It isn’t often that a cosmetic product comes around that makes me go head-over-heels crazy.

There’s  bareMinerals Well-Rested that I’ve been using for maybe ten years now and  the Benefit Gimme Brow along with Anastasia Beverly Hills DIPBROW.

Three “Holy Grail” products.  The bareMinerals Well-Rested and the DIPBROW I’ve been using for years and the Gimme Brow is an HG since earlier this year.  I use all three every day!

Among the vast collection of makeup that seemingly takes up quite a bit of space I have my regular rotation of neutrals.  The blushes, bronzers, concealers, highlighters, lip colors and foundations all hold an important spot in helping me to enhance the features that have somewhat either disappeared over the years or have sagged due to gravity.

As I’ve pro-aged, I’ve become a great fan of the “less-is-more” and “no-makeup makeup” looks.  Always sleuthing to find a creamy blush.  A hydrating concealer.  Products that are mature skin friendly.  I like a good multi-tasker—i.e. bronzer as eyeshadow; lip color as blush.  You get the gist.

Here I am! Writing this post.  I have my no-makeup makeup look on.  Pro-aging at it’s best and it’s all due to this adorable makeup kit!

And thanks to a much younger YouTube beauty personality named Shelbey Wilson, I’ve found what I’ve been searching for. She showcased this little nugget of a treasure on a recent video and after I viewed, I had to have it.  Shelbey Wilson’s SubtlBeauty video

What is it?

Everything fits into the palm of your hand!

It’s stackable makeup by a new Indie makeup company SubtlBeauty!

I’m telling you I was blown away.   You can “build” your own stack with an assortment of products:  Concealer that can double as foundation, a lip/check combination, highlighter, bronzer/contour and a translucent powder.  There are little extras such as little application puffs and a brush but it’s the makeup itself that has me going cuckoo for cocoa puffs!

Let’s look at this gem, shall we?

I ordered from their website and the site is easy to navigate and order from. That’s always a plus.

Delivery was no issue.  I received emails regarding each step of shipping.  Another plus.

The packaging is adorable.  A small round cardboard cylinder, personalized, held the stacks.  When I opened the cylinder, the stacked cosmetics were put into place very securely, ensuring that nothing would be broken.  Yet, another plus.

This packaging.  I can’t even—it’s so adorable!  But as we know, it’s what’s inside that counts!

Little stacked nuggets of greatness!

Each stack fits on top of the other and embossed with the cosmetic’s name.

I purchased the highlighter, powder, concealer, lip/cheek cream, bronzer, applicator and an additional cap. And might I add that the products are cruelty-free!

Clockwise from 12 O’Clock:  Highlighter in Champagne; Lip/Cheek color in Mauve; Concealer in Light; Bronzer in Cool; Powder–it’s universal; cap. In the middle extra cap with little applicator.

Since we are in the dog days of summer, I’ve been shrugging off foundation and primer and am just going for a minimalist look.  I used the concealer as a foundation of sorts and was pleased as punch.  The shade “light” works for me as my tan is fading. The texture is ridiculously creamy, blends beautifully and gives a light coverage—enough to make your skin look more even.  It is buildable, but my wrinkles and I prefer something a bit more natural these days.

This concealer is so luxuriousy creamy and hydrating—making it perfect for mature skin.  It doesn’t cake up it blends smoothly and stays put all day!

The cheek and lip color.  WOW!  The color I purchased is Mauve.  It isn’t too pink, not too brown but gives off a nice flushed hue to the cheeks.  On the lips it enhances the natural pigmentation and is just so.   Again, the texture is incredibly creamy and hydrating.  This is mature skin’s best friend!

You gotta love a product that multi-tasks and the lip/cheek color is just that.  The Mauve shade works so well with my cool coloring. It’s a hint of color and not overdone and just glides onto the skin.  Again, completely hydrating!

The bronzer I went with is the cool-toned shade and it is a true cool.  I love the way it applies.  It isn’t ashy or overly matte.  It blends in beautifully; and another good thing is that this bronzer is a true cool brown and doesn’t go on gray as so many bronzers and contours in the cool family tend to do.  (There is also a Warm toned bronzer for warm-toned complexions)

Another multi-tasker is the bronzer in the Cool shade.  I use this as an eyeshadow by applying it with the Morphe blending brush shown at the bottom.  As a bronzer I use a larger brush!  And this bronzer is quite pigmented too!  Not ashy or chalky–it blends in beautifully!

The highlighter is stunning.  Who knew that a little disc of product could give off such an intense glow?  It applies smoothly and isn’t patchy at all.

The highlighter also packs a punch!  It’s amazing what these little stacks hold!

The powder is the only “okay…” product.  It’s very light not heavy at all and I will tell you that I did apply it very lightly. Just a touch.  My makeup stayed put all day except for the lips but that’s par for the course especially after coffee, lunch and two clementines followed by two 32-ounce bottles of water.  Let it be known that I don’t reapply makeup during the day and only do so if I’m going out.

I used the little applicator puff to apply the powder and in its defense, I’m not a powder person, but….the powder will be used for setting my lipstick–especially if using a brighter color!

Another nice touch is the little cards that came with the stack.  They explain the products and how to use them.  I thought that was so sweet!

The cards are a nice touch.  And when they say “not too tight” they mean it.  I have a super-heavy hand and found out a lighter touch in stacking is all you need!

So, what else makes this an ingenious concept?  These stackable products are perfect for travel.

If you are a regular friend of this blog, then you know of my penchant for traveling light!  Remember, two years ago I loaded this Longchamp carryon to the Cote d’Azur for two weeks and for Oona’s wedding, I stuffed my Mother-of-the-Bride gown in here.  These stackables are right up my travel alley!

This is coming with me on our November trip to Paris.  We’re also planning a few weekend trips and these stacks will be will me.  Naturally, I’ll bring mascara and eyeliner and my brow products, but I’ll eliminate anything else that can be cumbersome and heavy to carry at times.

Je suis heureuse that you will be coming with me to Paris on my next visit…and naturally to the South of France too!

The products aren’t cheap and the more you stack the more you’ll spend.  But, on the other hand, they aren’t ridiculously expensive either.  The stackable discs are $12 and $14 each—depending on which product you purchase.  The little applicator is $5, and the extra cap is another $5.   I think the price points are fair.

For those who like to touch up during the day at work, this is fabulous.  It fits into just about any sized purse.  New moms that want a bit of a glow during the day, this’ll slide right into the diaper bag.

And for those concerned about expiration dates (let it be known I pay no attention to expiration dates..except with food….sometimes), the stacks are good for 12 months!

Believe me when I tell you that this is great stuff.

I had a very “ugly” day on Thursday.  I woke up with a killer of a headache from the barometric pressure. My eyes were wonky, puffy and extra hooded.  My skin was kind of blotchy due to a fading tan and I was tired.  If I didn’t wear any makeup, I would have looked like hell.  If I wore too much makeup, I would have looked worse.

The cure-all was taking out my little “miracle” stack and going lightly and it worked.

Barometric pressure, humidity and pollen all added to my waking up very ugly and extremely puffy and hooded eyes.  I needed makeup but needed to go light.  My stack was perfect!

And it’s perfect for those days when the elements do not affect you!

Yes!  A good-weather day but I still managed to ruin the photo by holding the stack upside down!  Oops!  

So, that’s it ladies!  If you are looking for an all-in-one, get to SubtlBeauty and get yourself a stack (and this is not sponsored, I just love the products).

Before I go, here’s the brushes I use.  The Real Techniques brush on the left, Number 402 is great for blending the blush, concealer and highlighter.  The middle brush by iT cosmetics is great for the bronzer and the one on the right by eco tools is also good for applying the concealer!

I honestly can’t say enough about this pro-age, mature-skin friendly treasure!

Hope you are enjoying these late-summer days and nights!

Bonaparte and I enjoying an aperitif on the deck last night.  After a day at the beach, I was so tomato-red that I used the concealer and bronzer to tone things down and they worked beautifully!  TchinTchin to the sucess of this new company Subtl Beauty!  The stackables are just lovely!

If you would like to see a bit more about this, I uploaded a YouTube video on my channel earlier today.  Hope you enjoy it!