Benefit Sunbeam Highlighter

If you follow me on Twitter, you might have seen me tweet lusting over Benefit Sunbeam. Every time I see it, I just think it looks like the perfect golden highlighter and even more perfect for summer. So, in the middle of exam season induced shopping trip, I bit the bullet and picked it up in the nearest Boots. The result was a lovely little bottle of pearlescent gold highlighter. The little instructions booklet that comes with it recommends it being used on the cheekbones and under the eyebrows, but it could be used on any feature that naturally catches the light. It's actually quite sheer and I was surprised it wasn't as noticeable as I thought it would be. Having said that, I didn't want it to look like I dumped my face in a pot of gold glitter. I also have Girl Meets Pearl from Benefit and they are quite similar but GMP is pinky toned which might be better suited to fairer skin rather than the gold in Sunbeam that would work with olive and darker skin tones.

You can blend it out with fingers but I found it worked really well with my Real Techniques Stipling brush. I also like to blend it either with my foundation or my moisturiser if I'm going for a no make up sort of look. Make me look a bit more alive. You can see it applied on my cheekbones in the last picture and it really is a nice subtle glow- after all, it is a highlighter and not a bronzer, however I do think the two would work well together for a nice bronzed summer look- if we ever get a summer...!

Benefit Sunbeam retails at £19.50 and is avaliable in most Boots and Debenhams.

What do guys think of Benefit highlighters?

Hope you're having a good weekend!

xx

Product Review: Benefit Hello Flawless Foundation

As you saw in my last post, when I was in Bournemouth the other week,  we stopped off at the Benefit counter in Debenhams and I picked up the Hello Flawless foundation. I got perfectly matched the shade in Honey. As you can see, at first, it looks a bit dark but once it was blended out, it worked a dream. I've included some picture of me before (with all my glorious blemishes) and then after, with the foundation applied.Hello Flawless is an oil-free foundation which is an extra bonus and it has a very smooth texture and doesn't require any shaking before applying to make the sure the product is mixed. It's really good coverage for something that feels so sheer- not cakey at all and even after a whole day at uni, it was still sitting pretty. I'm going to compare it with my other favourite sheer foundation which is my good ole MAC Face and Body which, while being lovely and sheer, it did have a tendency to slide after a while, particularly in my oily T zone area for example. Overall, it really does make your skin look flawless and hydrated.

You couldn't talk about Benefit without mentioning the packaging. It's probably a lot simpler in design compared to other products but still looks very clean and cute. It is a pump bottle so you're able to use however much you need. It also came with a small sample of the Porefessional inside it which was a pleasant surprise.

In the UK, it retails at £24.50 which is around the same price range as most high end foundations such as Estée Lauder and MAC foundations but I'm so impressed that I would say that this Benefit product is worth the price tag.

I hope you guys are doing well

I have a completely free weekend for once and plan on enjoying it!

xx

Product Review- They're Real Mascara by Benefit

Sorry for spamming you with my eyes but I thought I would share you my thoughts on They're Real by Benefit. I'm pretty much always on the look out fora good mascara because, as you can see in the first photo, I have basically nearly non-existent natural eyelashes. My recent trip to Bournemouth and to the Benefit counter there got me considering the famous They're Real mascara. I got a bit of unexpected money so thought I would treat myself.

I have to say I had my initially reservations because me and plastic brushes don't tend to get on very well, I always end up stabbing myself in the eye. The bristles themselves are actually quite short, compared to some others I've tried such as L'Oreal Million Lashes for example, which surprised me. I didn't think that the brush would work well with my short lashes. I also like the shape of the bristles at the end which is really useful for getting the lashes in the corner of the eye. Definitely a plus to begin with.

I've showed the difference between one coat and two and as you can see there's a serious difference! I thought the consistency was a bit on the runny side to begin with but I think with most mascaras, as you use them, they sort of thicken up a bit and behave how they should. I did find that at two coats, lashes did start to get stuck together so I use another mascara wand to help separate them out a bit. I haven't used this yet with eyelash curler but I think combined it would give seriously impressive results. Sophie from the Benefit counter in Bournemouth also recommend using the combination of Bad Gal Lash and They're Real to get both volume and length so I will have to try it with my Bad Gal Lash sample.

It is pricey though and for me that's the biggest drawback. Around £18 for a standard tube of mascara. Worth it- I'm not sure. Probably a splurge treat rather than a regular purchase, especially considering my second and third favourite mascaras don't go over £11. Although I tend to change mascaras quite regularly though, I will continue to use it. It's definitely a good mascara but possibly not quite worth the hype.

I hope this has been a useful review

Have a good week!

xx