Nanshy Marvel Makeup Sponge

Using makeup sponges for applying foundation never truly won my heart. I find it time consuming and I'm not a fan of how much foundation is wasted due to absorption, but so many people love these sponges because they create a natural, non-cakey finish and there is no denying that they don't do that well. My brief history with makeup sponges is a rocky one. About two years ago I tried the Cosmopolitan's version, which has a nice rating on Makeup Alley, but much to my disappointment, it tore during first washing. I also was not terribly trilled about the fact I needed to use twice as much foundation to get the same level of coverage as with fingers or a brush. But I haven't given up on sponges completely and I still use them on occasion to make the foundation look less fake after applying it with any other method. I've never heard of Nanshy Marvel sponge before, but I was intrigued because of the shape of it, so I agreed to give it a test.

First thing that got me is the colour of it. Yes, I'm shallow like that, but I'm slightly (I can already hear my brother laughing hysterically) obsessed with mint green. Second thing I noticed is how much softer it is when it's dry compared to Cosmopolitan's. It has a combination of shapes - the slight hourglass design like the Cosmopolitan's and the angled cut top like the Real Techniques sponge. 

When it's wet it's bigger than Cosmopolitan's but in terms of softness and squishiness they the same. Both have a similar surface as well. The angled top is super convenient for the under eye area, so I like it more than Cosmopolitan's, however, I still need to use twice as much foundation, which to me is a huge waste. I find that sponges are better if you use them with foundations with a higher level of coverage because if you use it with a sheerer foundation or a BB cream, it barely covers anything since it "drinks up" so much product. I used my worst performing foundation to see if applying it with a sponge will make it look more decent on the skin. I initially liked it a lot, it looked very fresh, natural and it didn't make my pores look like huge craters, which is so much better than at application with a brush or fingers when it comes to this particular foundation. But after a while the foundation set and I again noticed that fake, ageing effect of it, which is completely the foundation's fault and the mere fact that the sponge made it look great a least for little time after application is an achievement. 

When it comes to washing, I find that because it's such a light colour, I can't really get it to be completely clean. I use a bar soap as it is more effective than liquid ones, but even like that there is always a little patch of foundation left on the sponge.

Given that I'm still not a fan of sponges, I can still say that this one a nice one. It's very soft, it does its job and it appears to be of a better quality as the Cosmopolitan's, since it didn't tear once during over a dozen washings. The top did get a bit frayed, but nothing major. It's quite a big sponge once it wet, but the cut shape is really useful for blending under the eyes as it reaches the corners well. 

The sponge costs £5.95 on the official Nanshy site.

Gobice za nanašanje podlage me niso nikoli res prepričale, namreč meni se zdi nanos z njimi preveč zamuden, pa še preveč pudra popijejo, kar meni ni niti malo všeč. Ampak te gobice so izjemno priljubljene saj ustvarijo zelo naraven videz in pomagajo, da podlaga ne izgleda očitna na obrazu. Pred to sem preizkusila samo Cosmopolitanovo gobico, ki me je kar razočarala, saj se je že pri prvem pranju raztrgala. Kljub temu jo še vedno občasno uporabljam po nanosu pudra s čopičem ali prsti, da popravim kakšne čudne predele kjer podlaga ni lepo nanešena. Preden sem dobila to gobico, za znamko Nanshy še nisem slišala, ampak me je oblika gobice pritegnila, da sem se jo odločila preizkusiti.

Seveda sem gobico takoj primerjala s Cosmopolitanovo in opazila, da ko je suha je veliko mehkejša. Nanshy gobica kombinira obliko stisnjeno peščene ure, ki jo ima tudi Cosmopolitanova in pa prirezan vrh, ki je podoben kot pri gobici od Real Techniques. Ko je mokra je večja od Cosmopolitanove, ampak kar se tiče mehkobe se ne razlikujeta. Tudi material je zelo podoben. Prirezan vrh se res obnese pri nanosu in zabrisovanju pod očmi, saj doseže tudi kot med očmi in nosom, torej je boljša od Cosmopolitanove, vseeno pa še vedno porabim dvakrat več podlage, kar je zame velika izguba. Te gobice se bolje obnesejo s podlagami z visoko prekrivnostjo, medtem ko se pri lažjih pudrih in BB kremah komaj kaj izdelka prenese na kožo, ker ga gobica toliko vpije. Nanshy gobico sem preizkusila tudi s svojim najslabšim tekočim pudrom, saj me je zanimalo če vsaj tak način nanosa pomaga, da ne bi izgledal tako čudno na koži. Takoj po nanosu mi je bil izgled podlage res všeč, saj je koža izgledala zelo sveže, naravno in izdelek se ni usedel v pore, ampak na žalost je puder čez nekaj časa postal zelo očiten na koži kar pa je sicer slaba lastnost pudra in ne gobice. Že to, da je tako slab puder izgledal veliko bolje po nanosu kot običajno je dovolj dobro zame.

Barva gobice mi je bila seveda takoj všeč, saj sem malenkost (že slišim mojega brata kako se smeje) obsedena z mentolno zeleno. Ker je gobica tako svetle barve, mi je do zdaj še ni uspelo popolnoma oprati, namreč kljub temu, da uporabljam trdo milo, ki je veliko bolj učinkovito kot tekoče, na gobici vedno ostane malo pudra.

Glede na to, da še vedno nisem neka velika ljubiteljica gobic, lahko še vedno rečem, da je tale čisto v redu. Je zelo mehka in dobro opravi svoje delo, poleg tega pa mi izgleda da je bolj kvalitetna od Cosmopolitanove, saj se po mnogih pranju ni raztrgala, čeprav konica ni več popolnoma ostra, ampak res ni nič hujšega. Je kar velika gobica ko je vlažna, ampak ta prirezana konica je odlična za nanos pod očmi.  

Nanshy gobico lahko kupite na Click2Chic za 7,49 €.

Have a great day!

* I was sent this product / Izdelek so mi poslali iz Click2Chic.

Best Beauty Tools

TONI AND GUY Sectioning Clips

These were the discovery of the year in 2014. I've always wanted sectioning clips, but I could never find more than a pack of 2 for a completely unreasonable price in our drugstores. Then I resorted to eBay and ordered these for a few euros not expecting much, but the quality of these blew me away. They are made from that "NARS" like rubberised, matte plastic and the spring is a really good one meaning it's not too weak, but neither too tight. I use these every time I blow dry or curl the hair to keep them out of the way as well as to  pin the just blow dried strands in a ring shape to let it cool and in that way create a loose wave. 

I bought mine from this seller.

Pot Nail Polish Removers

A trend that Bourjois started years ago with their Magic Nail Polish Remover and that has now spawned many "dupes", both more affordable and more expensive. The level of brilliance when it comes to these removers still astonishes me and I can barely imagine myself still using the old school remover and cotton pads to remove the nail polish from my fingernails. All you have to do is pop the finger in the pot, swish it around for a while against the foam soaked in remover and it's done. It shaved so much time of removing nail polish, which before was one of my most hated beauty chores. This is truly an amazing beauty invention and I hear some even make their own versions from common household objects. 

BENJABELLE Daisy Brush Tree

The days of putting just cleaned damp brushes on the edge of the table or on the radiator are long for me ever since I got this brush drying station. It's such a clever little thing and it does its job so well. All you have to do is put the damp brushes upside down in silicone grippers and wait for it do dry. It prevents the water collecting inside the ferule and dissolving the adhesive, therefore prolonging the life of brushes. This one is also collapsible, so it's easy to store in the drawer when you're not using it. 

Mine is from Glossy.si, but international readers can get it on the official Benjabelle site. There are also many versions of such racks sold on eBay.

 REMINGTON Ci6325 Pro Soft Curl Curler

The unsung hero of mine. In the four years of blogging I mentioned this curler only once and I yet I use it so much. Every time you see me with curly hair in my swatches pictures, this is the curler I used. I've had a few in my time and this is by far the best one for my type of hair. It's a 2.5 cm (1 inch) barrel curler with an adjustable temperature option, but it's still very basic and most importantly very affordable. I bought it in Interspar a long time ago for about 30 € (but I think I even used a nice discount at the time - the good thing about Interspar, am I right?). On my thick, long hair I find that the 200°C setting works best and if I use a lower temperature, the curls don't last nearly as long. I usually just simply curl the hair starting at the middle of my length and curl it away from the face, but leave the ends out and hold it for usually less than 10 seconds. I do that in sections and clip the hair that's already been curled in a loose bun, so it cools and keeps shape better. Once all the hair is curled and cool, I run through the curls with fingers and Orofluido, then finish with some hair spray and a texturiser. This way my curls last three or even more days, but they get quite loose by day three giving me that slightly wavy, but almost glam look. I just can't imagine my life without this curler.  

EBELINE Ionic Negative Round Ceramic Brush

60 mm

If you have unruly, frizzy hair like me and you're not using a round brush together with a hair dryer, you're seriously missing out. I find that a good blow-out makes my hair feel less coarse, makes it more manageable and less dry-feeling to the touch. See that orange strip on this brush? Well, by changing into yellow that little genius thing alerts you that the temperatures are so high they are damaging for your hair . Though I use a hair dryer once a week, I never use it at the highest heat setting and this brush also alerts me if I'm concentrating on one strand too long and causing unnecessary damage. I like the design of this brush a lot as it never got tangled in my hair and it manages to make my hair look sleeker. Quite a nifty thing. 

Ebeline is a brand sold in DMs and this brush cost around 10 €. I've seen a similar design from Műller's Body & Soul brushes. 

Tangle Teezer and its many dupes

While my hair isn't that tangly despite the length and thickness (it's all the conditioners/leave-ins I'm using, I guess), these type of brushes are so much better than any of those old school brushes I used to have. I particularly like the ones with some sort of a handle, especially if you have "baby hands" like me because the original Tangle Teezer is quite big to hold (but not the travel size). They glide through the hair so much easier and it takes a lot less time to comb the hair which if you have such long hair as me is a giant plus. Also there is almost none of pulling and tugging, so it reduces damage when combing. 

I saw my Ulala! brush sold for as little as 4 € in E.Leclerc, but such brushes are sold everywhere now. 

BRAUN Silk Epil Xelle Epilator

Another unsung hero of mine and one that has been my trusted companion for about 7 or 8 years. I paid a lot at the time (around 100 €) and it still works perfectly after all this time. TMI moment, I have very dark, strong hair and very pale skin, so you do the math, but I can tell you it's just one of those things that causes me great distress. Shaving lasts about a day or less for me, even so it never does the job completely as the dark dots are still clearly visible against my milky skin, so plucking is the most long lasting and better performing option. I'm not going to say that it doesn't hurt. This one has a massaging rollers attachment, which is supposed to help with the pain, but it's rather gimmicky to be honest, however, the "smartlight" is just brilliant (seriously, get one with the light). I have a high threshold for pain and even I feel a bit of discomfort, but mostly because my hair is so strong (it's a slight burning sensation if you're interested). I gave it to my cousin to try once and she can't even look at it since then that's how painful it was for her. But it's the best way of dealing with the problem for me and it gives me about a week of carefreeness and even in the later days the hair is more sparse. It takes about three weeks for all the hair to grow back, which is not bad, but as I said it's completely smooth for a lot less time because hair grows at different rates. Its main issue is the ingrown hair, but that's a story for another day. 

This version is discontinued, but Braun has many new versions of Silk Epil epilators. I think it's worth investing more into these as mine lasted amazingly long.

RIFFI Body Brush

Jana from Small Bits of Loveliness hooked me up on the whole body brushing business. As I've said before I have a problem with ingrown hair, so I had hopped regular brushing will help alleviate the problem. It turned out to be such a fun and pleasant beauty treatment at the end of the day. The bristles are so soft that the brushing is really pleasant. Apart from exfoliation, there are several other advantages to using a body brush, but you should investigate that yourself if you're interested.

My brush is from Müller for 5.5 €, but these type of brushes are sold in most drugstores.

What are your essential beauty tools? Have a great day!