If there's one thing I can do when it comes to makeup, it's blending. I think it's one of the most essential makeup skills and I just love it. My make-up school instructors could confirm it, haha. I can spend hours on blending out the eyeshadow, which is where a blending brush comes in. I don't know what I was doing before owning one. Seriously, if you do your makeup and don't own a blending brush, I don't know how you do it. Go get one!  

MAC's 217 is probably one of the most talked about make-up brushes and rightly so. It is flippin' amazing. I've had one for two years now and I can without a doubt say it's my all time favourite. I'm actually considering picking up a few extra ones, because you can never have too many blending brushes. Am I right or am I right, ladies?

Now, as you can imagine, MAC brushes are not the cheapest of them all. The 217 will set you back for about $24. Being a make-up artist, I can justify such purchase, as I know the brushes will serve me well and be the gift that keeps on giving, but if you don't want to spend so much money on a single brush, I have a few other options for you.

By the way, these are not the only blending brushes I own. I think I have about five more and no, I'm still not done with buying. I always seem to be running out of clean ones, whether I'm doing my own make-up or someone else's. I told you I have a problem... 

Anyway, today I decided to concetrate only on those two dupes in my collection that are most similar to MAC's 217. One of them is a $1 ebay brush from China, and the other Sigma's E25, which you can get for $14 (I have the travel version with a shorter handle). These are all 'old' brushes. I really wanted to wait for at least a year before giving you any reviews, as I wanted to see how they would hold up. For the reference, I got the Sigma one first, over five years ago now, I bought the MAC one two years ago and the ebay one a year and a half ago.

Top to bottom: MAC 217, Sigma, Ebay

Long story short, they all do their job, but there are slight differences between them. Compared to the MAC one, the brush from ebay is a bit longer and wider, which makes it a little less comfortable to hold and a bit harder to work with. It is bulkier, heavier, and the hair area is wider/larger as well. Because of that, it is definitely less precise. I've also noticed that the bristles got a bit scratchy after a while, the brush started losing its shape and the occasional hair falls out every now and then. Having said that, this is not a horrible brush, especially considering its price tag. I still get use out of it, but only when all my other brushes are dirty, since they are of better quality and I obviously gravitate towards those first. I mostly use the ebay dupe for blending out cream eyeshadows, because I find that the cream products require a 'heavier hand' and I rather use a cheap brush over an expensive, more delicate one to distribute and blend out the product. 

Moving on to the Sigma dupe. This is one of the oldest make-up brushes in my collection and the one that still looks and feels as good as it did when I first got it. In that regard, it's even better than the MAC brush, with which I started noticing the occasional scratch two years down the line. When it comes to the handle, the brushes are pretty much identical, the only difference being that the handle of my Sigma one is a lot shorter, because I have the travel version, as mentioned before. The normal version is obviously longer. I don't know how they would compare in terms of weight, though. My Sigma handle seems more hollow, if that makes sense, so I assume even the regular version is a bit lighter. Now on to the bristles. The size to me is completely the same, but there is a difference in how the hair feels like. The Sigma brush is softer and fluffier, while I find the MAC one more dense. I tend to use MAC's 217 for the initial crease bledning and Sigma's E25 for the outer edge finishing touches.

I really hope these comparisons will help you out with deciding which one to pick up in case you're planning to get a blending brush. I tried to be as detailed as possible, but if I missed something, feel free to drop me a question and I'll make sure to answer it. Also, let me know if you know of any other potential 217 dupes. I've heard that Zoeva's 227 is supposed to be pretty good as well. Maybe I'll pick up that one next...

Hello lovelies! How have you all been? It's been a while since I last wrote on here, but I think I'm now officially back? I don't want to jinx it again, though. Let's just keep our fingers crossed that this post marks the end of my unexpected blogging break. I'll be updating you on everything that has been going on in my life for the past month, don't worry, just not today. It's been a crazy stressful ride, and it requires a lengthy explanation I will be writing up or possibly filming in days to come. Today I'm here to talk about a more lighthearted topic - makeup. More specifically, The Hot Shop's Matte Lipstick in shade number 10 from Born Pretty Store.

If you feel like you've seen this packaging before, you might not be completely wrong. It screams Topshop, doesn't it? And the fact that the 'brand' is called The Hot Shop leaves no room for coincidence. I think it's safe to say someone had zero imagination when trying to create a dupe. 

Dupe or not, I can't make any comparisons, because I don't own any Topshop lipsticks. No, scratch that. I actually do own one but never wear it because it doesn't suit my skintone at all. Or so I thought when I tried it on a few years ago. Maybe I should dig it out of the drawer and give it another go. Anyway. The Hot Shop lipstick is presented as matte, but I wouldn't say this is 100% true. When you first put it on, it has a slight shine. Having said that, the shine eventually fades and you are left with a proper matte finish. The pigmentation can't be faulted. The colour payoff is great. You don't even need to layer the lipstick to get the bold effect and once it rubs off, you're left with a nice even stain. Unfortunatelly, it doesn't last a whole lot of time on my lips like matte lipsticks usually do. Although it does stain your lips, as already mentioned. The main con for me would be how the formula feels on my lips. It's one of those annoying ones that start to dry out your lips as the time goes by, which I am not a fan of. 

The drying out part aside, I think this is a decent $6,68 lipstick. I don't see myself wearing it on a regular basis, as it's quite bright for every day and, like I mentioned, a little bit too drying  for my taste, but it's definitely a nice addition to my collection. I feel like I'll get more use out of it once spring arrives.

P.S. If you're planning to get anything from Born Pretty Store, you can use the code ' SANH10' and get a 10% discount. 

I've been wanting to try a makeup brush cleaning glove ever since Sigma came out with one, but since their glove is not exactly cheap and the costs are pretty high if you want to get one shipped to where I live, I've been putting off with the purchase. Then I recently came across this cheap silicone oven glove on good ol' ebay and decided to give it a go. I have no idea if it works the same as the one from Sigma, but I've been more than happy with it. It cut down the time I normally spent on cleaning my brushes by half and my hands are now finally wrinkle free. I can't recommend it enough! Have you maybe tried one or the other yourself?

Girls, I think I've found a dupe for the amazing Clinique Chubby Sticks (review here)! It's Bourjois' Color Boost Glossy Finish Lipstick. After being pretty disappointed with another supposed dupe - Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain (review here) - I didn't want to get my hopes up too high when I decided to give this lipSTICK a try, but it pleasantly surprised me. 

It is just as moisturizing and buttery as the Clinique Chubby Sticks, it is not sticky, and it gives you a pretty glossy-like finish. The only difference is that this product is not as sheer. It's quite pigmented. It also has an SPF 15 and is supposed to be waterproof, which makes it perfect for summer. 

The waterproof statement came as quite a surprise to me, because I'm not used to lip products being labeled as waterproof. You usually only see this when it comes to mascaras. Of course I had to test it out right away, so I put the lip product on and put my face under a tap. The things I do for reviews... Lol! Just kidding. No, but I really did put my head in the sink and poured water all over my face. So, how did my little experiment go? The lipstick really did stay on, but it felt quite waxy after and also didn't look too pretty. It was very patchy and just ewww.

The shade that I own is 'Peach on the Beach', and even though I'm totally in love with the formulation, I don't think I'll be able to wear it during the summer. It looked great on me a month or so ago, but now that I'm getting more tanned, it doesn't really suit me anymore. I wish I was able to swatch all the shades before I ended up purchasing this one, because I would probably go for something less orangey pink. I got it in France and they didn't have one single tester! You couldn't even see how the colours looked like in person, because every single product had its own cardboard/plastic packaging. Quite annoying to be honest. Are makeup products sold like that where you live as well? We just have them on stands and there are usually always testers, so you can swatch you life away!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Don't forget to check out my current advertiser, Poppy Loves, a lifestyle blog celebrating food, fashion, home, beauty and much more.

Today I'll be talking about one of the products I picked up in France - L'Oreal Colour Caresse Wet Shine Stain in the shade 'Romy'. I've heard these products being compared to the YSL Glossy Stains, but I've never tried the YSL ones, so I can't really comment on that. What I can comment on, though, is the apparent dupe you can see in the photo. 

Let's first start with the packaging. I LOVE it! It is very sleek and sturdy, it looks somewhat luxurious and I also like that you can clearly see the colour of the stain. I also like the applicator. It is flexible and has a lovely shape, which helps you to be precise with your application. 

Now on to the actual product. If you've watched my little haul that I did in my Val Thorens Day 2 Vlog, you already know what my first impression was. I did not love it, not at all. When I first put it on it looked like nothing, so I was really disappointed. It blended in with my actual lip colour and I was not impressed. Luckily, my friend Lucia, also known as the GirlyFrame on youtube, who also owns this product, advised me to try to apply it differently. She told me to apply one layer, let it dry, and then apply another one. All I can say is, THANK YOU LU! Because of her tip, this product has become one of my current favourite lip products. 

As I have said, 'Romy' is unfortunatelly not the most pigmented shade - the darker ones seem to be much better when it comes to that - but you can definitely build it up by using the just mentioned method. I do have one more thing to say about the colour, though. It oxidizes! It becomes darker after a couple of minutes on my lips. I still like it, but this is something that you definitely need to take into consideration when you're buying the product. As far as the texture goes, it is quite different from what I'm used to. It is very wet when you first apply it, but it gets creamy after a while. It is not sticky (THANK GOD!), doesn't dry out your lips, stays on for quite some time, and has a very nice, sweet smell. 

Overall, I am a big fan of this lip product. I love how it gives my lips a glossy shine and makes them look a bit plumper without having to put up with annoyingly sticky or tingly lip glosses. I'll probably be buying a few extra shades! Have you maybe tried out this product? Do you also love it as much as I do?

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Don't forget to check out my current advertiser, Poppy Loves, a lifestyle blog celebrating food, fashion, home, beauty and much more. 

Every make-up enthusiast in the world knows about the famous Benefit's highlighter called 'High Beam'. It's one of the most hyped up beauty products, and everyone seems to love it. I've always wanted to try it, but the price - it costs about 20 € + shipping since it's not sold in my country - has always put me off. 

A few months ago, I luckily saw a post comparing the Benefit High Beam to a much cheaper and supposedly exactly the same highligher - Technic's High Lights. I of course had to order it right away, and I am so glad I did. I'm in love with this product. Putting it on my brow bones, my cheek bones, on the top of my nose and on my cupid's bow makes such a difference to my face. It really gives you the prettiest glow.

Here you can see the swatch of the product and how it looks like when it's blended. Such a gorgeous light pink shimmer, right?! By the way, I bought the product here for about 4 €. You only need a teeny tiny amount of it, so the 13 ml bottle should last you ages. Literally. 

I tried to show you how the product works on my face with these before and after photos, but I think I've failed, haha. I was in a hurry and didn't check if photos turned out ok... If you look carefully, you can kind of see the highlighter on one of my cheeks and on one of my brow bones (right photo). Ahh, taking photos of myself is such a pain. It's really difficult when you don't see the screen. 

I've wanted a Travalo, a travel sized refillable perfume bottle, since it first came out, and a few weeks ago, I finally decided to go purchase it. But then I saw the price... €10 per bottle+shipping is a bit too much for this little piece of plastic if you ask me. Especially when you want to buy two or three of these. Now, you already know what I did next, don't you? Yes, I went on ebay. I first tried to find the original ones for a lower price, but since I had no luck, I decided to get non-original, but really similar ones from this seller for only €4 per piece, which basically means that I got three bottles for the price of one. Pretty good deal, huh?

I'm sure most of you already know how to fill up and use these as there are plenty tutorials on youtube, but in case you haven't heard about travel-sized refillable perfume bottles before, I have a quick step-by-step tutorial for you. 

To fill up the 'travalo' with your current favorite perfume, you'll first need to remove the cap off of your perfume bottle - don't worry, this won't break your perfume - and then place the bottom of the travalo on the top of your pefume bottle. Then you'll just have to pump up the bottle with the same movement you would use to spray perfume on you, and that's it! Now you can pull off the travalo cap and use it just like your regular perfume. 

I have to say that I'm really happy I ordered these. I know I'll be using them a lot, especially on my travels. I now finally don't have to worry anymore about my perfume bottles breaking in the luggage, my suitcases being too heavy or running out of space because of the stupidly huge perfumes. Any other travalo lovers out there? 

I now finally have a nail polish in my favorite color, yipee! Isn't it pretty?! It's called 'You Belong to Me', and I am so glad that it now belongs to me. :D

I love almost everything about this polish. The only thing which is bugging me is that it starts chipping very quickly. It only last about two days on my nails. 

P.S. Is it possible that this nail polish is a dupe for Essie's Mint Candy Apple? From what I have seen, they look pretty similar.

P.P.S. Don't forget to enter my giveaway! It closes in less than a week.