Thursday 18 September 2008

Holiday Benefits

I don't know what it is about Benefit. Are the girls who work there are trained to tell when I'm vulnerable? do they send out chemical signals that makes me open my wallet? Before going on holiday I went to Boots on High St Kensington to get my top up of HydraQuench Cream by Clarins (which has changed... I don't like change but I'm sure this will be just as good as it always was). I already had everything else I needed for my holiday (it's amazing what you find when you are moving house. In my case 4 boxes of products. Mr J was pleased). The Boots on High Street Ken is a terrifying honey trap for those of us who think that a new item of make-up is a necessity and I couldn't believe it when I resisted the Clarins facial bronzers and the only Origins outlet for miles around. The door was in sight and then... I got sucked into the Benefit counter. I should have kept my head down but I made the mistake of making eye contact and that was that.

I was feeling pretty low. I miss my long blonde locks and hate this mildly washed out ginger state that I'm destined to live in until my natural hair colour wins the fight (please win!). The thought of a little spruce up was too good to miss so I allowed myself to be pressed into a chair and things put on my face. A wiser person would have absorbed that and then made their excuses but not I. Yes I know that when I get home to apply my new purchases they will look nothing like they did in the shop but I find myself getting them anyway. Nor do I think to myself about what the little restraints in the product department could lead to in the fashion department. I decided on two things... if I bought four then I got £10 worth of points on my boots card. This to me seems like a fantastic idea, nevermind that £40 not spent is worth more than points I can only use to buy more products.

So what did I leave with?
  • Talk to the Tan - a facial bronzer that can either be mixed with your moisturiser or foundation or you can just use to highlight. I found it most useful post holiday when I always have a big non-freckled patch at the top of my nose from my sunglasses. It also neutralises any under eye concealers that can sometimes make me look a bit odd (once again due to the influx of freckles on my cheeks post holiday). It's £19.50 but you don't need to use very much so hopefully it will last a while. What is great is that you also don't need to be scared of it - I have yet to make myself orange!


  • Erase Paste - having been a devotee of Bo-oing for the last 6 or so years I was reluctant to try anything else. I really hate the blue bags under my eyes and Bo-oing is the only thing that comes close to fixing them. It is quite thick however so I let the make over girl try some one me. It's 'brightening camouflage for eyes and face'. Its really creamy and blendable and actually is really good. I'm not sure it gets rid of the blue as good as Bo-oing so I am still using a tiny bit of that underneath and then the Erase Paste which is really smooth and actually does reflect light (something I always thought was rather mythical before). It's pretty steep at £18.50 but again you really don't use very much of this at a time so will hopefully earn its keep! it's also fab for using around your nose to minimise any redness.

  • Talent Brush - it's all very well having the Erase Paste but with what should I apply it? I really love Benefit brushes. They are the perfect size and usually do exactly what is required of them. I was advised that the Talent Brush was actually better than the more expensive Concealer Brush (£14.50) and can be used on eyes and lips too. For some reason this is not currently available on the website but I think it was about £12.50 and is great for any application (although i still swear by the Fluff Brush £13.50 for eyeshadow application).

  • F.Y...Eye - is a nude primer for the eyes. A devotee of Lemon Aid which is still unbeatable if you have stains or dark patches on your eyelids but this is unlike any primer I've used before. It feels (and looks) completely matte and although still doesn't succeed in the impossible (keeping my eyeshadow on completely) it does a pretty good job at it and is great for a slight neutralisation of colour. Once again a seemingly steep price for such a small pot but only a tiny amount is needed.

I was a bit dubious about the Talk to the Tan at first - I mean how often do you need highlighting tan? but since I've returned from holiday I've been mixing it in with some of my paler foundations and it really works at darkening them up slightly but not losing the nice consistency and finish of the foundation.
To top it all off I was a very lucky girl and as payment for hauling ass to Wiltshire and driving my sister to a wedding she got me Lust Duster a fantastic loose power for eyes and face. This is great and although comes in loads of different colours my favourite is Snow Bunny as this can be used on the cheekbones and brow bones as a highlighter which is a great and simple addition to your make-up if you are going out after work xx
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