Essence Pure Nude Highlighter Review & Swatches

The best $4.49 I've spent in quite a while was on the new Essence Pure Nude Highlighter. I picked it up during a recent Ulta haul as an impulse buy..I wasn't expecting much but figured it would be fun to try, especially since it was so inexpensive. I just didn't expect it to be so beautiful!

Let's take a look...

The Essence Pure Nude Highlighter comes in one shade called Be My Highlight. It's a baked formula that claims to be ultrasmooth (so true!). Packaging-wise, it's nothing too special...there's no mirror, no applicator. It's pretty simple and the compact it comes in is sturdy enough. Honestly, it's what's inside that counts here, people!

When I first got this home, I was a little disappointed that it didn't look "shiny" enough to be a highlighter. It looked more satin-finish, like a face powder would be. Turns out, when you apply it to your face, it has the perfect amount of sheen to it. It's not an in-your-face highlight and it doesn't have visible shimmer particles. But when you dip your brush into this ultra-smooth powder and smooth it across your cheekbones, it just lights them up with the most beautiful, natural-looking glow. 

These photos will never do this highlighter justice...heck, swatching doesn't even do it justice. I have the worst time trying to photograph highlighters...they just never come out looking like they should! But trust me when I say this goes on SO beautifully. It's very close to my skin tone which is usually the kiss of death for me because they don't show up. I'm always trying to find highlighters that are lighter than my skin to make them pop (not an easy task since I'm so pale) but in this case, I like that it blends in because all you see is the sheen from it, rather than the product itself. Basically, my skin just looks like it's glowing.

Here, I wanted to compare the color to some other popular highlighters so you can get a feel for what it looks like. It does have a little bit of pink in it and also some gold. It's not as pink as Wet n Wild's Precious Petals, and is just a little more golden (and less peachy) than Becca's Champagne Pop although it's pretty close to that (with less shimmer). It leans more golden than Becca's Opal but not as pure gold as The Balm's Mary Lou-Manizer since it does have that little bit of pink to it.

Overall, this is one highlighter that is not to be missed! It's less than $5 and the baked formula is so silky smooth with great pigmentation. If you love a more natural highlight, you'll LOVE Essence Pure Nude.

Grab yours now at Ulta.com

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Beauty Bargain: Essence Lip Liners Review and Swatches

I rarely get to go to Ulta since the closest store is a 45 minute drive for me, but the other day I decided to make the trip. I needed some lip liners and spotted these Essence ones for only $1.49, so I picked up a few. I admit I wasn't expecting too much from such an inexpensive lip liner, but these are actually quite awesome...take a look!

These liners are the wooden pencil kind that have to be sharpened. I usually stay away from this type because they're usually dry and tug on my lips when I go to apply them. But these are surprisingly creamy and soft! I lined and filled in my lips and just wore these as lipstick with a dab of lip balm on top. If your lips aren't super dry like mine, you may not even need the lip balm.
The colors I got are Cute Pink and Satin Mauve. I like them both but Satin Mauve is my favorite. Lately I've been really drawn to mauve-y type shades...I find that they're still natural looking but don't wash me out like nudes do.

Cute Pink, Satin Mauve

Here they are on my lips.  They have great wear time since they're liners, but I did have to reapply my lip balm once during the day.

Overall, these are a great budget find!  I really want to pick up some more shades now...but I'll have to wait until my next Ulta trip (or online haul).

You can purchase these for $1.49 at Ulta.com

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