The compact photo above is better at showing the depth level, but the compact photo below is more accurate to the undertones.
I have more than enough makeup for one person, even though I currently only have access to about a quarter of my collection. For that reason, I tried my hardest to not be tempted into buying this Chanel product. I love their blushes, but I don’t use them enough. I have heard fantastic things about their highlighters, but most are too light for me (and the one I bought wasn’t as refined as I expected). I don’t own any bronzers from the brand, so that would be a new experience.
I watched a video from French for a Day to talk myself down from Chanel products in general, but even she seemed excited for the trio. It was ultimately the assurance that this would work on my skin tone from watching the video from I Am Jamila that kept me interested in this product. In addition, so many people I follow on YouTube and Instagram continued to rave about it even beyond the initial release, indicating that it’s not just temporary hype. The final nudge I needed was a small discount from the retailer Parfümerie Pieper, and I was sold!
Chanel Les Beiges Poudre Belle Mine Ensoleilleé in Deep Rose Gold
The blush is nice. It’s not difficult to nail a blush formula though, so I expected it would be good. It’s not my favorite tone of pink, but it’s pretty. For those that have the Guerlain Terracotta blush in Deep Nude, this is basically the same color.
The bronzer is also pretty good. If you’ve seen my ranking of bronzers that I purchased in 2023 exclusively, I would say it performs as well as MAC’s Sunstruck bronzers, Pat Mcgrath’s Divine Powder bronzers, and perhaps even Nars Laguna Talc-Free Bronzing Powders. This means that it’s among bronzers I like a lot, but not quite enough to make the top 10. I didn’t watch French for a Day’s actual review of the trios until I finished my first draft of this post, and in her opinion the powders are average quality for Chanel. That doesn’t make them bad, just not the best that the brand is capable of producing. I felt strangely reassured when hearing this because it matched my feelings, after using this product for a while, that perhaps this being called “phenomenal” is an over-exaggeration.
I had mixed feelings about the highlighter initially. I love a subtle highlighter, but this is too subtle for me to want to use alone. It’s along the same vein of the Guerlain Météorites, but even less shimmery. I built it up as much as I could in the photos above. What made me start to like this highlighter is that it offers something I don’t have in my collection, which is the ability to turn the bronzer and/or blush into a glowy one without changing the color or making it overly shimmery. It lightens the color, but not by much. I have a few products that I mix with others to achieve this effect, but they are pigmented products that will alter the final color by adding more of a brown tone, warmth or make it cooler toned, etc. This one is sheer enough to transform other products too. In practical usage, I don’t know how often I would pair this with other products besides the ones in this compact, but the option is there.
In the previous photos, I was wearing the Lisa Eldridge Foundation which is a little dark and leans orange on me. In the photo with the blue shirt above, I’m wearing a combination of the Givenchy and Armani foundations, which are a better match (and it’s also a slightly sunnier day, so this is why I look a bit lighter). As for the Chanel products, I wore the amount I normally would, rather than building it up for photos, like the previous ones. The sheerer application of blush with the highlighter on top accounts for the depth differences in the photos.
I have no issues with fading or longevity with this product. These aren’t the smoothest powders I’ve used, but they blend pretty well, especially with a fox or saikoho goat brush. I also have some smaller sized brushes that can fit well in the compact, so it isn’t too much of a hassle having all three colors that close together. A tip I learned for getting into the blush easier is to turn the compact 180 degrees so that it’s the top stripe and the highlighter is on the bottom instead. Then I can dip the angled part of my brush into the blush and can see what I’m doing from top to bottom rather than trying to avoid the brush getting into the bronzer while having the back of the brush hitting the edge of the compact.
Sometimes luxury products look pretty, but don’t feel luxurious. This does feel like a luxury product in the hand, and because the retailer I purchased from included a few Chanel samples, just like the official Chanel website does, I still had the luxury experience.
Having three products in one feels like the pricing is appropriate, especially for a brand like Chanel. I posed the question in the title as to whether this was worth me buying. Considering the discounted price I paid, I think it technically was. However, from a personal standpoint looking at all the makeup I own and factoring in how often I’ll use this palette, perhaps it wasn’t. Time will tell, but for now, I am happy I made this purchase.
DISCLOSURE: I posted several links, including the retailer, but they are normal links, not affiliate links. I paid for these myself and these opinions are my own. At this time, I have no personal or professional connections to the companies or influencers mentioned.
Thank you for reading! I hope it has been helpful.
I thought of this title because most products take me a long time to decide how I feel about them. Whether my initial impression is good or bad, I always get the feeling that the results could be better if I test them under various conditions and with different techniques. So, that’s why it takes me quite a while to solidify my thoughts. However, with the two makeup items I’ll be featuring today, my thoughts haven’t changed from that first use and onward!
Charlotte Tilbury Unreal Skin Sheer Glow Tint Hydrating Foundation Stick in 12 Tan
First of all, what a mouthful of a name! Charlotte Tilbury certainly likes her over-the-top names and product descriptions on her website, but I’m not complaining. It’s funny to me.
I’m going to start off by saying that I do not use this product as a foundation. I’m an avid beauty YouTube watcher and saw a ton of reviews for this before it became available at Sephora’s Deutschland website (and on sale, hurrah!), so I saw how greasy looking this was on anyone who put it all over the face prior to powdering. Regardless of the reviewers’ opinions, I thought the glow looked beautiful on everyone, which is why I wanted to buy this…as a highlighter.
It’s important to explain that while I lived in Florida, I had dry/normal skin. Now that I’m living in Germany, with much less humidity (so drier air) and colder temperatures for the majority of the year, my dry skin issues exacerbated to the point where my natural finish foundations and slightly dewy ones look matte on me. Some of my products would turn glowier as the day went on while in Florida, thanks to sodium hyaluronate/hyaluronic acid, but moisture never broke through during German winter, no matter how long I wore them. The only foundation I have with me currently that makes my skin look glowy, but still takes several hours to happen, is the N°1 de Chanel Revitalizing Foundation. My desire was to find a product that would give me glow at the very beginning, so I could enjoy my Chanel foundation more and start using my other foundations again.
That’s where this Charlotte Tilbury product comes to play. I’ve been using powder highlighters to try and get a glassy wet-skin looking glow. It’s a decent solution now that we’re in summer, but it’s not as effective when my skin is extra dry in winter (plus fall and spring really). I’ve always hated cream highlighters because they tend to be too emollient and remain dewy feeling on the skin, as well as disturbing my makeup underneath. Liquid highlighters I’ve used don’t disturb things as much and most dry down fully, but they also tend to look super shimmery or metallic, which can look too obvious/stark on a minimal makeup day. I am so happy to say the Unreal Skin is the product I’ve been waiting for all this time!
It wasn’t too long ago that I reviewed Dior’s Forever Glow Star Filter, with the comparison to the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter. Dior’s product was the closest I’d ever come to perfection, but the drawback was having to use specific techniques to make it work because it’s technically darker than my skin tone and the next available shade up is too light. So, despite thinking I could stop looking for a glow product, I took one more chance by getting the Unreal Skin Tint.
I am typically within the 12 to 13 shade range of Charlotte Tilbury complexion products, depending on the line, as well as the time of year. I had a difficult time deciding whether to get shade 12, 12.5, or 13 in the foundation stick, but decided upon the lightest of the three since it’s a sheer and therefore flexible coverage product that I wanted to highlight with anyway. 12.5 could have possibly worked too, but I think I made the right call choosing 12. When I did a swatch with my finger and rubbed it in, the darker base color became visible. The lighter sheen and that base combine to form a better shade match for me than all the liquid highlighters I own. It never looks that dark when I put it on my skin because I use a brush to blend it in, which doesn’t completely remove the reflective layer. The difference can be seen in the top swatch of the third column of the photo below. I reapplied that swatch with my brush instead of my finger.
My reasons for preferring this product over the Hollywood Flawless Filter is that the color suits me better, the amount that I use is self-setting and dries down with almost no transfer, it looks more skin-like even though it’s a shinier and a more reflective product. It feels lightweight on my skin, so that I completely forget it’s there on minimal makeup days. Neither product disturbs my makeup underneath, but I’m impressed by the fact that I don’t have to warm up the product on the back of my hand first, nor rub the stick onto my brush bristles before applying it to my face. I can just drag the stick directly onto my skin and then blend it out with my brush without ruining even my KVD Good Apple Concealer, which notoriously doesn’t play well with a lot of my products.
The left photo has no bronzer, no highlighter, and just a thin layer of the Chanel foundation. The right photo has the Armani Bronzer on and the Charlotte Tilbury stick as highlighter on the cheekbones and above the brow.There’s also the tiniest bit on the cupid’s bow, chin, and nose.
The Unreal Skin looks a bit more pearly in photos than in person, but it’s also more detectable without blush. I used a combination of a Glow Play blush and Powder blush from MAC in the photo below and then it took on a more natural appearance, despite having applied the CT stick to such a large area on my cheeks (mainly for demonstration purposes). If I was going to use this product while skipping blush, I would have applied it more precisely to a smaller zone. I wanted to be able to show that even if it’s in a larger section of the cheek, using a powder product of any type on top will tone down the glow.
This is the completed makeup look. These last photos were taken a bit later when the sun wasn’t shining as brightly through the window, so I look a bit darker overall and warmer in color with the addition of blushes and bronzer built up. Plus, I usually skip wearing my Dior Powder-No-Powder for review pictures because Shade 5 warms up and slightly darkens on me too (I don’t have Shade 4 with me), but I wanted to depict what I interpret as a minimal makeup look and show how finishing powder differs from the CT glow on me.
I have to add that because of my dry skin, the type of skincare I use, and the small amount of the stick I end up applying, this product dries down enough that I don’t need to powder it. For those that use dewy primers, dewy foundations, have oily skin, or end up with thick skincare products that sit on top of the skin instead of fully sinking in, the results could be very different. Those that live in humid climates may also need to set it, which would diminish most of that shine.
Purely for testing purposes, I confirmed that using the Unreal Stick as a skin tint is too shiny for me. As a primer, putting a natural finish foundation on top (may as well be matte on me) tones down some of the shine. However, it’s still too much for my liking. Adding some face powder to strategic areas gave me the appearance of a natural finish foundation, but I still prefer how it looks when I just use this product as highlighter. Using it as primer makes the end result feel heavier on my skin and is just enough extra emollience to make the foundation transfer more heavily than usual, as my husband can attest to after I greeted him on the testing day!
The amount of glow in the completed look photo (in the neon tank top) might be too much for some, but I absolutely love it because I don’t get any shinier throughout the day. There was a heatwave and it was 87°F /31°C at the time I took those photos, but that didn’t effect the performance at all. The Chanel foundation does its thing and will make other spots more glowy, but I don’t get oily looking or greasy when I apply the amount that I do. This isn’t the type of product I think anyone would enjoy the look of when built up, unless it gets powdered after.
Technically, the Unreal Stick emphasizes texture, but it’s nearly negligible, especially for how glowy the product is overall. It’s not much of a problem for me because the areas I apply the product to aren’t wrinkly spots, though I do have some bumps and moles. I’m only mentioning this because it may be more of an issue for someone trying to use this product as intended, as foundation. In my case, I avoid applying it to my forehead, since the bumps there become more noticeable if it’s not powdered down (as seen in the maroon shirt photos). I’m happy with this product because it still emphasizes less than many other highlighters I’ve used, and even less than the Dior Forever Glow Star Filter.
So, now, I can genuinely say that I’m finished looking for a skin-glow-aiding product. In the event that I notice any changes over time, such as the stick drying out in the tube or the product expiring before its 12 month period-after-opening, I will update this post.
The final aspect I wanted to mention is that the component isn’t weighty, but it’s not cheap feeling to me either. I heard some complaints about the packaging not being luxurious enough, but I see Charlotte Tilbury as a high-end brand and not completely in the luxury sphere. I think the packaging is pretty. I also think the component comes apart based on the rattling sound it makes when it’s not fully twisted down. I wouldn’t be surprised if there becomes a refill option in the future. Quite a lot of Charlotte Tilbury products are refillable.
Armani Luminous Silk Bronzing Powder in 110
This product has been out for a while now, but I really thought 110 would be too close to my skin tone and that 120 looked too much like a contour color, based on photos I’ve seen online. I still think 110 isn’t that far off from my skin tone in terms of depth, but the undertone makes it to stand out more. More specifically, on my bare skin it stands out a lot. On top of foundation, especially mine that are a little darker and more golden-orange, the color appears subtler. This bronzer can be intensified by building up a few layers though. I’m also glad it shows up significantly more than the Armani Luminous Silk Glow Liquid Bronzer Drops in 110 ever did!
No bronzer in the left photo compared to a normal bronzer application in the right photo. A heavier bronzer application can be seen in the Charlotte Tilbury section further up.
The section I used a few times, seen in the photo below, doesn’t look as sparkly compared to the untouched areas in the pan. I began to wonder if the shimmer ran all the way through the product or in smaller amounts the further down one goes. It looked like the sparkle was solely on the outermost layer, but after a few additional uses, I started to see shimmer again. So, even though the very prominent gold specks can be partly rubbed away in the pan, it will return. What’s most important to me is that this powder imparts a sheen, which I love my bronzers to have. I’m not a fan of obvious shimmer particles in places other than my eyes. However, like those “sequin” eyeshadows that are matte formulas with random shimmer specks that get flicked off the skin when blended in, some of the gold particles in this bronzer don’t stick to the face. If I’m not in a bright setting, the shimmer that does linger around isn’t that noticeable. So, I’m accepting of this, but I know in the back of my head it will remain a point against this bronzer compared to others in my collection that I love. This type of issue is why I ended up not keeping Yacht Life from Mented (matte with golden shimmer) over Vacay (warm tone pink leaning soft matte bronzer). Armani’s bronzer having a sheen, which Mented’s does not, is the saving grace.
I like the smoothness of the powder, how easy it blends in, the sheen-like appearance on the skin. It adheres well and doesn’t fade all day. I even applied this to my forehead while I was sweating and I was worried that my brush would create hard-pan on the surface or that it would look textured on my skin, but it applied normally. The powder is easy to pick up, even with my delicate squirrel hair brushes. I just lightly tap into the compact and can get plenty of product on the bristles. If I’m wearing a foundation that requires me to to build up this bronzer to get it to show, then I switch to a larger saikoho goat hair brush to pick up even more product, but it doesn’t necessarily need to be a dense brush.
The compact is pretty on the outside and has a big heavy mirror housed under the lid which makes the packaging feel weighty overall. It certainly exudes luxury to me. For size reference, it’s about two millimeters smaller in circumference than the Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Sun-Kissed Glow Cream Bronzer packaging.
The only drawbacks about this bronzer for me are the gold particles and the color. I wish it had slightly less of an orange tone, because it looks even warmer on my complexion once it’s actually on my face. That’s all. Otherwise, I have no complaints about the formula. It’s far too soon to rank it with my other bronzers, but what I can say is the consistency feels like a mix between a soft matte, like the Hermes, and the almost clay-like appearance of the Glowish and Hatice Schmidt Labs bronzers. I don’t consider this a holy grail product, but I like it and I feel like it was a good purchase. I should preface though that I did not pay the full 52 Euros for it. I got it on sale for 37 Euros, thanks to an “Armani Cosmetics Promotion [for] Europe” via Selfridges.
I hope these reviews have been helpful. Thank you for reading!
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!
There are more products reviewed, discussed, and photographed in this post than what is pictured above.
I took quite a long break from purchasing Juvia’s Place products, but they had an amazing Juneteenth sale with enough items I wanted to make it worth placing the order. Besides a few controversies, it was also the fact that the palettes with six pans and under weren’t performing as well as I was used to. Juvia’s Place and Coloured Raine used to make my favorite eyeshadows in my early blogging days, but both brands have changed things. So, just as I gave it some time before trying Coloured Raine again, I decided to give Juvia’s Place another chance in 2023 to see if it was just a string of bad luck and if I might enjoy their smaller palettes again.
I also bought the Coffee Shop palette, but it isn’t pictured with the group above because I ended up giving it to one of my friends. I wanted to mention that because I told Olive a long time ago that I bought that palette, with the implication that it would eventually be reviewed on this blog, but I forgot I gave it away. It looked so beautiful, but I purchased several neutral palettes at the same time, and with my friend visiting I hoped it would make a nice surprise gift. Anyway, I recommend checking out Olive Unicorn Beauty if you’re a fan of Juvia’s place, bright colorful eyeshadow looks, fun hair dyes, and more.
Eyeshadows
The photo above is an example of my biggest issue with Juvia’s Place shimmers from my previous review until now. This happens with slicker formula shimmers and isn’t any indication that it’s a bad shadow. It’s just unfortunate that my eyes (which produce more oils in the last few years than previously in my life) aren’t compatible with those slip-type and ‘cone’ heavy eyeshadows anymore. I can sometimes mitigate the issue by having a thick matte layer in the crease (or using setting powder) to keep those zones drier, but it doesn’t always work.
The Blushed Rose Eyeshadow Palette
This color story is so beautiful! I wanted it ever since it launched, so I could no longer resist being without it. Shade 2 called to me the most, as it looks so fiery warm and vibrant in the pan, but it’s not as unique on my actual eyes. They’re all so pretty. I’m just not sure they’re as special as I wanted.
I’m happy to say the creasing/breaking down of the shimmers wasn’t as bad with this palette. The matte quality was also better than when I decided to take a break from Juvia’s Place, but it’s still not quite as good as their older mattes. I’m at least glad they’re blendable and of similar quality to their larger “newer” palettes. The texture of the eyeshadows feel softer, which seems like a conscious decision to make them more of a buildable eyeshadow formula rather than ultra pigmented. The color is clearly still there, but it’s not as easy to layer up multiple colors to build up to the kind of depth I prefer. I think the shadows are still good for the price and with a lot of shade variety and nice finishes. I can see why people still love their eyeshadows. The switch is just not to my specific preference anymore.
The Bronzed Rustic Eyeshadow Palette
The colors in this palette look a lot more similar to each other on my eyes than I expected, so that makes it less enjoyable to me than the Blushed Rose Palette. Other than that, my praises and critiques for this palette are exactly the same. The mattes are better than I expected, but don’t give me the depth I want. They’re more buildable and thin instead of heavier and pigmented. The shimmers don’t crease as badly as I feared. The shimmers are more metallic and less sparkly.
The eye looks I created are pretty, but I was a little underwhelmed by this palette.
The Fula Palette
This palette has some really interesting shades, especially the duochromes. I was so excited when I swatched everything and I had high expectations, but wow this one was the ultimate letdown. The mattes were so hard to build. I got my color impact with Nomad and Taza, but Nomad was constantly fading away when I tried to blend it, whereas Taza had a sticking issue wanting to stay where it’s initially laid and doesn’t want to blend out. Marrakesh didn’t give me enough vibrancy of color and I struggled to blend out the edges. Then I had the issue of all the shimmers creasing horribly within hours. The bald patch photo I showed at the beginning of the post was from the first eye look shown below. Preferences are one thing, but I think this palette goes beyond a preference thing. I don’t think it’s as good of quality. Can it be made to work? Of course. I just can’t recommend it.
The Warrior Palette
Since this is one of the older palettes before I noticed a quality difference, and one of the larger ones, I had high hopes it would be great. Unfortunately, even the newer versions of older palettes seem different than I remember. The mattes were easier to blend than in the Fula palette, but still rougher than the Blush and Bronze palettes. They don’t layer as well or build as well either. The shimmers creased, but again, not as intensely as the Fula palette.
The colors in here are beautiful and the eye looks are nice, but I had to just face the facts that Juvia’s Place eyeshadows just aren’t suited for me anymore. Thankfully, the brand has branched out into so many other areas of makeup that I can continue to seek out and use their products. This doesn’t have to be the end.
Blushes
Juvia’s Place Blushed Liquid Blush in Marigold, Rosey Posey (should have been Peach Rose), Coral Rose, and Lily Love
As I mentioned in the beginning of the post, I bought these on June 19th, but I didn’t start working on this post until October. I took out a few products here and there prior to October, but when I initially got my order and saw that barbie pink liquid blush, I assumed I just make a mistake in what shade I chose and put it back in the box. It wasn’t until I started taking product photos and swatches that I realized it was called Rosey Posey, which I knew wasn’t one of the blush shades I was interested in. I checked my order confirmation page, and Peach Rose was the shade I actually ordered, but got Rosey Posey instead. It’s so many months later that I didn’t bother to contact Juvia’s Place customer service to try and fix it.
To give some kind of reference, I’m not the biggest liquid blush connoisseur, but my favorites are from Rare Beauty and Glossier. The ones from Glossier are a little more on the buildable natural side. The ones from Rare Beauty are much more pigmented. I need such a small amount from Rare Beauty to get the full pigment I want. The ones from Juvia’s Place though are equal in pigment or even more intense! I need practically a pinprick amount of Lily Love to cover my full cheek. That one is so unbelievably pigmented! For that reason, I prefer Coral Rose which is similar in tone to Lily Love, but less red, less intense, and a small drop won’t overdo things instantly.
These blushes dry down to a soft matte finish. They come in pretty colors. They’re long-lasting and don’t fade. They’re basically a more pigmented version of the Rare Beauty liquid blushes. That being said, I still prefer the Rare Beauty because they’re overall still easier to use and blend out. With the Juvia’s Place ones, I don’t even know if they disturb foundation underneath because they’re so opaque that anyone can cover up any bald spots or patches easily. That makes them a good thing or bad thing depending on someone’s needs.
One of the things going for these is that the Juvia’s Place liquid blushes cost $18 versus $23 from Rare Beauty, at least in the US. That doesn’t seem like a huge difference, but Rare Beauty blushes can be 26 Euros in Germany depending on the shade, whereas Juvia’s are 17 Euros. So, the overseas prices is where the difference can be larger. Plus, Juvia’s Place frequently has sales on their website and Ulta starting at around 30% off, so the price gap could widen even more.
I bought Marigold hoping it would be a decent substitute for Joy from Rare Beauty, but it’s not quite the same brightness and Joy also has a dewier looking finish that I prefer. So, I would like to one day repurchase that color. However, Coral Love is a decent enough substitute for my beloved Love shade.
I can recommend these, but I have to admit I still prefer the Rare Beauty ones myself.
Lip Products
Magic Lip Oil in Watermelon
I was so excited to try this lip oil because they’ve gotten so popular in the past year, but I just wasn’t impressed with this formula. It didn’t condition my lips. It felt more like a gel than an oil. It barely smelled like watermelon (like a watermelon mixed with chemicals). It doesn’t add any color to my lips, so the slight pink tinge is just for show. The shine disappears fairly quickly and it’s not long lasting in general on my lips either. With nothing good about it except how pretty it looks in the tube and the fun shape of the applicator, it made no sense to keep it. So, it’s out of my collection.
Lip Gloss in Sis!
This is a nice, functional, basic gloss. It has a bit of color and this particular shade looks slightly milky on me, but it’s still pretty, especially paired on top of a lipstick. It’s not as high shine as my favorites, but it’s also not as sticky either. I liked it enough that I bought one for my sister, and I’d consider getting another shade at some point in the future. I just have a ton of glosses that I like and am currently trying to use up that also have a conditioning effect to my lips, so it doesn’t really make sense to buy another at the moment.
Nude Velvety Matte Lipstick in Me and Toffee
I like the somewhat vanilla scent of these lipsticks. They go on the lips smoothly without tugging. They feel comfortable to wear on the lips. They’re not transfer-proof, but last a decent amount of time before touch-ups are required. The shape of the lipstick is interesting to look at, but the shape also seemed to make it easy to apply the product to my lips without going outside the lines. They’re a matte formula but have a slight creaminess to them. My preferred color of the two is Toffee because I can wear it without a darker lip liner. Toffee refused to show true-to-color on my camera unfortunately (in the lip photo but the swatch is accurate). I planned to retake photos while in Germany, but my plastic bag of lip products I intended to bring with me weighed 3 pounds (out of a 50 pound limit). These lipsticks survived the cut where I brought it down to 2 pounds, but ultimately I had to get that lip product bag even lower, so the Juvia’s Place lipsticks unfortunately had to be left behind.
If the colors were perfectly suited to my taste without lipliner, I would have found a way to bring one with me. The shade options were what did it. So, for anyone who is able to find colors they really like in Juvia’s Place’s shade offerings, I recommend giving one a try.
Miscellaneous
I Am Magic Natural Radiance Foundation in BURKINA-#310 [Dark with neutral warm undertone]
I believe this was too dark at the time I originally tried it, but just before I left the US, it was a passable shade match. The finish is quite pretty, a natural radiance just as described, but leaning more on the radiant side. It’s advertised as medium-to-full coverage. It can feel heavy if too much is applied, so the coverage I get for the amount I want to wear is high medium. The scent is extremely strong. There’s supposed to be “Acerola Cherry ferment” in here, and the cherry fragrance they added is a frequent reminder of that. I like the smell, but still wish it was excluded or at least that it was milder. It lingers on the skin for quite a while before I can’t smell it anymore. When I first tried this, it was with the Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil and that made it easy to transfer. By itself, it can actually set down without powder. It just takes a little longer than other foundations I own. I wish I could have been able to bring this with me, and I was very tempted to repurchase it during their Cyber Week sale to have it shipped to my location. However, the reason I left it is because I have so many other foundations I already love and have stood the test of time, plus in closer shade matches to me. They’re all at least double the price of this foundation, so for anyone unwilling to pay those kind of prices, this could be a less expensive option to look into.
Juvia’s Place I Am Magic Concealer in J11 [Dark with a Warm Undertone]
This looks like it should work for me, but it’s a bit too light when it’s actually on top of my dark under eye circles. I love the full coverage aspect to it, but the biggest issue is that it creases fast and too deeply for my liking. I tried it twice by itself with different powders and two other times mixed with other concealers to see if that would help, but nothing worked.
Also, regarding the shades, the next one that was still a warm undertone is J8, which looked like it would be way too deep for me based on the website photos. However, the color wouldn’t change the creasing problem I had with it.
Juvia’s Place Bronzed Cream Bronzer in Caramel
Taken from my Instagram post, since I summed it up best over there, I know I bought the incorrect shade for myself, but the biggest reason I didn’t try to exchange it for a better shade is because this bronzer has sparkles in it. It doesn’t show in swatches, and it’s too hard to see in the container, but those sparkles are way more obvious and look crazy when spread out on the face. I thought I was in the twilight zone because none of the YouTubers I watch talked about it in their initial videos (people with similar tastes to me), and it wouldn’t be until much later in a declutter video or update video that they mentioned noticing it later on and not liking it. It’s such a shame because I loved the feel of it on the skin and the way it blended was beautiful. I just can’t get on board with such a glittery look in a bronzer of all things! If they ever decide to release a version that isn’t, “crafted with shimmering pearls,” I’ll buy it in a heartbeat.
Also, $18 is mid to high end pricing if the price per grams are considered because it’s only 0.3 oz versus brands like Anastasia Beverly Hills that has a cream bronzer at $35 for 1 oz. I don’t mind a small size since it’s so hard for me to use up bronzers, blushes, and highlighters. However, it’s not as affordable of a product compared to what the brand’s prices usually are. This is the same brand whose foundation is $23 for 40ml when most brands’ foundations are only 30ml.
Those are pretty much all the products I’ve tried from Juvia’s Place in 2023. I did also buy their eye primer to compare to the one from Coloured Raine, but the primer separated in the bottle and looked really off-putting, so I didn’t even try it.
This was quite the mixture of good and mediocre performances with the products, but I still have an overall positive impression of the things they make. There’s no way to know whether something will be a hit or a miss from them, but I’m always intrigued.
That’s all for today! Thank you for reading! I wish you a Happy New Year and positive things for 2024!
Gxve Beauty by Gwen Stefani had 50% off all products for Black Friday, so it felt like the perfect time to try the makeup. This is a “first impression” style review, since my order arrived shortly before my trip, and I was only able to wear everything 1-2 times. I liked them all and planned to bring them with me to Germany, but due to baggage weight limits I had to leave everything except the highlighter behind. However, the impression left on me by these products were strong enough that I feel I can still review them.
In the photo above, I’m wearing the highlighter (all colors swirled together), the bronzer and contour, both shades in the blush compact, and the matte lipstick.
Pick It Up Cream Contour & Talc-Free Powder Bronzer Duo in Heat Wave
The cream contour blends decently into the skin and sets without remaining balmy. However, due to the shine from it being a cream product, I prefer to set it with a powder of some kind. It looks intense when it’s first placed onto the skin, but sheers out without being patchy as it’s worked onto the face. The shade I chose was still a bit too deep for me, so I had to be extra precise in the placement of it, and it was too unnatural to look nice in my jaw area.
The powder bronzer was extremely warm in color, along the lines of Pat Mcgrath’s bronzer in the shade Burnished Honey. It’s quite pigmented and doesn’t cling to more dewy spots on the face, nor did it deepen up from moisture. It has a similar looking finish and performance to PML’s bronzer as well. I tend to prefer a slight sheen in my bronzer, even more than what’s considered soft matte, but I still liked this one.
The longevity is good on both products. My bigger critique is that there isn’t a plastic flap to help prevent powder bronzer kickup from ending up in the cream contour. This issue didn’t happen to me yet, but I can see it being a problem with repeated use or if someone accidentally drops the compact and some of the powder breaks and goes everywhere.
If I’d been able to get this for half price again and have it arrive in time, I would have been tempted to get the shade Super Hot intended for tan skin tones and hoped it wouldn’t be too light. But in thinking it over, I still prefer powder contours over all the cream ones I’ve ever tried because for some reason they tend to not be matte. When creating a shadow on my face, I need that to be matte and not shiny, which powders give me. As for bronzers, I have plenty that rank higher, so this is ultimately why I decided that I’ll just continue to use this one when I eventually return to the US and make do with the color I’ve got.
Feelin’ Cheeky Clean Amplifying Talc-Free Blush Duo in Crush On You
According to the brand, “Each blush duo includes 2 shades: a Sheer Satin shade to add luminosity and dimension and a Natural Radiant shade to pump up the vibrancy.” I would have thought they’d be the other way around, but the shimmery blush is apparently the satin. It doesn’t give enough color payoff for me to wear on its own. The radiant shade, although not flat matte, is a bit darker than the satin and doesn’t pop enough for my taste, which is why I ended up putting the satin on top of the radiant one both times since they look better together on me. It becomes a combination of blendable and buildable color paired with the oomph and brightness I prefer in a blush. The satin isn’t as luminous as a true shimmer blush, so perhaps the description of it makes sense. The color lasted on my cheeks all day without fading.
I would have loved to get another duo, but the brand’s photos only show the coral shade (Lasting Love) on a model with light skin and the peachy-beige (Stars Aligned) demonstrated on a light/medium model, so I couldn’t tell if any other colors I liked would work for my skin tone. It would have been even more of a risk to blindly buy considering the radiant shade intended to “pump up the vibrancy” needed to be built up a little despite being the deepest duo.
The only reason I left this one behind is because I filled nearly an entire large Relavel case (16.5 x 5.5 x 12 inches) with blushes. I already was bringing so many with me, some which even had sentimental value, that I couldn’t justify this one. Especially since this type of color is a darker version of what I love and have too many shades of in my collection and in finishes I prefer even more. I would still like to get additional shades of these blushes one day though.
Check My Glow Multi-dimensional Illuminating Talc-Free Highlighter in Karat Country
I can’t recall if I smelled fragrance in the contour/bronzer duo, but there is definitely perfume in the blush duo and this highlighter. It smells so strongly of baby powder, but mixed with some florals. The smell doesn’t linger on the face, but it’s a little unnerving to be applying so much scented makeup, especially when using more than one Gxve Beauty product at a time. I try to limit the amount of perfumed products I use out of fear of increasing my chances of developing skin sensitization, plus scented products can often give me a headache. I’m glad the ones from Gxve haven’t done that to me, but I felt it’s important to mention.
This is the one product in this post I kept with me, which shows just how much I love it. How light or dark my skin is can fluctuate throughout the year, so the idea that I can tailor my highlighter color to suit me is a great advantage. The shimmer quality is smooth. It’s one of the least texture enhancing highlighters I’ve used in proportion to the intensity level of the shine and reflectivity. I haven’t done a highlighter ranking post yet, but this has to be in my top 10. I mentioned that I used everything in this post at least 1-2 times prior to my trip. Since arriving at my destination, I have continued to use this one every time I put on makeup. I can apply it sparingly with an airy brush for a more subtle look, but achieving medium to medium-high intensity is easy. I don’t consider this a blinding highlighter, but choosing one of the brand’s lighter shades would give me that effect if I wanted that. Medium level of radiance is the most I like, so this is very much perfect for me.
Original Me Clean High-Performance Matte Lipstick in Lovable Me
Well, this certainly takes me back! I haven’t worn a lip product associated with Gwen Stefani since the collab with Urban Decay in early 2016! It was the only item I bought from that collection, and it was more for collector purposes because I loved the packaging.
The Gxve brand packaging is quite cool, especially with the brand lettering under the twist up portion of the component that can be seen when the cap is removed. Lovable Me is a really pretty color that I can almost wear without a lip liner (liner-free demonstration is at the top of the page).
Considering it’s a matte lipstick, I was surprised that the formula had a slight creaminess to it that made it easy to glide onto the lips and was comfortable to wear. It lasted through two meals before needing to be touched up. My lips were drier than when I started at the end of the night, like pretty much every colored lip product I wear, but it’s one of the most comfortable mattes I’ve worn. It looked nice even on my semi-chapped lips. This lipstick unsurprisingly contains fragrance, but it smells more like vanilla than the other products from Gxve Beauty.
Overall, I think this brand has pretty good products. I’m certainly interested in seeing what else they will make in the future, although I don’t believe they ship outside of the US. So, unfortunately, this might be my one and only brand review unless they expand globally.
The photo above shows my current collection of Hourglass Ambient finishing powders, blushes, bronzers, and highlighters. Some products have been depotted and rearranged, so they’re not all in their original states (the Universe Unlocked and Tiger palettes).
My palette from Hourglass has the website exclusive Owl design on the cover, but I chose the powders inside that were assigned by default to the Leopard palette. It’s called “Color Palette 2” on the official website. As I mentioned in my review of this year’s Snake palette (not to be confused with the leopard component I chose for it), it was so difficult to skip out on the beautiful owl and when I found a 20% off code, I ended up choosing this. Well, the Palette 2 option was the only one in stock at the time, so I technically had no choice. The reason the default Leopard palette insides were still in stock is because it’s the palette with only 1 new shade and a bunch of re-released ones. It’s a great thing that I only had one of the 6 powders currently in my collection, but that’s also because most of the shades don’t work for me as intended. However, I’ve happily discovered that this is a great mixing/companion palette and for that reason I decided to review it as well. In addition, I’ve added even more comparison swatches than I did in my post from a few weeks ago!
Dim Light (finishing powder) – This is a permanent shade that I surprisingly never owned among the long list of too-light-for-me Ambient powders from Hourglass that I get stuck with from the edit palettes. Of course, no one is surprised to hear I can’t use this as a finishing powder on my skin tone.
Some of the deeper finishing powders from the brand have visible shimmer, making them something I wouldn’t want to put under my eyes. I couldn’t see any shimmer particles in Dim Light though, so I have used it as a brightening powder under my eyes. My concealer was a little darker than the rest of my face when I was taking the face pictures above, so this is when I put Dim Light over it and I think it helped brighten it. So, this powder isn’t a complete miss for me.
Celestial Strobe Light (strobe powder/highlighter) – This strobe powder was introduced last year in the Butterfly palette. Because of the level of warmth and transparency in this color, I could actually almost pull this off! I was tempted to depot it from the Butterfly palette before I sold it, so I’m actually not bothered to own it again. When I use Lustrous Bronze Light as a highlighter and add a tiny bit of this on top to amp it up, it’s a pretty combination that works! It’s still unavoidably pearly-looking (nearly frosty), but not to the level of being unflattering.
Mood Exposure (blush) – This is a permanent blush that I never owned. I always wondered if I’d be able to pull it off if I bought one that contained enough of the plummy vein coloring. I’ve learned that at the best of times it shows on my cheeks as a subtle nude color, but doesn’t always resemble a blush. Sometimes too much of the sheen shows on my cheeks and then it looks like a face powder instead of blush. However, adding a little of Ethereal Flush on top is a gorgeous combination. So, I’m actually happy to have this one as a mixer blush! Mystic Flush from the Snake palette is quite vibrant, so having this to mix with that one as well is quite nice. This isn’t a color I’d have ever bought on its own or as a single (assuming I couldn’t use it), but having it come with this palette turned into a happy and useful surprise.
Iridescent Rose (strobe blush) – This is blush first appeared in last year’s Tiger palette. I still have it in my collection, so this is the true repeat for me to have in my Leopard/Owl palette. It’s still a nice blush topper that I prefer over the other deep strobe highlighter/blush powders Hourglass has released in Tiger and Snake, but I don’t want to keep both. So, it’s very likely I will end up selling it in a custom depotted palette at some point this year. I don’t think I ever reviewed the Sculpture Edit Quad, but that one contains Mood Flush which I might replace it with instead.
Ethereal Flush (blush) – This blush is perfect to wear on its own. It reminds me of Coral Flush from the Universe Unlocked palette, but even more flattering on my skin tone. It’s also the only new product within the Leopard palette. Granted, “new” is relative considering it’s yet another pink toned blush, even though Hourglass describes it as a “soft peach.” It’s not hugely different from the others they’ve released.
Lustrous Bronze Light (bronzer) – This bronzer was released in last year’s Elephant palette. I can use it as a low-shine highlighter. The tone would have made a good finishing powder for me if it didn’t have the occasional visible shimmer particle and if the sheen was weaker. I’m fine with using it as a very subtle highlighter though.
So even though Snake and my custom version of Tiger are better suited for me, I’m really happy to have Leopard/Owl to compliment those. And sure enough, by the time I started working on this post weeks ago until the time I’ve decided to publish this, I ended up removing Iridescent Rose and replacing it with Mood Flush. Mood Flush is basically a deeper version of Mood Exposure and I love the subtle color on my cheeks, but I never thought to reach for that one because it was in a quad with 3 nearly unusable products. Now that I’ve put it in the Owl palette, I think I’ll get a lot more use out of it finally. And, now that my duplicate blush is in that Sculpture Quad instead, I may eventually sell it.
As you can see, Mood Flush got a bit banged up in the process. The Sculpture Quad being a plastic component and with stronger glue made it tricky to depot without melting it too badly. I could have depotted the blush perfectly if I increased the heat and didn’t care about trying to salvage the packaging. What I love about the current Hourglass tin components is that depotting the powders is so much easier without ruining the packaging (not even the sticker on the bottom) or the product itself.
Brushes, makeup that was returned, products decluttered or given away, and a MAC highlighter are not pictured.
Welcome back to this series! I reviewed everything in separate posts from last year’s August purchases, so it made sense to skip that. As I began to work on September’s I realized I reviewed most things as well, except the unreviewed items were tied to pending posts I was currently working on. Since I at least purchased additional shades I knew I could show here, I decided to proceed with showing the September items, in addition to October’s!
Benefit Cosmetics Wanderful World Blush in Starlaa (and later PomPom and Shellie) – This specific shade was delayed for four months after the release of all of Benefit’s other blushes. However, I waited until I got my hands on it to do my brand blush review, which can be found HERE. In addition to those four (five technically if you count Terra Spark) from last year, this year I purchased PomPom and Shellie out of curiosity as to how light I could go with the blush colors. Well, I learned that Shellie is my limit. That one doesn’t work, but Pom Pom is nice and subtle.
Another photo of Shellie
I like applying Starlaa and then adding PomPom to the apples of my cheeks. As a solo color, Terra is still my favorite of them all, but I continue to be pleased with this line and overall collection of blushes.
Guerlain Quad -I reviewed this along with many other luxury palettes HERE. Since that review, I’ve used it occasionally, but not enough to justify purchasing any additional ones. Honestly, I would still consider it at a reduced price if every shade in that compact was perfect for me. Chances of that happening are low. I thought for sure I would buy the upcoming Holiday quad, but that one doesn’t contain the baked shades, so I’m skipping it.
Artist Couture Love Sprung 3 and Quickie Palette – I reviewed both of these HERE. The Quickie palette has only been used once or twice since reviewing it. On the other hand, the Love Sprung 3 palette was such a good match for me that I finally had the nerve to declutter Love Sprung 2. The pink/purple blush is pretty, but I never reached for it. The highlighter in version 3 is better for my skin tone than version 2, and the deep peach blush in Love Sprung 2 is basically duped in 3. This shade was also similar to CoverFX Warm Honey, but slightly deeper and shows up on me better, so I was able to let the CoverFX go too considering it’s so old in my collection now.
Clionadh Haul – Stained Glass Shade Expansion (Queen’s Banquet, Quest, Oriel, Reign, Auric) and the previously released single shadow (Chalice) can be found shown HERE. However, I’m still planning to make several more Clionadh posts surrounding the expansion, doing additional comparisons, and showing the shades in full eye looks. It’s just such a daunting task!
Beautylish Haul – Wayne Goss The Radiance Boosting Face Palette (Deep Copper) + Brush 13 Bundle. I actually decluttered this because it got strange bumps on it after only two uses, which I’ve seen happen to other products after at least a year of use, so never this quickly. Beautylish handled it well when I emailed and said they think it’s due to oils on the skin effecting the surface of the powder? But they refunded me. The review for Brush 13 is coming in Fude 6.
CDJapan Haul – Koyudo BP019 Blush Brush (supposed to be outlet but not listed that way), [Outlet] Koyudo Powder Brush Black Handle, [Outlet] Koyudo Blush Brush Black Flat Handle, and MS-4 Mai Sakura Eyeshadow Brush. These brushes are also coming to Fude 6 and 7.
Ulta 21 Days of Beauty Haul – Benefit Cosmetics Precisely, My Brow Pencil Waterproof Eyebrow Definer in Shade 5, NARS Afterglow Lip Balms in Laguna and Torrid, Estee Lauder Futurist Hydra Rescue Moisturizing Foundation SPF 45 in 5W2, Too Faced Hangover Pillow Balm Ultra-Hydrating Lip Treatment in Watermelon and Mango (way more added in 2o23), and the Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil Priming Facial Elixir.
The Benefit brow product is a repurchase that I’ve discussed in various reviews, but isn’t exciting enough to showcase. The Estee Lauder foundation is in a new shade, but the formula has been reviewed HERE.
The Thorn oil was in a skincare post HERE. As for the lip products, those are tied to pending upcoming lip product posts. However, since I’m unsure which of these will come first, I’ll go ahead and review them here, along with the additional lip products I bought the following month as well: Too Faced Pillow Balm Pop Rich & Creamy Mini Lip Trio, Nars Afterglow Lip Shine Gloss in Deep Realm, and Nars Satin Lip Pencil in Rikugien.
The first thing I notice when putting on the Too Faced Hangover Pillow Balm is that it gives a minty-cool sensation on the lips. This contains menthol, so I’m not sure if it was added solely for cooling effect or if the brand wanted plumping action from it as well. What Too Faced touts as the lip plumping ingredient is sodium hyaluronate. Despite having more than one ingredient of this type, I don’t see any difference in the size of my lips beyond the trick of the eye that glossy products can provide. I bought the two full size lippies without even knowing they were supposed to do anything beyond conditioning the lips, so I’m fine with that. The only issue is that ingredients like menthol, cinnamon, and capsaicin irritate the skin, which can aggravate my lip issues. As far as I can tell, menthol and the flavoring and coloring agents are the only ones I spotted from the list that can dry out my lips. These are counterbalanced by the other ingredients in here that my lips love such as petrolatum and shea butter. Sunflower seed oil is another one, but instead Too Faced put “Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake” which is apparently, “residue from the expression of oil,” so I’m not sure how that stacks up to the oil. Mineral oil also tends to be great, but the brand uses hydrogenated polyisobutene, a synthetic mineral oil alternative instead, which can be effective for me if paired with the right other ingredients. This also contains mango seed oil, which is a slightly above average lip conditioner for me too. What this boils down to is the fact that I love the feeling of this product on my lips. It feels moisturizing, and though my lips don’t change in size, I can see where the lines of my lips get plumped up and smoothed out from the added hydration. A protective barrier is formed on the surface to lock that hydration in place and keep it there longer, but that means having to deal with everything sticking to my lips. Too thick of an application can also lead to the dreaded “white ring” around the mouth. Also, this isn’t the kind of lip product I can ignore when eating because of its thick texture, so I purposely try to wipe it off and then reapply once I’ve finished the meal.
Regarding the colors, Watermelon gives me the tiniest pink tinge to my lips, but it’s not my favorite tone. I don’t see any shimmer in Watermelon, but Mango has micro gold shimmer. Mango and Cocoa Kiss are way too light and give a unflattering milky look to my lips, so I definitely don’t wear them in public and mostly just enjoy them for their scents. Watermelon smells like a delicious Watermelon Jolly Rancher candy, whereas Mango smells so faintly that I’m not sure I would have been able to figure it out based on the smell alone. It’s vaguely fruity with a tinge of mango. Cocoa Kiss does smell like slightly artificial hot chocolate. I still enjoy that smell though.
Vanilla Kiss looks beautiful for those who don’t mind obviously shimmery lips. It doesn’t smell like vanilla to me, just a slight sugary scent. Strawberry Kiss, which smells like strawberry bubble-gum or those old school strawberry candies in the strawberry print wrapper, is the most opaque and deepest color of the ones I own. I forgot that the milky aspect of the other shades, and only being able to wear it privately or as an overnight treatment, is why I stopped using them for quite a while. However, now that I remember how good they are, I will want to continue using them. The brand released a new mini trio for the holidays this year and I suspect that even though I don’t need it, I will be unable to resist if it goes on sale. There’s a holiday wine shade that looks like a gorgeous version of Strawberry Kiss without the shimmer.
*BONUS PHOTOS: I ended up getting a discount and buying this year’s Too Faced Warm & Spicy: Pillow Balm Lip Balm Trio Set. I plan to gift the original one away, but I have swatches of the other two.
Holiday Wine smells like a cherry and strawberry forward sangria and Spiced Cider does have that spiced cinnamon scent! Also, even though Spiced Cider looks like a different color in the tube, on the lips and in swatches it looks no different than Vanilla, which is to say that it just looks like a beautiful shimmery colorless gloss.
With the Nars Afterglow Lip Balms, they feel nice and moisturizing on the lips, but I don’t get as much hydration from them as some of my other top favorite lip products. There are emollient ingredients in there, but not the ones that my lips in particular benefit from the most. They’re just okay, like hydrogenated polyisobutene and squalane, which aren’t enough to counter the effects of the dryness I get from the coloring agents. So, I wear these balms for the subtle tinge of color to my lips that’s pretty and flattering colors for me, at least in these two shades. They feel comfortable to wear, but by the end of the day with reapplications, I know my lips will somehow end up slightly dryer than at the start. So, these aren’t something I use daily. I might use them for a few days back to back, but then I’ll have to switch to a truly nourishing lip product instead.
The lip gloss is pretty, but the color doesn’t show as well on me. I chose this shade because it looked like a wearable warm color, but mostly because it was in the clearance section on the Nars website. It’s a bit funny to me that the lip gloss contains more of the ingredients my lips like. It has the hydrogenated polyisobutene, but also shea butter replaces the squalane, and sunflower seed oil is present, though nearly at the bottom of the list. As a thick glossy product, it seals in the moisture better than the balms, but the end result in terms of moisture is the same. When the layer wears down, my lips look drier than when I first put it on. As a gloss though, without any additional expectations for it, it looks nice.
The Satin Lip pencil was reviewed in this declutter post HERE, and in that post I voiced my concern over my favorite shade being different and it appearing to be discontinued. However, I was surprised to see it eventually return to the website last year (still in the last chance section). I bought it and was happy that it was the same original formula I fell for the first time. Regarding it being discontinued or not, all I can say is that another year later, it’s still in the last chance section! Nars recently launched the Powermatte High-Intensity Lip Pencil, so I wonder if they finally will let the Satin Lip Pencils go or if they plan to reformulate and/or redesign the line.
Luxury/High-End Purchases from October ’22: Bobbi Brown Luxe Eye & Face Palette in Copper Glow and Bobbi Brown Jadestone Palette, Dior Backstage Khaki Neutrals and Dior Écrin Couture Iconic Eye Makeup Palette, as well as the Pat Mcgrath Labs Celestial Nirvana Eye Shadow Palette in Bronze Bliss
I reviewed all five of those HERE. The only one I regret buying is the Bobbi Brown Face Palette just because I bought a face trio earlier this year (not to be confused with the new holiday trio that contains 2 of the 3 same shades) that I get more use out of, plus it contains the same highlighter that is in that palette. As for the others, I am still always testing new eyeshadows, so I don’t have the time to use them as much as I want.
Pat Mcgrath Spur of the Moment Purchases: Skin Fetish: Divine Glow Highlighter in Venus Nectar, Pat Mcgrath Labs X Bridgerton Skin Fetish Sublime Highlighter in Incandescent Gold, and Pat Mcgrath Labs Skin Fetish Sublime Perfection Concealer in Shade MD23.
I showcased both highlighters HERE, though I didn’t show Venus Nectar on my face, so I’m including that at least in this post. As for the concealer, I reviewed the formula of shades MD22 and MD24 HERE, but I don’t think I updated with a swatch of MD23 once I got it. Essentially, I finally got my hands on that sold out shade and it was the perfect depth level, but the tone was still too olive and looked strange compared to the tone of my foundations, so I essentially gave up on using the PML concealers anymore. I don’t have MD22 or MD24 to compare next to it anymore, but I have a photo of MD23 compared to other concealers when I had intended (but changed my mind) to do an Ami Cole concealer post.
Fenty Beauty Double Cheek’d Up: Freestyle Cream Blush Duo – I reviewed it HERE and honestly haven’t picked it up a single time since reviewing. When the cream blush line was expanded this year, I picked up two new shades, but realized that even though I enjoy them for their colors, I prefer a product that sets to a fully dry touch. So, I don’t plan on reviewing anymore blushes from Fenty in the future, unless they release powder versions.
LYS Beauty Higher Standard 3-Piece Cream Blush Set – I reviewed it HERE and have only used it a few times after the review. It isn’t a matter of me losing interest. It’s still in my top 2 among traditional cream formulas. I’m just preferring to use powder blushes a lot more these days. I still very much recommend LYS blushes.
Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation in 13.5 and 14
I was initially saving this review for a foundation ranking/declutter post I started working on at the beginning of the year, but never finished. I purchased Shade 13.5 which was slightly too light, but I could pull it off as long as I used bronzer with it. I bought Shade 14 at the end of November, and that was closer to my skintone, but slightly too dark. I can get a good match by mixing the two, but I have to be careful because the color darkens once it’s dry. So, I can’t just mix to my correct shade while wet. I have to mix to get my correct dry-down color.
This foundation is thick, though not heavy. It doesn’t drip at all when squirted out of the pump. I get high-medium coverage from the foundation. When they say “soft glow” they really do mean that the glow level is low. It’s a natural finish foundation, but on my dry skin, it looks horrible for most of the day unless I either prep my skin well (with at least facial oil) or wait until my natural oils come through, which doesn’t end up happening until the late afternoon, if at all. Even when I use Rituel de Fille Thorn Oil, I don’t like how my skin looks until an hour or so later. Then, I find the finish to be quite beautiful. I like this foundation enough that I’ve been keeping it in rotation since buying it, but not quite enough that I’d repurchase it once I use it up, even if Hourglass was to make shade 13.75 or something. I have foundations I like equally (albeit a different finish) that are still expensive, but a better deal.
It sets completely and doesn’t transfer, so I don’t set it with setting powder or spray. I still use a finishing powder with it at times and in specific areas.
Hourglass Foundation Shade 13.5 with Gucci Bronzer Shade 5 (Taken with Camera)
Hourglass Foundation Shades 13.5 and 14 mixed (Taken with Cell Phone)
I posted on the home page that, unfortunately, my main camera broke and I had to switch to using my cell phone for blog photos. That has come with its own benefits and challenges. My main camera had higher megapixels, but I’ve been using additional light sources and trying to improve my light quality to compensate for my cell phone, so it’s debatable which one is better when I had different struggles with both. Anyway, I just wanted to explain why the two look so different, besides the foundation color. I still have a ton of photos taken with my former main camera, but not enough to complete the posts without needing to add additional pictures with my cell phone.
Oden’s Eye Merry Christmas and Christmas Eve Holiday Palettes – I reviewed these HERE but did not include any solo eye looks. I figured today would be a good time to share some. As I mentioned in my post, I always reach for these as companion palettes. Out of the eleven Oden’s Eye palettes I own, I would say the Merry Christmas one is my 2nd favorite. The Christmas Eve palette would be 4th place. I hope the brand decides to re-release them for those who missed out.
Smashbox Cali Contour Palette in Medium/Dark
It took the full year for me to make up my mind about this palette because there was always something I didn’t like about it when I tried to use more than one product at a time. Then it would take me a few weeks to a few months to want to try it again.
It’s very easy to overdo it with the contour (as seen below) and because it’s so pigmented, I can make it look blended, but it doesn’t sheer out enough. So, it’s best to start slowly and try and build up the color that way. Cinnamon Matte isn’t dark enough to bronze me (though I’m still not sure what purpose it’s actually supposed to serve), but I use it to tone down Warm Contour within reason.
Cocoa Rojo is a beautiful color, but for some reason I don’t like the finish of it on my skin. There’s subtle shimmer in this and I’m in my glowy cheek era, so I should like this. I’m just not sure it’s this type of shimmer that I like in a cheek product where it shows particles and the glow doesn’t come from a sheen.
These highlighters are subtle, which is also right up my alley. However, the shimmer isn’t as refined as I like. For some reason they just don’t excite me.
On paper, I should love this face palette, but I don’t. I like it enough to want to keep it, but I know I’m not going to reach for it when there are so many blushes, bronzers, and highlighters I use that actually cause an excited flutter within me when I put them on. Since I don’t have a ton of contour products, that’s the one thing from here that still has some appeal and I’m considering depotting it from the palette. However, I do have contour products that are working just fine for me, so I might not bother.
Revolution Shrek Gingy Highlighter and GOT Iron Throne Sponge Set
I bought the highlighter purely for nostalgia. I love Gingy! The Shrek series (really just 1 and 2) was my favorite series after the Mummy Series (again 1 and 2) for a very long time! I think Rush Hour 1 and 2 (okay apparently I only like the first two of trilogies) surpassed the Shrek series by now, but I still love those movies and Gingy is still my favorite. However, for review purposes I have worn it a handful of times. When I’m using my winter foundations, the highlighter is too deep of a bronze for me. In the photo above where I’m not quite at my typical summer shade but a little darker than I have been in a while, it seems to work well enough when used sparingly. In complete direct light, my camera can pick up the texture to the shimmer particles, but looks smoother at most other angles in the light. In fact, it’s smoother than I expected from a Revolution Beauty product. I’m a bit impressed! I don’t intend to use it anymore though since I want to keep it for nostalgia purposes, but it’s good enough that I could. Also, this used to have a strong gingerbread scent, but that faded in the year that I’ve had this.
How cool is this sponge and holder set! Plus, it was so inexpensive at $6 considering Beautyblender’s sponge stands/holders/cases are in the $10 range not including the sponge. The brand had a sale and I ended up buying another set to give to my friend at the even lower price of $4! As a Game of Thrones mega fan, I had to have this for the stand alone. It’s not only a functional holder, but also a nice spot to set the sponge to air dry after being cleaned. The sponge was just like any other inexpensive sponge I’ve tried. It blended my foundation in just as well while feeling a little firmer than the original Beautyblender, but not as firm as the Rephr sponge or Danessa Myricks ones. The Revolution Beauty sponge was also firmer than the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge. It would be nice if it was a little softer when wet, but it still works great, especially for the cost. There are two big drawbacks for me, which is that if the sponge sits out for even as little as a few hours, I can’t wash it fully clean with any of my soaps. There will still be foundation stains after multiple re-washings. The other downside is that for whatever reason this sponge takes exceptionally long to dry. It had me concerned about the increased risk of something growing inside considering how long it stays wet for. So, after a few uses I decided not to bother with it. I’m happy enough with the stand. I know there have been quite the issues financially with this brand and their sub-brands and co-brands, but I hope they’re able to continue making gems. I haven’t had the best luck with everything of theirs I’ve tried, but they’ve got their occasional hits.
CDJapan Chikuhodo ZE-3 Blush Brush – This review is coming to Fude 6.
Sonia G Smooth Buffer Brush – This review is coming to Fude 7.
Viseart Petit Pro Palette London Étoile – I reviewed this HERE along with several other Viseart palettes. I created some pretty looks with it, but once the “new” feeling wore off, I didn’t use it again. I love olive shadows, but I have so many other olives that have more sparkle and wow-factor to them, which is why I always remembered to use those and forgot about the one from this palette.
Lunar Beauty 2022 Advent Calendar, Love Me Strawberry Lip Oil, and Dreamy Lip Gloss – I’m going to come right out and say I’ve chosen to not review these products at this time. I have always felt conflicted about whether to review Lunar Beauty or not because I’m always going back and forth about how I feel about the brand’s owner Manny Gutierrez (Manny MUA). The personality he portrays in his videos isn’t the style I enjoy watching in reviews, but it’s his past constant involvement in drama with other problematic influencers that bothered me. I do own the first Moonspell palette (purchased discounted from a third party and never used as it’s just for packaging), a Moon Prism highlighter I bought purely for packaging (also purchased from a third party and never used) and originally planned to compare it to the controversial dupe highlighter from Makeup Revolution, the first Moon Prism blush palette that I purchased when Lunar Beauty products were sold at Sephora, and the Large Powder Brush from his website (even gifted two of them). Manny had stayed away from the drama for a few years and his Fool Coverage podcast with Laura Lee started to change my opinion of him. That’s why I purchased the Advent Calendar and lip products last year and decided that I felt comfortable enough to finally put full energy into the Lunar Beauty post I’d been working on here and there for literally years. Then, as I started with the product photos and testing in 2023, I kept hearing about more and more problematic influencers that he was starting to show his public support for again and that bad taste in my mouth returned. Unlike certain people whose products I refuse to buy or speak about on my blog any longer (JS, JC, JH, etc.), I don’t know if I’m going to give a hard ban to Lunar Beauty products in terms of never speaking about them again. I at least finished reviewing the last Jaclyn Cosmetics products I owned before stating I was done with the brand. With Lunar Beauty, if I’m wearing those products in a post, I might mention it’s what I’m using, but I don’t see myself ever working on that brand review post again, and I personally will no longer purchase anymore products from them. The last thing I bought was a year ago anyway.
Beauty Bay Dark Fantasy Palette
I showcased this in a Swatchfest post, but hadn’t actually reviewed it at the time. These colors are stunning and right up my alley. I have loved the looks I’ve created with it. Regarding the quality, this doesn’t give me that many issues when I’m using a primer. Eye primers are a staple product for most beauty lovers, but I do personally know people in my life who are makeup dabblers and don’t always use primer. So, it’s for their sake that I feel the need to express that I had such a hard time using this palette without a primer. The lighter mattes are fine, but the darker ones are so pigmented with good adherence that they just don’t want to budge unless there’s a primer underneath. I can’t stress enough that primer is important! Also, I highly recommend working from lightest to darkest when building up layers.
With primer, these mattes still weren’t as easy to blend as the majority of the eyeshadow palettes I use (also at double the cost or more), but with the staple Japanese eyeshadow brushes I’ve used hundreds of times, it was still better than I expected. It’s nice to see Beauty Bay eyeshadow quality has a positive reputation for a reason. Not necessarily as being the greatest on the market, but certainly great for the price (along the lines of BH Cosmetics, Colourpop, and ELF). It didn’t take that much longer blending as to prevent me from wanting to use this palette again. The first time was rough, but every time after was easy enough. I like how much color payoff I get from those mattes. For instance, shades like Plasma are usually treated like a pastel shade and are too thin or too white based and don’t look that great on my eyes, but this one was great! Hoax is a color that really doesn’t show on my eyes due to my skin tone and Algorithm is a slightly more golden tone version of my skin so it barely shows either, but I still like to use it as a starting shade in the crease. Atmosphere is the one that’s too thin and doesn’t show well enough on me and the other shades are too strong in pigment and overpowers it when I try to use it to blend the edges of the shadows, but it still semi works for that purpose. I just have to spend a little extra time on it. Beauty ends up looking way more purple on my eyes instead of burgundy or maroon, but it’s at least still a pretty color.
I have zero issues with the shimmers. I sometimes get a little fallout, but dampening the brush helps. The shimmers aren’t as refined as some of my more expensive eyeshadows either, but I like their sparkle level and they look pretty regardless. I want intensity and opacity from my shimmers, and that’s what these give me. I didn’t have any patchy or creasing issues either, so overall I do like this palette! I’m glad I was able to give the Beauty Bay eyeshadows a try. Because it’s not the easiest to get my hands on, I don’t know how many more I’ll get in the future. Plus, I’m usually not drawn to their color stories. However, if another one attracts my attention, I might get it.
MAC Indulgent Glow Rosé Limited-Edition face kit in Sparkling Wine – I reviewed this HERE and in comparison to other MAC highlighters I got around the same time. It’s super pretty, but I ran into that issue where I am so reluctant to actually use my makeup with cute embossing on it. I have no regrets buying it though.
Charlotte Tilbury Hypnotising Pop Shot eyeshadow in Cosmic Rocks – I reviewed it HERE along with the shade Sunlit Diamond that they sent me on accident with a different order. Just as I expected, these have become cute decor. I haven’t reached for them more than once or twice after completing the review. I just don’t use single eyeshadows if they’re in individual compacts. I only reach for the ones in my larger custom magnetic palettes.
Hourglass Unlocked Butterfly Palette – I got this from FeelUnique/Sephora UK for $46 purely to get the two blushes in that palette. I depotted two shades from my other Hourglass palettes that were unusable on my skintone, adhered them to the Butterfly palette’s now missing blush spots, and sold it as a custom palette on Mercari. Minus the fees, I made $32 back, so this was probably the best deal I got that year. I did not get so lucky on the deals this year, but that’s a story for another time. I talked about the process of depotting and showed the photos of the palette HERE.
Bioderma Sensibio H2O – This was just a repurchase. I decided to look through my purchase history and essentially since November 2015 I’ve bought 8 of the 500ml bottles, 2 of the 250ml bottles, and 2 travel size 100ml bottles. In the beginning, I was able to get heavy discounts on multi-packs, but the prices have jumped up quite a lot. So, I try to get them individually whenever I see them on sale, even if I need to accumulate backups since they will always be used up. In fact, I’m halfway through my last bottle and will need to find a new place to order it from when I go back to Germany so I won’t need to bring a big bottle over with me. This is one of those products that as long as they keep making it and don’t change the formula, I’ll be buying it for life.
Fenty Beauty Sun Stalk’R Face + Eye Bronzer & Highlighter Palette – I reviewed this HERE and though it’s still in my collection, I am considering decluttering it. I just have a ton of bronzers by now that I prefer and don’t need to resort to mixing to get the tones I like.
One/size Cheek Clapper in Phat @$$ – I reviewed it HERE. As it often happens, because my blush collection is so large, I don’t have the chance to use this as often as I would like to. It’s still one of my favorites, along with the other shade from the line called Freaky Peach. I still easily recommend this trio, even at full price.
Sephora Collection VIB Sale Items: Soft Matte Perfection Blush Duo in 01 Sweet Pea, Best Skin Ever Liquid Foundation in 44 Y, Best Skin Ever Full Coverage Multi-Use Concealer in 35N and 44Y
The blush duo in three shades (two additional I bought later on) are reviewed HERE. As for the foundation and concealers, the shade matches are why I decided not to review them. I wasn’t blown away by the finishes and just didn’t feel inspired to keep using any of them.
Sephora’s Best Skin Ever line was really hyped up, but it was just fine. I didn’t like how the concealers wore throughout the day. The finish of the foundation was fine and the color match wasn’t too terribly dark if used lightly, but all of these smelled so heavily of chemicals after owning them for a year. For the record though, I didn’t open the concealers until around three months prior to posting this and they smelled just as bad as the foundation, like spray paint or nail polish. So, even without air exposure, the shelf life isn’t great on these. I threw them out before I could take a picture including them in the big October month photo.
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer Highlight in Flaunt – I reviewed this already as a sample HERE, but I bought the full size a year ago during the VIB sale. I also have swatches and comparisons to the powder version of this shade HERE.
Kayali Eden Juicy Apple – I don’t normally review my perfume purchases, but I did so in a big Kayali post HERE. I have admittedly barely used this perfume because I’m always using Yum Pistachio or Lovefest instead, but at least I just got this in a small size so it’s not quite as wasteful. Plus, I got it on sale. As nice as it is, I decided to give it to my sister because of how deep my obsession for the other scents run. This was my first Kayali purchase, but since it’s only a year old, I haven’t attached any sentimental value to it.
HUDA BEAUTY GloWish Cheeky Vegan Soft Glow Powder Blush in Sassy Saffron – I showed swatches of it HERE in comparison to the previous shades I bought. However, I don’t have any face pictures with it on because it just doesn’t show up on my cheeks. For that reason, I haven’t used this particular shade. The formula and finish wasn’t special enough either for me to prioritize it. I still like how Berry Juicy looks, and I wore it perhaps two more times in the past year.
Tom Ford Highlighter Duo in Tanlight – I reviewed it HERE. I still use it quite often and it’s one of my favorite highlighters in my collection. In fact, it’s such a great shade match for me that I don’t feel the necessity to purchase anymore highlighters from the brand unless they have another shade that’s similar to the mixture of the two colors in some form of special packaging. While I still have mixed feelings about the price and I’m not sure if I would universally recommend it to everyone, it was worth it personally to me.
Oh dear Lord, we’ve finally reached the end!
This was a monster of a post, even though so many of the products had already been reviewed elsewhere! We’re so close to completing the series but November and December 2022 had even more purchases than October! And considering what I know is coming for the rest of this year in my personal life, I think we’ll have to complete this series sometime next year!
I’m getting into a really exciting chapter of my personal life, which I will be sharing with everyone in December or January. Thank you to those who are choosing to be along for the ride!
My palette from Hourglass has the Leopard design on the cover, but I chose the powders inside that were assigned by default to the Snake palette. It’s called “Color Palette 3” on the official website. Even though the chances were high that I could have gotten a better deal than 10% off if I purchased the palette elsewhere, I desperately wanted the Leopard packaging and could only get this customized version if I bought it directly from the brand. It was certainly a tough call between the Leopard or the website exclusive Owl packaging!
I’ve been reviewing these holiday palettes from Hourglass for a while now. My review of last year’s palette can be found HERE and the year prior to that can be found HERE.
I also have the two blushes from last year’s Butterfly palette that are currently in my Tiger palette. I did quite the makeup transplanting project, as detailed HERE.
Radiant Light (finishing powder) – This is a permanent shade of powder from the brand, and I have it several times over in my collection. To summarize, it’s a light golden-beige that doesn’t lighten my foundation, but I also don’t notice any difference at all when I wear this besides mattifying the skin and depositing the occasional visible shimmer particles. I prefer to use other finishing powders that accomplish something I need like blurring, smoothing, or adding a healthy glow. This option could have been worse. They could have chosen some of their much lighter finishing powders instead. At the same time, it could also have been better. One of my usual criticisms of Hourglass is their inability to commit to creating a face palette fully geared towards deep skin tones. Last year’s Elephant palette was clearly intended for those medium to tan, yet they still made Tiger spread a wider range of medium, tan, and dark at the expense of some of those shades not showing up on someone that much darker than me. Eternal Light is a darker option that has yet to be released in a travel size or edit palette form. However, since Radiant Light is technically the only repromoted shade in the Snake palette and I own both of the brand’s darker finishing powders in the Volume III trio form, I’m not going to hold it against them. They love their repeats and we’ve come to expect it. In addition, I think this palette is intended for tan to medium-deep complexions. From that perspective, having Radiant Light instead of Eternal Light makes more sense. I’ll elaborate more in the section with my final thoughts.
Solar Bronze (bronzer) – Even though I can use Transcendent Light as a bronzer, I have been long awaiting Hourglass making a true bronzer that will work for those with dark skin. I somewhat got my wish, but there isn’t much of a depth difference between that finishing powder and this bronzer. The main difference is the tone. Solar Bronze looks cool-toned in the palette next to such warm shades, but it’s definitely warmer in swatches and on my face. It’s subtle on my skin tone, but it can be built up a little. I am honestly thrilled with this shade. It’s such a good balance of being warm, without leaning too orange or red. As much as I love it, I know there are others darker than me who are disappointed that Transcendent Light wasn’t deep enough for them last year and this year’s bronzer option won’t work either. Although Hourglass dropped the ball in that regard, I have to acknowledge that they made three new bronzer shades this year with one in each palette. Their bronzers tend to be very warm, so I’ve heard some people are pleased that the bronzer in the Jellyfish palette is closer to neutral for those with light skin tones. That’s something that has been missing from the brand, so they focused on filling a void, but on the different end of the spectrum. And considering they didn’t put a bronzer in Butterfly last year, I give them credit for improving on that front.
Coral Haze (blush) – This blush is less pigmented than Mystic Flush, but I’m not sure if that just happens to be because my blush tile has barely any of the darker swirl of color in it. Since it’s buildable, I can still get visible color on my cheeks (though it doesn’t show as well in my photo as it does in person). It’s cool toned, so it’s not my favorite kind of blush color, however, I do like it more than I expected. Whenever I start off with this color, I end up just throwing Mystic Flush and even sometimes Sun Beam on top. I like the combination of the blushes together on my cheeks.
It’s similar to Soft Flush from the Butterfly palette, but slightly lighter and cooler. However, on my cheeks, it would be hard to spot the difference.
Sun Beam (blush) – In my review last year I wrote, “How fun would it be if Hourglass used their miscelare technique to mix two medium or darker colorful shades in a series of blushes instead of pale beige bases with a single color?” Looks like I got my wish again! Coral Haze is technically an example of that, along with Sun Beam no matter how close the swirled colors are in depth and tone. I love this color a lot more than Burnished Glow, which was too orange for my style to use alone. The texture of Sun Beam reminds me of the Copper Flash Strobe highlighter, even though this one is supposed to be a blush. It’s less reflective and more to my liking than Copper Flash Strobe, but it looks super metallic in my photos. I struggled to capture a photo that was bright enough to show the blush tone of Sun Beam and was unable to avoid the light directed at the cheeks from looking as reflective as a highlighter. This blush looks so much tamer and softer when I apply it to my bare skin, but for some reason, on my face with foundation, it looks more textured than usual. This happened on top of the Hourglass Ambient Glow Foundation (I’m wearing in today’s photos) and the Rose Inc Luminous Serum Foundation. Neither of these foundations are wet to the touch, and powdering doesn’t change things anyway. Based on the names, one could suspect the luminous foundations could be impacting the look of Sun Beam, but the foundations are more of a natural finish rather than glowy or dewy. With Sun Beam being closer to the strobe formula rather than the shimmer formula, I think it’s just a matter of it not being as flattering on texture and it looks better when used sparingly.
One more thing of note is that Hourglass lists Sun Beam and Coral Haze as normal Ambient Lighting Blushes, but for some reason Mystic Flush is listed as an Ambient Strobe Lighting Blush on their website. I’m guessing this was listed incorrectly and that Sun Beam is the actual strobe blush.
Mystic Flush (blush) – I love this color! It’s a warm pink, though not as warm as Sunset Glow from the Butterfly palette, and slightly more vibrant. It gives the exact type of pop I like from a blush, without being too loud of a color. I certainly can’t tell Sunset Glow apart from Mystic Flush if they’re applied normally on my face, but Mystic Flush is a bit more pigmented while being just as easy to blend. These two Snake blushes are so similar to the Butterfly palette blushes that I think it would feel to some people like having repeated shades. Of the four though, this is my favorite by a small margin. From Hourglass as a whole, At Night is my top favorite blush from the brand. There is still currently no mini or edit version of At Night, so I’m a bit surprised they chose to put two similar depth of pink blush shades in one palette instead. However, I will always give credit when the brand attempts to make something new rather than resorting to repeats. Considering I couldn’t decide which of the two Butterfly palette blushes I like more, I can understand others potentially having the same dilemma deciding between the Snake palette blushes regardless of how similar they are.
Infinite Strobe Light (strobe powder) – This is the darkest highlighter we’ve had in an Ambient Edit palette, but not by much. The true difference between them are their tones with Infinite Strobe Light being a golden color, Solar Strobe being yellow-gold, and Divine Strobe being a champagne shade. That makes Infinite Strobe Light the best highlighter color out of the edit palettes for me thus far, so they get some credit for the improvement. I am still waiting for the brand to make my perfect color though. There’s a big jump between Infinite Strobe Light and the deepest option available from the brand’s permanent highlighters, Prismatic Strobe Light. I don’t think it would be unreasonable to ask for a middle ground color, but until that day comes, I’ll be making use of Infinite Strobe Light.
I consider the highlighter to have medium-high impact. It’s not ultra reflective, but I don’t like highlighters to have stronger intensity than this one, so I’m happy with it and I can always tone it down with the right brush and if I apply the strobe powder first before the blush.
Overall Thoughts
The Snake palette is probably as perfect of a single face palette as I will ever get from Hourglass. I got the warm bronzer I wanted, a usable finishing powder, two flattering and visible blushes, a more flattering version for me of last year’s copper blush/highlighter, and a darker highlighter than last year’s. I think they did a fantastic job making this palette suit me. Essentially, the issues I had with the Tiger palette that kept me from being able to actually love that one were addressed and applied to the Snake palette. It’s quite funny that my depotting efforts to improve upon the Tiger palette made it look similar to what Snake has by default.
This year’s palettes are a lot more clearly defined between Jellyfish being best for fair to light-medium skin tones, Leopard being intended for those in the medium range, and Snake being best suited for tan to medium-dark. I applaud this distinction, but that also means those with skin darker than mine have been left out again. They get my praise for finally making a great palette for me, but it shouldn’t stop at just me. Hourglass made the highest amount of new shades this year, but they chose to do it so close to what is already available and not as much effort went into filling the much larger voids in the range. For example, the highlighters and their gigantic jump from Infinite Strobe Light to Prismatic Strobe Light. The difference between Radiant Light finishing powder and Eternal Light is also enormous.
What does the brand focus on instead? Five of the six blushes in my comparison swatches look so similar that suddenly it’s clear why none of the new colors from the past three years have made it into the brand’s permanent collections. They can get away with nearly identical shades in an Ambient Edit palette, but I doubt even the most die-hard Hourglass fans would buy and keep all of those blushes if they were sold individually.
If the brand wants to stick to pink and coral tones (with the occasional orange) because that’s their aesthetic, so be it. If they aren’t set on those, I would love to see some dark brown leaning blushes too. Something along the lines of Chanel’s Brun Roussi Lumiere or MAC’s Coppertone or even Format. A terracotta like MAC’s Burnt Pepper would also be beautiful.
I really think Hourglass did better in a lot of areas, but my advice to the brand is to fill in the huge gaps of what’s missing in the range, not the minuscule gaps. Even if the palette would be too dark for me, I would love to see an Ambient edit palette for actual deep/rich skin tones. Tiger and Snake aren’t dark enough to fit into that category, so it would have to be several shades darker than those.
Of course, finding a way to make the palettes truly customizable to the point of choosing each individual shade would be the ultimate dream, but it will be great if they at least keep the new tradition of being able to select which pre-set colors go into which packaging. My recommendation for Hourglass, if they want me to be forced to get one no matter what, would be to put an adorable panda on next year’s palette. Also, considering the rabbit/bunny is symbolic of the brand, it would make complete sense to have a rabbit cover, like the Riverine rabbit or some other endangered bunny or hare that would tie-in with the brand’s collaboration with the Nonhuman Rights Project.
Anyway, I eagerly await what next year will bring for Hourglass. I’d love to see other beautiful designs beyond the animal theme, but if they make a Panda, I am so done for! They’ll have my money again.
That’s all for today! Thank you for reading!
-Lili ❤
Edit: Currently there’s code UNLOCKEDVIP20 for 20% off the Hourglass website including these palettes. Credit to TheBeautySteal on Instagram.
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