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Charlotte Tilbury Makeup is without a doubt a beauty brand loved by many. I mean who doesn't love good quality, high-end makeup with amazing packaging?
With an ever expanding range there is now many a Charlotte Tilbury dupe to be found that can save you money without scrimping on quality.
From stunning quality lipsticks to flawless base products and premium palettes I am without a doubt a fan of the brand, with let's just say more products that I should own!
From stunning quality lipsticks to flawless base products and premium palettes I am without a doubt a fan of the brand, with let's just say more products that I should own!
But while I lust over most new Charlotte Tilbury makeup launches I can't help my savvy side that is in constant search of a for the latest beauty dupe or alternative.
For me, this is often a similar cheaper product that I can throw in my bag and use more frivolously but over the years a few of these Charlotte Tilbury Makeup dupes have found their way into my everyday makeup bag in favour of the original.
Spending on beauty when you already have a cosmetic bag full of makeup can be a luxury affair. Even a 5-minute trip into Boots to stock up on 'essentials' can be a costly these days! Which is why I personally love to seek out bargains where I can, especially when they don't scrimp on quality!
Below I have listed five of my favourite affordable beauty products that definitely don't scrimp on quality both in their formulas and packaging. And to the end of this budget-friendly post, you will find a round-up of my favourite beauty & skincare brands that seem to constantly produce high-quality products as low prices.
As it feels like I haven't created an eBay post in what seems like forever I thought I would put together a miscellaneous edit with an under £5 budget to get back into the swing of things.
I personally love discovering eBay items, generally from power sellers or stores, that offer a good saving on their retail value. So this edit combines bargain find as always, along with a few items that offer some great savings - I hope you love them!
Like many, a new year for me means new plans and goals, so what better time to up my stationery game with foiled motivational stickers, a new planner and basically anything that will look pretty on my desk. But with Christmas just behind me I personally don't want to spend too much hence my first eBay Bargains post of the year! Here you will find some fab stationery buys from only 99p!
With the rise of more and more premium beauty products along with adverts from your favourite brands following your around the internet, it can be very tempting to spend more money on the contents of your makeup bag than ever before!
But thankfully not all products require such a spend... hence this post. Below you will find products I feel are worth the investment as well as products you can head to the drugstore for and be just as pleased with.
With a huge love of finding bargains on eBay I thought it was time I put all my favourite ultra budget finds in one place!
Below you will find 40 amazing bargains from stylish stationery to some of my favourite makeup brushes, all for under £2 with free delivery. Perfec as a little treat or adding to your watch list until payday!
With a self-diagnosed addiction to makeup I'm continuously hunting down way to save money. Whether that be in monetary terms or just by being savvy. As I'm on a bit of a spending ban right now I've put together more than a few ways to save money on makeup that I've put into practise one time or another.
Feel free to add to my list in the comments with your own money-saving makeup tips!
For the past year the beauty industry has seen an increase in copy-cat beauty brands. They've always been around and often come and go, but copy-cat makeup brands are now doing better than ever.
I've been someone that buys from brands like these but often feel on the fence about them. Should it be tolerated or do they rightly deserve a place in the beauty world? I'm still unsure.
But let's rewind a bit, let's talk about what exactly makes someone label a brand a copy-cat. For me this would be low-cost makeup brands that look at the products of popular high-end makeup brands and aim to reproduce some of their key products in both packaging and product as close as they possibly can... without them looking counterfeit of course!
Below I've detailed three makeup brands that I believe to work in this way, which I should importantly point out that I don't dislike (I've enjoyed the odd product from them!) and I'm not suggesting should be avoided. It's definitely a personal choice but I'd love to know how you feel about them in the comments below.
W7
The original copy-cat makeup brand
Ahh W7, the first of it's kind! I have fond memories of finding W7 branded products for £1-2 on market stalls in my teens and feeling I had a bit of Benefit; their no.1 'inspiration' at the time. Of course, as a penny less teen I saw no harm in it, but looking back many products were so close in packaging and actual product to Benefit. Over the years they have focused on producing more Benefit style products, along with Urban Decay look-a-like products and a very similar OPI-style line of nail polishes. From time to time they will also hone in on brands that are doing well with a particular product and attempt to reproduce them - think Kylie Jenner's lip products, Charlotte Tilbury's Filmstar Bronzer and a budget version of the Hourglass Modernist eyeshadow palette. On the whole W7 look the business, but I often wonder are they spending more on packaging and the aesthetics than the actual product inside. As for how they fair against the high-end brands they take 'inspiration' from, I'd say it's pretty hit and miss, with some products falling short against other high-street/budget brands but then other times products will surprise you!
Makeup Revolution
The new high-street player
Now I'm not going to lie, I love Makeup Revolution products! They truly create some amazing eyeshadow palettes at very reasonable prices and I'm a fan of their lipsticks. However what I'm not a fan of is when they blatantly rip-off certain high-end products. This started with a very similar product to the Too Faced Sweetheart Blushers and continued with their I Heart Chocolate eyeshadow palettes that look almost identical to the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palettes. Their latest acquisition - Kylie Jenner's Lip Kits in the form of their own Retro Luxe Lip Kits. For a brand that could have a really strong identity of their own I wish they would stop copying high-end products like this and stick to their strengths, creating amazingly pigmented palettes and face products.
Beauty Pie
The Bobbi Brown look-alike with a twist
Beauty Pie is a totally new player in the beauty world and with a totally new concept of how we buy makeup they have received a good coverage of press both online and in magazines. If you are unaware of the recently launched brand let me briefly explain! Beauty Pie works on a monthly membership basis. Pay £10+ per month and you are allowed to buy 3-6 products from the brand within that month at a reduced price. For example, you could buy one of their eyeshadow palettes for £35 without a membership but with a membership you apparently pay the factory cost of only £6.94. Will it catch on? I really don't know. I personally wouldn't pay to be allowed to buy makeup, it just doesn't make sense to me, however this kind of business model is definitely new to the cosmetic market and only time will tell. My main problem with this new brand - they look very similar to Bobbi Brown products. From their packaging choices and all black theme, to their double-spaced logo font that's oh so simplistic and Bobbi Brown-like. Their shade ranges also screams Bobbi Brown to me and although I can see they want to go for a luxury feel I don't know if copying an established high-end brand is the way to go.
Is it just the same as high street clothing brands taking 'inspiration' for the high-end seasonal fashion shows and brands? Or does it run deeper than that?
I'd love to know your opinion on this - Do you avoid brands that use these techniques to sell their lesser quality products or do you embrace them?
Fee xo.
I don't know where I've been but somehow I missed the launch of an amazing makeup and skincare sample service that for once is worth it!
I've come across endless makeup sample websites in the past only to not recognise any of the brands and to realise most are out of date anyway. However somehow I failed to know about a fairly new sample service that truly is the best I've come across!
What I'm talking about is the Feel Unique Pick 'n' Mix sample service that has over 350 samples to chose from! Plus the amazing thing about it is that you only pay the £3.95 shipping and handling fee but receive a £3.95 voucher via email to redeem against future purchases, making your samples virtually free! Don't worry Feel Unique didn't ask me to write about it.... I'm just totally digging the idea of free high end beauty samples!
As you can see from my sample stash above, you get to select 5 samples from some well known cosmetic and skincare brands. A lot of the samples are just sachet samples but quite a few come in pots and tubes sizes and the best thing about it is you can search by sample type (on the left hand side of the page) and see the volume amount to get the most out of the service - i.e like me with my 5 pretty deluxe sample sizes!
I should point out that the Pick 'n' Mix service is limited to one lot of samples per month and is only for UK customers right now.
Here's a look at what I picked up
Benefit The POREfessional License To Blot deluxe sample 1.4ml - I couldn't refuse a Benefit mini and with the idea of picking up a few mini products to keep in my bag for touch-ups I thought this sample instant oil-blotting stick would be perfect. Super cute packaging and a really handy o- the-go product.
Nude by Nature Perfecting Concealer 'Ivory' sample 2ml - I already own the full size version of this and love it so I had to pick it up, again to keep in my bag for touch-ups! Seeing as the samples are virtually free this is a generous size at 2ml which is a 1/3 of the 5.9ml full size product which would mean the cost of this sample should be £6!
Emma Hardie Amazing Face Moringa Cleansing Balm 5g - This is actually a product I've been wanting to try for the longest time but priced at £34.00 I wasn't going to risk buying it before trying it first. As you can see this looks exactly like the full size pot but in a miniature version, which I love, and so far from just smelling the balm and the wonderful moringa scent I know I will love it!
bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss 'Maveric' deluxe sample 2.25ml - Having a few Marvelous Moxie lipglosses now and enjoying them I picked up this mini. This is another sample that offers a lot of product and is actually half the size of the full size lipgloss, making the sample worth £8.50! Also this is an ideal shade for autumn/winter.
He-Shi Face & Body Tanning Gel sample 50ml - For my 5th mini I decided to try out this generous 50ml He-Shi sample. I'm always keen to try out facial tanning products as creams for the body are just too heavy for my face so a tanning gel sounded perfect. I've already given this a go and really like it! As it's only for my face and chest this 50ml size will last me quite some time!
Samples change quite often from what I've noticed, for example the Benefit sample is unfortunately no longer available however I did spot a new Nars Skin Tint sample in the mix! So it's worth having a thorough look when deciding on your 5 samples.
The biggest section is sachet samples but with the choice of fragrance vials, tube samples and a few samples in pots I would suggest selecting the most product amount and staying away from sachets to get the most for your money! As I mentioned I picked a few samples to keep in my bag for touch-ups but this service is ideal if you are going on holiday, or of course if you fancy trying products you've been curious about.
I will 100% be using this sample service again next month as I already have my eye on a few REN and Caudalie samples!
If you want to pick up your own beauty samples then you can find the Feel Unique Pick 'n' Mix service here.
Fee xo.
Right about now I start to get excited about the prospect of decorating my home for Christmas. Each year I like to renew baubles and add a few more decorations and festive ornaments to my already pretty large collection.
Matalan have been my go-to for Christmas decorations for years now as they are not only affordable but they always impress me with their unique designs. Below is a look at what you can expect to find online and in-store from Matalan this Christmas!
Matalan have been my go-to for Christmas decorations for years now as they are not only affordable but they always impress me with their unique designs. Below is a look at what you can expect to find online and in-store from Matalan this Christmas!
If like me you also pick up multiple gifts from Matalan as well as Christmas decorations you may be interested to hear that that you can use online discount codes to make your festive shopping even cheaper. I found 3 active money saving codes for Matalan on a website called Codesium. The lowest spend code and ideal if you are picking up a few gifts along with some Christmas decorations is £6 off £60 with code 660MAT which can be used at the checkout and even applies to click and collect orders!
Onto my Matalan Christmas Decor haul now and all the wonderful products I decided to go for... I'm literally pleased with everything!
10 Clear Tree Jewels £3.00 HERE
When it comes to baubles I like to buy them in packs as they are better value for money and of course can be spread over the tree. I don't follow a particular theme for my Christmas tree but anything light reflective is a winner for me and these mini plastic jewels will do just that. Perfect for hanging next to each light on your tree to maximise twinkle!
When it comes to baubles I like to buy them in packs as they are better value for money and of course can be spread over the tree. I don't follow a particular theme for my Christmas tree but anything light reflective is a winner for me and these mini plastic jewels will do just that. Perfect for hanging next to each light on your tree to maximise twinkle!
3 Iridescent Icicles £3.00 HERE
So I just had to pick up these amazing icicle decorations! Because just look at them! Call them iridescent icicles or unicorn horns, either way they are just stunning and will really stand out against the dark green foliage of a Christmas tree. These look much more expensive than £1.00 each and now I know how amazing they are I think I will be placing another online order for more.
Christmas Wishlist Slate Sign £3.00 HERE
Each year Matalan have a few slate signs like this to hang up around the home and I find them such good quality. This year's slate sign is in the shape of a gift tag and hangs by a tartan ribbon with quite a cute Christmas wishlist in different fonts.
Each year Matalan have a few slate signs like this to hang up around the home and I find them such good quality. This year's slate sign is in the shape of a gift tag and hangs by a tartan ribbon with quite a cute Christmas wishlist in different fonts.
LED Dome Medium £8.00 (out of stock online)
Each year Matalan have one of the best and most affordable ranges of Christmas LED decorations that really are just stunning. I struggled to pick up just two LED pieces but I think I went for the right ones as they look amazing at night. The first glass dome that's quite an adequate size is on a lovely wooden base and contains micro wire fairy lights. Of course this could be used as a decoration any time of the year which is another reason for buying it, but it will also go with Christmas decor. It's also battery operated which come included. Just such a stunning ornament for only £8.00!
Each year Matalan have one of the best and most affordable ranges of Christmas LED decorations that really are just stunning. I struggled to pick up just two LED pieces but I think I went for the right ones as they look amazing at night. The first glass dome that's quite an adequate size is on a lovely wooden base and contains micro wire fairy lights. Of course this could be used as a decoration any time of the year which is another reason for buying it, but it will also go with Christmas decor. It's also battery operated which come included. Just such a stunning ornament for only £8.00!
LED Globe Ornament £8.00 (out of stock online)
I also picked up this super cute light-up house domed decoration that again I'm so pleased with for the price. This is smaller in height but it perfectly detailed and gives off a wonderful glow. Possibly my favourite buy of my Matalan Christmas haul. I can't stop looking at it! Perfect for a living room but I can also imagine it looking lovely on a bedside table.
I also picked up this super cute light-up house domed decoration that again I'm so pleased with for the price. This is smaller in height but it perfectly detailed and gives off a wonderful glow. Possibly my favourite buy of my Matalan Christmas haul. I can't stop looking at it! Perfect for a living room but I can also imagine it looking lovely on a bedside table.
Robin Tankard Mug £2.00 (out of stock online)
I'm all about festive mugs come November so had to pick up a few to add to my collection. My first pick was this dainty looking robin mug with teeny tiny baby blue polka dots that reminds me of something you would see from Emma Bridgewater. The robin illustration is featured on both sides and feels and looks really nice quality.
I'm all about festive mugs come November so had to pick up a few to add to my collection. My first pick was this dainty looking robin mug with teeny tiny baby blue polka dots that reminds me of something you would see from Emma Bridgewater. The robin illustration is featured on both sides and feels and looks really nice quality.
Festive Dog Tankard Mug £3.00 (out of stock online)
The other mug I picked up is full-on Christmas with an ultra festive design that features a Dachshund dog driving a car in the snow with gifts and a Christmas tree on the roof - you can't get much more festive than that! The mug again feels really good quality and is slightly bigger in size and thicker.
The other mug I picked up is full-on Christmas with an ultra festive design that features a Dachshund dog driving a car in the snow with gifts and a Christmas tree on the roof - you can't get much more festive than that! The mug again feels really good quality and is slightly bigger in size and thicker.
Robin & Xmas Holiday Recipe £1.50 each (out of stock online)
I also decided as my kitchen always lacks decoration come Christmas time I'd give it some festive cheer with two themed tea towels. The illustrated robin design has to be my favourite as it matches the above mug and doesn't look like it would cost only £1.50. The other tea towel has a printed 'Christmas Holiday Recipe' that again is lovely and would look nice hung on the wall.
I also decided as my kitchen always lacks decoration come Christmas time I'd give it some festive cheer with two themed tea towels. The illustrated robin design has to be my favourite as it matches the above mug and doesn't look like it would cost only £1.50. The other tea towel has a printed 'Christmas Holiday Recipe' that again is lovely and would look nice hung on the wall.
Festive Cupcake Decoration Set £3.00 HERE
Keeping with the kitchenware theme I picked up a fun little cupcake decoration set that contains 12 red and white cupcake cases and 12 santa and snowman picks to decorate. This is ideal for some festive baking I have planned for December and I can't wait to buy a few silver sprinkles and get making some Christmas cupcakes now.
Metallic Twine In Jar £2.50 HERE
Lastly I picked up a jar of twine.... which I probably didn't need but it looked cute. I will admit I didn't get why it needed to be in a jar but now I understand that it means there's no chance for the twine getting knotted! Plus I'm sure I will find a use for the jar once I've used up the twine on wrapping up Christmas gifts with. Also for £2.50 you receive a huge 30 metres!
Hope you enjoyed seeing some of my decorations. Happy shopping and don't forget to use a discount code where you can!
Let me know what you love most from what I picked up from Matalan this Christmas!
Fee xo.
Often when I buy random beauty items from eBay I never know how good or bad they will be, especially when it comes to more gimmick-y items. But for the generally low-spend it worth taking the risk and I've found some amazing products this way!
So today I thought I'd share my favourite beauty gimmicks that I've purchased from eBay in the past year and highly recommend! These are possibly items you would easily over look on eBay but have truly helped me out and are worth highlighting.
Eyeshadow Colour Switch Remover
£2.19 EBAY HERE
This is my most favourite beauty gimmick purchase, in fact I feel bad for calling it a gimmick as it's an ingenious products for anyone that has more than a handful of makeup brushes. The aim of the tin containing a dry black sponge is to clean your makeup brushes in between use of different products/shades. You simply swirl your dirty brush over the slightly course dry sponge and within 15 seconds you have a clean brush that can be used again. This is perfect if you have a favourite eyeshadow brush that you would like to used with multiple colours but you haven't been able to in the past. Or if you want to quickly spot clean all of your eyeshadow/powder brushes.
I was sceptical of how well this little tin would preform but I can hand on heart say this is a pretty genius product that I use nearly every time I apply my makeup now. A true eBay beauty gem!
Silicone Makeup Brush Cleaner
£3.99 EBAY HERE
Over the years I've tried quite a few silicone makeup brush cleaner pads and mitts and if I'm honest they can be a bit fiddly to to hold and you still end up with wrinkly prawn fingers! So a few months ago I thought I'd spend a little more and try out a large makeup brush cleaner pad that fits around the plug hole of your sink with suction pads.
With different areas for different brushes and areas for a more deep clean and made from thick silicone this is VERY similar to the £20+ Sigma Brush Spa and does an amazing job of cleaning all brushes. Yes, it's still a bit of a chore but it cuts down on time, give all brushes a thorough clean and no more wrinkly fingers at the end of it!
If you are looking for something that will make brush cleaning easier then this is certainly the product to pick up. A serious bargain!
Foil Nail Wraps
100 for £2.99 EBAY HERE
Ever heard of the beauty hack of wrapping your nails in cotton pads and tin foil to remove stubborn glitter nail polish? Well you buy them pre-made! Okay, maybe super lazy because you could just cut up your own cotton pads and pieces of tin foil but there's still costs involved in buying the products so pre-made ones make sense!
I now use the above foil nail wraps with nail polish remover applied to the pad section when removing a gel manicure but also to remove glitter nail polish - so much easier then rubbing away for 20 minutes!
The foil wraps are ideal if you know you will be indulging in glitter nails over the festive period and will make removal a breeze.
DIY Cotton Facial Sheet Masks
25 Masks for £2.49 EBAY HERE
Sheet masks are certainly popular right now but if you are like me with a huge stash of standard face masks you may not want that extra spend of trying out different sheet masks. But what if you could make your own?!
In the listing above you can pick up as many as 100 cotton sheet masks for only £5.99 which can be soaked in any moisturiser or serum or applied over the top of any face mask you have, even clay based ones. I personally love this idea more than buying individual sachet sheet masks as it's so versatile and you can even batch cut the mask to the exact shape of your face unlike individual sheet masks.
My favourite way now to use one of the DIY cotton sheets is to make it damp and then apply a generous layer of serum to my face and apply the sheet mask over the top, leaving it to sit on the face for 5-10 minutes. If you love face masks or pampering in general just as much as me then this is a way to try out the sheet mask trend on the cheap and experiment with all your other face masks and skincare products.
These four products are my ultimate beauty extras and totally inexpensive! Hail eBay!
Fee xo.
*Cue Home Alone soundtrack*
In less than 100 days it will be Christmas Day and at the rate of how fast this year seems to be going (how it is nearly October?) I'm getting in there early and not taking any chances. I mean there's an actual chance I will blink and it will be mid December!
Also I kind of wanted a good excuse to re-use these wonderful Christmas illustrations again, AND I'm also factoring in that eBay listings from China can take there time... though the items are from a mix of UK and International sellers - don't worry no custom charges though!
P.S I'm currently patting myself on the back for this non-tacky Christmas selection - I think I did pretty good!
Rose Gold Snowflake Necklace
£1.35 HERE
Now I can't say I'd be tempted to wear a snowflake necklace in fear of it looking like it's some kind of Frozen merchandise however this is a stunning rose gold shade and it looks much more grown up and kind of just a subtle nod to Christmas/Winter. An inexpensive novelty necklace that doesn't look tacky! It would also make a lovely little gift I think.
Gold Foil Festive Cushion Covers
£2.45 each HERE
Just yes to these! I don't know how I came across these amazing Christmas cushions but I'm so glad I did! Perfect for slipping over your current cushions and instantly transforming your living room or bed into something much more festive. The listing contains a few more gold foil designs plus lots of other styles - I want them all... but I will be picked up 2 or 3 for my sofa!
Christmas Countdown Chalkboard
£2.49 HERE
For children and adults alike, this is the perfect thing to hang in your home to get you extra excited for Christmas. I love anything like this because it's more than just a plaque and something you have to do each da, plus you can bring it out each year come December 1st!
Retro Christmas Wrapping Paper
Print Phone Cases
99p each HERE
Another find I'm oh so pleased with and have snapped up already! The listing contains some absolutely lovely no-tacky Christmas phone cases. I ordered cases no. 6 & 11 because they are just adorable and as I've alreadt received them I can tell you that they are amazing quality for being only 99p!
Hardback Christmas Planner
£13.94 HERE
If you're a serious Christmas lover than a planner is a must. This keeps everything organised and it just down right Christmas-y! I find Christmas planner generally a bit tacky and cheap looking but this is simple yet pretty and in the listing you can see some of the pages to the planner which look really good. A bit of a treat to yourself but something that will add to your Christmas spirit and can be used throughout the festive period to keep all your ideas and plans in one place.
Set of 6 Snowflake Style Stamps
£1.75 HERE
You can use these in so many ways for craft projects and all things Christmas related. In fact I used these stamps last year and created my own wrapping paper by buying brown parcel paper and using a white ink pad (this is a good one for only £1.89 - lots of colours) and it looked amazing!
Mercury Glass Bauble Fairy
Lights (batter operated)
£8.99 HERE
Aren't these the prettiest fairy lights you ever did see? I purchased some very similar lights from Homesense last Christmas for £19.99, so these are a total bargain. I used my lights at Christmas time however I now keep them around the base of my TV and they look fab. Made from strong glass and with the mercury finish these look lovely both on and off.
Essie Winter Collection Mini Set
£4.00 HERE
This is a lovely Essie set from last year which I actually have. These 3 minis normally costing £12.99 really are lovely and can be used alone or together. Also I find the mini sized Essie polishes just the right size because I don't know anyone that's ever used up a nail polish before! Jiggle Hi Jiggle Low I think it my favourite shade as it's a super metallic light gold/silver, but I also love Jump In My Jumpsuit because it's such a pretty berry raspberry red shade that's ideal for both autumn and winter. Such a bargain!
Large Wooden Light-up Christmas Village Scene
£18.71 HERE
Onto the most special item of my festive round-up and again something I own a similar version of. In fact I have a few of these now that I bring out each Christmas - can you tell I love Christmas? As you can see this is quite a large one at 45cm long so ideal for displaying on a sideboard or window sill. The little village illuminates with a little switch and is battery operated so no wires are on show. Such a lovely decoration for your home that everyone will be impressed by and something that can be brought out year upon year. I may be treating myself to this one!
I won't say I hope this has put you in the festive spirit as it's a little too early. But I do hope you've found some Christmas treats!
Fee xo.
It seems like far too long since I reviewed any brushes from eBay, so today I thought I'd correct that and share a round up of my latest eBay makeup brush buys. These are all incredibly affordable with most of the brushes costing only £1-2, but feeling much more expensive!
8-Piece Rose Gold Makeup Brush Set
£4.99 HERE
This was a set I was excited to receive as they looked amazing in the listing and like no other brushes I'd seen! When they arrived I was instantly impressed, by both the look of them (the swoon-worth textured handles!) and the quality - no chipped coating and ultra soft bristles! In the set you receive 3 face brushes - a foundation brush, angled brush and a blusher/powder brush, along with 4 eye/concealer brushes - a fluffy blending brush. flat lid brush, 2 smaller blending brushes and a pointed crease brush. The are slightly shorter in length than most standard brushes, making them ideal to travel with or just everyday brushes! Out of all the brushes in the set I definitely don't have a least favourite, okay maybe the foundation brush, not because I don't like... it but because I have others that do a better job. But all round I've been impressed with every single one, especially the eye brushes. Expect minimal shedding and fibres that keep their shape after being washed.
I still can't get over how pretty the handle of these look and how all round lovely they are!
P.S. Also available in gold in the listing.
4-Piece Eyeshadow Blending Brush Set
£1.42 HERE
A set of MAC dupe eyeshadow brushes now... for only £1.50, like whaaa!! Seriously I don't know what else you could buy for that price... in fact that's the same price as I paid recently for a bottled drink from a service station! Now I should probably go into detail about which brush is a dupe for what MAC brush, but I only own a single MAC eyeshadow brush, so I can't. However I know what the bristles are like to I'm comparing against that and can say they are definitely dupe brushes. You see the bristle are soft but slightly wiry looking and the shape of them very much reminds me of MAC brushes and are ideal for blending with. You receive 3 natural looking eyeshadow brushes and a single slightly larger black fluffy blending brush.
I've been using all the brushes equal amounts and I like them all as additional blending brushes. I find the black bristled brush ideal for translucent powder to prime the lid and to blend out harsh edges, I also love the middle sized brush as a crease brush. I do have a feeling these may become more splayed out over time and they is some shedding but for only £1.42 you can't complain. In fact if in a few months these are looking a little lack lustre I will be buying some more!
Gold Round Top Kabuki Brush
£1.49 HERE
On to a dupe for a Real Techniques blending kabuki which would normally cost around £9.00... so I nice little saving. Of course some of you may not like buying these kind of non-branded 'dupe' brushes, however I personally like to try them out and have always found them to be really good quality compared to actual fake brushes that scrimp on quality to produce the extra packaging and including the logos.
Other than this brush being an excellent dupe for one of the RT brushes I really cannot get over just how soft the bristles are. It's one of those that you literally sit there brushing over your face until you snap out of it and wonder what you were doing - it's THAT soft. This works exceptionally well with liquid foundations and creates that flawless finish to the skin. Also could be used with cream products as well. Just a lovely lovely brush here.
You can also find the matching 6 piece set including this brush for only £3.54 here - what a bargain!
Rose Gold Small Blusher Brush
£1.11 HERE
Lastly a little impulse buy, just because I liked the look of it... I definitely don't need any more blusher brushes, but oh well! From the tapered handle, to the rose gold ferrule and the perfectly domed shape, I can't get enough of this brush - it's unlike anything else in my brush collection.
With the long tapered handle I've found this can be held further down, achieving the most perfect application with no risk of Aunt Sally-esque cheeks! I've only used this with powder blush so far but already I want a few more to use with my favourite blushes, yes I love it that much! So very impressed with this brush!
With so many lovely brushes here I hope you've found something to treat yourself to!
Fee xo.
For the past few years I've realised that eBay is the best place to buy budget makeup brushes. From as little as £1 I've found some of my favourite makeup brushes that have stood the test of time and are actually the same quality, if not better, than a lot of high street brushes.
I've recently picked up four new brushes that I instantly had to share because they are all amazing and I think it's good to show them outside of the often pretty rubbish stock images on eBay. I also have a pretty amazing product that solves the problem of switching eyeshadow colours without having to switch brushes!
Colour Switch Dupe - £1.75 HERE
First on to the product/dupe that solves the issue of having to switch eyeshadow brushes with every eyeshadow colour you use. I found this product thanks to Gemma of Miss Makeup Magpie (an amazing blog!) and after reading her glowing review I knew I needed to instantly pick it up from eBay for only £1.75. Much like the Vera Mona Color Switch Solo here (£13.50 eep!) this dry sponge housed in a tin removes eyeshadow from your brush with a simple swirl over the sponge, meaning you can then use the brush with another eyeshadow colour and so on. This for me is revolutionary as it means I can use my favourite eye brushes with a number of different shades to create the perfect eye look. This really does work as you can see in the above before and after images and for £1.75 I'm just amazed by it!
Rose Gold Oval Large Brush #1 - £2.96 HERE
With already owning two of these stunning looking oval brushes and being happy with my purchases I decided to try out two more. I went for the largest oval brush that can be used for foundation, powder or bronzer and the smallest of the brushes that can be used for concealing, lip application and apparently eyeshadow. As these brushes are incredibly dense and not to mention soft I decided to avoid using the large oval brush for foundation as I knew it would seep down into the bristles and would be a pain to wash. So I've so far tried it with bronzer to really good effect and though it is large it apply product lightly and blending as it moves over the face. Side note - As large oval brush is so large and the handle is only plastic you do need to be careful not to apply too much pressure to the bridge of the brush. Mine is fine but I feel with too much pressure it could snap!
Rose Gold Small Concealer Brush - £1.14 HERE
As for the teeny tiny oval brush I first tried using it to blend concealer under my eyes and found it just moved product around and didn't do much in the way of blending, but then I decided to bite the bullet and try it as a lip brush with a cream lip product and that's then I loved it! I've never thought of using a brush like this to apply lip products before but I'm now converted as it gives such a precise and even finish. Both brushes will sit very happily in my collection!
Next onto a wonderful powder brush that looks so fancy for the price with it's all silver metal handle and pointed tip. As you can most likely see from the images this brush is incredibly soft and perfect shaped making it ideal for sweeping and buffing loose powder over the face. It's also clearly made from synthetic fibres as it catches the light in a certain way - something very important to me! I've so far being using this with my favourite Clarins Loose Mineral Powder and couldn't be more pleased with it. A dream brush here!
Marc Jacobs Bronzer Brush Dupe - £1.99 HERE
I love a good dupe and with the Marc Jacob bronzer brush costing £50+ I was eager to see how this £2 brush fared. Thankfully the brush arrived in record speed in just over a week and a half from China and instantly I knew it would either make an amazing setting powder brush or all over bronzing brush. From comparing images of the Marc Jacobs brush the only visual difference I can see is that the dupe brush isn't as dome shaped to the tip but as for size and handle shape they look spot on. Again this is an incredibly soft synthetic brush that feels amazing and works well with bronzer or setting powder. I'd say the brush is a little too large to use contour/bronze the face and is more of a body brush but I've seen this also said about the much more expensive brush. As I love the above silver handled brush to apply powder with this will be used to apply bronzer over my chest and shoulders. Another fab brush!
Hope you've found some makeup brush gems to pick up here!
Fee xo.
Remember by eBay Bargains - Brush Edition post last week? Well a few of the brushes I mentioned I bought turned up the next day. Woop woop for speedy delivery! But the best thing is that they are actually amazing! Like I needed to blog about them ASAP, amazing!
All 3 brushes came from the same seller and cost £6.21 in total... yes, that's for all of them including p&p! And with each brush offering something different and unlike anything else I own I'm just so so pleased with them. Below is a more detailed look at each and how I've been using them.
The Fabulous Skin Foundation Brush
A.K.A Bare Minerals Perfecting Face Brush Dupe
£1.79 - eBay HERE
First up my favourite of the bunch! This is a wonderful foundation brush that offers something totally different - a crop circle! Okay, it's technically called a fluid reservoir and it's aimed at giving a no mess, flawless application... very much like the Bare Minerals Perfecting Face Brush which is a pricey £24.00. What I love about this brush other than it feeling so so soft is that foundation is almost held in the brush and evenly buffed into the skin for such an amazing finish. This truly does give such just a perfect application and feels so different to use even compared to a standard foundation buffing/blending brush. Already purchased another one of these in case the eBay seller stops selling them! Really very impressed with this.
The Beautiful Kabuki Cheek Brush
A.K.A Nars Kabuki Artisan Brush Dupe
£2.48 - eBay HERE
So this was certainly a wishful purchase as I mainly bought it on the fact it looked oh so similar to the ridiculously expensive Nars Artisan Brush (it's £43 FYI?!) and I had my fingers crossed it would actually be a good brush as well. And thankfully it is! Of course I don't own the Nars Artisan Brush to compare it against however I'm suitably impressed with it. The domed shape much like the Nars brush is ideal for applying highlighter or blusher to the cheeks and is quite precise; you can really focus on the exact part of the cheek you want to place product. But what I really love about the brush is how light it feels on the skin, it just brushes over giving a wash of colour that you can build up. So if you are heavy handed when it comes to applying blush or love that beautiful flushed cheeks look, I know I do, then this is the brush for you. I also love, love, love the hand-spun handle - just perfect!
The Chiseled Cheeks Contouring Brush
£1.95 - eBay HERE
Lastly a different kind of contouring brush for me. This isn't a dupe for anything however if you love to contour you need to try this brush! Unlike other contouring brush I own this seems to be the ideal size and shape to get under the cheek bone area and really adds good definition before going in with a soft fluffy blending brush to blend everything out and get rid of them harsh lines. Also this seems to be ideal for both powder and cream bronzers as the tip of the brush can be blotted into whichever product, picking up just the right amount. I can see this fast becoming my favourite brush to contour with!
These really are some amazing brushes for the price!
Fee xo.
*Cue Christmas music*
A slightly different eBay Bargains for you today with bargains of a Christmas variety. You see eBay is an amazing place for Christmas decorations but due to delivery times you need to get in early! So if you are after a bargain then proceed in reading this post...
1. East of India Santa Please Stop Here Sign (£2.95 here) - This is a cute little vintage sign from East of India, one of my favourite stationary/accessory brands. The sign could be hung from a window or even your fireplace as it's nice and light weight.
2. Washi Heart Printed Tape (99p here) - This year I've decided sellotape is out and cute washi tape is in, especially with simple brown paper for pretty wrapped gifts. I love this specific design but there are tons more designs in the listing.
3. Merry Christmas Garland (£3.99 here) - I love hanging garlands like this. They seem to fill a blank wall really nicely and are most importantly cheap! This is actually made out of wood so really good quality as well.
4. Wooden Star Decorations x 10 (£4.99 here) - Now I was hmm'ing whether to include these as my savvy-ness was doubting if 10 decorations for £4.99 is that cheap. However I decided to include them for the craft element of them. I think these would be a lovely project to do with children or even alone for either making your own hanging decorations or gift tags. You could decorate them in any way you wished and bring them out each year. Also these are available for click & collect at Argos which is handy.
5. Silver Lantern Lights - battery operated (£6.99 here) - Another click & collect item from Argos that I just loved! These beautiful fairy lights are just such a bargain and can of course be used all year round. What I love about them most, other than how they look, is that they cast little pretty shadows. They also come in a range of colours. Will be picking some of these up for around my fireplace!
6. Large Hessian Sack (£1.99 here) -Now you may be wondering why I'm showing you a boring potato sack! But these are the exact sacks that are made into festive santa sacks to put presents into - but at generally £8+ they aren't a cheap option! So this would be another little crafty project were you could stitch on some decorations (I could see mine being decorated with little multi-coloured pom-poms!) or just tied up with a gift tag like above.
7. Cute Father Christmas Cushion Cover (£2.65 here) - Last but not least a super cheap festive cushion cover! I love the design of this, really cute and unique. This will fit over average sized cushions making it a really inexpensive way to change up your decor. The listing also has some other designs that are really nice.
Hope you've enjoyed this post!
Fee xo.
Hope you've enjoyed this post!
Fee xo.
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