Benefit cosmetics

[kimmy]

i think their Playsticks are nice. i can't afford Benefit stuff...even MAC is a stretch ha. but i've used their Playsticks at the counter, and i thought it was some good stuff. i also got a sample of their banana nut face scrub (not sure what it was called) but it was really good! gave me similar results to St. Ive's Apricot Scrub, but with a little less dryness afterwards.

when i've got some money saved up, i'm hoping to get Georgia and Dandelion...i want those SO bad!

 

[MAC_Pixie04]

Also, Dr. Feelgood kinda balls off if you use it on top of foundation. It's good to use underneath instead, almost like a primer.

Some Kinda Gorgeous..well unless you're pretty light skinned, dont' get suckered into this. They claim it works on "almost all" skintones, and it really doesnt. I got one in gratis which doesn't work for me, so i gave it to my mother, it doesn't work on her either lol, and everybody else that got one gave it back lol we gave them out as raffle prizes at our event. They suck.

You Rebel would be a good tinted moisturizer if it didn't oxidize so easily; we're constantly having to switch out an almost brand new, full tester every week because it turns bright orange. They might wanna reconsider the aluminum tube it comes in.

She Laq is good, but pricey.

Brow-Zings are amazing for their price.

The only things i like are Get Even, Brow Zings, a few glosses and BadGal Lash.

 

[asnbrb]

I use she-laq for my eyebrows (since the tails seem to disappear after awhile).

the realness of concealness is OKAY. Not awesome, not totally bad, but okay. The concealer is pretty good, but I have to warm it up between my fingers before using it. The lemon aid is okay as well, but didn't do too much for me, I'm an Asian NC30 and it's really pale looking on me. I don't have a use for oh la lift. High beam works fine too, but in the morning, I don't really have time to mess around with it.

bad girl was awesome, but too pricey.

 

[BadBadGirl]

Is the Maybe Baby body cream worth the price?

 

[Ella_]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAC_Pixie04 Also, Dr. Feelgood kinda balls off if you use it on top of foundation. It's good to use underneath instead, almost like a primer. Some Kinda Gorgeous..well unless you're pretty light skinned, dont' get suckered into this. They claim it works on "almost all" skintones, and it really doesnt. I got one in gratis which doesn't work for me, so i gave it to my mother, it doesn't work on her either lol, and everybody else that got one gave it back lol we gave them out as raffle prizes at our event. They suck. You Rebel would be a good tinted moisturizer if it didn't oxidize so easily; we're constantly having to switch out an almost brand new, full tester every week because it turns bright orange. They might wanna reconsider the aluminum tube it comes in. She Laq is good, but pricey. Brow-Zings are amazing for their price. The only things i like are Get Even, Brow Zings, a few glosses and BadGal Lash.

How pale would you say you would have to be to get some kinda gorgeous to work?

My sister was given one, but its too pale on her, so shes sending it to me. Im much paler than her, shes an NC30 in the select spf, and Im an NC20 - NC15 depending on if I have had any sun.

Hopefully its ok on me because Im skint and need something to even my skin out.

 

[xsparkage]

I love benefit F.Y.Eye as a base.. soo good :]

 

[MAC_Pixie04]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lior How pale would you say you would have to be to get some kinda gorgeous to work? My sister was given one, but its too pale on her, so shes sending it to me. Im much paler than her, shes an NC30 in the select spf, and Im an NC20 - NC15 depending on if I have had any sun. Hopefully its ok on me because Im skint and need something to even my skin out.

I'm pretty sure it would work for you. it works on "most" skintones. it depends on how you apply it. Some people make the mistake of applying it heavily all over the same way they would apply foundation; it's not meant for that. it's a faker, it's not supposed to leave any color on the skin. my mom is NC45 and she wears it to touch up her liquid foundation, and by applying it very lightly, it looks great on her.

 

[LadyD]

Benefit

I own a couple of their products and I absolutely adore them. Right now, I'm lemming the Dr. Feelgood, High/Moon Beam, Weather Girl palette, and Realness of Concealness palette. Anyone have any opinions or rants/raves about those?

And more importantly.. what are your favourites from Benefit?

Ok sorry I'm new & don't know how to quote LOL. Anyway...I hope that I can help you inquiring ladies out as I own damn near the whole Benefit line

I'll start with the dislikes, since there's few of those:
Some Kinda Gorgeous...This is basically You Rebel in a greasy, pressed version. I bought it, tried it twice, returned it promptly. Went to a Benefit Botique to get my lashes tinted & they did my make up after...used Some Kinda Gorgeous. Felt like a grease bag all day & my skin is actually quite dry. No coverage at all.

You Rebel...again, skip it if you don't enjoy looking like said grease bag. OR, you will want to top it off with a powder like MAC Blot or Benefit's Get Even

FY Eye eye shadow base...ok product. Doesn't hold shadows like UDPP does, but the plus side is that it doesn't give you crepey eye like UDPP can, and you can use all textures over it, unlike UDPP.

I guess I'm one of the few, but I absolutely love the Realness of Concealness kit. Great way to try out some fabulous products. The Lemon Aid is great especially for a shadow free day. High Beam is a must have for me, Boi-ing is HG concealer. Ohh La Lift is just ok. I wouldn't purchase the full sized one. The Lip Plump makes a nice base, but I don't see any plumping action. Again would not repurchase, but nice to have the little bottle around.

Playsticks foundation...LOVE it. It is described as powder, concealer, and foundation in one. Blends great, pretty decent range of shades, and doesn't break out my uber sensitive skin.

Georgia & Dandelion are so pretty but just did not show up on me & I'm NW20 in winter & NW30 in Summer.

Dallas on the other hand is major HG for me. I do not leave the house without wearing this.

In Summer Hoola is also MAJOR HG for me. Combos well with Dallas.

The Gloss, Her Glossiness, Big Magic, and Prom glosses ...great texture & scent, no gross taste (which I hate about a lot of other brands) and great color selection. Scent is a bit on the strawberryish side, not overpowering. Not sticky or tacky feeling.

Color Plump pencils. FYI these are NOT meant to plump instantly like products like Too Faced Lip Injection & the like. They are meant to gradually fill out lips over time. That being said, Hey Sailor is an HG color for me.

Hi Neighbor mask...great product, helps even out the oily t-zone area in my face. Small bottle for the price but lasts a long time.

Honey Snap Out Of It scrub...HG for me, can be used as a scrub OR mask. More hydrating than the Pineapple scrub.

Dear John moisturizer...Sales Associate at Benefit Botique told me it holds 100x it's weight in water, and I feel it lives up to that claim. Fabulous for my uber sensitive skin & also helped reduce some redness.

Have several lipsticks...I like the texture & the color selection. Very wearable.

Get Even powder...sucks there's only 3 shades but again, MAC Blot doesn't come in many shades. Get Even worked better for me (MAC broke me out). Get Even also conceals redness & can give up to a medium coverage.

Valley Of The Stars (Holiday 2006 kit) contains:
White gold eyeshadow, Tequila gold eyeshadow, High Beam, Moon Beam, Her Glossiness gloss. Love the entire kit. Can't say one bad thing about it.

The Weather Girl...very pretty kit, I do love the lip creams, although I do wish the shadows had a bit more pigment or oomph to them.

Dallas Holiday 2006 palette. Love the pink & mocha shadows, as well as the lip creams. Dallas again is HG for me...but I don't think the plum shade of lip cream looks to great with the 2 eyeshadows in the kit. I mix the 2 together & it looks nice.

High Brow...tricky to use as it doesn't always blend nice. IMO you pretty much need to have THE perfect brow for it to work nicely.

Brow Zings...great product, liked it better than Smashbox Brow Tech because the wax is pigmented and then you finish it off with the setting powder, so it's reverse how you put Smashbox on. Looks great on most people...however, the color didn't look right on me & can be difficult to use if you need to create shape to your brow. If they're pretty much perfectly sculpted & you just want to shade them in...this is a good product.

Bathina Gettin Steamy body wash..HG for me but not everyone loves the scent. Very rich lather.

Wondermitt...HG for me. Great to use before self tanner applications.

Bathina Touch Me Then Try To Leave Cream...Also HG for me. Very moisturizing. Great scent (IMO anyway).

Maybe Baby perfume spray & powder compact...Great everyday flirty scent (it's white blossoms) so not overpowering. I detect a hint of peach, but it's not candy sweet. Flirty & cute but when I want sexy I reach for my Lancome Hypnose.

Show Offs...I love these. Similar to MAC pigments but they are duochrome effect. Curtain Call is spectacular to check out...royal blue with flashes of pink & purple. Miss Moon is gorgeous white with gold flashes. Mint Julep is minty green with gold flashes. High Roller is another HG...coppery shimmer.

Speed Brow...great to set brows. I use this after my MAC brow pencil. Keeps my brows tamed & in place without looking like they've been gel'd to your face.

Eye Kohls...I've only tried Royale (royal purple) and its gorgeous, made my green eyes pop. Comes with a nice smudger thing on the opposite end.

Mr. Frosty...Shimmery sheer white pencil. Nice as liner or as brow hilight...or even all over eye for shadow (or shadow base). Definitely a lot nicer than it looks or sounds. I thought it was just a plain white pencil for about 3 years. Then I finally played with it.

Bad Gal Lash...Nice product. Sometimes the brush can be a bit much for me though.

Get Bent...my favorite. Better than Bad Gal, IMO. I've been told by Sephora SA's that it is the same as Bad Gal, when in fact the SA's in the actual Benefit Botique as well as the Benefit counter at my Macy's have said that is a false statement. The formulations are very different...although they both share the same coal black color.

Eye Bright...HG for me. Benefit SA taught me to make a shape like this < on inner eye, then blend. Then make 3 "kitty whiskers" or like a fishy tail on the outer corner and blend. POOF....instant fresh eye for me. Like I got a great 10 hour sleep when I really only had like...3.

IT Stick. Only comes in 1 shade. WAY too light on me & nowhere near as nice as Boi-Ing concealer.

Glamazon...crap. Absolute crap. No pigment. SA had to put 3 layers on me at NW20 and still could not tell it was on me.

Benetint on the other hand, LOVE.

I have all 3 products..Pocket Pal, Benetint, and Benetint Balm. Gorgeous rosy (not red like you just sucked on a popsicle) sheen. I like to layer a stain of the Benetint on lips, then top with the balm.

Sandal Scandal...nice enough product, love that it smells like the rest of the Bathina/Maybe Baby products...but overpriced when I can get an AHA foot cream from Avon for like $5. I regret this purchase...but you get some cute socks with it at least.

Silky shave cream (forget the actual name). Great shave cream...but nobody should pay $26 for shaving cream when my Olay Ribbons body wash does the same job. It's just shaving cream, the scent washes away anyway.

Ok...I think that's all I got. If you have any questions feel free to ask!!

Sorry ladies, I forgot my most favorite product, the Big Beautiful Eyes palette from Fall 2006. HG for me, comes with the HG concealer Boi-ing in 02/medium, a light pink shimmery shade, medium plummy taupe, and a deep brown for liner. Comes with one double ended brush and a concealer brush for application. I much prefer using my own brushes, but this is such a great every day eye for me, so flattering. I'm considering getting a back up of this. I tried to dupe it with other shadows I had at home (seemed like a simple palette) but nothing could look as nice as that pink & taupey middle shade.

 

[aziza]

^^^^^
Dang woman!

 

[LadyD]

LMAO I know Since that post I've added a few items to my Benefit collection...

Dr. Feelgood - mattifying balm with vitamins A, C, & E. Has a faint eucalyptus smell (not bad at all, very pleasant). Kept my skin matte and dries quick to a smooth finish, not greasy feeling in the least bit.

Hard Angle Brush...I can't say how much I love this thing. It's made of Taklon & has the tightest brush head I've ever seen. Soooo incredibly soft bristles & makes a nicer line than any angle brush I've used, including the MAC 266. Doesn't start to splay on the edges as MAC's does. This brush is a keeper.

 

[MAC_Whore]

I have gone through my Benefit phase, having to try everything. (Yeah, the kitschy little names and packaging sucked me in

).

The products that have stayed with me are:

1. Hollywood Glo
2. She-Laq
3. High Beam
4. Moon Beam
5. The Show Off Pigments in "Curtain Call" and "Mint Julep". Overall, I don't care for them as they aren't a good value for the money. They absolutely need a base
6. Sandal Scandal Foot Lotion-Good God, before you go to bed, buff your feet with a Diamancel rasp, then put on this cream. Your feet will feel like rose petals the next morning! This is my fave Bene product.
7. 7% Cream. My skin feels so soft the next morning.
8. I like the chubby pencils in: Bad Gal (Good for a smudgy, smokey eye), Gilded, Mr. Frosty and Eye Bright. High Brow was OK. It was too pink. Almost as pink as Eye Bright.
8. I used to like the Depth Charge and Light Switch lipsticks before I really discovered MAC Lipmix.

Quote:

Originally Posted by GalleyGirl ...I totally wasted my money on You Rebel tinted moisterizer....

I am an NW25 in MAC and found You Rebel to be too orange. I found that cutting it with MAC's Strobe Cream tones down the orange and gives you an incredible warm glow. That is my "warm" version of Strobe Cream. HTH

Not so much my faves. Things that failed to impress me:

1. Bo-ing Concealer. I would rather get an almost exact match with MAC Studio Finish (for the same consistency). Bo-ing is almost too much product. I feel like it turned before I ran out of it. I ended up pitching it.
2. Glamazon - Just disappointing.
3. Benetint - "Revolutionary" at the time, I guess, but just OK now. IMO, there are better alternatives available.
4. FY-Eye - Mehhh. Just Ok. I would rather spend money on a product that is fantastic.
5. Lemon-Aid, Brow-Zing, and Dr. Feelgood - Well pretty much the same sentiment as FY-Eye, just OK. I think there are better alternatives out there.

IMO, overall Benefit is a cute line. There are some really nice products, but it is more of a fun line than a fully functional line like MAC (which is what I like). I mean that in the sense that Bene's product line is limited and what is available, doesn't have a great colour range. But as I said, still fun and I'm all for fun!

 

[aerials]

Bah, I just saw Realness of Concealness at Sephora the other day and this thing is TINY. Is it still worth the $35CAD price tag?

 

[mzreyes]

bad gal lash is the absolute best! IMO.. mac just doesnt do it for me in the mascara department. i LOVE its big brush too

i own hoola and its ok... and i wanted dallas, but i dunno.. not really feelin the packaging.. a box? come on now..

 

[LadyD]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mzreyes bad gal lash is the absolute best! IMO.. mac just doesnt do it for me in the mascara department. i LOVE its big brush too i own hoola and its ok... and i wanted dallas, but i dunno.. not really feelin the packaging.. a box? come on now..

I agree...the box is a bit weird, but Dallas is absolutely my favorite product from that line. I top it with MAC Flirt & Tease, that's by far my favorite combo

And to Aerials...I think Realness kit is worth the price tag if you are wanting to try all those products out. Ohh La Lift is nice...Feels nice & slightly brightens, I still use concealer though. Boi-ing is HG for me, but I think it sucks it doesn't have shade options. Not everybody is medium!! Most my friends are actually Light in Boi-ing & the Get Even powder. So to me, that design is a bit poor on their part, not making it possible to get any shade options but Medium.

I got the kit to try it all...In the future I will probably just buy the products seperately, as the Lip Plump thing doesn't really do it for me.

 

[smellyocheese]

First off, I work for BEnefit so I may come across as biased but I'll try not to be!!

Here are the products that I use most often:

Dr. Feelgood- I love how it really helps to blot the excess shine on the nose area and at the same time doesn't make it look matt or cakey like powders would. it doesn't work well on top of make up though. your foundation just gets blotted away. highly recommend it to those with oily skin but for the dry skin people, skip it if you're gonna have layers of make up on top. great if you wanna wear it alone

You Rebel - My skin's too dry for a regular foundation so I use this. it's much more comfortable and it does leave a very healthy colour on the skin. good enough to even out the skin tone. I use it with IT stick since I have light to medium skin. In fact the out come is even better because the IT stick makes the skin look very smooth.

High Beam & Benetint- LOVE High Beam because it highlights the cheeks beautifully. Benetint is ok... I like the colour but it dries too quickly always leaving marks on my cheeks.

Georgia - Really does give my skin a very healthy glow. But I would onloy recommend this to those with medium skin. Fair skin should go with Dandelion. Dark skin go for dallas. Reddish skin... skip it altogether. it won't compliment your skin unless you have tons of foundation underneath

High Brow - the effect is nice but it looks cakey if your eyebrows aren't fully groomed.

Brow zing - they make the brows look naturally awesome but too dark for me even for the lightest shade. the wax does a great job of filling in sparse brows.

Speed brow - I usually just use this.keeps the brows neatly inplace but sometimes can look too flat.

Babe cake and get bent liner brush - Can't live without this! I never go without liner and never back to kohl pencils after using this. not very convenient for travel though. the liner brush is excellent for dummies but it may be tricky to create a thin line with it.

BAD Gal Lash - the wand is far too big making it hard to control but the formula is great! really thickens and extends the eyelashes. and I may be just dreaming but using it every day, my lashes seems to have naturally thickened and lengthened even without the mascara.

Show offs - there's too mmuch wastage but one thing's great that some of the powder changes colour when put on top of black liner. eg Pistachio (yellow to green), Lola (pink to purple), Bambi (Orange to pink), Miss moon (white to gold).

Smooch - definitely a good buy. it treats the lips really effectively. and it helps to lighten the colour of your lips so that lip gloss would look more even. it's very comfortable and moisturising and yet it doesn't cause your lipstick or gloss to run when applied on top compared to putting oily lip balms.

Color plump (yoo hoo) - definitely plumps up the lips and fills in the creases. much better than lip plump. verymoisturising and great for people who are allergic to lipsticks! I top it off with Her Glossiness (my people, your people). great lip gloss that isn't sticky

Other things :

You're bluffing- conceals redness really well but it may be too yellow for non-oriental people.

Playsticks - great forpeople with sensitive skin. they're easy to blend so you don't have to use it on your whole face. a tad too dry though. also, despite the whole conealer foundation and powder in one, you'll still have to finish off with a powder.

Non fiction - smooth finishing but again, too dry for me.

not on my pillow - a rather disappointing makeup remover. my cleansers can do a better job.

Dear john- I LOVE the texture but I''m allergic to it!! for those who aren't, it's not sticky and not oily! a good buy too.

Get even - gives light coverage, great for setting foundation andnot cakey. also has a yellow undertone to help conceal redness.

She laq- still smudges just more like earaser dust....

Boi- ing - Too thick, cakey and dry!! lyin eyes is slightly better but doesn't cover enough. putting playstick on the under eye works better.

that's all for now.

 

[mackie]

Ok I think a lot of people have the misconception of Lip Plump. Lip Plump isn't gonna plump your lips that's what Color Plump is for after you use if for 30 days straight. Lip Plump is merely (sp) a primer for the lips. It mutes out the lips and fills in the lines so when you put on your favorite shade of lipstick it goes on smoother and more evenly. Also, if you find a color that you LOVE but it looks so different on you, put lip plump on first and apply that shade and it will look very similar to what you see.

MAC_Pixie04 - with your guys You Rebel do you guys have it sitting under a light? Cause that will change the color of rebel fast too.

 

[charismaticlime]

Can anyone tell the difference between High Beam and Moon Beam? I'm contemplating on getting one, but I don't know which one to choose (asian, NC30).

 

[hoemygosh]

ive never used anything from benefit but was looking into trying those eyecon/ the eye gel thingies.
maybe they really can wake up my tired eyes. lol.

 

[charismaticlime]

Is it just me, or does anyone else think that their lipglosses are a rip off? It seems like every new version of lipgloss they come up with are pricier than the last one, and yet it contains less product. Here's what I mean:

the gloss - 14USD, Net wt. 0.18oz
Her Glossiness V.I.P. Lip Gloss - 16USD, Net wt: 0.1 oz
24k sexy gold lipgloss - 20USD, Net wt. 0.07 oz

The last (and latest) one doesn't even contain half as much product as Benefit's the gloss. For the amount you get inside the 24k sexy gold lipgloss, it might as well be a sample!

 

[Showgirl]

I really wanted to love Benefit products cos I'm a sucker for the ditzy packaging, so have bought quite a few over the years, in the main they've resulted in dissappointment.... most of the things I've tried are d/c now but I'll review the ones that ain't...

Kitten dusting powder: Total waste of money, you can get glittery dusting powders that aren't much different from this for a LOT less cash, there's really nothing special here to justify this amount of cash. I much prefer the dusting powders from Lush, for example. And you don't get much product at all.

Dr. Feelgood: used this product for years when I had very, very oily skin instead of foundation and swore by it, it seemed to give my face a real lift, mattify it, and even out the tone. Now I'm older and have *less* oily skin, this doesn't seem to work so well at all, it just feels like a yucky big slick of vaseline on my face and I wonder how I bore it during my twenties when my skin was oilier than it is now. I almost find myself wondering if I was fooling myself when I was younger and more naive, the stuff seems sooooo useless and nasty.... or perhaps they've changed the formula in the last few years.... all I can say is, try before you buy, this is one weird little primer....

Show Offs: Show Offs in "Lola" (a bright, shimmery hot pink with blue/lilac pearl) is like Stars 'N Rockets in loose form: in short, gorgeous. Mine ran out ages ago, I haven't replaced it simply because I have Stars 'N Rockets now. My favourite look with "Lola" show-off was to apply black cream eyeliner in a big thick "tick" on my upper lid, then press the powder shadow OVER that: the pink would go on more sheerly over the main lid area, and would stick very densely to the black eyeliner, turning the line from black into a vibrant metallic lavendar colour. It was very eyecatching, and apparently (according to the Benefit assistant who served me) most of the Show Offs are designed to have this duochrome effect over a black base.... but to be honest with you, a lot of duochrome eyeshadows perform this way over a black base, the Benefit product isn't actually doing anything "special"....

BrowZings: good, but over-priced, and rubbish range of colours, even the lightest shade is too dark for me.

Bad Gal mascara: again, good, but over-priced, and I personally dislike mascaras with big chubby brushes, I find they make mascara application a nightmare. I would recommend MAC Zoomlash over Bad Gal everytime: the MAC mascara is a little runnier, but has a better brush, is cheaper, and gives a very similar effect.

HTH