Essence Kissed by the Light bronzer review

A product launched by Essence in their new Spring/ Summer 2022 collection? Two different highlighters in their new Kissed by the Light capsule. I will be reviewing both powders, but I will be doing so in separate blog posts. The reason? Because for me the two shades work differently. Today we are reviewing the darker of the two shades. On me, this is too dark to be a highlighter for me, so that’s why I tried this as a bronzer instead. So this review will be for the new Essence Kissed By the Light Illuminating Powder in Sunkissed as a bronzer rather than a highlight.

Review: Essence Kissed by the Light Illuminating Powder 02 Sunkissed

Essence is a drugstore brand and at the more affordable end at that. At just €3.95 this is a super affordable product, no matter what it is supposed to do. If you have deeper skin than mine, I am sure it will be a highlighter. For me though, there is too much depth to the shade and therefore I decided I’d better use it as a bronzer. And let’s be real here: the real reason you want to see what this product does is how pretty this looks in the pan. The way this powder has been pressed is just too stunning.

What does this powder have to offer?

The Essence Kissed by the Light illuminating powder is a pretty powder in basic packaging that is a decent highlighter at the drugstore. It is not super glowy: it’s more of a soft focus product, rather than a strong beam. Close up you can see the real shine comes from the lighter shades in the powder. The darker shades are in fact matte in texture, making this not a super intense highlighter if that’s how you were thinking of using it. I love the powder design of this: it reminds me of an Art Deco kind of design, with a setting sun and its beams shining upwards. Very pretty!

What does this powder do?

Here you can see what I mean: the beige shade is shimmery, but the darker, more bronzy shades are most definitely not. This is why I felt I could use this as a bronzer too. There are two darker, more bronzy shades infused in this shade. They aren’t super deep, but I am very fair skinned and many bronzers are far too dark and muddy on me, especially if they are by Essence. The beige shade by itself I might still be able to use as a highlighter, but once I start blending the shades, this most definitely is a bronzer on me.

How does this bronzer swatch?

So for this swatch I blended all the shades together. The result? A very pretty glowy number that isn’t too high shine, but still makes for a pretty sunkissed look. The shade name couldn’t have been more perfect. There is a pretty glow that makes for a more subtle highlight, but since I don’t mind a glowy bronzer this works as a great hybrid on me. Now for me, personally, I have too many bronzers as is, so I didn’t really need this product. But you know what it’s like making Youtube videos and writing makeup reviews: sometimes you just end up trying things because they would make good content and you don’t try and buy things just because they are right for your collection or makeup needs. This is one of those products for me.

What does this look like on the cheeks?

To see the full effect, I have to show you how this product sits on my skin. As you can see on me, this works as a great, light, wearable bronzer. It really isn’t too glowy once blended in and the shade is pretty spot on. So while this is pretty, I really don’t need this. That being said, if you did have darker skin and you were hoping this would be a great beaming highlighter, then you may be disappointed. Because if this can work on me as a subtle bronzer with some glow, then it won’t go very well as a glowy highlighter. It’ll be very subtle indeed.

My final thoughts

The Essence Kissed by the Light Illuminating Powder in Sunkissed is a versatile product and can work for many different people. On me it’s more of a bronzer as I am very fair. If you have a deeper skin tone, this can work well as a subtle highlighter too. It isn’t the glowiest of highlighters, so that is something to bare in mind. While this isn’t my favorite product ever, I think that if I just judge it on its own merit, this is a good product indeed. The price point is great, the powder looks stunning and it works very well. It just doesn’t add anything to my personal makeup collection so I already decluttered this.

Would I recommend the Essence Kissed by the Light in Sunkissed?

It really depends on what you are looking for whether you would like this product or not. First up is your skin tone: if you are too deep this won’t work for you. As the shade is perfect as a bronzer on me, I don’t think anyone deeper than a medium skin tone will be able to make this work. That said, if you want a great affordable powder bronzer or highlight than this is a versatile one that costs next to nothing and it is stunning to look at.

What is a product you don’t need but that worked quite well for you?