Products & Makeup: Benefit Cosmetics

This morning a loyal (male) Material Girl reader reminded me that shopping is not just about clothing and accessories. I've been missing the entire realm that is products and makeup! So starting today I'll be periodically giving you my reviews of such products, talk about where I buy them, and alert you to sales/shipping deals/special promotions I come across.

Today I'll discuss two products from one of my favorite lines: Benefit. There are several items in their line that I simply cannot live without. When I don't use them people tend to ask me, Are you tired today? Are you feeling sick?


First up is eye bright, what What Not to Wear's Carmindy called "a face lift in a stick." Benefit gives these instructions on their website:

"Apply as your final step after you have applied all other makeup. Draw 3 to 4 short strokes in the area between the bridge of your nose and the inner corner of your eye where dark shadows linger. Also, draw a light line from the outer corner of your eye up and toward the end of your brow. Do not over blend. To keep it bright, be sure to let some pink tint linger."

Material Girl doesn't use the product this way (although I do like a dab of white eyeshadow in that between-the-eye-and-nose area. If you use one with a hint of sparkle it really bounces the light.) Having a very pale completion, I find eye bright to be a fantastic cover up for the under-eye area. It blends nicely with my skin and works wonders covering up dark circles. I dab a tiny bit of concealer on top of the eye bright and I look like I've gotten 9 hours of sleep (which never happens).

I also use eye bright on the area where other woman my age are getting Restylane injections. I blend a little of the pink eye bright in those deep smile lines and it seems to take five years off my face (a trick I picked up from Carmindy).

My other favorite Benefit product is lemon-aid. Here's Benefit's instructions:

"Swirl your finger in lemon-aid to warm the product. Apply two dots on your eyelid and one in the center of your brow bone. Pat to blend in an upward and outward motion. Need more coverage? Add another layer."

This stuff is magic. I can leave the house wearing only lemon-aid and eye bright and a touch of lip tint and I'm looking fresh and good to go. But wearing lemon-aid under eye shadow is even better. Your shadow will not budge until you take it off.

These products each retail for $18. They both last quite a long time and are definitely worth every penny.

I use several other Benefit products (such as the amazing benetint, and BADgal lash with the world's best mascara applicator brush--I've been told it's Sephora's best-selling mascara) and I've yet to try something in their line I don't like. Plus the products have clever names and darling packaging.

Your best bet for purchasing these (or most other cosmetics) is to shop at Sephora's website through the Lucky Rewards link. Also buy shoes, drugstore products, books and myriad other items through Lucky Rewards. Then one day you'll open your mailbox and--surprise!--a Lucky Rewards debit card. Free shopping money, ladies--stuff and more stuff, a win-win.