Benefit High Beam and Posie Tint

Months and months ago there were some Benefit Freebies being given away with a magazine. Why has it taken me so long to review them? Honestly it’s because I never use them. I have reviewed their Moon Beam highlighter here http://eyeliningobsessions.blogspot.com/2010/05/benefit-moonbeam.html and I use it frequently but I’m so glad that these are freebies and not products I spent actual money on. Here they are pictured with the full sized Moon Beam.

Now I know that plenty of people swear by these but hear me out. Moon Beam, a liquid highlighter with a warm pink/ gold pearl just works better on my skin tone than High Beam does. High beam applies beautifully, lasts well, can be mixed into foundation for a dewy finish. The end result though is a pale, icy pink highlight that doesn’t quite work for me. I’d still recommend the product, just pick the shade that will work for you.

I’m afraid to say that I do find Poppie Tint to be a total let down for me. It is a lip and cheek stain and the gorgeous bright pink looks fab in the swatch. Sadly I have a hard time getting it to show up on my cheeks (if you layer it too much the edges become really obvious) and it doesn’t show up at all on my lips. Add to that the nasty alcohol type scent and it’s pretty clear that I won’t be getting a lot of use out of this. But then I suppose I’m biased as I’m not a massive fan of stains anyway.

I think I will stick to Moon Beam, thank goodness for freebies! 

Julie Hewett Cosmetics

Nude Noir Lipstick, Pinkie Shimmy, Natural Cheekie, Sophia Lip Lush

Julie Hewett is an acclaimed Hollywood television, film and event makeup artist who decided to create her own eponymous line after formulating a collection of perfect red lipsticks for the movie Pearl Harbor. The line is small and new products are borne out of necessity and collaboration with some of her famous clients. The Mandy palette was created after working with Mandy Moore, for example, and the new Destiny Cheekie was formulated with Miley Cyrus' input. I've acquire a nice little collection of Julie Hewett products over the years and find them to be high quality and sophisticated. The line is available at select boutiques and via juliehewett.net.

Cheeks:
Cheekies are potted cream cheek and lip colors that are available in pots ($24) and now palette ($18) form. The formula is a true dense cream (and not cream to powder) so you are left with a youthful dewiness on your cheeks without grease. Julie sells a Chubby Cheekie Brush ($28) that I often use as an applicator for these, but if I'm in a rush I've found my fingers work just fine.
Clockwise left to right: Peachie, Rosie, Jami and Natural
Peachie (a bright but sheer peachy coral pink) and Rosie (a sheer raspberry pink)
Natural (a warm natural brown pink) and Jami (a cooler, mauvier pink)
Shimmies are iridescent highlighting creams for cheeks and eyes. Like the Cheekies, they come in both pot ($22) and palette ($18) choices. Pinkie, pictured at the top, is a silvery golden pink cream that is dewy but not oily. I tap it lightly in a C shape from my upper cheekbone to temple for a glow. Pixie, below, is new and a soft sheer lilac shimmer. This would be gorgeous tapped on the brow bone or center of the eye lid.

Left to Right:
Pixie Shimmy, Natural Cheekie, Destiny Cheekie, Jami Cheekie

Lipsticks and Glosses:
Julie has several lipstick formulations ($20-$22.50) in her line including the Noir Collection (a series of perfect reds), Bijou Collection (translucent shades scented with orange blossom), Sheer Collection (2 sheer variations on red) and Icon of Beauty Collection (honoring present-day screen sirens). There really is a red for everyone in this line, though I am partial to Nude Noir lipstick (pictured above) which Julie describes as a Nude Red but I call a deep shimmery pink nude that lasts all day and the Bijou Lipstick in Celeste (not pictured) which is a sheer pinky peach.

The line's lip gloss is called a Lip Lush ($20) and is deliciously scented with ginger. It's not at all sweet or cloying but is refreshing and different, almost relaxing. The Lip Lushes are not the least bit sticky and are creamy and soothing. Sophia, pictured above, is a natural deep pink brown with no shimmer. These glosses feature a doe foot applicator.

Eyes:
Julie has a new line of powder shadows ($10+palette) joining her Hue cream shadow/liner colors ($14 pot/$18 palette) and Too Good to be True pencils ($15). The Too Good to be True Pencil in Fig is a deep evergreen that glides on. The application isn't as smooth as say, UD 24/7 eye liners or Laura Mericer Kohls, but the pencil doesn't drag or tug like a lot of pencil liners.

You can also experience Julie Hewett's signature Camellia Balm, choose from a premade palette or create a custom one, find brushes and applicators and other great products on her site.

Recent Rediscoveries

This past spring I purchased the Gilded Garden Mosaic Shimmer Bloc ($38) and Tiger Lily Stickgloss ($20) from Laura Mercier's Gilded Garden Collection. I'm not usually a fancy shimmer powder person but this Shimmer Bloc was so pretty I couldn't leave it there. And a peachy pink Stickgloss? Add in the words "limited edition" and my willpower didn't stand a chance. I bought both, wore them once, spent days gazing adoringly at their beauty and hadn't used them since. Until today. It's a dreary, horribly raining day here in New York City--about as far away from a Gilded Garden as can be--and I thought using something pretty might boost my mood. I used the powder over my blush and Stickgloss by itself, no liner or gloss.

Well wouldn't you know, I can't believe how many compliments I received today! How fresh I looked! How nice! how--dare I say--pretty!! Needless to say, both items will be joining my repertoire of regularly used products. And both are still available on lauramercier.com.

Rituals Sundance Pink Shimmer Compact. A Multi Tasking Marvel!

Living several hundred miles away from the nearest Rituals shop I honestly hadn’t heard of the brand before spotting them in Heathrow duty free. I think I’ve been missing out! Honestly this is my new favourite highlight. Look at the pretty!

Rituals put a lot of stock in the theory that different gemstones can benefit you in different ways. Whether you subscribe to the theory or not the results of their methods are some outstanding cosmetics. This particular item is infused with Amethyst with an aim to leave you not just pretty but relaxed etc...

£22.90 (I paid a little less in the duty free) gets you a heavy duty compact with a good sized mirror containing 5 shimmery shades. Heavily swatched they are useful as eyeshadows individually. And they are very pretty used this way. They are finely milled and easy to work with though you may need to layer to get the desired intensity. My favourite way to use this though is all swirled together as a gorgeous cheek highlight. It leaves such a delicate pale sheen. So much subtler than any MAC MSF with no glitter at all. Just a beautiful cool pink glow. I squealed when I first used it. 

These are sold online in the UK and I believe they have shops in London. I’ve been trying their loose setting powder, review to follow shortly, with great success so I’ve been dropping hints about Christmas left right and centre. Personally I love it! X

*I bought this myself*

ELF Studio Shimmer Palette

Generally I like powder highlighters as they are just so easy to work with. Also they last longer. It’s not like they are just going to dry out like cream highlighters will are they? However the £3.50 price tag (I paid £1.50 in a sale) of this ELF cream offering means I’m not going to shed too many tears if it dries out on me before I finish the product. Plus you get four shades in one compact! 

As will all of the Studio line the packaging is good looking and functional with a mirror and tiny brush included. Now the brush is as much use as a chocolate frying pan (mmm) for highlighting cheeks etc but it’s actually pretty good for inner corners so I have held onto it. You get 5.6g in total and given that a little goes a long way this should last a good long while.

From left to right we have an ivory, a peach with gold pearl, a bronze shade and finally a pink shade. Although it’s nice to be able to match your highlight to whatever you’re wearing that day to be honest there isn’t much of a difference between them once they are fully blended out.

The texture is very strange. They dry down almost immediately so you need to blend frantically before they set. I find fingers work best as brushes just don’t give you the heat you need to get them worked into the skin. No chunky shimmer here though thankfully! Once on they give almost a gloss to the skin rather than shimmer. It’s subtle and natural looking but can be built up if you want to.

Provided you are speedy with your blending I really do like these. They give a totally different finish to anything else that I own and that alone makes them worth the purchase x

*Bought by me*

Lancôme Blush Subtil Highlighter

Ah outlet stores. Why pay £25 for a Lancôme Highlighter when you can pay £10? Once again please excuse the terrible photos. I’m getting there with the new set up but I’m not quite sorted yet.
In a rather sleek black case you get 6g of shimmery gold highlighter with the Lancôme flower embossed into it and a good sized mirror. The powder is very smooth and finely milled with no chunky glitter. It’s a just a soft warm sheen. It is much less frosty and metallic than the MAC MSF’s so it is an ideal day time cheek highlight.


The powder has a very distinct floral scent. It fades pretty quickly and personally I quite like it however if scents put you off then this won’t be for you. It’s not often I suggest sniffing before buying but it’s probably a good idea (though the SA may call security). The brush is pretty useless so it went in to the bin the day I bought it.


It isn’t hugely pigmented which again is probably a good thing for during the day. I don’t want to look like a bionic woman with frosty metallic cheeks at work. It works well for me with a MAC 168 or similar style blush brush. I like it but is it worth £25? Not really. I’d like something super pigmented that I only needed the tiniest amount of for that money. This is nice, but it’s not £25 nice. For £10 though I’m quite happy with it!

*I bought this myself*

Sigh...Another QVC Purchase

What is it about watching makeup on television at 2 in the morning that can strip an otherwise rational person of their willpower? Somehow this little goody made it into my cart and through the checkout process. I think the words glow, natural, and peachy pink were involved!
Meet Laura Geller's Baked Blush and Highlight in Como/Portofino. For those who haven't heard Laura's schpiel, these baked products begin with several shades in liquid form, swirled together, and are baked on a little terracotta pan until they achieve this light, smooth powder consistency. This product has a small triangle shaped highlighter in a soft golden shade, and the rest of the product is a delicate light warm pink that yields a radiant flush on the cheek. The the shade is on the lighter side so it's best for the fairer complected. Laura herself says that this is the most natural of the Blush and Brighten franchise. If you've found her previous shades too deep, give this one a try.

August Go To Products

This is kind of a favourites post (my first actually)only not really. These are the products that have taken a beating in the last month. Not necessarily my favourites but the ones that I’ve been reaching for over everything else. This was kinda tough as I’m still doing my project ‘use everything you’ve got at least once’ so I’ve been wearing totally different looks every day. Nonetheless I’ve found a few products have been plucked from the drawers by default when I wasn’t sure what else to wear.

Max Factor False Lash Effect mascara in waterproof: I love this and will be doing a full review soon. I’ve been picking this up as it is actually the only waterproof mascara I currently own. With the remnants of my hay fever lingering and a pretty stressful month causing a few mini breakdowns the waterproof er... ness has been invaluable.

MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in By Candlelight: glowy but never glittery, this is just more suited to day time than many of my other highlighters so it gets used more!

No7 Blush in Honey: It’s a neutral dirty peach that when used lightly looks incredibly natural on me. I tap the flat side of a blush brush on it then bounce it off my cheeks for a barely there flush. Love it!

MAC Eyeshadow in Blanc Type: It doesn’t matter what eye look I’m wearing I use this every day. It’s a matte cream shade that despite being well pigmented does not show up on my pale skin. I use it daily to blend out the edges of my eyeshadow and to correct mistakes. I have a really small lid space so it’s easy for me to over apply shadow making this little eraser invaluable.

UDPP in Sin: I’m a shimmer kind of girl when it comes to shadows. An eye primer that adds more shimmer? Yes please!

MAC Lipstick in Viva Glam Cyndi: I need a backup of this and I can’t wait for the matching lip glass to come out either. It’s my favourite wearable red. I wear this every weekend with a really simple eye and winged liner. In fact this and UDPP Sin with winged liner is about as quick and easy as makeup gets.

Collection 2000 Concealer: I have way too many concealers and they need using up sooner rather than. This is first on my list. It’s actually pretty effective though it doesn’t cover quite as well as I would like. If you try and layer it it does gets cakey but a thin layer will last you all day. The tube seems never ending though... I thought it would be done my now but it just keeps on going! I wish the packaging was see through so I knew how much was left.

Would you like to see more of these kinds of posts? What have you been reaching for throughout August? Let me know in the Comments! Xx

*Everything up there was bought by me with actual money apart from the UDPP Sin which was bought with Boots points*

NARS Only You Eye and Cheek Palette

I love palettes. More often than not they represent fantastic value for money with you getting several different products for a lot less than it would cost to buy them individually. Ok you don’t usually get the full sized product but let’s be honest, when was the last time I used up an eye shadow of any size? That’s right. Never. For £45 you get 4 eyeshadows, a blush and a highlighter all zipped up in a little fabric pouch. It’s actually sturdier than is sounds though I’d be nervous of travelling with is for fear of breaking the mirror.



The eye shadows are (from left to right and according to the NARS website):

• Alambra Eyeshadow - Metallic Rose Mist
• Mekong Eyeshadow - Espresso infused with gold
• Eurydice Eyeshadow - Electric Aubergine
• Pandora Eyeshadow - Matte Black

Eurydice is all kinds of gorgeous. It has these amazing blue reflects in it. I’d recommend clicking on the picture to get a better look at them. Alambra is a stunning neutral and when paired with a tiny bit of Mekong in the outer V makes for a stunning work appropriate neutral eye. The shadows are all highly pigmented and as smooth as you can get. It’s everything I hoped for from NARS.

The blush is of course the infamous Orgasm. I’ve been listening to the hype on blogs and Youtube for years now and honestly? Meh. Don’t get me wrong, the colour is gorgeous and the pigmentation is out of this world it’s just that it was cracked up to be the most amazing thing the blush world has ever known and it just isn’t. It’s a bright peachy pink which doesn’t lean too far either way on my skin tone. I do however find the gold shimmer in it almost too much. I’m hesitant to wear this during the day as it is so shimmery. Just a tip; don’t load your brush up with as much as you normally would for any other blush. It will be too much, this really is that pigmented.

The highlighter is Honey Lust which is a warm cream colour with a gold sheen. It’s almost too deep for me actually as it shows up less well on my skin than By Candlelight MSF does. For darker ladies this might be more appropriate. If you’re as pale as me then you might appreciate the more subtle effect this gives. I certainly wouldn’t want anything more over powering to pair with Orgasm!

If you are looking to dip your toes into the world of NARS then this palette is a good way to go about it in my opinion. It’s a versatile palette and you get a fantastic selection of shadows. Though I’m not as blown away by the cheek products as I was expecting I think that’s mainly down to my expectations being too high. They are still fantastic products. Love it! X

*I was given this by the bestest Aunty in the whole wide world. It doesn’t matter how I get hold of a product, my reviews are always my honest opinion. Further info is in the disclosure policy on the left*

Sleek Face Contour Kit

Sleek is slowly becoming my most purchased from brand. After months of seeing youtubers such as Pixi2woo raving about the contour kit I finally caved. There are three shades (light, medium and dark), I have the light. You get 14g of product housed in a sturdy black case with a good sized mirror. 

The highlighter section is divine. It’s so smooth and finely milled, not glitter bombs here just a rich metallic gold toned sheen. A light hand is definitely needed if you want to wear this during the day but properly blended out it looks fabulous. 

The contour side is a richly pigmented deep matte brown. I’d say it’s more warm than cool toned but it manages to avoid turning orange. Again a light hand and some hefty blending is required.

It’s handy having a little ‘sculpting’ kin all in the one palette. Did I mention that it costs just £6.50? For a product that I imagine will last a very long time? Love it! X

*Bought by me*

Collection Overview – Highlighters

Erm, how did I acquire so many of these? Honestly I have no idea. I do know it’s too many for me to go into too much detail in this collection but if you have a look at the tags on the right hand side chances are you will find reviews for all of these if you need more info (reviews on the Sleek Contour kit and Benefit High Beam are in the works). 

From MAC I have (Clockwise from top left) By Candlelight MSF, Petticoat MSF, Truth & Light Magically Cool Liquid Powder (in Venomous Villains packaging), Belightful Iridescent pressed powder (in Fafi packaging). The swatches are in the same order. 

My only liquid highlighters are Benefit Moonbeam (left) and Highbeam (the little sample from Glamour magazine). Again swatches are in the same order. 

The 17 blush/ highlighter duo is called Peaches & Cream. On the right is NARS Honeylust. Swatches are in the same order. 

Finally I have (clockwise from top left) Rituals Cheek & Eye glow in Pink, ELF Gotta Glow, the highlight side from the Sleek Contour kit and Lancôme Blush Subtil in Highlighting Or 00. For some reason I swatched them from left to right Rituals, ELF, Lancôme, Sleek. 

My favourites are the Lancôme, Rituals, By Candlelight MSF and ELF Gotta Glow. I could probably live without the Belightful pressed powder and the Magically Cool Liquid powder. Petticoat MSF and the Rituals Pink and perfect compliments for cooler toned pink blushes. 

Do let me know if these collection overviews are of any interest to you. Is there anything you would like to see in particular? Let me know in the comments! X

*All bought by me. My poor bank account*