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Monday, February 27, 2012

Review: new Wet n Wild Coloricon Bronzers

I've been busy testing all of the new 2012 Wet n Wild products for several weeks now, so I'm exciting to finally start showing them to you! Today I'd like to share my thoughts about the new Coloricon Bronzers with SPF15.

 Wet n Wild Coloricon Bronzers SPF15 
Reserve Your Cabana, Bikini Contest and Ticket to Brazil
(retail: $3.99 each, 0.46 oz)





At the beginning of January, you may recall my post about how Reserve Your Cabana was an exact match for the long-ago discontinued Acapulco Glow. Well, I couldn't find my old Acapulco Glow compact, but I have pictures here, and my memory of that shade is still very fresh in my mind. So you can image how sad I was when I received comments from some of you indicating that Reserve Your Cabana was NOT an exact match for Acapulco Glow. This concerned me, so before I even received this compact for review, I asked Wet n Wild about the possible difference. 

Wet n Wild told me that they used Acapulco Glow as their benchmark for the new shade, and that Reserve Your Cabana is an exact match for Acapulco Glow, but with the addition of SPF. Per Wet n Wild, SPF is a white-based substance that's less smooth than Wet n Wild's regular fine-milled pressed powders, so although SPF was meant to be an added benefit, it may have slightly altered the color and wear of the product because of the nature of the formula. Wet n Wild said that although they may have slightly sacrificed perfect wear for the added benefits of SPF, the benefits of SPF are so great that it seemed to be the right call.  

So there you have it. And now that I have Reserve Your Cabana in my possession and have been using it for several weeks, I'd like to tell you what I think of it:



First off, this is not a bronzer. It's a highlighter. I can't imaging this giving anyone on the planet a "bronzed" look, so if you're looking for a true bronzer, you'll definitely want to pick up one of the other two new shades.

Second, Reserve Your Cabana lacks the pink "glow" of Acapulco Glow (which I now know has to do with the whiteness of the SPF), but to my eye, there is still a slight resemblance to Acapulco Glow when viewed at certain angles:


At other angles, there is a slight golden glow:


I've heard from some of you that this shade had a tendency to settle into fine lines. You can kind of see that happening in this swatch:


However, since I only use this product on the tops of my cheeks and above my eyebrows, I haven't noticed any real settling. If I were to use it closer to my eyes, I'd probably want to proceed with caution. 

My final verdict on Reserve Your Cabana: I feel like it's a watered-down version of Acapulco Glow. For what it is, I do think it's a nice highlighter applied strategically to certain areas of my face, but it doesn't give me the beautiful glow that I was able to achieve with the original Acapulco Glow. If you never owned Acapulco Glow and you're looking for a warm highlighting shade, you might want to give this one a whirl. Just keep your receipt in case it doesn't work for you, of course.


Ticket to Brazil is a shimmery golden brown bronzer. This color is extremely pigmented, so fairer skintones will want to use a light hand during application. I personally have been using this lightly as an all-over bronzer and I find it to give me a very realistic "tan" (I'm a MAC NC20, for reference).







Bikini Contest is the darkest of the three shades, and it has a much more reddish-bronze undertone than Ticket to Brazil. If you normally gravitate toward bronzes and coppers, you might fall in love with this one. Since this shade doesn't have as much shimmer as the other two, I find it doubles as a nice contouring shade for me (used very lightly and blended well, of course).






Some final thoughts:

I love the texture of these powders. They are buttery smooth and they apply effortlessly. They blend effortlessly too, and the staying power of the two darker shades is downright incredible on my skin. I can still see these colors on my face a full eight hours after application. The staying powder of Reserve Your Cabana is good too, but not as good as the other two, in my opinion. 

I also love that you get such large compacts for $3.99. These are larger than a standard pressed powder compact, in case you haven't seen them in person yet.

If any three of these shades appeal to you, I'd definitely consider giving them a shot. On my NC20 skintone, Ticket to Brazil makes me look like I have a nice, sun-kissed tan (in a natural-looking way). Also, Bikini Contest can double as a contour shade if it works for your skintone, so that's a nice bonus.

Do you own any of the new Wet n Wild Coloricon Bronzers? If so, what shades do you own and how do you like them?

A sample of this product was given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome of product reviews.
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58 comments

  1. I love Reserve Your Cabana! I bought it on an impulse and am so happy! It's cheaper than Hard Candy and yet it doesn't have pink undertones (which makes me look ridiculous; I have olive skin). It's a neutral highlight color and even on my pasty skin it makes me look luminous. It's not a bronzer on me and I'm about a NC15 in the winter.

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    1. I'm so glad to hear it works so well for your skin tone. Yay!

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  2. Reserve Your Cabana looks interesting enough! I've been trying in vain to replace Wet n Wilds 832D shimmer powder that i've used for years instead of blush! If they could bring that back i'd be over the moon! But i'll give this a try at some point i'm certain!

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  3. Great review G! I picked these up in all three shades and just like you, I immediately thought of Acapulco Glow when I saw Reserve your cabana. I still have my Acapulco glow and there is a slight difference in the shade due to the SPF. But nonetheless, in my eyes as well, they are fairly similar. I love them both. I was able to get a backup of Acapulco Glow the moment I read on your blog that they were being discontinued. Such a lovely highlighter for an amazing price. As far as these new color icon bronzers, I think they are pretty awesome for their price. I also love the amount of product you get. So glad I picked these up. ;)

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    1. Yep, to me it lacks the pink in AG, but I still really like it for a subtle glow. Glad it's working for you too! :)

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  4. I still have that WnW Shimmer Powder! I love it. So sad it's been discontinued, I know a lot of peeps loved it too. I hoard this compact and use it sparingly. I love using it as eyeshadow too, soo pretty.

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  5. Wow, I want them all, but first is the most beautiful, and of course the price is great

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  6. I think they are nice, but would love to have one that has no shimmer since I am older. I still might try one. I am an NC 30 and think maybe the darkest one. I have the nyc sunny but, that one seems to light and is not soft enough.

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    1. Bikini Contest has the least shimmer and is also the darker, so I think that would be your best bet. :)

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  7. Just a heads up, theres a couple Acapulco Glows on Ebay, i just grabbed one... Everything youve said about it has piqued my curiosity and I just had to try it. I have Reserve Your Cabana and its nice enough, but yeah...you created a lemming, I guess :p

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    Replies
    1. Haha! Well if you fall in love with AG, at least you know there's something similar out there. ;)

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  8. I'm curious how these relate (in terms of color) to the wet n wild bronzers in princess and goddess

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    1. I wish I could tell you, but I can't seem to find my older wnw bronzers at the moment. :(

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  9. Awww maybe I should have got Ticket to Brazil instead. I was hoping for a glowing highlighter with Reserve Your Cabana. Don't think I saw Bikini Contest on Wags site last night

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  10. I have my old Acapulco Glow & the new Reserve Your Cabana as well. I did a swatch comparison & agree about the diminished pinky glow in RYC. It still makes a nice highlighting shade & i am still happy I got it to fall back on when my AG runs out, though.

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    1. Glad you agree with my assessment. Thanks, hun!

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  11. I have ticket to brazil, have not used it yet but think it will be great this summer!!!

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  12. These are so pretty but what is the point of loading them with sunscreen? Who applies bronzer and highlighter in the quantities required to get the protective benefits, then reapplies according to the directions to maintain it? I would have snapped up all three the moment they showed up in my area, had they not contained the sunscreen.

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    1. You have a good point! In my mind, I sort of thought of these more as ”added protection” to wear on top of your regular sunscreen products. Since I would apply these powders to the parts of my face that usually see the most sun (tops of cheeks, forehead, chin) it's nice to have a little extra protection there, I guess. :)

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    2. I suppose that it can help. :)

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  13. I have been seeing these over the past few weeks and couldn't justify purchasing them, but I am beginning to rethink this. I really want the first one as a highlight for my cheeks.

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  14. I bought Reserve Your Cabana yesterday and haven't tried it yet. Hope it doesn't settle into lines.

    Good review!

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  15. These are pretty, but I do not understand the appeal of SPF in a bronzer - how could you possibly apply enough to actually provide sun protection??

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    1. i'm with you on that. i can understand SPF in a foundation or some other product that goes all over your face...it just seems like there wouldn't be enough effectiveness for the SPF to justify the diminished awesomeness of Reserve Your Cabana...

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    2. I was thinking the same thing! But I guess every little bit counts.

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    3. I totally understand your points and agree, but please see my response to Ice Queen above for my take on it. Thanks! :)

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  16. I have been using ticket to brazil and I love it. I also see the natural effect (I'm NC25). It is very pigmented so I have to apply lightly.

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  17. I have Reserve Your Cabana. I never used Acapulco Glow, so I guess I'm lucky in that I don't know what I'm missing! I've been using it as a highlight, and on some days very lightly all over my face to perk it up and add some dimension. It is super, super subtle on me, and I am very pale. I think if I wanted to really use it as a true highlighter, I'd have to apply it with my fingers or a denser brush, but with a fluffy brush, it adds a really nice, barely detectable hint of glowiness. I'm not crazy about body glitter and body shimmer, but I could see using this come summer on my shoulders and decollete to kick up my very pale (I'm avoiding the word pasty!) skin.

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  18. The sunscreen ingredients aren't broad-spectrum, either...

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  19. These look great! But maybe a bit to shimmery for me. Reserve You Cabana would make a great highlighter! Thanks for the swatches!

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  20. I like the colors, but not the sunscreen. There's is not an effective UVA block.

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  21. I just have to say how much I am loving giant bronzers at the moment.

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  22. i foresee all three of these ending up in my endless makeup drawer in the future...

    longtime fan of the blog!

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  23. I got Ticket to Brazil and wow...its dark! I need to figure out how to lightly put it on. Suggestions are appreciated!

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    Replies
    1. I would suggest using a really fluffy brush, and just lightly tap it onto the product to pick up the color, instead of swirling. And then blend like crazy. Hope that helps!

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  24. I have read that Reserve your cabana is a dupe for a Lorac highlighter called something like, Perfectly Lit in Spotlight, or something like that...

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  25. I'm really excited about these! I have the last version of the Color Icon blushes and bronzers, and was so impressed by the pigmentation and the quality of the product. Especially for the price! I'll definitely be giving these new ones a look. Thanks for all of the great swatches!

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  26. thanks for the review! i love that they are 3.99, love all the information. thanks for putting all this up :)

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  27. I just love Wet n wild! The brand is not widely available in Europe and where i live is sold in one retail chain only and just very limited choice (price is at least double than in USA), i hope they will carry those bronzers too. You USA guys are so lucky!!

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  28. I am loving the look of RYC, I have been looking for a pretty slightly bronze, golden highlight that isnt overly shimmer and this fits the bill perfectly. Its great because it seems like the perfect all over face highlighter as well since its doesnt have that chunky shimmer or sparkle some other may have. As for bronzing I dont think anyone is pale enough to call it a bronzer! I will definitely be on the lookout for it.

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  29. FYI - The "sunscreen" in this product is seriously lacking. Oxybenzone and octinoxate are not adequate for complete UVA/UVB protection. It's too bad that Wet -n -WIld messed up a great color for sunscreen that is not going to protect you.

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  30. WnW delivering again!!! I'm totally getting these. All 3. >:)

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  31. I use Reserve your cabana (?) As a Bronzer all the time (b/c my skin is so pale) and it so soooo amazing as a bronzer to make me not look so white! ( to give you an Idea of my skintone, NYC Sunny is a good countour if used lightly, and the ELF bronzer in the duo is WAYY Too dark. )

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  32. Thank you for your swatches and thorough review!

    I am curious why they added the SPF. I mean, it's not like you would usually use a highlight or a shimmery bronzer all over your face, or apply it as thickly as you would need to in order to achieve adequate SPF coverage. It just seems like it wouldn't be much benefit at all, especially since the trade-off is a product that doesn't go on as smoothly as it could.

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  33. I'm so in love with Reserve Your Cabana! It works as a bronzer for me and I've never had a bronzer that worked so well because I'm so pale they usually make my face look dirty.And for some reason, mine is actually matte. There is a little shimmer in the pan but on my skin you cant see shimmer at all, which actually i prefer it matte anyway, but that's so weird that everyone else has shimmer in their versions hm...

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  34. would you know if these are available in Canada yet? i checked at my walmart and they didnt have it :(

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  35. I have a hard time buying bronzers b/c they tend to be too dark or orange-ish for my skin tone. Reserve Your Cabana is the best one I've found yet. You were right about the texture and the blendability, and the color is very flattering. For anyone having trouble finding it, i bought mine at Walgreens.

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  36. I have RYC And I love it! It's such a nice highlight color, but I do wish it looked just like AG!

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  37. Great swatches. great review, thank you so much! Are they availible at rite aid as well?

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  38. I love ticket to Brazil as a bronzer and my skin is about an NW10-15 but it's gorgeous. I was wondering if you've tried hard candy's moon glow which is a dupe of too faced candlelight? If so, I'm curious which one you like better (out of the wet n wild and hard candy)

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