Part of the 2016 Bronze Goddess collection by Estee Lauder, the Summer Glow Illuminator ($32) is a apricot hued shimmer designed to bring a glow wherever you decide to use it. Since I'm a sucker for liquid highlighters, I decided to venture down this lane and give it a shot.
The packaging is a potentially nifty dropper bottle. I say potentially, as I do not find the dropper does a good job of picking up and dispensing the liquid illuminator. I've taken to just smearing the side of the dropper along my hand to pick up the liquid, which is workable but puts me a slightly bad mood because IT'S NOT WORKING LIKE IT'S SUPPOSED TO.
The shimmer particles are very fine and once blended on the skin you get no obvious glitter particles, but rather a subtle glow and brightening of the face. I've been applying it directly under my foundation and if I peer very closely in the mirror I can see a faint shimmer, but nothing really detectable from a normal distance.
What I have noticed is that I like how it wears under makeup, as at the end of the day I think my skin looks brighter and just a little bit better. There isn't a "wow" factor, but there is a bit of je ne sais quoi. Is it $32 worth of je ne sais quoi? I'm not completely convinced it is, but it is pretty and I will use it despite the non-functioning dropper.
So far, I'm kind of 'meh' about the Bronze Goddess items I picked up. One more item to go...
The Japonesque Pixelated Color Kit was a set I bought in order to make Ulta's free shipping limit and because I've got a thing for liquid highlighters. I like mixing them with my foundation to give my skin a bit of glow, so the Radiance Primer and Liquid Light intrigued me. There were no reviews at the time but I decided to take the plunge at their reduced price of $14.
Also included in the kit is a Finishing Powder, although this has enough of a shimmer that I used it more as a highlight. The powder is pressed firmly and does not kick up much dust, but is easy to build up and gives a subtle light gold shimmer finish.
The Radiance Primer is a cool toned pearl shimmer and the Liquid Light in Shade 1 is a coppery shimmer that worked well as a blush for me. I mixed the Radiance Primer with my foundation and applied the Liquid Light with a damp Beauty Blend on my cheeks. The effect is a soft shimmer as opposed to glittery or metallic.
I did not notice the primer extending the wear of my foundation, but on the plus side all of the these played nicely with other products. While I wouldn't say these wowed me, I will use all three going forward.
Le Métier de Beauté's November VIP offering is a liquid luminizer named Gilded and their angled foundation brush. I'm enamoured with both. I've been on a acquiring new brushes kick this month and liquid luminizers continue to be my favorite way to use highlighters, so, win/win :-)
Gilded is a true yellow gold with small flecks of mica that are visible on the skin if you are close enough to say, lick someone. At a socially appropriate distance however you get subtle illumination. The texture of Gilded reminds me of a dry oil in that it applies like a liquid but then dries down (evaporates?) quickly, leaving behind a golden sheen.
Lightly blended
Completely Blended
I like mixing liquid luminizers with my liquid foundation, and the two I've tried it with thus far have worked well. It does not add any weight or oiliness to the foundations or seem to interfere with them at all, which is nice.
The formula is similar to Giorgio Armani's Fluid Sheers in consistency, although Gilded has more visible shimmer flecks than the two I own, Fluid Sheer #2 and #5.
While Gilded is a limited edition item made exclusively for the VIP subscription program (as far as I know), the angled foundation brush ($50) is part of Le Métier de Beauté's regular catalog. I don't have another brush like this one, and the flat synthetic brushes look like they will be useful for initially blending foundation, especially in harder to reach crevices and crannies. I imagine I'll still want to buff my foundation out with something like Tarte's the Buffer foundation brush, but for spreading? This one.
Here is Gilded blended with Becca's Matte Shine-Proof foundation in Sand. I'm getting to where I no longer care for matte foundations (in spite of my oily skin) due to how flat they can look, but that does make them prime candidates for pairing with a liquid luminizer. It still looks flat to me, however.
On my lips I'm wearing Buxom's Bambi (top of picture, doesn't seem to be available in the regular lineup anymore) over LMdB's Nudite lip pencil ($36). I find $36 to be ridiculous for a lip liner, but I do like it. It's not any better than Essence's $1.50 lip liners, IMO though.
Buxom Bambi, Buxom Sashi, LMdB Nudite
Bambi + Nudite
In this one I'm wearing Gilded mixed with BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel in Natural 05. I think my skin looks more alive here, although lighting/time of day does seem to factor in with my photos.
On my lips I'm wearing Nudite again, this time topped with Buxom's sheer shimmer gloss Sasha, which I can't find in the general catalog anymore either. I'd forgotten how much I love Buxom's glosses, but I do.
Sashi + Nudite
Perfume of the Day: Pumpkin I by Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab (full review here), with it's notes of pumpkin cream, cardamon, black tea, allspice, and ginger milk. Because it's that time of the year. I've been using this one in my fragrance burner for all around ambiance.
Song of the Day: Something More Besides You by Cowboy Junkies. I can't seem to get enough of them right now.
Something More Besides You (partial lyrics)
This morning I awoke,
the bed warm where it once was cold
Small blessings laid upon us
Small mysteries slowly unfold
Yet I still wonder is there a point
to what we do?
'Cause I kind of doubt
there there is something more besides you
Too Faced's Born This Way is billed as a medium to full coverage foundation that is virtually undetectable. Considering my main gripe about fuller coverage foundations is that they tend to look unnatural and rather mask like, plus the positive reviews for Born This Way I've read online, I was quite happy to try out a sample.
Light Beige seemed like a good match for me, with its "light/medium with neutral to golden undertones". I'd say it leans more golden than neutral, but it worked.
I applied with my fingers and then used a damp Beauty Blender to blend it out. Coverage was indeed on the medium to full side, although I wouldn't call it undetectable. There were a few areas that were hard to blend out for some reason, and the finish was rather flat, which I associate with a mask like effect.
I used Burberry's Fresh Glow Luminous Fluid Base as a spot highlighter on my inner eyes, cheekbones, nose, and cupid's bow to add glow back. I can't say I really liked it as a spot highlighter, as it seemed to degrade both my eye makeup and foundation after a few hours.
Next, I decided to mix the Burberry Fresh Glow fluid with the Born This Way foundation, hoping it would provide a bit of radiance without causing issues with the foundation. The foundation did seem to blend better but I think the Fresh Glow fluid lessened the wear time, as I could see visible breakup of the foundation after 5-6 hours.
Here is my "going to Target to get my flu shot" look. I think I've only worn makeup a few times in the last two weeks, pretty much what you see on this page. I guess my skin is getting a vacation as well :-)
Overall, neither one of these seem to be for me, although I like the foundation better than the Fresh Glow fluid. That's the beauty of samples though - you get to try before you buy!
Last summer was the time I became enthralled with liquid illuminators and acquired more than a few, include the lovely Clinique Up-lighting Liquid Illuminator (awkward name).
Described as a sheer blushing pink with white shimmer, it can be used to highlight strategic spots or to bring an all over facial glow when mixed with foundation. I love mixing highlighters with foundations, and thought Clinique's version was comparable (perhaps a bit more sparkly) to the Giorgio Armani's Fluid Sheers, or at least the one I've tried (full review here).
Concentrated
Blended/bright sun
When blended with BB/CC creams or liquid foundations, the sparkle is minimal at best. When used on the cheeks or to highlight other areas of the face, you can definitely see glow with a hint of color.
Clinique CC Cream + Up-lighting Illuminator + CoverFX drops
You can definitely see the highlight on my cheeks, and for a touch more color I used Estee Lauder's Pure Color Blush in Pink Kiss on the apples of my cheeks. On my lips I'm wearing one of the lip duos from Le Métier de Beauté's Gemini Kiss lip/cheek kaleidoscope (full review here). I really enjoyed this FOTD, as I wanted something polished but light for an all day faculty workshop I attended.
For the next look I used two pumps of the Up-lighting Illuminator mixed with Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder foundation in Sand. Again, I think Sand is not quite right the right shade for me, as my neck seems lighter than my face in pictures. You can get an idea of how the illuminator looks on it's own as a blush, however.
Clinique's Up-lighting Liquid Illuminator is available in 3 shades - Natural, Bronze, and Blush - and retails for $26. Very nice.
Now that I've gotten over my fear of using luminizers on my oily skin, I'm starting to appreciate the difference between powder and liquid versions. As an aside and in case you are wondering what constitutes oily skin, here's a reference point:
So, it's nice when a brand like BECCA offers luminizers in both formats. I bought Opal in powder format back in the spring, and have received several samples of the liquid Opal with purchases.
I love mixing a liquid luminizer in my foundation, but have not gotten
adept at using them to highlight smaller areas of my face. The liquid version of Opal is a bit darker in tone and less shimmery than the powder version and I actually prefer the color and finish of it over the Opal powder.
Powders work best for pinpointing areas such as the bridge of my nose or the
top of my cheekbones. However, the powder Opal can veer into metallic territory quite easily, so I have to use a very light touch when applying.
Opal liquid (L), Opal powder (R)
Of course, too much of the liquid mixed with foundation produces more "glow" than I want as well, as I found out the first time I tried it. A bit more dewy than I'm comfortable with, considering my oily skin starts producing it's own glow soon enough. Still, no denying that BECCA's Opal luminizer is quite lovely. A bit pricey at $38 for the powder and $41 for the liquid, but still lovely.
About me: I enjoy reviewing the makeup and beauty products I buy as well as reading reviews from others. Skincare concerns: oily/congested, aging, and sun damage. Fortunately, the semi-tropical climate and humidity of where I live helps me from looking like the crypt keeper, in spite of all those years soaking up the sun :-) So let's talk skincare and makeup and anything else that strikes our fancy.
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