Charlotte Tilbury X Norman Parkinson

Do you gift yourself a little birthday present? Or is this just another way to justify a purchase that was not needed but just happened to coincide with the month of your birth? Hmm…probably the latter. It was my birthday last week and I did just this and purchased two items from the Charlotte Tilbury x Norman Parkinson collection – the Dreamy Glow Highlighter and the Colour of Youth Lip and Cheek Glow.

To say that I didn’t buy these for the gorgeous and completely unusual limited edition packaging would be a lie. Sometimes a girl just wants pretty things you know? Suffice to say, the entire Charlotte Tilbury line is gorgeously designed limited or permanent collection.

I have had the opportunity to wear both  the Dreamy Glow Highlighter and the Colour of Youth Lip and Cheek Glow and both look great on the face. I appreciate that the highlight is a soft pink glow and is neither too out there or in your face. To me, this is the perfect everyday kind of highlighter. There’s no chunky glitter just a smooth subtle glow.

I have only worn the Colour of Youth Lip & Cheek Glow on my cheeks so can’t really say how it works on the lips, but on the cheeks it applies and blends easily and is quite pigmented so do use a light hand. I found the lasting powder to be pretty longwearing on my skin and applied in the morning before work the colour is still visible at the end of the work day with a little fading.

Are these two products must-haves? Well I guess that depends on what you ‘must have’. If you are into limited edition collections and fancy packaging, then I personally think that you are not going to get much prettier in terms of packaging than these. If you are all about what’s inside for the price point then there is definitely better out there for your money, even at the higher end of things. You could try the Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Colour Stick which I have reviewed here as an alternative to the Colour of Youth Lip & Cheek Glow. And if it’s a subtle highlight you are after you could try checking out the Hourglass Ambient Powders either individually or in the palette. Or perhaps even Kevyn Aucoin Celestial Powder in Starlight as that seems to be on the pinkier side of highlights – I haven’t tried this one though, so correct me if I’m wrong!

So tell me, does the mere mention of limited edition and a prettily packaged product get you excited or are you more level headed than I?