Review: Smashbox Powder

Happy Saturday!!

Hope you're all enjoying your weekend so far!

I'm a big fan of powder, I use it in the morning to set my make up and throughout the day to stop my face looking too shiny.
This normally means I use quite a lot of it and so it's good to have one to carry around in my hand bag as well as at home.

Cue this little beauty from Smashbox.

This is their Photo Set Pressed Powder compact, which I picked up in Light.

I got mine from Cosmetics Company Outlet (I swear it steals all my money) so it was a little discounted but I believe it retails for £19. It comes in 5 colours with Light being the 2nd lightest, there is actually a Fair which is lighter which is definitely good news.
Light is a great colour for me but I can imagine over winter I might possibly need Fair when my skin hasn't been in the sun.

I love the neat black packaging, it's perfect for throwing in my bag and its small enough but strong enough too. The only downside is the black colour meaning it would get lost in my bag but I'm used to that already!
I'd prefer it to look good, which this one does. 

Inside the palette is the powder on the left, a large mirror and a sponge.

The sponge might be my favourite part, it's actually leather backed and is beautiful!
After I've finished the compact I fully plan on keeping the sponge as it's great quality and will hopefully last a while.

The powder feels silky soft on your skin and although I apply it with a massive powder brush (Real Techniques) in the morning for speed and even coverage, the sponge applicator is great for on the go moments and applying to troublesome spots where more coverage is necessary.

This lasts pretty well on the face and if you have dry skin would definitely last you the day. I do need to repowder my tzone around lunch time but that's because I'm picky and don't like my face to keep progressing over the afternoon to look like an oil slick at tea time, but each to their own!

You can see in the photos below that my face (awkward photos, always find them complicated!) doesn't look shiny at all and in the close up below it doesn't look cakey at all but has been mattified by the powder.

Having never used a Smashbox powder before I can say I am a firm fan, I'd buy this again and will be looking after the sponge ;)

L xxx

Don't forget to check out our giveaway here

Beauty Rehab

It's been a little while since I've done a Beauty Rehab post and you can find all my others here.

Essentially they're empties posts, but it was initially to encourage me to get rid of stuff and stop accumulating more products, which of course just didn't happen.

Now however I have had a bit of a life change and instead of being employed at Boots I have now (finally!) got myself a proper job in a lab which is what I've been working towards my whole school career.

So now that's finally happened and my discount card has been handed back into my manager (sobbbbbb!) it's time for me to reassess my spending  and because of that my plan is to go on an all out ban.

Cold turkey, for a month.

Then after that month I'll allow myself to spend on clothing and anything I've run out of, but essentially  the plan is to only allow myself to buy a product when I've run out of all other similar products. So for example if I use all my foundations (unlikely!) I can purchase another, but only if all of them have been used up.

Hopefully this will work out a lot better than before when I was surrounded by Boots deals every day and the bribe of more points for my card (currently sitting at £62.....maybe a treat for when I get rid of lots?!)

So without further ado, these are the empties I've collected up the past few weeks and from now on I will be starting a clean slate from the 1st of June...wish me luck!

So Liz Earle is always making an appearance in these posts for me, I have repurchased since finishing this one but don't have any others as of yet! Still love it though.
Neutrogena Spot Stress Control scrub was neither a hit nor a miss for me. It gave a good scrub but I didn't feel like it helped with my spots, probably as they're more acne than hormonal.
Molton Brown hair wash was ok.....I wouldn't repurchase it as it was so expensive for a shampoo that wasn't much different to any other in my opinion.

Jean Paul Gaultier MaDame perfume is my ultimate all time favourite perfume and I will be repurchasing this for a long time to come!
St Ives Body Polish was a cheap shop purchase, not quite a pound store but one of those shops where they have items at a very cheap price. Having used St Ives products before I knew this would be a decent product for the £2ish price tag and I was right, it was great for a cheap scrub! Would repurchase from a similar store.

The Revlon PhotoReady 3D Volume mascara was pretty good, it lengthened my lashes and separated them nicely but I felt like it could have given more volume.
The Maybelline Colossal Volume mascara was a big surprise but M had been bugging me for a while to get it and I was pleasantly surprised. It separated every lash and left them looking soft and fluffy but with volume. I'd buy it again!

Paco Rabanne's Lady Million was a perfume I got for Christmas in 2011. I did really like using it but I feel like the smell changed in the bottle after 9 months so it didn't smell the same. I did enjoy it but my love will always be MaDame!

St Moriz is a great alternative to more expensive tans. I picked this up from Home Bargains a while ago and though I wouldn't say there was too much difference between the normal and the dark versions, it's a great easy to use product that shows up straight away so you can see it easily to rub it in and develops to an even colour. I've since bought a few of these....ahem...so will be making my way through them!

The Body Shop Body butters are well renowned and this was my first given to me as a present. It took forever to use up as it wasn't my favourite smell and my skin on my body wasn't dry enough to benefit from a thicker butter. I wouldn't purchase this particular flavour again but I would try others!

Johnsons Baby shampoo is the perfect product to use to wash your make up brushes and I don't think there's better. I've used Asda's own for example and its certainly not the same. Definitely repurchase but hopefully when it's on offer as it's not the cheapest!

L'Oreal's Studio Secrets Resurfacing Primer is something I've used for a little while, I love the resurfacing properties it has as it completely smoothes over the pores and lines on the face. It also helps keep your make up for longer than it would usually stay on your face so generally I'm a fan.....but I don't like the pot! Always get this down my nails. Not a good look.

Rimmel's Sun Shimmer Instant Tan in Light Matte is a great instant wash off tan that can be used for last minute occasions. I've loved this and prefer the matte option so I can add shimmer to my skin if necessary as it's not always appropriate. Would repurchase!

The FCUK Whipped Bodycream was part of a Christmas set and the consistency felt really nourishing and it smelt amazing! Would repurchase if I didn't have a tonne of others to use up!
Ajala Spa products were some I picked up from the hotel in London. It was paraben free so I was excited but I didn't like it, nothing foamed that was supposed to and the conditioner and lotion didn't have any positive effect whatsoever.
The Gardenia spray was a lovely change from my usual sprays but as I'm not the biggest fan of Rose or Magnolia it wasn't my favourite. I love citrus scents which would have been my first choice but this did smell very fresh and lasted a decent amount of time.
Batiste is amazing! I prefer the original and tropical scents, would repurchase for years to come!

Collection Fix me Up spray features in both above and below photos. It was a lovely feeling and felt like my make up was refreshed but I can't say its worth the money particularly.
Asda's eye make up remover was great, worked a treat and didn't affect my sensitive eyes, thumbs up! Especially for value.
Origins Perfect World moisturiser was great, didn't like it initially but after my skin got drier its soaked this up a treat. The SPF is also a great addition and I have more of this to use!
Mitchum anti perspirant was good, it was one of the first 48 hour deodorants and was brilliant when I was working underground in a hot cafe! It definitely works! (not that I didn't shower for 48 hours...its just a good deodorant)
Avon Silk Wrap nail polish was brilliant and sinks into your nails much like my current favourite Revlon Post Trauma polish.
17 Doll'd Up eye liner was a complete miss for me, it wasn't as easy to use but I was going to persevere until it suddenly dried up overnight and its now being thrown out!
Origins mascara was pretty good and I did a post on it recently, but I think it's discontinued now.

And lastly my uber fave....Revlon PhotoReady primer. My only bug bear with this product is that the pump doesn't catch all the product, I'm talking a fifth of the bottle??
So I ended up getting my dad to break the top off so I could scrape out another few weeks worth and save myself some money!
Would definitely repurchase and already have....obviously!


What do you think of my empties? Wish me luck for my Cold Turkey time!!!

L xxx

Don't forget to check out our giveaway here

Benefit's Stay Flawless Event

On Wednesday I was lucky enough to be invited to the latest Benefit event for the launch of their new Stay Flawless primer.

Unfortunately M's last exam was the day after the event so I had to go it alone, but there were lots of lovely girls who I'd met before and had the pleasure of meeting lots of new bloggers!

The event took place in The Living Room in Bristol, right next to the Imax theatre on the harbourside.

As soon as I walked in I loved it; the place had high ceilings, lots of lighting and a wall full of wine bottles, who wouldn't like that?!

It was also full of men in suits which was a little intimidating seeing as I turned up in jeans and converse but I soon got over that when the rest of the girls were dressed the same as me.

After having a quick catch up we were called over to the area and offered champagne and juices before taking a seat.



The reason for the event was to launch their new primer 'Stay Flawless'
It allegedly keeps your make up looking flawless for up to 15 hours.

Lisa PD was there for the launch again and gave us her demonstration using the lovely Rachel as her model:



The primer is applied to the skin in circle type motions before Hello Flawless is applied as quick as possible on top.
The Stay Flawless primer is in a stick form, I love stick things. I feel like a child when I was younger and applying lipstick to my entire face. It's similar to their Fake Up concealers in that it's so easy to apply and you really can't make a mistake.

The theory behind the primer is that it acts as a Make Up Magnet....and they had these amazing items to show us how it works:



So here we have your face (on the right), and your two products: Hello Flawless and Stay Flawless.

When you use Hello Flawless straight onto your skin....


The two things just don't stick well enough to each other, and coincidentally one slides straight off the other:



However, when Stay Flawless primer is used, the foundation sticks to the primer which sticks to your skin and therefore gives a long lasting, flawless face for the day!
It truly acts as a 'Make up Magnet'.



Lisa has tested out the primer herself and put her photos on Instagram to prove the make up stayed on.
After 12 hours her face was still flawless but after that the make up did start to show some shine coming through, which is why the primer only states up to 15 hours wear.
I like that they've been honest and stated that it could be UP TO 15 hours, not for definite.
As Lisa says, a primer that lasts 12 hours is nothing short of a miracle and I would be so happy if my make up stayed on my face for 12 hours perfectly!



What i particularly love about Benefit events is how lovely and friendly all of the Benebabes are. Not only are they really helpful for make up advice but they're also really nice to chat to and its lovely to have a rummage in their make up desk which conveniently seems to be near me at each event!

I also love that they have their own decorations for each event, like the cushions. The Stay Flawless ones were perfect for this time of year and so cute with their cross stitching pattern!



Luckily for us we got to leave with a goodie bag with not only a Stay Flawless primer to test out, but the Benefit foundation brush and also a bottle of Hello Flawless foundation which we were colour matched for at the event.
I was so excited when I found this out as I've always wanted to try the Hello Flawless foundation due to it's hydrating complex, the fact it's oil free and contains SPF25 AS WELL as being brightening. Phew! No wonder it's been on my wishlist for so long.



There were also plenty of nibbles at the event, and we were all cooing over these amazing chocolate covered strawberries and mini amaretto biscuits.





I was also lucky enough to win a competition whilst there for a Bronze of Champions kit which I cannot wait to use over the next few weeks!

I'll be back with a full review of the primer and foundation to see if it lives up to expectations....and trust me when I say I'll be doing an extensive review of it's lasting capabilities!


What's your favourite primer? Have you tried Hello Flawless foundation?

Thanks again to the Benefit girls (particularly Rachel, Jo, Lisa and Alyson) for another fun event, they're always a pleasure to attend and I always look forward to the next one!

L xxx

Don't forget to check out our giveaway here

Save, Spend, Splurge Hot Cloth Cleansers featuring Along Came Betty, No7 and Liz Earle.

Another Save, Spend Splurge for you all today. You can read my previous Save, Spend, Splurge posts here. I've covered skincare, make up removers and dry shampoo now. Today I thought I'd cover Hot Cloth Cleansers. I'm sure most people have heard of the blogger favourite Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish. It's not the cheapest so are any of the cheaper alternatives as good.

I'm comparing Along Came Betty Porefectly Clean Hot Cloth Cleanser from Tesco, No7 Radiance Boosting Hot Cloth Cleanser from Boots and Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish.

Save

Along Came Betty (Tesco £5.99 Currently £3.00 for 100ml - which is what I paid) LINK

This has a very similar texture to the Liz Earle, it's thick like the Liz Earle and has a really refreshing scent. I really love the smell of this. It's soft on the skin and really removes make up. It doesn't sting the eyes and removes the eye make up with ease. It also comes with one cloth which is as good quality as the Liz Earle one. 

Spend

No7 Radiance Boosting Hot Cloth Cleanser (Boots £9.95 for 200ml) LINK

This was donated to me by L. She didn't get on with it after trying Liz Earle. It's a much wetter creamier texture which I find means you need more. Price per ml when the Along Came Betty isn't on offer it works out cheaper but in my opinion you need to use more of it to obtain the same results so it does work out more expensive. First off it smells of roses which really puts me off. I don't find it leaves my skin feeling as fresh. I also find it slips of my hand a lot if I use it in the shower and I'm not careful. I just really don't enjoy this as much as the others. I do find this one really stings my eyes when used to remove eye make up.

Splurge

Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish (£14.75 for 100ml) LINK

I choose the starter kit price for comparison as the others come with muslim cloths. Sold with or without the cloths (£13.25 for 100ml) it's still a lot more expensive. I really do love this, it has a fresh eucalyptus scent which I really love as it leaves my skin feeling fresh and clean. My eye make up is easily removed. It's a thick cream and I find one pump is enough, it does really last well.

Along Came Betty, No7, Liz Earle

As you can tell above the No7 cleanser isn't one I enjoy as much. I honestly think the Along Came Betty cleanser is a fair match for the Liz Earle. Liz Earle does win slightly in smell stakes but I do also enjoy the Along Came Betty. Due to the price difference for me this time Save Wins. As much as I love the Liz Earle from now on I will be purchasing Along Came Betty for everyday use and letting my Liz Earle be used for when I'm feeling flush.

What's your thoughts on Hot Cloth Cleansers? Have you tried cheaper alternatives?

Love M

xxx 

Don't forget to check out our giveaway here