Laura Geller Ballerina is technically a highlighter, but it is a little more of a highlighting blush on me… might not count. For a true highlighter, Laura Mercier 01 Matte Radiance!
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I don’t always wear highlighter. It depends on how effective I have been at covering my hyperpigmentation that seems to only exist on the top of my cheeks. When I do use highlighter I usually use Becca Pearl and I have it in powder, liquid and cream form. It is pale enough for my very pale complexion.
I have so many highlighters that I rarely wear the same one often. I’ll say the ABH Moonchild Glow Kit. Because of the color variety it’s easy to incorporate it with many looks.I sometimes use it with other highlighters. I like the pink on my cupids bow . I’m really surprised that I use it so much.
Same one here, Christine! Although in my case I have a tie going on between Laura Mercier Matte Radiance 01 and MAC OtherEarthly MSF. I love them both a great deal.
Didn’t put CP Butterfly Beach, because I generally use it mostly during our warmer season.
Dior Glowing Gardens – 001 Gmowing Pink,, although this is slowly being replaced with MAC tutu from the sweet peach face compact!
Hourglass Luminous Light – it’s so natural, buildable and doesn’t emphasize texture at all. Used it regularly for almost 3 years and no sign of pan!
Lorac Daylight & MAC Lightscapade. Both are a “perfect” match for my complexion
Kevyn Aucoin Starlight!
I’ve been mainly using Becca Rose Gold for night and Wet n Wild Sand-Gria Castles for day.
They both give a hint of flattering color on my skin, and they give the perfect amount of shine and glow. The Rose Gold has a heavier metallic sheen, so I prefer it for night. Sand-Gria Castles gives a softer, more diffused glow, so it’s perfect for day. They also are pretty complimentary to one another, and are perfect to layer. Sometimes, I will use the Sand-Gria Castles as a sort of base, and then touch up the very tippy tops of my cheekbones, the bridge of my nose, a bit of my forehead, and my cupid’s bow with the Rose Gold, just to give my highlight a bit more of a high-def, multi-dimensional look.
I’ll sadly need to bench them soon though, so I can start experimenting with my other highlighters.
Ah, I have so many but my favourite would have to be Colourpop Dream Catcher. I’m sad I didn’t get a back up before it was discontinued but then, I have SO MANY 🙂
Becca Jaclyn Hill Champagne Pop
I own many highlighters, but this is my favorite. It’s a powder but feels creamy. Blends so well. Buildable. And for my skin tone, the color is just perfect golden peachy.
Becca Pearl (in the powdered version) and UD Aura pretty equally. Now that I’ve got the Estee Edit Gritty & Glow palette, I do want to try using the highlighters in that one more but it’s hard to put aside my 2 favourites – I like them both so much.
Not really a highlighter, but it is for me…WnW’s Reserve Your Cabana Bronzer.
That is such a good one – I don’t get why WnW calls it a bronzer it’s totally a highlight!
I’m pale enough I wear it as a bronzer.
It’s a highlighter for me too!
I found it! I found it! I finally have a highlighter that I use and love.
I have written here before about my love/hate/confusion about highlighters. The glimmer-shimmer deal just doesn’t work for me. It doesn’t fit in my workplace, the shimmer really calls attention to my eye troughs and ages me, and for the most part I think it looks super fake and not attractive on me. I have tried Champagne Pop, Proseco Pop, Rose Quartz, Hourglass, various highlighters in contour kits — no go.
Then I found….get ready for it… MicroSmooth Baked Sculpting Contour Trio by…the Sephora Collection. Who would thunk? I bought the trio in Sultry on a flyer, thinking I would like the tones of the contour and blush colors. They’re OK, but the highlighter?! That’s what I’m talking about! That little white triangle in the compact is what I have been looking for. It’s a lovely sheen that really *highlights* without overpowering. I just love it, and use it daily.
As an aside — that Sephora collection is beginning to turn my head. The quality is there, and the products and selection is quite good. Just bought a baked blush and pencil yesterday, and will report back.
Me too! I hope you try one of the Sephora gel lip liners – I think they are some of the best on the market.
I’ll have to try one of their highlighters – they must be good – my store never seem to have any in stock.
I will! Thanks for the tip!
Check back in about the highlighters when you get one. I’m crazy about this one. The sheen is just what I’ve been searching (and searching) for.
Laura Geller Gilded Honey
MAC Lightscapade or Benefit High Beam are always my go to fool proof highlighters for me. I recently have been using NARS Tribulation blush. It is a blush or a highlighting blush but it is just highlighter on me. And I finally got my hands on Essence’s Pure Nude Highlighter in Be My Highlight… so nice!
For the first part of the year I used Stila Kitten eyeshadow as a high light and now more recently I’ve been using Benefit Sunbeam
CoverFx custom enhancing drops in celestial for a dramatic highlight and Laura Mercier Matt Radiance 01 for more casual highlight!
I have made a concerted effort to use up my liquid highlighters, so Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector in Moonstone and Opal.
Ilia stick in the colour, Cosmic Dancer, RMS Living Luminizer as well as Kjear Weis’ Radiance. All organic alternatives. And thank goodness that Sephora is beginning to carry a couple of these brands (Ilia, RMS….yay!!)
Bobbi Brown’s Telluride.
It’s been a mix of Beca Pearl and Moonstone for me. But I’m hoping I can get Makeup Geeks to replace them in the future. 😉
I still want to get Laura Mercier 01 Matte Radiance though i hope in a mini version because it’s over $60CAN with tax. >_<
A golden oldie: MAC’s Soft and Gentle. And a KIKO eyeshadow in the shade Pearly Salmon, makes such a pretty everyday highlighter.
MAC Pearl Blossom most days ❤️.
Nars highlighters. Particularly the pinks and golds.
I’ve only put a toe in this trend: I picked up Hourglass Diffused Light this year. Pretty mild in terms of shimmer or highlight effect, but I do like it.
BECCA Topaz, Champagne Pop, Rose Gold…anything BECCA
Becca Champagne Pop!
Opaline Illuminating Powder in “Lustra” by Aromaleigh. It’s yellow, light, bright, and creates a smooth, perfect, subtle glow with no sparkly bits or obvious shimmer. Everything I always wanted a highlighter to be.
Not a big highlighter person but my go to has been RMS Living Luminizer – it’s easy to use, not frosty and definitely gives my skin that luminescent glow.
Wet n Wild Reserve Your Cabana. But the past month it’s been exclusively Essence Be My Highlight!
Becca SSP Pearl!
Hourglass Incandescent is my most-used, always reliable. I’ve been having a lot of fun with the ABH Moonchild palette recently, but I think I like it as much for topping off/lightening up eyeshadows as I do for highlighting — I have to use a *very* light hand with these shades (my Wayne Goss #14 brush works the best for this!).
Essence Apricotta eyeshadow. Y’all, this shadow formula makes for incredible highlighters. They’re velvety soft with intense pigmentation and give a beautiful sheen to the skin. Their shades Grammy Goes Glammy and Snowflake also make perfect highlights but Apricotta blends seamlessly in with my skin tone and catches the light like a dream.
Physician’s Formula Glow Pearls in translucent. You need to work off that horrible over spray first though, ; once it’s gone its the perfect microshimmery highlight.
I wont shut up about it, but Sephora Brand Baked luminizor in 01 Star dust I think the name is.
It’s a yellow gold, super glowy highlight!!
I prefer it in the summer over coral blushes!!! But it’s still beautiful in the winter.
I’v finished a whole pan of this highlight!!!
That’s a tough question: in the beginning of the year, I only had one that I used regularly, theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer. Then I bought a Lancome Glow Subtil that I used a lot the rest of the year. But I also got the Becca Champagne face palette and I’ve used Champagne Pop in there a lot too. So at the end of the year all 3 were probably used nearly as much!
I have to pick a few- Becca champagne pop, laura geller gilded honey, mac whisper of gilt, and the balm mary lou manizer haha.
Urban Decay Afterglow Highlighter in Aura, a pale iridescent pink
Becca Moonstone for me. Used to be Nars Albatross and then I loved Becca Opal but when I got a sample of Moonstone, I liked it even better on my skin. I had a hard time finding it in stores and ended up ordering online and now I use it every day.
I also use Nars Hot Sand Illuminator and sometimes Benefit’s Watt’s Up. I like to glow!
MAC. Lighscapades
I typically don’t like a strong highlight on my textured skin – so this one is perfect for me
Tom Ford Moonlight. The Ford company did an amazing customer service replacement for me recently that really exceeded my expectations, I didn’t have a receipt and they sent me a new product within a week, no questions asked just because I sent a nice letter with a photo of my defective product. I’ve never had service like that before, and quite frankly, I’m now a Ford first client. That decency is hard to come by these days!
Moodlight is my most used as well. I love it for a nice soft highlight. Eyond that, it’s a tie between my CdP luminizer in Almond and my Armani liquid highlight in #2
Becca moonstone! I only own a few highlighters, but I haven’t been tempted to buy any more because I like this one so much. I’ve been using their Afterglow palette, but figured I better buy the mini moonstone duo before it’s gone.
Me too! I love mine!
Hmmm . . .it’s a toss up between MAC Soft & Gentle, Laura Mercier Matte Radiance 01, Becca Opal and Kevyn Aucoin (from that “book”). Lately though I’ve been using Whisper of Gilt and Tutu from the MAC cheek palettes. I remember when I had 1 highlighter a year ago! I can still think of 3 or 4 others that I rotate in also. That is a lot for me – I used to just be an eyes and lips girl, didn’t know what to do with cheeks so just left them bare. Now it’s almost like doing my eyes with the blush, bronzer, highlighter! Not complaining because I love building a look and all that, but just didn’t realize that I had my own little mini hoard (for me) of highlighters.
I do switch around, but my most used are e.l.f. Baked Highlighter in Moonlight Pearls, Notoriously Morbid Highlighter in Osteomancy, City Color Cosmetics Intense Exposure Highlighting Powder, e.l.f. Studio Blush in Gotta Glow, and The Balm Mary-Lou Manizer.
I have tried many highlighters but the very best for my dry skin is RMS Beauty Living Luminizer. It doesn’t emphasise pores or fine lines and gives a very natural reflective glow.
My mature and uneven skin doesn’t like strong highlight so I use most of the time It Cosmetics Live, Love, Laugh. Enough to give à natural healthy glow.
I only wear highlighter occasionally – I use the Balm’s Mary Lou Manizer. It is the perfect shade for me.
The Balm : Betty Lou
I think highlights on others can be very pretty, but I don’t use them unless they happen to be a part of the blush I use.
Nars liquid illuminators in Copacabana, Org*sm, and Hot Sand.
I really like ABH Glow Kit in That Glow. Natural and gives me just the right amount of glow. Plus I like the different shades so I highlight depending on my mood.
Too Faced Candlelight Glow Highlighting Powder Duo. This is actually my second compact of the stuff. The first lasted about two years. Love the stuff.
I was stumped at first because I’ve gotten so many new ones this year. So I went thru & picked out the 3 that have been worn the most. In no particular order:
1. MAC pink buttercream (beauty powder)
2. BECCA shimmering skin perfector poured
In pearl
3. BECCA shimmering skin perfector pressed
In Rose Quartz
Becca shimmering highlighter poured in opal
Well, I am in the minority here, I only have one in my stash. It’s it cosmetics Hello Light Crème Illuminator I gives a ‘lit from within’ look that I didn’t get from Champagne Pop.
Believe or not my go to has been Mac’s Gold Deposit. It just pops on my skin and I’m an NC50.
Becca poured Moonstone – I love it!!
CT Filmstar Bronze & Glow!
MAC Lightscapade and theBalm Mary-Lou Manizer. That will change a bit, since I got Whisper of Gilt now, I will sure be using it quite often.
Highlighters, yaas! My holy grail have been two. One in the pinky/golden family, and one in the gold. They are Bobbi Brown Highlighting Powder in Pink Glow; and MUFE Pro Light Fusion Highlighter in #2 Golden.
After about a year of trial and error, buy and return, buy and suck-it-up, I finally found what I was looking for in these. They are metallic in finish (as opposed to glitter or shimmer). They need to be buffed in a bit w/ a dense brush, as opposed to stippled, or dusted on w/ a fan brush to get a light to intense metallic glow. Think same as you would do if they were baked formulations (which they’re absolutely not, I just mean in terms of nailing the metallic effect instead of shimmer, etc). I love this. They both photograph beautifully, and both are insanely amazing formulations that last all day.
I’ll have a Cosmo from WetnWild! Is pink and beautiful! Recently purchased Sangria Castles and am living it more than Bozzy Bunch. Precious Petals, Queen of my Canopy. Both gorgeous also! Revlon the pink and the bronze strips and Physucuans Formula Waikiki.
I prefer the WetnWild best!!❤️
Would love to get Makeup Tevilution and NARS also! Santa Please? 🙂
My absolute favorite is The Balm’s Mary Lou Manizer, but Laura Geller’s Portofino is a close second.
MAC Lightscapade! It has such a beautifull glow!
Oh Darling by Mac
Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Moonstone. It’s a very nice highlighter, but I have yet to find a highlight that I am truly in love with.
I like Hourglass Dim Light Ambient Lighting Powder. Nor really a highlight, but it gives me a subtle glow on my textured skin and doesn’t make my oily skin look oiler.
Probably essence pure nude highlight. or colourpop’s puppy love as a highlight. or lunch money. those three, mainly!
Definitely the large center shade in the KVD Monarch palette! I use it all the time because I don’t really own any powder highlighters that are marketed for highlighting. I have some ColourPop ones, but they’re a bit harder to work with, so I just grab the Monarch palette and use that one shade.
Jose Marin pressed highlighter and Bobbi Brown shimmer brick in beige