other four strips and precisely place it in one strategic spot at the very highest points of my cheekbones. The Bisyodo brush is still my favorite, but this has been my second most used since purchasing it.
If it ever comes back in stock, the link to it is HERE.
Chikuhodo ZEN Series ZE-6 Eyeshadow Brush
Full Length: 135mm / 5.32 in
Hair Length: 20mm / 0.79 in
Hair Width: *14mm / 0.55 in
Bristle Type: Premium Silver Fox
Handle: Granadillo Wood
There was a mixup with my order, the only time that ever happened to me via CDJapan in all the years I’ve been purchasing from them. That’s how I ended up with this brush. I never planned on buying it because I thought it was going to be like the FO-5, which I ended up selling. However, this brush is so much softer than that one and gentler in the corner of my eyes. It’s a great brush to quickly pack on a lot of color to my lids and crease. I’ve found myself using it more often than I expected over the past year! In addition to using it for eyeshadows, it also works as a highlighter brush too. Sometimes in my massive collection, I end up misplacing my favorite brushes, so in times that I’m in too much of a rush to look for something else, I’ll wipe off the shadow on a microfiber cloth and apply my highlighter with it. The third and final use for this brush is for contouring my nose. It’s the right shape, and picks up and disperses the product gently.
At the time that I’m finalizing this post, the brush is on backorder for 5500 YEN available HERE.
Chikuhodo ZEN Series ZE-3 Blush Brush
Full Length: 155mm / 6.1 in
Hair Length: 40mm / 1.57 in
Hair Width: *33mm / 1.3 in
Bristle Type: Premium Silver Fox
Handle: Granadillo Wood
Pre-wash versus Post-wash
This brush is more rounded than the FO-3, which slightly ovular. I like this aspect. The two brushes are quite similar, but the reason I ultimately bought it is because the FO-3 is one of my favorite blush brushes of all time. I even have a backup of it. So, if there was a chance to get a premium version of it, I just had to take it! I am happy to say I have no regrets on this decision. It really is like having another FO-3, but even better shaped to my preference.
On the left is the ZE-3, in the middle is the FO-3, and on the right is the KZ-4.
This picks up a good amount of product with one dip into a pan of powder blush (though baked gelee formulas need a lot more pressure and swipes). It’s dense enough that I can buff, and is still loose enough to lay down blush in a way that isn’t too heavy upon the initial application. I can use it for applying face powder, but the splay isn’t super wide, so it takes longer than with my typical powder brushes. I can also use it with bronzer, though I have to be careful not to use it with my more pigmented bronzers, or else it can apply too much at once.
As I mentioned, it’s like an even better suited FO-3 for me, so I’m extremely happy I bought this.
If this brush ever returns in stock, the link to it is HERE.
Beautylish Presents
Beautylish Presents the Year of the Rabbit Lunar New Year Powder Brush
Full Length: *170mm / 6.69 in
Hair Length: 47.6mm / 1.87 in
Hair Width: *40mm / 1.57 in
Bristle Type: Blue Squirrel
This brush is very similar to all the other Lunar New Year ones thus far from Beautylish, which means it’s similar to Chikuhodo’s Z-9 brush as far as I can tell from my research online (I don’t own the Z-9).
It’s soft and just dense enough to keep it from feeling floppy, ensuring one has full control of the direction of the bristles while moving it, and airy enough to disperse a thin layer of product. It makes a great brush for a light (not fully sheer) powder application, and for large mostly-diffused bronzing purposes. I’m in love, yet again, with the design. As long as these brushes remain the same price each year for this quality and craftsmanship, I will continue to recommend them. They’re very much worth it to get if you’re a lover of Japanese fude.
Because this post took so long to complete, I can say that as of the end of January, I also own the newest Beautylish Lunar New Year Brush in the Dragon design. I have not used it yet though, so I’ll have to include photos in another fude post in the future. Just looking at it though, the quality appears to be just as great as the others.
Eihodo
Eihodo Makie Powder Brush Goldfish Silver
Full Length: 173mm / 6.8 in
Hair Length: 55mm / 2.16 in
Hair Width: *50mm / 1.97 in
Bristle Type: Gray Squirrel
This brush came with a gold or silver ferrule color option. I chose the silver because I felt it matched more of the makie powder color in the handle design. The silver ferrule was also around $7 lower in price. In hindsight, after getting another brush in the goldfish handle (brush isn’t tested enough, so I can’t include it in this post yet), I should have gotten the gold since it’s more of my preference, but silver still looks nice.
This brush is on the floppy side, due in part to how long the bristles are and the brush not being as tightly packed. Due to the more rectangular shape, I can get away with using it as a bronzer brush, but it has to be a pigmented bronzer since it would take too long to build up with my sheerer bronzer formulas and with shades that are too close to my skin tone. It just isn’t dense enough to my liking to use for blending or buffing, so I prefer to use this exclusively as a sweeping brush to apply a sheer layer of finishing powder to my face. I could set powder with it as well, but since I prefer a setting powder brush that has resilient enough hairs or is packed tight enough to do a little bit of buffing/blending while applying, it’s better for me as just a finisher.
Above are size comparisons to the Chikuhodo FO-9 that I consider nearly rectangular in shape to show how much more rectangular the Eihodo brush looks.
At the time of me posting, this brush is 17000 YEN and available HERE. The gold ferrule version, which is also accessible through the link, is 18000 YEN.
Ordering From Fude Beauty
My first order from Fude Beauty arrived while I was overseas and had been unpacked for me, so I didn’t see how it was originally shipped. I just knew that it took about a week to be delivered after I received the initial shipping notification.
With my second order via FedEx, I bought three brushes and was shocked to see them arrive in a large poster-board/paperboard envelope with no additional padding/protection other than the (admittedly beautiful) pink bubble wrap. Up until this point, all my orders from other Fude websites came in boxes to help give extra protection against being dropped, stepped on, thrown, or even from the weight of another person’s heavy package being placed on top of it. My envelope looked like it had been stepped on, and one of the three brushes had a large dent in it.
I contacted Fude Beauty’s customer service and they asked if I wanted a refund for the brush or a replacement. I knew there was a Fude Beauty exclusive brush I still wanted, but was waiting to purchasing during a coupon event, so I asked them for a refund so I could add the replacement brush to that future order and they wouldn’t need to spend their own money on shipping. I ended up deciding not to reorder the brush (and not reviewing it for the blog either), but I did make that third order.
The third order was via DHL. I specifically chose that option hoping I’d get better shipping packaging because my DHL orders always came in a box. It turned out that it didn’t matter. My Fude Beauty order came once again in an envelope. The envelope isn’t the biggest issue for me, and it’s more about not having at least a smaller box on the inside to help protect the brushes, the way that Rephr ships their brushes (eco-friendly recycle-padded envelope with a small carboard box housing the brushes on the inside). Considering Fude Beauty’s shipping costs are the same as everyone else in Japan, yet they pack the brushes in the least protected method of the other retailers I’ve purchased from, it’s quite irritating. As I said, the bubble wrap with the flower logo sticker is a beautiful touch, but I prefer to have my brushes protected over a pretty presentation, especially since it’s coming thousands of miles with plenty of opportunities to be damaged along the way. When I’ve bought brushes from Mercari, it was understandable to get them in bubble-mailers because I didn’t request a higher shipping option (typically $5) and it was coming from within the US. However, getting a similar experience with $20 shipping is unacceptable. Even though I’m a CDJapan Affiliate, I can honestly say CDJapan has the best and most protected packaging. I once got an order where they even bubble wrapped a card! The usual card with every order that has washing/care instructions on it. Brushes that automatically come with Paulownia boxes are still wrapped with care by them. Plus, they have a much better free shipping minimum than Fude Beauty!
While Fude Beauty’s customer service is great (I contacted them another time when their website was having problems issuing the coupons), I’m so displeased with the way their items are shipped that I will only order from them again for brush exclusives on their website. Even though the company is willing to replace or refund damaged goods, the fact that these gorgeous brushes with rare hairs and special handles will be unwanted and wasted in someone’s collection, or even tossed out (since they can’t be fixed and resold) due to carelessness bothers me as a lover of fude. Considering Fude Beauty is seemingly the most popular of the Japanese brush retailers with their early access to products, exclusives, and the number of semi-large influencers I see affiliated with the brand, I expected way more consideration for their packaging and deliveries.
There are of course pros and cons with every retailer of fude, so I wrote up a chart to help with comparisons between them as things stand to my current knowledge. In the future, these things may be different.
Eihodo Maiko Powder Brush Makie Series
Full Length: 167mm / 6.57 in
Hair Length: 47mm / 1.85 in
Hair Width: *42mm / 1.65 in
Bristle Type: Gray Squirrel
This is the brush that was in my first ever Fude Beauty order. It was originally listed as a limited release (of I believe only 100 brushes total). It had been available as a pre-order and for months was only available via Fude Beauty. Eventually, Fude Beauty restocked it in low quantity numbers and CDJapan got their hands on a few, but not many.
This brush remind me of the Beautylish Lunar New Year brushes due to the shape and quality of the hair, plus the shiny black ferrules and handles with such a beautiful makie design. It’s exquisite! Even though I paid more money buying it from Fude Beauty, I have no regrets.
This can be used for all over face powder, bronzer, and blush depending on what one’s preferences are. All over powder is the main function, but because there’s a significant amount of hair in the bundle at about medium denseness, it can buff fairly well (for a squirrel hair brush) in addition to applying a light to medium amount of product. It’s not going to be ultra sheer because it’s not wispy or loose, which is what I like about it. With bronzer, there’s a large surface area, but I can pick up some on the side instead of the tips to prevent the area of application from being too wide for my liking. Again, the application won’t be as diffused as it would from a brush with a wider hair splay, but it’s still sheerer than my typical bronzer brushes. So, I still use it with more pigmented bronzers. For blush, it’s definitely too big for my preference, but it can still work if product is picked up in a small area and if the blush is a more neutral nude type of color. I still use it mainly for powder (and/or bronzer if my bronzer brush favorites aren’t nearby).
This brush is currently 21000 YEN and available HERE.
Eihodo (Z11) Makie Blending Brush Sakura Black
Full Length: 115mm / 4.53 in
Hair Length: 20mm / 0.78 in
Hair Width: *10mm / 0.39 in
Bristle Type: Gray Squirrel
I’m fairly certain I once owned the Chikuhodo Z-11, but I believe I might have sold it long ago. I liked the softness, but the length of the hair made it too floppy while blending, which I discovered that a slightly firmer blend with less movement is my preference with eyeshadows. This Eihodo brush is extremely similar to that one. However, mine is bundled a bit tighter, so it isn’t as floppy. The hair type is the same and nearly as soft in quality. It’s still not my preferred blending brush, but I honestly wanted it for the handle pattern. I don’t mind using a reasonably short brush, but this is shorter than I tend to reach for. If I’m going to use it in the crease, it’s with lighter transition shades that just need to be a wash of color anyway, and not something to build up depth.
This brush at the time of posting is 3850 YEN and available HERE. There is also a handle version in red.
Eihodo RE10-1 Makie Eyeshadow Brush Sakura Black
Full Length: 105mm / 4.13 in
Hair Length: 12mm / 0.47 in
Hair Width: *7mm / 0.28 in
Bristle Type: Gray Squirrel and Weasel
I also bought this brush for the handle, but because it has a more resilient bristle (weasel) mixed in, I get stronger blending power along with precision application from the pointed tip. My two most similar shaped brushes are pictured below.
The Koyudo brush is my favorite of the three because it has the most defined point, which means I can use it to apply a highlighting shade to the inner corners of my eyes without the shimmer going everywhere. It’s also easier to use precisely on the lower lash line. The Eihodo brush is still better at being able to diffuse a smokey look in the outer corner and crease than the rephr brush, but the rephr brush is still nice for working with darker shadows in the outer corner. The Eihodo brush is softer feeling than the Koyudo brush because there’s enough gray squirrel hair in the mix. I like this brush, and find it even more useful than the Sakura blending brush, but I still tend to not use it as often because of the total brush length.
This brush is currently 3850 YEN and available HERE. There is also a red handle version.
Eihodo Face Mask Applicator Brush
Full Length: 147mm / 5.78 in
Hair Length: 28mm / 1.1 in
Hair Width: *35mm / 1.38 in
Bristle Type: Raccoon
This works for applying face masks evenly, but I wanted to use it with cream bronzer and contour to see how precisely I could shape my face with this. It applies those products perfectly well, but it’s the matter of blending it out that isn’t as easy, since the brush isn’t shaped for that purpose. So, I may as well use a regular brush that can do both. Also, this is softer than my other raccoon hair brush. I read that raccoons have guard hair that’s coarse and stiff, as well as underfur that’s softer. Even though the hair in this brush is softer than the Koyudo y-8, it doesn’t feel that much softer that I’d suspect that they came from two different areas of the raccoons.
Muragishi Sangyou
MS-4 Mai Sakura Eyeshadow Brush
Full Length: 138mm / 5.43 in
Hair Length: 13mm / 0.51 in
Hair Width: *10mm / 0.39 in
Bristle Type: Gray Squirrel
I was a bit shocked to see this labeled as Gray Squirrel because it feels synthetic to the touch. It’s so firmly packed that even though it’s soft, there isn’t much movement in the bottom third of the brush closest to the ferrule. When used on the eyelid to apply shadows or adding color to the crease, the movement is almost entirely from the tip to halfway down at most. This stiffness in the bottom half, yet the amount of give in the tips, allows it to feel gentle when used in the eye area while performing more like a goat brush. I’ve never had a gray squirrel brush work as sturdily as this (only other unusual one I own is the Mizuho MB125) because they’re usually designated for lighter washes and diffused eyeshadow looks rather than packing on color, but I think that gives this brush a wonderful balance. I consider it one of my workhorse eye brushes. I’ve even been using it more than my beloved Sonia G Builder Three and Builder Pro. The flat shape is thin enough that I can also comfortably apply eyeshadow to my lower lash line, making it even more versatile. In fact, I can do pretty much every eyeshadow step using this one brush (and I have done that plenty of times).
This brush is 3200 YEN, at the time of me posting, and available HERE.
Wayne Goss
Wayne Goss Brush 13
Full Length: 165mm / 6.5 in
Hair Length: 30mm / 1.2 in
Hair Width: *25mm / 0.98 in
Bristle Type: Goat
This brush is wonderful. It’s one of those that I like to compare to applying a product on the face with a bunny tail. It’s soft and bouncy with the majority of the movement remaining in the tips. It’s great for blush and bronzer, and I actually got this as a set with Wayne Goss’ Bronzer/Contour duo.
I can buff with it, but it doesn’t apply too much at the start either. The way that it’s bundled keeps it feeling airy even though there’s a lot of hair packed in and it feels medium density overall. The downside of the brush is that it sheds a lot. I love using it, but I’m fearful about how it will perform after a few years, so I bought a second one when it was half off during a Beautylish sale. Then, nearly all of Wayne’s remaining brushes sold out and I would later learn a new fundamental collection was being created.
The F2 brush in that collection is like a smaller, slightly denser, and even softer version of the #13 brush. I posted comparison photos on my Instagram. The downside is that for the past month that I’ve had the F2, it sheds even more than the 13!
Rephr
On the topic of their “using natural fibers” labeling, it bothers me that rephr isn’t more forthcoming with listing their hair types. I’ve discussed this in the past and gave them at least some credit when they started listing brushes as “goat” and explained in their FAQ that most of their brushes are some combination of what would be considered saikoho and sokoho depending on what purpose the brush served and which types were needed. Then they finally started listing some of their brushes as synthetic or partly synthetic. However, when they list in the description “using natural fibers,” it doesn’t clarify whether that means it’s a 100% natural animal hair brush or if they use animal hair in addition to synthetic. Also, choosing to say “natural fibers” instead of “natural hair” leads me to wonder if they aren’t even referring to animal hair. Plant fibers would be considered “natural fibers” and there are brushes made of that (such as from Pure Colors Cosmetics). So, the wording leaves wiggle room that the brushes could be animal hair mixed with plant fibers, flat out plant fibers, or some other natural non-animal source. What lead me down this rabbit hole is the fact that some of my brushes from rephr weren’t listed as synthetic, yet they felt like synthetic mixed brushes. This made me question the entire labeling system until I thought more about their wording and how it leaves them open to using other means of avoiding a “synthetic” label.
The reason this is important is because of their pricing and authenticity. We all know natural hair sources in the upper tiers are expensive because the supply of high quality ones are dwindling. If, for example, I bought a brush “using natural saibikoho” and I bought it thinking I was getting an insane deal on the price, but in reality the brush was made “using saibikoho” along with some other types, then I’m not getting what I thought I paid for. I’m not actually experiencing what a true pure saibikoho brush feels like. If the quality is lackluster, someone would think saibikoho wasn’t worth buying and/or they would think the other companies were overcharging theirs. So companies producing authentic goods could potentially lose business because of another company ruining the reputation of saibikoho with misleading labeling.
Ultimately, things are worth what the consumer is willing to pay. If the brushes perform as well as similar counterparts, the material technically doesn’t matter. However, I do tend to see a quality difference and half of my rephr brushes feel worth their discounted prices (never full price) while the other half don’t. I really started liking rephr more and have been giving them more of a chance, but I go back and forth on whether I want to continue buying their products and reviewing them because of their unclear descriptions.
Rephr 37
Full Length: *168mm / 6.6 in
Hair Length: *30mm / 1.18 in
Hair Width: *27mm / 1.06 in
Bristle Type: Natural Fibers
This brush head is nearly identical in size, shape, and density to the Wayne Goss 13. The rephr brush is decently soft, but Wayne’s is much softer. This purchase was also to ensure I’d have a backup brush since it performs the same way as well, but it managed to shed far less. Since rephr has sales/concept store offers of 40-50% discounts fairly frequently, this could be a more affordable alternative. Granted, the Wayne Goss brush is still softer and holds its shape better. Compared to other rephr brushes though, this one doesn’t splay as wide as most other shapes of theirs (which is a good thing in my eyes).
I should mention that this is one of those brushes that felt like it wasn’t entirely made of animal hair, and I later noticed it was just listed as “natural fibers” on the website. So, this could factor into whether someone wants this brush or not. Even if it is made entirely of animal hair, perhaps someone won’t like that it doesn’t feel that way to the touch, in my opinion.
Rephr 36
Full Length: *157mm / 6.18 in
Hair Length: *15mm / 0.59 in
Hair Width: *18mm / 0.71 in
Bristle Type: Natural Fibers
I have a few brushes that are shaped this way that I really enjoy, so I hoped this would be a great multipurpose brush. The best part about it is how dense it is, because it seems to help me get the most coverage out of my products. The downside is the shape. I would have preferred a flatter and less wide portion where it angles and tapers, so I could have been able to get between tight spaces easier on my particular face shape.
As it is, the best use for it is applying eyeshadow primer. The size makes it difficult to control the area for concealer (and between the eyes and bridge of my nose). Not having a section that can diffuse what was applied makes it not ideal for applying contour to the hollows either. Since I have other brushes that can apply eyeshadow primer in addition to concealer, I haven’t used this brush again. I only kept using it long enough to test it thoroughly.
Rephr 35
Full Length: *155mm / 6.1 in
Hair Length: *18mm / 0.71 in
Hair Width: *15mm / 0.59 in
Bristle Type: Natural and Synthetic Fibers
This brush is small enough to fit in the hollows nicely for cream contour use, and very quickly covers the eye for priming. So, it’s already more useful to me than Brush 36. However, I wish there was a version that’s oval instead of round so I could get more sharpness. Although I can use it for cream contouring and/or bronzing, it doesn’t surpass the brushes I regularly use for that purpose (mainly the Patrick Ta Contour Brush). Also, one thing I like about Sonia G’s Jumbo Concealer brush is that I can get maximum coverage, but still easily blend out the edges. This brush is dense enough to pack on product, but I feel like it also lifts some of it back away and blends the outer edges a little too well. So, it’s a useful brush, but not enough to replace anything currently in my routine.
Rephr 26
Full Length: *147mm / 5.79 in
Hair Length: 11.5mm / 0.45 in
Hair Width: *7mm / 0.28 in
Bristle Type: Uncut Natural Hair
I discussed this a bit already in the Eihodo RE10-1 section. My favorite use for this brush is applying a dark eyeshadow to the outer corner/outer v. I can pick up the product with the side, not the tip, and just lay it onto the outer corner like a stamp. It gives the right amount to smoke out the eye look without it turning too dramatic or putting in much effort. I bought this because of Sofia Sees Beauty’s recommendation video and how it might be the closest dupe I was going to find at the time for Sonia G’s Crease One brush which has been discontinued.
I got this brush for such a niche purpose, but I can’t deny it works well enough for me to keep it around. It’s a bit too chunky for applying shadows to my lower lash line, but I can do regular crease work with it instead.
Rephr 29
Full Length: *137mm / 5.39 in
Hair Length: 2.4mm / 0.1 in
Hair Width: *4mm / 0.16 in
Bristle Type: Uncut Natural Hair
I purchased this for its lining ability. I’m forever looking for a backup to my tiny Smashbox brush that was discontinued. That brush works so well in applying a good amount of product to my lower lash line without making a mess, being able to blend it out, and also applying highlight shades to my inner corner while being precise about it. Naturally, I expect all tiny brushes to be as good, but they really aren’t. The way the tips are shaped on this brush, I constantly accidentally flick powder shadow into my eyes while trying to apply shadow to my lower lash line. It sweeps it up along those edges that splay out. This can be seen in the photo below compared to the extremely similar original Wayne Goss 08 brush.
I’m used to having to sometimes use the aloe trick to reshape my rephr brushes. So, I’ve been able to get this brush to work better for my needs, but I have to reshape it every so often. Realistically though, I just keep going back to the Smashbox brush yet again, or I use my Wayne Goss equivalent if it’s dirty.
Surratt
In a Surratt review from 2015, Sonia G mentioned that Chikuhodo makes Chicca brushes. Chikuhodo also lists Suqqu as one of the brands they produce brushes for on their website. Both of those brands have brushes similar to Surratt’s, so it stands to reason there’s a high chance Chikuhodo makes Surratt brushes as well. Since Chikuhodo is one of my favorite brushmakers, I figured I would like Surratt’s brushes, but the premium price is what kept me from getting them. Occasionally, Surratt has a 30% off sale on their website. Even more rare are when select brushes go for 40-50% off via them or Nordstrom. The only brush I currently own of theirs came from one of these Nordstrom sales. However, I have purchased from Surratt’s website for other products. They shipped fast with the products presented nicely and securely inside.
Surratt Artistique Petite Classique Eyeshadow Brush
Full Length: *128mm / 5.04 in
Hair Length: 9mm / 0.35 in
Hair Width: *6mm / 0.24 in
Bristle Type: Canadian Squirrel
Nordstrom had 50% off all Surratt products on their website. By the time I learned about the sale, the majority of the brushes were out of stock and this was the only one left that I wanted.
Because the hair on this is comparatively long for a small brush, I don’t feel I get enough control to apply the amount of product I want to my lower lash line. This brush is soft due to the hair type and also doesn’t pick up as much product, so I’m unsatisfied with the wash of color. However, I like a natural looking brightened inner corner, so this suits my needs for applying a highlight shimmer to my inner corners and highlighting the arch under my brow bones. The small surface area doesn’t make it ideal for me to use in applying shadows all over my eyes, so I haven’t gotten much use out of this brush. I don’t mind because I wanted to experience what at least one Surratt brush was like, but it’s a brush that can be skipped.
I assume the GS in the name means it’s a goat and synthetic hybrid brush considering Hakuhodo has been transitioning more towards goat and synthetic mixtures from 2022 and onward. The newly released brushes with pure goat tend to be part of special sets and is no longer the norm. I bought this brush, and all limited edition Hakuhodo brushes from Fude Japan. That website usually has very few details listed. I tend to avoid buying goat and synthetic hybrids, but at least with this one I don’t notice much of a difference between the way this performs versus a fully natural hair goat brush from Hakuhodo. So, that’s a good thing in my books.
This brush is a traditionally shaped shader brush, but it’s wider than most. Viewing it from the side, its widest part is in the middle or belly of the brush, but because the hair is so long, it performs like a fully flat shader brush. I can get a bit more picked up if I lay the brush flatter, but for the mostpart, I get less pickup in one go than I usually want. This just makes time using it to apply mattes or shimmers to my lid take a little longer. Picking up mattes is satisfactory, but I don’t like it as much for shimmers.
Hakuhodo G/J5545 (April ’22 Limited Edition Mint Handle)
Full Length: 178mm / 7 in
Hair Length: 38mm / 1.5 in
Hair Width: 8.6mm (thick) / 0.34 in
Bristle Type: Blue Squirrel & Goat
Black and white mixed hair brushes are so pleasing to my eye, which is the main reason I’ve been interested in them lately. It gets a little tricky when the hair types are so different though. Blue squirrel and goat mixes, in theory, should be the best of both worlds combining the resilience of goat with the softness of squirrel. However, this works best with makeup that is buildable and blendable. Ultra pigmented products that are harder to blend will make the squirrel hair useless to get an even application and the blending work falls on the goat hair, which can result in a patchy look. This is also the case with dry powders that like to stick to the skin where it first touches and is difficult to move around. As I discovered with a brush I’ll discuss at the end, certain shimmer formulas and tighter packed products are too tough for the squirrel hair to pick up, and so the work falls to goat once again.
All of these potential issues, thankfully, was not a problem for me with this blush brush. Sure, it doesn’t pick up a lot of product at once, but that’s fine with me when it comes to blush and not wanting to overload my brush anyway. I don’t want to generalize, but based on the Hakuhodo squirrel/goat mix brushes I’ve used (in this review and future ones to come), it appears to be a trend that they keep these brushes on the sheer to the lightest side of medium denseness at most. My Hakuhodo brushes tend to be airier and have even less blending strength. I like the shape of this brush, as it makes for a nice sweeping application on the cheeks, and I like the performance. The hair mix compensates for the lack of density, giving me better results than an equivalent brush if said brush was a pure squirrel mix. However, for someone who prefers the pure softness of blue/grey squirrel, just choosing a denser squirrel brush (even if it’s more expensive) would probably be preferable. And for someone who likes more buffing power, a pure goat brush (above sokoho grade) would probably be more preferable than this one too. This particular brush works as an in-between and is close to having a “best of both worlds” situation, but I forewarn that not all brush shapes of this hair mix will have that kind of result. I’m thrilled to have this brush. I can use it in a few other ways, but only with my softest and most blendable bronzing and contouring powders. This brush works best for me and my preferences exclusively for blush.
Hakuhodo B004 (April ’22 Limited Edition Green Handle)
Full Length: Around 4 inches?
Hair Length: 11.5 mm/ 0.45 in
Hair Width: ?
Bristle Type: Pine Squirrel & North American Squirrel
*I always list the official website specifications of sizing whenever they’re available and forgo including my own measurements. In this instance, I forgot that the limited edition brushes are smaller than the standard sizes, so I did not remember to measure this by hand before I left it in the US.
I’ve seen some information referring to North American Squirrel as Chipmunk. I’ve been looking for a “chipmunk” or “tamias” labeled brush for four years now, ever since I missed out on this one Koyudo Brush, so I don’t know if I’ve technically reached my goal or not. I’m going to continue to assume North American Chipmunk is different from North American Squirrel unless I learn otherwise. Pine squirrel brushes alone tend to be slightly coarser than this, so I welcome the addition of that North American squirrel hair. The shape and softness is quite comfortable to use on my sensitive lower lash line, though when I apply eyeshadow there, it’s a little thicker than I usually have when I use my go-to Smashbox brush, but sometimes a look calls for that extra drama. It picks up nearly as much hair as goat and grips onto the powder very well. I don’t have to worry about product dropping onto my face before it reaches my eyes, except for eyeshadow formulas lacking good adhesion or ones that are extra powdery, which doesn’t apply to the majority of my collection. So, this is a really enjoyable brush to use! There are very few squirrel hair eye brushes I actually like to use, and this is one of them. However, this version of the brush with such a tiny handle is the reason I don’t reach for it nearly as often as I would if I had a larger handle version. I ordered this one for the color, but I was making a conscious effort to reach for this for testing purposes. Otherwise, it’s short size would have kept it from being used because of having to dig around and search for it at the bottom of my brush holder. I have a lot of eye brushes I enjoy, so my typical routine is to just grab the first thing I see in the shape that I need. Hakuhodo currently sells a G004BkSL for $44. I’m not sure I like it that much to buy it for that price, but if Fude Japan ever lists a longer handle equivalent of this brush at a lower price (as can sometimes happen), I’d consider buying it.
Hakuhodo B005 (April ’22 Limited Edition Green Handle)
Full Length: under 4 inches?
Hair Length: ?
Hair Width: ?
Bristle Type: Horse? Goat with a little bit of synthetic?
*I always list the official website specifications of sizing whenever they’re available and forgo including my own measurements. In this instance, I forgot that the limited edition brushes are smaller than the standard sizes, so I did not remember to measure this by hand before I left it in the US.
I cannot confirm what type of hair this brush has because I purchased it from Fude Japan and that detail wasn’t listed. In addition, there aren’t any equivalents that I could find on the Hakuhodo USA website. The closest I could find to the shape is the J005BkSL, but the hair type is listed as goat and synthetic mix. The hair in my brush feels like horse or sable. It’s coarser than goat to me, which is why I don’t like using it. It’s so small that I only get the urge to use it for lining/detail work, but with it being rougher and on such a tiny handle, this just doesn’t get used in my collection. I don’t like it.
Hakuhodo 2023 Valentine’s Day Brush
Full Length: *140mm / 5.5 in
Hair Length: 40mm / 1.57 in
Hair Width: 30mm / 1.18 in
Bristle Type: Goat and Synthetic
The gorgeous design overshadowed the fact that this brush is a goat/synthetic mix brush, which I tend to skip out on. For a mixed brush though, it’s very enjoyable to use! It’s about a light-medium density that holds well from the base of the bristles to about the middle of the brush with the benefit of a slightly wider splay of wispy tips. It’s fully round, but because it’s tapered at the top, it doesn’t feel intuitive to use a fully circular motion while applying products. I treat it a bit like the original Real Techniques blush brush and use a combination of patting motions to apply and swiping back and forth to blend. So, I tend to use this brush more on the side rather than the tips, except for additional blending in the areas that I didn’t tap my brush into the powder (and won’t add extra product to my face). I’ve used this brush for sweeping bronzer on and applying contour, but the majority of the time I use it as intended for blush purposes. The performance and airiness reminds me of the Chikuhodo T-4, even though their shapes are a bit different.
This brush, purchased from Fude Japan, didn’t have any specs listed. The J210BkSL Round Blush Blush is listed as being only goat, but mine feels partly synthetic, so I listed that in my details above just to be safe. This limited edition version may very well still just be fully goat. If it is, it’s quite softer than most other pure goat hair brushes I have from Hakuhodo. It looked like it would be a thick and flat-head brush based on pre-wash photos, but it widens beautifully after the first wash. It’s another one of those “bouncy bunny tail” brushes that I love. It’s softer and still denser than my similarly shaped and performing rephr 37, Wayne Goss 13, and Wayne Goss F2. Unlike those, this brush seems to be bundled tighter and doesn’t have the same kind of shedding issue as the others. Considering how gorgeous the pink handle is with the gold ferrule, combined with the performance, this is one of my favorite limited edition purchases. I wanted to buy a backup, even though the handle is on the shorter side of what I like to use for face brushes, but it sold out and never restocked. Because I have so many brushes of this style that I’ve collected over time, I don’t intend to buy the permanent version. However, if a limited edition version gets released again, I’d definitely be tempted.
Another thing I noticed about the J210BkSL version (other than the high price I definitely did not pay and is currently still $20 cheaper on Fude Japan’s website versus the Hakuhodo USA site), is that it’s listed as being useful for powder in addition to blush. Because of the small splay area, I personally wouldn’t bother using it for powder purposes. It’s also much too dense for all-over-powdering in my opinion. I recommend sticking to blush with this one.
Hakuhodo F7344 Ougi Angled L
Full Length: *162-166mm / 6.38-6.53 in
Hair Length: *23mm / 0.91 in
Hair Width: *30mm / 1.18 in
Bristle Type: Blue Squirrel and Goat
This is the brush I referred to in the 5545 section. This highlighter brush is very flexible and wispy if used in a dusting motion in the vertical direction, but there’s a lot less movement if used horizontally following a line along the cheekbone. This brush is fine for use with typical powder highlighters that aren’t too firmly pressed and aren’t too wet. With baked gelee formulas and smoother slippery ones that compress down into the pan, this doesn’t pick up an even amount of product and can look splotchy in the application. Since it’s not intended to be dense, it doesn’t blend that forcefully, which makes correcting the mistake with this brush quite the challenge. For that reason, I found myself continually reaching for my other highlighter brushes. Even the F6210 with less luxurious hair does a better job for my needs. I prefer highlighters that aren’t intense, so I thought the squirrel would give me the sheer wash and the goat would buff it out, but to get that, I have to use that horizontal motion and I prefer to use candleflame shapes if I’m going to use it that way. This motion isn’t a problem for my other fan brushes because those are mainly goat, which require less pressure to get the desired effect.
I included the photo above as an example of different fan styles from Hakuhodo, not as a comparison of how they are similar. They both perform and feel very differently.
So, to sum it up, this brush is fine with my standard powder highlighters only. I have many other highlighter brushes I’ll continue to choose over this one.
That’s everything for today! I apologize for this taking so long! I hope it was worth the wait! I have Fude 7’s photos all uploaded as a draft, and I’ve been testing them alongside Fude 6, but the writing/reviewing portion will take me quite a long time to complete. It might be another few months.
UPDATE/EDIT: I’m also throwing in here the fact that I decided to take two weeks off of blog posting so I can focus on completing wedding preparations and some relaxing time afterwards.
I like having keepsake tins, I really enjoy the Vieve Sunset Blushes, and I’ve been curious to see if the brand’s lip oils were worth the hype, so this purchase made complete sense for me to make (besides the bonus of a slight discount for Black Friday). The design on the outer packaging is so pretty that I can’t deny that played a big part in me wanting it, besides it being limited edition. I’m glad the tin can be reused when the plastic insert is removed.
The Lip Dew’s cap has a short wand with a large applicator that seems to be the popular shape for lip oil packaging. The lippie has a beautiful soft rose hue (hence the Rosa name), but the color doesn’t show very much on my lips. It looks mostly clear, but with a decent amount of shine to it. The Pat Mcgrath, Fenty, and Ami Cole glosses are all shinier. I would call this consistency more like a gloss than an oil. It’s sticky, but I’ve had stickier glosses such as the Gloss Bombs.
I think that texture helps it to last longer on my lips, but it barely lingers after eating so I wouldn’t call it long-lasting unless you don’t eat for an extended period of time. Then, one could get around four hours before needing to touch up.
I like this product quite a lot since it feels moisturizing to my lips, which is notoriously a struggle for me to keep my lips conditioned. It’s not to the level of Ami Cole’s hydration factor and doesn’t necessarily soften my lips like Too Faced Hangover Pillow Balms, but it at least prevents lip dryness from getting worse while I wear it, which is better than a lip product that slowly dries my lips out over time (which is the majority of things). For that reason, I do recommend them for anyone looking for something to keep the lips moisturized for a time, and for an average amount of shine to the lips. If you don’t have lip dryness issues as badly as mine, this could perform even better, which is why I think there is some validity to the hype.
The star of the show is the blush in the shade Rosa, which hasn’t been released for individual purchase yet.
As can be seen in swatches, it’s a nude color that just barely shows on my arm in swatches, but the pink tinge can be built up and is still visible on my cheeks. It reminds me of MAC’s blush in the shade Coppertone.
Unlike the shade Sorbet, I don’t see any shimmer in Rosa (just like Piazza). I consider it a soft matte though. It’s just as semi-firmly pressed as I mentioned in my original review. It’s also that same buildable pigmentation and long-lasting. Although the color is still a touch more subtle than I go for in a nude blush, I’m still happy with my purchase.
Between the two products and cute tin, this was an absolute win!
That’s everything for today. Thank you for reading!
I buy a lot of eyeshadows from Pat Mcgrath, but they don’t always stay in my collection. When I recently had to choose which palettes to bring with me during the first wave of me moving overseas, and which products would have to wait until another time, I still ended up leaving some of the higher ranking palettes behind purely because of the brick-heavy packaging.
Today, I thought it would be fun to discuss where I would place all the quads and palettes I once owned if they competed head to head!
The Disappointments (Ranks 19-16): MTHRSHP Velvet Liaison, Mthrshp Mega Celestial Nirvana, MTHRSHP Rose Decadence, and Pat Mcgrath x Star Wars MTHRSHP Dark Galaxy
It’s strange to consider Velvet Liaison the lowest ranking palette because the quality is actually good. From my subjective perspective though, nothing else could be lower because this is the only PML palette I never had enough interest in to review, didn’t feel the need to bring it with me to the US, and haven’t felt compelled to use now that I’m back in Germany.
It being an all-matte palette instantly makes it a supplemental palette that doesn’t stand on its own. I always need a shimmer in my eye looks. The shades also don’t go together for me in a way that I would be satisfied with using on its own. The lightest color is also quite stark looking on the eyes but fades from my inner corner (where I’ve used it) fairly fast.
These mattes are smooth, blendable, and pigmented enough if I use the deep brown in everything, but I just can’t be excited by the color story. I bought this because it was deeply discounted and I didn’t have many palettes while I was on vacation, so shipping it to me made sense. The overall launch of the three palettes just wasn’t exciting either though. So, even though I think it’s better quality than the next palette, I’m rating it lower.
It’s weird to say, but I was feeling guilty about not buying Celestial Nirvana considering how much I’ve gone on and on about wishing the brand would make more colorful palettes (and especially including a green). The thing is though, I meant for the Motherships and MTHRSHPS. The Mega MTHRSHPS are a good deal for the customer for shade variety, but the bulky packaging makes me never want to reach for them, especially since this is even heavier than the first one they released. There also seems to be a difference sometimes in quality between the brand’s palettes made in Italy versus the US. I eventually bought this because swatches I saw looked so nice and it was deeply discounted at the time, but this doesn’t live up to the brand’s normal quality which makes the cost not as great of a deal. As I mentioned in my review, these are super pigmented (minus the neutral mattes), the mattes are more difficult than usual to blend (especially the purples), and the green I wanted so much was a complete dud. When I return to the US, I’m considering depotting some of the shimmers and decluttering the rest of the palette. It just isn’t worth bringing over or even trying to sell to be honest. At least, not when there are sixteen other palettes I liked more than this one.
Rose Decadence is a pretty color story, but I just couldn’t be excited by it. This was released during a time before the brand had any blushes, so the ability to use the lighter matte as a blush color was the main selling point. If I had been able to get a decent enough return on the purchasing price, I would have sold it, but the resale value on this palette was very low. That’s the main reason I still had it, plus the guilt that I never gave it enough of a chance. The quality was good. I just wasn’t interested in pink at the time and the beautiful rose packaging on the outside was a big selling point, along with the price. This was also during the time when the brand didn’t have as many sales so I couldn’t buy the pricier palettes.
Dark Galaxy was the opposite. The resale value was high, but I kept it around for a long time because of the limited edition factor. The colors were pretty, but just not the kind of looks I was interested in making. When I realized though that the quality of Pat’s eyeshadows do diminish over time, I tried to sell it while the quality was still good so that someone else could at least get more enjoyment out of it than I could. Sometimes the collector side of me feels a twinge of regret, but I know I made the right decision getting rid of a palette I just wasn’t ever going to use again.
Like, But Will Never Use (Ranks 15-11): Blitz Astral Quad – Nocturnal Nirvana, Pat Mcgrath Labs x Star Wars (5 pan) – Divine Droid, Mini Eye Ecstasy: Subversive, MTHRSHP Subversive La Vie En Rose, Bijoux Brilliance (5 pan) – Lunar Nightshade
Nocturnal Nirvana was difficult for me to decide to sell. I loved the green in here, as well as the purple color, but the purple shade dried out and became hard-panned. It became impossible to use that shade, the yellow-gold was a bit boring of a color in the time period that I was getting even more interested in yellow and gold shifting multichromes, and I never wear aqua blue eyeshaows. It did not seem worth keeping an entire quad in that heavy packaging for just one eyeshadow. Plus, I knew I could use the funds to purchase a different quad instead, so I stopped regretting it. To date, that purple is the only baked eyeshadow from the brand that worsened in quality like that.
I said I would depot the mini plastic palette, but I never did. I said I wanted to get more use out of those shades, but I never did. I still stand by the quality and acknowledge the beauty of those colors, but the lack of mattes really kept me from reaching for it and the clear packaging both deterred me from wanting to use it while preventing me from having the willpower to destroy it to try and get those pans out. Getting this small palette at the reduced price of $14 was still much better than if I had purchased the full size Mothership Decadence palette. So, I don’t have as many regrets about how this palette got cast aside. Also, I’m not sure why this was called Mini Subversive instead of Decadence considering the shades are from the Decadence palette and don’t resemble the Subversive range at all.
Speaking of the Subversive range, this palette I actually got a decent amount of use from. The colors weren’t perfect for me since I’m not interested in light purples or vibrant pinks, but I was obsessed with that rich luminous purple! Plus, the other shades were nice too. It’s unfortunate that the time when I was starting to get the most use out of La Vie En Rose was also when the quality was starting to deteriorate. The shades started applying patchy, especially my beloved purple shadow, so that’s the main reason I stopped using it. The reason this palette ranks in 12th place, for something I used to love so much, is mainly because the quality didn’t last as long as some of my other products from the brand that I had for even longer. Plus, the color story isn’t as versatile.
Of all the new 5-pan palettes from PML, Divine Droid is my least favorite because of the lack of mattes, the aqua blue, shades of green and red I don’t wear as often as other shades of those colors, and the quality being slightly lower than the rest (as discussed in my review). Having it is like having a weaker version of Nocturnal Nirvana, but at a better price-point. So, it gets 14th place.
Lunar Nightshade looked so unique in promo photos, but it’s debatable whether this is better or worse than Kaleidos’ Futurism III Astro Pink. Just like that palette, as much as I was fascinated by the color combination, I rarely wear a look that that on my eyes. I don’t have complaints about the quality. It just ranks lower than the rest because of how much more I prefer the other four that I own.
Like, But Don’t Use Enough (Ranks 10-5): Pat Mcgrath x Star Wars MTHRSHP Galactic Gold, Mega MTHRSHP Celestial Divinity, Mothership IX – Huetopian Dream, Pat Mcgrath Labs x Star Wars Eye (5 pan) – The Golden One, Bijoux Brilliance (5 pan) – Bronze Ecstasy, Celestial Nirvana (5 pan) – Nude Allure
Unlike Dark Galaxy, I really wrestled with the decision to sell Galactic Gold. I loved every shade except the dark purple, but it was a matter of me being distracted by my other palettes that I didn’t reach for it enough. I could tell the quality was starting to go the way of the other six-pans, but I was so reluctant to let go of it. Even when Celestial Divinity was released with the same shades (but smaller) of both palettes, it still took me a while to have the heart to declutter it. As a collector, I still felt a sense of regret on and off for the next few years until very recently when the brand re-released the Star Wars palettes “from the Vault,” and instantly the coveted aspect of having a limited edition never-to-be-released-again product was gone. I’m finally free of regrets now that it isn’t as special from the collector standpoint!
The reason this had to at least rank number 10 is the fact that I still don’t use those shades in the Celestial Divinity palette, yet I was so overwhelmed by nostalgia that I almost bought the Vault palette! Remembering the times I did create looks I loved from this palette had that strong of a hold on me! The reason it’s not higher though is the fact that I use other palettes more and the quality of this one started to drop.
As for Celestial Divinity, the fact that it includes shadows from both Star Wars collab palettes, plus six unique shades in which two of them I really liked, is why it had to rate higher. If the quality of this palette is still good, it will come back to Germany with me in the second wave of products.
Huetopian Dream is a hard one to rate because I find the left six shades to be so boring, but they’re admittedly very pretty on the eyes. It’s better than the previous pink palettes because I have some really stunning golds and a non-baked multichrome to work with. It’s lower down on the list because of the high cost for colors that are repetitive for the brand, having only three baked shades (the ones that add to the palette cost) instead of four, and having two shades that tend to crease on me as I mentioned in my review. It’s still fairly new in my collection, so my thoughts could change up or down on this one.
Now, we’re getting to the palettes I actually brought with me to Germany because I couldn’t be without them!
Of the 5-pan small palettes, the Golden One’s color story is not very exciting, but I’m still obsessed with the non-shimmers in this one. They’re such a fascinating texture and looks nice on the eyes, plus golds will always be pretty to me (albeit at times boring). Needing to pair this with something that gives me more depth is why it doesn’t rank higher. Based on the colors alone, Huetopian Dream is technically more exciting. The reason this is above it is because it has less flaws.
Bronze Ecstasy gives me several depth options, plus has this stunning bronze shade that I find super appealing. The lack of variety of the colors is why it doesn’t rate higher, and that bronze that I love can be troublesome as I discussed in my review, but I haven’t used this palette enough, so there’s room for me to rate it higher as I continue to use it this year. I know I’ll get more use out of this palette than The Golden One in the long run.
Surprisingly, Nude Allure is not my usual type of color story, but every look with the palette is so pretty that I could not rank it any lower than 5th place! The sparkle colors in these eyeshadows make them so much more nuanced than a typical peach, pink, or purple. The addition of that matte ensures that I can do complete looks with this palette as well. It’s so good. I definitely want to use it more in 2024.
Most Precious (Rank 4): Mothership VIII – Divine Rose II
This is the only palette in my top 7 that I didn’t bring with me. I wanted to bring it desperately, but for one thing, it’s just too heavy. I could only make space for one of the big Mothership palettes, so this had to stay behind. Plus, this was my first time using a Relavel case in my suitcase, and I didn’t know if I would have any makeup packaging casualties on the trip, so I didn’t want to take the risk that this palette could end up damaged. Part of what makes this palette so precious and in a category of its own is the limited edition mirror pink packaging. The brand hasn’t released something like this since, so the exclusive aspect and inability to replace it (only in the standard packaging) bumps up the value for me.
I’ve used the pinks in here as blush before. I like the Sextraterrestrial multichrome in here so much that I didn’t feel the need to buy the Clionadh equivalent for years! That’s really saying something!
This isn’t my favorite color story from the brand, but I like enough of the shades that I continually want to use it. It’s literally only because I’m so scared of ruining the packaging that I don’t reach for it more. You better believe this is at the top of the list for things I’m planning to bring back with me next time!
Must Haves (Rank 3-1): Luxe Quad – Interstellar Icon, Celestial Nirvana (5 pan) – Bronze Bliss, and Mothership III – Subversive
This was the toughest category to rank because I love Interstellar Icon, but I don’t use it enough. I absolutely love Bronze Bliss, but it’s not a universally exciting color story. I technically have stronger emotional ties to Divine Rose II than Subversive, but getting more use out of Mothership III has been on my mind the most out of everything. In terms of color variety, quality, and packaging, Subversive has it all. I think it’s the best and most well-rounded of all the Pat Mcgrath palettes I own. That’s why I ultimately decided it deserves the top spot.
Interstellar Icon is the quad I purchased with the money I made from selling Nocturnal Nirvana. I’m not much of a blue lover, except for use on my lower lash line, so that’s a slight negative against it. The Blue Blood color is the same as from Decadence and the mini I own, so I used to reach for the mini to use that in my eye looks and keep this one as new as possible until the quality inevitably drops and this becomes the “fresher” one. Now that I don’t have that palette with me, I’ve started using this pan of it again. Divine Dahlia is my favorite shade in the quad and the reason I typically reach for this. Even though I feel like I don’t use this a ton, it’s technically still one of my most used Pat Mcgrath palettes. Also, when I think about favorite eyeshadows from Pat Mcgrath, this quad always springs to mind.
Bronze Blissis my favorite of the 5-pans and literally what kicked off my love of this new eyeshadow formula from the brand. The silver color in the center is one of the most stunning silvers I’ve seen, but it’s a little messy to use since it’s so much wetter than the other shadows. The black and two bronze shades are what keeps me coming back to this palette or constantly thinking about it when I want to create a neutral glam eye look.
Last, but not least, is Subversive III. I can technically make eye looks from this palette without needing to reach for anything else because it gives me light options, deeper options, colorful shades, and neutrals. For that reason, it’s one of Pat’s most well balanced color stories (and certainly of the ones I own). The way I do makeup, I still miss having a medium toned brown, but for that I just reach into my Hindash Beautopsy palette.
As one of the big older Mothership palettes, it has those special shades in the final quadrant that most of the brand’s fans love. This, plus the lux packaging, makes it closer to being worth the price. As great as it is, I still think it’s only worth it at 30% off or greater. Eyeshadow formulations have come a long way in the past decade, so for those interested in the palette for its actual quality, it’s hard to justify such a steep price. For those that don’t mind the upcharge for the packaging, multichromes, the eyeshadows being made in Italy, and other extra costs, the pricing makes sense for such easy to blend eyeshadows and refined look to them on the eyes. Despite how old my palette is (not as old as the originals since I didn’t buy it until years after it first released), the performance is still there.
RECAP OF RANKING FROM FAVORITE TO LEAST FAVORITE:
1. Mothership III – Subversive
2. Celestial Nirvana (5 pan) – Bronze Bliss
3. Luxe Quad – Interstellar Icon
4. Mothership VIII – Divine Rose II
5. Celestial Nirvana (5 pan) – Nude Allure
6. Bijoux Brilliance (5 pan) – Bronze Ecstasy
7. Pat Mcgrath Labs x Star Wars Eye (5 pan) – The Golden One
8. Mothership IX – Huetopian Dream
9. Mega MTHRSHP Celestial Divinity
10. Pat Mcgrath x Star Wars MTHRSHP Galactic Gold
11. Bijoux Brilliance (5 pan) – Lunar Nightshade
12. MTHRSHP Subversive La Vie En Rose
13. Mini Eye Ecstasy: Subversive
14. Pat Mcgrath Labs x Star Wars (5 pan) – Divine Droid
15. Blitz Astral Quad – Nocturnal Nirvana
16. Pat Mcgrath x Star Wars MTHRSHP Dark Galaxy
17. MTHRSHP Rose Decadence
18. MegaMTHRSHP Celestial Nirvana
19. MTHRSHP Velvet Liaison
Over time, for various reasons, my love of the Pat Mcgrath Labs brand has dropped a bit. However, the love of my top ranking products from them hasn’t dwindled. They make good products and their launches are something I still always pay attention to. I’m still plenty interested in what they have next, even though I buy things from them at a slower pace now.
That’s all for today! I hope to see you next week!
Lili's Beauty Blog 