I’ve recently turned over a new leaf of trying to get rid of toxic products and harmful ingredients not only in my beauty regime but also in my diet and nutrition. Whether you’re on board with this clean beauty “trend”, it should at least make you stop and double take on those labels! Talc? Parabens? Sulfates? I did read many papers regarding experiments and trials of controversial ingredients. And, these are my own formulated opinions after reading. There still needs to be more testing done; however, I rather be safe now, than sorry later. Especially if there ARE products out there that don’t have “controversial” ingredients in them — why not try to play it safe?
I found Ilia Beauty on my quest to find good clean beauty products. I am so impressed with this line. High quality, clean ingredients, at prices that are similar to most non-clean products. Their prices are similar to medium priced beauty products ($20-$60). They’re at Sephora & also Follain (a Sephora-like site for makeup/skincare). Use my code: ref15_6i4rsr for 15% off your first order at Follain! I didn’t want to review Ilia Beauty until I tried it for at least a few months. Also, LOVING the skin tone diversity on their website. #2019
The caveat of a lot of clean beauty products is that they tend to not work as well since… it doesn’t have the potentially harmful and strong chemicals and ingredients. This usually means lack of pigmentation and coverage. But after 3 months of trying Ilia Beauty, I can honestly say that Ilia Beauty is one of the best clean beauty brands I’ve tried. Their products work just as well as non-clean makeup. The colors are stunning, and this summer it wasn’t just a “hot girl summer”, it was a “dewy girl summer”. Thanks Ilia.
True Skin Serum Foundation: (shade: Catalina) – $54
On most school days, I don’t wear a full face of makeup. However, I do sometimes wear a light-medium coverage tinted moisturizer, concealer, or foundation. The color was a perfect match! I was able to find it on my own by their photos alone. The consistency feels so luxurious, and it’s very buildable without looking cake-y. It’s a serum that doesn’t feel oily or heavy on the skin. I do a light set with a translucent powder from Innis Free. I like to apply it with a beauty sponge to get an airbrushed effect. This was my favorite product I tried from them. Most days I wore it out with no retouching from 8-10 hours. At the end of the night, my skin still looked covered but still MY skin. I highly recommend (5/5 Stars)
(scroll to the bottom to see a 11 hour wear test) – amazing.
Liquid Light Serum Highlighter: (shade: Astrid) – $42
I’m not the biggest liquid/serum highlighter fan because you do have to work fast. But, I do think they look more dewy than powder highlights. Sometimes, powders can make texture on the skin more visible. The color in this bottle is a dream. It’s a champagne rose gold color. It reminds me of Becca’s liquid highlight, but I like this one by Ilia better! The g l o w particles are very finely milled. Typical of liquid/serum highlighters is that you have to work quick to avoid streaky dry patches. I dotted it onto my cheeks and used my ring finger and beauty sponge to blend it out. I liked Ilia’s cream highlighter better (keep reading). Not for me, but still a great product! (3.5/5 Stars)
Multi-Stick: (shade: All of Me) – $34
This is another win for me! It’s a perfect everyday natural blush color. This product is a cheek/lip multi-use product and I love it. First, it doesn’t have a gross smell; It smells like beeswax! It blends so nicely after it warms on your skin. The shape is a rounded circle; basically, a lazy college student’s dream when getting ready in the morning. The finish is that dewy “I just broke a sweat” flush. My mom loved this one so much she actually stole it from me! It looks amazing on the cheeks and on the lips. Other colors I would like to try: Dreamer & At Last. (4/5 Stars)
Illuminator: (shade: Cosmic Dancer) – $34
This highlight cream stick is more “glittery” than the serum highlight. So, I actually found myself using this on girl’s night outs, when you know there’s going to be a flash camera on you. The iridescent particles work great for photos. I know it’s not meant for this, but I actually used this as a cream eyeshadow for my inner corners and inner eyelids. The neutral tone in this product worked so well with both cool and warm shadows I packed on. (5/5 Stars)
Color Haze: (shade: Sing) – $32
This is another multi-use product (much like most of Ilia). I used this as both cheek and lip paint product. This is PIGMENTED. A little goes a long way. This color is a deep berry, but I found that it was perfect for my medium skin tone with warm undertones. The packaging on this is so small, it’s perfect to put in my pocket or pencil case at school. I guess you could make the argument that for it’s price, it is a little small. (4/5 Stars)
Ilia Beauty was kind enough to gift me these products. These are all my honest reviews. I make no money from the links above — only for me to track traffic. The Follain code is an ambassador program where I get rewarded in small credit to the site.
Angelica Song 