Benefit from these essential top 5 products!

I love budget brands, but just recently I have treated myself to some higher end cosmetics and have found some products from Benefit that I just can’t live without.  These products are well worth checking out if you have some money to spare – they have become a vital part of my daily beauty routine and a lot of them deliver amazing results and have turned out to be well worth the price!  My one piece of Benefit advice though – don’t buy from eBay.  I am sure that there are genuine sellers out there, but for every genuine seller there are at least 10 fakes and you just never know what you might get.  The worst I had was a Get Even! That brought me out in a rash. On my face.  It wasn’t pleasant!  So buy online or in store wherever possible – but also look out for minis, mini-sets and offers as you can often get a hold of 8-10ml trial sizes so that you can try and see if a product is for you!

So, without further ado...here are my top 5 miracle Benefit products:

1.  The POREfessional

Here's my review from the website, which pretty much says it all.  This is the perfect smoothing, silky base.  Makes my blackheads vanish.

I have combination skin which unfortunately includes blackheads on my nose and enlarged pores at the side of my nose. This product makes the pores seemingly close and vanish and when finished with some concealer/foundation and powder, you can't see the blackheads at all. I know this product only masks them, but that's fine by me!! The minute I get blackheads out they come back anyway so I need coverage and this product delivers. It makes the rest of my skin feel silky but matte and my BB cream goes on top nicely, creating a flawless finish. Highly recommended for problem/combination skin, even mature skin (I'm 38).

 2. Boi-ing - Industrial Strength concealer

This product is AMAZING.  Easily the best concealer I have ever used.  Creamy and blendable it gives complete coverage without being heavy or greasy and it stays put and last all day long. It tackles dark cicles quite well and isn't cakey; it also doesn't sit in lines of creases around the eye area. I recently caught pregnant and my skin broke out and was completely unmanageable - then I remembered my confessions of a concealaholic kit and used the concealer inside.  It turned out to be Boi-ing in shade 1 and it was so good I bought the full size and will never regret doing so! Speaking of confessions of a concealaholic, this kit is a great way to try Boi-ing, Erase Paste, That Gal, lemon aid and eye bright for £28.50.  Bought singly, the products would cost £74.00!

3. They're real! Mascara
This one, I am not going to bash on about.  I am just going to say - this is the best mascara in the world, the best I have ever used and is the UKs No. 1 best-selling mascara.  Try it!  They have a special offer on now - buy the anniversary set for the same price as a regular mascara and you get a free travel size mascara.  I have mine in my handbag right now!

4. Foamingly clean facial wash

This is so lovely.  It smells wonderful and removes every trace of make-up and dirt without having to rub and scrub. My skin feels so clean and so refreshed after using this; no tightness or irritation and a little lathers beautifully and goes a long way. Not sure? Try the b.right! mini intro skin kit - a snip at £10.00! 

5. Sugarbomb Ultra plush

What a gorgeous lip gloss! Benefit have recent introduced lip glosses to complement their box powders and Sugarbomb is the prettiest gloss I've seen and worn in ages.  It makes my lips feel really soft and as with all Benefit products, it smells lovely and a little goes a long way!

Why not check out the boxed powder range here? Also worth checking out are the beauty kits packed full of minis that you can try for a fraction of the regular price before deciding whether to invest in a full sized product.  There's lots to choose from!

Aren't they gorgeous?? If I could, I'd get them all! All under £30 - these kits are such a good idea, plus if you are going away overnight or on a weekender, these are all you need. Get these beauties on your Christmas list!

 

BB Creams...do they work?

I love it when a new beauty phenomenon hits the shelves and I always have to try whatever it is.  When I started reading about BB creams, I knew I had to get hold of one and give it a try.  BB means 'Blemish Balm' but it isn't necessarily for problem skin. As explained:

" The multi-tasking cream has amazing all-in-one properties — moisturizer, primer, foundation, concealer, skin treatment and sunblock."

Could it really be that simple? No need for separate moisturiser, face primer, foundation, concealer and an SPF in the Summer? I love my routine - That Gal make up base (or ELF alternative), foundation, concealer, powder.....it doesn't seem right to be using just one thing.  In fact, the first time I used my Garnier Miracle BB cream - I didn't like it.

Maybe I didn't apply it correctly the first time, or I was just determined to stick with my tried and tested routine. Anyway, I found the tube a few weeks later and gave it another shot after seeing this:

My skin was a little upset after 'that' time of month and I needed a little something extra, but my skin was too sensitive to clog up with layers of moisturiser, base, foundation...so I tried this again and now I am utterly hooked.  IT WORKS.  The coverage is fantastic and you don't get the feeling you're wearing much at all. It's so much more than a foundation, it seems to sink into your skin so well, but makes you look fantastically flaweless and luminous.  It's skin care, but more than just a tinted lotion.  I can't put my finger on any one thing because BB cream is so many things and does so many jobs.  My skin improved straight away, a work colleague told me I was 'glowing' on one particular day! To say I am glad I gave this product another chance is an understatement.

If you haven't already, try it. You won't be sorry!

Lush Face Scrubs

Last week I was mostly using Lush’s “Angels on Bare Skin” as a cleanser, a mild but effective facial exfoliater packed full of natural ingredients - what else do you expect from the lovely people at Lush? At £5.50 for 100g, you get a tub packed full of product and you only need a little bit to do your whole face with.  This scrub made my skin feel super soft and clean but it didn’t tighten the skin, which is a bonus.  Normal scrubs tighten the skin and I sometimes flake around the chin, mouth & nose areas.  Also, when applying moisturiser afterwards there was no stinging, my skin just felt even softer and this proves the product prepares the skin nicely for your chosen cream.

Angels on Bare Skin - By Lush

Eager to try another of their facial products, this week I have opted for “Herbalism” as this promises to do everything that “Angels” offers along with being good for oily skin - which I do have.  I’m definitely a ‘combination skin’ kind of girl. Don’t let the fact that Herbalism smells like vingear put you off.  This facial cleanser is brilliant.  While Angels feels nice and gentle and comforting, Herbalism feels like it’s working very hard to make your skin very clean.  Not only that, but after a few days of use my skin was glowing and even seemed younger and more firm.  Bonus!

Herbalism - by Lush

These products never particularly look appealing, but they really do work!  Totally recommend both.  I want to try Dark Angels too but it’s black so I’ve a feeling it will be pretty messy….

How to use? Break off a little product in the palm of your hand, add warm water and gently mix to a paste.  Massage gently all over face and rinse with warm water for a face wash, or leave a few moments to work deeply on your skin, like a face mask.

See the LUSH wesbite for ingredients & more information.