Hi folks! Time to take you through my current collection of glowy base products for frikka frikka fresh & juicy skin. I'm always trying out new vegan highlighters & illuminators, so I figured I'd share my stash alongside some swatches of how they apply to the skin. We've got a mix of high end and affordable, drugstore and more natural brands, so I hope you find something that tickles you pickle. My personal vibe/preference when it comes to highlighter is AU NATURALE. I like it to look like I'm glowing & not like there's a metallic stripe on the top of my cheekbone. But thas just me.
In no particular order...
Starting off on the high end of the makeup world: Charlotte Tilbury. I currently have 3 Charlotte Tilbury products on the go at the moment - and they are as follows: Hollywood Beauty Light Wand in Spotlight £29, Wonderglow Instant Soft-Focus Beauty Flash £39 [or £15 for small size] and good old Hollywood Film Star Bronze & Glow in Light to Medium £49. Yeah, not a cheap brand by any means. But her formulations are pretty brilliant. Charlotte Tilbury is cruelty free with no parent company [for now!!] and lots of vegan options. They even have a shop-able vegan tab on their website. We love to see it.
Let's start with her Hollywood Beauty Light Wand [pictured above, left swatch - and yes these are swatched on my legs which haven't been touched with a razor in a while. It is what it is..]. The shade Spotlight is described as a golden champagne - but to be honest, I think it's more of a neutral champagne on me, with not much yellow/gold to it. It's got a foam-type applicator & it's one of those squeezy-tube type situations where the product is dispensed through said sponge/foam. Gets a bit mucky under the cap, but it does have an 'on/off' twist feature to the packaging which is good. I really love the effect of this on the skin, it blends seemlessly & has a nice sheen to it with no actual glitter in it. The picture of the swatch above may seem like it has glitter in, but don't be fooled, it's just reflecting the sun & giving a glittery illusion. It gives a subtle, gorgeous glow. It's definitely overpriced for the amount of product you get, but it's a wonderful formula & I enjoy it a lot. Would I repurchase? Hmmm. Depends how boojee I'm feeling.
Next up, Wonderglow [above, right]. This is technically a primer but can be mixed with foundation or worn alone. It's more golden toned than the Hollywood wand, more of a subtle glow & has a soft-focus effect. Ever used the Benefit Porefessional (NOT CRUELTY FREE! But just as an example) ? Well this is like that but with lit-from-within-ness in it. The teeny tiny glitters are slightly more noticeable than the sheen of the Spotlight wand, but obviously through foundation it doesn't look glittery or chunky, only illuminated. If I'm comparing it to the CoverFX Illuminating Primer, that one is more sweaty-shiny-illuminating (in a nice way). This one is more golden-shimmer-illuminating (also in a nice way). I like this a lot to be honest. Definitely try the smaller size first if you're interested because this has lasted me AGES & was £15.
And last Charlotte Tilbury mention of this post - it's my old favourite Filmstar Bronze-and-Glow palette. This is a bronzer & highlighter palette suited to very-fair, fair & light skin. I love this to bits. It is soooo expensive but my one lasted me 5 years of regular use [not EVERY day because I try lots of bronzers, but quite regular!]. If you're very fair & feel fancy schmancy, I recommend this. The highlighter in mine has been reduced to just a couple of very gnarly makeup pebbles [you know what I mean... it's basically just pan], hence why I haven't inserted a picture of it in the palette. But as you can see from the swatch [above], it's such a beautiful, natural sheen, incredibly lightweight & natural-looking.
Above we've got the Inika Baked Mineral Illuminisor - this one isn't my fav as it's kind of chunky & the glitters are very obvious on the skin. Thought I'd mention it though as it's £33 (!!!!!!!) and I wouldn't want you to waste your money when there are better alternatives out there! Has a slight rose-tone to it, so might work for a blush topper if you're a fan of glitter.
Another pricey purchase, this is the Ilia Liquid Light Serum Highlighter in the shade Nova. It's described as a soft gold, which I can agree it certainly is. It mixes with foundation, can be used as a primer or on its own. It's pretty sheer though - it's no way near as intense as the Charlotte Tilbury Spotlight Wand. It's supposed to be skincare + highlighter in one. Glycerin is high up the ingredients list, which could maybe explain it's gel-like texture. Overall, I like it, but is it worth £38? Jury's out.
Kani Botanicals are a brand I've only tried through Petit Vour - this is their Prismatic Highlighter in Moonstone 1 and retails for $28. It's a cream highlighter - but it's not that creamy... if I'm comparing it to the Tropic Cream Highlighter in Spotlight (an old fav - I've used it over on my channel. You can check out this cringey years-old video for a demo), it's much more dry. The effect is quite cool as it has a real white-gold look to it with yellow reflects. But not sure I would purchase myself had I not received in a subscription box. Ya know?
Last but certainly not least, this highlighter trio by MUA certainly packs a punch and is the cheapest of all the glowy products in this post. It's their Light Lustre Trio Highlight and retails for just £5. You get three shades in this little palette - a bronze, a pink & a gold toned highlight. They are very pretty, very pigmented but I would say they can show up texture slightly on the cheek. Still good for the price though!
Thanks for reading folks. Lots of Love, B x
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