Happy Easter! Full disclosure: I’m one of those secular assholes who welcome the Easter season not for its religious significance but for the positively pagan abundance of egg-shaped chocolate. Growing up half-Jewish, I couldn’t help noticing the difference in quality between Easter candy and kosher-for-Passover candy, which consisted (and still consists) primarily of coconut-covered marshmallows and those sinister jelly fruit slices. The marshmallows weren’t bad, but they couldn’t hold a candle to malted-milk eggs and Cadbury’s Creme Eggs and Reese’s Eggs. Come to think of it, have I ever encountered an egg-shaped candy I didn’t like? There must be some deep primal significance to ovoid treats.
All this is to say that I really enjoy the symbolism of Easter, to say nothing of its color scheme. Most pastels pull out the gray undertones in my skin and make me look slightly zombified, but I still give them an ill-deserved chance every March and April. This particular Easter, I was also inspired by the Y2K-era silver-blue-lavender metallics that comprised the palette of my preteen years and seem to be making a comeback. During a recent visit to Ulta, I bought NYX’s Duo Chromatic Illuminating Powder (just call it a highlighter, guys) in Twilight Tint, a spectral white with a strong blue shift.
The highlighter comes in a round compact that feels sturdy but is infuriatingly, nail-destroyingly hard to open. Here it is in my palm for scale:
All my highlighters, L-R: ColourPop Lunch Money, ColourPop Monster, Twilight Tint, Topshop Otherworldly.
Twilight Tint is my fourth highlighter but my first powder highlighter, and the learning curve has been steeper than I expected. The NYX formula is quite dry, and swirling a brush in the pan (I use an e.l.f. stippling brush) kicks up a fair amount of powder. (You can see some stray powder on the pan’s black rim in the photo above.) Initially, the dryness fooled me into thinking the highlighter wouldn’t be very pigmented, and the light color made it hard to see how much I was applying, and you can imagine what happened next: I ended up with a glowy blue face that wouldn’t have been out of place in TLC’s “No Scrubs” video.
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| See, if you can’t spatially expand my horizons, then that leaves you in a class with scrubs. |
Like most highlighters, Twilight Tint is best appreciated in motion, but here’s an attempt at capturing it in a photo. I prefer an understated highlight, but the pigment can be built up (or, I assume, layered over a cream formula) for something more vibrant.
For today’s look, which I call “Cyborg Easter Bunny,” I paired Twilight Tint with a very similar eyeshadow: Topshop Mono Eyeshadow in Holograph, which has both blue and pink shifts. Since I didn’t want to go full metallic, I grounded the look with NARS blush in Threesome and Bite Amuse Bouche Lipstick in Lavender Jam. (I’m using a very liberal definition of “grounded,” of course.) I was disappointed in Threesome’s pigmentation when I first reviewed it, but I’ve been wearing it constantly since then. Go figure.
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| L-R: Holograph, Twilight Tint, Threesome, Lavender Jam. |
Using a tip from Michelle, I left most of my lid bare, patting Holograph onto the upper and lower inner corners over Urban Decay Primer Potion. I also lined my upper lashlines with Urban Decay Demolition liner.
And here’s the full look:
The light is really bright today, so I look a bit washed-out; sorry about that. My nail polish is Illamasqua Speckle.
I also tried applying a thin layer of Twilight Tint over Lavender Jam for a metallic effect, but it produced only a light shimmer:
I feel a tiny bit crazy in all this lavender and duochrome, but if I can’t go full-on shimmery pastel today, when can I? Speaking of which, tell me I’m not the only one who’s a little obsessed with Instagram’s Easter stickers.
Auxiliary Beauty 
Those are great colors on you, and I think that eyeshadow placement really enhances the shape of your eyes! Happy chocolate day to you!
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Same to you! I really like this inner-corner-only look. It's a good way to wear bold eyeshadow colors without committing fully.
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Love the violets in the first pic and that color eyeshadow in the inner corners is great with your eye color.
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Now I'm imagining a robot bunny bringing me chocolate eggs…Lavender Jam looks so good on you. I know I am biased towards purples but I really love this look! I'm going to have to try out that eyeshadow placement too.
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Such an impressive Easter makeup look deserves a reward–in the form of a tip about chocolate eggs. Next year, try if you can Elmer's. It's made in Louisiana, but can be spotted elsewhere in the Deep South, as well as online. The most elusive flavor is cherry (like Cherry Mash without peanuts). The easiest flavors to find are Gold Brick and Heavenly Hash.
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Thanks for the shoutout! And i love the look! Doesn't look too insanely blue. Would have loved to see the No Scrubs version :pWould you wear it on normal days?
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Ooh, pretty highlight! I find I'm preferring a very thin fan brush best for powder highlighter application – it's easier to concentrate it in a specific area and it goes on a bit lighter that way. It's funny, I strongly prefer powder blush over cream, but I've come to realize that with highlighter I like a cream formula better. Have you mentioned the Topshop highlighter here before? I don't remember hearing your thoughts on it! I love love love their cream highlighter in the pot, but I haven't tried the stick version. Worth picking up when I'm back in the UK?I love the eye look, too – that's really cool. I'll have to try something like that!
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Thanks! Those violets grow all over my yard; they're so pretty.
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Lavender Jam is a beautiful color, but I wish it had a longer-lasting formula! I've used up almost half the tube because I have to touch up so often.
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Ooh, thank you! I welcome any and all tips about regional candies. My boyfriend is from Alabama and his parents still live there, so I might be able to find some Elmer's this summer (if they're not strictly seasonal).
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Haha, probably not! I might do the holographic inner corners OR Twilight Tint OR Lavender Jam, but not all at once.
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I've been planning to pick up a fan brush, actually! And I prefer cream highlighters, too. The Topshop highlighter is a new one for me, and I'll probably review it before too long. Spoiler: the formula itself is nice, but the product popped out of the tube the first time I opened it. I've swatched the highlighters in the pots, and the Glow Stick is a lot less intense.
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Alas, they are seasonal, but Elmer's does other seasonal editions, like Valentine's and Christmas. You'll find them in drugstores, Walmarts, and groceries like Winn-Dixie. If you google Elmer's Chocolate, you'll find their website lists the places that carry them. Pace yourself if you get any. So, something to look forward to in cooler weather…
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Excellent, thanks! The only truly Southern candy I've ever had is a Goo Goo Cluster from a drugstore in Selma, AL.
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[…] Stick in Otherworldly, a sheer white cream, topped with NYX Duo Chromatic Illuminating Powder in Twilight Tint, a white/blue duochrome. Though I’ve owned Twilight Tint for a few months now, I […]
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