Highlighters and illuminators

I’ve spent quite some time and money in the last few months looking for the perfect highlighter and/or illuminator. Somehow I know that when the dull, grey autumn and winter months come rolling in, I’ll need a bit of light in my life. Below, you’ll find some of the products I’ve tried out and whether or not I will get some use out of them. 

First up is my first purchase in this category, the NYX Born to glow liquid illuminator in 01 (Sunbeam) which I picked up at Moja drogerija for about 10 €. 

I'm sorry about this swatch being so different in lighting - my camera was obviously throwing a fit again.

It’s a beautiful product which is super easy to apply on the cheekbones and brow bone as well. It has some shimmer in it, but isn’t too glittery to use all over the face - I’ve actually mixed some of it into my foundation a couple times during the summer for clubbing nights and it looked perfect as well. This will probably end up in my empties pretty soon since I’ve almost used it up in about 2 months.  It’s a product I would definitely recommend for all seasons. 

Next up, we have the Essence Soo glow – cream to powder highlight (mine is in 20  - Bright up your life) which I got in one of the DM stores on sale for about 3 €. 

I must admit I was pleasantly surprised by this highlighter. I am normally not a big fan of most Essence products but this one does its job. It’s not exactly as heavily pigmented as the NYX highlighter but it’s really creamy and easy to apply and again, not too shimmery not to be appropriate for any season of the year. The only issue I have with this is the promise in the name – I don’t have the feeling of it transforming into a powder once it’s applied. However, you really can’t beat the price-quality ratio of this product – I think it will last me ages to use this up. It can also double as a base for your eyeshadow pretty well. 

I picked up the Bourjois Delice de Poudre duo Bronzing powder & highlighter on Look Fantastic. The price of this was again around 10 €, so similar to NYX. 

I must say I am not a big fan of this product as far as highlighting goes. It’s a bit too light to be a highlighter, I see it more as being an all-over illuminator, but as such it’s a pain to apply because it has the form of a powder and you’d need quite some time to get it just right in my opinion. When I want the highlighting effect from this product, I have to apply it so heavily it actually feels heavy on my skin and I'm also not sure it doesn't look a bit to grey for an overall use. So I will probably use the bronzer (which I must also review in the near future probably), but this highlighter will likely remain intact. 

The Me Me Me Beat the blues illuminator which I got at Licila.si reminded me somewhat of Benefit High Beam by the color and the form – it’s a liquid illuminator which you apply with a nail polish-like wand directly to your face.  It cost about 6 € if my memory serves me right, but they’re out of stock right now so there’s no way to check. 

 I have tried the Benefit High Beam in Sephora a couple of months ago and I must say that in my opinion the Beat the blues is a perfect dupe. The High Beam is perhaps a tiny bit more creamy and applies more evenly, whereas Beat the blues is a bit more watery and needs to be applied in smaller dots and blended in quickly, because it dries up almost instantly. I also like the fact that it can be layered for a stronger effect without looking like a Christmas tree. A thumbs up for this product as well, especially for the price. 

Last but not least is the most expensive of these products – the Lancome Ombre Hypnose (P102 – Sable Enchanté) which I picked up in Müller for about 25 €. 

Now to be honest, this is actually an eyeshadow, not a highlighter or illuminator. But I was really looking for a product without the pink tones – a really light (nearly white) highlighter for days when I’m really feeling down. After a long search and help of two nice ladies I ended up with this. I mean – it’s good, not too shimmery, smells all right for a Lancome product and everything, but at the end of the day, it’s still an eyeshadow. The packaging is very small which makes getting into it with a larger fan brush difficult and there’s also not much product for the price. Again, not a very clever purchase from my end, but I will of course use it up as a super pretty eyeshadow :)

Here’s a picture of all swatches, so you can compare them for yourself. 

 At the end of the day I must say that I’m quite happy with my purchases. I found some great products which I will mostly get a lot of use from. I’m still itching to try the Balm Mary Lou highlighter which they stock on Licila.si I’ve gotten two The Balm products from abroad in the last weeks and I think that it’s a beautiful brand which deserves more of my attention. 

Until next time, stay beautiful, stay awesome!