REVIEW & SWATCHES: Colourpop Highlighters

ITEM: Colourpop Highlighters

PRICE: $8USD each

Application tips: Fingertips will provide the highest amount of coverage. Brush suggestions: Use a flat synthetic cheek/foundation brush or a duo fibre brush; flat synthetic brush will give more coverage and the duo fibre brush will give a more sheer, air brushed effect. 

Other tips & info: When finished, close that sucker up tight! Don't leave the jar opened for long periods of time; you may lose some of the magic that makes the Super Shock Cheek Pearlised so amazzzing. Colour builds from natural to a more intense look...Build to your heart's desire!

There has been a lot of hype over Colourpop products all over the beauty sphere. Their innovative formulas, standardised (and extremely affordable) pricing, their cute packaging and their collaborations with various Youtubers & beauty gurus inevitably attracts a lot of attention. However, I decided to purchase a bunch of the eye, cheek and lip products to put the products to the test. (I am a sceptic, so I need to see if things are truly worth the hype)! So the first thing I received & decided to do a review on are the highlighters. 

The following are the different shades that I got. I have included the colour description provided on their website, and told you my opinion when looking at the colour in person.

Butterfly Beach
Soft peach with highlights of gold and silver
(To me, it's a medium golden copper-y brown shade)

Highly Waisted
Soft golden peach with pink and gold duo chrome finishes(The colour did not capture too well on camera but this description is pretty accurate - it's very duo chrome)

Lunch Money
Soft light gold with  reflective golden duo chrome finish
(To me, it's just a beautiful golden champagne - comparable to Mary Loumanizer)

Smoke N Whistles
Cool-toned pink champagne with silver highlights
(This is a pretty accurate description)

Stole the Show
Light cool-toned gold with luminous flashes of pink, silver and gold
(To me, it's just a very silver-y champagne)

Wisp
Golden champagne with highly reflective hues of gold duo chrome finishes
(To me, it's a golden bronze shade)

The formula of these are incredibly unique and really fun to play with. They are bouncy and squishy (as you've probably already heard). This squishiness means that if the product falls out of the packaging or loses it's shape in some way shape or form, then you can just push it back into the packaging and have it "as good as new" (minus the imprint at the top of the blushes and eyeshadows). 

Beyond the texture, the formula is also extremely silky and smooth, highly pigmented and incredibly light-weight. They don't have excessive glitters or sparkle but have a beautiful glow that can be natural with a thin layer, or incredibly intense if you build it up. 

They also have an excellent colour range - catering for those with extremely fair skin to those with very deep skin. They have colours suited for yellow undertones and pink undertones. You could use some as blushes, blush toppers, or glowy bronzers. 

Because of the unique formula, it can be used directly on top of liquid foundations (just like a cream highlighter), but could also be applied on top of powders (just like a powder highlighter). You can also build up intensity by placing this on your face and then putting another powder highlighter on top. However, I find that the highlighter is extremely long lasting - so it is not a must to set it with a powder. This all captures how versatile the product is and the excellent quality of the formula.

I also found that they had great customer service. They accidentally sent me Wisp in the sample size. I contacted them, got a reply within a day, they express shipped it to me, and I got the proper one within a week. 

Swatches (Outdoors)
Left to Right
Stole the Show - Lunch Money - Smoke N Whistles - Highly Waisted - Wisp - Butterfly Beach

However, there is one downfall in my opinion. This downfall is the method of application. Because of the squishy texture, it's difficult to put it on with a typical highlighter brush. The product doesn't go on as evenly or pigmented as I'd like when I use a brush. The best method of application that I have found is to use your fingers. However I am not really a big fan of putting on products onto your face with fingers. This is also the advised method of application by Colourpop. I would say that this downfall can be overcome with greater experimentation so that people can see what method of application suits their preferences. 

Swatches (Indoors)
Left to Right
Stole the Show - Lunch Money - Smoke N Whistles - Highly Waisted - Wisp - Butterfly Beach

Also, the company (as you can see above), has warned of the fact that these can dry out. I have yet to experience that and the instructions say that if you screw on the lid tightly after use, it shouldn't happen. If I were to give an extra tip about this, I would suggest that you store the product upside down. When you are using the product and leaving the lid open, keep it upside. Then when you are storing it in general, keep it upside down. I generally do this with any product that has a tendency to dry out (gel liners, cream eyeshadows, MAC paint pots etc.) It really does help.

Overall: The colours are beautiful. The texture is so unique. The pigmentation is excellent. The price point is great. The finish is on point. Customer service was great. Colour range is broad. The only downfall is the aforementioned application methods. However, I do think that this is something that can be overcome. The conclusion I came to (using my fingers) is a bit burdensome for someone as lazy as me, but I think it's a factor that will impact different people in different ways. For me, it's a little bit of an extra step that requires a tiny bit more effort than I'd like. This is the only thing that bothers me about the product though.

Rating: 8.5/10