All posts by Beth Graves

Hi! My name is Beth Graves. I am a christian wife, mother of 2 and proud grandmother of 5 beautiful grandchildren. I am a self-proclaimed beauty enthusiast! I am in no way saying I am an expert but I am having a blast learning and sharing with all of you on my beauty journey. Come join me, find and feed your passion for anything beauty with me.

Lorac Pro Eye Shadow Palette

Lorac Pro PaletteThe Lorac Pro eye shadow palette has to be my favorite high end palette. The shadows are so buttery, velvety and pigmented. They blend beautifully. It contains 16 shadows. The top 8 are all matte shades, which are wonderful for transition, crease or outer V color and 2 great brow highlight colors. The bottom row has 8 beautiful satin/shimmery colors. I wish my picture did justice to these colors. I got mine from Sephora for $42. You can also get this from Ulta for same price. I will say it took me a while to find it in stock so you might want to order it online. If you chose to order online I have a link on my side bar to Ebates, if you use this link , you can earn cash back. It is very easy;  just create an account (does not require any financial information) then just chose your store and it will take you to your store’s website to place your order. Then, every quarter you get a check in the mail from Ebates for the cash back you have earned. Below, I am going to show you swatches below and tell you the colors.  Please keep in mind I am new at this so my pictures may not do these colors justice.

Lorac Pro Top Row Matte Colors

The top row of matte shadows, from your left to right: White, Cream, Taupe, Lt. Pink, Mauve, Sable, Espresso and Black. These swatches are without using a primer and one swipe.

Lorac Pro Bottom Row Shimmery Shades

The bottom row of satin/shimmery shadows, from your left to right: Nude, Champagne, Gold, Lt. Bronze, Pewter, Garnet, Deep Purple and Slate. Again, these swatches are without a primer and only one swipe.

Please leave me a comment below telling me if you have this palette and your favorite colors you use from it. Also, you can ask me any question you may have. I will reply as soon as I can. You can also click on any of the social media links to connect with me.

Daily Tid-Bits:

  • The creator of the Lorac line’s name is Carol, hence it is her name backwards. I thought this was interesting.
  • Made my own skinny version of a chicken and rice casserole today. I must say, it turned out yummy. Tell me in comments if you want me to post the recipe.

 

 

 

Beauty Blender verses Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge

BB&RTBBHello Beauties! Today I wanted to do a comparison review on the high-end Original Beauty Blender ($20) to the new drug store (budget friendly) Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge ($6). First, I will explain what these sponges are being used for. They are used mostly to apply your liquid or cream foundations and concealers, which is how I used them to do this comparison for you. The first time I seen the beauty blender being used lets’s just say I was a little sceptical, most especially when I heard it was $20.00. Yes, I said $20 for a sponge. I was happy using my Sigma F80 and F82 Kabuki foundation brushes and I still use them also. I tried some of the dupes being made, trying to save money, at Ulta, Walgreens and Marshalls but they were hard and I did not like them at all. But, I kept seeing this little pink soft sponge coming up more and more  in the you tube video community. I finally gave in and purchased mine through Ebates at Sephora.com, so at least I would get some cash back. When I received it I was so excited and anxious to try it out. Well it wasn’t long until I saw a you tube review on a new sponge that Samantha Chapman’s company, Real Techniques, had came out with, called the  Miracle Complexion Sponge, and it received a good review, so I picked one up at Ulta so I could do this article for you. Ok! Ok! It was also because I am a make-up junkie and just had to have it! (laughing with hand on fore head)

Original Beauty blender

First, let’s start with the pink soft Original Beauty Blender. When it is dry it is very small, probably the size of a small plum maybe even smaller. When you wet it, which is how you use it, it doubles if not triples in size. The feel of it is unlike any kind of make-up sponge that I have ever felt, it is just so soft. Even before it is wet it is very soft, unlike the dupes I had bought, which were all hard, whether they are dry or wet. Lady’s I just want to say the first time I used it to apply my foundation it was like “Ahhhhhh”! My foundation and concealer have never gone on as smooth, easy and as flawless. I was amazed! No, it did not soak up a lot of the product either. You just wet the sponge until it doubles in size, squeeze out excess water in sink; then I put it in a hand towel and squeeze, just to make sure there is not any excess water. I then pump out some of my foundation on to the back of my hand, then using bottom of sponge I tap into foundation; then just start using blotting motions to apply the foundation to my face and neck. I then use the pointed tip to apply concealer or just to make sure my foundation gets into hard to reach places, like around my  nose. Yes, I would and will repurchase as necessary. There is one thing about it that I am not completely happy with. You can probably see in above picture that it does stain easily. You do, like I do, have to wash it after each use. I use baby shampoo or just my dove bar soap. They do sell a cleanser just for the beauty blender, I have heard mixed reviews on it.  I do plan on picking up the cleanser when I  purchase my next beauty blender. I don’t wear make-up every day, so I am hoping mine will probably last me 6 months. If you wear make-up every day, they recommend changing it out every 3 months.

Now, for the best dupe I have found for the Beauty Blender, which is the little orange Real Techniques Miracle Complexion Sponge. It is the closest to the feel of the Beauty Blender that I have found. It did do a good job applying my foundation and concealer also, but I believe it took a little more effort to get same effects. I would repurchase this sponge, most especially if I wore make-up every day, and I didn’t have or want to spend the $20 for the Beauty Blender every 3 months.

I hope this article has helped you. Please don’t forget to subscribe! It is free and you will be notified when I publish a new article. Please leave me a comment below if you have the beauty blender or  want to tell me what you are using to apply your foundation. I love to read and respond to all of your comments or questions. Also, you can follow me on social media by just clicking on the icon you choose.

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