Highlight Head To Head

I recently acquired 2 new pricey highlighters, My current favourite costs just £3 from Freedom so I wondered whether either of these new additions would give me a more expensive looking glow. The first is the blogger favourite Champagne Pop from Becca/Jaclyn Hill, the second is the new Illamasqua Beyond Powder in OMG. Both retail at a whopping £32 here in the UK, but are they worth that hefty price tag?

Excuse my hairy arm swatches, I thought they would show up a little better on the tanned side of my arm rather than the milky white one. On the left is Becca and on the right is Illamasqua, that will be true throughout for your reference. The main difference between the two fundamentally is that the Becca is a pressed powder and the Illamasqua is baked. This means the Illamasqua powder is in theory more versatile as it can be used wet/dry depending on the intensity you want so you could use it as a very bold champagne eyeshadow or a more subtle face powder but I'm comparing them purely as highlights today.

I find it IMPOSSIBLE to capture a highlight on my face so I'm going to throw some more arm swatches at you in a second but I still wanted to share what each looks like 'on' no matter how useless. On the left is Becca and on the right the Illamasqua, I think I can slightly make out the Becca whereas the Illamasqua looks less frosty, more natural.

When I first swatched the two side by side I thought Champagne Pop was the clear winner, it was bold and beautiful and everything I'd hoped for but REALLY it's a bit much for me. It's almost the density of an eyeshadow and when swatched on my arm it looks to have a great deal of depth and pigment but when worn sparingly on the cheek it's a little sparkly. The Beyond Powder wasn't an instant hit for me, it was a bit 'blah' and powdery, I couldn't really see it on my face and I couldn't believe the price. I've had people compliment the Champagne Pop when I'm wearing it, nobody has ever mentioned my highlight when I've worn the Illamasqua powder.. but I realise we're dealing with apples and oranges here. Much as I wanted to compare the two they're not really comparable. One is very frosty and looks great with a tan for a golden glow (Becca), the other can be used more liberally as a subtle sheen no matter how pale I am (Illamasqua). They both have their place but at £32 I still prefer my Freedom Ambient Highlight for every day ;)