Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick Review, Photos, Swatches
Island Plum
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick ($36.00 for 0.31 oz.) is a medium-dark plum with subtle, warm undertones and fine, cooler pink and warmer gold pearl. This was one of the more visible shades in the range, though it still had sheerer coverage (semi-sheer) that wasn’t buildable but didn’t sheer out to nothingness when blended either. I did find the more noticeable color to be harder to even out on bare skin, though.
It’s supposed to be a “creamy, lightweight highlighter” with “sheer” coverage that gives “an instant, sun-kissed glow that lasts all day.” It had a very slick, emollient consistency that never dried down, so it moved and migrated on the skin, and it also caught any flyaway hairs (or dog hair, in my case). The blush had a glowing finish on the skin but little wear time–three hours–and did not play well with products (primers, cream/powder/liquid foundations or blushes).
FURTHER READING: Formula Overview for details on general performance and characteristics (like scent).
Top Dupes
- MAC Love Thing (P, $29.00) is more shimmery, more pigmented (90% similar).
- Tom Ford Beauty Sublimate (Shade) (LE, ) is less shimmery (90% similar).
- Bobbi Brown Desert Sun (P, $36.00) is lighter, cooler (90% similar).
- Tom Ford Beauty Courchevel (Blush) (LE, ) is more shimmery, darker, cooler (90% similar).
- Hourglass Euphoric Fusion (P, $38.00) is less shimmery, lighter, less glossy (90% similar).
- NYX Apricot (P, $15.00) is darker, brighter, more pigmented (85% similar).
- Glossier Storm (P, $18.00) is darker, brighter (85% similar).
- NARS Realm of the Senses #2 (LE, $30.00) is darker, more pigmented, warmer (85% similar).
- Merit Mood (P, $28.00) is less shimmery, lighter, cooler (85% similar).
- Urban Decay Double Take (DC, $26.00) is lighter, less glossy (85% similar).
Formula Overview
$36.00/0.31 oz. - $116.13 Per Ounce
It’s supposed to be a “creamy, lightweight highlighter” with “sheer” coverage that gives “an instant, sun-kissed glow that lasts all day.” The formula was very emollient with a lot of slip and wetness; it never dried down and always felt slick on the skin. All of the shades I tried were sheer, and they were not buildable, so several shades ended up looking very similar on my skin tone (but may look more or less different on other skin tones/undertones). The emollient feel of the formula did not play well with products (primers, cream/powder/liquid foundations or blushes).
Browse all of our Bobbi Brown Glow Stick swatches.
Island Plum
PPermanent. $36.00.
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick
Bobbi Brown Island Plum Glow Stick
It looks nice on the cheeks, like a stain, but it’s a no go if it never dries down. I’ll just look at the dupes.
I don’t want to imagine what else could get stuck on my cheeks besides flyaway hair lol.
The lack of dry down totally makes this product impossible for me to wear 🙁
Dog hair in products! Don’t you just hate that? Long soft ones itch your whole face. Short ones get almost imbedded. And wiry ones prick. And this could have been my Plum Island blush….lived there. Not really sure I’m disappointed, bec there are so many better options…which you always offer us. Every day less a Bobbi person.
Oh, most definitely! And there is plenty of dog hair in my household from Mellan, so there’s no shortage of encountering it, haha.
Well good thing Mellan has short hair, or you might start looking like Cousin It 😉 Given the top 2 ingredients are petroleum jelly and castor seed oil, it’s no surprise this doesn’t dry down or play well with other face products. Maybe this could be re-purposed as makeup remover 😉
The upside; at least this one has some visibility! But still. Nope, not even remotely interested in having that greasy gunk on my already oily-leaning face. The part about dog hair, though! ? My Maine Coon cat’s fur is so baby fine it floats through the air, I can only imagine how much my cheeks would collect within its super short weartime! LOL.
It’s a gorgeous shade, but obviously poorly performing. I think BB’s makeup now is not worth it.
Oh my! Nothing like dog hair in your highlighter. Or long hair in your lipgloss!
I have two fluffy dogs, so if I wore this I’d probably end up with a huge white beard!! :0
It’s this type of release that makes me shake my head at how a product with little wear time passes any quality assurance test. These Glow Sticks could have been a neat addition to BB’s line. I bought Sun Kissed (at a discount) and like it enough to use for added glow but passed on picking up other shades.
Damn, I had high hopes when I saw the color!