ITEM: Too Faced Soul Mate Blushing Bronzer (U.S. link HERE)
RRP: $46 (Aust. Price) & $34 (U.S. Price)
RRP: $46 (Aust. Price) & $34 (U.S. Price)
Claims: Bronzer and Blush: the power couple of beauty. A duo made in makeup heaven to add warmth, contour and a pop of colour for the radiant look of true love. Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer combines a shimmering, sun-kissed bronze and a brightening pop of blush that can be used separately or blended together for a healthy beautiful glow. Carrie & Big: Light to medium bronzer with slight shimmer combined with the perfect pop of coral blush. Ross & Rachel: Medium to deep bronzer with slight shimmer combined with the perfect pop of pink blush. Gorgeous cominbation of blush and bronzer takes the guesswork out of creating the perfect, all-over, natural-looking finish. It is paraben free, gluten free, and vegan friendly.
When I first saw this product in Myer, I simply thought it was cute and was about to walk away. Since I had time to kill however, I decided to pick it up and just see what it looked like. I then flipped the product over and saw the names of the shades: Ross & Rachel; Carrie & Big. Then I was SOLD. Friends and Sex and the City. My two absolute favourites. How could I resist? So I kept my eye on these and made sure that I got them (before they're gone!)
The first thing to note about this product is that it is not matte. If a matte product was what you were after, then you may as well stop reading this review now. When you initially look into the pan, it appears as though the product is matte. However once you swatch it with your finger or with a brush, it has an obvious glow or shimmer through it. This shimmer or glow is very fine and a rather healthy looking addition to the product - I don't think it is a negative aspect, it's just that I am aware that many are not fans of glowy or shimmery products. It also means that the product is not necessarily the best for contouring.
The second thing I want to note is that swatching this with your fingers is not a good indication of the quality of the product. When you touch the product with your fingers, the pigment ends up staying on your finger and does not transfer onto any surface that you want to "swatch" or "wipe" it onto. As a result, it looks like the product is not pigmented at all and it comes out very faded and patchy. Also, touching the product with your fingers ends up coating the product with residual oils. This makes the top layer hard and you need to scrap it off to get pigment from the product. So avoid getting too hands-y with it!
As already mentioned, the colours were difficult to swatch with my fingers. The picture above was multiple layers of swatching in order to get the pigmentation and consistency shown. In the initial layer, the colour came off extremely patchy and the pigment was hardly visible to the naked eye. However, with the a natural haired brush, the colour came off a little more consistent and pigmented, making it easier to work with.
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| Left: Carrie and Big Right: Ross and Rachel |
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| How can you resist? |
The second thing I want to note is that swatching this with your fingers is not a good indication of the quality of the product. When you touch the product with your fingers, the pigment ends up staying on your finger and does not transfer onto any surface that you want to "swatch" or "wipe" it onto. As a result, it looks like the product is not pigmented at all and it comes out very faded and patchy. Also, touching the product with your fingers ends up coating the product with residual oils. This makes the top layer hard and you need to scrap it off to get pigment from the product. So avoid getting too hands-y with it!
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| Close up shot: Ross and Rachel |
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| Ross & Rachel Finger Swatch Left to Right: Bronzer only - Blush only - Bronzer & Blush mixed |
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| Ross & Rachel Swatch with Sigma E55 Left to Right: Bronzer only - Blush only - Bronzer & Blush mixed |
I found that the bronzer was a lot easier to work with than the blush. It was more smooth, pigmented, and because the surface area of the bronzer is much larger, it was easier to get the necessary amount of product for the swatches. When mixed together, the colour was actually slightly more glowy, in a positive way. It brought out a beautiful hue in the colour that could be used both as a blush and as a all-over-glowy-bronzer.
When applied to the face: This looks excellent. The pigmentation doesn't become an obvious issue, the application is smooth, and the finish on the skin is healthy and beautiful. I actually really enjoyed how it looked.
This shade was a little easier to work with than the other one. I don't know why, but it was. The consistency was ever-so-slightly better. However, the finger swatches were still patchy and difficult to get pigmentation, and the brush application again proved to be better. I would say that I definitely like this shade better than the Ross & Rachel. Firstly, I love a good natural coral blush and secondly, as I said it was easier to apply.
Although the above pictures make the differences between the bronzer and blush very slight, in person I think the different is a bit more obvious. I actually think they are beautiful on the cheek with the subtle difference between the shades. Again, just like the other shade, the mixture of both the bronzer and blush created a more glowy colour (which again I think is a positive thing). However when mixed together, this colour is not as suitable to be used as a all over bronzer because it becomes quite orange and light. (Although if you're very fair it may work for you).
When applied to the face: This looks natural and beautiful. The pigmentation doesn't become an obvious issue, the application is smooth, and the finish on the skin is healthy and glowy. The colours mixed particularly looks good with this shade - giving a beautiful glowy pop of colour.
Overall: Yes swatching them was difficult. However, when applied to the face... they were beautiful. I think that swatching them got me really disappointed and I significantly reduced my expectations. The blush continued to be a little more difficult to use on its own. It was quite small and not producing much colour. However when using just the bronzer, or mixing the shades together and then applying to the face, it gave a beautiful glow and pop of colour to the cheeks, the pigmentation was perfect and it applied nice and smoothly. It is best used as a bronzer, blush or blush-topper, and not suitable for contouring. The packaging is gorgeous and light-weight, and the names are well... I bought this because of the name of the shades so... that explains it all. I really am surprised that I enjoyed the product on the face... in a good way. It's best for when you're looking for a healthy natural and subtle glow.
Rating: 7.5/10
(NOTE: I'm a harsh critic and difficult to please. So even if I enjoy a product, unless I am completely blown away, higher than a 8.5 would be very difficult)
When applied to the face: This looks excellent. The pigmentation doesn't become an obvious issue, the application is smooth, and the finish on the skin is healthy and beautiful. I actually really enjoyed how it looked.
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| Close up shot: Carrie & Big |
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| Carrie & Big Finger Swatch Left to Right: Bronzer only - Blush only - Bronzer & Blush mixed |
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| Carrie & Big Swatch with Sigma E55 Left to Right: Bronzer only - Blush only - Bronzer & Blush mixed |
Although the above pictures make the differences between the bronzer and blush very slight, in person I think the different is a bit more obvious. I actually think they are beautiful on the cheek with the subtle difference between the shades. Again, just like the other shade, the mixture of both the bronzer and blush created a more glowy colour (which again I think is a positive thing). However when mixed together, this colour is not as suitable to be used as a all over bronzer because it becomes quite orange and light. (Although if you're very fair it may work for you).
When applied to the face: This looks natural and beautiful. The pigmentation doesn't become an obvious issue, the application is smooth, and the finish on the skin is healthy and glowy. The colours mixed particularly looks good with this shade - giving a beautiful glowy pop of colour.
Overall: Yes swatching them was difficult. However, when applied to the face... they were beautiful. I think that swatching them got me really disappointed and I significantly reduced my expectations. The blush continued to be a little more difficult to use on its own. It was quite small and not producing much colour. However when using just the bronzer, or mixing the shades together and then applying to the face, it gave a beautiful glow and pop of colour to the cheeks, the pigmentation was perfect and it applied nice and smoothly. It is best used as a bronzer, blush or blush-topper, and not suitable for contouring. The packaging is gorgeous and light-weight, and the names are well... I bought this because of the name of the shades so... that explains it all. I really am surprised that I enjoyed the product on the face... in a good way. It's best for when you're looking for a healthy natural and subtle glow.
Rating: 7.5/10
(NOTE: I'm a harsh critic and difficult to please. So even if I enjoy a product, unless I am completely blown away, higher than a 8.5 would be very difficult)
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ReplyDeleteThe palette looks really pigmented but nice colors!
ReplyDeleteReally nice! And you can be heavy handed with it because it's not TOO pigmented! ;) Can try together next time!
DeleteThis would probably just sit in one of my makeup drawers. The blush looks so miniscule. Thanks for doing the review and sharing! 👍
ReplyDeleteI actually don't like the blush on its own. It's small and not that nice to apply individually. However i actually really love the two mixed together! I do feel I am making a conscious effort to use it lately though! haha
DeleteLove how they paid tribute to two cute TV couples. That's a great hook for sure! -- Jaya
ReplyDeleteDefinitely reeled me in! ;)
DeleteThat looks very nice! I will have to look for it and sample it next time I am in Ulta. Those bronzer colors are lovely!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy the bronzers! The blushes aren't flash hot but the bronzer (or the bronzer & blush mixed) is good!
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