Smashbox Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette Review

Smashbox Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette

Finding brands that you love is a great feeling but sometimes that love can blind you from seeing the beauty of other brands. I used to be a supreme MAC junkie but eventually I grew out of MAC and started trying other brands. Since I’ve started working for Ulta, I’ve discovered the beauty of Tarte, Too Faced and now Smashbox. I used to walk right past Smashbox without even noticing but I’ve come to realize that their products are actually pretty good. In fact, Smashbox is a seriously underrated brand that deserves a lot more love!

Smashbox Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette

The first Smashbox product I decided to try was the new Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette that I received as gratis. From the moment I opened it, I had a feeling that I was going to be using it a lot. And I was right. Culver City Coral features 2 coral blushes and a peachy highlighter that work beautifully together to lightly sculpt cheeks with a pinch of color and a subtle yet very pretty highlight. Culver City Coral is one of three L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palettes along with a pink and berry version. However, it’s the most wearable and versatile of them all because it works well for both light and dark skin tones. I especially love the way it perks up my chocolate cheeks with a natural pinch of coral.

Smashbox Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette

Culver City Coral comes with two blushes: Rich Coral, a coral orange, and True Coral, a pinky coral that both sport a soft yet dense texture that’s moderately pigmented and very easy to apply. Both blushes adhere to my dry cheeks well without looking dry, chalky or powdery and blends quite easily with just a few strokes of a brush. I just adore the blushes because they’re such great quality and they look amazing on my brown skin. Rich Coral adds warmth and helps give my cheeks a more sculpted look when buffed right above my bronzer. While True Coral really brightens my complexion by adding a cute touch of pink and lifting my cheeks making them look more round and flirty. Both blushes work well alone but I absolutely love Smashbox’s idea of layering them both to help create a more defined and sculpted look.

I’m also a big fan of the highlighter too! Highlight Coral is a soft peachy-coral gold with fine golden shimmer that’s sheer yet buildable. It’s super easy to achieve a more natural, subtle highlight with a light hand. If you’re more of a glow queen (like me), then you’ll love the fact that you can layer and build Highlight Coral for a stronger more intense coral. You’ll just have to be careful if you’re a dark skin beauty because Highlight Coral has a slight peachy base that will start to shine through and look a little frosty if you go over board. Thankfully, it’s easy to tone down with another light wash of True Coral.

After giving Culver City Coral a try, I can’t believe I’ve neglected Smashbox for so long. Culver City Coral isn’t just pretty. It’s an amazing quality palette that looks beautiful on a variety of skin tones and wears nicely too. The blushes last me all day long (around 8-10 hours) before showing some signs of fading and Highlight Coral holds its own for around 7-8 hours. Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette is a wonderful summer cheek palette that would make a great addition to any collection. I highly recommend it!

Smashbox L.A. Lights Culver City Coral Blush & Highlight Palette

Highlight Coral, True Coral and Rich Coral

Smashbox Culver City Coral L.A. Lights Blush & Highlight Palette Review