Miracle complexion sponge....

Now, I'm very passionate about makeup brushes. I totally think they are worth investing in a few in order to get your skin  looking as perfect as possible.

I've always fancied trying the beauty blender to see whether it was all it is supposed to be. Many people rave about it but to me as well as many other people I just felt a bit apprehensive about spending £20 on a sponge, which I could spend on other products that I know I will love, rather then something that may not be worth the hype. 

I also always knew that real techniques, being a bit of a real techniques junkie, had a similar sponge that claimed to do similar things. But somehow I had always managed to pick up a brush that I'd thought I'd like more, or decided I didn't need it when I picked it up on the shelf. But due to a 3 for 2 offer in boots a few weeks ago on all Real Techniques products, I needed something around the same price as the £8 of the concealer brush I had picked up. Enter the miracle complexion sponge. 

And I am shocked at how long it took me to invest in one of these in hindsight. 

I love it! To the extent where I no longer have the desire to buy the beauty blender because for the significantly lower price I don't know how the expensive sponge could do anything so much more amazing then the cheaper sponge to justify an extra £14 spending on it.

The product itself you use damp. Just pop it under a running tap for a couple of seconds and squeeze it out. It's pretty cool seeing it double in size when it gets wet and then when you squeeze it out, getting smaller but not much.  If I had to criticise at the point, I'd say the sponge seems to retain a little more water then I'd maybe like, but that's just me being nit picky. Then you simply dip it in your foundation and apply and it use such little product but applies it so evenly and beautifully that even on my majorly problematic skin, it covers redness and imperfections beautifully without drying out my skin at all. 

The shape of the sponge means it's super easy to use and blend over large portions of the face but also to be able to focus on smaller areas such as under the eyes and round the nose with the pointed and flat sides. 

I've also seen people use it with not only foundation but with powder, blush and contour also, but I can't say that I've tried that myself, but I'll be sure to have a go sometime. Who knows I might love that too! 

In conclusion, I genuinely think this is one of the best budget makeup application product on the market and it is pretty much faultless in doing what it says in the tin in my case. It may not work for everyone with every skin type so I can only speak for myself, but I would recommend this very highly and for only £5.99 it is defiantly worth the risk, especially if you are thinking about picking up the beauty blender.

I'll probably do a brush review shortly as they are probably one of my biggest collective passions, which may be a bit sad but I don't care :) 

I've only got three exams next week left and then i have lots of spare time in order to churn out a few more posts a bit more often so bare with me, I've not given up yet. 

Thanks guys! 

Jo x 

Sorry....

Sorry for not posting much recently I'll try to do a proper post later on today or tomorrow. 

Why you ask? 

A levels are a bitch. 

Enough said. 

Thanks guys x 

Favourite people.

Hi guys!

Just pictures of my favourites on our adventures because I've had a really great weekend with them all before exams start and they are definatly my favourites. I couldn't ask for better friends and they are always here when I need them, I love them all so much, I thought it was time to dedicate a post to these nuggets.

I'll be back to normal reveiws next time sorry :)

Me, Charlotte, Hannah, Jake, Richard and Josh

Me, Josh, Jake, Richard, Charlotte and Hannah

Charlotte, Hannah, Me and Emma 

*from top picture* Richard, Josh, Me, Laura, Liam, Jake and Jake (I know confusing right) 

I'm not going through this lot, but my NCS buddies :)

Me and Charlotte 

Me and Jake 

Me and Laura 

Me and Josh

Me and Richard 

Charlotte, Jake, Josh, Richard and me 

NCS buddies once again :) 

Jake, Jake, me, Richard, Laura, Liam and Hannah :) 

Tah for being awesome everyone x 

Portable Power!

I've got an iPhone that barely ever keeps charge, it's a bit ridiculous really. But after a suggestion from my boyfriend and being in awe of his portable charger for a while I decided I should invest. 

Now this is the only one I've tried so, to be fair, I am rather bias. But for the money and charge output I'm super happy with this and couldn't live without it anymore! 

I bought this off amazon for about £20 a few months ago and now I barely go anywhere without this dropped in my bag. 

It's small and compact, light, easy to use and is so unbelievably handy especially if like me, your phone doesn't hold much charge. It comes in like an cushiony case as you can see in the picture which is handy too, as you don't need to take it out to charge it or see how much charge is left and it keeps it safe from being bashed in your handbag by all the crap pooling round the bottom in my case. 

Without the case, as you can see it's chic and slim, nothing fancy although I like the shiny plastic it's made from, I think it's pretty unisex and obviously the look isn't what it's all about, it meant to be practical, but I think they've found the balance of practical and stylish to some degree. 

The charging time for the actual battery, okay, is kind of long, but if I leave it overnight plugged in, it's fully charged by morning so that's what I do most of the time which is fine with me. 

It has two USB charging ports and a micro USB to charge the actual battery. This is good obviously because your not just limited to your phone as most chargers these days are USB cables. I've been saying 'phone charger' a lot, but that's just what I use it for primarily, doesn't mean it can't be used for something else for you! 

The most impressive part however, is that  it not only holds about 5 full phone charges dependent on the phone of course, but it also charges the phone super quickly much faster, I've found, then plugging it in the mains, which is pretty damn cool. 

My friend has a smaller one, but that holds less charge than this for the same price which makes me feel that this one is definatly worth the money. 

My charger is by ANKER and I got it off amazon for £20, I can guarantee it's worth it's weight in gold for people on the go a lot whose phone means a lot to them, like moi. 

Anyway, thanks guys x 

I'm sorry I've not been posting as much, I've got my AS level exams coming up and I'm having to devote my time to revising so much, it's not fun. Although I'll post when I can and it'll all be back to normal in a couple weeks. 

Jo :) x