MAC Cosmetics Prep + Prime Highlighter Pen (Radiant Rose)

I've used it all so it's a good sign in general but overall I hadn't receive the performance I was hoping for. Wanted the natural look with a slight pop of highlight - got pretty much nothing on my fair/ olive skin. Regarding the great reviews from other consumers I guess the color wasn't for my skin type though MAC mua advised it. Probably more fair/porcelain gals will have more luck with this product.

Love this highlighting pen for under the eyes. Its so easy to blend and gives you a fresh, ready to go look quickly. I usually blend this out with a beauty blender and set with a powder.

This just wasn't the product for me. I can though imagine it being a nice procuct for a lot of other people- It has a nice applicator, blends out really well and i've seen it on other people giving a nice natural highlight.
Now this isn't a concealer, it's a highlighter, but I'd read online about it being quite nice in brightening up undereye circle areas on top of concealer and I found it dissapointing in this regard- it's simply not pigmented enough for those of us with crazy dark circles and I found it made creasing worse worn over my concealer (NARS radiant).
It didn't do as much as i'd hoped for me personally in brightening either, after a while it dried down to a colour I found a little too dark to give that 'wow' bright effect it had when I'd initially applied it.
There are also a lot of good aspects to it though- I've used it on a friend and it gave a lovely 'glow' look to his skin without the usual shimmery/glittery look and looked a lot brighter than on my skin. The thinner formula is kind to dry skin too, it doesn't add too much texture to dry/flakey like highlighting with a concealer would and it blends out well.

All in all for the price it just isn't worth it for me personally, but as odd as it sounds I actually think that it's a pretty decent product overall.

Wow look at the reviews on this eh? And here I am to add my own praise... But on reflection I'm going to tick the 'No' I wouldn't repurchase.

I had hesitated to purchase this, I always guiltily put it back on the shelf thinking it was nice but overpriced. I still think of MAC as very mid range and utilitarian and I felt £20 for a tiny amount of product was too indulgent. But the other day my local department store had a "gala" event and everything in store was 20% off. I decided it was a good time to get this (for £16.) It is as good as I'd hoped it would be! It gives an angelic luminescence and it may sound conceited - but when I wear this I look like a heavenly angel. (lol) As such I like to wear this on no-makeup makeup days. I like people to think, "wow she has such a natural angelic glow to her skin, if I had that skin and that heavenly radiance, I'd never wear makeup!!!"

It's a thin, watery but pigmented pale pink and it melts into the skin so well that it actually does seem like you're not wearing makeup. It lifts and brightens and indeed, highlights. It's not a wet-look highlighter (don't get me wrong, I love those!) instead, it's a very innocent and heavenly pure light from within. It's very effective. But I do still think it may be overpriced. Plus I wouldn't agree with others who say you only need a tiny amount. I needed quite a lot and I am sure it won't last very long before it runs out. It does last all day, without creasing or fading, and the effect really is very pure and clean. Although talking of clean, I'm not that keen on brush products as I hate having to wash them all the time but I know otherwise they go horribly rancid, if Touche Eclat is anything to go by (shudder).

So that brings me onto - I already have YSL Touche eclat, Estée Lauder BB highlighter pen, Bare Escentuals stroke of light, Bobbi Brown tinted eye brightener - all these have the same concept: a thin but pigmented liquid that reflects light. I also have tried many other brush concealers like the Guerlain or Clinique versions (both these much more concealer than highlighter) and the maybelline various incarnations of dream lumi, FIt Me, and eraser brightener. All of which I disliked and found hard to blend or invisible or both. Apparently there is a version of the eraser brightener which is better but I tried 2 shades and one was a horrible unnatural pale pink and one was far too yellow. I am going to have to do a thorough analysis of which of the high end ones I just mentioned and including this MAC is best. I will look into £ to ml and also shade and wear time. It'll be a whole project in its own right. All these pens have a criminal amount in them and finish quickly. Off the top of my head the Bobbi brown tinted eye brightener and the Bare Escentuals stroke of luck both have around double the amount of this, 6ml and 5.5ml respectively, and at only a £ or 2 more - so the MAC will have to prove itself indispensable. I think Touche Eclat and the EL have about the same as MAC or a third less, they are around 2.5ml and MAC 3. So I do still think MAC is pricing itself too close to high end YSL, EL pricing for my liking. If it was always £15/16 I'd be more on board with it, or if it had closer to 6ml in the tube. As it is, it seems like a wonderful product and the high ratings can't be ignored. And yet my feeling is, that I'll enjoy this one, but I'll probably not rebuy. I just feel a bit resentful that it's priced too high, and there are so many similar products out there. I think my favourite is EL BB highlighter but they might be identical. Plus I'll always have a soft spot for the original which after all has been mercilessly copied: YSL Touche Eclat. And both those have sumptuous gold packaging which makes me feel special; the MAC doesn't look like a luxury product. Stroke of light may be less pigmented. I'll be swatching these and doing a wear test etc and I'll update...

Tldr: love the product, especially for an understated natural glow, but not sure it's worth the high price. Many other similar products on the market so time will tell if this is superior. For now I'm saying I wouldn't repurchase because I'm not convinced it's better than either Bobbi Brown tinted eye brightener or Bare Escentuals stroke of light, both of which have about double the amount for almost same price tag.

Absolutely gorgeous for under eye circles - makes skin look radiant! Purchased with Mac Longwear concealer, but honestly just using this gives a fantastic finish, never looks cakey or heavy. Doesn't crease much and holds pretty well throughout the day.

Awesome as color corrector for my dark circles. I have very pale skin an I've used ysl touch eclat for the same purpose but I think I like the mac one better cause I find it doesn't crease as easily and has more pigment to it. Brightens and corrects at the same time, concealer on top and the result is very nice. I like the packaging and it's not very pricey tho there are more affordable options out there. Very likely to repurchase after I run out.

Love love love this. After purchase this kind of sat in my draw for a while as I wasn't exactly sure how to use it. It is NOT a concealer, and highlights only. Once I learned how to use it to its maximum highlighting potential, it became my go to 'big night out' product. I draw under my eyes, a stripe down my nose and then highlight my chin and forehead then leave it to cook on my skin for a minute or so. By this time it has melted into my skin and is ridiculously easy to blend in. It leaves the skin with a lovely photo finish glow and the colour tone is perfect form my cool pale skin (NC15). Every other Mac product I have tried has been overrated and poor value for money but This has lasted me a year and 5 months (only using in a weekend). I will most definitely be repurchasing.

Just need a tiny drop and it does his job well. Great product!!!!!!

Radiant Rose is a beautiful rosy-lavender highlighter shade which is perfect if you have a dull or tired skin.

I love applying this product under my eyes, especially at the outer darker corners of the eye as Radiant Rose gives them an instant lift and freshness. You can also pop this under the eye if you feel like you have had a restless night or partied a lot.

You can also use this highlighter as a correcting colour underneath your favorite brightening concealer for a better effect.

If you want to read an in-depth review on this and other Prep+Prime Highlighers you can read this blog review below. Hope it helps deciding.

http://www.maccosmetics.com/product/13825/15746/Products/Skincare/Primers/Prep-Prime-Highlighter#/shade/Light_Boost

This highlighter is the top rated highlighter here on MakeupAlley so when I was looking for a highlighting pen it was the first that came to mind. I am a big fan of MAC Cosmetics because they're one of the few brands that offer high quality products at relatively reasonable prices.

When it comes to highlighting pens I usually find that the price is ridiculous for the amount of product you get but this particular one contains more than your average pen and actually lasts for a long time.

I have a light, neutral-toned complexion and this pen works great for me in the wintertime when I'm paler. I don't think it would suit people with deeper, more tan skintones as it would register very white and pink on them.

This is great for highlighting under the eyes (but not right undeneath the lashline because the white-ish pigment of this pen can give you a tired look.) You should definitely not overdo it with this pen because you could end up with a reverse panda eye look. If you use a small amount on the high points of the face it does give the most natural highlight, which looks as if it were your own. I like to add some to the top of the cheekbones and then add a bit of a shimmery pearly highlight on top for a subtle romantic look.

This isn't a concealer and it doesn't cover anything, so you need to use a proper concealer in conjunction with it.