I don’t know about you; but the new additions to the Benefit Hoola family really bring me back.  What a much simpler time in my life that was… When I pop open the bamboo adorned, purple cardboard box, I swear I can smell those days come rushing back.  I used this bronzer for years.  I’m sure that I moved on to one of the many ‘latest and greatest’ options.  I’ve loved so many over the years; but this light brown, matte bronzer looks just as good on now as I remembered (though I may apply a few less layers now) 😉 When I snagged one of the two newest additions to the Hoola family, (zero tanlines body bronzer;) I simply had to grab a hula mini!

For those of you that may have never dipped a flat, turquoise handled brush in to this little box of sunshine; here’s the lowdown.

The Classic:

Benefit Hoola mini Bronzer: $15.00

Benefit’s Hoola, dubbed, ‘Beach in a Box’ is an award winning bronzer that first launched, I believe, about 15 years ago.  Dust this powder over your chin, cheeks and forehead for a natural looking tan or just all over your face, neck & chest… I won’t tell! 😉 The finish is pure matte, no sparkle or shine and the shade is a light/med. brown, free of orangey tones and cool enough for some contour action.  The brush is just as cute as the powder, but beware if you get a bit rough with your bronzing technique, like myself, you will likely lose some little white brush hairs on your face.

note the cute little brush and mirror, even in the mini version.  Seriously, the cuteness is overwhelming.

one swipe swatch, you can build this up quite a bit but as you can see, if you are not heavy handed it works great for lighter skin.

…and blended

I may have accidentally ran in to this fun little option and I may or may not be just ridiculous enough to do it. 😉

*Photo Courtesy of Benefit’s Website

Get your own here! (You know you’re thinking about it)

The New:

Benefit Hoola Zero Tanlines Allover Body Bronzer: $30.00

This new product is a instant body bronzer that washes off with soap & water. (not a self tanner) It has a smooth, sheer, gel like formula complete with an applicator, disguised within the lid that allows for a  HANDS FREE application that provides an instant but temporary bronzed/tan glow.  The product really blends easily and feels very light on your skin.  It has a really nice scent that fades away and does not turn in to any new/strange scent later.  It does feel a tad bit sticky directly following application but dries quite quickly so you do not notice it at all.  The formula claims to have a 12 hour wear and it seems to me to stay put throughout my day..as long as I stay relatively dry ( it does not appear to be water proof 😦 ) but is described as transfer free.  I’ve not noticed any transferring on to my clothing or other objects when using it but I also would not suggest tossing on white shorts after applying to your legs and prancing around in the 90 degree heat either…so there’s that.  The shade, once applied and blended, is not all that dark but is so light-weight it can be easily layered to deepen to your desired shade.  I have only a very light tan at the moment and require a couple of layers to achieve a tanned look.  Because of this, I think this product is likely best suited for fair to medium skin tones and those without a significant tan.  for darker/tanned skin it may very well still amp up your glow a notch and/or assist in giving a more even, perfected appearance but may require a lot of product to get much darker.  As for the applicator it, like the rest of the products packaging, is really cute and I do love how it unscrews from the products cap but I find it a bit small and time consuming to use it allover.  The applicator is a sort of sponge, similar to that on a mitt applicator, with a little gripping handle.  I prefer to just apply the product to my legs with a mitt applicator, as it’s quicker, but have used the included applicator for smaller areas like my chest and forearms.  I really like this product and will definitely repurchase.  I own and have used many wash off body bronzing products to amplify my glow but none of the others have this gel formula that feels so light and blends so easily.  Great product.  I suppose it’s time to give ‘dew the hoola, matte liquid face bronzer’ a try next.  I’ll just go ahead and add that to my ‘things to try from Benefit list’ which, if you’re interested is:

dandelion dew liquid blush

dandelion shy beam liquid highlighter

hula bronzing & contouring brush

personalized hula bronzer

&

dew the hula matte liquid face bronzer

small amount of product swiped on my arm

product blended with the included applicator. (I only blended it down the center of my arm so you could see the ‘before & after’

I definitely recommend this product for those in search of a quick glow with little effort.

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-Kelli xoxo