Beauty Blender

Hi pals!

Just a quick review for you today, you might have heard of it yonks ago but sometimes I fear I live under a rock.

The Original Beauty Blender came onto my radar when M told me about it (many times!) and raved about how good her dupe one was. I just couldn't get over the sponge applicator things and decided my Real Techniques were enough for me.

The BB as it will now be called (I'm lazy at typing right now, 4.30am starts all week have ruined my body clock!) made it's way into my life courtesy of my aunty who gave my her Birchboxes that she had been bought as a gift - what a super hero she is!

I've loved getting them as you can imagine and have had a lot of fun rummaging every time one appears. This one was particularly exciting though when i realised i had a REAL one!

Let's face it, the pink excites me. It's super girly for a gadgety kind of thing and I almost didn't want to get it dirty by adding foundation, but i took a deep breath and got over it.

I have been told that using the blender whilst wet is the best way forward so I run this under the tap quickly and squeeze/shake off the excess so it's damp. I have found from experience that using a thicker foundation such as Vichy Dermablend as opposed to something thinner like UD's Naked Skin works better but that may just be me. I found thicker products easier to blend out and give an even coverage whereas the thinner products tended to move around my face!

Here's a photo of my face where I've applied Dermablend with the BB. It creates a flawless base for other products to be added onto and the pointed end helps to blend around the nose and eyes, and is great for concealer application too.

It also comes with it's own nifty little cleansing block which is very handy and lovely surprise!

I've used this a few times and washing the blender is easy, rinse it under the tap, rub the bar onto the sponge and lather it up before rinsing. There really is no excuse but to wash this one regularly (though I always seem to find one!)

I have totally come round to the idea of a Beauty Blender and have been enjoying using it on my face in the mornings, definitely a girls version of a gadget!

It creates a flawless base quite easily, and although you might think it will take you longer than using a brush it actually doesn't which surprised me. The only drawback i can see is that it costs £16.50, which by all accounts is a little excessive. It's more expensive than a lot of brushes which seem to have a lot more work gone into them, if it was price more at the £10 mark i probably wouldn't have batted an eyelid!

Having said that, if that's all that I can find that's wrong with it....maybe it is worth the price.

Have you tried the Beauty Blender before? Are you a lover or a hater?
Have you found a comparable dupe?

L xxx

FOTD: Neutrals and Coral

Morning lovelies!

I've got a Face of the Day post today as I've had a bit of time to fuss around and take pictures in the morning recently. i always think it's nice to know what people REALLY use on their face despite reviews they've produced.

Here's my FOTD before I had my hair dyed back to its natural colour:

It's quite a simple every day look, there was minimal fuss and I kept with my neutral eye colours and used a few summery coral colours to keep in the with sun that had actually arrived in the sky!

The Benefit Groovy Kind of Love set was bought last Christmas in their seasonal collection. It had a bit of everything that I couldn't resist and contained a few neutral eyeshadows that I needed to test out! Plus it's a great travel kit as it has almost everything you need.

Everything else used is shown below; Beauty blender, Vichy Dermablend in Opal, Lasting Perfection concealer in 1, Bourjois Chocolate bronzer, Inika Mineral Blush in 04 Peachy Keen, MAC Studio Fix powder, UD 24/7 Liner in Smoke, They're Real mascara and Gimme Brow styling gel.

I've been using my beauty blender a lot recently, it's a new addition to my stash and it took some getting used to but now I'm hooked!
It gives such a perfect finish (after a bit of work) and I love how natural and even the coverage is from it. You can see below in the super close picture of my forehead how even and flawless this is.

After using the blender to apply Dermablend and the concealer i dusted on the Studio Fix. It's quite a heavy powder but I've been using it recently to use it up; it's looking a bit tired and I want to get my next Back to Mac lipstick asap!

Next I applied the bronzer and blush to my cheeks to attempt some mild sculpting of my face and then ran Gimme Brow through my unruly brows. I've found mine have got a lot more temperamental recently!

Then I used all 4 of the colours in the Benefit palette building up from the lightest all over the lid, the middle two colours blended into the crease with the gold shimmer in the centre of the lid. Then I used the darkest colour to line underneath the eye and the outer corner of the upper lid.

I love using the 24/7 liner in Smoke on my lower waterline as it is a perfect alternative to black for every day wear; I find it can be too heavy sometimes and I like to change it up. I bought Smoke as part of a set but I can honestly say I use it a lot more than I thought I would and I really love it.

Here I also applied two coats of They're Real mascara, I think it's one of the best out there but i do begrudge paying the £19.50 for it as I'm a mascara germ phobe and throw them out after 6-10 weeks. However you can often get them in deals or minis in magazines which I always pick up!

One thing that i seem to have completely forgotten to take a photo of is Cha Cha tint from Benefit. I used this on my lips for a natural looking stain which lasts a few hours. I never use these as much as I should and need to get into using the minis i have of them as the colours are lovely and can be built up from a wash to a strong coloured stain.

What do you think of my FOTD? 

It's a general every day look for me and I love switching between neutral palettes to mix things up. Which is your favourite palette of the moment? Do you use the stains from Benefit?

L xxx

Ebay Beauty Blender Dupes

I'd seen so many reviews on the beauty blender and so many people saying it was amazing I just had to get one. Especially after I was having issues applying my Illamasqua skin base and a beauty blender sponge was recommended.

I'm someone who's always after a bargain and spending £10+ on what is essentially a sponge is something I couldn't do, especially after I'd heard they do need throwing away regularly as they don't wash well.

After being suggested ebay dupes I straight away ordered one. I have heard that the pink one's work the best and some of the others don't swell up in the same one so that's something to consider (sorry if it was you who suggested this on twitter I can't remember who it was now).

Dry and wet of the sponge I don't like. As you can see from comparing the leaf it's next too it's barely changed size.

I've since ordered two sponges from eBay and was disappointed to find one was amazing and one wasn't! Apparently all the ones from china aren't the same. Lesson learnt there.

The first one I got was amazing, super soft, swelled up well when wet, and was light and spongey. The second one didn't seem to swell when wet and feel tougher and stiffer. It makes it harder to apply to the skin and doesn't give quite an amazing finish.

Original sponge dry and the sponge I don't like wet

I love the shape of the sponge as it has a pointed end which is great for getting in around the nose and under the eye area.

The beauty blenders work when wet. Under the tap they should swell to almost double in size then you need to squeeze out all the water so it's just damp. Using the beauty blenders does mean that you use more product but for the flawless finish it gives I can forgive it.

Original sponge wet. You can see how much this one has grown when it's wet.

The big downside to using this type of sponge is the fact you can't really clean it. From the first time you use it, it will be stained. I've tried various different soaps and was it immediately after use and just can't get it clean. If you have any tips I'd love to know.

Though I have been using it for a month and I am yet to break out. Some people have found they have broken out using them but I always wash it after use with anti bacterial soap to help prevent this. It's still in good condition but I probably will throw it soon.

I'm so converted to these sponges and I don't mind that it uses more product as the finish it leaves is amazing. As they cost just over £1 delivered I don't mind if I have to throw it away every 6-8 weeks.

This is seller I bought the amazing one from in pink and was £1.03 (now reduced to 99p). This is the seller I bought the one from that didn't swell as well and wasn't as soft!. Both images look the same so beware if you switch sellers as the sponges may not always be the same. I'm hoping my first one wasn't a fluke.

Have you tried the beauty blender or the dupes? I'd love to compare the RT one to these.

Love M

xxx