After taking the INSIDE LVMH course, it is apparent to everyone that the China market is steadily rising. Asian beauty has always been a strong market within each country internally, but it is stronger now when China allowed more foreign/international brands and companies to sell their products locally. At the same time, China had also exported its own beauty brands, a few of them thriving in the Western market as well, thanks to their oriental and extraordinary packaging. Not only that, but other SEA countries like South Korea and Japan had also been enjoying international luxury beauty products through local department stores and boutiques.
Having dived into the China-Chinese community for over a year or two (and so), I have been observing and studying how the Chinese beauty community and market work. In terms of Highlights and Contour/Blush products, there are a few well-known highlights which are extremely loved by fellow yellow-skinned users, of all ages.
The Golds
M.A.C.
The most praised highlighter is none other than the Double Gleam highlighter within the Extra Dimension Skinfinish range. It has a nickname called 生姜, which is translated as “young ginger”. With the high demand within the community to bundle up with another fan-favorite ‘contour shade’, M.A.C. heard their customers and merged both the highlighter and the eye shadow named “Omega” into one single product called the Sculpt & Glow Duo. That’s right, the ‘contour’ is actually an eye shadow color!
Originally, the eyeshadow is 1.5g and retails at $21.00 // RM85.00 whilst the highlight is 9g at the price of $40.00 // RM180.00. After merging both the items together, the Sculpt & Glow Duo now weighed 7g at the price of RM179.00. It is unclear if this product is ASEAN only but it is not available on the USA website as of writing this blog post. There is also another fan-favorite nicknamed the Unicorn/独角兽 which has multicolor content in a pan, its original name is called Mineralize Skinfinish in Lightscapade.
Charlotte Tilbury
Recently, there is also a new face palette with beautiful highlights included. The Pillow Talk Beautifying Face Palette also comes in two different color shades to choose from. The blush shades that come with it are also exquisite.
Becca x Smashbox
The Moonstone (月光石) and Opal (蛋白石) are both popular within this range of highlights. They are often compared to the M.A.C. Double Gleam highlighter as well, especially Moonstone. Each weighs 7g and retails at $40.00.
Unfortunately, as Becca had closed down, it is harder to get the Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter. Although Smashbox decided to adopt some of the Becca bestsellers and repackaged them with the new “Smashbox 
Becca” logo, it is still a little difficult to purchase them outside of the USA.
Other options:
- Fenty Beauty Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in Lightning Dust/Fire Crystal
- Fenty Beauty Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in Mean Money/Hu$tla Baby
- Laura Mercier Face Illuminator Highlighting Powder in Addiction
- Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Golden Nude
- Dior Forever Couture Luminizer in 01 Nude Glow
- NARS Cosmetics Highlighting Power in Fort De France
- Illamasqua Beyond Powder in OMG
The Pinks
Bobbi Brown
Another top-favorite amongst the crowd is this Highlighting Powder named Pink Glow, nicknamed 五花肉 or the “pork belly”. The pink parts are the “lean” whilst the white parts are the “fats”. The Pink Glow, just like its duo-colored siblings, is described as a gashapon or a surprise box because every unit has a different amount of pinks and whites. You may get one with lots of lean, or lots of fats, depending on your luck. Having the balance between the two is said to be ‘winning the lottery.’
The regular size weighed 8g at the price of $52.00 or RM231.00 and it has a mini version weighing 4g at $27.00. There is also a Ulla Johnson version weighing 7.55g priced at RM213.00. If you manage to buy in time, there is a limited Chinese Valentine’s Day edition called Blush & Highlight Duo weighed 7g at the price of $48.00 or RM231.00. It has Pink Glow and Rose Flush in it.
Other options:
- Fenty Beauty Match Stix Shimmer Skinstick in Starstruck
- Fenty Beauty Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in Ginger Binge/Moscow Mule
- Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Multi-glow Highlighter
- Laura Mercier Face Illuminator Highlighting Powder in Devotion
- NARS Cosmetics Highlighting Powder in Capri
- Dior Forever Couture Luminizer in 02 Pink Glow
- Milani Strobelight Instant Glow Powder Highlighter in 01 Afterglow
The Opals
Clé de Peau Beauté
One of the most expensive brands here, with shimmers and opal tones, the entire package is very well-loved by the beauty community. This Luminizing Face Enhancer also comes in different shades and tones for different purposes.
Each weighs 10g and retails at $95.00 or RM370.00, the Luminizing Face Enhancer has six colors as of today and the product consistently gets renewed every once in a while. Occasionally, there are new and exclusive packaging available for specific seasons, such as the 40th Anniversary Holiday Season.
ILLAMASQUA
Both Daze and Deity have similar color tones but based on the images, it seems that Daze has more blues/greens whilst Deity has more pinks. Depending on your skin tone and preferences, it is up to you to decide which is best for you. Ultimately, these two are rather similar to each other.
Each weighs 7g and retails at £34.00. This brand is currently not available in Malaysia unless purchased from resellers, which is not encouraged unless by the official brand themselves.
Other options:
- Too Faced Diamond Light Highlighter in Diamond Fire
- M.A.C. Cosmetics Extra Dimension Skinfinish in Soft Frost
- Pat McGrath Labs Skin Fetish: Sublime Skin Highlighting Trio
The Whites
Fenty Beauty
Although it has bigger particles, many are impressed by how long-lasting it is, the shine from this highlight truly makes people shed tears of happiness. There are two more color options for the Diamond Bomb All-Over Diamond Veil, one is a pink shade called the Rosé Rave whilst the orange shade is called Royal Icing. (Note: Royal Icing is not available in Malaysia and on the Fenty Beauty site as it is a limited edition that was on shelves back in November 2020.)
Anastasia Beverly Hills
Surprisingly, as white as it looks, it also shows a lot of gold tones on the skin. You may want to test it out before purchasing it blindly online.
Other options:
- Stila Cosmetics Heaven’s Hue Highlighter in Opulence
- Stila Cosmetics Heaven’s Dew All Over Glimmer
- Dior Forever Couture Luminizer in 03 Pearlescent Glow
Swatches
Some of the available swatches that I can gather from official sources:
（Unable to obtain: Charlotte Tilbury, and Clé de Peau Beauté)
Based on my knowledge this is the ranking amongst the featured highlighters here: M.A.C. Double Gleam, Bobbi Brown Pink Glow, Clé de Peau Beauté #17, Becca Moonstone, Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow, Fenty Beauty Diamond Bomb, Illamasqua Daze, and Anastasia Beverly Hills Iced Out.
With the substitutes available as well, hope this blog post helps you with catching up with the current trend.
