A Review Of The Benefit How To Look The Best Of Everything Flawless Complexion Kit - Light - Old Version!

Love them or loathe them, Benefit are definitely one of those brands that you can't ignore. I know they've made a few social media cock ups lately (to be honest which brand hasn't though ?) and not everyone is a fan of their quirky, retro style, but they're definitely one of my favourite brands. My first Benefit product unsurprisingly, was a bottle of High Beam, yes Victoria Beckham made me do it but to be honest I've never looked back and over the years I've tried lots of their products. They haven't all been winners but that's only to be expected.

I've gone pretty Benefit crazy lately and I've quite a few products to show you in an upcoming haul but in the meantime I thought I'd show you a kit, that I got for Christmas, it's the How To Look The Best At Everything Flawless Complexion Makeup Kit.

Boxed and packaged in one their book style boxes, this kit is basically a complete complexion and base kit. Benefit do a lot of these mini kits and I have to say I love them. Not only are they ideal for holidays or when you're on the go but there also a great way to try several products from the brand without having to shell out for the full sizes.

The How To Look The Best At Everything kit comes in 3 different variants depending on your skin tone. Light, Medium, and Dark. The one that Mummy Lou bought me was the Light one and even though we're just coming out of summer this is still the best one for my  English rose complexion.

The kit basically contains everything that you will need to create the perfect base for the rest of your make up - a primer, a face powder, a mini foundation, and two shades of concealer. It also contains a small powder brush and the box also contains a mirror and full instructions.

The Porefessional - 7.5ml

I've already mentioned this in a couple of posts and it's basically it's a primer that you wear underneath your foundation to make it last longer. It's almost looks like a concealer on the skin but when you blend it out, it goes completely transparent no matter what your skin tone.. It has a velvety, silicone type feel, and it leave a matte finish on the skin. I have a love / hate relationship with primers and although I'm not a fan of the slick silicone feel this one certainly makes your base last longer.

Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Brightening Make Up - Champagne - Cheers To Me - 7ml

Houston we have a problem! Well we don't really but I've spent the last hour being a bit confused. Before I started writing this post like with any other post that I write, I did a little bit of research and I've discovered that this kit has changed slightly since December when I got mine. The kit contains exactly the same things but the foundation and powder colours are now different. The Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Foundation in my kit is in the colour Champagne - Cheers To Me, where as the foundation in the new version is in Ivory - I'm Pure 4 Sure. Confusing, yes but hopefully, by the end of this post you'll be able to see why I think they've made this change.

Before we concentrate on the colour though lets talk about the foundation itself, with at least an SPF 25, it's also oil free and it's described as a brightening foundation with light diffusing properties. A little goes a long way and it has a light to medium coverage but it is possible to build it up to a heavier coverage without it feeling too mask like. If you have oily skin or if you prefer a matte finish this foundation probably isn't for you - it gives a healthy, radiant, moisturised finish but it does have a tendency to exacerbate shine.

Right on to the colour, according to the colour chart on the Benefit website Cheers To Me is the third lightest colour that they do, and to be honest as you can probably see it's way too warm, and dare I say it too yellow for my skin tone -in fact in some brands I've seen shades like this describe as medium . I was actually matched for this foundation on a Benefit counter and unsurprisingly I was matched with either the shade in the new version of this kit - I'm Pure 4 Sure or the palest shade Believe In Me. Maybe this was why they changed it, maybe it just wasn't light enough - who knows? The picture below was taken mid application and despite the fact that I had to blend it in really well, it didn't look as bad as I thought it would, it seemed to warm my complexion up a bit and I didn't look too much like an oompa loompa after all x You can see the full look later on x

Boi-ing Industrial Strength Concealer - 1 and 2 - 2 x 1.5g

Boi-ing concealer is by far one of Benefit's most popular products and it's easy to see why. This is a smooth, blendable concealer that you can use for spots, blemishes and imperfections and dark circles. It feels nice and creamy but at the same it doesn't feel oily or greasy.

This kit comes with a removable compact which contains two shades of Boi-ing - Shade 1 and Shade 2.

Shade 1 is pretty much a perfect match for my skin tone and I've mainly been using it as a spot cover up. It blends easily into the skin and it stays put. Shade 2 is probably a bit too dark for me at the moment but if I had a tan then I would probably be able to get some more use out of it.

I've used Boi-ing before and I have to say it's one of my favourite all round concealers. I love it's versatility and the fact that you can use both as spot coverage and very lightly under the eyes. It's smooth, non greasy and blendable, and it lasts well without fading or cracking.

Hello Flawless Custom Powder Cover-Up With SPF 15 - Me Vain? - Champagne - 4g

Another product and more confusion, like the foundation the colour of the face powder has also changed in the new release. My kit contains Me Vain? - Champagne, and the version of the kit contains I Love Me - Ivory. There isn't a huge difference this time round as there is just one shade difference but again I was matched on counter with one the paler shades.

With an SPF of 15 this powder feels silky soft to the touch, it feels very smooth on the skin and it blends into the skin perfectly without leaving it feeling dry and chalky. I believe you can actually wear this one it own but I've been applying it with the brush provided over the top of the Hello Flawless foundation to take down the shine and the glow. Whilst it's a little bit warmer and yellow toned, than the powder that I was matched with, this one is still light enough and blendable enough for me to wear on a daily basis. The one negative here is that this is the only product that's actually fixed into the kit so it isn't as portable as the other items

So what does the kit look like when it's on - well first of all here's a few before pictures so you can see what were dealing with. - Not exactly Casper like but there isn't a lot of warmth there bar some patches of redness, spots and high colour.

Now for the afters - I have to be honest and say these pictures aren't the best the lighting was off so my skin does look a little warmer in real life. In these pics there also appears to be a patch on my forehead with no make up on, I think there was something on the lens, honestly I'm not that bad at make up application!

As you can see the colour is way off  but I hope this gives you some idea of the finish that you can achieve with this kit. My stand out product by far is Boi-ing, I really rate this concealer and it's deinitely something I'm going to be using on a regular basis now. Because of the colour issues it's hard to make a firm judgement on both the foundation and the powder, but I think that the Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation is definitely more suitable for drier skins so I might consider trying the correct shade in the Winter months when my skin isn't as oily. 

Despite the fact that the new version of this kit contains different shades I still think that this kit was worth reviewing as all of these products are still availble in the full size.  Maybe on the fence experiences like mine, made Benefit realise that this kit wasn't designed for those of us with that ultra fair complexion and maybe that was what lead to the change. That said I don't think that you will can please everyone when you release kits like this, they are currently 9 shades of Hello Flawless foundation in the Benefit line and only 3 kits, so I guess someone is always going to be disappointed. If you can find a match though I think that these kits are a great way for you to try some of Benefits core base products without splashing out on the full size, but I would recommend that you swatch the shades in person before you buy to avoid disappointment. Benefit How To Look The Best At Everything Flawless Complexion Makeup Kit comes in Light, Medium and Dark and retails at around £25.50 from various retailers including the Benefit Cosmetics website, Debenhams, John Lewis and Boots. If you have any questions please let me know x  Thanks for reading x

Trimming My Stash - April 2014 Edition - Empties And Mini Reviews

Happy May Day Everyone xx I can't believe were into the 5th month of the year already. I think I say this every month but time really does seem to fly by the older you get. Speaking of getting older, May is my birthday month :) I have no idea what I want this year but I know that I'll always, without question get some beauty bits. I love beauty things but it always means that I need to make a bit of space in my current stash. I've haven't been doing too well, when it comes to using things up this year and whilst April was better it still wasn't amazing.

Soap & Glory Pulp Friction Foamy Fruity Body Scrub - 250ml
Bomb Cosmetics Mandarin & Orange Cleansing Shower Butter - 320g
Soap & Glory Clean, Girls Skin Softening Creamy Body Wash - 75ml
Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener - 7.1 ml
Primark PS Love Your Skin Deep Facial Cleansing Wipes - 25 Wipes
Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow / Liner - 4.5g - Skinny Jeans
L'Occitane Desert Rose Hand Cream - 30ml
Total - 7 Items

Yes, I finished 7 items, I guess I should be happy with that especially since I finished a couple of make up bits but I still think I could have done a little bit better. There are still a few products that just seem to be going on and on and that I can't seem to finish no matter what I do but hopefully I'll manage to break the cycle in May . What about the items that I did finish though? well as I say I finished pretty much a bit of everything in April including two make up items which is always good or is it?

1. Soap & Glory Pulp Friction Foamy Fruity Body Scrub - 250ml

This was from one of the big Soap & Glory Christmas, 2012's I think and I've only just got round to using it up. I have to say I really liked this it gave quite an abrasive scrub but at the same time it felt very creamy and moisturising. I loved the fruity smell and the smoothing effect it had particularly on my upper arms. Mummy Lou wasn't a fan though, as I've probably told you before she detests gritty body scrubs, that leave scratchy particles on the bottom of the bath. So either I don't repurchase or I religiously clean the bath and shower out PROPERLY after every use, decisions, decisions.

2. Bomb Cosmetics Mandarin And Orange Cleansing Shower Butter - 320g

This was a pressie from my bestie a little while go now and I have to say I'm quite devastated that it's finished. I really liked this a lot. The smell was lovely and zesty and citrus based. It's basically a semi solid creamy butter that you massage over your self and rinse off in the shower or you can pop a little bit under a running top for gorgeous soft creamy bubbles. I really loved this and I'll definitely look into repurchasing .

3. Soap & Glory Clean, Girls Skin Softening Creamy Body Wash - 75ml

This was a mini bottle that came in my Boots Advent Calendar. I was expecting to smell like the rest of the Soap & Glory but it was actually quite different. It had a softer more musky based scent. It was okay but I definitely prefer the original fragrance

4. Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener - 7.1 ml

I used to be quite into Smashbox as a brand but when they left QVC I kind of left them and I haven't purchased anything from them since. I still love the bits that I have especially their cream liners but I just don't find the brand as affordable as what it was. This under eye concealer and brightener retails at £16 in the UK, admittedly it's cheaper than the much hyped YSL number (I'm not a fan personally) but whilst I think it's decent, all be it though a little liquidy, the high street, and budget brands seem to have got this category pretty much covered for a fraction of the price.


5. Primark PS Love Your Skin Deep Facial Cleansing Wipes - 25 Wipes

I mentioned these in my recent beauty post and it hasn't taken me very long to polish off the first packet. These are from Primark's newly revamped beauty range, and you two packets for a pretty bargainous £1. There okay they do the job, I'm not keen on the smell (reminds me a bit of bathroom cleaner) but they are cheap and there certainly no worse then any of the more expensive wipes on the market. I'm probably going to stick to my old faithful Primark tea tree ones but these are fine in an emergency or a quick fix x

6. Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow / Liner - 4.5g - Skinny Jeans

Using something up is always good in my eyes but sometimes you feel a little bit sad about finishing something. It sounds totally dramatic but I was devastated that this little pot reached the end of it's usable life. This has been one of my go to products for nearly 2 years now. It gives a smokey eye look in seconds, it's that perfect silver, blue, grey taupe colour that just works for day or night. I've used it and used it, and used it and up until recently it was fine but that last few millimetres has turned into a dry, clumpy mess, so it's time for the bin and it's time that I got a new one - I'm only thankful that it hasn't been discontinued.

7. L'Occitane Desert Rose Hand Cream - 30ml

I think I will always buy L'Occitane hand creams, you're pretty much guarantee that they will do the job, no matter what the fragrance and how dry your hands are, and this one was no different. This was one of their rose scents - a  fragrance that they do very, very well. It wasn't as thick as some of the hand creams in their range but it was really nice and it left the skin feeling soft and smelling gorgeous.

So they were April's empties, if your doing something similar I'd love to see your posts so please link me up x Thanks for reading

The EcoTools Bamboo 5 Piece Fresh And Flawless Complexion Set - A Review For My Pure*

It's been a little while since I did a review for natural beauty site My Pure but I hope that you'll be pleased to hear that from now on I going to be doing two reviews a month. The site has improved a lot since I last did a review for them, as well as a slick new design, they've also introduced lots of new brands including Balance Me and EcoTools.

I only have one EcoTools make up brush in my extensive collection - the retractable kabuki, but it's a firm favourite. I have to say I didn't know a lot about the range, but did you know that it was co created and endorsed by actress Alicia Silverstone? I didn't but it makes perfect sense; Silverstone is known for being vegan and being a long term and virulent supporter of animal rights and animal charity PETA. EcoTools are a cruelty free and environmentally friendly brand that promises quality and consciousness.

The My Pure site sells pretty much the full range of EcoTools make up brushes and applicators but being a relative newcomer to the brand I decided to dip my toes into the water by going for one of their sets.

There are number of different sets to choose from but I went for The EcoTools Bamboo 5 Piece Fresh And Flawless Complexion Set.

As the name suggest this kit is all about creating the perfect base, and perfect finish to the skin. The brushes come packaged in a cardboard / EVA case, with a magnetic closure that's perfect for storing your brushes and for travel. It also features a section that tells you exactly what each brush does, perfect for beginners.

Each brush features soft, cruelty free, synthetic bristles which are embedded in different coloured, floral patterned, recycled aluminium ferrules. There is the odd brush in the wider range with a recycled aluminium handle but EcoTools are know for their signature, sleek, varnished bamboo handles and that's what's the brushes in this set have. The brushes in this kit are probably what you would class as mini or short handled brushes but what do they all do?

1. Flat Concealer Brush

The first brush in the range is the basic flat concealer brush, that everybody needs in their collection. The flat, slightly curved head is ideal for applying and blending concealer into the skin. The bristles are soft, but the brush is firm enough to do the job and apply a bit of pressure.

2. Buffing Concealer Brush

This is an interesting brush and something that at first glance that you probably wouldn't consider an essential but believe me it is. The most obvious use of this flat headed, fluffy brush is to gently buff liquid or powder concealer into the skin and specifically under the eyes, to give it a more airbrushed, perfected finish, with no harsh demarcation lines. You can also use it though with some of the long wear concealers that need to be set with a finishing powder I have a couple in my collection, the Mally Cancellation Concealer and some professional concealers from Veil Cover Cream, and both of these need to be set with a specific finishing powder to ensure their long wear, and durability. This brush allows precise application of the setting powder, allowing you to set your concealer before finishing the rest of your base, with a larger powder brush.

3. Precision Foundation Brush

Probably the essential brush is any base kit, is a basic foundation brush. Okay I'm going to be honest, doing your full face with this one will take a bit of time because of the small size and thickness but don't write it off. The small size and the almost pointed tip means that this brush is ideal for precision foundation work. You can get it perfectly to those awkward areas around the nose, ears and eyes. The brush would also be perfect if you're one of those lucky people who don't need to use foundation all over their face, this brush would be perfect for smaller areas and areas that need a bit more coverage.

4. Complexion Blending Brush

Despite it's size this is a great brush. It works really well for buffing liquid foundation into the skin but personally I loved it for powder / mineral foundation. I normally use a much bigger brush for minerals but with this one I was able to get a more precise application in areas that needed more coverage, and the shape was ideal for that swirl, tap, buff application method.

5. Full Powder Brush 

The name describes this brush perfectly. It's a perfect mini finishing brush, ideal for applying face  powder to your nose or your t-zone, or in areas where you need to powder down. I don't know about you but I normally use a huge powder brush to finish off my make up, but I have oily skin, so generally my whole face needs powdering down, if your skin is drier and your skin only has a little bit of shine or doesn't need touching up as often, this brush is ideal.

This kit is all about precision and perfection, and in my opinion versatility. Okay the brushes might be too small for some to use over the whole face but when used alongside some full sized brushes this kit does exactly what it promises. The brushes are great for those problem areas producing, great precise results in minutes. Although this kit is all about the perfect complexion these brushes are remarkably versatile, and would make great eye and cheek brushes too. The synthetic bristles mean their ideal for liquids, creams and powders, and they wash like a dream, which is exactly what you expect from a high quality tool. With the smaller size of these brushes, some manufacturers inevitably would cut corners but not EcoTools, they are pleasing on the eye and the quality is first class and I'll definitely look into picking up some more brushes from the brand in the future. The EcoTools Fresh And Flawless Five Piece Complexion Set retails at £11.99 from My Pure. If you have any questions or if you've tried any other EcoTools brushes please leave me a comment and let me know xx

(*Sample)

Budget Beauty Series - Vivo

Unless you've been living under a rock then you'll already have heard of the newest make up brand to hit the blogesphere Vivo. Labelling themselves as the MAC of supermarket make up brands Vivo launched earlier this month. Exclusive to Tesco stores Vivo promises on trend, catwalk inspired products, available in a convenient location and at a bargain price. Big claims indeed from a budget brand but budget beauty is what I'm all about at the moment so I was keen to give the brand a go and even more so when I found out the Vivo line is from the brains behind MUA! The lovely people people from Vivo were kind enough to send me a few items from the range to try, I've had a little chance to have a play with my goodies so I thought I'd let you know what I think :)

First up eyeshadows, Vivo offers a full range of eyeshadows including pearl and matter single shadows that retail for £1.50 each, but they also offer 5 different Trio Eyeshadow Palettes that retail at just £2.50. I was lucky enough to be sent one of these trios in Green With Envy

In a chunky compact, which features a super slim mirror, and a double ended applicator, you get 3 circular shadows

Unsurprisingly given the name, the trio I received features 3 beautiful green colours, a lighter green, a darker green and a very dark blue / green shade, all with a gorgeous shimmer running through them. Apart from the colour the first thing you notice about the shadows is how soft and smooth they are, they literally feel like butter between your fingers. What about pigmentation though? well see for yourself

Good so far but what about on the eyes ? - well on the back of the shadow compact, it gives you full instructions on how to apply all three shades to create a perfect eye look, so that's what I did followed the instructions. First of all pictures taken without the flash you can see more of the actual colours here but less of the almost metallic sheen

Finally some pictures taken with the flash, although these pictures don't show the true colours of the lighter greens, they do show the beautiful shimmery metallic effect of these shadows

I have to say I am really impressed with this shadow trio, the shadows are super smooth, and pigmented and they last! I wore these colours for over 8 hours and whilst there was some fading they were still there at the end of the day. For just £2.50 I have to say these shadows are well worth picking up.

Now, cheek products, I have to say this part of Vivo's inventory really excited me. They really have introduced something for everyone, their cheek product range includes a bronzer, 3 shades of blush and highlighter duos, a highlighter, and baked blushers and bronzers. Yes you heard me baked blushers and bronzers, first up the blushers. OMG after looking a various swatches and pictures of these floating around in cyberspace all I can say is I want!!!

They come in 4 shades and I have to say I don't think there is one I wouldn't love to own. My hearts desire though is Peaches and Cream - why? because it looks to be an almost exact dupe MAC MSF in Stereo Rose I need this!!! At just £4.00 each you really can't afford not to try these and I can't wait to find them and give them a go!

As well as blushers the Vivo baked range also includes 3 different Baked Bronzers, Sunkissed, Bronze and Healthy Glow. The lovely people at Vivo were kind enough to send me one in Healthy Glow. For just £5.00 you get 12g of product. I haven't seen the other shades yet but based on the description you would assume that Healthy Glow is potentially the most natural and it is.

This is a lovely natural toned golden nude coloured bronzer, it does have a little bit of shimmer in as you can see here but it certainly isn't overloaded with shimmer or glitter

I have to say I am scared stiff of bronzers but this one is so light and the tiny bit of shimmer means it's never going to look muddy or flat. You can see it too well here, I've used it one my eyes and cheeks but you can see the glow gives off.

The isn't the most bronze, bronzer you'll ever use and on some people it can probably be used as a highlighter, but on me it really lives up to it's name and give me a healthy glow - another winner x

The final offering in the Vivo baked range are these fabulous looking Baked Shimmer Palettes

In a choice of 3 variations each palette contains one baked blusher, and 4 baked eyeshadows, all for just £6.00 imagine what MAC or Laura Geller would charge for something similar not £6.00 that's for certain - these are definitely on my wishlist too!

It's all very well having pretty colour on your eyes and cheeks but first of all we need to prep our skin and create a flawless base. Vivo have produced a full range of base products including a primer, a concealer kit, face powders, and foundations all for less than £6.00! They very kindly sent me one of there Undereye Roll On Concealers to try.

At just £3.59 for 10g of product this comes in two shades a Light and a Medium. You probably know the theory behind these, the metal roller ball cools and soothes the eyes whilst at the same time, releasing a light reflecting concealer to cover your dark circles

I have to be honest here and say a certain company does an eye gel /serum in this format which I love, but the concealer variant never ever appealed. Never the less this was the perfect opportunity to give it a try and I was very kindly sent the medium shade 2

I have to see I was a bit wary at first would Medium be too dark? I needn't have worried though it really wasn't it seemed to match my skin perfectly, often concealers like this can be too light and give you the reverse panda effect but not with this one

It blended really well and most importantly for the under eye area, it wasn't heavy or cakey I don't have the worst dark circles ever but I actually really like this and the smooth even finish it gave.

I have to say so far so good with Vivo, the products I've tried so far are really pretty impressive especially when you consider the pricing. There really appears to be something for everyone in the line with the cheapest items being just £1.50 and the most expensive £6.00. The line features all the basic products you could need and a few extras too in face the only thing they don't seem to do is nail varnish! I'm certainly going to be heading to my nearest large Tesco store as soon as possible to check out the full range x What do you think ?is anything catching your eye?

(The Vivo Trio Eyeshadow Palette In Green With Envy, The Baked Bronzer In Healthy Glow and The Undereye Roll On Concealer In Medium Were Provided For Review Purposes - All Other Images Come From The Vivo Facebook Page)