The Glossy Eye

As I said at the end of last week with my Metallic Lips post, I'm not normally one to hop on trends. But the new glossy eye trend is really speaking to me. It often creates such a grungy, lived-in look that I'm all about. It also helps that my favorite makeup artist to follow on Instagram, Katie Jane Hughes, has been doing a lot of glossy eye looks lately, so I just had to hop on board. Of course I can't just try using one product, I had to go all in on the trend and try out a bunch.

Before getting into dedicated eye glosses, I began experimenting with products I already had, just in case the trend actually wasn't for me. My first foray into a glossy eye was using the Glossier Balm Dotcom (the unscented original version). It's just a simple, do-it-all skin salve, so it doesn't irritate my eyes. I just blend the tiniest amount onto my lids to leave them looking seriously dewy. Another Glossier product I've been loving on the eyes is Haloscope - I have Quartz pictured here, but all three shades are stunning on the eyelids. Like the Balm Dotcom, these give the eyes such a dewy sheen with an added touch of shimmer and color. You can get 20% off your first Glossier order here.

When I'm wanting something dewy like the Haloscopes without the color/shimmer, the Ciate Dewy Stix is my go-to. It's a little thinner in texture than the Balm Dotcom, so it's more comfortable on the eyelids. This one is stunning and smooth, and it's perfect all over the face.

As for the dedicated eye glosses, the Milk Makeup Eye Vinyl was my first one. I heard it mentioned on Fat Mascara, so I knew I needed to try it. I got the shade Bridge, which is a sheer nude that pretty much looks clear on the lids. This one is super shiny and a little tacky, but just enough so it doesn't slide around. It's not uncomfortable on the eyelids. I love that it comes in a click stick too, so you don't need your fingers to apply. If I'm doing my makeup at work, I make sure I throw this in my bag.

The cream of the crop for me is the Kevyn Aucoin Exotique Diamond Eye Gloss. I had been adding and removing this from my Sephora cart for months, and I finally bit the bullet for my birthday. This is absolutely stunning. It's full of tiny shimmers, but you can't even see them on the eyes. It's just a super shiny look that layers well over other shadows. This one can be a little messy to apply, but the effort is 100% worth it. This is another one that feels slightly tacky on the eyelids, but it really doesn't budge despite being so dewy. I even put it over a powder eyeshadow with no primer and didn't notice any creasing. If you're into the glossy eye look, this is a must for sure.

Have you tried any eye glosses? What are your favorites?

---

A Look | Glossy Skin & Bold Lips

I've been super into playing around with my makeup lately - when I'm not quickly slapping it on at my desk at work, that is. I recently got NARS Dragon Girl, and it inspired me to pair it with a minimal, glossy look.

I started off by using the Glossier Priming Moisturizer Rich* as my base - this really hydrates my skin and makes it plump and smooth and ready for makeup. I also patted on a bit of the Milk Makeup Blur Stick around my nose where my pores are the largest to blur them out and help my makeup go on a little more smoothly. The Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint has been my favorite base product as of late, and when I need a little more coverage I've been mixing it with the Stretch Concealer before applying. It leaves me with super dewy skin, and you can't even tell there's product there. I have a few spots of hyperpigmentation from old breakouts, so I spot concealed them with the Kevyn Aucoin Sensual Skin Enhancer - I put a tiny bit on the spot with an eyeliner brush and blended out the edges so the heaviest coverage is concentrated only where it's absolutely necessary. Dark circles were taken care of with the Onomie Bright Concealing Elixir,* which is still a favorite.

I wanted to stick to all cream products to keep my skin looking dewy and glossy. I used the darker shade of the Tom Ford Shade & Illuminate as a bronzer, and it really adds a healthy, subtle glow to the skin. For my blush I used the Glossier Cloud Paint* in Beam - I feel like my favorite shade of these changes every week, but currently it's the peachy pink Beam. It makes me look so awake, like I got over 8 hours of sleep, so it's hard to want to wear anything else. Besides the lip, the most important part of this look is the highlight. I started off with my usual layer of Glossier Haloscope in Quartz, my go-to. I really cannot go a day without wearing this - it makes my skin look super dewy. To amp up the dewiness and glossiness, I patted a bit of the Ciate Dewy Stix on top. This is basically a clear face gloss in stick form. It's not sticky in the slightest, just pure glossy dew.

Going along with this glossy theme, I used the Tom Ford Cream & Powder Eye Color in Young Adonis. It's a taupe shade that has that specific kind of shimmer that makes the eyelids look wet. I applied the cream shade and patted a bit of the matching powder on top in the center of my eyelids. I beefed up my eyelashes with the Wander Beauty Unlashed Volume & Curl Mascara and a bit of the tightlining with the Colourpop Creme Gel Liner in Brew-Haha. And brows were taken care of with Glossier Boy Brow in Brown, of course. 

As the finishing touch, I went in with the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dragon Girl - this is my new obsession as of late. It had been on my wishlist for literal years, and I finally got around to buying it. It's such a blue-toned red that it borders on being bright pink, which is absolutely perfect for me. To set everything and keep it all looking glowy, I used the Pixi Glow Mist.* I've been loving using this lately - it really hydrates the skin and brightens everything up.

What's your favorite bold lip color?

I mentioned a lot of Glossier products in this post, and you can get 20% off your first order by shopping through my rep page! I do make a small commission on orders through my page, but that money gets invested back into this space!

*Products mentioned have been sent to me for consideration, but all opinions are my own. Please see my disclaimer for more information.

---

Skin Focus | Products for Glowing, Luminous Skin

If you've read any posts on the blog before, you'll know what a broken record I am when it comes to how I like my skin to look. My skin is quite dry, dehydrated, and dull naturally, so anything I can do to add a glow, I'm in. Lately I've been taking extra care to really prep my skin to make it look its best when it comes time for makeup, and today I'm rounding up some of my favorite products to get that super luminous, dewy base.

Skin Prep

Prepping the skin for makeup is probably the most important step here. A painter wouldn't paint a masterpiece without properly preparing their canvas, so why should you apply your makeup without preparing your skin first? When I have time in the morning or for a special occasion, I love using the Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask as a pre-makeup step. It has instant results, giving you that just-got-a-facial glow. It gently exfoliates the skin, leaving it super smooth but never red or irritated. Because of my skin type, I love loading up on moisturizers before makeup to ensure my base goes on as smoothly as possible - you would think this would decrease a foundation's longevity, but it actually helps keep my skin from drinking up the foundation, making it last longer. My favorite moisturizers for underneath makeup are both from Glossier - the original Priming Moisturizer and the Priming Moisturizer Rich. I've been using the Rich version all winter to help with my dry skin, but the lighter original version is my go-to in the warmer months. Right now I've actually been loving using both - the Rich version has a bit more of a velvety finish on my skin, so I apply that all over and then apply the original, which has a dewier finish, on the high points of my face. Another way to make skin really glow is to apply a facial oil underneath your makeup - Rosehip Oil is my favorite, as it's lightweight and sinks in quickly. As a finishing touch, a face mist is perfect - it locks everything in and helps amp up that glow. I've been using the Pixi Glow Mist* a lot since I received it last week, and it's already becoming a staple in my routine.

The Base

Once your skin is all prepped and primed, picking the right base product is next. I usually go for really lightweight, glowy bases, like the Glossier Perfecting Skin Tint, for a natural, glossy-skin look. When I want slightly higher coverage I've fallen back in love with the Charlotte Tilbury Light Wonder Foundation - it's the glowiest, most beautiful foundation ever and will give you Victoria's-Secret-model skin. On special occasions when I want my makeup to last a long time, or if I just need even more coverage, my holy grail is the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation. This really is worth all the hype it gets - it's absolutely stunning on the skin. To make it a little less "makeup-y" looking for everyday, it is beautiful when mixed with the Glossier Skin Tint. Concealer is also important - I like using a light layer of foundation all over and then going in with concealer where I need more coverage, rather than wearing full coverage all over my face. The NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer is still my number one at the moment, and despite having "matte" in the name, it really lends itself well to this look. It isn't overly matte on me, but rather has more of a skinlike finish. The areas of redness that I usually need to conceal tend to be in oilier areas of my face as well, so something more matte is perfect. A 2-in-1 product like the Wander Beauty Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer* is perfect, too - one end is a matte stick concealer, while the other is a brightening, illuminating concealer. It's so convenient to have both products in one, so you're covered whenever.

Finishing Touches

You can't talk about luminous skin without mentioning highlighters, right? I think creams work best for this look, as they're usually more toned down and mesh well with the skin, making it look like you're just glowing from within. I can't go a minute without proclaiming my love for the Glossier Haloscope in Quartz - it's just the best in my opinion. It adds just the perfect amount of dewiness to the skin, but can still look quite intensely glowy. If you're looking for something with no shimmer whatsoever, take a look at the new Ciate London Dewy Stix. This is literally just a skin gloss/balm in a stick. It adds a glossy sheen to the skin that looks like you've been eating right and sleeping well your entire life. I prefer to dab it on with my fingers rather than striping it on straight from the tube, and it looks beautiful dabbed on the eyelids as well. Adding a bit of a flush to the skin is important, too - it adds to the healthy look we've been building here. My favorite is the Glossier Cloud Paints* - they're the most natural-looking blushes I've tried. They blend effortlessly into the skin and look just like a natural flush. My favorites for my skin tone are Puff and Dusk, especially mixed - they make the perfect neutral pink. If you haven't tried at least one of these yet, you need to.

What are your necessities for a glowing skin look?

I mentioned a lot of Glossier products in this post, and you can get 20% off your first Glossier order here. I do make a small commission on orders placed through my rep page, but all that money earned gets invested back into this space on equipment and products to review!

*Products mentioned have been sent to me for consideration, but all opinions are my own. Please see my disclaimer for more information.