These days, there are so many liquid highlighters that I find I prefer liquid over cream as I think they blend out a little more readily on top of base products.
— Christine
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I only have a few cream highlighters and use them infrequently. I find that they disturb my base more readily than a powder or liquid highlighter. I have a couple of stick highlighters and they perform similarly to the cream highlighters and if I try to swipe them on my skin, the suggested method of application, they displace my foundation. I have tried using them under foundation and they really don’t show up at all. I have found a way to make them work by putting them on the back of my hand, using a stippling brush that is not densely packed and then applying to the skin. They can provide an intense highlight and when a powder is layered on top you can see the highlight in space but not worth the effort most of the time, for me.
I love how beautiful and natural they look on the skin, but on the downside, they’re tacky and can move around a lot. I tend to like liquid highlights a little better (as long as they’re not too metallic) because there is a dry down.
I think it all depends on my base, and if I decide to set my base with powder. If I’m using MAC Face & Body or a TM/BB Cream, then I’ll typically go with a cream/liquid highlighter. A full-coverage and/or matte foundation is something I’ll pair with a powder. I have so many in all formulas, and I often just like to experiment…
My issue is also with the whole blending process. I really liked Benefit’s Watt’s Up but found that it sort of peeled off my foundation when I would try to blend it out.
Other than those made my ColourPop, plus one I own from a MAC collection of awhile ago, cream highlighters just don’t work that well on me. Mainly because I have rather large pores and slowly increasing texture from fine lines that cream highlighters just seem to emphasize.
I prefer powder or liquid highlighter, myself.
I like them as long as they’re not too emollient or greasy, in which case they won’t stay on my oily skin. But they usually work OK for me. I prefer powder, though.
For me cream products stop at foundation and concealer. I prefer powder formulas for blush, contour, bronzer, highlighter, eyeshadow; I personally cannot make cream product work on my skin.
I used to love the cream highlighters from MAC, but I haven’t used them in ages! With my oily skin, I tend to always use a powder highlighter!
I love how they look, but only over bare skin. When I don’t have tine for a full face, I’ll dot on concealer and add some cream highlighter on my cheeks. Otherwise, they tend to disturb my base when powdered, or lift up my base when unpowdered.
I use a beauty blender with these. If I use anything else, it sinks right into my pores and I end up with colored dots on my face. I love how natural it looks, but on me it becomes real tricky.
I only have one and it’s dark ( Becca rose gold) so I use as a blush but I just got the Natasha Denona palette at the vib sale and just saw a video today how she used a beauty blender to apply the cream.. I don’t have a feathery brush for layering the powder over the top tho.
Unless you count the Colourpop I usually use my fingers for them but a beauty blender with them is intense. Colourpop seems more like a powder hybrid.
I don’t use cream highlighters because I don’t think I could apply them properly and end up looking like a clown.
Love a lot of them. Also love liquids. I think both are more forgiving on dry skin than powder highlighters (in general, there are plenty of duds out there though)
I don’t use cream highlighters because I use powder foundations.