Benefit Bathina Take a Picture Body Balm Review and Swatches

 Let me just add my hot weather rant to yours: this humidity is killing me. It's so hard to get the motivation to get out of the house, especially when you don't really need to. Anyhow, now that skin season is here, I thought I'd share a product that might come handy to some of you: Benefit's Bathina Take a Picture it Lasts Longer Body Balm. Whew!

Simply put, it's a cream highlighter especially intended for the body. The color is fairly similar to Benefit's Girl Meets Pearl-- pink with gold shimmer. It's supposed to give your skin a luxurious sheen. Does it? Continue reading below.

Benefit Bathina (P1600/1.5 oz.) is a pretty solid balm with a cloth puff for buffing into the skin. As you can see, the tin has a charming vintage vibe. This product is not at all new, (although it has been revamped a couple of years ago) but so far, most of the reviews that I have read about this product were written by bloggers colder climates than ours. I wanted to see for myself how it would fare in humid Manila.

The back of the packaging says: 

Gorgeous legs & arms when you dare to go bare. This irresistible golden-pink balm glides on sheer, glimmering body finish. So go ahead, take a picture... it lasts longer...

To apply: For glimmering results, apply evenly with velvet puff. To accentuate the glow, buff in a circular motion.

The product has a baby lotion-y scent which is noticeable for an hour or so. If you're like me who wears perfume on a daily basis, pick a complimentary scent to avoid clashing. It does not feel heavy or sticky as long as you don't touch the areas where you put it on. But if you make the mistake of wearing it on a very humid day, it can feel uncomfortable. Today I put some on my arms but just wiped it off ten minutes later. Too bad because it looks pretty nice too.

Sorry but no pictures of what it looked like on my arms-- I was running late as it was. But here's a swatch to show you:

The circled portion shows you where Benefit Bathina was applied. Can you see the sheen?

Bare hand

Hand applied with Benefit Bathina

Can you see the difference? Note that in the bare hand photo, my arm is held horizontally so the natural light makes a sort-of 'bloom' effect. In the hand swatch, my hand gleams even though it's directly facing the lens.

A lot of reviews (including Temptalia!) complained that Bathina is just too subtle. That was my first impression too, but I realized that you really had to swipe the balm a bit more generously to see the effect. Even then, it's not full-on shine but a lit-from-within glow. It's quite beautiful and subtle; in the right light you can even fool people into thinking that you just have gorgeous skin.

But... (of course there's one) but unfortunately, the effect will only last an hour or so before you have to reapply again. Plus, there's the humidity factor. You know the feeling when you wear a very rich lotion or body butter in the summer? That's exactly what you will get. Plus it does not have any SPF.

So the pros:

• Cute tin
• Pretty effect
• Easy to apply

And the cons:

• Expensive
• Can feel heavy for summer
• Not long lasting
• Scented

I would say that this is not a must-have but a nice-to-have. Before I finally got Benefit Bathina I tried to look for similar products but found none.

Do you think you're going to be getting Benefit Bathina anytime soon? Do you already have it? What do you think?

Everyday Simple Look

I'm a work-at-home mom so I don't really wear makeup on a daily basis. However, there are times when I do have to step out of the house for some errands and sadly, the absolutely bare-faced look doesn't work so well for me. (Ha!) The fact that I need at least five products to look natural is a running joke I share with my teenaged cousins. All I say is that in a few more years, they would too get to where I am and when that time comes I'll be laughing and gloating *insert evil laugh*

For those of you in the same 30-something boat, here's a shot of the products I use for my everyday simple look

So we have a pressed powder by Garnier,, NYX Above and Beyond Concealer, Maybelline Collosal mascara, MAC Pink Swoon, Benefit Girl Meets Pearl, and Avon Simply Pretty lip balm. The three tools you see there are the Ellana angled kabuki brush, the ELF stippling brush and a cute animal print powder puff I bought from Suesh.

So here are my thoughts on this daily go-tos:
Garnier pressed powder - it's pressed so it's easy to use, no mess. I like applying it with the Suesh animal print puff rather than use the standard powder puff that it came with, because that one doesn't hold up to weekly washing. As a plus, this powder has SPF 15, not really enough to rely on for good sun protection but better than nothing, I guess.

NYX concealer - Since I've been following a fairly decent skincare regimen complimented with my Clarisonic, my skin is the best it has ever been! I can now get away with no foundation, just concealer for the undereyes and around the nose where redness is.

Maybelline Collosal mascara - I know that Maybelline created the Magnum version for Asian lashes but Collosal works better for me because I have a slight natural curl and decent volume. I would say that this is my HG but then again, I haven't really used that many mascaras so I don't know if there is something better. My only rant is that the Collosal version is not that easy to find locally.

MAC Pink Swoon blush - I just prefer pink blush over peach and MAC blushes are fairly decent. Pink Swoon is matte, so no glitters and all the better for everyday.

Benefit Girl Meets Pearl highlighter - I bought this because of AskMeWhats and I love it! I stock up on the deluxe sizes whenever I find them just because they are more travel-friendly and less fussy than the original packaging.

Avon Simply Pretty lip balm - I try to wear lip balm when I'm not wearing lipstick and I guess it works because I have smooth lips.

Ellana Angled kabuki brush for buffing in powder and ELF stippling brush for the blush. These are pretty much the brushes that I always leave out on my vanity and when I'm not doing eye makeup or contouring, I don't need anything else.

How about you, what products do you use everyday? Do share!