Chanel • Sheer Brilliance - Brilliance Pur • Foundations

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beforenafter on 4/9/2010 7:38:00 PM more reviews by beforenafter

Age: 36-43   Skin: Dry, Fair, Cool   Hair: Black, Straight, Medium   Eyes: Brown    

Whenever I wear this, I always get compliments on my skin.

I put it on teensy bits on my forehead, cheeks and nose and bounce it out with a moist Sonia Kashuk blending sponge (you know the purple beauty blender knock off).

For me, it's better than a traditional bronzer because it eliminates the danger of just looking dirty . . I'm pretty pale and even though I'm Korean, I've got a lot of bluish undertones to my skin.

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HeidiV on 4/1/2009 5:50:00 PM more reviews by HeidiV

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brunette, Straight, Fine   Eyes: Brown    

I got this one in Golden Apricot. It seems to be really dark in the bottle for my fair skin, however, when i apply it to highlight the cheek bones using MAC 188 brush, i got the amazing result. The color blends really well into my skin and gives me the cheekbones and brightens my eyes. It will last forever and I don't think I need to buy another one in ages.

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kireizillah on 1/22/2009 1:53:00 PM more reviews by kireizillah

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Green    

I... am so confused about why this is categorized as foundation when it's clearly a highlighter or bronzer?

But either way it's AMAZING! I use it in Sunkissed which was originally so dark in the bottle that I was afraid to put it on. But when I did, wow! Works as a highlighter by giving a dewy glow and a bronzer by giving you a warm golden tone. I apply to my cheekbones and temples and look, well, sunkissed.

It can be used alone, under or over foundation for precision highlighting, or mixed with a liquid foundation for an all over fresh faced glow (which I often do.) I have fair skin and prefer a "no makeup" look and I have never found this to be garish or too much. It's subtle. It also never gets greasy or shiny - even mixed into foundation!

It's definitely my new must-have, despite how expensive it is.

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BothCoasts on 5/11/2008 6:32:00 AM more reviews by BothCoasts

Age: 25-29   Skin: Dry, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

A) I don’t wear foundation. B) Or really, makeup in general. I just don’t have it together enough. C) I have very few occasions to wear highlighter because in my career culture, ‘glowy’ is viewed as a kind of inauthentic. Or naïve. So this product is A) a foundation/highlighter, B) light-reflective and C) $42 which I ordinarily use for other trivialities, like oh, food. So it was absolutely bizarre that I picked this product (in Sunkissed) out of all the others gracing the Chanel counter as my purchase with a makeup application, and I had every intention of returning it. And it has not been returned, which, combined with my history and biases, should tell you something about this product. I love it first because it’s easy: if you can put moisturizer on your face, you can work with this. It can be worn over foundation or just on bare skin, which is how I do it. I love it to kick things up a bit and the color is subtle on my yellow-toned skin (may be a bit too gold for paler skin tones). It makes me look glowy. The sparkle is very fine overall, so it comes out as a nice subtle sheen—not glitterati. Mixing it with moisturizer can tone things down a bit. You can also mix with lotion to pep up the décolleté or even legs and arms. I justify the expense because it’s a lot of product for the buck. And those interlocking C’s look so swank in the medicine cabinet.

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MilesDevin on 4/20/2008 8:54:00 AM more reviews by MilesDevin

Age: 19-24   Skin: Oily, Fair   Hair: Black   Eyes: Hazel    

I like this product. I don't love it, but I like it. I prefer a good quality, finely-milled powder over a liquid (NARS Laguna Bronzer), but, you can tell this is a very high quality product. I use it after my liquid foundation as a contour on my pale skin. Works quite well. I then set my foundation and Pur Brilliance with a loose powder, and I'm off with a fresh glow. I wish they'd expand the color line on this. It could be very versatile.


You do get A LOT of product for the price with this. I would probably repurchase.

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henbritches on 3/8/2008 1:42:00 PM more reviews by henbritches

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I have owned both the Golden Apricot and the Sunkissed shades for a couple of years now, and owning so many products, I forget about things I have quite frequently. I was on the Chanel website recently, and I watched a video showing the application techniques for this product, and got inspired to use it again. I am pretty fair right now, but I can use both and it looks beautiful. I have been using the Golden Apricot lately, and I just dab a bit on and blend like crazy with a foundation brush and I have the most wonderful glow, and with a bit of color on top so that I don't even need blush! It is such a wonderful high quality product, and I recommend this to anyone who needs a bit of color and a nice glow! I also heard they are coming out with this in Bronze in the summer this year, which I know they had that color in the past, so that should be exciting!

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*TOP REVIEWER* media_cookie on 2/21/2008 5:23:00 PM more reviews by media_cookie

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black, Wavy, Medium   Eyes: Blue    

I bought this in Sunkissed last year and used it once. It seemed so.......gold lol. It looked very warm and obvious on my nc20-ish skin and left a clear gold colored streak anywhere I tried to highlight. I wasn't brave enough to add it to my foundation (my skin texture isn't good). Anyway, lately I've picked it back up and found that if I use my airbrush, it's a whole 'nother product. It's delicate, dewy and beautiful when applied this way. Surprisingly not orange-y gold but a nice dewy, relatively pale golden effect. Also, it doesn't need to be diluted to be used like this. If anyone out there is also airbrushing their makeup, try it. It's phenominal (but overpriced).

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jpintane on 9/5/2007 1:19:00 PM more reviews by jpintane

Age: 25-29   Skin: Combination, Medium   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

Since it is summer, I have really liked the glow look. I like Sheer Brillance because you can use it under foundation or over it or sometimes on the weekends I just use it alone with some blush and a shimmery glossimer. I am a Chanel junkie and have tried ALL the foundations and I like how this just goes on so fast and easy. I have fair to medium skin and it never looks too dark for my skin.

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mantees11 on 7/23/2007 12:24:00 PM more reviews by mantees11

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair-Medium   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Brown    

This is nothing special,i tried it expecting this to be good but it is not!!It does not even show up on my skin!For the price is not worth it!

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*TOP REVIEWER* Sage6o4 on 7/22/2007 1:43:00 AM more reviews by Sage6o4

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Oily, Olive, Warm   Hair: Brunette, Wavy, Coarse   Eyes: Brown    

AHHHHH. I have the BIGGEST love/hate relationship with this product. I feel like if I leave the house without it, I look too matte, however, when I put it on, I often feel to "golden statue". I've tried applying it with many different methods... (fingers, 187 brush, 190 brush, and blush brushes) however... nothing seems to really do it for me. The thing that bugs me the most about it is that the staying power is horrible, within minutes it feels to have fallen off my face completely. I have this in Sunkissed, and since I'm running low I'm concidering buying the other, bronzier shade to maybe make more of a diffrerence... but haven't decided yet, since it's $50 freaking dollars!! I wish I had something more useful to say about this, but I'm very undecided about it and I've had it for 2 years so it's not like I'm reviewing it right away, haha.

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ElaineMMc on 2/24/2007 12:03:00 AM more reviews by ElaineMMc

Age: 36-43   Skin: Combination   Hair: Black   Eyes: Blue    

This stuff is wonderful! Goes on very lightweight but leaves a very natural looking radiance to the skin. I love the Transparent shade most; I like the Sunkissed shade; but I'm not all that crazy about Rosee. I will buy this again and again, no matter how outrageously expensive it is (and it is!)

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summerluvinit on 1/2/2007 10:07:00 PM more reviews by summerluvinit

Age: 18 & Under   Skin: Normal   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

In a Chanel makeover that MA used this highlighter, in the shade Golden Apricot, on my cheeks to give them a glowing, summery, bright look. It was perfect. What's more, is that even in the winter this product brightens up my dull, dry skin and makes me look radiant. I cannot say enough good things about it, the texture is smooth and blends well, it doesn't make me break out, it is just a great product to wear on a bare face when you don't want to look made-up but fresh but you can use it in the evening to make your skin luminous.

The price is steep, I paid $42 USD, but I've been using it about 4 times a week for over 6 months and there are no signs of having to repurchase or that it is going bad. A little goes a long way. The only thing I would change is the packaging, it comes in a a bottle that you can pour out. But I only need a dab of product to get the effect I want, so I would rather it have a small pump that I could control a little better and that would also not get so much product stuck inside the cap when I shake it up to use it.

Skin: NC35-42 (Winter-summer), slightly dry-normal.

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DJ112 on 6/2/2006 1:45:00 PM more reviews by DJ112

Age: 25-29   Skin: Acne-prone, Fair   Hair: Brown, Coarse   Eyes: Blue    

LOVE LOVE LOVE! I mix a little bit with my foundation and apply with my fingers. Makes my pale face look TAN and NATURAL.

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hottie5576 on 4/7/2006 6:26:00 PM more reviews by hottie5576

Age: 25-29   Skin: Oily   Hair: Blond   Eyes: Blue    

This is a great highlighter product. I use a little on my cheeks and forehead and chin. I wear BE foundation and this doesn't not effect my BE at all. It goes on smooth and non-greasy and gives a subtle, dewey glow to face. Priced at $42.00, it will last a very long time. I like the shade Golden Apricot. Though it comes in the shade "Sunkissed". Even though I get to try and sample Chanel products at work, I would definately buy this product even if I didn't get it for free. It is beautiful looking in the bottle and you can lighten or deepen your foundation with this. It is also pearlized so it reflects light wonderfully. Also contains green tea, vitamin E and is oil free. All Chanel products are non-comedogenic as well for anyone wondering.

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*TOP REVIEWER* gtaStat on 7/22/2005 5:36:00 PM more reviews by gtaStat

Age: Unknown   Skin: Other   Hair: Other   Eyes: Other    

I have this in Bronzelit, which is a deep tan/bronze with shimmer. This reminds me of the bronze Armani Fluid Sheer (I believe it's #3), but the Chanel product has less orange tones imho. I apply this to my cheeks, lightly across forehead, and along jawline for a sunkissed look. At first, I was afraid it might be too dark but it blends in perfectly. Gives me a nice summery glow. This is quite expensive, but the bottle will last an eternity.

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baby2004 on 5/10/2005 9:58:00 PM more reviews by baby2004

Age: 30-35   Skin: Very Dry, Fair-Medium   Hair: Black   Eyes: Black    

Don't let the color seen from the bottle lure you like me before. I had it in "Sunkissed" since last year but just bought "Bronzelit" last week . I almost tossed the darker one away ... However, after I tried to use Bronzelit over my Chanel: Bronze Universel on my cheeks, it made me look absolutely stunning in sunshine! ..... This product will give you a wonderful glow with VERY LITTLE size of glitters, not as big as those of in the GA's Fluid sheer ...
Sunkissed color look more like "gold" and Bronzelit looks more like "sunkissed" to me. I love them both!

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chocolacious on 5/4/2005 11:02:00 PM more reviews by chocolacious

Age: 19-24   Skin: Combination   Hair: Black   Eyes: Brown    

I love this! I have the bronze one and it gives enough natural color on my pale skin. I don't use a lot of it since it's a bit shiny, but a little of it on the sponge gives me glow. I don't consider this a foundation, it is a hi-liter. I don't have to wear foundation since my daily skin routine has help clear imperfections and Chanel Sheer Brilliance gives a very dewy finish and a sun kissed glow.

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Jenna519 on 3/31/2005 3:18:00 AM more reviews by Jenna519

Age: 30-35   Skin: Normal   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Blue    

I just got this in Transparent, and it is absolutely wonderful. I've been searching high and low for a highlighter that just gives a sheer glow and looks natural. Even over makeup, somehow this manages to make me look as though I did nothing but wash my face and moisturize! In daylight and office light it makes my 30-something PPP skin appear luminous. Absolute HG at any price.

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EmmaLynn on 2/12/2005 9:44:00 PM more reviews by EmmaLynn

Age: 44-55   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brown   Eyes: Green    

After reading your reviews I had to try Chanel Sheer Brilliance. I absolutely love it. My whole face just lite up when I applied as a highlighter over my makeup. I have wasted so much money on cosmetics but Chanel SB is a keeper. Thank you so much for your reviews. I am loving Makeup Alley!!!

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charbaby on 1/23/2005 3:14:00 PM more reviews by charbaby

Age: 44-55   Skin: Combination   Hair: Brunette   Eyes: Brown    

I bought this due to it's reviews here. I wear it when I want to look special or "glowy"..gosh which I guess is every day! I mix it with my foundation.but put a little in my hand of each so I can control the amount mixed..so the nose doesnt get that shiny for example. If I use JI powder foundation, then I just pat it on areas I want to highlight. I have it in sunkissed..I have medium olive skin and brown eyes.

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