Givenchy Healthy Glow Powder in 1 Premiere Croisiere

I absolutely love bronzers and blush.  This is a known fact.  And lately I've been really curious about some higher end, harder to find brands, specifically Rouge Bunny Rouge (which I will talk about in a separate post) and Givenchy.

Givenchy is available exclusively through Sephora, but is not carried in my local Sephora, so there's pretty much no way to see before you buy.  So in a fit of impulse buying the other day, I decided to pick up the Givenchy Poudre Bonne Mine Healthy Glow Powder, which Sephora categorizes as a bronzer.

It's lovely, by the way.

And the description sounds lovely.  Sephora says:

 "Totally weightless and invisible on the skin, this creamy formula provides ultimate softness and a light-as-air natural finish. With a consistency that’s easy to blend, this bronzer can be applied alone with the Givenchy Kabuki brush or over Mister Radiant. Use it year-round to smooth pores, even the skin’s texture, and provide a healthy glow."

I will fully admit it's my own fault for not looking up swatches first.  (Here, go look - Karla Sugar has some fantastic swatches.)  I made an assumption based on the Sephora description that this was indeed a bronzer (it may be if you buy it in one of the darker shades, but it doesn't seem that the line as a whole is a bronzer line).

I think this is more of an illuminating finishing powder, much like the MAC Mineralize Natural line, Guerlain Meteorites, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders, etc, etc.  And like the Guerlain and Hourglass products, it is hella expensive.  $50 for 7 grams of product.

Don't get me wrong, it does look lovely.  I'm sure it looks nice on the skin.  I don't know.  Because I need another illuminating finishing powder like I need a hole in the head, so I returned it (without swatching, not that you would have been able to see anything even if I did swatch it.).  

I wanted a bronzer.

Even for my pasty pale skin, this shade is certainly not a bronzer.  I probably would have had to get the darkest shade if I wanted something approaching a bronzer, but that doesn't really seem to be what this powder is designed to do.

I'm not going to bother rating this product since it seems designed to do something vastly different than the purpose for which I purchased it.  I am thankful that Sephora did give me my refund without any hassle (though I did get a dirty look, which whatever.)

I was really curious about Givenchy.  I picked up several different products (reviews coming soon) and it was really hit or miss.  At this price point, I expect more.  The packaging is underwhelming and it is really irritating not to be able to see it in person before purchasing.  

Review: L'Oreal Magic Lumi Light Infusing Primer

The L’Oreal Magic Lumi Light Infusing Primer launched (I believe) in Fall/Winter 2011.  It has generated a good amount of buzz, IMO mostly because of the price point and availability.  L’Oreal is a drugstore brand and so while this product isn’t super cheap, it is within most people’s budgets.  In the U.S., it’s available just about anywhere drugstore makeup is sold for right about $10 - cheaper if you can find coupons.

Despite it being called a primer, the offical press release from L’Oreal doesn’t seem to indicate that you should use it at all like a primer.  Their suggested uses:

• use it alone (no foundation)
• mix it with foundation
• use it as a highlighter

So, no priming going on there :(

The product definitely has a pearly sheen, but no glitter.  It’s very emolient and a little bit will go a long way.  

I tried using it as a primer and I found it to be pretty ineffective.  If you’re using it under anything but the absolute sheerest foundation, you’re not going to notice it at all.  It definitely doesn’t do anything to refine the skin surface before applying foundation.

Mixed with foundation, the consistency of the foundation is the determining factor in how much oomph you’re going to get out of it.  I mixed it with 2 foundation, my MAC Select SPF 15 and my Neutrogena Healthy Skin.

The MAC Select SPF 15 has a natural matte finish and I really didn’t notice much difference when I mixed it with the Magic Lumi.

The Neutrogena Healthy Skin is a very emolient foundation with a dewey finish and I got way more payoff when I mixed the Magic Lumi with it.  It wasn’t crazy frosty or anything, but definitely noticeable whereas I didn’t think it was with the MAC Select SPF 15.

As a highlighter itself on top of either foundation, it was okay.  I really don’t think I’d use it in leiu of my other highlighters. Mostly, this product just doesn't deliver for me. I'd be curious to see what it does on deeper skintones or on a more oily complexion. For me, it just doesn't really do a whole lot at all.

Swatches*:

MAC Select SPF 15 Foundation - flash

MAC Select SPF 15 Foundation - sunlight

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Foundation - flash

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Foundation - sunlight

Overall:  5/10

*there is obviously an art to swatch photography.  I applied the product like I would actually use it (as opposed to packing it on for better payoff on camera) and as you can tell, the photos are pretty useless.  You really can't see much difference at all.  UGH.  I'm working on this.  I promise I'll get better.