Guerlain Precious Light Rejuvenating Illuminator

Highlighters and illuminators have been my face-savers for years. When it comes to that permanent feature of my face known as black under-eye circles (I'm pretty sure I was born with them), concealers don't do me any favors. If I'm lucky they just look ashy and weird. At their worst, they also cake and make the area dry.

At the beginning there was the classic YSL Touche Eclat. Other brands have caught on and started making similar products- light-reflecting liquids in elegant pens with a little brush. They brighten and they lighten without trying to cover anything- just make the face a little less zombie-like.

Ive been using Guerlain Precious Light Rejuvenating Illuminator for over a month now and it's been my constant companion no matter which foundation or primer I'm applying as a base. A light touch of the Illuminator, a little blending with my pinky and I look alive again. At the advise of Pamela Morgan, Guerlain's national makeup artist, I'm using the lightest one, Light 00. It's not yellow, pink or white- it's just a natural light beige that melts into the skin and looks like it has always been there.

The built-in brush of Guerlain's Illuminator seems to be a little softer or more pliable than the one in Touche Eclat. Maybe I'm fantasizing this, it's hard to tell, but when applying the YSL highlighter I've always needed to use a soft concealer brush that felt better on my skin and blended it more evenly. I don't bother with a second brush in Guerlain's case. Another advantage in my case is the color. While the YSL SAs and I had a hard time deciding which shade works best on me, the Light 00 is absolutely perfect.

The product also promises to be full of good-for-you ingredients like myrrh oil and peptides. I can't say there is any improvement in the state o'my skin, but there's never any dryness or tightness, which is all one could ask for.

Guerlain Precious Light Rejuvenating Illuminator ($48) is available at select department store. I received it from the company's PR team.

All photos are mine.

Edward Bess All Over Seduction Cream Highlighter (Sunlight)

Highlighters require caution. When applied right they give you a subtle glow exactly where needed. Used irresponsibly they can make one look like a disco ball. Up until now I've always used powder highlighters because of the level of control they allow and the option to blend them with a finishing powder. But the SA at the Bergdorf Goodman Edward Bess counter showed me what their creamy All Over Seduction can do and how she blends it over or under other makeup items. The results were impressive and I was sold.

Sunlight is an almost sheer cream shimmer in a neutral shade. It doesn't add any noticeable color to my skin, which is exactly how I prefer it. It's subtle enough so I don't end up looking like I've raided Paris Hilton's makeup bag, but still packs enough glow. My preferred use for it is under a matte eye shadow and/or a demure blush. I also like a tiny dab in the inner corner of the eye when going out at night.

I use either my finger or a synthetic cream blush brush to apply the highlighter. The texture is featherlight and silky and I've had no issue with goop, gunk or clogged pores. All Over Seduction blends easily, is never sticky and doesn't make me look like overdone.

Bottom line: While a highlighter is not exactly an essential, if you are in the market for one it's hard to get any better than this.

Edward Bess All Over Seduction Cream Highlighter ($38) is available at Bergdorf Goodman (in store only), where I bought it and online from edwardbess.com.

All photos by me with the help of Kosh, a curious and determined orange tabby.

YSL Touche Eclat and Chanel Stylo Eclat Lumiere

YSL Touche Eclat has been around forever. I still remember many years ago when my mom bought this miracle pen for the first time. The concept of a concealer-highlighter was quite revolutionary and for a while YSL was more or less alone in this arena. I can't be sure, but the formula has probably changed and improved over the years. They have added several shades, which helps a lot, though my last visit to the Yves Saint Laurent counter at Saks found three SAs peering over my face trying to determine my undertone. It went something like this:
SA 1: "well, you're not pink. Do you have blue undertone?"
SA2: "No, she's not blue. You're not blue, Dear"
SA3: "Maybe yellow? I don't know"
SA1: "Green! What goes with green?"

Thus I was officially diagnosed as a Martian.

The chosen Touche Eclat shade, by the way, was No. 2. I use it as a highlighter and blend it with a soft concealer brush under my eyes and often apply a tiny amount above my upper lip to enhance the Cupid's bow. But Touche Eclat is not really a concealer, and at times I want something just as light, with the same texture, but also a little coverage. I've tried several products at various makeup counters and ended up with Chanel's Eclat Lumiere. It's actually labeled a highlighter as well, but testing and side-by-side comparing has shown that it gives me just a bit more coverage where I need it, like around the nose. I use Medium, No.35, which is a good match and slightly darker than my Touche Eclat. I couldn't take a decent photo that shows the shades and the difference, so the picture above is all you get, together with the recommendation to try both and see what works for you. And use a real brush when blending. Both pens have an applicator with plastic bristles that aren't good enough for the delicate blending task.

YSL Touche Eclat and Chanel Stylo Eclat Lumiere (both sell for $40) are available from most decent department stores and the companies' websites. I usually buy them at Saks or Bergdorf.

Photo by me.

Fleurs Célestes de Chanel Natural Finish Face Highlighter

Some products have such beautiful presentation it makes one hesitate before dipping a brush and actually using them. Fleurs Célestes de Chanel Natural Finish Face Highlighter is a good example. You just want to keep staring at the colors and the embossed pattern and admire them.



Fleurs Célestes de Chanel is a hybrid is a limited edition finishing powder and highlighter from Chanel's fall 2009 Symphonie Blanche, a collection with a shimmery white theme (there's also an eye shadow quad that looks a bit too transparent for me and a white nail polish). The compact includes three colors- the white shimmery highlighter, a warm pink and a very light bronze. By swiping a powder brush (there's one included with the compact in its own velvet pouch, but I usually prefer a round, full-headed brush for a lighter application), you can determine how much of each color would be applied. The shades combine well and the powder has just enough warm pigment to avoid a chalky look. The shimmer makes it ideal for a glamorous evening look, and you are also supposed to apply some to your décolleté, but I prefer my cleavage to look natural and not twinkle with a pearly shimmer. I'm weird like that.

Fleurs Célestes de Chanel is still available from most Chanel counters at the better department stores, though it seems to be sold out online.

Chanel Facettes D'Or Powder And All that glitters (Part 1)

A few months ago, when Chanel first introduced their fall 2008 golden collection, I fell in love with it: from the obscenely expensive nail polish to the ambery Glossimer that adds shine and depth to several of my old lipsticks. I wasn't too sure about the golden powder, mostly because I'm not into elaborate highlighting makeup, and couldn't see why I'd need it. But the promise of a "candle-lit, glowing from within" look was just too good to pass, and this was one product I didn't already have in my stash.

Opening the compact and dipping a brush, I got scared of the little golden flecks. They looked too glitter-like for comfort. I don't know about you, but my clubbing day are long behind me and I just can't see myself applying shiny little particles to my face, highlighting or not. But I braved the powder and gave it a try. At first there was definitely glitter. Then I could almost see how the product would melt into the skin, leaving behind a very faint glow. It's much more finely milled than you'd expect from looking at the pressed mound.

The result is a very faint glow, nothing dramatic. The golden particles mostly disappear into the skin, and I can't say I like the idea of them sitting in my pores. It's not the best finishing powder I've ever seen, but it's decent. Not $50 decent, though. It also has a distinct gold/yellow tint that I don't mind, but might not work on the cool-toned.

Personally, I wear it to add something extra to an evening look, but wouldn't attempt it for day, because there's still just enough gold there to make it questionable. Not so much because of age, it's just that I'm not sure that tiny gold flecks were meant to appear for a Sunday brunch or at the office. I'd probably avoid this powder altogether if I had visible wrinkles, since I'd worry about the tiny flecks settling in them, but other than that, this is one of those subtle shimmers that are mostly ageless. It's just not that exciting.

Part 2 will include several other age-appropriate options to add a little shine to our looks.

Chanel Facette D'Or highlighting powder ($50) is a limited edition for fall 2008. Most Chanel Counters still have it in stock. It's available online from Nordstrom.com. I bought mine at my local Saks.

"And it was all yellow"

As a latecomer to the "stuff you put on your eyes before makeup" scene, I haven't tried Lemon-Aid from Benefit Cosmetics until recently. This isn't exactly a primer, nor is it a concealer, which is why expectations should not include eliminating dark circles or making makeup last longer. What this product does is take care of red and purple discoloration of the eyelids. It isn't supposed to be used on the under-eye area and doesn't provide coverage or any de-puffing action.

Lemon-Aid is a light yellow cream that has a somewhat waxy textures. It needs to melt a little before patting it on the skin. I know that for some people the texture makes it a bit difficult to use, but I had no problem with application. The tiniest amount is enough to do the promised trick and get rid of the redness. I wouldn't go as far as to say that you don't need eye makeup when wearing it, at least not in my case, because of my naturally dark eyelids, but it provides a good starting point for makeup application, especially for light colors that I sometimes have a problem making them show.

In this sense, it does work the way you'd expect from a primer: Easier application, you need less because shadows spread more evenly and looks better. However, unlike the wonderful Urban Decay eye primer that is a cream-to-powder formula, this waxy product is all cream, which means that sooner or later (two hours in my case) you start seeing creasing, and the makeup doesn't last as long as it should. I tested it with several Dior eye shadows as well as with the Bourjois I reviewed a few days ago. All are very high quality, so the blame isn't on them. Lemon-Aid is just not a primer, and can't be expected to perform like one.

It can be used in combination with a real primer. The question is: Why? I'm as high maintenance as the next beauty blogger, but I don't like loading up my face with layers of products. This is actually why I resisted the primer revolution for as long as I did. I'd rather not use two primers where one is sufficient. Then again, I don't have that big of a problem to cover.
I'd still use Lemon-Aid when I don't need my makeup to hold for a full day and I'm trying to keep things light, but it isn't a must-have as far as I'm concerned.