I’m the Queen Put my makeup on in weird places while the time is tightening. Whether in the passenger seat, on the plane or in the holiday tent, I made the full charm in just a few minutes. I even taught a course to my wired colleagues on how to get ready in a hurry. I am that girl, for better or worse.
So it makes sense that I will test the final work of IT IT Girl Innovation. I’m talking about the illuminated makeup mirror, including my favorites – Fancii Taylor ($46). These mirrors glow on your face, so you can see it from every angle (in some cases they magnify, showing you every pore, whether you want to see it or not). Whether you’re using heavy-duty profiles or smoky creases, you can use the right ability to ensure a flawless finish, or like in 2016, or you just want to make sure your lips aren’t too obvious.
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Updated March 2025: We added two new makeup mirrors, SimpleHuman Sensor Mirror Trio and Impressions Vanity Touch Pro, and updated pricing and ensures accuracy throughout the process.
About CRI (Color Rendering Index)
Some illuminated makeup mirrors have specific CRI (color rendering index) measurements. This is a way to measure how artificial light mimics natural light (such as sunlight). The scales range from 0 to 100, and 100 of them are perfect signs that the color is the same as the natural sunlight. I think this is a good thing, but ultimately, your environment will affect your makeup application, not the mirror’s CRI score (if listed). Place the illuminated makeup mirror in front of the window or in a well-lit area which will make you look just as good as the makeup look of any room. Once the makeup is done, I usually loop through the available lighting scheme of any mirror to make sure they look good in all mirrors. So, in short, the high CRI is a good indication of the color accuracy of the mirror, but that’s not the only thing you need to care about.
I finished my own makeup look (glittered naked eye shadow, winged lining, lots of blush and highlights, pencils, eyebrows, heavy mascara), using each of these mirrors at least twice – in a dark environment, and once in natural daylight. I tested each lighting mode and cycled completely once in each battery at least.
