REVIEW: Daiso Makeup Blending Sponge

So, if you follow my blog or any of my social media, you'd know my favorite makeup tool is the blending sponge. It's just quicker and requires less effort than using a brush or my fingers. I also like that when my base is applied by a blending sponge, it's not so heavy and doesn't look cakey.

I've bought two of the Daiso Makeup Blending Sponges a month and a half ago. Each costs Php 88 only so I thought that even if they were terrible, I wouldn't feel so bad since they're so cheap. I did test them before taking them to the counter. Be careful because some of them are not as soft as the others. Afterwards, when I came home, I put them in my storage box, and completely forgot about them (I do that a lot lol).

Fast forward to the past three days and I had to break them out because my Beauty Blender grew molds! The horror! I'm not sure why or how it happened since I make sure it gets dried out in the open, sometimes, if I can watch it, I even put it out in the sun. No way was I gonna let that thing touch my face again.

Now I started using the blending sponge from Daiso. First thing I noticed about it is that it holds more water than the original Beauty Blender under the faucet. It squeezes out pretty easily though, since it's so much softer. And a hell of a lot bouncier. Just like the Beauty Blender, it doubles in size once wet.

Daiso Makeup Blending Sponge dry and wet

I can squeeze all the way through it, unlike the Beauty Blender, which is more dense. It's a little bigger too so it covers a lot more areas on my face. You can see in the photo the tip is also pointy so it's great for those little corners of the face like the sides of the nose and the under eye area.

Excuse my toddler's hand. She wanted to get into the squeezing action too lol.

One thing that I don't like about it is that it soaks up more product than the original Beauty Blender. I like a light coverage but this one tends to sheer it all out. I have to use double the product with this one. 

All in all, I think this is not a bad makeup tool. At Php 88, this is actually great.  I just find it so wasteful to buy another Beauty Blender, really, that thing is so expensive and it's just going to grow molds. I don't think it's not inevitable since the climate here in the PH is humid. I wouldn't recommend this one though if you're on a budget, because even if it's cheap, the fact that it uses more product, you'd actually be spending more. However, if you need an alternate blending sponge, this one is fabulous!

My Top 5 Fall Lipsticks!

Now, I know, this post is a little silly. Come on, who are we kidding, there's no fall season here in the Philippines. But it is October, and it's bound to get colder sooner or later.

This is the season to break out our dark, vampy lip colors. And also to show our love for the deeper nudes. Here's my favorite lipsticks for fall:

Clockwise: MAC Rebel, MAC Mehr, Snoe Rouge Deluxe Marsala, NYX Matte Lipstick Strawberry Daiquiri and Snoe Rouge Deluxe Vintage Rose

1. MAC Rebel

Who hasn't heard of this famous lipstick? This lipstick looks different on every skin tone and the color it would appear in would also depend on the pigmentation of your lips. It looks scare in the tube, but that doesn't really translate when you put it on. Instead, I get a beautiful berry purple which I can build up from sheer to full on opaque. It wears beautifully too and leaves a very lovely purplish pink stain on the lips.

2. MAC Mehr

This is one of the deeper nudes in my MAC lipstick collection. Its a blue based dirty pink and it's perfect for fall because of the darkness of its pink hue. Careful though, if you have a lot of yellow in your undertones or if you're an olive girl, this won't work for you.

3. NYX Strawberry Daiquiri

I cannot not have this lipstick. If I ever run out of this, this is one I will buy again. It's a beautiful salmon pink color that leans a bit on brown. I can't even begin to describe how beautiful this color is. I throw this on when I don't know what else to wear. This lipstick also lasts a very long time too! It can be a bit drying, so best to wear a balm underneath to avoid painful chapped lips especially this cold season!

4. Snoe Rouge Deluxe Marsala

This is Snoe's limited edition shade, color of the year for 2015. It's an opaque burgundy berry color. The lipstick is very moisturizing and smells great too! Since it's one of the darker colors in this line, it also lasts a bit longer and is very smooth, creamy to put on.

5. Snoe Rouge Deluxe Vintage Rose

My current favorite MLBB lipstick! I also see me repurchasing this if I run out of it. It's a pinky nude that leans toward brown. I can literally wear this all year round, but this color is perfect for fall.

Swatched on my NC30 skin.

So, there you have it, my favorite lipsticks for this season. What are yours and do you have any suggestions? Comment down below! 

Snoe SABStance High Intensity Powder Blush

I've been on a Snoe roll this whole month. I purchased these products last month, September, and I've been using them ever since. To be quite honest, I am so amazed by their quality. I absolutely adore their lipsticks. I've been using their pigment mix with my moisturizers and it's phenomenal. But for today's review, I'd like to write about the Snoe SABStance High Intensity Powder Blush (Php 899).

Just look at the packaging! Almost too cute to use!

These products are the result of a collaboration of Snoe with Sabs Hernandez, internationally-trained professional makeup artist, beauty blogger, and YouTube makeup adviser. As can be seen on the box, the product contains Amazonian clay, which minimizes oil in and around pores to balance skin and keep product in place. It helps nourish and hydrate dry skin and restore complexion harmony. It also contains pomegranate which is an antioxidant, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and has anti-aging properties that encourage radiant skin. Another active ingredient is acerola cherry which contains the highest level of vitamin C that can be easily absorbed by the body. It has a high content of polyphenols, some of which are unique to this fruit. And, finally, the blush has Acai berry, the most powerful and nutritious fruit in the world. It contains the highest level of antioxidants compared to any other fruit.

Lot of promises, huh? I'm not so sure about that since I've been using the products for only a little more than a month, but in my own honest opinion, I think these blushes are fantastic. When I swatched them at the store, my first thought was how creamy and pigmented they were! I mean one swatch of the product was so opaque and it went on so smoothly on my skin. A little of this product definitely goes a long, long way.

I got the shades X6 Faith and X7 Respect. Faith is a warm, peachy pink color. This is a great blush for the warmer months. Respect is a cool mauvey nude color which I prefer for the colder months of the year. Now, I have said that these are dupes for the Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blushes. Their consistency is different though, these are creamier and has more pigment, though they do go on a bit more powdery. What makes them similar with the Tarte blushes is their longevity. After a long ten hour day, these blushes can still be seen on my cheeks. Now we all know, with makeup, the blushes are the first to go. Now these are blushes that go on and on and will not quit until you take your makeup off.

They may seem quite expensive at their Php 899 price point, but these are worth every single penny. And compared to Tarte blushes, which retail at around Php 1300 each, you get more bang for your buck. Tarte blushes only contain 5.6g in their packaging, while the Snoe blushes have 8g. Now that's a big difference, especially when the quality is very nearly the same.

The best part is these are products that are made from organic ingredients, they don't contain parabens and lead like most local products do. If you're looking for good quality blushes, I highly recommend these products. I mean, all it took for me was one swatch on their testers and I knew I had to have them.