Best of the Best | Top 5 Bronzers

We're one week away from the first day of spring. Is anyone else itching for it? The sun is already out, the air is nice and crisp. Usually spring is my least favorite season, it's so deceiving. I look outside and see the bright sunshine and put on capris, sandals, and a cute tank, and I either end up rained on our freezing my butt off. Regardless, spring and summer are the seasons for dewy, luminous skin, bronzed and tan skin, healthy and glowing skin. I'm excited to put on bright sheer lipsticks and pops of pretty blush! But, my favorite part? Bronzer. I love bronzers, and I honestly don't know how I did without them for so many years before I started really loving makeup. They warm up your skin, they make you look sculpted, tanned, and glowing. Whether they're shimmery or matte, I have some favorites in each category.

Last month, I started a "best of the best" series, in which I talk about my favorite products within a category, like blush, mascara, etc. After going through that video and post, I realized that it was too lengthy, and there was way too much information, so I decided that from now on, we're going to do best of the best top 5, where I choose 5 of my favorites within the category (P.S. not easy for me). The post did really well and everyone really seemed to enjoy it here on the blog and on youtube, so hopefully narrowing it down will be more helpful! Since spring is about and I'm loving that bronzey, glowing skin, I decided the best of the best this time around would be bronzers. I haven't been contouring at all the past couple months, I've just been bronzing to warm up my complexion and make me look a little less pasty than I really am, and there have been some that I really want to talk about with you guys because they are so good!

1. Too Faced 'Milk Chocolate Soleil' // This is likely my favorite bronzer of all-time. I'm pretty sure I've used it in every single tutorial I have done on youtube. It is infused with cocoa powder, which smells amazing! And just so happens to taste nice, you know, if you just happen to have a little powder kick-up that lands on your tongue...or if you taste it, that too. Every morning when I put it on I crave a steaming cup of hot cocoa! When I started exploring other bronzers I was so bummed at the lack of chocolate smell that I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to find another I loved so much. This is by far my most-used and well-loved bronzer. It is completely matte, and it does come in two other shades, 'Chocolate Soleil' and 'Dark Chocolate Soleil'. The powder doesn't look super exciting when you swatch it, but it applies smoothly and beautifully to the skin, and this shade is perfect for my pale ladies out there.

2. TheBodyShop Honey Bronze Bronzing Powder '01' // This was a product that youtube made me buy. Estee Lalonde raved and raved about this, and eventually I gave in, and I'm glad I did. This product is really affordable, and the formula of it is amazing! The powder itself is very soft and very blendable. 01 is the perfect matte shade for very light skin tones. I love using this powder on days where I'm going for a more natural look, I just blend this along my cheeks and cheekbones, temples, and under my jawline over foundation, pop on a little blush, and I'm good to go. It gives a very natural finish and doesn't look powdery at all.

3. Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder '1 Golden Light' // Another matte bronzer that I love. The formula of this bronzer is probably the best of the three matte I have mentioned. It feels almost creamy to the touch and is so blendable and smooth on the skin. It warms up the face naturally and beautifully, just as Bobbi Brown intends with all her products. I also love the packaging of this product because it is very sturdy and simple, great for traveling. This is the darkest of the bronzers that I have, but it works perfectly on my skin tone because it is goes on lightly, and is buildable for deeper color.

4. Hourglass Ambient Bronzer 'Luminous Bronze Light' // This is by far my favorite shimmering bronzer. When I first swatched this it scared me because of how shimmery and how orange it applied on my skin. But, when I put this on my face, it gave it life, warmth, and glow like no other bronzer can do for me. It's absolutely beautiful on the skin, not too orangey or too shimmery like I thought it may be. It is marbled with the Ambient Lighting Powder 'Luminous Light' which just gives your face a luminous finish. I can't even describe or do justice for how beautiful this powder is on the skin! If you want a cheaper dupe for this (although in my opinion nothing can dupe this product), the Tarte Waterproof 'Park Avenue Princess' is similar in tone, with a bit more of a gold shimmer in comparison.

5. Ofra Blush/Bronzer 'Millennium Gold' // Now don't get mad at me. I know this will be the third time that I've mentioned this on the blog, but that tells you how much I love it, right? I love the slight sheen this bronzer has, and how it is marbled with a cream and a pinky shade, so it applies beautifully as a blush and bronzer so that you only need to use one product. This is more on the orangey side, and it is very pigmented, so you definitely need to go in with a light hand. If you are looking for something natural with a beautiful glowing finish for the spring and summer that is affordable, I highly recommend this one! And, as I've mentioned before, big youtubers always have 30% off OFRA coupons on their youtube channels, so you can get this bronzer for a total steal.

Swatches

I swatched these 5 bronzers so that you can see comparisons of them side by side. As you can tell, I generally tend to reach for the same color family, oops! The top three are all matte bronzers (any specks or shimmery looking particles are just extra powder) and the bottom two are shimmery.

Top to bottom: Too Faced Milk Chocolate Soleil,
TheBodyShop Honey Bronzer '01', Bobbi Brown
Bronzer '1 Golden Light', Hourglass Ambient
Bronzer 'Luminous Bronze Light', and OFRA
Blush/Bronzer 'Millennium Gold'

I absolutely recommend all of these bronzers and adore each one of them. There are so many more that I love, but these are the ones that really stand out to me that I couldn't live without! I tried to include a couple that were more affordable, and a couple more high-end. I hope that this narrowed down 'best of the best' was helpful for you guys, and less overwhelming than the last of the series. My goal is to continue this series with this style, so if you have time to comment down below and let me know your feedback, I would love to hear from you!

What are you favorite bronzers? Are you ready for spring?