Hot or Not? Urban Decay Naked Illuminated shimmering powder for face and body- review & swatches

So "Hot or Not" is a new review series I'm going to be doing from now on where I let you know whether or not a product is worth buying or not and also giving you my experience with the product. Today's hot or not is all about the Urban Decay Naked Illuminated shimmering powder for face and body. This highlighter came out as part of their holiday collection and is available only through Urban Decay or Ulta, which is where I purchased mine. I have to say when I first saw this highlighting powder on Urban Decay's site I was super excited! I have drier skin, so I am obsessed with finding amazing highlighters to make my skin look extra glowy. 

Now I had saw a couple reviews on this product and so I thought I knew what I would be getting. The reviews I saw all said this product was gorgeous and beautiful and had a little bit of shimmer to it. I was like, "Heck Yea!" that sounds awesome, especially with the holidays coming up I love a little shimmer in my life. NO!! When I received this product in the mail I ripped into it and immediately when I opened it I noticed that "a bit of shimmer" was a whole lot of glitter. When looking at this product it is visually stunning- it just looks so beautiful in the box, but you can see that it is slam packed full of glitter. Still I figured that maybe the shimmers were just on the top or that they wouldn't show up much when I applied it to my face- wrong again! I applied the highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose, and my cupid's bow- all the usual places I would normally highlight. I looked in the mirror and OMG! I looked like a glitter bomb had went off on my face or at the very least I looked like I had just gotten back from working the pole at the local strip joint. Not a good look at all, especially for 2 'o clock in the afternoon. I was so disappointed, so I immediately started looking for ways to try and make this product work and I have to say I don't think I will ever use this as an everyday face highlighter. However, I do like this product when used to highlight the body- such as the collarbones or shoulders if you're going out somewhere fun. I also really love using this product wet on my eyes as a gorgeous shimmery eyeshadow. I have also realized that using this product wet on the tops of your cheekbones gives a super metallic glow, which looks awesome for going out to the club, a Halloween party, or it would also look amazing for New Years Eve. That being said this highlighter does look great in pictures or on video, but it just isn't something that's great for everyday unless you like having super glittery highlighters than by all means DO YOU!

As for the packaging on this product I actually really like it. It's pretty simple compared to a lot of Urban Decay's products, yet still sparkly and pretty. It's relatively small, yet you get a lot of product. I also like that when you open the top you have a nice sized mirror and your highlighter, then you flip it over and open it and you have a little brush underneath. I have to say that the brush is actually pretty decent compared to most that you get with products. I usually just throw them away, but I actually don't mind using this to apply it to my body.

Finishing thoughts: This highlighter retails for $29 and in my opinion it's not worth the money. I feel like if you're looking for an awesome highlighter and you're going to spend that much, buy the MAC MSF in "Soft and Gentle" or the Balm's "Mary-Lou manizer"- those highlighters are gorgeous and well worth the money. However, if you are set on having to purchase this I recommend taking some on your brush and spraying it with Fix + or water, then applying it to your skin. It gives a prettier finish and keeps the glitter from falling everywhere, because trust me that glitter ends up in places you just don't want. I do really love this product as an eyeshadow and also as a body highlight, but if I could go back I wouldn't have ordered it. In my honest opinion I feel like this product just isn't a hot purchase, which disappoints me. This is the first product I have purchased from Urban Decay that just doesn't impress me and I had so much hope for their first highlighting powder.

If any of you guys own this shimmering powder let me know what you think please!