Comparison: Favorite Blushes and Highlighters

Today i want to show you a few of my favorite blushes and highlighters. They range in price, size, and brand but they're all great quality and have individual purposes for me. I'm not going to do full reviews because by clicking the links below you can check out my full review for each product. Please comment, like, and follow :)

#1 Benefit High Beam
This is just a beautiful liquid highlighter. I like to use it anytime i want a healthy glow on my cheeks. It can be blended out super sheer, or put on a little heavier for more pigmentation - but it NEVER feels greasy or heavy on your face. Love it.
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/benefit-high-beam-w-swatch?blog_id=56...

#2 Victoria's Secret Radiant Face Trio in Captivate
This trio comes with a pink blush, medium bronzer, and white highlighter in a pretty leopard print pattern. In my opinion it would suit almost all skin tones and its great for giving cheeks a pink flush & healthy glow. As you can see from the swatch (all shades swirled together) the color payoff is great and it turns out as a pretty bronzey-pink shimmer.
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/victorias-secret-radiant-face-trio-ca...

#3 Mark. Touch & Glow Shimmer Cubes
These cute little multi-colored cubes are cream but turn to powder when applied to face. You can blend them all for a bronze glow (shown in swatch) or use separate ones for different shades which makes this compact super customizable.
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/mark-touch-glow-shimmer-cubes?blog_id...

#4 Urban Decay Afterglow Blush in Score
This is one of my all-time favorite blushes. It gives you a beautiful peachy-pink glow. It has a golden peach sheen - NOT shimmer. I can assure you there is zero sparkle, glitter, or shimmer in this blush - just a sheen. I like this so much i use it more than all of my other blush's and highlighters.
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/urban-decay-afterglow-blush-score?blo...

#5 NARS Deep Throat
I won this in a contest on trinajmakeup.blogspot.com and while i wanted Orgasm for a looong time i am so glad i got Deep Throat instead! Its basically like Urban Decay Score without the shimmer (can you see that from the swatches?). The base colors are the same but Score has that pretty golden sheen. So when i don't want that sheen i use Deep Throat instead :)
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/health-beauty/nars-deep-throat-blush-7?blog_id=5646...

#6 Benefit Georgia
This is meant to be a highlighter - NOT a peach blush. I know tons of people get that confused but i promise its intended purpose is a highlighter, lol. In the swatch i applied Georgia in several layers to build up the color so you could see what it looks like. When applied lightly it gives a nice sheen to cheeks and face.
Full Review: http://www.luuux.com/node/2887999?blog_id=56465

Well, thats all! Those are 6 of my favorite and most used blushes and highlighters. I actually don't even the rest of the ones in my collection because i love these so much. Please checkout the full reviews if you're interested.

NYC Blushable Creme Stick in Plaza Pink

 

I had a hard time getting my hands on one of these, but luckily Rite-Aid pretty much has everything lol. They also had the new L.E. blushable creme sticks (gold and bronze) and while i was tempted to grab one as a creme bronzer i decided not to in the end, but i should have! These are about $2-3 each.

This is NYC Blushable Creme Stick in Plaza Pink.

How I Apply It: Usually i rub this lightly onto the top of my Ecotools Duo Fibre Finishing Brush then apply it to cheeks for sheer buildable coverage. If i want it to be more pronounced, i use my finger.

PROS
pigmented
smooth
powdery finish
lightweight
isnt sticky
easy to use
travel friendly
comes in a decent shade range
cheap

CONS
Hard to find for alot of people.

Ooohh i love this! Now they just need to make a peach one for me lol. My favorite part about these is the fact that it immediately turns to powder on skin - its amazing! Its so great i actually forget this is a cream blush, lol and really i dont even think of it that way anymore. These are super great and if you can find them i would deifnitely suggest you check them out!

Mark. Touch & Glow Shimmer Cream Cubes

If you're looking for a new highlighter or bronzer for summer you really need to check out this Mark. Touch & Glow Shimmer Cream Cubes All Over Face Palette, $15., click here.

What Mark. says:
❝Look your most luminous, thanks to these cubes: with a sweep of a brush, shimmery shades of pink, gold and bronze combine for allover color, or dab individual shades onto eyelids using your finger.
• 9 shades combined add instant radiance to skin
• Individual shades can light up the lids with gorgeous shimmer
• Blendable cream-to-powder formula❞

[PROS]
Just the right amount of shimmer/sheen but not sparkly or glittery at all
Good pigmentation
Creamy texture that turns to weightless powder when applied to skin
Beauty shades, perfect for summer
Compact is sleek and small enough for travel
Multiple uses
Great for ANY skin tone!

[CONS]
Price - At $15 not everyone may be able to afford this, but it is still worth it!

Summary:
If this were a drugstore product, i may not want to pay $15 for it even though it is absolutely amazing. You can see from the swatches the shades by themselves are gorgeous and could be used as shadows or browbone/inner corner highlighters. When blended together they create a beautiful pinkish-golden sheen on skin that has ZERO sparkle or glitter particles. Its just a dewey glowing sheen which is perfect for summer skin. I honestly believe these would be great for ANY skin tone. So what's the verdict? I love it and i definitely think it's worth the $15 (even though i got it for $7.50 thanks to my husband who works at AVON).

*Photos and content are mine.

Victoria's Secret Face Trio in Captivate

This beautiful blush/bronzer/highlighter trio from Victoria's Secret in 'Captivate' ($15) is my new favorite blush!! I apply it with my Ecotools Blending Kabuki brush which picks up the products and distributes it in sheer layers for easily blendable and buildable coverage. These trio's come in 3 more shades, I chose one of the lightest ones because i have very fair skin. I love the way this blush looks on my skin! It does has a tiny hint of shimmer, but its not a ton so dont think it'll make your cheeks look glittery, it wont. Definitely a re-purchase when im finished with this one.

Mark. Flip For It Color Kit: Sydney

I want to show you another Mark. Flip For It Color Kit (London) that i purchased from AVON a few months ago. I got it on sale for $8 but they are regular $20 each. Mark. comes out with these kits pretty regularly in different shades, which are usually named after cities.

The kit includes...
2 eyeshadows: Bondi Beach and Nomadic
1 blush: Sunlove Glo
2 Lip Sticks: Sydney Smooch and Adelaide
2 Lip Glosses: Aussie Kiss and Down Under

This compact palette is extremely portable, as you can see from the photos below its just about the size of the palm of my hand. Swatches are below also. Everything is very pigmented and good quality, the eyeshadows are really beautiful and light reflective. I hardley ever use this palette but it would be great to throw in a bag for a night out. I would like to own the rest of the Mark. Flip For It Kits!

Top row: Eyeshadows - Bondi Beach and Nomadic
Bottom row: Blush in Sunlove Glo (peachy pink)

Lip Colors from L to R: Aussie Kiss, Down Under, Sydney Smooch, Adeliade

Click to enlarge

Mark. Flip For It Color Kit: London

Top row: Proper Kiss and Watermelon
Bottom row: West End Pout and Queenie

Top row: Eyeshadows in London Bridge and Piccadilly
Bottom Row: Blush in Cameo Glo

Hello! How is everyone doing today?? I want to show you a Mark. Flip For It Color Kit (London) that i purchased from AVON a few months ago. I got it on sale for $12 but i believe they are regular $20 each. Mark. comes out with these kits pretty regularly in different shades.

The kit includes...
2 eyeshadows: London Bridge and Piccadilly
1 blush: Cameo Glo
2 Lip Sticks: Proper Kiss and Watermelon
2 Lip Glosses: West End Pout and Queenie

This compact palette is extremely portable, as you can see from the photos below its just about the size of the palm of my hand. Swatches are below also. Everything is very pigmented and good quality, the Piccadilly shadow is really beautiful and light reflective. I hardley ever use this palette but it would be great to throw in a bag for a night out. I would like to own the rest of the Mark. Flip For It Kits!

From L to R: Proper Kiss, Watermelon, West End Pout, Queenie

Top row: Eyeshadows in Piccadilly (purple), and London Bridge (taupe)
Bottom Row: Blush in Cameo Glo

Sonia Kashuk Spring Awakening Palette

I bought this travel-friendly Sonia Kashuk Spring Awakening Palette ($19.99) at Target a couple weeks ago. It comes with: sturdy metal case w/ clasp closure, 4 eyeshadows, 1 eye definer, 1 blush, and 3 glosses. Its the perfect size for throwing in your purse and you can basically create and entire look from it (minus foundation and mascara!). I like it best for touch ups on-the-go, and although this is called the "Spring Awakening" palette, the colors are universal and could be use at anytime of year.

LIP GLOSSES: This palette comes with 3  glosses: a light golden bronze, pinky-mauve, and  medium bronze. All of these glosses are very moisturizing and surprisingly pigmented. My only  concern with this palette is the fact that im afraid any warmth (like from  the heat in my car/purse) and the glosses may melt and run into the rest of the palette ruining it.   

BLUSH & EYE DEFINER: The blush with this palette is a nice size and very pigmented. It has a little shimmer and its a flattering pink shade. It blends well but may not be for all skin tones. The eye definer is VERY pigmented. When i swatched it it actually stained my hand lol and was a little hard to remove. It would be nice as a powder eyeliner.

Eye Definer

EYESHADOWS: The four shadows that come with this palette are pigmented and pretty!! This palette makes it easy to create and entire eye look in a few small steps, but as you can see there are no brushes. You could easily use your fingers but i dont like doing that because I can never get the results i want, so I also purchased a mini ECOTOOLS Travel Brush Kit to go along side this Spring Awakening palette in my purse.

Blush

OVERVIEW: Im glad i bought this palette. I didnt have a travel-friendly palette that would fit well in my purse and have all the essentials I needed for touch ups on-the-go. Now, i do :) lol. I like all the shades and they match my skin tone well so overall I am pleased with my purchase. 

  

Closed palette and ecotools brush kit

Closed Palette

Eyeshadows -Top Row: Shimmery bronze, Metalic/shimmer taupe.
Bottom Row: Medium matte brown, Dark matte brown.

NARS Deep Throat Blush

I received this beautiful NARS Deep Throat blush in a contest giveaway on Trina J's blog! Please go check her out and follow her! Shes a makeup artist.

I had been dying to try this blush (and Orgasm) by NARS for quite some time, so when i learned i had won it i was beyond excited!! It's the first and only NARS product i own, so i dont really have anything else in the line to compare it to but i can tell you that this alone is amazing quality!! To me, this and Orgasm look alot like, except Orgasm has shimmer. The pro's and con's listed below are just my opinions.

[PROS]
- Very smooth
- No shimmer
- Blends well
- Applies very easily
- Pigmented
- Beautiful peachy-pink shade
- Large, well made compact w/ mirror


[CONS]
- Price ($27)

Deep Throat the highest of quality and definitely worth the $27 if you use blush alot... but i dont. It will take me 1 yr or more to use this entire thing, seriously. Especially since i have other blushes and highlighters that i use sometimes too. However, the shade matches me perfectly. It's like my Holy Grail blush. When im done with this i will probably fork out the money for another, but we'll see lol.

*DUPES:
E.L.F. Candid Coral $3
Wet N Wild Pearlescent Pink $3
Jordana Blush in Coral Sandy Beach $3

E.L.F. Contouring Blush & Bronzer Duo

I have been lusting after the NARS Orgasm/Laguna ($39) blush and bronzer duo for a long time and after seeing this E.L.F. Contouring Blush & Bronzer Duo ($3) was a supposed dupe I figured it was worth a try for a $36 price drop!!

First of all, I was amazed at how super soft and pigmented the blush and bronzer in this compact are PLUS how giant the thing is to being with!! Its like double the size of the NARS duo. Since i dont own NARS Orgasm/Laguna I cant say if the shades are exact dupes or not but i love them all the same.

The blush is a pink shade w/ peachy shimmer and the bronzer is a warm typical bronze shade. Theyre soooo smooth and soft and apply lightly so it makes it even easier for blending and buildable coverage. I am highly impressed with this due and really dont even want the NARS one anymore!

Definitely a must have for me from now on!

Hard Candy Hide & Glow Cheek Tint Duo

This Hard Candy Hide & Glow Cheek Tint Duo can be found at WalMart for $6 and comes in 2 other shade combinations.

This particular combo comes with a blushing pink and a shimmery raisin particularly good for light skin tones like mine. The texture is very smooth and easy to apply, but even easier to blend! I was surprised at how much I liked these cheek tints. The only downside I can find is it felt a tad bit heavy on my cheeks and I could actually feel it on, which i didnt like. However, I may have applied to much.. so thats my fault. Overall, it was a great purchase and pretty cheap for two products!