Benefit Cosmetics is known for its high-quality beauty products that combine a retro sensibility with a playful sense of humour. Here's what you should know.
Founded by twin sisters Jane and Jean Ford in 1976, Benefit Cosmetics has since grown into a global brand with over 1,000 counters in 25 countries. They began by selling their cosmetics creations out of their San Francisco boutique which was designed to look like a candy store, and soon developed a line of products that were as fun as they were luxurious and innovative.
Legendary Products
Benetint: Created in 1977, Benefit's rose-coloured liquid lip and cheek stain was the first of its kind. It was originally concocted for an exotic dancer who wanted to rouge her nipples like most women do their cheeks. Kiss-proof and sweat-proof, Benetint is made from crushed rose petals and is still considered to be one of the best lip and cheek stains available today.
Ooh La La Lift: Created around the same time as Benetint, Oh La La Lift is touted as an instant eye-lift. Made with a blend of botanicals and light-reflecting pigments, it reduces puffiness and firms the skin around the eye while the pigments conceal any dark circles or discolouration.
Benefit Lip Plump: Also created when the Benefit boutique first opened, Lip Plump is touted as the secret to full, sexy lips. It gives the lips a fuller, softer appearance by filling in any fine lines or wrinkles and primes them for lipstick or gloss application.
Innovative Beauty Products
Benefit's award-winning products are known for being very original and delightfully packaged. While many cosmetic companies sell all the foundation, eyeshadows and lipsticks any woman can every want, Benefit Cosmetics focuses on innovative, effortless products many of which provide multiple beauty fixes in one.
Here's a sampling of what they offer:
- Eye Bright: A creamy, pink-white pencil designed to reflect light away from any darkness in the eye area thus providing a concealing quality without being heavy. It can also be used on any dark areas on the face, such as around the nose and can be used as a highlighter on the brow bone and tops of the cheeks.
- High Beam: A satiny, pinky-silvery liquid luminzer for all skin types gives the skin a dewy quality if mixed with moisturizer or a light liquid foundation. For a concentrated highlighting effect, it can be used on the brow bone, inner corner of the eye and tops of the cheek bones.
- Georgia Face Powder: A sheer, soft peach blush and highlighting powder that works on all skin types to brighten and highlight. Use it as a glowing blush and highlighter on the cheeks and a softly radiant eyeshadow.
- Dallas: Touted as the perfect combination of bronzer and blush, this sheer rosey-bronze powder works as two products in one to give the skin a flush of natural looking colour. Brush it on as blush or dush lightly over the forehead, nose and chin for a sun-kissed effect or sweep it across the eyelids as eyeshadow.
- California Kissin': A minty sheer blue lip gloss designed to make the teeth look whiter and freshen the breath while giving your lips a glossy pout.
- Boo Boo Zap!: A blemish fighter that can be used on bare skin or on top of make-up.
- BADGal Mascara: A big, bad mascara wand with a silky, rich formula that gives the effect of false eyelashes. Available in deep black or a deep blue-violet shade that makes eyes look bigger and whiter (and blue eyes bluer).
- Bluff Dust: A sunny-yellow translucent face powder that both neutralizes redness and instantly luminizes the skin. It can be used instead of foundation or on top of finished make-up to illuminate the skin.
Benefit's retro packaging, marketing and playful names give even the more basic products they offer such as body lotion and facial cleanser an edge in an often overwhelming beauty market.
