Benefit Cosmetics Review

A couple weeks ago, I received a message from someone asking me to do a makeup tutorial on my blog. I thought this was very odd since I never wear a lot of makeup at all. All I ever do in the morning is a light layer of foundation, under eye concealer, blush, one line of eyeliner, and mascara. It takes me about five minutes, maybe less. I've always wanted to be able to do better makeup, but figured how I did was good enough. But it really wasn't. I was rarely happy with how my makeup turned out and it was always completely gone by about 4 or 5.

One of the biggest issues I've had with makeup is finding a foundation light enough for me. I am VERY pale and the last thing I want is a line under my face looking like I'm wearing a mask. So I did a lot of research and watched a lot of Youtube tutorials and decided I wanted to give Benefit Cosmetics a try. I've always thought their packaging was so cute, and I have read a lot of good things about them! It's a little pricey compared to what I used before, but I figured (and hoped) that meant it's really good stuff and would be worth it.

Everything I purchased, and what is pictured above is:
Stay Flawless 15-Hour Primer
Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation in Ivory
Erase Paste in Fair
Boi-ing Concealer in 01
Watts's Up Highlighter
Posie Tint Cheek and Lip Stain
Creaseless Cream Shadow in Bikini-Tini
They're Real! Mascara

I decided to keep my liquid eyeliner (Maybelline Line Stiletto) because I had just bought one and really like it, and MAC's Hue lipstick is my favorite, so I stuck with that too.

When first trying this makeup, I started like always with an SPF moisturizer. I then applied the primer all over. I've never used primer before because I for some reason thought it was unnecessary, but I realized DUH that's probably why my makeup doesn't last all day (and it did end up holding my makeup on SO much longer!) I then applied a layer of the foundation. It's SPF 25 and I think would work really well for anyone with dry skin like me because it has a little dew to it. The color was still a little too dark for me, so I mixed together a pump of it with my moisturizer and spread it under my chin and on my neck, which made it match pretty well! I blended it all together with a sponge after using a foundation brush to apply it. I then dabbed a little bit of the Erase Paste under my eyes. It looked really good! I have pretty dark circles under my eyes, and this stuff covered them pretty well while still looking natural. After that I used a dab of the Boi-ing concealer around the red parts of my nose. I bought this to also use on blemishes but happen to not have any at the moment, so we'll see how well it works for that! I was a little apprehensive about this cheek stain. I have only used powder blush before so thought it might look weird, but I really love this stuff! It gives such a nice, natural flush that blends in so well, and the color is perfect for my pale skin! I honestly didn't like it on my lips though and ended up wiping it off, so it'll just be for my cheeks. The highlighter was something I was really excited about and have always wanted to try. I have pretty dry skin and it looks dull sometimes, so I wanted to be able to give my face a nice glow. I applied one swipe on each cheek bone and one on the bridge of my nose. One swipe was just enough to add a little glow when the sun hit, and makes my face look more healthy and moisturized! I almost didn't buy the eye shadow because that's something I've never, ever used before, and was afraid it would be too much since I still want to look really natural. I ended up buying a very neutral creme shadow just to try it out. I like it a lot because it's so easy to apply with my finger and just evens out my eyelids. On top of that I added my usual eyeliner. Then finished with the mascara. I bought a trial-sized tube because the mascara I used before was pretty good and I didn't really see this one making a big difference, but it actually did! It works really well and I'm glad I decided to try it out!

I'm very happy with the results of this makeup, and am so glad I decided to try something new. It really makes a difference when you spend a little more money and time on your makeup, and can make you feel more confident, which I already do! I'm really glad it still looks pretty natural, and was easier than I thought to put on! I definitely recommend Benefit if you're looking for new makeup products (they also don't test on animals!). I tried to take a photo of how it turned out but had a hard time doing that, so you'll have to take my word for it ;)

Have you ever tried Benefit? What is your favorite product of theirs? How do you like to wear your makeup? I would love to hear all about it! And I hope this helped you out if you were in the same spot I was before!

xo
Cam

PS. My friend Cara over at The Marvelous Flight of Cara is giving away a KINDLE on her blog today!! Go enter and try to win!