Best of Amazon and eBay Beauty Finds 2016

Hello everyone! I hope you're having a great relaxing few days watching movies and eating to your hearts content. I have been looking around for the best deals, although there aren't LOADS of beauty ones this year which isn't great ☹️. The ones I have found btw, are all on my twitter (@blushinggiraffe). ANYWAYS today I wanted to share some of my absolute favourite beauty picks from Amazon and eBay. I also have one or two products which I don't recommend at all, however we'll get to that in due time! I love scouring both these sites for beauty items and more often than not I am happy with what I have found. As this post involves sharing some fantastic deals with you all, I'm super excited and I hope you all enjoy it too.

Starting off with the most obvious thing in this photo, that cute lil pink lash holder case is adorable and will hold three pairs of false eyelashes. I needed a place I could keep my lashes, without stuffing them back into their boxes because that took up SO much space in my drawers. As soon as I saw this I knew I had to have it. Not only is it cute to look at, but it stores three sets of lashes and really does save a lot of room. There is also small compartment for your lash glue and I just could not ask for more, especially at the bargain price of £1.89! I don't wear falsies too often, so I only really have one or two pairs of lashes I'm using at one time. I'll always clean them up gently with some micellar water and a cotton bud after to prolong their life. Since getting this little box, I always know where my lashes are and I always clean them up and put them away so none get lost.

Talking of falsies, if you follow me on any social media platform you might recognise the actual lashes that are in this case, because I cannot get enough of them OR stop going on about them to anyone who'll listen! I love false lashes as much as the next beauty blogger, but I don't often wear them. So to spend a lot of money on one pair of lashes didn't make sense for me, especially being on a student budget. I'm not sure exactly HOW, but after trail and error of ordering packs of lashes and being disappointed, I somehow stumbled across this pack of three lashes (£1.19) for literally just over a quid and when they came I was SO EXCITED. As you can see from the image above,  these lashes are beautifully fluffy and look gorgeous when on! Some lashes from ebay I've tried in the past are too hard, shiny and obviously plastically which is not a good look at all. These are the exact opposite, and even better? Yes, EVEN BETTER, I don't need to trim them at all which is brilliant. I have stocked up on at least three more packs and I recommend you all do the same.

Moving onto an Amazon pick now, I have ALWAYS purchased my Real Techniques brush sets from here because you get the best deals on here by far. I know that Zoeva and other brushes brands have taken over the scene when it comes to the best of the best, however I still stand by my RT base brushes which I use almost every day. Especially the Duo Fibre Brush Set (currently £13.30), I LOVE the face and contour brush, especially for when I'm using very pigmented products like Sleek blushers.

A very recent discovery of mine, thanks to the beautiful Onika (blog here), as been the Mehron HD Foundation (£8.50). It is one of the most seamless, beautiful foundations I've ever tried and it photographs SO amazingly! I like it so much that I'm thinking of picking up two more shades, one darker and one lighter for whenever I do my families makeup for special occasions. It is a cream formula and you get a lot for the price you pay. I'll of course be doing a detailed review in the upcoming year, but for now take my word for it and check it out online - if you're looking for a base which'll leave you looking airbrushed, you need Mehron in your life!

This one is VERY cheeky and I've been debating about if I should share this on the blog or not, because it is just that bad. Yes some person in China have totally ripped off Sigma's brush cleaning mat design and it is pretty bad of them...also needless to say I doubt I'll ever be getting an invitation to become a Sigma affiliate! However I have been using this every time I've washed my brushes for the past few weeks and decided it would be most unfair to keep it from my lovely readers. If someone on Sigma's end is reading this and is upset...please don't shoot the messenger! The brush mat cost me about a fiver, vs the twenty odd quid the actual one is and thats what mainly drew me in. Now having looked online I can't find the exact one I have, the seller has stopped selling it...however there are very similar ones available for between £3-£6 here. This brush mat makes washing brushes SOOO much easier! I cannot believe how much quicker my brush washing routine is and it saves my hands from getting so wrinkly too. Obviously it's a personal choice on if you feel comfortable purchasing this kind of product...if the price difference was a fiver, I'd have gone with the actual brand. However I'm a student, I don't have £20 to spend on a rubber mat to help me wash my brushes y'know?

Finally, not to end this on a bad note but these two products I wouldn't necessarily recommend to you all. I always say that it's important to show you guys the not so great stuff, as well as the wonderful products too. Starting off with the cute little panda, this is an undereye brightening base and I saw it on another blog many months ago. The blogger said it really helped her makeup, most specifically her under-eyes and it acted like a primer for her. That sounds amazing as you may know my undereyes are the bane of my life, however after trialling this out for a good few weeks...I just don't really see much of a difference! So I won't be buying it again (despite the cuteness).

I also picked up a pack of 10 'mineral pore strips' from Amazon, mainly because I saw some pretty good reviews. However they really are NOT strips, its a very gooey consistency, that you have to spread evenly over the face (designated area). You then leave it to set for 15-20 minutes and carefully pull it away from the skin...at which point I realised this is not the stuff for me. It hurt so badly, my eyes were stinging and my skin was left really red. Plus there was barely any gunk taken out from my skin :( so that was a fail.

Aside from the above, I hope you've found some great picks. I have LOVED so many things that I've found from Amazon/eBay, which not enough people know and talk about. I'm also glad I finally have a post up where I have linked the lashes cause I talk about them SO much (they're just that great!)

Have you got any picks from either online stores that you love?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Best of Amazon and eBay Beauty Finds 2016

Hello everyone! I hope you're having a great relaxing few days watching movies and eating to your hearts content. I have been looking around for the best deals, although there aren't LOADS of beauty ones this year which isn't great ☹️. The ones I have found btw, are all on my twitter (@blushinggiraffe). ANYWAYS today I wanted to share some of my absolute favourite beauty picks from Amazon and eBay. I also have one or two products which I don't recommend at all, however we'll get to that in due time! I love scouring both these sites for beauty items and more often than not I am happy with what I have found. As this post involves sharing some fantastic deals with you all, I'm super excited and I hope you all enjoy it too.

Review | Brush Cleaning Egg

Hello everyone! I’m so glad my first product review from Born Pretty Store was such a hit, a lot of lovely ladies told me that they ordered the mini beauty blender dupe and they were super happy with it! Today I am going to be reviewing the Brush Cleaning Egg* which I have used a couple of times now and I’m ready to give y’all the low down!


So this little pink rubber cleaning tool is currently on sale for $2.99! It is usually $7.11 and they are supplied in a random colour. I think it’s inspired by the Benefit brush cleaning glove, but much much smaller of course. The cleaning egg is the size of my palm and it has a flat side with vertical ridges across the majority of it. At the tip of the egg there are smaller round ridges and at the bottom of the ‘egg’ there’s space for you to put two fingers in and hold the tool like that. It is totally hollow on the inside and it stays put throughout washing.

The whole purpose of this tool is to help make cleaning brushes quicker and easier. I always preach about cleaning brushes regularly but lately I haven’t had the time to clean all my brushes in one go, so I was hoping this would live up to it’s purpose. I have a detailed post on how to thoroughly clean your brushes here. 

The way I tested this out was by putting my two magic ingredients in a small bowl, mixed with some warm water and then I slipped the cleaning egg over two fingers on my left hand. I soaked the brush in the solution for 10 seconds and then I started rubbing the brush against the ridges. I was really impressed with how quickly it lathered up and how much foundation was being removed as I washed the brush! The ridges helped to get in-between the bristles and dislodge product much quicker than when I use my hands and it cut the time I spent lathering the brush up in half - success!

The small circular ridges were particularly good for eye brushes and worked very effectively, so all in all this affordable little tool is well worth picking up. The only thing I would change is the size. I would have preferred if I could have fitted four fingers in as I feel like this would have made the tool even more efficient and time saving!

Overall Rating

Rating: 8

Pros: Super affordable, fits comfortably on two fingers, has two different textures which both work well at cleaning makeup and dirt off brushes. The ridges allow you to get deeply into the brush, which is harder to do with just fingers. It does speed up the process of brush washing and my brushes have all looked a good deal cleaner than before.

Cons: I wish it were bigger in size so I could get more brushes washed before rinsing it off!

Repurchase? Well I doubt this’ll fall apart anytime soon, but since it has helped I would repurchase (though a bigger size would make me even happier!).

 

You can purchase the brush cleaning egg from here and if you want 10% off use the code IQAH10. Oh and did I mention free worldwide shipping? It’ll take around 2 weeks to get to you, but for the price and quality its well worth it!

Do you have any tools to help speed up brush cleaning?

*This post contains press samples or products gifted to me. All opinions are my own. For more info check my Disclaimer .

 

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Review | Brush Cleaning Egg

Hello everyone! I’m so glad my first product review from Born Pretty Store was such a hit, a lot of lovely ladies told me that they ordered the mini beauty blender dupe and they were super happy with it! Today I am going to be reviewing the Brush Cleaning Egg* which I have used a couple of times now and I’m ready to give y’all the low down!

Review | Zoeva 110 Face Shape Brush

Zoeva is the talk of the town, everywhere you look, on instagram and blogs the gorgeous rose gold handles and professional looking brushes are loved by everyone and their aunties. I haven’t saved up for the rose gold brush set yet because my current brushes are still going strong, but I have been very curious by the brand! I bought this brush from beautybay.com, they have an excellent selection available and free delivery for orders over £10 wooop! A few weeks ago I picked up a single brush the 110 Face Shape Brush (£8.95) and I’m ready to share my thoughts.



The brush came in it’s own zipped bag which was a really nice touch to help protect it and of course it can be used to help you travel with other brushes too. The wooden handle is very sturdy as is the metal ferrule and the brush feels comfortable to hold. The length of the handle is perfect, not too short nor too long and the number and name of the brush is written clearly on the side. On to the bristles themselves, they’re very dense and quite short in length, made of synthetic Taklon so they don’t absorb excess product as much as natural bristles, as well as being easy to wash. The width of the brush head is fairly small, certainly not large enough to use as a buffing brush for foundation. Instead it is small and nifty enough to fit into the corners on the face with ease.


The two main uses of the Face Shape brush for me are for buffing in concealer around the face and under the eyes (though I typically prefer the warmth of my fingers for that area) and of course for contouring. It’s size fits perfectly into the hollows of my cheeks and it creates contoured, structured definition with ease. The downside to it’s density is that it makes blending out the contour quite challenging, so I would never use this with a darker powder like The Bahama Mama Bronzer reviewed here. The RT contour brush is just fluffy enough to blend out harsh lines, whereas this brush is better for the lighter bronzers in your stash to avoid harsh lines. I find it great to use with cream contouring products/concealers as it blends without making the whole thing disappear y’know? Anyways for the price I think it is wonderful - concealer and contouring - it does a pretty good job!

Overall Rating

Rating: 9

Pros: Fantastic quality, it washes well, has super soft bristles, very dense, blends product in flawlessly, can be used for cream and powder products is very much multi-use!

Cons: Can create slightly harsh lines due to how dense the bristle are, a light hand is necessary with darker products.

Repurchase? Yes I would and I really do want to try more from the Zoeva line!

Have you tried the 110 Face Shape Brush? Do you have any Zoeva favourites?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Review | Zoeva 110 Face Shape Brush

Zoeva is the talk of the town, everywhere you look, on instagram and blogs the gorgeous rose gold handles and professional looking brushes are loved by everyone and their aunties. I haven’t saved up for the rose gold brush set yet because my current brushes are still going strong, but I have been very curious by the brand! I bought this brush from beautybay.com, they have an excellent selection available and free delivery for orders over £10 wooop! A few weeks ago I picked up a single brush the 110 Face Shape Brush (£8.95) and I’m ready to share my thoughts.

Review | Ecotools Eye Enhancing Duo Set

Ecotools is fast becoming one of my favourite brush brands. When I first got into makeup and actually had a small income at the age of 17 I knew the brushes I wanted were from Real Techniques. Those have served me very well over the years, I still use most of the ones I purchased three years ago! However I do feel like they lack with the eyeshadow brushes in particular. I bought the starter eye’s kit and it left me feeling quite ‘eh’ I mean sure, they do the job but they just weren’t great. Since then I’ve bought eyeshadow brushes from E.L.F and eBay which I’ve been okay/happy with, however when I saw this duo set from Ecotools on iherb, I couldn’t resist trying it out. And let me tell you, I’ve not been disappointed!



As you probably know from my numerous posts about the site, iherb is my go-to American online store for brushes as they’re so much cheaper than here in the UK! Take the ecotools deluxe fan brush for example, £12 here but I only paid around £4 from that site, so majorly worth checking out. (here is a post with more detail and a discount code too). This duo costs $5.99 which is £3.80! What makes ecotools so special is the fact that they’re cruelty-free and conscious about the environment. They use recycled aluminium for the ferrules and the handles are made from bamboo. The best part is that they are incredibly soft and great quality too.



This duo is double-ended making it especially perfect for travelling! However it’s great for normal use too. The handle’s are a great length,  comfortable enough to use one end without touching the other, but they’re also not so long that you lose precision.



The first brush I’m going to talk about is the ‘Blend and Smudge.' The smudge side is perfect for packing a small amount of shadow in the corners of the eyelid, or anywhere you want to add concentrated colour. It’s bristles are short so it also works well for the lower lashline and it picks up shadow with ease. The other end is perfect for blending, the bristles aren’t too long and it’s slightly tapered at the end which gives more precision. The RT blending brush is good and this is just as much, if not better ^_^



The second brush is called ‘Define and Shade’ and it’s equally as useful and essential. The define side works well for filling in brows with powder and lightly with a pomade. It’s also great for adding shadow to the lower and upper lashline and COULD just about work for defining the crease shade. I prefer using a liner brush for gel eyeliner rather than an angled one like this, but as it works decently for brows and eyes I’m happy. The Shade side is perfect for putting shadow all over the lid including under the brows quickly. At the same time it’s not so large that those of you with smaller lid space would struggle, which is what I love so much about these brushes, they’re all a decent size. Some of the ebay ones you can buy come with huge heads that end up making a mess of things, but these four are just perfect.



I’m so happy I picked this duo up and if you’re lacking eye brushes, I think you’d like it too. I was a bit worried about storage at first because it can’t be kept in my normal pot, but honestly its fine and probably a whole lot more hygienic to either store it back in the wrapper or in my muji drawers.

 Have you tried any Ecotools Brushes?

Thank-you for reading ♥

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Review | Ecotools Eye Enhancing Duo Set

Ecotools is fast becoming one of my favourite brush brands. When I first got into makeup and actually had a small income at the age of 17 I knew the brushes I wanted were from Real Techniques. Those have served me very well over the years, I still use most of the ones I purchased three years ago! However I do feel like they lack with the eyeshadow brushes in particular. I bought the starter eye’s kit and it left me feeling quite ‘eh’ I mean sure, they do the job but they just weren’t great. Since then I’ve bought eyeshadow brushes from E.L.F and eBay which I’ve been okay/happy with, however when I saw this duo set from Ecotools on iherb, I couldn’t resist trying it out. And let me tell you, I’ve not been disappointed!

Haul | Brushes From iherb + mini giveaway

Hello lovely people! I often used to speak about how I bought my first ever set of Real Technique brushes from iherb, which is an American  site selling all organic, natural and cruelty free products. And as you may be able to tell from the title recently I placed another order ^_^ Mum wanted some sweet almond oil after my continuous raving about the stuff and I also bought some rosehip oil and tea tree oil too. I couldn’t help but pick up some new (and pretty exciting) brushes whilst I was adding to the cart...



Whilst browsing the brushes I saw a NEW RT one, the Sculpting Brush which is pink meaning it’s a finishing/perfecting brush. The others from this line are the setting brush which I LOVE and use everyday, the multi-task brush which is very versatile (obvs), the blush brush which is great for bronzing the face up and finally the stippling brush, the only one which I had a bad experience with, it shedded like no tomorrow ._.

 Anyways the sculpting brush cannot be bought alone in the UK as far as I can tell, Superdrug currently have a set where you can purchase the sculpting, setting and a fan brush for £20 . I didn’t want to spend that much money on those three so it made more sense to pick it up separately for $9.99 which equates to £6.68 - b a r g a i n!

When RT came out with their bold metals line, I wanted to wait a couple of months to hear the consensus before splurging over £20 on ONE brush, c’mon I’m just not about that extravagant life ha. This brush is super soft like the rest of their line and is kinda squashed to create the oblong shape. It fits perfectly under the cheekbones, around the nose and pretty much everywhere else you want to contour. Success so far ^_^



I also had my eye on the Ecotools range, most specifically the Deluxe Fan brush which you can buy in the UK for £12.99 on Amazon. On iherb its only $6.99 - £4.67 WOOOO! I had heard a Youtuber rave about this and it looks dreamy for getting that perfect highlight. It is INCREDIBLY soft, one of those brushes you can't stop stroking on your face. The brush is pretty thick and very well made. I'm super happy to have this in my brush collection.

Finally a duo caught my eye, the eye enhancing duo which is technically four brushes, one brow, two blending and a flat brush for packing on shadow. I've previously purchased a 5 piece eco-tools set (and forgot to blog about it, boo) and I was very pleased with them. This set looks even better as the brush head sizes aren’t too big nor small and it’s perfect for travelling too! Also for $5.99 - £4 how could I say no?! 

If you’re never bought from iherb before heres a discount code - LCD104 to get at least $5 off.

I was feeling kind so I bought two fan brushes, one for me and one for a lovely reader ^_^ To be honest I don’t really have time to be monitoring this giveaway and if I could I would have set it for only two weeks, but as my exams are over on the 22nd of May, this will end on that date too. Basic rules are UK only, you must be following on bloglovin here, the more options you fill the greater your chance, fill it in below and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Have you bought any contouring brushes? Would you recommend them?

Thank-you for reading ♥
 Bloglovin' | Tweet Me | Instagram | Facebook

Haul | Brushes From iherb + mini giveaway

Hello lovely people! I often used to speak about how I bought my first ever set of Real Technique brushes from iherb, which is an American  site selling all organic, natural and cruelty free products. And as you may be able to tell from the title recently I placed another order ^_^ Mum wanted some sweet almond oil after my continuous raving about the stuff and I also bought some rosehip oil and tea tree oil too. I couldn’t help but pick up some new (and pretty exciting) brushes whilst I was adding to the cart...