I like how being a blogger means growing with my readers, too. And I think one big change I did in the end of 2016 is to learn how to embrace strobing and tone down the contour. I always thought contouring would never die, until it died before my eyes. The looks that once looked chiseled became dirty looking at a second glance. I was just jolted awake by a cold realization that my makeup looks were in an era that the overdone contour really just looks like dirt. I would scroll down my photos and all I could focus on was the “dirt.”
I never learned how to reaaally love strobing till recently because I always thought that strobing would exacerbate the oiliness in my skin. I also did come from makeup school, and in most schools a few years back, the school of thought was to take it easy on the highlighter because too much can make the subject look sweaty or oily under heavy lighting conditions in videos or flash photography. I also always felt that my highlighters just exacerbated my pores and my oiliness until I realized that I was just using the wrong ones. I was initially scared of the crazy bright highlighters for fear that my pores would look worse, until I slowly acquired the standards to judge highlighters with.
This, if you ask me, is the perfect break in period product if you know you need to let go of too much contouring but want something pretty yet controllable as your first highlighter. Say hello to Maybelline’s Master Strobing cream. This is nude, and I specified coz there’s a pink one, too.
Let’s get down to the breakdown!
Shade Selection: This is one of two shades, which is quite “few” given that some brands already have like 15-20 distinct highlighter shades in their roster. As for why Maybelline is not following up, my guess is that their market research might be indicating that the mass market might not yet be that ready for crazy highlighter palettes. Or that crazy highlighting may die off way too soon that it may not be worth it for them to put their eggs in the basket. Or that to them, the mass market consumer only thinks of highlighter as a 1 piece need, unlike lipsticks or eyeshadows wherein one needs plenty of colors.
Pigmentation and Pore Magnification: This is a beautiful sheer formula that gives a soft but discernible radiance to one’s look. I was so impressed that this brought in such a powerful glow without exacerbating the look of my pores. I truly felt that I artificially bought a week of good sleep when I used this because I got the desired effect without the nasty side effects.
Texture: I am suuuper in love with this product’s texture! This is the ultimate steal because I find that very very few drugstore brands are making strobing creams like this. The usual formula is a powder or a stick. This format is such a gamechanger because this behaves a lot like a lip tint. It’s this soft, moist gel, akin to the lip tints in tubes that you squeeze out. It’s soft and moist, pats on easily, and blends seamlessly without skidding or dragging the existing makeup I have. I don’t have to compromise when I’m using this– I don’t have to use this between foundation and powder and risk toning it down too much once the powder is there, and I don’t need to worry about putting this over powder because this isn’t gonna wreck everything. It’s really everything we want from strobing without the unwanted side effects. Praise the Lord.
Comfort: Since this is such a lightweight gel, I never felt any sort of cakey or sticky or heavy feeling from this. It’s refreshing to apply this especially when the weather is a bit cold because this feels moist and all hahaha.
Longevity: Assuming I do my face makeup religiously and put this as a topper, this stays on for most of the day. I barely have to think about retouches. If I make shortcuts and put this on bare skin, I find myself needing to reapply every half day or so.
Value For Money: Given that this is among the few drugstore brands making highlighter in this format and that all its high end counterparts are like 5-6 times more expensive with probably just 30-40% better performance, this is the ultimate steal. This is the kind of the product that you go to church for and say: “Thank you Lord for giving us more than we deserve.” I am just so pleased I don’t know how to contain it.
Overall Feedback: You NEED this in your life. HOARD THIS OKAY?! I never thought it was humanly possible to harness all the benefits of highlighters without the unwanted side effects. While this may not be the most radiant or most long lasting highlighter out there, this has all the core benefits people want from highlighter without the strings attached. This is perfect for those who are just starting to hop onto the trend and are scared to make a mistake. Or heck, this is a perfect highlighter everyone should have 20 of. I honestly would buy spares of this just for throwing at salty and bitter people so that they can see the light.
Goiing baack, I’m not sure if this is how the ones in the stores look like as well. This is a sample that was gifted to us in January, months before the official launch. I think there are more formal stickers on the products now?
BTW, in the US, this is called “Nude Glow” for Medium skin. There, it’s called Master Strobing Liquid Illuminating Highlighter.
It comes with this medium sized nozzle. Since this is a gel type formula that has its own structure, I don’t see this flow around like crazy around the nozzle.
This is how the product looks like. Alone, this looks literally like a nudy pearl color.
On the skin, this is how it looks like on full blast. It’s basically this champagne colored pearlizer.
And this is me dotting the product! I have such a serious face because I know I’m still in the depths of flat makeup and seriously need some saving from this product hahaha. I forgot to mention but I super love that this doesn’t set super fast that I was able to take photos like these without having to deal with prematurely dried product dots.
Blending is straightforward and can be done without the use of any sponges or brushes.
This is how it looks up close once it’s been blended in. I am sooo happy that my skin still looks like skin, and that my makeup is still where it is. My foundation and blush have not been displaced whatsoever by this highlighter. And as you can see, the areas with highlighter do not look significantly worse off than the areas without highlighter, pores wise.
This is the before and after. I guess the blush also has a contributing factor as I used NYX’s Pinched (which happens to be a good dupe for NARS’s Orgasm and is a bit of an illuminating blush itself). But overall, the missing dimension is dealt with once I have the highlighter on. And even under flash photography, it looks decent. It doesn’t look like crazy patches of white. It’s a soft yet noticeable glow that goes on seamlessly with the rest of the look.
I am sooo in love with this product I need this in my life 24/7 nowwww
I love it so much I used it on my graduation day!
When I made this post, it was a new product, but now it’s already available in most major Maybelline outlets, as well as Lazada. I did this review even before it was available in stores coz I’m just super impressed. I have used the strobing stick from this collection, but I will be honest that the strobing stick will just never win against this. That’s why I reviewed this first because this is the standard now hahaha.
This is in Maybelline stores nationwide in the coming weeks, and retails for Php399 a pop, as well as on Lazada.
Top Beauty Blogger, Vlogger, YouTuber from Manila, Philippines
WOW! Dumagdag sa blooming po ng face mo madam mari! NAgsisimula pa lng pa nman ako sa contouring,huhu..nafeel ko tuloy luma nang style un..hehe.. Overall maganda namn po yan kasi highlighted nga pero di sya sumasapaw lalo na po sa blush mo madam…kuminang nga po blush mo po.
FB: Sam Alejandro Aguilar
contouring seems so easy pero siya ang pinakamahirap kasi very product dependent.. use a slightly wrong product and mukhang dumi na kaagad. kahit ano pang blend kapag mali ang shade nagmumukha talagang dumi. kaya sa strobing na me hahaha
Super Love po sana mgkron po ako ng ganyan at di lang para sakin pang surprise gift sa sister ko na mahilig magkulerete sa mukha daig pa ako na ate nya Sana marami pa po kayo matulungan, kagaya kopo na di ko afford.. GodBless po FB: emelyn navarro
Wow Bakit makintab sya? Prang may shimmering sa face
FB: CJ P Laurio
highlighter really is meant to make you look shiny para mukhang glowing at fresh.. and para di halatang pagoda sa buhay hahaha
Aww. New product.. And it's 399.. Need it to see for myself! I like the shining shimmering thingy when applied.. Kinda chunky glitterbomb.. ahehehe but I do loves it! Okay po ba sya pag oily yung skin? Yaaayy…
FB: Rain Gatdula
it's not glittery… it's pearly. mukha pa rin akong tao kahit in real life no alein vibes haha
Achieve na achieve nito yung natural glow effect �� Grabe maybelline lumelevel up. ��
pretty young thing
Wow! New product from Maybelline. A must-try eh… Thanks for sharing your own review po. Gonna try this as soon as possible. Hehe…
FB: Janella Nicole Geronimo
IG: crystaljane1092
Ang ganda sa face, parang always blooming pag gumamit nito i want to try it.
FB: JO Banie Macatangay
Very natural lng ang sya face mo 🙂 gandara. nakadagdag ng blooming effect 😉 FB: Kathlyn Pearl Sanjuan-Santos
I really want to learn how to contour before pero nakailang subok ako and always epi fail haha I think strobing/highlighting would be easier and yeahhh you're right Miss Mari, parang old school na nga ang contouring. Realizations came in. Hahaha. And I guess Maybelline did such a good job for marketing nude ones. I so love it plus its lightweight feels. Comfort check check check. ������
akala ko ako lang hahaha. pero totoo nga looking at my heavily contoured photos yung dating mukhang pak na pak ay mukhang nalagyan ng uling cheret
Im currently having thoughts about about buying one and with your review Im sure now to buy one! Or maybe three!!! ?? as u say hoard hoard hoard !! While on sale ?? !! Thanks for the great review -Sunshine Louise
Natatakot pa akong gumamit ng highlighter but I might try this.