Both of the products I’m raving about today are limited edition products. I know that if you like what I have to say about these products that you won’t be able to buy them, but fear not, I am going to give you some alternatives.
MAC Sun-Soaked Strip Bronzer and Selena La Layenda Highlighter
These MAC products have become some of my favorites to use regularly. I consistently set aside products to use in a makeup bag so that getting ready is easy. So as I was getting ready the other day, I noticed that I didn’t want to use what I had set aside and went to grab this MAC bronzer. Then, on Thursday, as I was about to use the Laura Mercier Roseglow Highlighter (swatched and reviewed here), I decided to use the MAC Extra Dimension Highlight from the Selena collection instead. I wanted to see which of these two highlighters accentuated texture less since the MAC had been a go to before I bought the Laura Mercier. After that, it dawned on me that I have been grabbing these two products over other items a lot. I never really expected either of them to be such staples.
MAC Sun-Soaked Strip Bronzer and Selena La Layenda Highlighter
I don’t know about you, but I have no luck finding drugstore bronzers. It seems like they always either have an ingredient I can’t use due to sensitivities or they don’t have a shade that would work. I’ve heard a lot of praise for this L’oreal bronzer and since I do like a satin finish over matte for bronzer, I decided to check it out. Most of the reviews I either read or watched mentioned that the product had shimmer running through it but that it wasn’t really noticeable once applied. The problem I ran into was finding a review of the shade 03 Deep on someone who actually had a deep skin tone. Seeing the bronzer in person, I was really worried about the amount of shimmer it has, so I wanted to know if anyone had tried the darkest shade. I could never find one, so I decided to go ahead and give it a try.
L’oreal True Match Lumi Bronzer in Deep
L’oreal Lumi Bronze It, $11.52 at Walmart, $11.97 at Amazon, $14.00 at Ulta
To be fair, the product description from Ulta claims that the L’oreal Lumi Bronze It has a “barely there shimmer.” The Amazon description calls it a “shimmer bronzer,” but also states that it has a “sublte, barely there shimmer”. So the fact that there is shimmer isn’t something that is hidden or surprising. The downside for me is the fact that the shimmer is only subtle or barely there in low light conditions.
To its credit, this bronzer blends very easily. It is pretty loosely pressed and does kick up some powder. I found it necessary to tap excess product off my brush before applying. It does also show up nicely on my skin tone (NARS Tahoe, Estee Lauder Double Wear 5W1), but I have trouble understanding how this would work for someone who is actually “deep.” I consider myself to be in the medium deep/dark range of a good shade range.
Smashbox quietly released this medium-dark version of their popular Cali Contour palette sometime back in 2020 (?). I say quietly because I don’t think there was any sort of marketing letting people know they had created this new shade variation. I was searching for a review of this palette for the longest time with no luck. I was surprised that they didn’t try to hype this up more considering all of the valid complaints companies have been getting about shade ranges lacking inclusive options. Anyway, I broke down and got it because I continued to hear lighter skin tones rave about the original light medium shade and finally had to see for myself if it was good.
Top row, left to right: warm contour, shimmer gold, cinnamon matte
Bottom row, left to right: banana matte, apricot shimmer, coco rojo
I purchased the shade Cinna-Bae but I’m thinking I could also have gotten away with the shade Caramel Delight for my skin tone. The brand suggests the shade Cinna-Bae for tan to light dark skin and the shade Caramel Delight for medium to medium dark skin. There are three darker shades in the range after Cinna-Bae and one shade lighter than Caramel Delight.
Coloured Raine Cinna-Bae Bronzer, $16.00
I would still consider it a first impression, but so far I am in love with this bronzer. I use Estee Lauder Double Wear foundation and I don’t set it with any additional powder and I still find that this formula is easy to blend. Keep in mind that Estee Lauder Double Wear does dry down to a matte finish, but I have experienced blending difficulties with another bronzer over this foundation, so I wanted to mention that. I feel like the finish isn’t a flat matte and that it gives me the same type of healthy look that I get from the Becca Sunlit Bronzers. The Becca bronzers do have a sheen to them and again this formula is definitely matte. I just feel like both of these formulas make me look healthier than before I applied them. I was worried about the depth of the color, but it is so easy to blend that I really don’t even find myself having to be careful.
Coloured Raine Bronzer Cinna-Bae
The closest bronzer shade I have for comparison is a MAC bronzer from the limited edition Aladdin collection (right swatch).
L to R: Coloured Raine Bronzer Cinna-Bae vs MAC x Aladdin Your Wish is My Command (LE)
UPDATE June 2, 2021: There isn’t much to say here other than I’m still loving this bronzer. It picks up easily on both synthetic and natural hair brushes and it blends easily. It is very pigmented, but the ease of blending means I don’t have to be careful with it.
Have you tried the new Coloured Raine bronzers? If so, how do you like it?
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