Summer has officially arrived, judging by these extremely high temperatures, so it is time to refresh with a new Essence limited edition! Let's book a ticket to Hawaii because...
This is the Aloha, Babes! limited edition!
"Say aloha to your next beauty getaway! With the new Trend Edition ALOHA BABES, essence brings the vibe of sun, beach and tropical life right into your make-up bag. ☀"
- Essence, www.essence.eu
Because what beats the heat better than a dip in the pool or the sea? This is a perfectly summery LE, drawing inspiration from Hawaii - obviously - given the name. Released just in time for vacation-time, hopefully the products in this LE can tolerate being wet!
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| Source: www.essence.eu |
So, what does this LE have? 7 items in total, with one very plainly obvious filler. That's not a bad ratio, tbh. 6 makeup products and 1 accessory, but the makeup is all focused on the cheeks and lips. Well, I guess there is technically one product for the brows & eyes, but there are no eye pencils, eyeliners or eyeshadows. Missed opportunity there. Instead, there's 2 face products and 3 lip products. Also, note that there are no shade variants for any of the products, which will make my life easier here so much. While most of the products don't seem to be very pigmented, making them suitable for most skintones, of course there's a product that is quite unusable for fair skin. Because we get the short end of the stick so often. Sigh. I'm talking about that gorgeous highlighter, why not make it in at least 2 shades? Guess I should be glad the rest is appropriate for pale skin...
Let's start with the eyes, (and brows) as there is but one product here: a clear lash & brow gel mascara.
Well, it's just a clear mascara. It's supposed to hold brows in place, but with a gelly formula like that, I somehow doubt it will be able to keep brows locked in place in the sweltering heat of the summer - or if you decide to take a dip in the pool. I've used one clear lash/brow mascara before and, while that one wasn't an Essence mascara, it was okay at best. You can read more about it here!
This mascara doesn't seem to be waterproof, though I do appreciate the inclusion of panthenol/provitamin B5. So at least it will be hydrating to some degree. I would just stick with other brow mascaras that actually stick the brows in place, if that's what you are looking for. This, to me, sounds like it won't do much.
Next - the face products! There's two items here, to add a bit of colour and shine. Or a lot of shine! There's a luminous liquid blush and a highlighter.
I want to start with the blush because I have less things to whine about with it compared to the highlighter. I was initially a bit confused by how this blush opens, but once I saw it IRL, I realised that it's actually super simple. It's got a little cap on the top that you open - yeah, it's that simple, I can be confused by the simplest things sometimes lol. It's so cute with that peachy pink circle in the middle which is actually the reservoir for the blush, so you can see how much is left. I love that! And it just goes so well with this whole tropical vacay vibe.
But the colour is so gorgeous! It's a vibrant peachy pink with golden shimmer that looks so summery and fresh! I have no doubts that it will make the perfect flushed look if applied carefully! And it has such a healthy kind of glow to it! Although my skin typically doesn't tolerate liquid blushes/bronzers/highlighters well, I just have to try this out - it's too cute not to!
The second face product goes well with the blush... if you have darker skin, that is. Look, I get that not everything has to be made for pale skin, but it's the same issue Catrice's Desert Dune LE had. Like, why just make one shade that is appropriate for only tan and slightly darker skin?
The design is incredibly beautiful, but to me, this isn't new. I've had Revolution Pro's Lustre Highlighter for quite some time now, and it, too, has this 3D flower sort of shape. Not that anyone is copying anyone, but it's not ground-breaking, is what I am saying. Still, it is positively gorgeous! It looks like a work of art - like some sort of sand castle in the form of a desert rose. Stunning!
It looks like a pretty typical highlighter overall. It looks like it might be quite intensely shiny, so if you are looking for glow that can seen from the ISS, I'm sure this highlighter will be able to provide that. I just wish it was available in a champagne colour as well as this rose gold one. So yeah, I will be skipping it, which kinda breaks my heart. I really wanted it, but I have to remember that I have Rev Pro's highlighter so not all is lost.
Let's now move on over to a part of the face that is a bit lower; that's right, it's time for lips! Here, we have a lip oil, a lip balm and a lip gloss in a stick format (cool?).
Oh and of course, it smells like coconut. Because what could it smell like other than that if the theme is Hawaii/tropical vacation?
Now, this is something interesting! I've seen lipstick stylos (basically, lipsticks in a thin stick format), but I don't often see lip glosses in stick format. And it's a really cute stylo with a flower cutout where you retract the stick. Is this a good shape for precise lining of the lips? Absolutely not! But apparently, this lip gloss has just a bit of pigmentation to it, so it doesn't really matter if you get a bit of it outside the lips. I'm actually glad it is sheer and poorly pigmented, that dark wine red colour would clash badly the rest of this vibrant and bright LE.
Despite what Essence claim, this doesn't seem to be a particularly caring lip gloss, if the ingredients list is any indication (which it is). It's just there to add a bit of colour and probably a lot of shine, which is okay. But I don't need it. Also, it smells like coconut.
I saved the cutest lip product for last! Just look at that cute little lip balm stick! It looks like a mini sunscreen! I love the bright yellow colour they used, it goes perfectly with the rose colour of the balm. And that little flower cut-out??? So mega cute!
And lastly... I mean, what the hell??! TOE SEPARATORS???
I mean, sure, toes are out and about during summer what with all the sandals and barefoot walking (on the beach for example), but still? Like, who asked for this? What's the point? They didn't even include a nail polish with which to use the toe separators...? I am just baffled. There's filler... and then there's... this.
They are cute for sure, but what are they doing here? It's like they knew they wanted to have 7 products but only made 6 and then scrambled to make the first thing that came to their mind - when, hellooo, eyeshadows and eyeliners were right there. Whatever. Pedicures matter and it's nice to have painted toe nails and I guess this goes with the theme of beach and tropical vacation, but only barely. It's a stretch, only the hibiscus flower design saves it.
OKAY! Now, I may not be going on any sort of beach vacation but this LE makes me want to go!
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| Source: www.essence.eu |
I love how fun and summery all the products are with their design. It all looks cohesive and fits with this theme of Hawaii/beach vacations/summer. Is it revolutionary or even inspired to make a summer collection themed around coconut scents and bright pinks and yellows? Nah, not even remotely.
To paraphrase Miranda Priestly: "Flowers Coconut & bright colours for spring summer? Groundbreaking."
That doesn't mean the items are not cute because oh, they are! And some items (highlighter) are sculpted beautifully, like a sand castle.
As for shades represented, well, this LE isn't very colourful. It is more focused on shine and gloss, which is evident with it having a clear brow/lash mascara and a clear lip oil. What little colour there is here is mostly coral/peachy pink, which should look good on most skintones. And then there's the highlighter, which is darker rose gold. Figures. Figures that the most stunning product would be too dark for me, alas. I also sorely miss having anything for the eyes, because using all the products to make a look with will leave the eyes looking very bare. No, instead of any sort of eyeshadow or eyeliner we get - get this - toe separators. Crickets. Yeah, what the...? I don't get it either. Such forced filler.
But at least the blush & highlighter seem to go well with each other and all 3 of the lip products look like they would make a nice glossy lip situation. And the clear mascara should keep brow hairs in place (though I wouldn't hold my breath for that to actually happen).
A bit... like, it's giving kinda unfinished vibes, no? A bit rushed maybe? It's a cute LE nonetheless, though, and I already have decided what I will get from it. It's the liquid blush. Shock, I know, since my skin hates liquid or cream blushes, but ever since I swatched it, I knew I had to have it. If only to sate my curiosity. But yeah, I feel meh about this LE. I don't feel anything in particular. Though I have to give kudos to Essence for making all the product photos staged so perfectly in theme!
That's it for today! But soon, I will check out Catrice's newest summer LE, which, if we were on the beach currently, where could we go from there? Maybe... underwater? ;)
See you soon!
Maja
Maja
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