Real Techniques Stippling Brush

 Real Techniques have been recommended to me for ages and now I know completely why - they are amazing! I have been using the 'Expert Face Brush' and 'Buffing Brush' for a while and my newest addition to the RT collection I'm growing is this 'Stippling Brush.' This brush has been really useful in completing the most airbrushed foundation look because I limit it to just finishing off, banishing brush streaks and evening out the tone all over. It gives a really polished look and I use it with my Wake Me Up liquid foundation.
It is relatively cheap for its incredible quality (£10.99) and created by the Pixi Woo beauty guru Sam Chapman whose videos have inspired me for ages. All RT brushes are created with synthetic taklon bristles which are so easy to clean, and it doesn't soak up all the product; my foundation lasts so much longer with these brushes than my previous set of Bobbi Brown's. Believe the rave reviews, these brushes are essential to any make up bag.

17 Blemish Balm - Light

When I saw this Blemish Balm in Boots, the first thing that grabbed me was 'Helps Improve Skin Condition' because let's be honest no girl will ever stop searching for a high street miracle product that does that. Sadly, as with most cheaper products that promise this, the quality of my skin did not improve by using this for a couple of weeks, in that it did not 'minimise pores' or noticeably stop breakouts. I didn't have incredibly bad breakouts as my skin isn't normally prone to that anyway but it didn't do anything to budge the normal small clusters of spots.
The other criticism I have of this is that it only comes in three shades, Light being the palest of them and it's still so dark; I had to stop using it purely because of its orangeness! This was even after holiday with a tan and I'm certainly not the palest person so I was slightly disappointed with that. While I'm on a roll, it didn't have great coverage and any spots were still very clear through it, so concealer was required anyway even though this is supposed to be the only summer skin makeup necessity.
Not my favourite product but nowhere near as heavy as foundation with powder so for a bit of colour I would recommend for a good-skin-day but don't even bother if you are pale, might as well just wear only cover up if you are looking for lighter makeup for your skin.

July Birchbox - Jet Set Edition

Since November I've been receiving my monthly beauty boxes from Birchbox with five beauty samples and a lifestyle extra in the little pink packages and this month's edition is a Jet Set collection for July. Filled with handy products for the summer, the July box is mainly focused on keeping skin in flawless (well, there abouts) condition with the wear and tear of heat, sand and sun not wreaking to much havoc on our delicate skin. This came in the post yesterday so I have not as yet had a chance to try any of the products but the ones that stand out I will review later on in the month. 

The headlining product in the box is the 'Creme De Jour Protectrice' from Blanc Cachemire, a miracle moisturiser which is quite obviously French and is £54.75 full size so I will see if it lives up to its price which seems a little steep for a daily essential product.

I want to try out the Body Lotion from Dead Sea Spa Magik soon as well because I used this brand's cleanser for ages before I came across the Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish and that was very good for my skin. However, I do think body lotion is one of those essentials that for summer you just need a large tub of, whatever the quality of the product.

The InStain Blush looks fairly interesting as it is minuscule (about a 1.5 cm square of the product) but it swatches very heavily so I'm slightly nervous about putting this on my cheeks as it is very vibrantly orange toned!

What looks like my favourite product of the box is the Fluide Fraicheur Phyto-Hydrant by Carole Franck which besides the complicated name looks like a very good primer and is a decent 10ml sample. It's a lot more liquidy than my current primer (I suppose that would be the 'fluide' bit) and has the texture of a moisturiser so I'm very keen to try it!

The hand cream by Nougat London, I'll be honest isn't the most thrilling product. I can't judge because I haven't tried it yet but it seems pretty standard though I'll admit it does smell incredible.

Oh, Birchbox, why do you insist on these Lifestyle Extra products. So far, I've been overwhelmed by strange cultural tea and remedies and this month I've got Chia Shots which are supposedly mixed into anything to 'improve overall health and wellbeing' by packing a load of vitamins and minerals into your diet. I shall try.