Battle Of The Primers - Benefit Porefessional Primer vs Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

Battle Of The Primers

When it comes to primers there are tons to choose from, most brands have their own, but these are two of the most popular primers than I have found online. These cult classics have wormed their way into most make up collections and I want to see which one offers the longest wear and nicest feel on the skin. Both of these primers are oil-free, help to reduce the sights of pores and can be worn with or without foundation. The Benefit Porefessional it tinted unlike the Smashbox Photo Finish and feel different on the skin with the Porefessional laying more heavy on the skin than the Photo Finish. I love both of these primers with them both being oil-free and doesn't give me break outs like some other primers I have used before.

 I am going to start with the Smashbox Photo Finish Primer as this is the one that I use the less out of the two. You only need around a pea size of the primer as a little goes a long way with this one, it almost feels like silk when you rub it in with your fingers leaving a satin finish to the skin. It gives you a slight glow which looks natural and I'm not sure if it is because of the Vitamins inside the formula or the fact my pores looked almost blurred smaller than usual. It was strange putting foundation on over because of how nice my skin felt just wearing the primer on its own, normally I can't wait to put on my foundation on but with this I could happily just wear it knowing my skin has a natural glow and you can't see any of the pores you can normally see. The first time I wore it was New Years Eve and all of my foundation stayed put the whole night, even my eye shadow didn't budge when I put some on my lids before doing it. If you want an all purpose primer which makes your skin feel baby soft then this is defiantly for you! The travel size is only $12.50 but you can get a larger tube of it for $32.00 on their website now. 

I can safely say that I use the Benefit Porefessional every day, it is tinted and a lot thicker than the Smashbox Photo Finish primer but for every day use it is amazing. I only use this on my t-zone and my chin instead of everywhere like the Photo Finish as it took a few days for my skin to get used to how thick this primer is. It covers dark circles under the eye really well as the tint to it seems to mask the purple and make them seem less big. I do occasionally use this as a base for my eye shadow if I have a few veins showing that day and it works well for keeping the eye shadow in place unlike concealer which sometimes lets it smudge. I do like Benefit and have always wanted to try this primer as I've heard and seen such good things about it but the more I use it the more I am slightly disappointed. It does require a lot of blending unlike the Smashbox where you gently rub into the face. The weight of it sometimes makes me want to exfoliated half way through the day even underneath light weight BB Cream or light weight foundation. This only comes in  one size for $24.50 on their website.

Over all both of the primers do their job and keep foundation in place all day and night without requiring a top up and look good if you just want to wear them on your own. If you have darker skin then I wouldn't recommend the Benefit Porefessional as it is a tinted primer and it is quite light, anything past Olive I think would be too dark for this primer. The prices are mostly the same, but Smashbox do offer a travel size one (for cheaper) so you can have a chance to try it out without having to spend the full amount for the larger tube. If you do not like heavier make up then I must say the Benefit one wouldn't be for you and personally I would save my money for the Smashbox. They are both amazing primers, made by amazing companies and I can see why they are cult classics now.

https://www.benefitcosmetics.com/uk/en-gb/product/the-porefessional-face-primer

http://www.smashbox.co.uk/product/6038/42523/face/primer/travel-size-photo-finish-foundation-primer-classic/travel-size/index.tmpl

Full Face Of Make Up For $20 - MUA

Full Face Of Make Up For $20

I know I don't use much drug store make up as by the time I've come to writing a beauty blog I have been using more high end make up for a few months so I review what I have. Now I find a few people asking about drug store or more budget make up so I thought I would do a blog on a full face of make up for $20 to see how much I can actually get for my money. There are tons of brands I could use for this as I walked through Superdrug I saw how many brands I have been missing as I've been so focused on the higher end products! If buying the Sleek Box Of Tricks has taught me anything it is that the drug store brands are defiantly worth another shot and can be 100% as good as high end brands if not better. If I get comments underneath telling me brands you would like me to do this challenge with as well then let me know and I'll try to make it a monthly thing! 'Full face of make up' to me means; foundation, highlighter, mascara, liquid eyeliner, eye shadow palette and liquid lipstick as this is what I would class as a full face on me. I was going to add contour but as most palettes are at least $10 it would cut my budget in half.


To kick start this challenge I have wrote a list of brands I originally thought I would be able to get my full face for $20 but was quick to add up and realise some were over $40! I came to find three brands I could find everything and one I didn't realise doesn't actually do mascara and eyeliner. To kit start I decided to go for a brand I haven't used before as I thought it would be interesting to try something new and I have heard good things about them! MUA. I have heard loads of things about their Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer and I am a huge fan of liquid lipsticks so I decided to buy an extra one with the money I had change from the $20 budget. On their site it says 'We know that looking good is important and so is saving you money, which is why our products are of the highest standard but at a super low cost' which is exactly how I think it should be.


To start off with I brought the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in Natural Ivory (the lightest shade they offer) which cost $3.00 (on sale originally $4.00). Then I chose my mascara picking the Curl Mascara as I liked the look of the wand as the shape looked like it would be able to cover root to tip of my lashes which cost $2.00. It was hard to choose an eye shadow palette as they have so many but eventually I chose the Hall Of Fame as it has build-able shades and a couple of blues to make it more of a striking look which only costs $4.00. I only really use liquid eyeliner and I don't like the felt applicators when I'm doing my eyeliner so I chose the Matte Liquid Eyeliner in black which only costs $2.00. They have several shades of highlighter sold singularly but I brought the shade 'Iridescent' as I prefer a glow with not much colour which only costs $3.00. To finish off the look I brought the Luxe Velvet Lip Lacquer as I have been dying to try them! the shade I got for the look is 'Symphonic' (blue with a purple undertone) as it will go with the eye shadow palette perfectly then as I had $3.00 extra I also brought the shade 'Lacquer Poise' (a purple grey) then a Luxe Whipped Velvet Lip Lacquer in the shade 'Majestic' (a deep red) as it was on sale for $1.50 instead of the usual $3.00.
In total without the two extra lipsticks it all cost $17.00 in total which is really good considering how much you get! Now to review the products and show a finishing look...


The first item I'll be reviewing is the Skin Define Hydro Foundation in the shade 'Natural Ivory' (the palest shade they have in this foundation). Squeezing a bit onto the back of my hand it looks a bit dark for my skin tone but I should be able to blend it out to make it look like my shade. As this has Vitamin E and Jojoba in it I expect it will be like Maybelline Better Skin but more light weight than the Maybelline one. It feels more like a tinted moisteriser than a light weight foundation and has a very nice natural glowing finish. It is like a very nice BB cream as it makes the skin feel very moisterised and soft, the skin feels breathable without having too much on but like a BB cream it doesn't give the best coverage so using a concealer would be a good idea. In the summer this will be perfect! or on holiday where you don't want to wear much heavy make up more natural. I do find that even though this is the lightest shade they offer in foundation it is a little orange (I struggle with this quite a lot) but adding a little of my usual moisteriser it does seem to work a little better with the orange tinge. Next time I will definitely be buying the other foundation they have, Skin Define Matte Perfection Foundation as it offers a lot better coverage so I won't have to use concealer over the top and it will be a lot more like the foundations I usually use every day.


Next products I used is the Hall Of Fame palette making a really simple eyeshadow look as the foundation isn't that heavy and I was only going out shopping that day. In the swatches, starting from the top, the first shade is 'Shy' (a matte shades the same as my skin tone) then 'Rose Ash' (A rose tone shimmer) , 'Bare' (a champagne shimmer colour), 'Catacomb' (a nude with pink under tone shimmer shade), 'Lion' (a gold shimmering shade), 'Chino' (a dusty purple shade with blue undertone), 'Reveal' (silver shimmer shade), 'Hustle' (a plum shimmer shade), 'Tectonite' (a grey purple shimmer shade), 'Cool Grey' (a dark blue with green undertone shimmer shade), 'Hydra' (a almost pastel blue shimmering shade) then last of all 'Titan' (a blue, black shimmering shade). Out of all of them my favourites have got to be the shades 'Rose Ash' for the inner corner of my eye and a dash under my eyebrow then 'Chino' for the crease, a dash of 'Hustle' in the outer corner of my to really make it pop then move into the centre of my eye where I blend with the Rose Ash shade. The formula is really rich and creamy! considering it costs $4 for the palette it is a total bargain! There is a little bit of fall out, but I used some loose powder under my eyes so it won't effect the foundation I've already put on.

Since my eyeshadow blended really well I moved onto using the Lift& Curl Mascara. The wand is a really nice shape to be able to cover all of my lashes completely from root to tip. You do have to wipe off the extra product from the top of the applicator where it collects but apart from that one dip is enough for both eyes to give a nice natural look. As I didn't want any getting on my lid I used one of my old college IDs to keep it from going on my lid until it dried. It looks nice and makes them look long and natural but doesn't really give a dramatic look unless you put on a few more layers that I only did a few hours after the final photo was taken. At the end of the day there was slight smudging on the bottom of my eye from the mascara but nothing really noticeable so it lasted the day really well. I do think it is really good as more of a every day mascara or the first step to building up lashes to almost fake looking ones as it separates the lashes really well only giving a thin coat.





I found the eyeliner quite hard to work with as I'm not used to how thick the tip of the felt liner applicator. I did practice on my hand before I did it on my eyes so I could get used to the applicator, but still found it hard when it came to getting it thinner towards the inner corner of my eye. I did find that it can smudge really easily so I went over it with a little bit of black eyeshadow just to try keep it in place before going over it again with the eyeliner again. The colour is very pigmented and dries really quickly (within five seconds) which does make it a little harder when it comes to messing up as you don't have time to correct it. Once it is on it is on though! It doesn't budge and is completely smudge proof! When it rains it does loose a little colour and you do get green lines from where the rain hits it. This would be a great summer eyeliner as it doesn't fade and doesn't smudge very easily.

The second to last step was of course my highlighter! This is almost a white shade but when you look in the light it has a really yellow and gold shimmer to it making you look sun kissed and your cheeks really pop. One swipe of the highlighter is enough to use on both cheeks and to give a really subtle look. It is build-able without looking like a chunk as blending it is easy with a nice fan brush (I use my Zoeva 129) and it even works really well in the inner corner of my eyes and under my eyebrows. For how cheap it is it is as good as the expensive ones! The Jeffree Star highlighters are only a little better than MUAs ones. They have other shades as well, but as I was looking for something subtle this is perfect and it blends really well with my skin tone which I have problems with some other shades. The picture doesn't do it justice with how much it shines in the light! It looks like you've got a mix of glitter and shimmer on you. This is defiantly something I will be buying again, I might try out the other shades as well as there is only around 6 shades mostly looking like shimmering blusher than highlighter in general.

To finish off my look I used the shade Poise (top swatch shade) as it is a really nice nude shade, but as it is quite dark for me it gives it a nice look with all the rest of the make up. Symphonic (middle swatch shade) is really good for a dramatic look, if I was to use it I would use the Jeffree Star Beauty Killers as there are some really nice purple tones which would look perfect with this shade or I would use the MUA palette with the purple and blue shades for a night out look. Majestic (the last swatch shade) isn't like the other two lipsticks as it isn't a matte shade, it doesn't dry down fully either so it is easy to smudge. Out of all three my favourite has to be Symphonic as it isn't like any other shade I already have which is rare for me as I have so many. It is nice to be able to have something to go for a more daring look with instead of always sticking to red lipsticks when I get ready to go out. As they are so inexpensive as well it is a really good brand to try different colours you wouldn't usually buy and they have so many as well so you have a good range to choose from. They passed the eating and drinking test, I do find that you have to top it up after eating something greasy as it degrades it in the middle and if you get the whipped velvet then I would recommend wearing a lip liner underneath just to help keep it in place for longer and remember as it doesn't dry down fully it will go on anything your lips touch.

The finished full face actually looked really nice and I was presently surprised. The eye shadow is really buttery and doesn't budge after you put it on. I didn't use any other products apart from the Kyliner in Black on my brows. The eyeliner was a little harder to use than when I tested it out before I did the entire face so they did go a little uneven but nothing a little make up remover on a cotton bud didn't fix. This was a much more simple look and if you want to see a full face going out look using this brand then let me know in the comments! I hope you liked the blog post and I'll let you know on my social medias when the next full face for $20 post will go up with the new brand!

http://www.superdrug.com/brandshop/mua

Too Faced Melted Matte - Swatches and Review

 Too Faced Melted Matte

 To do a review of this product I ordered 12 colours from them ranging from a nice set of nearly 6 nudes (with different undertones) and another 6 of various shades I wouldn't usually use but I want to try something new. This is a brand that I haven't tried before so I was really excited to see the parcel from Debenhams arrive knowing what it was. I've seen high reviews on YouTubers channels and I couldn't wait to get my hands on them to see how they compare to my other lipsticks (being a fan of liquid lipsticks). I really like that it says on the side of the packaging that the 'formula glides over lips like a gloss but dries to an ultra-matte opaque finish' and is 'infused with a no-sting plumping filler' and can't wait to see if it is true! I love the packaging with this product as the shape of the tube makes it easy to stand up on its own in my make up organiser on my dresser and with the lid having the 'tf' shown on the top it makes it easy to pick out from the other lipsticks. So onto reviewing the actual product...

For the first set I tried I used the nude colours to swatch together before the more adventurous shades. These are much more every day shades you can use for a more natural look or a little adventurous with the dark nude (the brown). As you can see from the swatch they are all very nice nudes with different undertones. From the top swatch down it goes; Queen B, Child Star, Sell Out, Bend & Snap!, Miso Pretty and last of all Naughty By Night. 

Queen B

The first shade I used on my lips from the collection was Queen B, this is one of my favourite nudes out of the collection as it matches my lips perfectly for a pink undertone shade when it normally looks too strong. This looks a lot different on the lips compared to on your arm (looks streaky on my arm but all one nice shade on my lips). Putting it on is easy, it's not as fast drying as other brands I own making it easy to adjust and get even coverage without having to layer up. I only had to use one dip of the lipstick to get full even coverage for my lips. The colour is very pigmented and doesn't have a need for a liner underneath as it goes on smoothly by itself. I love the formula of this, it's a little drying however that's expected from a liquid lipstick in general anyway. After wearing it for 20 minutes and deciding I liked it I used a make up wipe to take it off which was pretty easy. It doesn't sit in the lines of your lips even when dry like some other brands and I could barely tell it was on. When I had a sip of drink there wasn't any smudging or trace I was wearing lipstick which is a huge bonus.

Child Star

The second shade I used was Child Star, this one I find not to be the right shade for my lips as you can see in the photograph it almost blends in with my skin tone making it look more like I was wearing concealer on my lips rather than a lipstick on. It wasn't streaky and the colour was even with only one dip of the liquid lipstick. I did find it made my lips look a little smaller with the colour but I think if I didn't have such pale skin it would suit me a lot better. The formula is still really nice and there wasn't any residue of me wearing lipstick while I was having a drink. After wearing for 20 minutes like the other one I took it off using a make up wipe which was easy and let no mark of the lipstick being on. 

Sell Out

Next I used Sell Out which has a really nice peachy undertone. This one is much better than the last one, Child Star, as the undertone made it a lot more suited to my skin tone. It made my lips look a lot more fuller than the last shade as well because the peachy undertone gave it a lot more of a healthy look. This is definitely one I will be using on my casual days as it is a lot more natural and perfect for the days where you want a 'no make up' day. Just like the others I have managed to get full coverage and colour with only one dip of the product. The wand is a good fit for my lips as well and is a little thin so it was easy to get into the corner of my lips. As I was taking this one off after 20 minutes I did notice my lips started to look slightly fuller than before I started to swatch the lipsticks. Maybe they actually do what it says on the side of the box it comes in or doing lip swatches not that far apart with taking it off with make up wipes. When I use one of these lipsticks for a full day I will write at the bottom if it was just swatching my lips so much or if it actually is the formula. 

Bend & Snap!

The Bend & Snap! shade is a little brighter than what I would usually wear but is still is a nice shade. Buying these shades has already made me realise that I need to get more shades I wouldn't normally buy as they actually look really nice! The bright pink isn't as full on as It's Happening! but not as much of a nude as the other shades I've swatched. This is like a Barbie style shade so if you're struggling to find a pink colour similar to Barbie shade then this is the perfect one! This is only one dip of the colour as well and look how bright it has gone! It makes your teeth really white as well which is a good bonus. After being four colours in to swatching on my lips they're starting to feel a bit dry so I applied a bit of Vaseline to make sure they don't dry out too much. This would been a really nice summer shade and once it's on it's not going to flake or smudge or move yet is easy to take off with a baby wipe. As I carry on swatching my lips do start to carry on getting fuller the more I carried on and keep getting drier. 

Miso Pretty

The Miso Pretty shade is a lot like Kylie Cosmetics Exposed shade with less of a orange undertone. This makes my lips literally blend right into the rest of my skin only showing because my lips have become more fuller with all the swatching. I don't think I'd buy it again but I would like to try it again to see if it would like nicer with a lip liner underneath it to give it an actual undertone. The formula is still really nice compared to other brands I've used and it does seem to be giving my lips a more fuller look even when I've used my baby wipe to take it off but I still have to add a thin layer of Vaseline in between coats of  lipstick. As this was second to last in the nudes I started with I took a small break inbetween switching shades so my lips had a little time to feel moisturised again as I'm finding them quite drying. They are still consistently pigmented and whatever the formula is it is one of my favourites for liquid lipsticks as it doesn't budge at all compared to others I have used. 

Naughty By Night

The last shade in the nude collection of these lipsticks I have the Naughty By Night shade which is much more of a striking brown than I first thought. Swatching it on my arm I thought it was just a brown like True Brown K (Kylie Cosmetics) but it is much more of a redder brown and less of just a pure brown that I prefer more. I haven't really tried a brown before but I do actually like it, I'll have to try it over again to see if it does actually suit me but it is looking promising with the Too Faced 'Chocolate Bar' eyeshadow palette. I did have to find that I had to put on a little more product with this shade as it is slightly darker and was slightly streaky but apart from that it was just like the others. Even as this is a little darker I did expect it to have a little fall out or smudging but I still didn't get any! I'm hoping the darker shades will be like this as well!. 

Moving onto the last six shades I found myself 

liking the different shades I've got to try when I brought these lipsticks. The formula is nice (but I wouldn't recommend swatching twelve in one day like I have!) and provides even coverage even with the darker and lighter tones! From the top swatch the shades are; Mrs. Roper, 1998, It's Happening, Feelin' Myself, Lady Balls then Unicorn last. 

Mrs. Roper

 For the first shade I tried the Mrs. Roper, this is much more of an orange undertone red than what I first thought it was going to be like. It looks almost like a summer red compared to the striking reds or dark reds I usually go for. This would look good in summer time but at the moment it is way too bright for this time of year, maybe would of been a good Christmas day shade. I have found with these lipsticks they do look a lot different from the arm swatch then they do on the lips and they were a lot harder to get off from the arm swatch than the lips! They do leave you a little bit dry but the liquid doesn't go into the lines of your lips which is nice compared to other brands like I've said when it came to the nudes. The formula is consistent considering the variety of shades and there still isn't any smudging or flaking or look of it disappearing when eating or drinking.

1998

The next shade is 1998, now with this one it isn't my type of shade at all, I'm definitely not a pink kind of lady however this shade is quite nice. I mean I wouldn't wear it every day, it's more of a every once in a while kind of lipstick to go with minimal make up. This would look nice for Valentines day if you want a bold pink instead of a red to wear. It is obviously the same formula as the other lipsticks so it has a nice finish to it and doesn't sink into the lips. It does take a little longer to get off of the lips than the other ones I've tried as it slightly stains the lips but not noticeable. 

It's Happening!

The next shade was the It's Happening! which is quite similar to the last shade (1998) in it is a quite bright pink. It does have a slightly darker undertone however but is still quite a strong bold colour. It passed the eating test as it was lunch time and held up against soup with no smudging on the spoon like I have had with other brands before. This one did fade slightly in the middle from eating as you can see in the photograph but that was the only part which faded at all. I used two dips of the lipstick for this one as it was starting to become a little less even compared to the others but it didn't effect how it dried or how it looked at the end.

Feelin' Myself

 The next shade is slightly a nude however is did look a lot more like a darker shade when it was in the tube, Feelin' Myself is a very peachy shade. I like this one as it does make my lips look really healthy but I did find that the corners of my lips went slightly orange compared to the rest of the lip colour. It is much like an every day lipstick that I found a little disappointing compared to the rest of the shades but I will still use it. Since I am on my tenth shade my lips have got a lot bigger! I'm still not sure if it is to do with the lipstick or all the swatches on my lips but I like it!.

Lady Balls

The second to last shade is Lady Balls, a really nice red quite similar to Kylie Cosmetics Holiday 'Merry' lip kit. If you're looking for a cheaper dupe of the Kylie Cosmetics lip kits then I have found they are quite similar shades! I'll do a blog post with dupes for the Kylie Cosmetics. This one I had to use two dips of the lipstick as the first dip was still quite light and not the complete shade it was meant to be. I did find this a little harder to use the applicator maybe because of the shade? but I would recommend using a liner for this one just to make sure it doesn't bleed outside of the lips. It did stay in place for the whole 20 minutes and it did slightly leave a stain on the lips from it.

Unicorn

This last shade has to be the boldest lipstick I now own, I've never used a purple before so I am pleasantly surprised by how nice it looks on my lips! It makes them look a lot bigger than they are naturally and I have to say that I didn't take it off for a good 3 hours before I wanted to take it off to put Vaseline on. I had a lot of control with this considering how dark it is and it did actually make my lips a bit bigger than they are naturally which is really nice. I have to say that I have been impressed with most of the shades that I brought and there are a few I will definitely be buying again when this tube runs out.






My favourite out of all of the shades have to be Queen B as it is a perfect nude colour for my skin tone that I normally struggle with, Naughty By Night was a nice change and it was the most surprising out of all of them with it having red mixed in! then of course Unicorn as I haven't tried purple before and I am really surprised with how much it actually suits me. Over all I think these are definitely worth a buy, they are a little bit expensive but they really are worth it, the formula is amazing and the bonus of it slightly plumping your lips as you're wearing it makes it 100% worth every penny. Hopefully now you've seen the shades swatched on my arm and my lips you'll be able to find your perfect shade! Each lipstick costs $19.00 from Debenhams.

http://www.debenhams.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/prod_10701_10001_154614113899_-1

Huda Beauty Eyeshadow - Real vs Knock Off review and swatches

The Real Huda Beauty Textured Palette

Huda Beauty Textured Eyeshadow

Award-winning beauty blogger Huda Kattan is a beauty industry sensation so when she started her make up company, Huda Beauty, she took the internet and shops like Sephora by storm. Coming from the Middle East originally she moved to Los Angeles to train as a make up artist. After she became a make up artist, her and her two sisters, created her hit brand of Huda Beauty starting with lashes then moving onto; lipstick, nails, eye shadow and even stick on 'tattoos'. In this blog post I will review Huda Beauty Textured Shadow Palette Rose Gold Edition then I will show you a fake copy you can buy on Ebay and the comparison to the real version and if it is worth the extra money to get the difference in formula.

Swatches from Dubai to Shy (Real)

Starting off with swatches the first photograph shows what the textured eye shadows actually look like swatched on my arm then a few of the matte shades underneath as well. On the back of the palette it says 'Directions: Apply gently around the eyes with a brush. Foiled textures deliver their maximum pay-off when applied with fingertips' so I used my fingertips for swatching with extra precautions for the textured shadows. I did find already that with the textured shadows I was getting a lot of fall out just from swatching so it will be interesting to see how it will work out actually on my eyes (a little worried about how they will work out now!). The matte colours are a lot more pigmented than the textured eye shadows which is a little disappointing considering the textured shadows are what makes this palette unique from other palettes. There is some really nice colours in this palette tho with 'Fling' (second swatch), 'Rose Gold' (forth swatch) and 'Angelic' (sixth swatch) being good shades which will work together perfectly. Onto the second set of swatches...

Swatches from Bae to Sandalwood (Real)

I finished off with the matte shades of the palette working from the end of the palette. I did find that the 'Moon Dust' (second down swatch) shade has a really nice shimmer to it almost like highlighter which will be perfect for the inner corner of my eyes. I much preferred these shades than the last ones as she does have very strong matte shades. There is enough to be able to make a really dramatic look with the mattes then just add some of the textured shadows over the top for a bit of sparkle.

I Used The Shades; Bae, Flamingo, Shy,
  Moon Dust, Angelic and Maneater. 

As you can't judge a palette just on swatches I decided to try it out to see how it goes on my eyes and if I can make this palette work on an every day level. As I was going for a pastel colour outfit I decided to use all the pink shades to match my jumper for the day. To start off with I used my usual Benefit Porefessional to prime my lid ready for the base colour then I used a blending brush to cover the whole of my lids (from the bottom of my eyebrows to the top lash line) in the shade 'Bae' as it perfectly suits my skin tone then I moved into using the shade 'Shy' over the top of my crease and the side of my eye. Next I used the shade 'Flamingo' (the brightest shade of pink that is in the palette) on the side of my eye moving up into the top of the crease coming half way over my lid ready to blend with the lighter shades I'll put in next. Using the shade 'Moon Dust' I used a small flat brush to pack on the colour in the inner corner of my eye bringing it towards the middle of my eye where it meets the pink shade then using my blending brush I moved it together to make it look more transitional. As I haven't used any darker shades I decided to add in the shade 'Maneater' to make the crease pop a bit more then added the shade 'Angelic' from the textured shadows where both colours meet in the middle to make my eyes look bolder and more awake as I didn't have enough sleep the night before. I then blended, with my finger, the textured shadow over both sides to make it look more transitional again. I really liked using these colours as it matched my outfit perfectly and the only issue I had was that the textured eye shadow doesn't come off that easily from the finger onto the eye lid and I did find I had a little bit of flaking by the end of the night. I will do another look using more of the textured shadows to see if it was just because it was already over quite a lot of matte shadows. I will recreate this look again using the knock off palette to show you the difference on the lid as well.

Top one is the fake one,
Bottom one is the original

As soon as you put the two palettes together you can already tell the difference. The fake one doesn't have the shimmer on the lids or on the rose gold writing but instead is just like it's printed, you can see that the bottom one (the real one) looks much higher quality when it comes to the printing on the packaging. It feels a lot more flimsy and it is larger in size than the original and doesn't feel as heavy as the original as well. I was surprised to see how similar it looked to start off with so if people haven't got the original you wouldn't be able to tell much difference until you look at the back and the writing is in French instead of English like the original. I've heard horror stories about knock off eye shadow palettes giving people eye infections or causing allergic reactions in people as you have no idea what is in the eye shadow as they just print the same ingredients from the original box but there could be anything in there. I'm not promoting knock off or fake make up, I am going to show you the difference between paying the extra money for a real thing or paying a quarter of the price and risking it for a knock off or fake one. Looking on eBay I've found at least fifty knock off Huda Beauty Palettes on there and the one I purchased was only $3.50! so it was worth buying just to compare to the original.

Fake palette on the left, Real on the right.

Close up of the fake palette.

Opening it up, you can still see little details on the packaging which are only slightly different. The next thing I noticed is how different the colours look like! I couldn't believe it! The whole appeal of this palette is not only the amazing formula but the fact it has textured shadows which are something you buy this palette for! As I opened up the fake palette there was a lot of fall out over the whole of the palette and the window is covered in different coloured eye shadow. There were no textured shadows at all, they are more like highlighters than anything, they do have a lot of shimmer to them but that's about it. The shade 'Maneater' is spelt 'Mane Ater', the shade 'Angelic' is spelt 'Angeuc', the hash tag is missing off the shade '#Blessed'. A lot of the shades are completely different like 'Fling' which is originally a textured shadows red is instead a bright shimmery pink, '24K' is meant to be a textured green like gold but it is bright yellow in this palette, They've made the shade 'Black Truffle' shimmering instead of matte and the shade 'Maneater' isn't only miss spelt but instead of a really nice burgundy they've made it another hot pink like shade. So onto swatches...

Swatches of the top row (from Dubai to Angeuc)

So in the original palette these were all the textured shades, but as you can see in the fake one they are just shimmering shades which aren't like the original shades at all! It look a few swiped to be able to get some of the pigmentation out of the pan as well which is disappointing compared to the one swipe of the original palette in comparison. Some of the shades are nice like the shade 'Trust Fund' as a coppery shimmer shade but considering these are all meant to be textured shadows I am really disappointed so far, Some of them have so little pigment you can barely see them.

Swatches of the middle row (from Blessed to Moon Dust) 

In the orignal palette the first shade is meant to be a textured shadow then the rest are matte apart from the last shade 'Moon Dust' which is meant to be shimmering. However, there were no textured shadows on this row either, instead the first shade 'Blessed' was shimmering instead then there was a matte shade what didn't have much pigment in it then another shimmering shade 'Flamingo' which is originally a hot pink matte colour. The shades 'Shy' and 'Bae' lacked so much pigment they didn't even show up on the swatch and 'Moon Dust' is more of a highlighter than anything.

Swatches of the bottom row (from Black Truffle to Sandalwood)

The last row I was feeling a bit more optimistic for as in the original palette this row holds all matte shades which have really high pigment and I was curious to see how this one turns out in comparison. Like in the original they actually stuck to having them all matte shades. 'Black Truffle' had really high pay off especially for a black and the next few shades were okay until the shade 'Mane Ater' which is completely different to the original shade I like so much which was disappointing. Over all the bottom row seemed to be a lot more pigmented and easier to swatch than the past two rows as you can actually see all of the shades on the swatch.


Using the fake palette I will re create the eye shadow look I did with the original palette so you can really see the difference in shades compared to the original. Using the same prepping as last time I used my Benefit Porefessional Primer on my lids to give a nice base colour and to make sure the eyeshadow is in place properly and will stay there all day without budging. I went in with the shade 'Bae', which now seems to be a yellow shade where as in the original palette it is a nice creme shade, all over the lid from the inner corner up to the brows and down to the outer corner. For above the crease I went in with the shade 'Shy' bringing it up to the bottom of my eyebrows, this seems to be like the original shade 'Bae' not the original rose pink shade. I then went in with the shade 'Flamingo' which is meant to be the really nice bright pink but instead is almost a burnt orange bronze colour instead from the outer corner to the middle crease. For the inner corner to meet the shade 'Flamingo' I used the shade 'Moon Dust' which is almost like the shade in the original just slightly off as it has a more orange undertone than the original creme undertone. Using a blending brush again I tried to make it look more transitional but it wasn't budging much as they aren't as pigmented as the original palette so I have to keep packing more product on. Originally I used the shade 'Maneater' to really make the crease pop as it is a really nice burgundy shade, but in the fake palette it is a neon pink but I put it in the crease anyway just to show you the major difference in all the shades. This is much more like what the original shade 'Flamingo' is meant to be. I then used a dash of the shade 'Angelic' in the middle of the lid to really make my eyes pop, but as it isn't a textured shadow like it's meant to be I just used a blending brush instead of my finger tip. This is a really nice shade but as it isn't a textured shadow it isn't the exact shade. The finished look is completely different from the original as the colours are so different. I do like some of these shades tho and think the colours together in this look really nice, it's just a shame they are so far from the original shades like you would expect even from a fake palette.

To get the original palette for yourself  you can get it from:

https://www.cultbeauty.co.uk/huda-beauty-textured-shadows-palette-rose-gold-edition.html

for $56.00

for the fake palette I just put it in eBay and I can't find the exact link, just remember that you have no idea what is in the fake product as they just copy to writing from the original box!  

Birchbox February Box - Review and Items

Birchbox February Box

In February's Birchbox they really out did themselves, not only is the draw beautifully decorated by Papier but all five items are things I will actually use. It is going to be difficult to pick a favourite out of these products as they are all things I really like.


So to start off with I will talk about

the POP eye shadow trio and the Spectrum C06 eye contour brush. Since I have been always doing the more dramatic looks with eye shadow it was nice to get three shades which will be perfect for a simple smoky eye with a really nice shimmer running over it. The eye shadows are high pigmented with a almost buttery feel to them. They stay on all day as well even when I go to work. I use my usual Benefit Porefessional primer on my lid before using a then lightest shade over the top, Working on the crease I used the next darker shade blending it with the first then finished it off with a dash of the darkest shade in the outer corner of my eye then blended towards the middle of my eye. I only used the Spectrum brush for all of this and it was incredible soft on my eyes and blended it seamlessly. I will definitely be buying more from POP beauty and some more Spectrum brushes. This single brush costs $4.99 and the full size POP eye shadow (12) costs $15.50 which is very reasonable.


To remove my make up at the end of the day I used Marcelles make up remover on a cotton pad and it just dissolved away. I have quite sensitive skin so I was happy to see it didn't irritate my skin at all and I didn't have to scrub to get my make up off. It was a little difficult in getting my usual Clinique Mascara off as I had two layers on and it didn't come off with a couple of swipes so I did have to add a little more product on a new cotton pad to get it off but it didn't irritate my eyes at all. The sample size is very large so I will have a good few weeks to use it to make sure I like it before I buy it again. To use is simple you just need to give it a good shake then take the cap off and put a few drops of it onto a cotton pad. After you've removed all your make up then it advises to wash with water, but as I only really take my make up off at the end of the day before I start my face routine I wash with my Origins Cleanser which does the trick. I was a little worried I would get a few spots as I have oily skin and I was worried as this feels like oil that it would make my skin even worse but it hasn't at all, if anything it has made it better since I've started using it.

As I dye my hair every month I try to do as much as I can to repair it like using Gardnier Ultimate Blends Shampoo in 'The marvellous transformer' so receiving Beaver Hydro Nutritive Repairing Conditioner was a really nice treat! I used it for a week straight to see the full effect of it and found that it made my hair shine more than usual and my split ends didn't look as bad as they had at the start of the week. It doesn't have much of a smell to it which is nice as I like the smell of my shampoo so I wouldn't want to loose that smell with an over powering conditioner. I left it in for a few minutes before I washed it out but I could tell the difference! My hair hasn't felt lighter and it feels a lot softer than it has for the past 2 or so years! I think I'm going to stick to using this every day I remember to to see how good it gets and will leave a comment down below to update you on how long this product lasts for and how much it repairs my hair. Hopefully in time I'll get less split ends! This costs $12 on the website and when you buy through Birchbox you'll get points back to spend on whatever you want when you've collected enough. Their reward system is 100 points = $10 and you can also collect points reviewing the products on the website when you've brought them or get them through a Birchbox subscription.

The last product I used was a really fun one to use actually! The Keeome Hydration Therapy Mask comes in a single packet but can be brought at a bundle for $29.00 for a packet of 6. Now to start off with I used my regular Origins Frothy Face Wash to cleanse my face before taking the mask out of the packet. As I wanted it to fully go into my pores I used it in the bath to make sure my pores were open (plus it is very relaxing to use this in the bath!). Taking it out, there is a lot of product in the packet (I would recommend doing it over the sink as it does drip a bit) but the whole sheet is in a template mask form so easy to put over the face. It says to leave on for around 25 minutes so all of the serum goes into the face which I think I left on for around 30 minutes before peeling it off. Rinsing with clean warm water from the sink I have to say my face has never felt so pampered, it left my skin feeling smooth and soft and there wasn't any irritation like I was worried about. It is a nice product to use every now and then (maybe once a month) as using it weekly would become quite expensive but it is worth trying!

This has got to be one of my favourite boxes so far from Birchbox as every product I was really looking forward to using! My favourite would have to be the Keeome Hydration Therapy Mask as it just left my skin feeling so soft and hydrated! But for every day use I have been using the Spectrum brush non stop!

If you would like to start your subscription with Birchbox then use the link below to get $5 off your first box!

https://www.birchbox.co.uk/invite/61mnl