22 February 2013

Benefit Sun Beam Highlighter Review on Lighter Skin



Its been a while since I've blogged properly I know, we were away and now our house is full of stress because we're having our whole heating system replaced so it's been hard to find a quiet minute so sit and do some writing. But thats all pretty much over now so I'm back properly and todays post is a review that several people have asked me to post.

High Beam by Benefit is without a doubt one of the most loved highlighters on the market because it is easy to use, long lasting and flattering on almost all skin tones. The next addition to the collection was Moon Beam, another lovely, shimmering enhancer but what the collection lacked was a golden bronze highlighter and that is where Sun Beam comes in.



Sun Beam is the latest of the "beam" collection and is designed to flatter darker skin tones, olive shades and to  give a gorgeous summer glow. Now, being fairly pale, Sun Beam wasn't really created to be for my skin tone but I thought it was worth a trial and if not suitable, I could just use it as a cream eye shadow, BUT joy of joys, with the right makeup, this looks gorgeous even on fairly fair tones.


The applicator is the same as with the other Benefit highlighters which is oh so good for dotting the product in arches around the eye, along cheek bones or for a little sweep along shoulder bones. Because the product is fairly rich in colour as well as thick and creamy, you only need a small amount per use so this bottle lasts a looong time, I literally only use three dots on each side of my face per use so thats hardly anything making the  £18.50 price tag, which may at first seem a little steep, a whole lot more reasonable.

The swatch on my hand is one quick sweep with the brush. As you can see, the product is a lovely copper toned bronze that has a shimmer running through it. Now, I took this photo in Tenerife when my hand was a little tanned and at this point I think it had just about become a good colour match, so during the winter I wouldn't usually be able to wear this on my fair skin (I'm always the lightest foundation shades so I really am light) but as the weather warms up and my skin naturally tans a bit it becomes ok for me. My advice when it comes to skin tones it to, of course pop in and visit your nearest Benefit counter to swatch, but probably avoid if you are super pale and don't tend to tan at all. If like me, you tan easily, I would really recommend even on english rose tones for the summer as it gives such a warm, pretty glow and I think makes me look less "pasty".
My super heavy swatch from the 3rd photo left me with quite a yellow looking effect even when blended in but I had to show you how beautifully Sun Beam catches the light of the sun. It really does light up. On cheeks it gives you a lovely fresh glow and really enhances a tan. In Tenerife I wore this with Soap and Glory Solar Powder and Nars Orgasm Blush for a warm flush of summer colour.

So, my over all verdict? Yes Sun Beam can make a gorgeous highlighter, even on fairer tones, but I think that for it to work you need to have warm base tones to the skin and perhaps wait for the sunshine to come out before popping it on, paired with a little bronzer and a smoldering blush. Try before you buy fellow english roses :)

What do you think of Benefit Sun Beam? Have you tried it? How does it match up to your skin tone? What do you wear it with?
Annie x

8 comments:

  1. I really like this product, even though I always thought it looked horrid on my tanned skin. Thanks for the review! x

    www.justshazea.blogspot.com

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    1. Really? I can't imagine it looking bad on tanned skin. Did it clash tones or something? Xx

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  2. I am too pale for this, but I am a BeneFit fan xx

    http://beautyqueenuk.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. I thought I'd be too pale too but I was really surprised so it's worth a try :) xx

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  3. Haven't tried this one but I have tried the lighter creamy pink one which is really nice and also moon beam which I like xxx

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    1. High Beam which is the creamy pink one is gorgeous, I think thats my favourite of the three xx

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  4. I bought the sun beam in November to use it this summer. I wanted to know if I could still use it or not. I have pale skin.

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  5. I bought the sun beam in November to use it this summer. I wanted to know if I could still use it or not. I have pale skin.

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