November 9, 2011

Benefit I’m Glam Therefore I Am Review, Swatches, Photos

I think I was about 14 when I moved from Harlequin Romance novels to full blown bodice ripping historicals. These were the times that Fabio made guest starring appearances on all of Johanna Lindsey’s novels.

Please tell me you’re as old as me and you remember that Fabio had some purple, taupe-y eyeshadow joy on the covers of these books.

Exhibit A
Exhibit B
Exhibit C

Get the point?

So yes, I admit I stepped into a time machine and the Benefit I’m Glam Therefore I Am Set shades started reminding me of Fabio’s ill fated eyeshadow romance covers.

Groan.

Jump!

I have to say that I was a little scared of these taupe-y, mauve-y, washed out shades of color but sometimes I think Benefit is magically because only they can pull off these shades and make them a smashing success.

This set is marked at $36 and includes:

  • Benefit Girl Meets Pearl (pearly golden pink)
  • Benefit Eyeshadow Palette in Pink Fancy (pale pink), Icy Lilac (silvery light mauve), Posh Amethyst (soft plum), Precious Pewter (steel gray)
  • Double-Ended Sponge Applicator
  • Benefit Glamming Face Powder with Brush (soft rose/ peachy pink sheen)
  • Benefit A Little Bit BADgal Lash Mascara in black
  • Benefit Lip Gloss in Life On The A List (bubble gum pink)
  • Makeup Lesson

This is a great started kit for makeup n00bs, a nice gift for girlfriends/boyfriends, or just a great set for yourself to create a gorgeous look in seconds. I think the joy of the product is the fact you can happily travel with it and create a super easy to do look that’s fresh, natural and perfect for daily use or office looks.

The set is housed in a chunky, sturdy cardboard box with a full size mirror inside. There are compartments for your gloss, mascara, and highlighter and a main center compartment that houses the powder products. Benefit smartly choose to leave out cream products here so no worries about powders and creams making a big old mess.

Two of my favorite things in this set are the eyeshadows and the Shimmering Face Powder. Might I say that the Shimmering Face Powder is what I had hoped for Sugarbomb. This is a made up of a dusky berry rose and a shimmering golden peach. Mixed together it creates a perfectly glowing peach on my cheeks.

Now the shadows are deceiving as they look a tad uneventful and dare I say difficult to apply due to the offbeat color selection plus contrasting seemed like it would prove muddy. But surprise, surprise, I absolutely adore how well they apply. Benefit suggests using Pink Fancy (pale pink) as a highlighter and Precious Pewter (steel gray) into your crease as an day look or outer v or Icy Lilac (silvery light mauve) all over the lid or Posh Amethyst (soft plum) in the crease, outer v as an evening look. Pink Fancy is an absolute gem of a product as you can use it as an all over color wash to brighten eyes up beautifully for a natural look sans any other shade. Although I was worried the colors would make my eyes look tired or would appear too muddy they actually ended up looking very polished and pretty plus rather than making me look tired, they perked my eyes up and made me look awake and perky! You’re not working with alot of pigment here but the shades build easily, have a nice silky feel, and blend like a dream.

Outside of these gems you also have a mini Girl Meets Pearl to highlight cheek bones or your brow bones with a golden pink plus a Bad Gal Mini Mascara and a Benefit Gloss in Life On The A List (bubble gum pink). Life on the A List was sadly too mod for me to take advantage of, it was a bit too creamy and nude and I was wishing they had added a warmer berry or peach shade to the set but outside of this I must say the completed look using everything in the set is simply gorgeous!

Overall, the shades in the set are great for daily looks and there’s just something perfectly wonderful about them for Winter. The set by step instructions make for a snap to apply the colors plus the packaging isn’t so huge that it won’t travel nicely with you on a weekend trip or a few days away. I admit I was surprised about the color selection as I expected the worst but I came out of feeling like the colors were just so wonderfully fitting…!

This one deserves a look at. The colors might not work for everyone but do swatch it and play with as looks can be deceiving on this little guy as you expect things to be uneventful and in the end you might be as wow’ed by the set as I was.

I’m going to go ahead and slap a Muse Approval on it. It’s a great value and has some fantastic products inside. Only thing I’d want is for Benefit to release a full size of that beautiful hue of shimmering powder in this set! Loves that!

Tried this?

Love it?

Do share!

Get it for 20% Off this week at benefitcosmetics.com

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

    • the Muse

      aw thanks chica. I kinda love this one. was surprised thought it would be dull but it turned out fab ;D!

  • eight

    I really want this, as I haven’t tried anything by Benefit yet. Adding to my Xmas wishlist ;D

  • Ljana

    This looks so nice on you, very elegant – more Chanel style than Benefit, IMHO. I will certainly be buying this, as I have Her Name Was Glowla, and although at first it looked as a -aaawww-pretty-packaging-have-to-get-it kind of purchase that would forever stay unused in my drawer, it turned out to be one of my better buys. I still have it and am even hitting the pan on Coralista and the eyeshadows. I just wish they’d put an eyeliner into this set instead of the applicator, but I’m just nitpicking.

    • the Muse

      aw thanks lljana ;-D you’re lovely ;-D I’d have liked an eyeliner as well!

  • Melissa

    LOL I totally knew what you meant about the Johanna Lindsay novel covers ahahah. I always wondered what was up with the eyeshadow on him.