Prime, Glow, Glitter

All right, let's finish up with the last of the recently purchased products.

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base

Rating: 7/10

The only reason I bought this was because pre-Christmas, Bobbi Brown were having a free full size highlighter with $80 purchase. On top of that, American Express had a $20 cashback offer on purchases of $80 or more on the Bobbi Brown website. So basically, I could get two full size products worth $165 for $65.

I picked the Vitamin Enriched Face Base as I couldn't bring myself to buy more makeup, and reviews online were generally positive. I'd seen it featured in a few YouTube videos as well, but ordinarily would never bring myself to pay $85 for a moisturiser/primer. I do enjoy the citrus scent and the packaging is suitably luxe (though the jar is now plastic rather than glass), but in terms of texture and performance, it leaves me underwhelmed. It's quite thick and while not greasy, sits on the heavier side of creams. I don't notice it doing anything in terms of improving the application or wear of my foundation. I prefer more serum-like/liquid, lighter-textured products for priming, like Eve Lom Flawless Radiance Primer or the Too Faced Hangover Primer, which help meld the foundation and produce a translucent luminosity to the skin. The Vitamin Enriched Face Base reminds me more of a thicker night cream than a daytime moisturiser that doubles as a primer. A little bit does go a long way, so even with regular use, the jar should last a while.

Bobbi Brown Highlighting Powder in Afternoon Glow

Rating: 8/10

This was the free product that I selected with my Vitamin Enriched Face Base. I've always been curious about Bobbi Brown highlighters, but they're so eyewateringly expensive that they never seemed worth the money. Afternoon Glow is a beautiful, ethereal pink highlighter that appears to have a white pearl sheen on the skin. The way it sits on the skin is a testament to its quality, in that you can't detect product sitting on the skin and it doesn't emphasise texture or appear dry and chunky at the end of the day. The texture is similar to MAC Extra Dimension Skinfinish, Anastasia Beverly Hills Amrezy highlighter or Laura Mercier Face Illuminator, in that it's not super creamy or densely pigmented (like Becca Shimmering Skin Perfectors, theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer, ABH Sun Dipped/Sugar Glow Kits), but more on the drier side with no fallout. I have tried it with numerous brushes and I like Real Techniques Setting Brush best for more precise placement, and Real Techniques Blush Brush for a more seamless, all over glow. If using the Blush Brush, I prefer to apply highlighter before blush, so I can blend my blush into my highlighter with less obvious demarcation between the two.

Marc Jacobs See-quins Glam Glitter Eyeshadow in Topaz Flash

Rating: 10/10

I basically never buy single shadows, especially those that cost $36 a pop, but when I saw these featured on Instagram and in YouTube videos, I knew they were something special. I literally have nothing to complain about when it comes to this elegant glittergasm of an eyeshadow. It is simply perfection. The multicoloured glitters are everything, it's so festively sparkly, there is no pesky fallout, it's easy to apply with the fingers, it glimmers all day and all night. Limited edition for the holiday — I would advise checking these out if you haven't already ASAP.