Benefit That Gal

Dewy. Do you ever wonder what that term means? I do. I see if in makeup ads and books all the time. I think of dew and I imagine that feeling of stepping on grass in the early morning and totally getting my shoe wet. I find that annoying. But I do get it. Dewy is supposed to mean fresh, young and radiant. I think of it more as approved oiliness.

Anyway, everyone wants that dewy look, cause we all want to look like we were born from nature, so full of life and renewal that sparkling drops of rain could fall from our fingers if we wished it so. Again, it's strategically placed shine on your face. But who am I to take the romance out of primer.

For people with dry skin, a luminizer is a really good idea. Dry skin doesn't produce enough sebum. Sebum is what makes skin shiny (or dewy if you prefer). While you, my dry skinned sisters, may moisturize from sun-up to sun-down, it's hard to get glow. While it's sad that the glow may not come on it's own, you all get tiny pores from dry skin, so I don't feel that sad about it. You can put an luminzer like Benefit's That Gal before your foundation and you'll be glowing up a storm.

It's light, pinky and smells delicous. It's a great primer and makes you look like you just had a chance encounter with a cute boy. Even those of us with oily skin can enjoy this product as it helps keep makeup from sliding off throughout the day.

Primer and luminizer. A clever combination that makes you look like you just jumped out of a nature scene, even though you've been at the office all day.

HRH

Benefit: BadGal Blue

Bear with me here for a moment. I'm about to talk about how awesome blue mascara is.

No I have not been possessed by the 80s fashion daemon. I mean, I've learned that coloured eyeliner and mascara don't actually make your eyes that colour. Like last week... (I kid, I was nine).

Here's the thing about blue mascara, or Benefit's Badgal Blue mascara, it makes the whites of your eyes brighter, makes you look away and a smidgen sexier. A smidgen.

Badgal Blue is a deep-blue-violet colour so those with darker natural lashes can actually wear it on it's own and not look like they jumped out of a Scandal video.

And those with lighter lashes and use a black or brown and add a little on the ends. It can be a helpful trick to use the day after some exuberant revelry too.

HRH

Benefit: Highbrow

You know it's scary when you google for a product and the first hit is your beauty wish list.

But I digress.

I'm going to save my rant about the importance of eyebrows. You all know by now. It's the difference between just pretty and totally together. Highlighting the area just beneath your eyebrow can really open up the eye.

You can do this with a light eyeshadow or you can get a product like Highbrow that makes it dead easy. Put a line under your brow, blend and voila! Life would be a dream if all things that easy had such a wonderful return.

HRH

Benefit: Do It Daily

An oil-free moisturizer that smells of joy and doesn't cause breakouts? It's something I'd previously believed impossible. Partly because I'd never encountered anything that pleased my skin and my senses and partly because I have this skin care martyr thing going on, so maybe I wasn't hunting as hard as I should have been.

Well what a treat for me. Only after a couple of misfires I found something perfecto. Do It Daily is a super light blend that balances out even the oiliest of skin (read: mine). I haven't tested it in winter, but it gets a summer thumbs up for sure.

One caveat: Because of some lagging Health Canada regulations to get your hands on some of this daily moisturizer with SPF 12 you'll need to make a trip to the US, or get some cosmetics mules in your employ (much like Tyla and I have) to carry the good stuff across the 49th.

HRH

Benefit: Glamazon & Jewels

There's a reason why people falling in love look so beautiful. It's the flush in their cheeks. People have known this, well, forever it seems. Which is why women have been slathering their cheeks in berries and other such things for centuries.

Aren't we lucky to live in the time that we do. A time where we can use blushes of varying kinds and consistencies. Liquid, powder, cream, matte, iridescent, bronzers, highlighters... oooh the variety.

A little while back, Benefit released it's Glamazon collection. The name alone was enough to compel me to pick some up, being the glamazon that I am. The main product, Glamazon is a liquid bronzer and you apply like you're drawing cat whiskers on your cheek and then blend, blend and blend some more. The effect is a nice glow. Not a lot of colour, but something I find perfect for a weekend natural look.

If colour is more your thing and you enjoy a splash of colour on your cheeks and lips, like it's predecessor Benetint, the Glamazon Jewels are great. I picked up Your place or vine, and while the texture left a lot of be desire on the lips, the results on the cheeks were great. I got this at a time when I was just starting to let go of my pink toned security blanket and see what this whole coral thing was all about. In the bottle it had me terrified, but once it was on, it was a megawatt glow. Who wouldn't be sold.

HRH

Benefit: Mr. Frosty

White eyeliner? When did it become 1997 again?

White eyeliner can actually be very much your friend. Using a light colour instead of dark you can make things look bigger, softer... sexier? Depends. Mr Frosty can do some wonderful things. Like if you use him on your lower lid you're that much closer to being a walking vision of a starlet in soft focus. Use him around the inner corner of your eyes and you'll be thanking him.

I know I am.

HRH

Pout: Wet Lash

Brow tamer and lash conditioner in one? Madness. This is a great product for people with dark brows that aren't as much looking for added colour as they are trying to keep everything in it's right place. A clear lash/brow conditioner like Wet Lash can do the trick for ordinary days. And it comes in an adorable turquoise tube.

When you are adding colour to your brows, it can still be used to keep everything in place, though a product like Benefit Browzings is perfectly suited to both tasks in one little compact. Either way, it's important to take care of your brows. Yes, I'm talking to you. Make an appointment for a brow wax now. No. I won't stop staring at you until you pick up the phone and make the call. Wax I tell you! Do not underestimate the effect of well groomed eyebrows.

HRH

Benefit: Bum Deal

Let's talk about buffing your bum. It's summer time, which also means its bathing suit time and unless you're one of the genetically fortunate there are bumps and lines on the areas that swimwear cruelly exposes. Things you could really do without sharing.

The Benefit wonderbod collection's Bum Deal can't hide the fact that you haven't been to the gym in months, but it can help you prepare for the sun and the pool my exfoliating and firming the flesh on your backside. It smells lovely too. I've taken to using it on me knees and elbows too. It softens the skin without causing damage and the loss of dead skin cells at least gives the appearance of things being, well, a little firmer and brighter.

HRH

Benefit: Lyin' Eyes

The end of Emperor Eyes?

I recently picked up this product, in the hope that it would help conceal the horrible, red under-eye circles I get when my allergies act up. Redness leads to itching, itching leads to scratching and scratching leads to suffering. Suffering in the name of dry, peeling skin. Ew. Dry eyes is a new thing for me, so the cream concealer I usually use was just making the problem worse.

Enter Lyin' Eyes. They claim it's intended to cover up a multitude of sins from the night before, which is good, but at the same time makes me feel a little lame as the only sinning I tend to do is rub my eyes. Lame. Anyway, the coverage isn't as opaque as my MAC Cream Concealer, but the semi-liquid consistency has an bit of a soothing effect on the under-eye area. All in all, it makes for a decent alternative on dry eyed days.

Allergy season can end any day now.

HRH