Posts Tagged Benefit
All the Pretty Sparkles: Highlighter Review & Swatches
I often find that my best posts are those that are made up on a whim. Sometimes I’ll be trying something out for my own personal pleasure, and it leads to something else entirely. Today I had one such moment; I was trying to figure out just how I could wear my NARS Laguna Multiple effectively, as its quite pretty but gets very little use. I usually smear it on right from the tube and then blend the heck out of it with my fingers, applying it as a highlight on top of my cheekbones and around my brow bones. Today I tried buffing it in with a stippling brush, which seemed to work exceptionally well. Then I wondered how it looked in sunlight, and stepped out on my balcony in the sunshine, only to be blasted with some serious sparkle! Eeks! I can tell you right now that it is NOT the kind of product you want to wear outside in the sun (so, best used on cloudy days or at night), or at least if you DO wear it, use a very light hand. Lesson learned (and thankfully before I made the faux pas in public)!
Of course, this got me thinking about other highlighters/glow-makers I own and how they fare in the bright sunshine. Of course, being a dutiful blogger, I took photos so we all can benefit from my experiment
I chose four others that are all permanent products in their respective brands: Benefit Watt’s Up, Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Opal, the Balm Mary-Lou Manizer, and Burberry Fresh Glow. You’ve seen swatches of some of these before in my Chanel Poudre Signée post, but here they are again (give or take a couple):
Left to right: NARS The Multiple in Laguna, Benefit Watt’s Up, Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Opal, the Balm Mary-Lou Manizer, and Burberry Fresh Glow
First let me preface the following face swatches by saying that while I could plainly see the sparkle/shimmer in sunlight, it is incredibly hard to capture in photos!! SO frustrating. With that in mind, please take my word for it whether or not something is visible or not, as it is tricky to see in the snaps I took ~grumbles~ Also, please note that all of these shots were taken on completely makeup-free skin (apologies for dark circles!), so there is no other potential shimmer interference (I cleansed my face thoroughly between each shot).
To begin, we have the Laguna Multiple I mentioned originally. Very sparkly in sunlight, and I really would avoid wearing it outside – especially if you do not have my skintone (on me it’s more of a highlight), as it would then be deep bronze + super shimmer, and just wouldn’t be your best moment. You’ll notice as you look through the other face pics that this one has the most noticeable shimmer, even in photographs. BELIEVE IT. However, it IS very pretty and I plan on using it on evenings out over this spring/summer.
Next, we have Benefit’s Watt’s Up luminizer – I only have a sample size of this but honestly that is enough, as a little goes a long way. I want to say it’s my least favorite of the five, but today changed my mind a bit, as the initial BAM! sparkle of it seemed to settle after a couple minutes, and then it really just gave me this lovely radiance. It’s still fairly shimmery, but not as much as the Laguna, and you could probably get away with it in the day if you went very minimal on shimmer elsewhere. Also, I’d probably layer my blush OVER this rather than under (which you’d likely do anyway if you chose powder, as this is a cream, and that’d just get weird), which would tone it down a little bit too. It took me AGES to get photos of this and I’m still not satisfied, so trust me when I say there IS visible shimmer (look for little particle-like things on my face – those are them
).
Moving right along, next is the insanely popular Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector, in the shade Opal. I snagged this deluxe sample in a swap about a month ago and I LOVE IT SO MUCH YOU GUYS. I’m not going to go on a big ‘You have to buy this!’ rant, because everyone else has done such a good job – so just go buy it already! This product comes very close to the ‘might be too shimmery for day’ line but manages to toe it exceptionally well, so you can totally rock it out all summer long. I adore the glow this gives and because the shimmer particles are so small, they don’t look tacky at all, just nicely done. I will continue to wear this now that the sun is out, day or night.
Continuing on, we come to the Balm’s Mary-Lou Manizer. Next to Laguna this one is the most shimmery, and is also the only powder in the bunch. This was one of my first highlighters (and again, its a small sample size compared to the real deal) and I tended to wear it more in the corners of my eyes than anywhere else. Now, I wear it both ways (on my cheekbones too) but generally keep it to nighttime, as the shimmer combined with the lighter tone and powder formula can make it more obvious than I’d like. Still, the powder is butter-smooth and is nice to have on hand now and again!
This second shot is kind of bizarro for sure, but it highlighted the shimmers so well I had to include it >_<
Finally, we have the most natural of the bunch, and my personal preference for a foolproof glow – Burberry’s Fresh Glow Luminizing Base. If you recall, I bought this last year as a birthday treat for myself (which I think I might do every year – buy Burberry makeup, I mean!) and was unsure if it was genius or useless. Well, consider me converted because this give the most subtle yet glowing look of the bunch. It can be worn a multitude of ways: on bare skin, under foundation, over foundation, mixed in with foundation, etc. – but I prefer to use either on a bare face to just give me a pick me up if I’m going super low-key, or on top of foundation on the high points of the face. Even though there is shimmer, somehow there is no shimmer - like Houdini or something. I haven’t quite figured it out, but I will say that looking at it worn in full sunshine today for the first time, I was totally amazed – I looked utterly radiant but like I had absolutely nothing on. Kind of like how you look when you put on a face oil, and you look glowing, but without the adding ‘shine’ factor. Good times. Dammit Burberry, why is everything you do SO DAMN EXPENSIVE GOOD?
Thus concludes my research – I hope you found it helpful! I know it’s tough to see the nuances between shots but I think the gist is there in terms of comparing the five. As always, this kind of post is helpful for me too, so yay for killing two birds with one stone!
Do you wear a highlighter? What formula/finish do you prefer? Which of these ones would you choose?
How Convenient That Pantone’s Color of the Year Was Also PERFECT for St. Patty’s Day!
Posted by Latoya in a-england, Blush, Chanel, Eye Liner, MAC, Make Up For Ever, Make-up, Urban Decay on March 18, 2013
So. Yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day! 7 years ago (OMG how time flies…barf) I was in Dublin for Paddy’s Day (as they shorthand it in Ireland), and yea…it was as crazy as you’d imagine it to be! Not so much a drunken mess, but just the sheer amount of people…yowza. It was a fantabulous time, and I’ll never forget it!
As the years pass, it seems the crew of hardcore Paddy’s Day party-goers dwindles in my crowd – job responsibilities, babies, and aging in general all seem to keep everyone at home on one of the most fun days of the year ~tear~ Thankfully, I have an excellent partner-in-crime who I can always count on to celebrate with me! This year it was just the two of us, so it was more low-key than usual, but I still made sure to dress the part – which includes green makeup (and nails), of course!
I usually do a lot more green on the eye, but since it wasn’t a rip-roaring party I went subdued and just wore a simple flash of green liner on the top lash line. I used Urban Decay’s 24/7 Liner in Covet (an emerald green with silver microglitter) on top of MAC’s Blacktrack Fluidline – the black gave the green more depth and helped the line look more crisp. I added MAC All That Glitters shadow all over the lid, as I find it gives the most beautiful shine to the eye without ever seeming like too much, and then a dab of Giorgio Armani’s Eyes to Kill shadow in #6 Khaki Pulse to the crease to add a little bit more depth. *Side note – anyone notice that I’m trying to grow my eyebrows out? It’s so frickin’ hard dude! I want to pluck all the random stray hairs but I’m trying to be patient ~sigh~ They are coming along though
Since it was going to be a long day, I wore MUFE’s HD Blush in #12 First Kiss on bare cheeks, layered foundation on top, and then added a touch of MAC’s Mineralize Blush in Early Morning to make sure my blush had good staying power. I quite liked the way it made my skin look kind of lit from within. I don’t usually layer cream and powder blushers but I really need to get on that! I topped off my cheekbones and other high points of the face with MAC’s Beauty Powder in Shell Pearl, which gives the best glow – I finally got my hands on the Year of the Snake version last week and I LOVE this product. Review will be forthcoming!
I finished with a very simple lip using Benefit’s Ultra Plush gloss in Hoola. I didn’t want anything competing with the green liner, so this gave the barest hint of shimmer and warmth, but that’s about it.
Of course, the look isn’t finished – gotta get some flash on the nails too, right!? Because I’m not a fan of green nail polish as a whole, I don’t actually own any that are going to give me serious pizazz. But I have shades with a green tinge… haha. I made it work, I think! I just read about sideways manicures, so I tried it out – easiest nail art EVER. And also my new favorite!!
The shades I used were a-England Tess d’Urbervilles as a base, and Chanel Peridot on top. This was probably more subtle than I should have gone with – the nature of Peridot with it’s duochrome nature just makes the a-England shade look like a shadow. Nonetheless, I loved the effect, and loved how darn easy this one (no nail stickers required – freehand works perfectly!), so I’ll definitely be trying this again and again with other shades. Fun!
I always have intentions to get these kinds of event posts up before the actual event, but who am I kidding? That’s never going to happen – I’m too busy prepping for the occasion to actually have time to post! LOL Anyway, all the other bloggers have got this covered for me
And it’s not like I did anything particularly unique, and both the makeup and nails could be done any time of the year, right?
How did you celebrate Paddy’s Day?? Did you do any themed makeup and/or nails?
Beat the Winter Blues – Enter to Win Our Winter Edition Beauty Envy Bag!!
Posted by Latoya in Benefit, butter London, Eyeshadow, Giveaway, Hand Care, L'Occitane, Lips, Nail Polish, Tarina Tarantino on January 15, 2013

We’re back with the Winter Edition of the Beauty Envy Bag! We’ve handpicked several of our beauty
favorites that will help you make it through this winter season with some new goodies. The bag consists
of all full-sized products to help meet your beauty needs. For those of you who may be new to our blogs,
here’s a quick introduction.
Lakeisha is a nail polish blogger from Florida. She is obsessed with polish, fashion, and merging the two together. She is the blogger behind Refined and Polished.
Latoya is a beauty blogger from the East Coast of Canada. While she loves all things girly, she’s also a closet gamer and is a die-hard Walking Dead fan. She is the blogger behind Beauty Obsessed.
Leticia is a beauty blogger from the Pacific Northwest. She is a dog lover, sci fi nerd, handbag collector, and makeup junkie. She is the blogger behind Cosmetics Aficionado.
Lola is a Midwest blogger with a passion for polish, science, and music. She is the blogger behind Burb Beauty.
The Winter Edition of the Beauty Envy Bag contains:
- L’Occitane Hand Indulgence Hand Cream Set (Reviewed by Lola)
- Benefit’s High Flyin’ Glosses Collection (Reviewed by Latoya)
- Tarina Tarantino Emerald Pretty Eyeshadow Palette (Reviewed by Leticia)
- Butter LONDON Two Fingered Salute & Scallywag (Reviewed by Lakeisha)
Please feel free to click the links above to learn more about each product. Accompanying all of the items
is a purple metallic beauty bag from Sephora and additional samples will be included as well.
Here is what you need to know to enter in the Rafflecopter widget below:
- Must leave a blog comment (just one blog, doesn’t have to be all four) letting us know your
favorite winter beauty product. - Additional entries for following each blog on social media networks (Facebook, Twitter,
Instagram) - Open internationally
- Must be 18+
- Giveaway closes on Monday, January 28, 2012 at 11:59 EST
Good luck dolls!!!
Upcoming on Beauty Obsessed…
Posted by Latoya in Benefit, Holiday 2012, Hourglass, Illamasqua, Make Up For Ever, Make-up on November 19, 2012
So it’s been a week since I’ve been returned from my New Zealand adventure, and I’m slowly (verrrrrry slowly) getting back into the swing of things. It’s quite an adjustment to go from an action-packed-always-on-the-go-surrounded-by-people-partying-every-night atmosphere, to being…back to work, home alone, same-old same-old. I’m not knocking my life by any means – I’ve got a warm, cozy condo; a good (though perhaps boring) job; and great friends – but it’s still quite a change to get re-established into. And I’m someone who really likes to have things to look forward to (which is why I’m planning my next adventure!).
When I googled this country, I noticed it ALSO has a lot of sheep…guess it’s my thing
*Hint hint*
ANYWAY. Enough whining, and on with the show, right? Right. Tonight, I opted get a bunch of ‘To Do’s’ done and make bread (because what’s more comforting than baking bread!?), but I want to show you what you can expect to see on the blog in the next week or two. I happily came home to a few surprise packages that had been sent my way, so despite the fact that I haven’t been buying much in the way of exciting cosmetics in the past couple months (though…I did pick up an eyeshadow this weekend ~guilty face~), I do have several holiday sets – four to be exact – to fill you in on!
Illamasqua Lip Twin Set*
Intense Lipgloss in Plentiful & Lipstick in Obey
Hourglass Best of Hourglass Collection*
(Top to Bottom): Veil Mineral Primer, Film Noir Full Spectrum Mascara, Extreme Sheen High Shine Lip Gloss in Ignite, No. 28 Primer Serum
Make Up For Ever All Eyes On You Set*
(Clockwise from left): HD High Definition Powder, Aqua Cream Waterproof Cream Color in #16 (Pink Beige), Smoky Lash Extra Black Mascara, Aqua Eyes Waterproof Eyeliner Pencils in 21L (dark grey) and 0L (mat black)
Benefit High Flyin’ Glosses Lip Gloss Set
(Clockwise from top left): Coralista, Dallas, Bella Bamba, Dandelion, Sugarbomb, Hoola
I think that’s a pretty good start to the holidays, don’t you? I will tell you now, I am absolutely IN LOVE with the Hourglass No. 28 Primer Serum – it makes my skin look amazing on it’s own, improves it’s texture, doesn’t cause ANY breakouts or irritation (even on my normal-to-oily skin), and my makeup wears better and smoother with it on (though I will say, it doesn’t make it last all day long). I’m definitely buying a full-size when money isn’t so tight!
So – keep your eyes peeled! I spent the morning Sunday taking photos of everything, though I have to redo my lipgloss swatches as I had a bit of unnoticed flaking going on – yikes! I don’t want to scare you away just when I’ve gotten back!
Also…..one (or even two!) of these sets just *might* be part of a giveaway coming soon to a blog near you – just sayin’.
What’s on everyone’s wish list for the holiday season, cosmetics-wise? Anything you’ve already picked up and are loving?
*Products marked with an * were provided to me for consideration of review by the PR company/brand.
FOTD Trial and Errors!
Posted by Latoya in Benefit, Chanel, FOTD, Hourglass, Make Up For Ever, Make-up, NARS, theBalm, Urban Decay on February 29, 2012
Happy Hump Day everyone!! Heyyy, February is pretty much over – doesn’t that make you feel like Spring is REALLY on it’s way? Even though it doesn’t officially start for another three weeks or so, I always feel like March marks the end of Winter and the beginning of good (re: warm) things
For the past week, since Lent began, I have been steadfastly putting in an effort to take FOTD shots of my makeup looks every day, but unfortunately for all of us – I have been failing spectacularly. I just can’t seem to get it right, and it’s frustrating me to no end. However, fortunately for everyone, I don’t give up easy, and I am going to keep on trying until I am successful! Embarrassingly, here are some of the shots I’ve taken over the past week:

MUFE Aqua Liner #14 with the purple shade of NARS Habarnera in the crease and along the lower lash line. I swear in person the shadow was actually noticeable, more than just the hint of shimmer showing here!


This was my getaway look this past weekend – Urban Decay’s Bourbon liner on the upper and lower lashes, Benefit’s Bella Bamba on cheeks, and MUFE’s Star Collection Lab Shine in S4.
I snuck this photo at work while in fear of someone finding me taking pictures of myself lol – I’m wearing Urban Decay’s Bordello eyeshadow (from the BoSIII palette), with UD’s Smog in the crease, theBalm Down Boy blush, and MUFE Lab Shine S4 again.
Tonight, I managed to get a couple shots I was fairly happy with, though I still wish I could get close-ups of eye makeup so that you can see what I’ve done. But – beggers can’t be chosers, I guess! Below, I’m not wearing too much – just a touch of the pale shade of Hourglass’ Exhibition shadow duo on the lid, UD’s Crash liner, Benefit’s Bella Bamba on cheeks, and the star of the look – Chanel’s Rouge Allure Laque in Empire.


My goal with all of these FOTD shots are to showcase the products that I haven’t been giving enough love to, and figuring out how to make them work on a regular basis. Chanel’s Empire perplexed me from the start – it was such a gorgeous shade, but I just didn’t see it working on my skintone. However, now that I’m easing into wearing pretty Spring hues, I find this lippie works PERFECTLY. It’s just not a Fall/Winter shade on me, AT ALL. Now that I’ve figured that out, I’m gonna have some serious fun with this color!! It’s absolutely perfect for pretty much any Spring look I’ll be wearing.
What makes me cringe chuckle when I go back through these pictures, is that my makeup looks almost identical in each – this is one of the frustrating parts, because each look was different, honest! ~sigh~ Anyway, as I said, I’m going to continue to press on, and *one day* I’ll get it. At the very least, I’m having a great time wearing different products every day and giving all the neglected items I own a little attention. Talk about shopping your own stash!
Have you rediscovered a product that you weren’t sure about, only to find that you’ve changed your mind and have now fallen in love?
Review: Benefit They’re Real! Mascara
Soo…I’m totally a sheep (Eh? Does that sound weird to you? What’s the singular of sheep? Strange…). I doggedly follow various blogs online, reading all about the newest and best cosmetics out there, and then – I go get ‘em! More often than not I base my purchases according to the reviews I read, and discard those products which sound subpar. I trust my fellow beauty bloggers to steer me in the right direction, and usually they’re right on the money. At least, with the items they rate well. It’s rare that I’ll still forge ahead and grab something that meets a generally unfavorable consensus, because I just don’t want to waste my money and chance hating it too. This behavior, while reasonable, makes me a sheep. Sometimes I’m OK with that, other times I feel like I need to be more of a pioneer…but I think I’d need to be making a lot more money for that
Anyway, to the point! I saw online several reviews for Benefit’s new mascara, They’re Real!, and despite the eagerness which people seemed to be buying this product, it was getting somewhat mediocre reviews. It sounded O.K., and looked decent, but certainly nothing to write home about. Those products, I usually skip. But in the excitement of the moment, during the Sephora opening earlier this month, I scooped it up on a whim.



Now, of course, the day I bought it I then went camping for a week +, so I did not get a chance to test this baby out. As soon as I returned however, it was game on. And in the end, I wasn’t disappointed!


This mascara is up there with some of my faves. After going through a slew of mascaras that just didn’t do it for me in any capacity, it seems my luck has turned lately – first with G.A.’s ‘Eyes to Kill’ and now with Benefit’s new offering. Jet-black and long-wearing, ‘They’re Real!’ claims to lengthen, curl, volumize, lift, AND separate, and offers a specially designed brush to reveal “lashes you never knew you had!”. So, basically it does it all. Now, let’s get ‘real’ for a minute. While I love this mascara, it’s no superhero. All mascaras lengthen and volumize to some degree – it’s pretty much impossible to coat your lashes in product and miss the boat there. So, point by point, let me rate the actual abilities of this product:
Lengthening: I’d give it an 8/10. It does make my shorter lashes look noticeably longer, but by no means do I look like I have fake eyelashes on (which I think is the claim they’re subtly trying to convey with the title ‘They’re Real!’).
Volumizing: A disclaimer – when I think ‘volume’ in reference to lashes, I think actual density of lashes, as in, you look like you have a million lush lash hairs and create a breeze when you bat an eye. I do not think that volume means the thickness of each lash hair, because to me that seems like a silly goal to have – why would you want to look like each hair is really fat? I know the ‘spider’ mascara look is back this season, but it’s never been my preference and I can’t imagine that that is what the companies mean by ‘volume.’ But what do I know?
Anyway, in this regard, I can only give ‘They’re Real!’ a 6/10. I already have somewhat voluminous lashes so take that info as you will, but I could definitely use more thickness, and this doesn’t really do the trick. I always find it sort of contradictory for a mascara to claim that it volumizes AND separates – personally I think it can only do one or the other. Which leads me to…
Separation: Here is where this mascara takes top marks – 9/10. While it may not pump up the lashes as it claims, it does separate well and makes the lashes really stand out, which in turn makes my eyes the focus of attention very easily. As is typical for rubberized brushes like this one, because the bristles are stiff, they can glide through the lashes and help minimize clumping. Normally, I dislike these kinds of brushes; even though they do the job well, I always feel like I’m jabbing my lash lines and it feels uncomfortable. For whatever reason, this brush doesn’t do that – and it’s just as stiff as any other. Whatever, I’m OK with it.
Curling: Sorry dudes, I can never accurately rate this feature because – like my hair – my lashes are already majorly curly so I’d never know if this was doing the job or not. No comment.
Lifting: Isn’t this the same as curling? I guess this lifting claim is supposed to be due to the formulation, which holds well throughout the day and keeps lashes in check. Again, I can’t really rate this as my lashes are always perky, but I can say the formula is excellent in terms of wear – no smudging or flaking the entire day. It takes a bit more work to get off in the evenings (as compared to Clinique’s, for example), but nothing that your normal makeup remover can’t take off.
So, as you can see from my (incomplete) review, this mascara has mostly strong features, and is a good option if you’re looking to lengthen and separate lashes. You probably could find something comparable at a drugstore price – this isn’t cheap at $29CDN – but then again, I didn’t have much luck going that route so it’s hard to say. I hadn’t read how to apply the product, but after looking at the description on Benefit’s website, I’m intrigued by the suggestion to “fan the corner lashes outward with the custom-domed tip” to achieve a “big, doe-eyed look.” Something I’ll have to try!
Which mascaras have you tried and loved/hated? What features are you most concerned with when choosing a mascara? Are you willing to pay more if the product does what it claims?
Hump Day everyone! I hope you’re all making it through OK
Thanks for reading!








































