Are you attending Christmas do’s this year? Then it’s time to bring the liquid illuminators/highlighters! These shimmery liquids can be used as highlighters over foundation or mixed in with foundations to create a dewy luminous finish. This is perfect for this time of year because it’s grey and cold out so it’s time to reach less for the matte foundations and more for the luminous foundations!
Even with combo to oily skin, I love liquid highlighters and I must admit I add them to my foundations all year around! The ones I have tested do not make me look overly shiny, they add a glow from within finish to my foundation. If you have extremely oily skin, you can use them on the high points of your face only instead of mixing it with foundation. Alternatively, you can add a drop or two with your matte foundation and it won’t necessarily change the finish a great deal
These are my tried and tested liquid illuminators I love that work well for dark skin. I tend to love golden/bronze illuminators because they look best with dark skin. I would stay away from anything that is silvery or icy gold as it may come off as ashy on dark skin. These illuminators do not have chunky glitter or overtly shimmery, they are subtle and add a lit from within glow to the skin. For the ultimate dewy, glowy finish to your makeup, it’s always best to layer your illuminating products, use these as a base (after primer), mixed in with foundation or as a base for a powder highlighter. I have experienced no flashback with these.
Sleek Highlighting Elixir in Sunlit, £6.99
The latest addition to my collection is the latest release from Sleek. The highlighting elixir is a very smooth highlighting liquid that adds the perfect amount of glow to the skin. There is no chunky shimmers or glitter so what you get is a beautiful radiance to your makeup.
Gleam Body Radiance in Deep Gold, from £14
This is suitable for both body and face and adds a beautiful sun-kissed glow to the skin. It has a bit more shimmer but doesn’t end up looking too much. This is more of a lotion/cream consistency and I like it better when applied alone with a brush after primer than mixing with a foundation.
Gosh Lumi Drops in 006 Bronze, £8.75
This adds a gorgeous bronze tint to the foundation and I love using this for my foundations that are a little too light for my skin tone. It doesn’t darken it or change the shade dramatically but I have noticed because the liquid itself is dark it adds a touch of colour to the foundation
L’Oreal Paris Glow Mon Amour Highlighting Drops in Loving Peach, £9.99
I was introduced to this by a friend and I fell in love with it. It’s the only non-gold highlighter I have but it works well for my skin tone. This is the highlighter I use with foundations that are too red or too dark for my skin tone. The peach kind of acts as a colour corrector (it isn’t a colour corrector) but I have noticed it pairs with those types of foundations.
Nyx Cosmetics Born to Glow Liquid Highlighter in Pure Gold, £8
I think this was the product that set off my love affair with liquid illuminators. It’s a true gold and has the consistency of a lotion so again I prefer to apply it alone first with a brush than mix in with foundation. Adds a beautiful glow to the skin.
It’s also worth adding the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector liquid highlighters (£30). I have Opal but I think the shade is too light for my skin tone. Topaz would be the best choice for dark skin but they do not have it in travel size like Opal. I have the travel size tube of it.
Do you guys love liquid highlighters/ illuminators? If you prefer powder highlighters, you can view my post and swatches on powder highlighters for dark skin here
Let me know your favourite ones!
sarah fynn 