The Perfect Highlighter for Your Skin Tone and Skin Type

It’s summer 2015, and by this point in time, I think every girl who is not new to makeup should have tried a highlighter or two by now. Highlighters are great for making your skin look fresh, dewy, and just really well moisturized. They aren’t meant to make you look frosty, glittery, or sallow, so if that’s how your highlighter is making you look, then odds are, you need to get a new one.

Like all makeup products, the shade and texture of highlighter you use are largely dependent on your skin tone and skin type. However, there are certain things that I believe every highlighter should have. A good highlighter shouldn’t have only one color of pearl in it, simply because skin in itself is made up of lots of greens, reds, and blues. Under strong light, a highlighter needs to have different colors of pearl to blend seamlessly with your skin without looking too frosty or unnatural.

When it comes to skin type, I would definitely recommend a cream or liquid formulation for everyone unless you have rosacea or lots of blemishes around your cheekbones, in which case I’d personally opt for a powder because it won’t disturb any heavy concealing you’ve done in that area. Powders also work better if you have intensely oily skin and need to powder your entire face.

1. For fair skin, I think Benefit’s High Beam has a healthy hint of pink in it, so it illuminates the skin without making it look sallow or drained. For a powder alternative, TheBalm’s Mary-Lou Manizer is hands down the best can you can ever use because it adds a healthy amount of sheen without being too frosty like most powder highlighters. For porcelain skin though, I’d recommend a powder that’s a bit paler and slightly more rosy.

2. As someone with medium skin, I’m currently obsessed with Benefit’s Watt’s Up. It’s a stick highlighter, so it’s really easy to focus it on key areas of the face to avoid looking like a greaseball, plus the sponge on the other end makes for easy blending and creates a soft-focus finish that I absolutely love. For powder, Bobbi Brown’s Shimmer Brick (I like Nectar, but it also comes in several other shades) is a great option that my mom and sister use all the time.

3. When it comes to darker skin tones, I think pinky or frosty can make you look either gray, ashy, or chalky. In my opinion, he best kind of highlighter for these skin tones is a golden one like Benefit’s Sun Beam or a bronzy one like the Pressed BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector in Topaz. The Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick in Bronze would also look super pretty.

Have you tried any of the highlighters I mentioned? Did I miss out on any good ones? Let me know it the comments section below!